Picked up a new 2015 Starboard Futura 124 Wood last week from Windsurfing Gear's shop in Hervey Bay and headed down to Lake Cootharaba for some fun. First-up, here's some pics of the board...














The 124 litre board is 246x76cm and comes with a 48cm Venom G10 fin. I had 3 days of sailing on the lake in pretty inconsistent northerlies from 6-18 knots. I had the GPS on and my best speed was 28 knots with the supplied fin and 29 knots with a Black Project Type-R 40cm fin. Sail was an 8.6 Severne Overdrive R5.

Over the past 2 years I've been using a 2012 Exocet RS5 (122 litre 230x76cm) as my light wind board and the first thing I noticed with the Futura was how "cruisy" it was. Just much easier to sail allround. The wood construction was also noticeably quieter and smoother in the chop from the carbon RS5. I frequently found myself cruising along with only one hand on the boom and looking around while singing a song. I must have been enjoying it! I can see myself getting some nice distance PB's on this board.

Surprisingly, getting onto the plane was not noticeably slower from the RS5 and when carrying the board back up through the park, I didn't notice any extra board weight. Maybe that's because I still had plenty of energy left at the end of the session? Gybing was also easier and more forgiving than I expected. Overall just "staying on the board" was way easier and I managed to get back to shore still dry each day.

The extra length of the Futura was much more "chugging" friendly through the lulls and wind-shadows. This is an important feature where I normally sail at Urangan and getting in/out through the wind-shadow close to shore. The 29.0 knots I got on KA72/GPSTC was my best speed ever on a 76cm wide board, even better than the old carbon slalom board. So, I'm feeling this board has got plenty of speed ability.

Overall, if you're looking for something quick and comfortable, I'd certainly recommend the Futura. Five out of five happy faces from me!