Roger - 110 Litre or 120 Litre for 5.6 & 6.6 Huckers?

[Team Roper]

Hi Roger,

I am requesting your valuable advice once again. I am 200lb intermediate / advanced sailor with 8.5 retro and GO 185. I am planning a purchase of Hucker's sizing 4.8, 5.6, & 6.6. I have a wave board of approx 90l with which i will use the 4.8, but i obviously need a board for the two larger huckers, as i do not want to use them on my GO185. So my questions:

1. Is jump from 8.5 Retro to 6.6 Hucker cool?

2. In board selection i'm thinking Kombat 107 with suggested sail range of 5.0 - 7.5. Or do you think i would be better off with the 117 as i am on the heavier side? The reason i ask, earlier this year I sailed a 5.8 Ezzy SE with a 96L JP Super Cross and felt the sail was a bit large for the 96 litre board.

Thanks for your time.

[Roger]

Hi Team Roper,
Ummmm.... I would guess that your "focus" with the 5.6 and 6.6 Huckers will be kind of all around sailing with a primary sub focus on Bump and Jump type sailing. Is this the case?
You might find the 6.6 Hucker works alot better than you think on your GO 185, but I agree, you need another board between the big GO and your 90 ltr wave board.
I haven't sailed either the Kombat 107 or the Kombat/Aero 117 so I can't answer your questions from first hand experience, but I think you are "in the ball park" with these boards.
If you are interested in going a bit faster, with less "pop" and a little less "bash and slash" either the Carve 111/122 or the S-Type 115 might suit your criteria as well.
Do you really plan to "wave sail" on this mid size board?
If B&J is you "thing", the Carve and the S-Type might do just as well and will provide you with a little more "speedy" performance.
Let me know on your conditions, wind speeds and precisely your focus and I'm sure we can refine your choices some more.
Hope this helps,

[Team Roper]

Yes you're
right, B&J sailing would be my objective, mainly lake and gorge sailing. No waves. perhaps carve is a better choice, i'm not a speed freak, therefore i think the s-type would be a bit much. Freeriding for fun chop hopping etc...

[o2bnme]

6.6 to 8.5 ... that seems like a pretty big jump, but you should try before buying another sail. I go from 6.6 Hucker to 8.0 Retro. I can hold down an 8.0 Retro in some pretty stiff winds, so I don't see a gap between my sails. For you, at 200 pounds, I would think you'd be using the 8.5 well into the wind range where I would be on a 6.6 -- I weigh 145 pounds. So, I guess the question would be... when can you start to use the 6.6? Is it powerful enough for you to use it in light enough winds?

I was using it in gusts to 25 mph and it was still controllable (just barely). I could have been using my 5.6 Hucker. I had the 6.6 rigged to the downhaul specification with just passed neutral outhaul on a Backbone 460.

Hopefully this helps.

[Roger]

Hi Team Roper,
I pretty much agree with Bill B. (o2bnme) here.
8.5-6.6 is a pretty big gap, but you are a pretty big guy, and with some tuning (more downhaul especially) you could take nearly a meter "out" of your 8.5 m2 Retro and then the gap isn't so great.
So, if you are willing to come in to the beach and "retune" your big Retro a bit as the wind increases, you shold be fine.
I still think you might like the S-Type 126 alot, but the Carve 122 would be a really good choice as well.
It's going to take a little "adjustment" but if you do well on the 90 liter wave board.....no worries!
Hope this helps,

[Team Roper]

Thanks for the info, i'll probably go with the Carve 122 and see how the gap in sales works.