I've seen boards with damage on the deck near the rail on the raised part, so its not a fantasy. I'm wondering why that damage happened.
It took me while to go through my videos to find this still, but it you climbed on the board with the sail under the water would a recessed deck so lower mastbase put more pressure under the mast onto the board? 80cm wide and 125l. Flat deck.
I uphaul this board more than my other and there are no dings on the deck. I dont actually drop the sail or fall in much on this board though, and can water start the 8.5m with a bit of effort.
The Ezzy mastpads look thicker than some other brands. It could be the damaged boards I've seen have had a sails with thinner pads, something on the extension connected with the board, a lot of climbing back on board, light and fragile board or whatever.
With the weight of the sailor climbing on the board, tilting it, and the weight of all the water on the sail, would a recessed deck give more pressure under the mast? Anyone want to volunteer and stick a finger under the mast?