If you were buying a slalom board (around the 100ltr mark) for mostly bay sailing to carry sails between 5.0 and 7.0 for a 75kgs sailor, what would you buy and why?

Bullet point answers. The more I look, the more I see.

I want to be "sold" on a board. Cheers.

Just go out and try demos.... we'll all tell you our board is the bestest.....

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seanhogan said..

Just go out and try demos.... we'll all tell you our board is the bestest.....

+1 Yep and everyone is different

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seanhogan said..

Just go out and try demos.... we'll all tell you our board is the bestest.....

Fair point. I suppose this begs another question, is there a significant difference between the options or are they all pretty much the same (for an advanced recreational sailor)?

Most slalom boards these days are pretty good and it's in most cases its the rider that makes the difference.

The boards will have different personalities in the he way they ride and feel and some may have a particular strength which stands out. Eg. A board may be a little faster but takes a bit more effort to control. Only you can decide what suits your style and sailing location.

In my case I ave a bias for boards that are kinder to my thrashed knees. :)

Not to dismay you BUT the sail choice also makes a huge difference.

There After using Pryde RS slaloms for a few years i tried out some severne blades and a TR 8, they all felt really different in power distribution and handling.

To make matters worse fin selection will change how a board rides as it directly controls the amount of lift.

The best way to try out boards is to go to your local spot and ask friends to borrow their boards.
Put your own rig on the board and try it out to see if it woeks for you. This allows you have the harness lines and sail tuned for your style so you dont have to mess around to get a good feel for the board.

+ 1 : exactly what I did, borrowed the boards, stuck my rig and fin on them and went for a lot of runs to "feel" the board.

don't discount 'free-race' style boards either - the bay is a pretty crazy, windy rough place to sail and on a 5-6m day a slalom board can be pretty full on, and won't be much fun, or fast if not in control

demo, demo, demo, and if you can.... demo

Demo is the best way to go. But don't forget to include a Carbon Art SL58 with your other demo's.

Based on one ride of a fanatic 113 L and never riding a slalom board before or any other style other than a wave board, I would recommend that one !. It took me ages to get comfortable as not use to extreme foot strap position on the rails, if sailing in choppy conditions I would think something with a more relax strap position would be easier and more enjoyable.
But in smooth water and a 7 m sail, I had a absolute blast and can see why people get hooked on the speed buzz. It was always had to fathom when my only experience of late had been in the waves.
But back to the topic just search the buy and sell section for the right size and price and buy a second hand one, and get used to that one. I don't think the major brands make a dud one, just different petsonalities or levels of comfort v speed.

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Sputnik11 said..

If you were buying a slalom board (around the 100ltr mark) for mostly bay sailing to carry sails between 5.0 and 7.0 for a 75kgs sailor, what would you buy and why?

Purely from a perspective of performance, I'd buy an iSonic 97 (2012 wood model 64wide) from my limited experience. I love riding this board as I find it very comfortable (others may disagree) and have full confidence to push it in very sloppy conditions (open ocean). Turns off the wind with ease and goes upwind and gybes beautifully and with a good fin you can be really aggressive (heavy footed). Planes very quickly and I use sails between 6.3 and 7.8 and still has just enough float to slog my 90+kgs home if wind dies out.

PS - you owe me 2 cents.

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sausage said..

Sputnik11 said..

If you were buying a slalom board (around the 100ltr mark) for mostly bay sailing to carry sails between 5.0 and 7.0 for a 75kgs sailor, what would you buy and why?

Purely from a perspective of performance, I'd buy an iSonic 97 (2012 wood model 64wide) from my limited experience. I love riding this board as I find it very comfortable (others may disagree) and have full confidence to push it in very sloppy conditions (open ocean). Turns off the wind with ease and goes upwind and gybes beautifully and with a good fin you can be really aggressive (heavy footed). Planes very quickly and I use sails between 6.3 and 7.8 and still has just enough float to slog my 90kgs home if wind dies out.

PS - you owe me 2 cents.

+1

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sausage said..

Sputnik11 said..

If you were buying a slalom board (around the 100ltr mark) for mostly bay sailing to carry sails between 5.0 and 7.0 for a 75kgs sailor, what would you buy and why?

Purely from a perspective of performance, I'd buy an iSonic 97 (2012 wood model 64wide) from my limited experience. I love riding this board as I find it very comfortable (others may disagree) and have full confidence to push it in very sloppy conditions (open ocean). Turns off the wind with ease and goes upwind and gybes beautifully and with a good fin you can be really aggressive (heavy footed). Planes very quickly and I use sails between 6.3 and 7.8 and still has just enough float to slog my 90+kgs home if wind dies out.

PS - you owe me 2 cents.

Interesting comments Brian. I sold my isonic 97 wood because it *didn't* do all the things you listed! Bought an Exocet RS instead which has been good so far. I guess this means different boards suit different people - the importance of trying a demo if you can. Especially with Port Phillip Bay, local experience and feedback on the beach would be the best guide - if most people are riding FSW or freerace boards then maybe full on slalom isn't the best option.

