Great overhead view in that vid showing DW surfing..

Awesome footage!

An excellent video!

Is it just me or are they trying to hide the nose shape of the falcon? Seems pointier than the nose I've seen on the prototypes / on the website models.

That overhead footage was spectacular though

No it's not just you.

I'm going to be fascinated to see one of these in the flesh.

Yes -really great overhead DW footage.

The nose shape shown in the vid and on the website is on a proto not production board. The photo shoot was on Maui and was conducted before the final design had been settled on.

The final production nose and overall shape tested far better than that version in all conditions. Downwinding is where the new board excels though so it might be my first year off a Tiki shape.

Going to fun cross testing this shape with the Maliko, Ace and new JP Ocean. Spoilt for choice in the bumps this year.

Just unboxed today.

I had a strike in a few weeks ago for a repair to the nose from what I could tell its prity much the same basic construction as last year just useing carbon/inegra instead on the deck, still what looks to be just glass on the bottom which seams a bit much for the price tag. I see allso they have done away with the t stringer. From what I gather the strike is supper tippy and the chap has already sold this one on and with the rounded hull I can belive it. Weight was just about 9.5kg. The skin thickness felt ok but you could easily compress it with a single finger so I would say a touch more durable than last year but inegra is a bitch when it comes to repairs so expect to pay more if you have to take it in to some one.
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I accompanied the owner of the Fanatic Falcon that surf4fun posted photo's of for his first downwinder on it today, judging by the sound of YEEEEWWW!!! as he paddled off into the distance I think we have one very happy owner.
Got to admit I love the look of the board as well, however if I was to go red it would be the wider version for me......it got me thinking but I do have plans for something else.

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tightlines said..
I accompanied the owner of the Fanatic Falcon that surf4fun posted photo's of for his first downwinder on it today, judging by the sound of YEEEEWWW!!! as he paddled off into the distance I think we have one very happy owner.
Got to admit I love the look of the board as well, however if I was to go red it would be the wider version for me......it got me thinking but I do have plans for something else.

That's either a very narrow board or he has very long arms..

That nose does look very Maliko Jav'ish..

Wish I had skills to paddle a 24.75'' DW board.. It looks very good.

What's the bottom look like?

The narrow Strike has a recommended max rider weight of 80kgs and the wider one is 90kgs (just under 200lbs). So these aren't boards for big guys.

We seem to be in the strange position where the big brands are producing models that are the kind of extreme designs that you'd normally expect from a custom shaper who is designing to a very particular brief. In the case of the Strike it looks like a board designed for a pro rider who wants to do a flat water sprint on a millpond. I guess this is what happens if each year you feel the need to bring out a radically different design from the previous year in order to try to separate people from their money. I would much rather that the brands followed the "Volkswagon Golf" design evolution: start with a good basic design and then tweak it each year in a rolling development program that builds on each year's successes to mean that your design is seriously sorted.

The Falcon however seems to have gone the other way - they started with an extreme design and this year it looks a lot less extreme, and now is actually something I might be interested in owning. If the Falcon sells well (especially vs. the Strike), perhaps Fanatic will learn something about the perils and advantages of extreme specialist designs vs. continuous evolution.

Well the back looks a bit like this...

and the front a bit like this...

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magillamelb said...
Well the back looks a bit like this...

and the front a bit like this...

Yeah, well the America's Cup sailing event came to the UK recently, at Portsmouth. They had problems racing one day because the wind barely reached 15 knots. Then the next day it was over 20 knots (as it often is) and the event was cancelled because the wind was too strong. So these massively expensive specialist boats can only work in about a 5 knot wind window...sheesh...I hope that SUP design doesn't go down a similar route.

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Area10 said..
perhaps Fanatic will learn something about the perils and advantages of extreme specialist designs vs. continuous evolution.

Having an extreme design that sell in very small quantity can be a deliberate move: it generates buzz, articles, blog posts... free advertisement.
Also it doesn't mean the "bread and butter" shapes do not follow a continuous evolution...

