Due to my incredible top speed and omnipresence on the water, I am now a happy Point 7 team rider.....
(okay..it's probably more due to the fact I'm at the beach everyday and I know 80% of the population....)

Still, even though I'm sponsored,here's a little honest report on my new toy, the ACK-3G 7.2m?. (3 cams freerace)

First : the bag is square, funny.....
The sail came with an extra set of cams (all cams being sdm)
Unrolling it, disappointed that it's rolled the wrong way , first time I have a sail that way, clearly designed to be so, as the cam zips are underneath. Will have to get used to it.

a bit pissed that the sail had already been out of it's bag, there was grass on it, it clearly had been wiped and there was even a bit of bird sh!t on it.... bloody Italians.... (joking, don't get started pasta eaters....)

rigged it on a 4.30 naish sdm 75 %, with 38 cm extension, yes, that's the recommendation !!!

Real easy to rig, mast slides up with no issues, cams fit in no drama, down hauled by hand.
it clearly needs more downhaul than recommended, at least 40 cm.

Only one ring at outhaul.

On the water :
light in the hands, looks terrific and feels like sailing with sunglasses due to the anti UV yellow monofilm.
it gets on the plane much quicker than my old faithful 7.0 indy. gets off real quick !!

Sailing upwind is a dream, stability of the rig is the keyword.
Downwind is good but I think I hadn't rigged properly (still at 38) cause I was lacking a bit of top end speed.
It might be a perception thing only cause my mates told me I was smoking; but it didn't feel that fast... maybe it's because it's really easy to handle. More sessions will confirm or not...

Cam rotation was good but not perfect. Exiting the gybe the cams would rotate but not to the full, it would happen when I got in the harness. Will see when it has finished stretching

All in all quite happy with the finished product, I just love being able to look through the sail with the sun in background and see the other sailors !! Speed is there, control too, and it's black !!! (just love that, it matches my Patrik perfectly )

De-rigging was easy as, rolling in the bag was a pain.....

a few pics :
didn't adjust the battens, I usually do it after the fist sail, once it's been wet.

Hi Sean do you compete locally in slalom?

Is that the new black or the new, new black?



Nice & shiny. New toys is good

Sean, as you are now a team rider, I have to object to the fact your review is a bit short on superlatives and bull****. Fancy having a team rider complain that his sail rolls the wrong way.

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AUS1023 said..

Hi Sean do you compete locally in slalom?

Hi, no I don't, been asked but don't feel confident enough in my racing gybes to get involved in comp.(plus I would hate to see my gear trashed when I fall in front of a dozen of mad racers...)

I'm thinking of entering in the long distances (more my style !)
That's the reason I went for the ACK and not the AC1 (full slalom)

Swoosh : that sail is just fantabulous, two chicks got pregnant just by looking at it !! and I got arrested by the cops when returning to the beach as I had broken the speed limit and disturbed the space time continuum....

I have told my sponsor not to expect me to pour bull**** if I don't like it....
Can't they just roll the blessed thing the "right" way for us tropical sailors !!!


Peter : definitely the new new black !!! I now have to ditch my tablecloth boardies !! they don't match anymore...

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seanhogan said..



Hi, no I don't, been asked but don't feel confident enough in my racing gybes to get involved in comp.(plus I would hate to see my gear trashed when I fall in front of a dozen of mad racers...)

Who said you'll be in front of them

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Stuthepirate said...

seanhogan said..



Hi, no I don't, been asked but don't feel confident enough in my racing gybes to get involved in comp.(plus I would hate to see my gear trashed when I fall in front of a dozen of mad racers...)

Who said you'll be in front of them

Gold

because I'm so fast and handsome there is no way they could catch up except when I fall.......
and also because the slalom races here have 30+ guys on the starting line and I know for sure that I'm faster than half of them !!

don't be jealous fellow WA' ers.... I never said I was a pro, just a guy lucky enough to be sponsored

Hey Sean, congratulations on the sponsorship, you deserve it. I always enjoy you posts. You will fly on that sail with your PD Slalom115. Point 7 are on fire at the moment with their results. Good luck bro

Thanks a lot Justin, yes can't wait to try it further more....

It seems indeed that the off season training of the "black team" is paying now !!!
From Jan 15 to mid-April 2013 the entire Black Team came to the island of Tenerife to train together as a whole team. The team was training together off the water, racing together on the water, tuning their equipment together, working with the designers on new developments, motivating and helping each other, having fun and most importantly, taking real advantage of being a Team working towards a common goal?better results, better equipment and creating a true team spirit!


PS : when are you coming over ???

I would love to come to NC. I was there in 1999 competing in the Olympic Class Mistral World Championships. My mate Lars Kleppich won. Good times. I love the place.

It would be good if you guys could put on a event! It is nice to see the NC guys at green island for the Australian Championships but NC could do one better and organize a tri nations event (AUS FRA NZL)

I know a lot of guys have found Green island difficult as the island is very small with limited accom no airport and tide issues. NC would get a better fleet I reckon.

There is talk of a semi pro event around December/January, with a few PWA guys...

Distance is the problem for the guys located in Europe and Hawaii.

We need aus 120 to come over and organise it!!! (quarantine doesn't allow sheep in though.. )

Worth the try !!!

Nice and shiny Sean wish they stayed like that.

yes if only.....

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seanhogan said..

We need aus 120 to come over and organise it!!! (quarantine doesn't allow sheep in though.. )

KEEEEEEEN!!!

few pics on the water...

Looking good Sean ! Could do with some of that wind in Aus !

wondering why some d.. h... would red thumb pics of a sail.... but never mind...

Hi Col, that's the first day of wind we've had in the past week.... very unusual !! Probabaly because there was a fellow seabreezer here at the time !!