Any news on when there's a new inflatable DW board for winging coming from Gong or any other brands? Need one this summer, been holding off for a while since Gong has had 20% off "end of stock" discount for months, wondering how much longer to wait. Thank you.

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YertleTheTurtle said..
Any news on when there's a new inflatable DW board for winging coming from Gong or any other brands? Need one this summer, been holding off for a while since Gong has had 20% off "end of stock" discount for months, wondering how much longer to wait. Thank you.

Wondering the same myself, as I'd like to have a decent travel board, but not so psyched on the current inflatable options...

It seems that Gong is going longer than years past with releasing new gear. They've been sold out of some sizes for a while. Personally I Really want to see what the new H Veloce or H Fluid.

I like the new Takoon Air Escape... hum, that's kind of a bad name for an inflatable DW board, don't you think? It's much lighter than the current Hype Cruzader, the price id good too, but shipping is stupid high. twice as high as Gong.

Cloud IX is releasing an inflatable soon. Looking forward to trying it.

I don't doubt they are coming out with something new, but keep in mind the Hipe Cruzaders only first shipped in mid-July last year. I don't know how much change they can make to the H Cruz given the limitations of inflatables and Patrice's reluctance to incorporate hard rails into inflatable wing board designs. I expect a graphic/color refresh with the new logo, not something I'd wait to pay more for. I suspect they'll make a mid-length downwing board which would be pretty nice for those who only plan to wing.

Also, I saw A Duotone inflatable DW board in a quick recent teaser on Instagram. I suspect it will have the harder edge like their or inflatable, not that it matters.

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Windbot said..
I don't doubt they are coming out with something new, but keep in mind the Hipe Cruzaders only first shipped in mid-July last year. I don't know how much change they can make to the H Cruz given the limitations of inflatables and Patrice's reluctance to incorporate hard rails into inflatable wing board designs. I expect a graphic/color refresh with the new logo, not something I'd wait to pay more for. I suspect they'll make a mid-length downwing board which would be pretty nice for those who only plan to wing.

Their site says "End of Stock"
Looks like room for improvement to me. If all they do is just keep up with the Escape would be good IMO.
4lbs lighter, to me that's a lot!
Pointier noise and tail.
A little less thick,
A type of carbon "stringer" for some extra stiffness,

Good points Fishdude, my only complaint with my HC is the weight, due in part to the thick carbon plate and x-weave drop stitching like on the Hipe Pros. If they could do one an inch thinner in Hipe First construction yet maintain stiffness with a stringer or something else, it would be a worthy v2. Those guys at aTakoon should have asked an english speaker if "Air Escape" was a good name, then again Hipe (heap?/hype?) isn't exactly stellar either.

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Fishdude said..
Their site says "End of Stock"

Just contact them, if they have some rough visibility on when new gear is coming, they will tell you.

Of course they cannot formally commit, in these troubled times where rockets are fired upon cargo ships, everything can happen.
So they may not answer if you ask for a 100% guaranteed date.

They tend to produce in priority gear which is highly expected, such as - I guess - the cruzaders, as opposed for instance to flat water rigid SUPs.

There should be no need to update them at all...nothing has changed materially in terms of inflatable dw shapes.
The Crusader Hipe was a dawg, heavy af and very sticky and slow to take off. The carbon plate they use is so heavy and I saw also few Cruzader Hipe developing microleaks in the upper part. I had one and sold it after 2-3 times I used it with not much joy.
I would not buy an inflatable DW because I think the marginal gain vs a standard inflatable is v contained.
My view is that there is a massive difference between long&narrow vs short&wide in a rigid board. For an inflatable that difference is way smaller because of the impossibility to "define" rails and rocker with air.
The new Duotone Downwinder Air seems better because I have been told they really put some effort in reducing weight as well as putting some sort of rocker.

