I'm looking to buy a new freestyle board. I'm about 87kg and looking to use 5.2 to 6.9 sails on my board. Looking to do a little of everything; 360's, duck jibes and all kinds of tacks. Looking to learn foward loops and vulcans this summer and I'm sure the more help the better. Also, needs to be early planning, go upwind well and user friendly. Looking at the Starboard, Fanatic and JP in the large size. The Starboard is my first choice, but I'm not sure if this is the best board for what I want to do. Thanks for the help

if u havent already seen it... [www.boardseekermag.com]

thats about as comprehensive as you'll get...

....typical opinions of board bias's:

carving- jp+starboard

freeride inclined- goya

pure flatwater freestyle- rrd + F2

power freestyle- joker+ fanatic

tabou boards have qualities from all these categories but most ppl either love them or hate them... and the footstraps are normally gash.

other things to consider- jp's are light but break easy... fanatics are easy to repair seamlessly due to white paint-job... starboard flare's have the resale value of a brick (ive seen ppl giving away 3 yr old flare's)

i would go for the goya if i were u... it feels floaty and likes carving, cruises through chop easily.. personally i didnt like it cos it wasnt spinny enough, but for vulcans and loops, its fine... its relatively strong and white paint make a repair easy...not the lightest board but quite fast....

hope this helps...

I have a few fsw boards and I'm looking for a freestyle board because that is what it is going to be used for. The most important thing for this board to do is to be slippery, help me perform vulcans and spocks. The other stuff comes second. I thought the Flare was the board but not sure if it is going to be slippery enough? Would the RRD, Skate or JP be better than the flare? I still would like the board to be good at flat water fowards, jibes, tacks and 360's but this comes second.

the rrd, in my experience is the slidey-est board, especially with a small fin... i have an 07 twin tip and wont up grade until it brakes, and then i'll probably try to find another 07 model... i can barely flaka a flare, and have landed triple flakas on my twintip, just to give you some idea of the difference!
the jp and the skate do have better pop for flat water forwards, and carve better... and they wont be holding your spocks back much either, the jp's are fragile tho (for learning forwards), so i would go for the skate if i were you, the team edition if you can... i only have a rrd because i dont carve very often...

Put a tiny fin on most boards and you'll make it slidey!! Best in my opinion are the Tabou, Mistral, and the Goya... New RRD isnt very good!

Im slightly...Goya bias...

But i find it slidey enough of double moves....Cant really get much more slidey! Will be perfect for you to learn everything from vulcans all the way through to the latest doubles on! Also its much better in chop than most other freestyle boards. I had the 07 twin tip and loved it but havent heard good things about the newer ones.

As will said the how well a board slide largely depends on the fin, if you want your board to get that slidey feel put a small fin on it. All freestyle boards come with fins too big for freestyle, they either need cutting down or you'll have to get another...The MFC Freestyle Pro is awesome, can get it in 14cm and its super light!

Good luck with the board hunt...

John
www.k718.co.uk