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Gear Talk / Re: SIC Bayonet shape vs. Bullets?
« on: June 12, 2018, 11:57:02 AM »
Hey, just reading this now as I am just getting some experience on my new SIC Bayonet 14' with a Dave Kalama Fin. I had a Bullet V1 14 with a stock fin. In terms of experience, I had well over 100 miles of big lake down-winding on the Bullet V1. A couple of observations on the Bayonet:
Stability: Almost the same as the Bullet V1 despite being 26" wide vs. 27.25". While the Bayonet definitely feels a little bit looser underfoot... It feels tippy, but you get way more control on the rails and I don't feel like I am going to fall. It sits noticeably higher on the water than the Bullet. The difference in weight is also a factor there, where the Bullet V1 felt almost like a log.
Side-Chop: One of the big concerns I had on the Bayonet is how much higher it sits on the water and it definitely does. I weigh 185lbs and my feet rarely get wet! All of that exposed rail should cause a lot of side-chop and issues in cross-wind, but it is actually the opposite. I just did a 14 miler with one 4 mile section of ~20 mph side wind and 2-3 ft side chop and the board actually tracked better than the bullet! I theorize that because the rails are so high along the entire length of board, there is less tendency for the nose to bear the brunt of the cross-wind and pull those board off course. Whereas I had a hard time keeping the Bullet on course with anything approaching 20mph of cross wind, the Bayonet seems to take the wind and waves and stay on course without as much impact on the nose. I was still one-side paddling, but I never felt like I needed to kneel.
Speed: This board is lighter and much faster than the V1 in smaller waves, flat water or up-winding - I would bet that it is faster than the Bullet in nuking downwind, but I haven't had the right day yet. I was able to squeeze some really long glides out of lake waves <1.5 ft. In the flats and upwind, the Bullet just feels like a wet log compared to the Bayonet, albeit a more stable one. The Bayonet also needs much less footwork to keep the nose out of the water, which I suspect is because the rocker line looks more consistent across the entire length of the board. A half step forward and your in the wave, half step back and your planing. Plus with a fatter, more rockered tail and you get more "push" from small bumps.
Overall Read: For a DW specific ride, the Bayonet is better than my bullet in almost every way and frankly, I don't see a place for the Bullet going forward in my quiver. Despite a narrower width and carbon, the Bayonet is still quite a bit slower in flats or upwind than the RS 23 or AllStar 24.5. I time trialed both on flat water starts and they won easily, but on bigger downwind waves the Bayonet will be faster much more fun.
Hope that helps
Stability: Almost the same as the Bullet V1 despite being 26" wide vs. 27.25". While the Bayonet definitely feels a little bit looser underfoot... It feels tippy, but you get way more control on the rails and I don't feel like I am going to fall. It sits noticeably higher on the water than the Bullet. The difference in weight is also a factor there, where the Bullet V1 felt almost like a log.
Side-Chop: One of the big concerns I had on the Bayonet is how much higher it sits on the water and it definitely does. I weigh 185lbs and my feet rarely get wet! All of that exposed rail should cause a lot of side-chop and issues in cross-wind, but it is actually the opposite. I just did a 14 miler with one 4 mile section of ~20 mph side wind and 2-3 ft side chop and the board actually tracked better than the bullet! I theorize that because the rails are so high along the entire length of board, there is less tendency for the nose to bear the brunt of the cross-wind and pull those board off course. Whereas I had a hard time keeping the Bullet on course with anything approaching 20mph of cross wind, the Bayonet seems to take the wind and waves and stay on course without as much impact on the nose. I was still one-side paddling, but I never felt like I needed to kneel.
Speed: This board is lighter and much faster than the V1 in smaller waves, flat water or up-winding - I would bet that it is faster than the Bullet in nuking downwind, but I haven't had the right day yet. I was able to squeeze some really long glides out of lake waves <1.5 ft. In the flats and upwind, the Bullet just feels like a wet log compared to the Bayonet, albeit a more stable one. The Bayonet also needs much less footwork to keep the nose out of the water, which I suspect is because the rocker line looks more consistent across the entire length of the board. A half step forward and your in the wave, half step back and your planing. Plus with a fatter, more rockered tail and you get more "push" from small bumps.
Overall Read: For a DW specific ride, the Bayonet is better than my bullet in almost every way and frankly, I don't see a place for the Bullet going forward in my quiver. Despite a narrower width and carbon, the Bayonet is still quite a bit slower in flats or upwind than the RS 23 or AllStar 24.5. I time trialed both on flat water starts and they won easily, but on bigger downwind waves the Bayonet will be faster much more fun.
Hope that helps
