Starboard ACE 14' x 25" first impressions in brushed carbon

[balance_fit]

Well, it has finally arrived 

After reading, researching, watching and asking, i pulled the trigger and after some weeks of anxiety, it has arrived ! Not without 2 beautiful pencil sized punctures underneath, thanks to the charismatic treatment it was subjected to while in transit. Punctures repaired and claim under way, it was time to test.

I chose a secluded, mangrove lined bay in the south coast of Puerto Rico, by the town of Salinas. Please see attached picture. I just wanted to be sure to test this board in calm conditions to get the feel for it. Thankfully, the wind that day was light, no more than 10 knots with some better gusts but no whitecaps.

In flat water: After some initial tipiness management which lasted around 10 minutes, i started to feel confident in this board's excellent secondary stability. Primary stability is comfortable for a 25" wide board, but I had to pay attention, specially at low speed. Interestingly, once over 5 kph, the board feels quite stable and urges one to power on.
I noticed how well this shape tracks with a beam wind. A little counter steering with paddle and leeward rail pressure and side winds were effectively dealt with.

In open waters: Ater 3 kms of paddlng I approached a section of open waters of about 1 km, in which 10 knot winds were blowing at about 45 degree angle to the bow and chop (1 ft ) threatened to change intended course, which was to a small offshore cay. Even facing several sections of confused waters due to boat wakes, it was easy to keep intended course and balance was never an issue. Did i mention this board is incredibly stiff? Hitting some bumps head on, i never noticed any vibration whatsoever !

"Downwind": i quote the word downwind here since the wind was so light, but, since small windswell could be used to one's advantage, may it qualify? Anyway, i feared stability would be an issue once running with the swell, but my worries were quickly dispelled once i set course for a 2.4 km section...downwind. Never did i need to slide my feet back in the footwells, which, by the way, were very comfy, and that bulbous nose just floats over the ramps ahead! The board averaged 8-9 kph and connected the tiny ramps so easily.

What else? I plan on a paddle session on my local inlet where ocean swell comes in through a small opening, after breaking on a shallow reef and reforming. All this with strong side to on shore winds. Quite a testing area !
Pictures coming soon...

I must thank Gary Stone from Paddleboard Specialists for having the patience to deal with my research process and all of my questioning, finding me an excellent deal on a new board and relieving my anxiety after showing him the puncture pictures.

May all be well

[Kaihoe]

It's a great board I'm getting more stoked each time I take mine out. 

A trick these boards is to trust the secondary stability. I've had both the 25" and my old 27" heeled over until there is water coming over the side. Just keep paddling and you'll be fine 

[PonoBill]

Secondary stability is a big deal on round hulls. You have to trust the fact that the thing is going to stop tipping and keep paddling. You also need good flexibility in your knees and ankles.

[1paddle2paddle]

balance_fit,

I'm glad you are happy with the board since I posted quite a bit how happy I was with ours when you were asking questions about the ACE.

I just put a GoPro mount on the nose of our board so I'll try to take some footage with it soon.

We have the AST version since it was a heck of a lot cheaper and we got it as mostly a flatwater training tool instead of a racing board.  I do wonder how much more responsive the carbon version would be, but I like that the AST seems super strong and I'm not worried when I bonk it against the wall carrying it from the truck.

[balance_fit]

It's a great board I'm getting more stoked each time I take mine out. 

A trick these boards is to trust the secondary stability. I've had both the 25" and my old 27" heeled over until there is water coming over the side. Just keep paddling and you'll be fine 

Hi Kaihoe

The trust in the secondary stability came quite quickly, after some 10 minutes in the flatwater and even quicker once i went into somewhat rougher sections. Seems that over certain speed the board initial stability improves quite a bit, plus, the board becomes impervious to the moving waters underneath.
Keep paddling !

[balance_fit]

Secondary stability is a big deal on round hulls. You have to trust the fact that the thing is going to stop tipping and keep paddling. You also need good flexibility in your knees and ankles.

Thankfully, the ACE's hull has a flat section underneath comprised of flat panels at each side of a shallow concave that runs from almost bow to fin. The flat sections have a hard edge just as the beam becomes wider, so the hard edges, for all practical purposes are tucked under water.
 
