Drops FL-10
Kasper Klausen
Has anybody tried Drops FL-10 flapper board? I got a good offer from a
friend of mine. Just about 1200$. Only used a few months.
But some guys say that this board is quite difficult sailing downwind,
specially in overpowered conditions. Can anybody confirm that??
All info appreciated
Kasper K
Dimitar Bojantchev
Hey, good question. I've had my FL-10 the entire season and we both
grew during that period (me in skill, the board in weight... :-)
Anyway, today was a lousy sailing day so I've got more time to write,
so let me expand a bit...
In my experience, the board requires some adjustment of the technique
-- one has to be a bit more attentive to the waterscape coming upfront
and free the nose by slightly pumping the tail before flying over the
deep throughs (that more active role in driving the board actually
increases the speed and sharply decreases the water resistance), or
just avoid very rough spots altogether. IMO, the problems start
occurring with sharp chop above 2 ft. in size. Sometime since July I
have not stuffed the board's nose more than twice maybe, so getting
used to it must be it.
But to put that in context, I've been told by a renowned local board
designer that all wide boards have the tendency to get stuffed on a
downwind run between the wave sets or steep irregular chop. His boards
as well as others. He also said that there is some serious shaping
going on to try to reduce that problem. I've been told that the FL-10
is no exception to that rule and is actually more prone to that because
it is too flat (whatever that means in the shaper's vocabulary).
I personally believe that these wide boards are excellent downwind
implements because they can hold on a plane at minimum speed, thus one
can maintain a very deep downwind course in rather marginal winds --
the board just goes 'boing-boing' over the chop, slow but planing...
At the same time an accomplished local racer, national champion, (much
lighter and better than me) told me today that after playing around
for awhile he thinks that narrow is always better downwind because it
generates distinctly less drag and is more maneuverable, one can turn
much quicker to a shallower line... Who knows where the middle
line is... It must depend on weight, style, etc. My weight fluctuates
between 190-205 lbs...
Still, consider that these super-wide board (28 inches/70 cm and
above) are intended for calmer seas and bigger sails... In fact, IMO,
for recreational use these wide boards (28 inch +) make sense with
sails of 9.0 m or larger, or let's say 8.0 m, but no less. For racing
purposes it makes sense with any sail size as these wide boards are
just an unbelievable upwind weapon. In fact, to be competitive in a
course-race these days I cannot see what else can substitute them. I
personally prefer to spend more time speeding away on a fast slalom
board, practicing jybes and just going scary fast but if I have to go
upwind fast I have to pull the FL-10. I have also the 'conventional'
24 inch wide Drops 9.6/2 and it is a sweetheart of a board but it
definitely does not match the FL-10 in upwind work. Close reaching is
the natural point of sail for the FL-10 and with a little push it
climbs much higher.
Since I'm new to this sport (this is my first full season) I did use
the FL-10 mainly for cruising around the Bay -- to put it in
perspective, it is the kind of board that on my first sailing
anniversary this July I did the classic Berkeley to Crissy and back
routine without feeling stretched at all, not to mention having
circled almost every channel buoy in the area, most miles offshore. As
you know, the Bay is rich of wave/waterscape formations depending on
tide phase and location and the FL-10 can eat them all comfortbaly --
once I did have a nasty spill right in front of Pt. Blunt but I
attribute that to my lack of experience... I was just blasting
downwind without thinking much and had a nasty flight over the
handlebars as the nose of the board got stuck in the through of the
nasty large and confused, washing-cycle like chop... Still, my
experience is limited since I did not get good enough to enter the
race scene (next year for sure!) but still this board will open new
space for sailing for the average advanced-intermediate, sometimes in
the kind of conditions, recently reserved only for the lightweight
experts... I feel absolutely certain that once I nail my lightwind
jybes (tacking is easy on this board) I'll be very competitive upwind
and downwind, provided sufficient horse-power (large sail!). Also,
there are no sails and fins large enough on the market compared with
what these wide boards can bear...
The board is technical to jybe in underpowered conditions, that's for
sure. With a big fin supplementing its width and sharp rails, if you
slopilly release the rail it will instantly take the path of least
resistance (straight ahead) and if you press too hard it will stall in
a hurry and dump you right in no-mans-land (the middle of the
turn)... I need several hundred more jybes until I get the carve &
transition stage nailed and done smoothly with the largest sail. But I
also believe that playing around with unforgiving race boards that
scream loudly when you mishandle them but reward you richly when you
show skill is far more educational for those of us who really wanna
learn to sail than just fool around in a comfortable freeride, like a
stoned statue nailed in the footstraps with a lengthy harness line
pulling you forward... Anyway, a flat, bouncy, lightweight, race board
will teach you the right stance and style, not necessarily how to
catch more air, but how to absolutely avoid being yo-yo-ed around and
yet move smoothly accross jagged waters in all points of sail, If
that's what you care about, of course.
Again, the major advantage of these boards is that while it takes them
just as much or more effort to kick them on a plane and certainly more
horsepower to drag them along with good speed -- these wide barges
have the tendency to stick on a plane through some serious lulls. On
a downwind run on a light day that's a blessing. After having ignored
my FL-10 for s slalom board for awhile, some time recently I pulled
the board and was amazed how it just can go and go and slide
convincingly through lulls that would make other narrower
course-slalom boards pretty nervous...
D.
--
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Dimitar Bojantchev dim...@pontix.com or dim...@best.com
Pontix Consulting, Inc. http://www.pontix.com/
Personal Info http://www.pontix.com/dimitar