Newsgroups: rec.windsurfing
Subject: Re: BIC Presto and other course slalom boards
From: pappss@fri.cri.nz
Date: 19 Dec 92 19:47:58 +1300
Organization: New Zealand Forest Research Institute


> In article <cgoudie.724442313@Endor>, cgoudie@endor.sim.es.com (Craig Goudie) writes:

Refering to BIC Prestro.....


> |> 	I jump on the board, slog off, pump heavily to get on a plane,
> |> 	dart back and forth in the water with very little control over my
> |> 	direction (maybe I could have gone fast if I'd kept it in a straight
> |> 	line), have to take about a 100 foot arch to jibe this tank like
> |> 	board, dart back and forth back to the beach certain that my bud is
> |> 	insane while the incredibly vertical rails catch the chop at funny
> |> 	angles and throw me on to slightly different tacks.

> |> 	Are all course slalom boards like this?

They are until you get used to them.

> |> 	All my boards (even the 9'9") have pretty wavey outlines and tend
> |> 	to have the rails tucked forward and more vertical aft.  They all
> |> 	have a moderate amount of rocker.  And they all plane through a jibe
> |> 	in less than a city block, not to mention being fully controlable
> |> 	in moderate to heavy chop.  

The main advantage of course-slalom boards is their amazing upwind ability.
Sure, you can't jibe them as tight but it doesn't matter so much because you
can easily make it up by heading upwind.  The slam jibe is a useful trick to
learn if you're worried about going too far downwind on a jibe.  A modern 
course slalom board should also plane quicker.


> |> 	Soooo, how do you ride one of these boards (obviously my bud can
> |> 	and he's hasn't been sailing as long as I have).  Usually I don't
> |> 	have this much trouble getting comfortable with a board.  An even
> |> 	better question, how do you jibe it efficiently?

Practise.


Petzi Schweda (sca@gese.ge14.mdadv.gv.at) writes:

> PS: flame the Presto, nearly any other slalomboard (F2 Sputnik 285, Mistral 
Explosion (or so), the Tiga 280) moves far better ...

OK, I had to bite....

BIC's are not the fastest boards in the world, and maybe not the easiest to 
jibe, but they're cheap, and the big deciding factor, they are incredibly 
durable.

I was on my Adagio today, maxed out on a 5.0, with only the fin in the water.
When I hit a big hunk of wood.  No time to react, I was catapulted and just as
I contemplated an unpleasant meeting with my mast, my harness line broke
and I somersulted to land feet first in front of my board.  Hysterical laughter
from those on shore.  Amazingly no blown finbox and not even a noticably 
denting of the fin.  I retrieved the hunk of wood that I hit and the fin had 
cut a 1 inch thick slice into it (No kidding).

I'm sure that if I was on an epoxy / carbon / coremat board today I would be
facing a big repair bill.

My only moans about BIC's are little things, mast bases that pop out when you
land jumps flat (easily fixed), and foot pads that don't stick down....

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Simon Papps                                                    pappss@fri.cri.nz
Forest Research Institute,
Private Bag 3020
Rotorua
New Zealand

From: toma@hpfcso.FC.HP.COM (Tom Albertz)
Date: Fri, 18 Dec 1992 17:50:57 GMT
Subject: Re: Windsurfing in the Movies (was Re:How does one become a famous writer?)
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Fort Collins, CO, USA