Author Topic: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race  (Read 259635 times)

photofr

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #915 on: March 17, 2019, 02:39:10 AM »
There's something I wanted to say for a long time about the Braca paddle for SUP.
Braca has been my go-to paddle for my surfski - for many years.
I have been paddling the Braca Maui for nearly two years* - and haven't looked back since.

WHO ARE THEY?
Braca is Worldwide-renown for innovations as well as always placing well on a variety of podiums. Better yet, they make paddles that are super durable, ultra light, and very efficient. Sadly, no one is reporting on the brand (for SUP or for Surfski or Flat Water Paddling). Their motto is to simply let their innovation win and sell itself (and that's about the only thing I don't agree with from Braca).

DISCLAIMER:
As a reminder, I no longer represent Braca in France, and I am not at all affiliated with Braca at this time.

FEEDBACK
Here are some simple facts & feedbacks on how I see this "Braca paddle for SUP" - specifically, after using the Maui blade & Soft shaft for nearly two years*. 
1. Very efficient
2. One of the lightest on the market
3. Fantastic grip in the water - without blowing a shoulder

WEIRD
The thing that I find weird about this paddle is that Bruno has decided to go with what seems to be the largest size for a blade. I went with the smallest one of them all (which really helps with stability, amongst other things).

THE BEST?
Is there a better paddle out there?
There's only one other paddle in the World that I would vouch for with my eyes closed: QB (but for almost twice the money).

PHOTO
No, the Braca Maui paddle has nothing to do with the archaic paddles that some people refer to in this forum. Here's a photo that may explain why this paddle grabs water so well... (sort of a different point of view from a camera).



(*) CORRECTION
- I have used the Braca Maui paddle since Dec 2017 (so not quite 2 years yet)
« Last Edit: March 17, 2019, 02:46:09 AM by photofr »
Nelo SUP - 14' x 23"
Nelo Surfski 560M - 18'4" x 17"

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #916 on: March 17, 2019, 05:22:38 AM »
Well, I guess it will be another product that most of us will be we get to try, so you can say what you like about it. But Im general a paddle like that would have a very sharp catch (which isnt universally popular) and quite a few people dont like soft shafts (Im not sure why, within reason). But one of the things I dont like about blades that blade shape that many people might not consider is that you can really do some damage to your board (or you) with it if you make a mistake (eg. changing hands, or scratching for a wave) - those sharp blade corners can do some real damage. I think this is one of the reasons that surf-oriented paddles have tended to have more rounded shapes than race ones. If you are paddling pure flat water of course this probably wont matter because screw-ups are so rare. But in the hurly-burly of surf or downwind, (or even some congested race conditions) stuff happens.

Ive seen quite a few people put holes in their boards in races with their paddles. But maybe if they were on Nelo boards that wouldnt happen, eh? ;)

Luc Benac

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #917 on: March 17, 2019, 07:24:30 AM »
Im sorry to see Naish winding down their commitment to SUP racing.

As long as they keep their commitment to serious paddlers and keep a line of performance hard boards like the Maliko with a good construction and an affordable price.
Now if they go to inflatable only then....
Sunova Allwater 14'x25.5" 303L Viento 520
Sunova Torpedo 14'x27" 286L Salish 500
Naish Nalu 11'4" x 30" 180L Andaman 520
Sunova Steeze 10' x 31" 150L
Blackfish Paddles

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #918 on: March 17, 2019, 08:25:51 AM »
Im sorry to see Naish winding down their commitment to SUP racing.

As long as they keep their commitment to serious paddlers and keep a line of performance hard boards like the Maliko with a good construction and an affordable price.
Now if they go to inflatable only then....
Well, Naish have pretty much cornered the market for low volume all-round race/fitness/tour boards with the Maliko. There arent many rivals (the Sidewinder is the most obvious one). So I would have thought that that will keep the sales respectable, and allow them to put the name on their racing inflatables, where there is probably more money to be made.

What Id like Naish to do would be to bring out an equivalent of the Sunova Search, only with a bit of extra surfability thrown in. They kinda dropped the 12ft surf-type distance board when they dropped the original Glide 12: the replacement was a bit too odd and heavy and it pretty much killed the format. But lots of people would find a rather gunny low-volume 12ft do-everything-but-especially surf board appealing right now, I think. Anyway, thats straying from the topic quite a bit. Maybe in time, Lightcorp will design a 12ft do-it-all gun with mass appeal....

