hi!
I have a 78 lt board and a 85 lt traditional boards(1998) and I would like to buy a second hand 105 lt board (2006 F2 or JP) to use in light winds (3-4.5 bfts/7-19knots). I sail in Greece near athens where the conditions are very choppy even in light winds. so i would like a board to sail really fast,comfortably with control on chop. (the boards that i am thinking of are F2 FREEMOVE ELIMINATOR, FREECARVE STOKE, FREERIDE/FREERACE HORNET, SLALOM SX and JP XCITE RIDE and SUPERX). so,on sailing on choppy water(jibing,speed,control,overpowered conditions) is it better a freeride,slalom,freestyle or superx board?would you suggest any of the f2/jp models I mentioned above?
thanks a lot

As the Guru is currently on holiday I will try to answer.

I haven't tried any of the F2 boards you mention but I have tried the JPs.

The Xcite ride is a very nice board in flat water but IMO struggles in the chop. That leaves the SuperX and the Slalom. The slalom is very fast but is built very light so is easilly damaged. It is OK in chop but it is not really happy there. The SuperX in the conditions you describe does it all. It's fast, controllable and fun.

In the Starboard range you have 3 options. The first would be the Kombat. It sails a lot bigger than it's volume would suggest so if you are going to use 6.5m sails and under then the 97ltr would be a good option. It is not the fastest board out there but still has good speed. It is a joy to sail and turns very well. With a wave fin attached, such as a select 26.5 X1 wave, it becomes a very good light wind wave board and handles stronger wind and chop really well.

Next is the Stype 104 or the Carve 101. Both are good in chop with the carve being easier to sail and turn while still fast. The Stype is a little harder to sail but is very fast so It depends what you are after.

thanks. the s-type sounds good while it is faster than the carve 101. i think it is a super-x category, as also the JP superx you suggested. so i think this category of boards would be what i am looking after, better than freestyle,slalom etc.
thanks a lot,very helpful

Hi,

If it's of help, I can give some input from someone who only owns JP kit: Radical Wave 74, Freestyle Wave 85, Freestyle 100, Slalom 114.

It sounds like you enjoy going fast in straight lines and around corners at top speed but want something that will allow you to do so in chop.

First off, in choppy conditions don't even consider the freestyle board. They are very 'slappy' and do not carve well when overpowered in confused water. They are ideal if you want to learn slidey freestyle tricks (or can already do them) but not a board for blasting. 9 times out of 10 I will be on my freestyle board because I like doing tricks but in chop I will change down to the FSW85.

The slalom isn't too different to the super-x but is a bit wider and made to carry oversized sails when racing. They are a handful in chop because they are designed to be sailed on the edge of control and a piece of chop may tip you over that edge! They are however the fastest boards in the JP range.

The super-x is also very fast but a bit easier to control than the slalom and easier to gybe. It would be better suited to your conditions.

It is also worth considering the freestyle wave category. They are early to plane, fast (although not as quick as the super-x) but loose and very maneouverable. Carving 360s and the like are much easier on a FSW than the super-x. They would feel more similar to your trad waveboards than a super-x would.

For you, the choice is really between straight line speed and carving ability. If you want a looser feel and better gybes, the FSW would be a better option but if you want that extra couple of knots speed and can put up with less carving ability then the super-x would be the one to go for. It's funny, whenever I take a GPS out it doesn't seem to make much difference what board I am on... I always seem to get similar speeds out of it!

Just remember that the super-x board is designed to go as fast as possible in order to win races. The thinking is that pro riders can gybe and spock on almost anything so manouverability is a secondary consideration.

Mike

hi mike, your opinion really helps. everything is much clearer in my mind now. i hadnt thought of a fsw before. but do you think that i large fsw (105 lt) in light wind would maintain the characteristics of freestylewave?i mean would it still be maneouverable and easy to gybe? and mainly would it sail comfortably in hard chop(as maybe the superx would)?

Sorry for not getting back to you but I have been away for a couple of weeks. I haven't sailed the FSW102 so I can't say exactly how it would feel but I would expect the same kind of contrast between the ranges in that size as there is in the smaller sizes (n.b. I have sailed the FSW85, Super-X 86 and Slalom 84 on several occasions).

In the 85L region, the FSW really does feel like the midway point between a trad waveboard and a modern freestyle (i.e. earlier planing than a wave board but more manouverable than a freestyle... with respect carving manouvres).

The Slalom is very technical to sail and can scare many sailors so much that they won't sail it again! If the water is very choppy then there is a very real danger of catching a rail and wiping out quite spectacularly.

The Super-X is kind of between the slalom and freestyle wave. In many ways it feels like a slalom board to sail but it is more forgiving in confused conditions. It is safer than the slalom in a straight line and easier to gybe.

If you want to go fast and gybe at each end then you will probably enjoy the super-x more than the FSW but if you want to do something like upwind/downwind 360s or try modern freestyle in the future then a FSW would be the board of choice.

If possible, your best bet would be to find somewhere that you can try the boards first of course. Weight of the sailor, skill level and style of sailing can affect which board feels most comfortable.

Mike