Ok looks like I've been dobbed it too much fun surfing yesterday to spend time inside looking at the pics!

Got out for a few waves at Greenmount, Kirra and the Alley over the weekend and starting to get the board worked out.

Paddling out, the board has plenty of stability for my weight (82kg) and ability, and even with a fair bit of water moving around and some wind against me the board felt comfortable underfoot. Slightly less stable than my 8'5" Pro, but not by much.

With respect to float, at 97L its a fairly low volume board and although it still sits 'above' the wave with my weight (if standing still) when paddling it felt like I generally had about 1cm of water splashing over the deck, so I'd be guessing the weight limit for this board would be around 85 to 90kg (max) unless your a very experienced rider or comfortable paddling with your ankles underwater.

Paddling speed is definitely slower than the 8'5" (as would be expected for a shorter, wider board) but tracking wasn't too bad and can keep it going in a straight line without having to swap sides every stoke or two.

As SupaTrooper mentioned I took the camera out for a few waves at Kirra Sunday late morning. Started the session sitting out wide off the point to get a feel for the board and try to stay out of the surfers way. Paddling for a wave felt a little slower than I'm used to and had to dig that little bit harder to catch the fatter sections but once on the wave, this board just comes alive. Can generate speed down the line without needing to pump the board too hard and turning, the board felt super responsive easy to turn without needing to move around too much.

Below are a few pics from the first half of the session before having problems with the mount (probably the biggest disadvantage of the Sony over the GoPro is the lack of mounting options - so a GoPro is on the list to get next) and after waiting for a gap between sets so i could see the bottom and dive down to retrieve the camera i decided to come in before losing it again.

I went back out for a second session early afternoon after putting the camera safely back in the car, and with the tide dropping, the point was starting to hollow out bit more and I decided to test myself by going a bit deeper. At 30" wide, i was really surprised with how well the board handled the steeper drop sped through the hollowed sections with ease (catching me off guard a few times) which must be due to the really sharp rail profile. I'm not a pro by any means and the board probably has loads more potential than me, but so far I'm finding it a lot of fun.

Here's a few screen grabs from my first session yesterday (not enough footage to put a vid together yet).

Anyone got any suggestions for a camera newbie to avoid getting so many drop of water in the middle of the screen?

marco gribi said..

Been riding the Airborn all week, below is my take on it

Rider: Sponsored by Starboard (take my comments as you will)
Weight: 78kg

Board Stats:
Length: 7 10
Width: 30 inches (31.5 also available)
Thickness: 3.4
Volume: 97L
Weight: 5.7kg (Carbon)
Fins Set: Quad 4.7F / 4.5R (+ FCS rear center box)

This board is an insane amount of fun in small to medium sized waves. It has been a while coming off the water in Perth conditions and frothing on a great session.

I have been looking for a board a bit smaller than my 8 5 Pro for the cleaner days around Perth, without sacrificing too much float or stability. For me the 8 0 Pro is just a bit small with the more pulled in outline for our metro conditions, I tended to miss waves by trying to balance or working too hard to paddle onto fuller waves.

The stability of the Airborn is probably in between both the 8 0 and 8 5 Pros, however due to the length it does have a small sweet spot for standing. Paddling onto a wave was super easy for such a short board, it tracked pretty well and had ample glide to paddle onto a fuller wave. As the wave goes under the board the tail just lifts and it seems to pick the board up and pull it along.

Once on the wave this is where the board really comes alive, it generates plenty of speed nice and early without having to really pump it along. Initiating a turn did not require getting all the way back as it foot steered pretty well mid rail. With the thin rails it bites hard and you can go into a nice deep carving turn and drive back up the face with ease. Coming off the top and re engaging the fins / rail was really good and this set the board up to just keep going for more. Even in real small white water sections you can push the tail out for a bit of sliding action and just keep going by pumping the board along.

This really is the board I have been looking for, a small board that has enough stability to allow standing around while not sinking below the ankles and plenty of performance on the wave.


Cheers,
Marco

Marco, what's your take on the differences between this board and the Starby 7'8" widepoint? Particularly as it applies to heavier guys around or above the 85kg mark?

Hey Marco,
Where can I try a demo of the 31.5" wide Airborn in Perth?
Cheers,
Tim

Hey Marco,
Where can I try a demo of the 31.5 wide one in Perth?
Cheers
Tim

Hi Marco,
For mushy onshore steep surf with say a 10knot onshore breeze and choppy conditions, would the Airborne offer sufficient stability for a 145lb rider. I have ridden the 2013 Starboard Pro 8.5 in these sort of conditions and at the moment find way too much work in terms of stability. The WP7'8 looks good but thinking this board maybe be just a bit too wide for such a light rider in performance. The Airborne 7'10 and 31.5 looks to have some potential but very low in volume and thus not really offering much more in stability that Pro8.5. Finally looking at the Starboard 8'5 pocket rocket as well but for some reason have slight reservations, maybe due to the flatter profile... any thoughts would be appreciated.