Luc Benac

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #919 on: March 17, 2019, 08:36:09 AM »
I would not mind a performance/fast light touring board. A kind of Glide Light or Javelin de-tuned. Pretty much a SIC RS with a tad less volume but without the race moniker to it, so it becomes available on the second hand market :-)
And that is something that could work well with the hollow construction of Nelo. They just have to go wider and make some nicer, cleaner lines. Simple is best.
« Last Edit: March 17, 2019, 08:38:31 AM by Luc Benac »
Sunova Allwater 14'x25.5" 303L Viento 520
Sunova Torpedo 14'x27" 286L Salish 500
Naish Nalu 11'4" x 30" 180L Andaman 520
Sunova Steeze 10' x 31" 150L
Blackfish Paddles

mrbig

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #920 on: March 17, 2019, 09:25:07 AM »
SIC F12 wide stable it surfs well, and can even be used in the 12' and under surf class with gumbies like me!
Let it come to you..
SMIK 9'2" Hipster Mini Mal
SMIK 8'8" Short Mac Freo Rainbow Bridge
SMIK 8'4" Hipster Twin
King's 8'2" Accelerator SharkBoy

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #921 on: March 17, 2019, 10:12:30 AM »
SIC F12 wide stable it surfs well, and can even be used in the 12' and under surf class with gumbies like me!
Very nice board. But a bit more volume and weight than Im thinking of, at 120″ x 30″ x 6.1″€ 265L, 24lbs. Im thinking more of 12x30x5 200L and 21lbs, with a bit more rocker.

mrbig

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #922 on: March 17, 2019, 10:13:25 AM »
Photofr, Mahalos for info on Braca paddles. They have added a model in a teardrop shape which now goes down to very small sizes!

Bonus - US Distributor in Wayland MA USA!

No affiliation, but it is nice to actually be able to get some EURO gear if you want for a change!
Let it come to you..
SMIK 9'2" Hipster Mini Mal
SMIK 8'8" Short Mac Freo Rainbow Bridge
SMIK 8'4" Hipster Twin
King's 8'2" Accelerator SharkBoy

mrbig

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #923 on: March 17, 2019, 10:19:33 AM »
A10, Is there one out there at that weight?

It seems like the manufacturers are focusing on, how shall we say, higher margin light weight boards,  so some RacerBoy and RacerGirl will buy a new one every season!
Let it come to you..
SMIK 9'2" Hipster Mini Mal
SMIK 8'8" Short Mac Freo Rainbow Bridge
SMIK 8'4" Hipster Twin
King's 8'2" Accelerator SharkBoy

mrbig

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #924 on: March 17, 2019, 10:19:59 AM »
A10, Is there one out there at that weight?

It seems like the manufacturers are focusing on, how shall we say, higher margin light weight boards,  so some RacerBoy and RacerGirl will buy a new one every season!

Apologies for the double post. Used to be able to trick it by posting a huge pic file.

Delete post? Admin? Why not?
« Last Edit: March 17, 2019, 10:32:59 AM by mrbig »
Let it come to you..
SMIK 9'2" Hipster Mini Mal
SMIK 8'8" Short Mac Freo Rainbow Bridge
SMIK 8'4" Hipster Twin
King's 8'2" Accelerator SharkBoy

burchas

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #925 on: March 17, 2019, 10:34:35 AM »
...lots of people would find a rather gunny low-volume 12ft do-everything-but-especially surf board appealing right now...

I'll echo that. It could be a one board quiver for many imo. Unfortunately, it seems Naish will follow pack and introduce a dugout
for the next season.
in progress...

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #926 on: March 17, 2019, 11:26:35 AM »
A10, Is there one out there at that weight?

