We asked Jan Maixner from X-Booms what's behind it and tried out the custom harness.
Jan, were you only concerned with the weight of your new custom harness? Or other aspects as well?
I have been windsurfing for many years and have always had problems with back pain myself. I therefore wanted to build a harness that was light and gave me a lot of back support without exerting too much pressure on the sides.
Do you manufacture the product yourself or do you have it produced?
As a small family business from the Czech Republic, we have been manufacturing our own carbon forks for over twelve years. The harness took two years to develop and was tested in Tarifa.
What makes your harness different from others on the market?
You don't even feel that you're wearing one! The material also doesn't absorb water. It also has more cushioning thanks to its slightly more flexible hook. The wider hook means that no pressure is exerted on the sides of the torso. We adapt the shape to the customer's wishes and dimensions with every order, and we can also take colour requests into account.
You use Velcro for the fastening, not straps. Can that hold?
We tested it for a long time. The Velcro should still hold up after over a thousand uses. Of course, you could also replace it if necessary.
We tried out the X-Booms harness for a few days. Here is our impression:
Normally, a standard hip harness weighs around two kilos when dry, but the X-Booms model weighs in at 550 grams, making it look like a feather. This doesn't change much in the water either, as the model absorbs virtually no water. The harness consists of a hard back armour made of carbon-kevlar fabric, which, with cork and a comparatively thin rubber coating on the inside, looks classy but also somewhat spartan.
The hook is made of carbon fibre. Adjustable straps have been omitted for weight reasons; the size is customised to the customer's measurements during production. The hook is then secured using a double Velcro system.
Fun fact: Before the first test, the harness almost went flat because 20 knots of wind were enough to send it rolling across the beach - 550 grams!
On the water, the rigid shell distributed the forces surprisingly comfortably over the entire back, and despite its sparse padding, we found it comfortable to wear. The freedom of movement when riding waves or freestyling is at the highest level. However, the fact that the hook tended to tip up a little bothered us on the water. In our opinion, there is no plate under the hook to prevent this.
Surf summary of the X-Booms harness:
As with all hard-shell harnesses, the feeling of comfort is quite subjective. In our case, the X-Booms harness fitted well, the freedom of movement is outstanding and the wearing comfort is quite good. However, the drawbacks are the tipping up of the hook and the rather high price for the handmade one-off - the harness costs a whopping 550 euros.
- More info at x-booms.com