Answering your question..once you also put wings and foil in the inflatable bag, the bag is MASSIVE. It's really a toss of a coin whether the airline charges you. To Greece I went thru with no surcharge, in Spain I was hit with the same amount I'd have spent if I brought a bag with a rigid. Weight wise there is virtually zero difference. The inflatable bag is shorter and wider. The rigid obv taller and narrower.

Gotta chime in here. I have owned HIPE reg 5'3" 110liter? and now own HIPE Cruzader strapless 7'6" 130liter? The difference between the two is night and day - no comparison. Like not even close. Sold my reg HIPE instantly - THAT was the dog! Also sold my 5'4" 95 liter DaKine Chase (same shape as reg HIPE in rigid) The HIPE Cruzader has great glide, and indeed lifts off the water effortlessly - in wing at least. I rode my HC all last summer waiting for more semi-DW/ML boards to be released. Although it is a great board, there is definitely room for improvement, GONG. The weight is too much. Whether its the plate (thick) or the robust construction, something needs to be trimmed. The deck pad - not that great, slipper when wet! The bag - it's overall a great bag, but the construction and materials are cheap - very cheap. A board built for travel should come with a very robust bag ready for the rigors of airline travel. Mine, after a half dozen trips to costa rica, mexico, St. Kitts, and Brazil, is coming apart in multiple areas. I have had to repair it, and I don't think it can do another airline trip :( My biggest gripe though, is the shape. It's dead flat nose to tail, with the slightest nose rocker in final 12". It needs more nose rocker, or overall rocker - which is possible in inflatables - lots of inflatable river SUP's have insaneo rocker built in - check out HALA. I found that in powered conditions and in waves a 1 degree nose-up baseplate/mast shim helps the ride quite a bit. The other shape issue the HC has is the deck. It's not concave (preferred) and its not even flat - it's a straight-up dome. Especially on a narrow shape, this just makes everything harder and needs to be addressed for the V2 (fingers crossed) I will be a buyer if they address these issues. Some thoughts about the Takoon and Duotone inflatable DW's - neither bag on those has wheels. Huge oversight IMO, these are travel boards! The bags are big - dims are on GONG site - but I've never been charged, keep it under 50lbs.

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FoilColorado said..
The weight is too much. Whether its the plate (thick) or the robust construction, something needs to be trimmed.

On this point, the weight is due to the sturdy construction.
As you guessed, the plate is ultra durable and rigid... but long and heavy, there is no free lunch if you want stiffness.
And the dropstich materials are also strongest... but weight more.

This is why Gong has the "First" inflatable line, with less materials, thus more flexible... but lighter and cheaper. Choice.
And also have strapless and strapped versions.

On the bag issue, this is because Gong reduces prices by the economy of scale. I guess only 1% of its customers travel as much as you by plane, so it is not economically sound for their market positioning to make 99% of people pay more for a bag they wont need. If you travel a lot, investing in a specially designed bag, probably a custom one dedicated to your needs (and by a local shop) would be best, I guess.

This is the same as for fins: It would be waste to provide expensive fins with the SUP/surf boards, as people good enough to appreciate good fins will have all different preferred fins anyways...

Gong appear to have changed attitude to stick on tail rails as one has appeared on the new HiPE Perf board. A bit like boom wings a couple of years ago they were against those and now not so much.
I was keen on a strapless HiPE Crusader to replace my Fanatic 5'3" inflatable travel board but it looks like it's been dropped from the range.
With regard to airline travel my Fanatic board, three Duotone Slicks, Armstrong foil and a wetsuit go standard baggage in the Fanatic bag (with wheels thankfully) and comes in at about 25kg

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FarNorthSurfer said..
Gong appear to have changed attitude to stick on tail rails as one has appeared on the new HiPE Perf board. A bit like boom wings a couple of years ago they were against those and now not so much.
I was keen on a strapless HiPE Crusader to replace my Fanatic 5'3" inflatable travel board but it looks like it's been dropped from the range.
With regard to airline travel my Fanatic board, three Duotone Slicks, Armstrong foil and a wetsuit go standard baggage in the Fanatic bag (with wheels thankfully) and comes in at about 25kg

I highly doubt Gong dropped it's Crusader's. It Looked like it was a big seller for them. Takoon quickly sells out of their DW version also.
I was hoping that Gongs new versions might get offered 5" thick instead of 6" and maybe lighter construction like the Takoon, But after seeing the the new perf being 6" thick they seem to want to continue with the 6" thick stuff, which IMO feels like it's is more tippy than it has to be.