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jamesf said..

sausage said..

Sputnik11 said..

If you were buying a slalom board (around the 100ltr mark) for mostly bay sailing to carry sails between 5.0 and 7.0 for a 75kgs sailor, what would you buy and why?

Purely from a perspective of performance, I'd buy an iSonic 97 (2012 wood model 64wide) from my limited experience. I love riding this board as I find it very comfortable (others may disagree) and have full confidence to push it in very sloppy conditions (open ocean). Turns off the wind with ease and goes upwind and gybes beautifully and with a good fin you can be really aggressive (heavy footed). Planes very quickly and I use sails between 6.3 and 7.8 and still has just enough float to slog my 90+kgs home if wind dies out.

PS - you owe me 2 cents.

Interesting comments Brian. I sold my isonic 97 wood because it *didn't* do all the things you listed! Bought an Exocet RS instead which has been good so far. I guess this means different boards suit different people - the importance of trying a demo if you can. Especially with Port Phillip Bay, local experience and feedback on the beach would be the best guide - if most people are riding FSW or freerace boards then maybe full on slalom isn't the best option.

James, I'm hearing you - "what works for one is a dog for another". I recently got a Falcon 89 (60cm wide) as I had heard only good things about them but after numerous tweekings and trying several fins I'm buggered if I can get comfortable on the thing. It's as fast as the iSonic but I have to expend twice the energy just keeping it altogether when going for it. Maybe I'm just heavily conditioned to ride iSonics and anything else seems foreign. I would love to have the opportunity to demo gear but unfortunately living in a small regional centre with the closest shop being 700km away makes it impossible to try before you buy in 99% of cases.

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sausage said..

jamesf said..

sausage said..

Sputnik11 said..

If you were buying a slalom board (around the 100ltr mark) for mostly bay sailing to carry sails between 5.0 and 7.0 for a 75kgs sailor, what would you buy and why?

Purely from a perspective of performance, I'd buy an iSonic 97 (2012 wood model 64wide) from my limited experience. I love riding this board as I find it very comfortable (others may disagree) and have full confidence to push it in very sloppy conditions (open ocean). Turns off the wind with ease and goes upwind and gybes beautifully and with a good fin you can be really aggressive (heavy footed). Planes very quickly and I use sails between 6.3 and 7.8 and still has just enough float to slog my 90+kgs home if wind dies out.

PS - you owe me 2 cents.

Interesting comments Brian. I sold my isonic 97 wood because it *didn't* do all the things you listed! Bought an Exocet RS instead which has been good so far. I guess this means different boards suit different people - the importance of trying a demo if you can. Especially with Port Phillip Bay, local experience and feedback on the beach would be the best guide - if most people are riding FSW or freerace boards then maybe full on slalom isn't the best option.

James, I'm hearing you - "what works for one is a dog for another". I recently got a Falcon 89 (60cm wide) as I had heard only good things about them but after numerous tweekings and trying several fins I'm buggered if I can get comfortable on the thing. It's as fast as the iSonic but I have to expend twice the energy just keeping it altogether when going for it. Maybe I'm just heavily conditioned to ride iSonics and anything else seems foreign. I would love to have the opportunity to demo gear but unfortunately living in a small regional centre with the closest shop being 700km away makes it impossible to try before you buy in 99% of cases.

I've already tested the 2013 Isonic 97 for you :) - its awesome

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sausage said..
I'd buy an iSonic 97 (2012 wood model 64wide).

Get the two for one deal

Demo the gear if you can .If you cant get it through the shops ask local sponsered sailors for a blast on their gear..

Hey Sputty, I road iSonics in bay conditions for quite a while, but changed few years ago to Futuras. These boards feel better for me in choppy conditions and I can sail faster as well, I guess cause I am a less skilled sailor. If I sailed in flatter conditions then I would still be on slalom boards for sure.

I tried my 100 litre Patrik 64.5cm wide slalom board in winds up to 30 knots with a 5.6m.

Not as fast as my narrower i87 Sonic but the ride on the Patrik is pure free-ride,hundred times softer than my old i90 litre sonic.

mistral 112.........comfort & super faster!!!!

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Sputnik11 said..

If you were buying a slalom board (around the 100ltr mark) for mostly bay sailing to carry sails between 5.0 and 7.0 for a 75kgs sailor, what would you buy and why?

Bullet point answers. The more I look, the more I see.

I want to be "sold" on a board. Cheers.

I,am sailing on falcon fanatic boards 2013 model 123, 102& 89 litre what I like about these boards is foot strap positions front and back they are closer together between centres by about 50mm-60mm which gives me more 50/50 foot pressure and with less wider stance I can get back foot in easier as I have a very high arch foot and wide foot also a lot fin companies demo their fins on boards example select fins with exocet and falcon boards also yes demo boards if the shops HAVE THEM ???

This one when it's finished