The Hyper Nut is a tough nut to crack, at least the 11.3-kilo board seems very solid - but also less agile. With the Starboard Waterman foil in the wing set-up (short fuselage, small rear wing), the board impressed with plenty of volume for the easiest entry into wings. The foil is very buoyant, the board lifts off in a controlled manner by going back slowly, the stability around the longitudinal axis is remarkable. The board remains almost always perfectly controllable even without straps. Wing-foiling is very easy to learn here, even if you need a little more wind pressure. In combination with the large board, the Waterman Foil is very directionally stable, but in wind holes the powerful nose tends to land a little earlier than with "real" foil boards or lighter competitors. Unfortunately, there is no suitable loop option for wing gybes, which does not make the manoeuvre any easier.
The foil is also known to be very suitable for windsurf foiling - in the "Supercruiser" mount with a long fuselage and large tail foot (included in the Waterman set). In the Hyper Nut, the rather tame foil looks a little more well-behaved; it's not the F-16 jet under the foil boards, but rather the big Antonov. The front loops were more than enough for good control, we had no use for any of the other (sometimes originally placed) plugs in either discipline. The centre loop at the back is also actually too far back. As a SUP in the waves, the board with a generous 31.5 inches in the standing area makes it easy to get started, especially for heavy surfers. When paddling out, the flat bow easily pushes through smaller white water and the board is particularly stable. With plenty of rounding in the back of the outline and sufficient rocker, it can also be turned tightly with physical effort and a little more weight, enabling real turns in the wave.
surf conclusion: With the Hyper Nut, beginners can "discover" all three disciplines equally easily, although the sporting potential is somewhat tempered by the weight (also available in a much lighter Blue Carbon design).
Three disciplines possible
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High weight; loop positions
Technical data Starboard Hyper Nut 4in1 8'0" Starlite
- Weight: 11.3 kg*
- Length: 243.8 cm
- Width: 80.0 cm
- Volume: 133 litres
- Finns: Quad
- Price: 1629 Euro
*surf measurement
Stephan Gölnitz
Deputy Editor in Chief surf
Stephan Gölnitz comes from Bochum and had Holland as his home windsurfing territory for many years before moving to Munich in 1996 for the job of test editor at surf magazine. The materials engineering graduate worked as a surf instructor on the Ijsselmeer during his studies and competed for several seasons for the Essen sailing team in the Surfbundesliga and the Funboard Cup. He completed a traineeship at surf-Magazin in the test department and since then has actively accompanied almost all tests on the boom and for more than 10 years also as a photographer. Stephan has covered many thousands of test kilometers, mainly on Lake Garda and in Langebaan, but also in Egypt and Tobago. He gets his hands on over 100 new sails and boards every year as his company car. Privately, he prefers to surf with a foil on Lake Walchensee or “unfortunately far too rarely” in the waves. SUP is Stephan's second passion, which he pursued for several years at numerous SUP races. Today, he prefers to paddle on river tours with family or friends - even for several days.
