BLAST / SURFILGHT Soft Boards

Bud · Post by **Bud** » Tue Sep 16, 2003 3:30 pm

I just got possesion of my new Blast / Surflight soft board prototype.

Shaped just like a regular board from a closed cell foam and coated with urethane paint.
They even gave it a very slight textured deck to facilitate waxing....cool!

FCS fin system.

Looks great.

Feels kinda squishy.

We're going to test it out today.
The East shore is up with a bit of wind swell. Hope there's enough to get a good test of the board.

There will be details about it soon, on my website's For Sale page.
Full test report coming soon as well.

Mean while, here are a couple of pics of it.
Check it out.
Bud

surfhorn · Post by **surfhorn** » Tue Sep 16, 2003 3:41 pm

Congrats, Bud! Its great to see people pushing KB limits and trying new things which, ultimately, benefit us all.

Good luck.

Bud · Post by **Bud** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 9:24 am

We just completed 3 days of testing the soft board in good solid 3-5' East swell. Conditions were slight to moderate onshore, waves were strong and fairly well formed despite the less than ideal conditions.

The board is a SUCCESS. It is super fun and easy to ride.
I rode it a bunch, Mike McGuire tried it for a few and Dave Sears rode it the most........he's in love with it.

It suited Dave and my weight range better than Mike's. I'm 150 lb. Dave is 170 lb., Mike is 195 lb.

There was no having to adjust or "get use" to the thing.
It just flew.......first wave.

It has a very lively snappy feel. Lot's of acceleration and great follow through in turns.

These guys at Surflight are really on to something.

It seems a little heavier holding it. Seems to paddle and float differently......
Why and how exactly, I can't put my finger on it. Maybe it's the different foams used?

But there's nothing wrong with it.

I had expected to have to make adjustments to the next couple boards built, to "dial" it in.

But I honestly can't think of what I'd change with this board.
Now I want to make a couple different shapes using the same core structure and flex properties.

We are still working on the costs of this thing and should have pricing for them soon.
Stay tuned.
Bud

quadfin · Post by **quadfin** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 10:54 am

Excellent. I was wondering when it would be done.

Do you think this will breed a new generation of sponge graduates?

Bud · Post by **Bud** » Sun Sep 21, 2003 11:08 am

I'm gearing up to have a couple different size boards on hand to lend out to anyone that might be interested in trying them.

A mini model for kids is the main priority.

Expense is the big issue.
They cost a lot more to produce.

A high performance board with a soft exterior is hopefully just the incentive many are seeking. Hopefully they would be willing to pay the extra $ for them.

Time will tell.
Bud