Monday, 28 March 2011

New Toys - Fanatic Falcon 111 & 134

After many years of building my own boards I bought 2 Fanatic Falcons in 2006 - the 91 & 111.  I found that the mono-concave tail didn't suit my weight and/or technique. The boards would spinout without warning and I moved on thinking that I was too heavy or powerful for the design.  I really liked the lively feel and early planing of the boards and have always admired Fanatics commitment to quality in construction and design innovation. I have since had Starboards('07 121 & 94 iSonics) and JP's(Slalom IV 72, 104 & 134, Slalom V 92, Slalom VI 92 & 112).
With other brands now using cheaper construction methods without reducing their prices I am keen to have another go.  After many hours on the Fanatic Forum I decided on a pair of Falcons, the l21 and 101.  When I did a ring around I found that all of the stock in Australia was pretty much sold so with a wait until June on those sizes I went for my second option of a few demo boards, the 134 & 111.

Looking at all my session stats for the last few years my most used combos are a 68-69cm & 58-61cm boards and sails 6.7 to 7.8m.  Combine this with my reduced TOW at the moment and my main abjective is to get out and sail in almost anything when I get a few hours to myself.  The 134 seems to be pretty fast for its size but still an early planer so this will get a lot of use in the gusty winter winds.  I wouldn't mind having a crack at my Big Board PB on an 84cm JP of 34.13.  The 111 will be used with 7.8 & 6.2 Evo III's.  I am trying a minimum quiver/ maximum range concept this year and hope that this is successful.

I hope to take a lot more measurements and do my own personal review of the 134 and 111(and any other falcons I might get ;).
Fanatic Falcon 134 & 111

 


Fanatic Falcon 111

Fanatic Falcon 134

 
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5 comments:

  1. Mark29 March 2011 at 01:06

    Nice!

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  2. joe windsurfer29 March 2011 at 07:57

    I have become a Fanatic fan - bought an old BEE 124 LTD to move the skills up. Was hoping for something in the 125 range, butt now it is 120 or 130. Will the 120 Falcon or Hawk work for a 95+ kilo fellow ? marked as good in 5.5 to 8.5 which for me means sweet spot of about 7.0. Keep us up-to-date on the tests. BTW no wonder u donut have time 2 go with TOW - stop building boards :-)

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  3. Tim Hemer29 March 2011 at 12:50

    Hi Mark, I also found your blog review very informative and this helped my decision in choosing the 111 & 134.

    Hi Joe, I think the 121 would be a good light/medium wind single slalom board solution for your weight-perhaps a sweet spot of 7.8?. I am 112Kg and so would lose a fair bit on the low end. I haven't made a board for about 5 years but am getting the itch to make 2 so this isn't my excuse for not sailing a lot. I have a 3 and now 10 month old...

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  4. Anonymous17 April 2011 at 04:06

    Hi Tim, I am wondering why you sold the JP SLW so quickly!?
    Considering replacing my 2010 Falcon 145 by a SLW. A little bit concerned as the Pro edition seems to be a little bit on the heavy side (about 1.6 kg more than my Falcon).
    Congrats on your Falcons...love the graphics this year.
    Bob

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  5. Tim Hemer18 April 2011 at 13:18

    Hi Bob, I sold the JP SLW quickly to get maximum resale and catch the tail end of our summer. The SLW does exactly what it is marketed as, I was just not as fast and lively as what I am used to. The SLW does feel noticably heavier than a large slalom but isn't too far off from the JP Formula for weight/volume. I am considering getting the Falcon 148 next year to be more compatable with a 9.5 but still usable with 7.8. I would definately try a SLW before getting rid of your 145!

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