I remember my era of surfski paddling, when all i could muster was flatwater on an Epic V10...that was quite a round hull !! The ski had a wonderful, deep cockpit with very high sides, supposedly to add stability, until one fell off (Which i did quite often). Then, I became "cornish a la rotisserie" until i was able to stick my butt into the cockpit without turning over....never found a hint of secondary stability on that thing...

[balance_fit]

balance_fit,

I'm glad you are happy with the board since I posted quite a bit how happy I was with ours when you were asking questions about the ACE.

I just put a GoPro mount on the nose of our board so I'll try to take some footage with it soon.

We have the AST version since it was a heck of a lot cheaper and we got it as mostly a flatwater training tool instead of a racing board.  I do wonder how much more responsive the carbon version would be, but I like that the AST seems super strong and I'm not worried when I bonk it against the wall carrying it from the truck.

Hey !

Glad to hear you're having lots of fun on the ACE, seems that i'm on that track too! My sincere thanks to you and the other zoners who kindly instructed me about this board.

My GoPro is the old model, with a very narrow range of vision. I tried to take a short video with it from a headmount and only either bow or horizon could fit into the range of vision of the camera. Gotta get the newer model with a nice wider angle.

Originally i went for the AST model when starting to research, but, the shops i inquired didn't have the 14' x 25" in 2011 model and 2012 models were far into the future. They did have a 14' x 27" but i felt those 390 liters were just too much for a 160 lb paddler. Thankfully, Gary came to my rescue with an excellent deal on the brushed carbon. I will have to be very careful in handling but i'm very happy with it's stiffness and lighter weight.

[JonathanC]

Hey balance_fit, so pleased that you got the Ace! PT Woody just recently got his carbon 2012 14 x 25 and I must admit I have board envy over my AST.....

The more I use mine the more I like it, only trouble is the speed spoils you for anything else, took out my Open Ocean a week or two ago and seriously wondered if I had weed on the fin for a while until I realised it was just the contrast to the Ace!

I used PT's custom 12'6 x 23.5 in a race a couple of weeks ago, tippy but really trucks and super light and fragile, it was one of EJ's boards shipped to Australia for a race.

I've found the brushed carbon boards to actually be really tough, in day to day use. Lot more technical to repair if you do get a ding though.

Video please

[balance_fit]

Hey balance_fit, so pleased that you got the Ace! PT Woody just recently got his carbon 2012 14 x 25 and I must admit I have board envy over my AST.....

The more I use mine the more I like it, only trouble is the speed spoils you for anything else, took out my Open Ocean a week or two ago and seriously wondered if I had weed on the fin for a while until I realised it was just the contrast to the Ace!

I used PT's custom 12'6 x 23.5 in a race a couple of weeks ago, tippy but really trucks and super light and fragile, it was one of EJ's boards shipped to Australia for a race.

I've found the brushed carbon boards to actually be really tough, in day to day use. Lot more technical to repair if you do get a ding though.

Video please

Hey Jonathan !

Most of all i need to thank you for the super fun times i'm having on this sup. Your videos (and a couple of others too) and the detailed description of the board's performance with tips, comments, etc, were crucial to convince me of taking the step.

As you say, the speed is big time spoiler ! Been on it only 3 times so far but already have felt what it's capable of: freight train tracking, quick take off on bumps, great glide and....interestingly, stability ! This board rewards speed with stability, so, the faster one goes, the better it feels. Several local paddlers asked to demo it, and were impressed with the secondary stability. All said they though i was nuts to have ordered a 25" wide sup ! Changed opinions after paddling, though....

Regarding stability, I found a way of standing in the foot wells for increased stability when turning sideways against chop or swell: i hop back one step, toes flush with the rear drain hole and brace both feet against the outer side of the footwells. Wow, so easy to turn and stable ! Ah, not forgotten, so easy to turn ! Got no issues whatsoever with countersteering.

I had thought, based on my LK 14, that if i stepped back, on a pintail, i would suffer instability, so in my first outing i remained glued to the same stance for 7 km...ouch...but on my second outing i was able to catch some bumps and for the taste of it (not necessity since the bow won't pearl in small bumps) i stepped back and accidentally ended up in the mentioned stance...i sailed down many bumps and turned around for more several times... need to take the video for you guys to see !

