I have an F2 Ride 277 (103L) left over from when I was learning. I still use it on marginal days since it will float me well and I can uphaul on it. Suits 6 - 7m sails the best.

Its a fun bump and jump board, easy to gybe, and eats up the choppy ocean provided you move the straps to the inboard positions.

My only gripe is that it is pretty slow. Can still get the heart going, but I've never got it over about 28 knots.

Hi,

Can't advise about the HiFly, but the F2 Ride 277 (103 Litres) is definitely NOT a Freestyle board. It's a dedicated slalom board and was very fast in its day. Length 277, width 57.5 and weight 7.5kg. It came new with an F2 Slalom 34 fin which was slightly swept backwards. Listed sails sizes were 4.6 - 7.2m.

Because of its width, its a touch slow to get on the plane but once there, the top speed was very respectable, especially if a dedicated Race sail was powering it.

I had an F2 Ride 282 (115 Litres) and was extremely pleased with it. After letting one of my friends sail it (it was still new), he went and bought the 277. After sailing it for about 4 months, he told me that it was the finest board he had ever sailed and he's still got it. He's a VERY experienced windsurfer and his praise for the 277 still rings in my head.

I kept my 282 in the roof of the garage, even after I upgraded to a JP Supersport 116 (couldn't bear to part with the 282) and only sold it last year to get some space back in the garage. Still not sure I did the right thing.

If you go to the F2, be careful of the deck grip, because it's probably worn down and become slippery. Nothing a sugar deck (from a dedicated surfboard repairer) couldn't fix. The footstraps might be worn, too.

Porka, thanks for the info. For higher speeds, you might care to reduce the size of the fin. A 28cm fin can be matched to a 6.5m Race sail. In a straight line: unbeatable. Pointing: takes real "touch" to stop it spinning out.

Hope this helps,

Regards,

WindmanV

I had an F2 ride 103 litre. Great all rounder. Mine just got a bit tired in the end so I gave it to a mate to store/use.

WindmanV said...

Hi,

Can't advise about the HiFly, but the F2 Ride 277 (103 Litres) is definitely NOT a Freestyle board. It's a dedicated slalom board and was very fast in its day. Length 277, width 57.5 and weight 7.5kg. It came new with an F2 Slalom 34 fin which was slightly swept backwards. Listed sails sizes were 4.6 - 7.2m.

Because of its width, its a touch slow to get on the plane but once there, the top speed was very respectable, especially if a dedicated Race sail was powering it.

I had an F2 Ride 282 (115 Litres) and was extremely pleased with it. After letting one of my friends sail it (it was still new), he went and bought the 277. After sailing it for about 4 months, he told me that it was the finest board he had ever sailed and he's still got it. He's a VERY experienced windsurfer and his praise for the 277 still rings in my head.

I kept my 282 in the roof of the garage, even after I upgraded to a JP Supersport 116 (couldn't bear to part with the 282) and only sold it last year to get some space back in the garage. Still not sure I did the right thing.

If you go to the F2, be careful of the deck grip, because it's probably worn down and become slippery. Nothing a sugar deck (from a dedicated surfboard repairer) couldn't fix. The footstraps might be worn, too.

Porka, thanks for the info. For higher speeds, you might care to reduce the size of the fin. A 28cm fin can be matched to a 6.5m Race sail. In a straight line: unbeatable. Pointing: takes real "touch" to stop it spinning out.

Hope this helps,

Regards,

WindmanV

Hey, talking about the F2 Ride I have an F2 Ride 279 (116Ltrs).
It's a pretty fast board. If you have a decent sail and fin and compare it to similar sized newer boards I'm sure it would do well. You could spend a lot more on a new board that might'nt be much quicker. Shaped by Peter Thommen who has a good reputation. Would be very interesting to have a data base of top speeds recorded for each board model. Getting back to the main question, they definately arent a freestyle shape or type board.

Mmm...Thanks..dont think they are what Im after..Be nice to have speed but Im after early planing ..+ it would be nice to have a board that was more forgiving to gybe than mine.

Grr [}:)]was all set to go for a sail today..they keep lowering the wind forecast..now its b 15kts or under..I need a new board!

Gestalt said...
and of course the nitschke special......

My wife absolutely loves the Nitschke specials.

re: rocker lines on the JP boards:

The straight rocker inside the channel makes the boards
1. Plane Earlier
2. Go Faster
3. Keep the Speed through the Jibe

The areas to the left and right of the channel offer more curve (more 'rocker') making the JP boards:
4. Loose
5. Very Responsive

The channel offers an additional edge to push against for:
6. More Grip in Turns
7. More Grip to go Upwind

The increased V within the channel gives:
8. Great Control

you mean like this one......

btw neither the freestyle wave or the 3s is a pure freestyle board. Yes freestyle-waves make good next level freeride boards, there is a difference- remember your shaper trying to tell you his freestyle boards arent for waves but you wouldnt listen to him either. Footstrap position is bs, they are factored to have wider position, wider tails have helped them to get lift. Look at what a freestyle board is meant to do- plane early, get off the water & slide. Alternatively a slalom board is designed to stay on the water, have good directional control & be powered onto the plane. All of that is largely controlled by the rocker line, how can they be the same?

