If you want to go as fast as possible as a hobby surfer, there's no getting round the Freerace group. Boards and sails clearly borrow from the slalom material used by regatta pros, but the full potential can be realised much more easily and comfortably. The five boards that we compared in the big surf test on Tobago focus on different aspects: While some models are a little more demanding to surf, but offer considerable speed when skilfully controlled, others are noticeably tamer, but have to accept a slight loss of speed at the top end.
Some differences are also immediately recognisable on land: while the Goya Bolt is slightly less wide and slimmer than its competitors, the Starboard Futura has a wide but thin, spoon-shaped nose paired with a narrow tail with thick rails. The king of width is the Tabou Rocket Plus, which is also the longest board in the group. Duotone Jag and JP-Australia Supersport are in the middle in terms of dimensions.
All five Freeracers have cut-outs at the tail to reduce the wetted surface area and provide more speed at the top. The spectrum ranges from relatively simple shapes like the JP-Australia to sophisticated carvings on the Starboard. The Goya Bolt also looks quite radical at the tail, but some of the cut-outs are only painted on.
We show you all the boards and the most important details in the gallery above. In surf 4/2024 there will be a detailed test with all the information and driving impressions!
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Tobias Frauen
Editor