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The Falcon however seems to have gone the other way - they started with an extreme design and this year it looks a lot less extreme, and now is actually something I might be interested in owning. If the Falcon sells well (especially vs. the Strike), perhaps Fanatic will learn something about the perils and advantages of extreme specialist designs vs. continuous evolution.

The Strike is certainly a more difficult board to ride than the Falcon but they are aimed at different markets. In the past, Fanatic tried to do one model in different sizes to make choice easier, however, there was always a demand (slight as it might be) for a specific flatwater race board. The Strike was produced for the small number of paddlers who wanted this type of board.

This year's Falcon is certainly going to be easier to ride, particularly downwind for the average paddler. With the new rounded rails it seems to follow the swells easier and doesn't track nearly as much as the boxier rails of the past. I paddled it on flatwater last night and it seems to glide well also, though obviously not as well as specific flatwater boards. It will be interesting to see how the two widths compare - 24 vs 26. I suspect the 26 is going to be the popular width.

The nose has been modelled on the Australian clubbie paddle boards and is actually quite different to the Maliko Jav DJ. I even jumped on the new yellow down wind board last week DJ and liked it alot....just don't tell JB.

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colas said...

Area10 said..
perhaps Fanatic will learn something about the perils and advantages of extreme specialist designs vs. continuous evolution.

Having an extreme design that sell in very small quantity can be a deliberate move: it generates buzz, articles, blog posts... free advertisement.
Also it doesn't mean the "bread and butter" shapes do not follow a continuous evolution...

This is a good point. But is that *really* what is happening here? Which are the bread-and-butter models that are following a continuous evolution?

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NNSUP said...

The Falcon however seems to have gone the other way - they started with an extreme design and this year it looks a lot less extreme, and now is actually something I might be interested in owning. If the Falcon sells well (especially vs. the Strike), perhaps Fanatic will learn something about the perils and advantages of extreme specialist designs vs. continuous evolution.

The Strike is certainly a more difficult board to ride than the Falcon but they are aimed at different markets. In the past, Fanatic tried to do one model in different sizes to make choice easier, however, there was always a demand (slight as it might be) for a specific flatwater race board. The Strike was produced for the small number of paddlers who wanted this type of board.

Of course. But this was not my point. My point is that Fanatic have had perfectly good flatwater boards in the past, and it might have been better to tweak those each year in a continuous evolution than to launch a completely different shape which is unlikely to have had sufficient development time to have all possible shortcomings ironed out.

But maybe then people would be less likely to update to the new board each year because making wild claims about how much better the new model is than the last would seem less plausible. That is what is really going on here IMO. Change for marketing's sake rather than real improvement.

As I say, however, the new Falcon seems more of an evolution and I suspect it will hit the sweet spot for more people this year as a consequence. What we need now is a 17ft version :)

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My point is that Fanatic have had perfectly good flatwater boards in the past, and it might have been better to tweak those each year in a continuous evolution than to launch a completely different shape which is unlikely to have had sufficient development time to have all possible shortcomings ironed out.

Fanatic have only ever done one flat water board apart from their white board years ago. Last year's flatwater board wasn't great so they've tried something new. At least they're listening to people who are making constructive criticism.

I will try and make a short comparison between the 2014/2015 fanatic falcon flawater wich I have ridden a lot and the all new Strike. Both in the 14x 26 version .
The 2014/2015 version is very easy board to paddle stable, with lots of volume and performs well in a wide range of conditions, it even handles a moderate downwind conditions. The new board is a whole different story, it feels tippy when standing around but its ok after a short while, it feels fast and it track better than the old model. Despite the tippyness it goes ok around bouys. It can't see it performing at all in downwinders og in BOP conditions due to the nose configuration.
It is super ligth and weel built. It is a pure flatwater rocket- not something I would pick myself but I see a market for it....