Thanks Gestalt.Now if only I can persuade someone to purchase a JP freestyle for my birthday..

Hi, again, Sboardcrazy,

Many years ago at Gnotuk beach in Vic, we had a 65kg sailor named Chinese Mark. We had to be very careful if he was the first one on the water, because he could plane using at least a 1 square meter smaller sail than any of the rest of us (around 75 kg) could get going in. Therefore your weight and sailing aspirations are directly in line with what I saw with Mark.

Mark used a first-generation Mistral Explosion, which was the first (what we'd call today a) wide-tailed board. Really stood out in its day, but you wouldn't even consider it to be a wide-tail now (although the tail still stands out because it is very square). It was renowned for early planing and fast speeds (it was advertised as a race board). As we're talking about 1993, these boards would probably be right in your price bracket. I still see them here in Vic, so I know they are available.

For info, here are the specs of the board:

Available in CHS and XR construction, which was written on the side of the board near the word "Explosion" (CGI gave a board weight of = 9.1kg and XR = 7.9 kg) Length = 288, width = 58 cm, vol = 128 litres. Sorry, I don't have a spec for fin length (but it was either a slalom 31 or 34). If you are considering a board of this age, use your fingertips to heavily press all over the deck, checking for soft spots (water entry). You might use these specs to compare to ANY board your are considering.

Mark used to plane very early, but at about 18 - 20 knots, he was struggling to hold anything down (including wave boards) and I think that you might have the same problem, unless you have specialised wave board/sail combos.

The Explosion's square tail allowed it to easily plane through a gybe, because of the volume in its tail.

I owned a similar Explosion and can still remember how "right" the board felt when I first got on it (upgraded from a Bic).

If you are looking for early planing, IMHO the following are critical:

Overall width of the board, width of the board at the one-foot-off-the-tail mark, weight of the board and fin length.

You can very the pointing ability by changing the fin length and most magazines suggest that you have two fins and preferably 3, to take account of water state, sail size and wind strength. Mistral slalom boards still use a Powerbox fitting and a screw that does not need a screwdriver to loosen/tighten, should you need to swap fins. Make sure you have the screw if you buy an old Mistral and you should also be aware that these screws came in 2-different lengths.

Others may care to comment on any of the above, but I hope it helps you.

Regards,

WindmanV

Gestalt said...

you mean like this one......

I just could not take it anymore who designs this ****? Do you really think this was a ground breaking idea? I'm all for having a go for the sake of it, but don't put yourself forward as an authority and then go on to describe such dribble as using slalom rockers' on freestyle boards, rockers are not described as slalom and freestyle. The word straight and (let me see) oh yeah rocker tends to describe the bottom of a board - so where did the slalom rocker come from. An what is a freetyle rail?

I've seen boxy, tucked, thin and thick - which of these is freestyle. Mate whoever you are - do you actually windsurf?

And yes i chose a login close to yours in the vain hope you would take notice and get an idea.

sboardcrazy - ask yourself what you want the board to do, whaere are your skill levels at and ultimately how much money do you have to spend. Then if you can test ride what you like, if you can't read reviews (mind you a number of those will be biased - even magazine ones, as most of the reviewers are pros or expert level sailors), and finally talk to your shop. These guys want you to come back - so they will care as to whether the final product does what you want.

Rant over.

'Tis orright Getsalt...

http://gpsteamchallenge.com.au/rankings/individual

When the data drops, the bs stops

Well this topic has certainly got some comments!
I may not reply to all but Im taking notice..I suppose Im a bit biased towards as modern a board as i can get for my buck as i already have a 96 model one & would like to feel the benefits of a newer model..I was thinking weight is an issue too as i have to lift it up onto the roof of my hatchback & even the waveboard is a strain to get up there after a hard days sail..Good idea re test sail..advantage of buying locally.Maybe I should see if anyone out sailing locally has a board i can try with my rig.Id probably be stoked with most boards just because Ive never sailed a modern one to compare them with.Even the old 9ft windaction slalom I had from the 80's would at least let me get out & sail when its fluky..Still it would be nice to have something post 2000..

you put a lot of words in my mouth there MK.

so if i suggest a freestyle board i am missleading people but if i suggest a FSW i'm on the money? that's some funny stuff, they're such different boards.

a real moot point.

thanks.

The term "Freestyle Wave" is a load of marketing rubbish.

Maybe "Bump and Jump" would be a better description for boards labelled as such?