It seems like the manufacturers are focusing on, how shall we say, higher margin light weight boards,  so some RacerBoy and RacerGirl will buy a new one every season!
Well, that was my point. There are very few boards like that. But the weight isnt critical as long as its under about 25lbs for a board with that volume. I think that most manufacturers should replace their longest spoon-nosed longboard for a board a little longer but with a gun-type outline. Most people buying a longboard for genuine longboard surfing these days want something 9-11ft. A 12ft gun-outline board thats plenty stable and not too heavy (and surfs well) would appeal to more folks I think than the 11-6 longboard many of them currently have in their range.

robon

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #927 on: March 17, 2019, 03:35:46 PM »
I would not mind a performance/fast light touring board. A kind of Glide Light or Javelin de-tuned. Pretty much a SIC RS with a tad less volume but without the race moniker to it, so it becomes available on the second hand market :-)
And that is something that could work well with the hollow construction of Nelo. They just have to go wider and make some nicer, cleaner lines. Simple is best.

The JL Sidewinder 14 x 27 has a bit less volume than the SIC RS 14 x 26 and would be very close to the same weight in the more durable signature construction. Just no used ones popping up in BC yet. The Sunova Allwater 14 x 27 may be a bit more volume than what you would want. I noticed Sunova has a new touring/expedition board in multiple widths that Norm Hann helped develop. The 14 x 28.5 would probably be a fairly quick touring board but is higher volume.
« Last Edit: March 17, 2019, 03:39:09 PM by robon »

Luc Benac

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #928 on: March 17, 2019, 04:08:47 PM »
I would not mind a performance/fast light touring board. A kind of Glide Light or Javelin de-tuned. Pretty much a SIC RS with a tad less volume but without the race moniker to it, so it becomes available on the second hand market :-)
And that is something that could work well with the hollow construction of Nelo. They just have to go wider and make some nicer, cleaner lines. Simple is best.

The JL Sidewinder 14 x 27 has a bit less volume than the SIC RS 14 x 26 and would be very close to the same weight in the more durable signature construction. Just no used ones popping up in BC yet. The Sunova Allwater 14 x 27 may be a bit more volume than what you would want. I noticed Sunova has a new touring/expedition board in multiple widths that Norm Hann helped develop. The 14 x 28.5 would probably be a fairly quick touring board but is higher volume.

I was paddling with Norm this morning and he mentioned that he really like the touring board even in 28.5. the nose profile is less deep than their other board, which I like.
There is also some talk for the AllAround (orange nose, flat deck) to lower the deck so the thing doe snot feel like a bloody cork. I wanted to try the touring board in 27" but the weight has been stopping me. This year it look slike the weight is considerable down so....
« Last Edit: March 17, 2019, 04:11:27 PM by Luc Benac »
Sunova Allwater 14'x25.5" 303L Viento 520
Sunova Torpedo 14'x27" 286L Salish 500
Naish Nalu 11'4" x 30" 180L Andaman 520
Sunova Steeze 10' x 31" 150L
Blackfish Paddles

photofr

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Re: NELO is in for the games with Light Signature Race
« Reply #929 on: March 18, 2019, 12:16:58 AM »
Well, I guess it will be another product that most of us will be we get to try, so you can say what you like about it. But Im general a paddle like that would have a very sharp catch (which isnt universally popular) and quite a few people dont like soft shafts (Im not sure why, within reason). But one of the things I dont like about blades that blade shape that many people might not consider is that you can really do some damage to your board (or you) with it if you make a mistake (eg. changing hands, or scratching for a wave) - those sharp blade corners can do some real damage. I think this is one of the reasons that surf-oriented paddles have tended to have more rounded shapes than race ones. If you are paddling pure flat water of course this probably wont matter because screw-ups are so rare. But in the hurly-burly of surf or downwind, (or even some congested race conditions) stuff happens.

Ive seen quite a few people put holes in their boards in races with their paddles. But maybe if they were on Nelo boards that wouldnt happen, eh? ;)

While this is true, I see the performance of the Braca paddle as "so worth it". Every time we go out, we do risk damaging our equipment (biking, skiing, kiting, SUP - all the same in that regards). The key is to weigh the pros and cons.

After all, why limit our performance because we think we may put a scratch or two on our boards?
Are we also saying that a sharp fins and / or foils shouldn't be used because it could put a hole in our skin or other boards?
Nelo SUP - 14' x 23"
Nelo Surfski 560M - 18'4" x 17"

 


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