Test 2018: 13 freeride boards 105 litres
Does everyone just want to play from a wind force of five? Of course, there is the group that puts the 85-litre waveboard on the beach - just to be on the safe side - as soon as the first parasol falls over on the beach. However, our surveys show that even in medium winds, most surfers prioritise relaxed, comfortable, thrilling or adrenaline-fuelled gliding fun, depending on their taste. Garnished with racy planing manoeuvres or combined with the desire to learn or perfect the fast power jibe. That's why these 100-litre bolides were also properly powered up and scrubbed over the choppy slope in a direct comparison, but also checked to see how easy and comfortable it is to surf them and learn the glide jibe. So you'll find a colourful mix here, ranging from a lively manoeuvring board to a series of very good-natured yet powerful freeride boards and freeracers that are as suitable for your personal top speed as a race slalom board.
You can find the test report and all the test results for these boards in the PDF download area below:
AN LAND
Finns - Powerbox to Foil: In the freerace class, where the Tuttle box with two screws has been almost 100 per cent established for years, the Foil box is now increasingly being used. JP calls this, somewhat confusingly, the rMTB box. The shape corresponds to the tuttle box, the actual difference, the additional reinforcements, is not visible. As foil boards should normally be particularly wide - you can assume 75 in the centre with a wide tail - the point of using these boxes in boards with a width of well under 70 centimetres is at least questionable. But at least it doesn't do any harm. The Tuttle box basically offers the advantage of having the largest range of particularly high-quality accessory fins.
With a carbon spine from the race department, fast freerace boards are even closer to the performance of pure race slalom boards - if non-professionals can still recognise them at all. Freeride boards, on the other hand, mainly feature the practical power box: A conical head for easy mounting, one screw for fastening. Quick and convenient and ideally suited for freeride and freerace boards - especially in this size.
Loops - wave to race: Just as car connoisseurs can usually judge the horsepower class of a car from the (sports) seats, the available loop positions reveal what the board designer had in mind when shaping the board. For example, the particularly performance-orientated boards do not have the comfort position with a single strap at the back, which is located far inwards and can be particularly important for beginners. Instead, there are two options on the outside: For relaxed freeriding with four loops or all the way on the outside: for full throttle. On the other side of the scale, manufacturers rely on a central inside position for three loops and a fairly moderate freemove position with double loops close together at the back - certainly centimetres away from "freerace" on the edge.
ON THE WATER
Glide characteristics: When planing, none of the pure freeride or freerace boards let anything burn. However, the other boards also have a very sporty feel when planing and turning.
Cruising and speeding: What's three or four kilometres per hour? Hardly noticeable from a subjective point of view, in a tight comparative drive over one or two kilometres, a difference of roughly 50 or 60 metres at the end. In any case, clearly visible and also enough to overtake. As expected, the freerace boards are a little further ahead. 100 litres is not the most commonly used size for learning the power jibe, but the test boards are certainly suitable for lighter people and - the characteristics can also be easily transferred to the larger models.
Sporty carving jibes: quite demanding, but with the best grip and maximum speed, these boards can be chased around the buoy. If you can control the more voluminous edge at the front and apply the right amount of pressure, you will experience cornering speed like on no other board. The same applies as on an extreme carving ski: you can't just drift through the turn in a relaxed manner, but if you apply the right amount of pressure, the turn becomes a dream.
Freemove has been squeezed in: Two boards don't quite fit into the field in terms of performance, but offer a lot of manoeuvring fun and seem smaller and much livelier than the freeride range.