Hi Marco,
thank you very much for you input on the boards listed. The onshore chop (slop) i am used to is like a washing machine... Once on the wave its good. When conditions start to clean up and there is some consistency to the chop direction then it works. I do think i need to challenge myself more in the messy stuff with the 8'5Pro , however it would be nice to have another complimentary board for the really messy stuff, where the surf is there.
The thinner rails on the Airborne really are another key factor which appeals to me, especially being a lighter rider. Ideally i would like the the smaller Airborne, however from the few reviews, most persons seem to feel it offers similar or less stability than the 8.5pro. Even if they were wrong, looking for a more definite increase with stability. To gain a fraction more stability on the messy days, i put a 17cm fin rather than the stock 14cm.

Cool to hear you like the 8'5 Pro in quad setup... got to give this a try... Riding the AST model, and thinking i might have to at some point upgrade to carbon as i hear this just takes the board to another level of performance.

Hi Tim,

I have not had the chance to ride the new 7'11 x 30 but I have spent a lot of time on the older 29.5" 116L version. The new version does look a little thick through the mid section but just not sure how the changes apply to performance. I really enjoyed the older model and would say this is a great step down board, the only negative was in over head high it was a tad slow and I also like a quad option. There is a demo of the 29.5" but this does not help much.

Depends on where you mainly ride but for average WA summer conditions where the wave may be a bit small / fat / full I would say the Airborne 31.5 would be a bit of hard work at 83kg and if your only board.

Now for an option that may be exactly what you are looking for, the 2014 8'2 x 32 Wide Point is going through a few changes and it is taking on a lot of the Airborn characteristics. It pretty much ticks all the boxes you have mentioned but I cannot release specifics on a forum. If you want to come in and see me at the Osborne Park shop I can give a better idea of what these are.

Cheers,
Marco

marco gribi said..
7'10 x 30 - Less stable than the 8'5 Pro for me but a bag full of performance and sheer fun. This model should be the most suited to the conditions you mention and as you are 10+ kg lighter than me might be more stable than the 8'5 (I have had lighter people say it felt more stable). I cannot rave any more about this board, I just wish I was your weight to use it more often. I do get tired quicker in the legs with all the extra balancing.

Very interesting comment re. the comparative stability of the 8'5" Pro and 7'10" x 30" Airborn, with heavier riders saying the Airborn is less stable, but lighter riders thinking its more stable. And I think it's spot on and very true!

When I first got my Airborn, I thought it felt slightly less stable than my 8'5" Pro (have a look at my first impressions described above). Standing in calm/flat water the deck was above the water, but once moving, there was generally about 1cm of water splashing over the deck, so although it 'floated' me, at 82-83kg I was probably nearing its weight limit (for anything less than pro riders), and the widest point on the rails was submerged.

In the six and a bit weeks since getting this board, I've dropped a reasonable amount of weight, and now at 75-76kg, IMO the Airborn is undoubtedly more stable than the 8'5" Pro by comparison.

Previously, when the deck was just underwater/on the water line, the float of the board would have had a significant bearing on its overall stability. When there is water pressure on top of the rails (even if not a huge amount) rather than just from underneath, the whole hydrodynamics of how the board moves through the water changes.

Now that the board sits a little higher in the water for me, and the widest point on the rails is not submerged, the stability is governed more so by the width of the board, which, being 1" wider than the 8'5" Pro makes it feel more stable.

I'd be guessing the pivot point for float vs. width in governing the overall stability of the 7'10" x 30" Airborn is around 77kg.

So IWB, my guess is that you (being almost 10kg lighter than me) would find the 30" model significantly more stable than the 8'5" Pro.

I haven't had the opportunity to try the 31.5" wide Airborn for a comparison, but would be guessing that the increased width would only make it more stable, particularly for lighter weight paddlers when the rails aren't submerged.

So as Marco said, the 31.5" would probably offer you the most stability compared to the 8'5"Pro, but at your weight, I wouldn't dismiss the 30" model if you can find a way to Demo both.

Cheers,
Ali

IWB said..
Have you had a chance to use the Airborn 7'10 x 30 in onshore conditions where there might be a lot more messy wind chop? If so how was the stability?
Cheers,

I haven't had it out in more than about 8-10knots straight onshore winds or more than 12-14knots cross-shore (both of which i felt it handled ok - but obviously didn't feel quite as stable or easy as when in glassy conditions). I guess you could call these crumbly conditions rather than full blown chop.

But anything stronger I can't really comment on....

If the surf is big, onshore and ugly looking, I stay away, and if its smaller onshore mess I'll either take the race board out for a bit of fun in the waves or find somewhere working for a downwinder (or find something other than paddling to do for the day).