I really question the benefit of the stiffer "front half" of the board and could probably make a good argument for some flex up front.

The New Starboard Ace foil inflatable being 6'10" x 21" 4.75" thick is only 100liters looks very interesting too.

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Fishdude said..

FarNorthSurfer said..
Gong appear to have changed attitude to stick on tail rails as one has appeared on the new HiPE Perf board. A bit like boom wings a couple of years ago they were against those and now not so much.
I was keen on a strapless HiPE Crusader to replace my Fanatic 5'3" inflatable travel board but it looks like it's been dropped from the range.
With regard to airline travel my Fanatic board, three Duotone Slicks, Armstrong foil and a wetsuit go standard baggage in the Fanatic bag (with wheels thankfully) and comes in at about 25kg

I highly doubt Gong dropped it's Crusader's. It Looked like it was a big seller for them. Takoon quickly sells out of their DW version also.
I was hoping that Gongs new versions might get offered 5" thick instead of 6" and maybe lighter construction like the Takoon, But after seeing the the new perf being 6" thick they seem to want to continue with the 6" thick stuff, which IMO feels like it's is more tippy than it has to be.

I really question the benefit of the stiffer "front half" of the board and could probably make a good argument for some flex up front.

The New Starboard Ace foil inflatable being 6'10" x 21" 4.75" thick is only 100liters looks very interesting too.

I looked at the video of the Starboard Ace Inflatable and I cant believe they make the foil installation so bloody difficult. I am sure they have their reasoning, but the moment the guy was trying to push the foam blocks inside the box I was saying to myself, what the heck!! who would buy something to user unfriendly.
As I said above the only one I'd buy is the new Duotone, although inflatable DW boards for me remains a marketing gimmick

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SlowlyButSurely said..

Fishdude said..

FarNorthSurfer said..
Gong appear to have changed attitude to stick on tail rails as one has appeared on the new HiPE Perf board. A bit like boom wings a couple of years ago they were against those and now not so much.
I was keen on a strapless HiPE Crusader to replace my Fanatic 5'3" inflatable travel board but it looks like it's been dropped from the range.
With regard to airline travel my Fanatic board, three Duotone Slicks, Armstrong foil and a wetsuit go standard baggage in the Fanatic bag (with wheels thankfully) and comes in at about 25kg

I highly doubt Gong dropped it's Crusader's. It Looked like it was a big seller for them. Takoon quickly sells out of their DW version also.
I was hoping that Gongs new versions might get offered 5" thick instead of 6" and maybe lighter construction like the Takoon, But after seeing the the new perf being 6" thick they seem to want to continue with the 6" thick stuff, which IMO feels like it's is more tippy than it has to be.

I really question the benefit of the stiffer "front half" of the board and could probably make a good argument for some flex up front.

The New Starboard Ace foil inflatable being 6'10" x 21" 4.75" thick is only 100liters looks very interesting too.

I looked at the video of the Starboard Ace Inflatable and I cant believe they make the foil installation so bloody difficult. I am sure they have their reasoning, but the moment the guy was trying to push the foam blocks inside the box I was saying to myself, what the heck!! who would buy something to user unfriendly.
As I said above the only one I'd buy is the new Duotone, although inflatable DW boards for me remains a marketing gimmick

I agree, the set up difficulty on that Ace board looks ridiculous. I can't help but think that it's got to be easier than how these guys make it look.

