There’s something quintessentially Australian about owning a surfboard. Every second garage in the country has a stash of boards stored away in a corner or displayed in pride of place.
Of course, not all surfboards are made equal. They vary in construction, shape and size all based on a range of factors including style of surfing, conditions, the ability and size of the rider. When it comes to kitesurfing, standard surfboards won’t quite cut it as their construction isn’t robust enough to handle the pressure put on them. Many have learnt this the hard way, snapping surfboard after surfboard.
So is a new kite surfboard on your radar for this summer?
First, you need to ask yourself: Are you an off-the-shelf board kind of guy or gal or are you a hardcore one-shaper-for-life board rider?
Maybe you're somewhere in between?
We're spoiled here in the great southern land, you have quite a few options, bust out the wallet at the local surf shop or dial your local surfboard shaper.
OR talk with us here at Slingshot Australia or one of our local specialised dealers.
Why? I hear you ask.
Yes, your shaper can add extra layers of glass to strengthen your board allowing it to perform and last under pressure, a bit of carbon can do wonders too. However there are certainly some intricacies that your average shaper won’t understand.
What if your shaper isn’t a kiter?
Do they understand the rigours a kite surfboard goes through? What about rocker lines? The list goes on.
Slingshot has a long history of producing high-quality well-designed sticks dedicated to kiteboarding and wind sports.
Our latest 2023 Surfboards are the love children of Australian kitesurfing legend Ben Wilson and Al Emery, an internationally respected Byron Bay surfboard shaper. These two cooked up a secret recipe some of which I can share with you (the rest, well that’s top secret).
The range features
- A 35kg/m3 EPS core, think strong yet organic enough to feel connected to your board.
- A dual lamination process, by hand then vacuumed to seal in all the goodness.
- Unidirectional carbon stringers both top and bottom.
- Another layer of goodness is in the form of bamboo reinforcement sheets placed discreetly under your feet for when you land those airs.
- A sprinkle of carbon rail savers, a dash of FCS II fin boxes and some badass graphics complete the secret recipe.
- Oh and I forgot some killer corduroy deck grip to help you stick.
Check the links below, then head to your local dealer, and tell them you want the secret recipe.
2023 Slingshot Kiteboarding - Burner XR V1 Carbon Surfboard
2023 Slingshot Kiteboarding – Impact XR V1 Carbon Surfboard
2023 Slingshot Kiteboarding – Sci-Fly XR V1 Carbon Surfboard