new light wind board; Protech or North Shore Maui?

[Misiak, Tom [NCRTP:JR70:EXCH]]

All,

I'm thinking about replacing my old 130 liter board with something
newer and faster. I think I'm
down to 4 boards. They are:

1) North Shore Maui Freerace 282L
2) Protech - Zajicek Z-26
3) Protech - Pat LeMehaute Freeride 295

and possibly...

4) Fanatic Bee 144 LTD

I'm a 165 lbs, learning to carve jibes.... (intermediate?). Anyone
have any experience with any of
the above? All advice/opinions are welcome....

Thanks,
Tom

[Tom - Chicago]

Tom:

I have the Bee 144 - and like it plenty - but if I had to do it again, I
would get the Pro Tech Freeride 295. I did get the Pro Tech ATC 270
(103L) and it is an awesome board.

Plus, I hate buying my windsurfing gear from Giant Corporations - I like
buying stuff from Bruce Peterson at Sailworks and John Parton @ protech
because you know there is a person behind there.

BTW, I think these two companies' (Sailworks and Protech) designs are 100%
world class and current. I think Sailworks and Windwing (Bill Hansen)
have completely changed the sail market with their introduction and
perfection of big camless sails.

Tom - Chicago

[Ed Sinofsky]

Havent sailed the other boards but besides my family my protech z26 is my
prized possesion.

parton definitely knows how to build boards. I have had 3 protech hulls in
10 yrs.

ed
"Tom - Chicago" <to...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:3977548A...@worldnet.att.net...

[RMoore 41]

>> I'm thinking about replacing my old 130 liter board with something
>> newer and faster. I think I'm
>> down to 4 boards. They are:
>>
>> 1) North Shore Maui Freerace 282L
>> 2) Protech - Zajicek Z-26
>> 3) Protech - Pat LeMehaute Freeride 295
>>
>> and possibly...
>>
>> 4) Fanatic Bee 144 LTD
>>
>> I'm a 165 lbs, learning to carve jibes.... (intermediate?). Anyone
>> have any experience with any of
>> the above? All advice/opinions are welcome....
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Tom

Tom, I have owned and sailed a Protech 296 for three years. It sails great,
well made and I would recommend a Protech to anyone. With that being said I
would look at the Freeride 295 for your ability level. The Z 26 is a hard
railed and thick tailed race board that will blaze but not be too forgiving to
an intermediate skipper learning to smooth out his jibes. I would get his
"Bullet Proof" construction and eat a little weight for extra durability. You
might as well get his straps and recommended fin from him. The board is paint
so you should get a Padded bag also.

[MTVNewsGuy]

If you're "learning to carve jibes" you may find the first three boards to be
difficult to manage, compared to friendlier boards like the Fanatic, or a Bic
Techno, or the big Hi Fly.

I've sailed the North Shore Maui Freerace 282...it sails like a giant slalom
board...fast, big, graceful turns at ripping speed. I sailed one of the
Protechs (but I don't recall which) it was a very fast high-performance ride,
which I loved on the reaches but didn't have as easy a time jibing.

There's no doubt that Pro Tech makes amazing boards...the question is "will it
serve your needs right now". One thing I learned when I was learning to jibe
(and it's still a learning process) is that a forgiving board accellerates the
learning process. When you're jibing regularly and you feel your board isn't
responsive enough or subtle enough to your technique would be the time to get a
high-performance board, in my opinion.

So of the choices you listed, I'd vote for the Fanatic Bee 144. Outside those
choices, I continue to find the Techno 283 to be a great deal of fun, and
comparitively inexpensive.

> All,

>
> I'm thinking about replacing my old 130 liter board with something
> newer and faster. I think I'm
> down to 4 boards. They are:
>
> 1) North Shore Maui Freerace 282L
> 2) Protech - Zajicek Z-26
> 3) Protech - Pat LeMehaute Freeride 295
>
> and possibly...
>
> 4) Fanatic Bee 144 LTD >>

Michael
US5613

[Itsnukin]

Hey Tom, I have 3 Protech boards & one of them is a Z-26. You can't go wrong
w/ John's boards especially with the 100% satisfaction warrenty

The Z26 is fast & with your weight, you can sail it w/ a 6.5 & blow some folks
away. It take a few jibes to get use to these wide-style boards however, it
actually turns nicely once you get use to it.

A board to consider outside of your choices is Roberts 28 (the 120L) AVS. I
sailed it in Bonaire & loved it. The boat speed was comparable, although the
Z26 may be a faster, but it rips nice carving jibes. As you know, you can
always give John Parton a call. Good luck, George