At first glance, there are no big surprises when walking round the Tabou and GA Sails stand. A little new design, a few new colours, but the names of the boards and sails have been familiar for years. Product Manager Konstatin Weier showed us what's new for 2023. "We have remained true to ourselves, the focus this year was on improving the details," says Weier.
The model with the most innovations at GA is the Pure freestyle sail. Together with Youp Schmidt, some changes were made to the outline, but the new materials are much more far-reaching: "The upper section used to be a normal monofilm construction, now it's all 2-ply, which is also used for wave sails," explains Konstatin Weier. "This gives it better stretch and pop properties without sacrificing the necessary stability."
Minor changes have been made to the Manic and IQ wave sails. The all-rounder Hybrid has been extensively revised in sizes 5.2 to 6.4 to make it more agile in handling.
The Matrix and Cosmic, the two freeride sails, have also been optimised in some respects. Konstantin Weier describes the Phantom as a sail for hobby racers or youngsters who are unable to get the full potential out of the thoroughbred racing sail Vapor and prefer somewhat easier handling. The foil racing sail Vapor-R, which was only completed shortly before the trade fair, is brand new at boot. The GA team has not brought along its brother Vaper for Finn slalom.
Tabou: Updates for Twister and 3S+, major innovations for DaBomb
Tabou also relies on the tried-and-tested board models, and some sizes have been updated in many lines. The Twister 103 has been given a wider and flatter tail, just like the 93 last year. "This brings advantages in terms of pop," explains Konstantin Weier. In terms of wave boards, the DaBomb in particular is getting a major update for 2023. However, the all-round board was not ready in time for the trade fair and therefore cannot yet be seen in Düsseldorf. Its brother, the DaCurve, is starting the new season with the same shape, but the sizes 88 and 96 in particular have already been slightly toned down for last year to make surfers without Thomas Traversa's skills happy.
Apart from new graphics, the classic 3S has remained the same, while the freemoveboard 3S+ in size 116 has been given the same optimisations as the 96 and 106 last year. The Rocket and Rocket+ in the freeride segment are also entering the new year unchanged. "You stand on it and immediately know how it works," says Konstantin Weier, describing the proven concept. "These are simple boards, but they're the most fun." The Manta slalom board will also remain unchanged - "We spent a long time developing it last year and only finished it very late, which is why it will remain the same for 2023," says Weier.
Foil and fin board Fifty with new size
The Tabou Fifty will be available in a new size with 135 litres in 2023. According to Weier, the Fifty has been developed from the ground up to surf at a high level with both fin and foil. "It's a sporty freerace board with very good foil characteristics and is aimed at ambitious riders," explains Konstantin Weier.
In the wingfoil sector, Tabou has added the iPocket, an inflatable version of the Allrounder Pocket Air, to its range, as well as a very sophisticated board called Tiny, which is 26 litres in size. The Magic Carpet remains unchanged in the programme. Two touring-orientated iSUPs are brand new at Tabou.
More about boot 2023:
- We One - a portrait of the new board brand
- The windsurfing highlights at boot Düsseldorf
- Starboard and Severne's trade fair innovations
- The trade fair innovations at GunSails
- The trade fair innovations at Point-7 and AV Boards
- The trade fair innovations at F2
- The best pictures of the freestyle show at the boot pool