I tested a very highly regarded sup from a reputable shaper after paddling the ACE on my 2nd outing. I understand you perfectly when you say that you felt weeds were hanging on the fin....i felt this sup slow and it seemed to generate a lot of friction in the water. It had a piercing nose with a square tail.

I'm happy with my board's toughness since it feels to be very well constructed. That said, the shippers managed to injure it on it's way here by the way of 2 tiny pencil point shaped holes. A local repairman, quite well regarded, repaired it and no issues so far.

PT's 12'6 x 23.5 must be a rocket, but a twitchy one ! That said, and having paddled the very sunken footwells of my ACE, i know no other board could touch PT's in flats.
Just for the sake of curiosity, since my ACE is 2011, how different is the 2012 model? Some local guys are already asking...my ACE is the first one ever in our waters.
 
I owe you guys pictures and video, haven't forgotten. Go Pro Hero upgrade in it's way. I attached 2 pictures of my local water spot, a flat water lagoon with access to an inlet where ocean swells break at the mouth and come inside at 2-3 feet at most. Lots of wind too ! This is where i paddle my cuasi downwinders locally...

Be well

[JonathanC]

The 2011 and 2012 look very similar, I haven't paddled PT's yet. I think most of the change is to the tuck line, where the little sharp rail forms under the board where the curved outside of the board meets the flat bottom. Annabel Anderson said that her understanding was subtle changes to make it slightly more stable and release faster.

No doubt we will do a side by side comparison and post the photos soon.

I find that I tend to do little two legged jumps forward and back to trim the board onto the wave, PT and I went out last week in some very rough sea, paddling into the wind and waves then turning and catching the waves back in. He fell a couple of times riding the waves because I think he was staying forward and they were quite steep little troughs, the board accelerates so fast on a wave that even though it doesn't truly pearl it will slow down pretty fast if it hits the back of the wave in front. If its a really big wave getting your back foot onto the flat area behind the foot troughs lets you really surf it.

The other thing I do now is try to stay high on the wave and not let the board shoot down into the trough if I can avoid it, so paddle hard to catch the wave then just back off to let it stay high.

I have posted this brilliant video before and watched it many times, Oscar is the absolute downwind master.



That subtle approach not only saves energy but makes you so much faster and I find staying high lets you pick the best path to link runners. Such a wonderful board to learn the subtleties of catching runners.

 

[balance_fit]

Excellent rockin' video !

It reminds me of the times i paddled a surfski and surfed, almost daily, surfski.info.....i do have an old video of me on my Fenn XT, if you want to see, although quite boring comparing to Chalupsky's !

The way these guys flow with the swells and keep such a hi speed just makes me drool...gotta watch it again.

I'm in the process of revisiting my old Hero camera, the standard version, to see if a wider angle lens can be affixed to the waterproof housing. I took a short clip on my LK from a headmount and it was dizzying. Only the bow of the board would show. Maybe a stern mount can solve this.

Now i'm really pumped up to go and take video !

Thanks for the cure (spanish anglicism for medicine "la cura")

Be well

[LaPerouseBay]

Wow, those doubles motor.  The big O is a legend.  12 world championships (molokai's) if memory serves.  And he would have had more but for the South African ban for a few seasons - in his prime no less.  He's the man.  Holy crap he makes that look so easy.  He's still racing and winning, showing the next generation how it's done.  Killer video.  I like the text that goes with it too.  Solid description of how to read swells.   

[1paddle2paddle]

That Miller's Run(?) has some awesome conditions when its working.

The skis are moving so fast that there isn't the need to make a superhuman effort to catch a bump.  The key is picking the line that will most efficiently get you through the next series of bumps, so your focus has to be a bit broader than down winding on a SUP.

[JonathanC]

Hey L, just noticed how Oscar is bracing, he almost rests the paddle shaft on the edge of the boat, his shoulders are very low and engaged. I've been doing it with my arms higher in the air making my shoulders inherently less stable and more prone to injury. I'll try that tomorrow!

Sorry to turn this into another ski thread balance_fit

[balance_fit]

Lots to learn from the Masters of the paddling disciplines...OC, surfski, prone paddleboarders, C1, etc, etc !