Surfladle

Well, yesterday delivered Wind in the end and it looked really good when we left the shop at 6pm.. I hope you all had a good time!Today is far more relaxed but not quite as sunny and warm as the forecasts had suggested.. it was FREEZING first thing and only 10 degrees on the drive to Shoreham.

Lucy and Jamie from Red Paddle Co. came by on Friday to show us a few new additions to the main line boards in the Red range for 2017.The main changes are...

The removal of the 10'6 and 10'8 WindSUP boards and replacing them with one 10'7" x 33" (£899.00) which makes sense!

This years boards have an extra carry handle and will be supplied with a second US fin for the optional centre box when in windsurf mode.

There is now also a 10'7" x 33" Windsurf board (£1099.00) which is fitted with a drop in dagger board rather than the optional US Centre box fin fitted to the WindSUP. This makes a huge difference to the board by reducing sideways drift to a minimum and vastly improving the upwind capability of the board. I think we are at the start of a new era in windsurfing where inflatable windsurf boards will be the boards for the newcomer market rather than the the solid boards of the past. The board can of course be also be used as a SUP when the dagger is removed (just pull it out!) The Dagger is the handy work of Dave Hackford which mimics the original dagger board used in the late seventies / early eighties.

Next up is the Ride boards in 9'8 - 10' 6 - 10'8 (prices range from £849.00 to £1049.00 depending upon board size and paddle option) which pretty much stay the same apart from deckpad updates, new RSS batten tidies on the 9'8 ( and other RSS batten boards), a RAM Mount on the bow, which is great for Go Pro 8mm thread mounts and I believe is fitted to all of the recreational boards (I'm trying to find out if it is strong enough for an inflatable or lightweight kiddy rig, as it would be great to use on the Wind boards.. you could teach the kids whilst both sailing the board 'tandem style'. ). The Ride boards are only available as packages for 2017 and will have a choice of three types of paddle and will come with an updated Red Paddle coiled leash as standard. There are new paddles too, one of which is called the Carbon Convert (£129.00), which as its name suggests enables the paddle to be used both by Adults and Children saving the need to buy two!

The other change of note to the Red paddles is the use of the Lever Lock adjustment system as used by the high end brands , such as Kialoa. This has to be the best adjustment system currently available and worth a look if you have not seen it and are considering buying a paddle.

The Sport boards now have three sizes in the range.. 11' x 30" (£899.00) 11'3" x 32" (£949.00) and 12'6" x 30" ( £999.00)... three perfect sized allround / touring boards for all sizes of rider and skill levels. These boards together with the Explorer Range (same board sizes for 017 with updated deckpads and graphics) are supplied with a new fin. It's an FCS-2 (first used on surfboards) which does away with the nut and screw fixing by having a sprung tab that 'knocks in and pulls out'. These fins will fit into most standard US boxes so you could fit one to an earlier Red or any other US boxed board. Price £42.50.

The Whip (£799.00), Snapper (£749.00), Flow (£899.00) and Activ (£859.00) all have updated deckpads / graphics and I am pretty sure that they all have the RAM mount.

As for the Race boards, there are new sizes for 2017 and the two Elite Boards in the range now have FSS (Forward Stiffening System) which is a round batten that is inserted along the bow area of the deck to stop the flexing of the hull in that area which of course creates drag (rounded surfaces provide grip in water and as the hull flexes its curved shape grips and slow the board). Please ask for Pricing!

Last of all there is a new board 'type' to go alongside the 'massively fun' Large 14' x 48" (£2449.00) and Xtra Large 17' x 60" (£2599.00) Inflatable boards.. it's a Dragon Board for Dragon Style racing.. 22' x 34" wide and only costs £2199.00.

All reasonably priced..when shared between the crew!!

The Red Paddle Case / Bag for the boards is new for this year too, with a heat reflective lining, internal paddle stowage area and a pocket for fins etc. The Zip slider has also been improved.

The Titan Pump..now acclaimed as the fastest inflating pump (and I think that covers electric too) has been improved..at a cost. The pumps are now supplied with a range of inflatable valve fittings so that it can be used on kites etc. It also has a kite leash (which may be improved to incorporate a handle locking device.. which we have fitted since day one of the Titan! :) and an improved handle shape. The pumps for this year are also internally sealed so that the exact air pressure of the hull can be read without down stroking the pump as per the original model.. and that is why the cost is £79.00 for 2017. Now the GOOD NEWS.. Red have lowered the operating pressure on a lot of the boards to just 20psi so that saves wear and tear on the pump..and YOU ! :)

I think that just about covers it ..although I know that I am bound to have missed off some super important fact !! We will be adding all of the Red Paddle boards and pricing to our website ASAP and I hope this 'brief' review has been interesting..if not..just look at the PICS!!

 Note. There is a better view of the pics either on our facebook page or the gallery ( the one with Lucy and Jamie with arrows on!)