Personally I don't see ANYTHING that would make me choose the Duotone over the others.
I've had 3 Gongs inflatables and really like them. I don't even use my hardboard any more. Some of that has to do with I just think some sizes work better as inflatables than others.

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FoilColorado said..
Some thoughts about the Takoon and Duotone inflatable DW's - neither bag on those has wheels. Huge oversight IMO, these are travel boards! The bags are big - dims are on GONG site - but I've never been charged, keep it under 50lbs.

Really helpful thoughts, thanks FoilColorado. One correction though- I ended up buying the Takoon board and the bag does have wheels. This is my third inflatable (Fanatic Air 5'4", Slingshot iFly 105L, now Takoon 7'2" 125L). The bags all seem about the same quality, which sounds similar to Gong- not the most robust material. I've only traveled 3-4 times with the first two (haven't traveled with Takoon board yet), and they each started developing scrape holes. In the words of Gurney Halleck, baggage handlers are BRUTALLL. I'd pay more for a better inflatable board bag.

As for my Takoon, I've only tried it once so far so have been holding off on a review. I got it because it was the same length as my Armstrong DW board (7'2") - which is the only board I use now, it is perfect for my needs here in Seattle. But honestly the Takoon felt WAY different and in my one session so far I did not have the track positioned dialed, in fact I'm worried it is too far back for my Armstrong performance mast / HAv2 foils. I also don't like the bumps for the footstraps, super annoying. But I need to get another session or two in, hopefully I just need to get over the learning curve.

Honestly the Starboard ACE design is something that would translate well to hard board construction. Get the foil bolted directly below your feet.
Doesn't look like that much of a pain considering you watch them figure it out live.

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FarNorthSurfer said..
I was keen on a strapless HiPE Crusader to replace my Fanatic 5'3" inflatable travel board but it looks like it's been dropped from the range.

You should check with them, but there is NO WAY Gong is dropping the inflatable Cruzaders. They sell like hot cakes. And especially just before Summer (in Europe).

Gong often evolve its models however, at any time of the year, so they may be some shortage between model iterations.
As you can see the strapped Hipe Cruzader is currently on sale at -20%, this means a new model is incoming (but not yet announced). I guess the old strapless version is already sold out, this is why you do not see it anymore, waiting for the announce of the new model.

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colas said..

FarNorthSurfer said..
I was keen on a strapless HiPE Crusader to replace my Fanatic 5'3" inflatable travel board but it looks like it's been dropped from the range.

You should check with them, but there is NO WAY Gong is dropping the inflatable Cruzaders. They sell like hot cakes. And especially just before Summer (in Europe).

Gong often evolve its models however, at any time of the year, so they may be some shortage between model iterations.
As you can see the strapped Hipe Cruzader is currently on sale at -20%, this means a new model is incoming (but not yet announced). I guess the old strapless version is already sold out, this is why you do not see it anymore, waiting for the announce of the new model.

Sure I will check back regularly to see if a new version of the strapless Crusader appears but it's disappeared from the website for now. Just to clarify it's the strapless version I am taking about. I don't think they are going to stop the strapped version as it must be one of their biggest sellers.
The strapless version is lighter and I don't ride straps ever. Also it's a flat deck. Most inflatable strap boards have bumps on the deck for the strap fittings.
On my Fanatic Sky Air with Armstrong foils I am actually standing behind the strap fittings as the board doesn't match the foil very well.
It works fine and I have lots of miles on it but it could be better. So please Mr Gong, post up the new strapless Crusader. I already have a 7'6" hard Crusader and use it a lot.

www.gong-galaxy.com/en/blogs/magazine/gear-the-new-shape-of-the-hipe-perf

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colas said..
As you can see the strapped Hipe Cruzader is currently on sale at -20%, this means a new model is incoming (but not yet announced).

And it is just announced today and available as pre-order.

I guess the strapless version is going to follow soon.