Archive for the 'Boards' Category

Review: 2009 JP X-Cite Ride 100

Friday, June 26th, 2009

Board Tested: 2009 JP Australia X-Cite Ride 100
Sails Used: 2009 Naish Sprint 7.3
Location: Columbia River Gorge: Event Site
Conditions: 15-22 mph
Rider: Mike
Gender: Male
Height: 5′11″
Weight: 165 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer, Expert kiteboarder
What a smooth board! It jumped on a plane, held its speed through the lulls and quick [...]

Review: 2009 Starboard Futura 101

Friday, June 26th, 2009

Board Tested: 2009 Starboard Futura 101
Sails Used: 2009 Naish Sprint 7.3
Location: Columbia River Gorge: Event Site
Conditions: 15-22 mph
Rider: Mike
Gender: Male
Height: 5′11″
Weight: 165 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer, Expert kiteboarder
I got fast acceleration and instant planing. I had a lot of power from the 7.3 and got it [...]

2 Reviews: 2009 Naish Global Wave

Friday, June 26th, 2009

Board Tested: 2009 Naish Global Wave 78
Sails Used: 2009 Naish All Terrain 5.0
Location: Columbia River Gorge: Rowena
Conditions: Marginal 5.0 filling in to solid 4.2 conditions
Rider: Joe
Gender: Male
Height: 6′2″
Weight: 185 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
No problem getting onto a plane. The key is to move back into [...]

2 Reviews: 2009 Starboard Kode

Friday, June 26th, 2009

Board Tested: 2009 Starboard Kode 95
Sails Used: 2009 Naish All Terrain 5.0
Location: Columbia River Gorge: White Salmon Bridge
Conditions: Gusty 25mph
Rider: Joe
Gender: Male
Height: 6′2″
Weight: 185 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
This board popped onto a plane quickly which made an otherwise marginal day into a memorable session. It glided [...]

Review: 2009 Naish All Terrain

Friday, June 26th, 2009

Board Tested: 2009 Naish All Terrain 85
Sail Used: 2009 Naish Force 5.0
Location: Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: 15-25mph, classic after work session
Rider: Steve
Gender: Male
Height: 5′10″
Weight: 150 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
The All Terrain is the quintessential bump and jump board, quick, lively, smooth and effortless to jibe, with emphasis on effortless. This board / sail combination [...]

Review: 2009 Starboard Evil Twin

Friday, June 26th, 2009

Board Tested: 2009 Starboard Windsurf Evil Twin 74
Sails Used: 2009 Naish Force 4.2
Location: Columbia River Gorge: Hatchery
Conditions: Windy 4.2 conditions, flat water, some swell
Rider: Steve
Gender: Male
Height: 5′10″
Weight: 150 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
This board is designed to live in good swell or waves. It doesn’t quite have the [...]

Daryl’s Reviews: Naish Pro Wave 65 and Naish Session

Friday, May 30th, 2008

Rider: Daryl
Gender: Female
Height: 5′2″
Weight: 120 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
Board Tested: 2008 Naish Pro Wave 65L
Sails Used: 2008 Naish Session 3.4 - 4.7
Dates: Winter 2008 and Spring 2008
Location: Kanaha, Maui, Hawaii and the Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: High-wind wave and swell riding
A great board for smaller riders who love shredding waves.
Daryl sails the 2008 Naish Pro Wave [...]

Steve’s Review: Naish Global Wave 78

Monday, May 12th, 2008

Board Tested: 2008 Naish Global Wave 78
Sails Used: 2008 Naish Force 4.2 - 4.7
Dates: Fall 2007, Spring 2008
Location: Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: “Fully powered-up to light and funky.”
Rider: Steve
Gender: Male
Height: 5′10″
Weight: 150 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
Steve is a lighter guy than Joe, and he wants to take a moment to share his own experience riding the [...]

Joe’s Review: Naish Global Wave 78

Friday, May 9th, 2008

Board Tested: 2008 Naish Global Wave 78
Sail Used: 2008 Naish All Terrain 4.0
Date: May 6, 2008
Location: Rowena, Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: 26-39 mph winds, swell riding
Rider: Joe
Gender: Male
Height: 6′2″
Weight: 185 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
Joe tested the 2008 Naish Global Wave 78 the other day, and I was able to corner him and learn what he thought [...]

David’s Review: Naish 10′6″ Stand Up Board

Thursday, May 8th, 2008

Board Tested: 2008 Naish 10′6″ Stand Up
Paddle Used: 80″ Werner Spanker
Dates: May, 2008
Location: Event Site, Columbia River Gorge
Paddling Conditions: glassy flatwater, and 10-15 mph wind chop
Windsurfing Conditions: swell riding in 10-30 mph winds, 4.7 meter sail
Rider: David
Gender: Male
Height: 6′0″
Weight: 170 lbs
Skill Level: Expert stand up paddler, expert windsurfer, expert kiteboarder
David has recently been spending a [...]

Joe’s Review: Naish All Terrain 95 Board

Tuesday, May 6th, 2008

Board Tested: 2008 Naish All Terrain 95
Sail Used: 2008 Naish All Terrain 5.0
Fin Used: Stock Naish All Terrain 28 cm fin
Date: May 5, 2008
Location: Rowena, Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: 8-21 mph winds, swell riding (marginal conditions)
Rider: Joe
Gender: Male
Height: 6′2″
Weight: 185 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer
Joe is our shipping manager here at Big Winds, and he is one [...]

Daryl’s Review: Lots of Stand Up Paddling Gear!

Tuesday, May 6th, 2008

Boards Tested: Aquaglide Amundson 11′3″, Naish 10′6″, Naish 11′6″
Paddles Used: Naish Stand Up, Werner Spanker
Dates: Spring 2008
Location: Central Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: Flatwater paddling
Rider: Daryl
Gender: Female
Height: 5′2″
Weight: 120 lbs
Skill Level: Expert windsurfer, intermediate paddler
Rider: Andy
Gender: Male
Weight: 85 lbs
Age: 12
Skill Level: Intermediate windsurfer (working on his jibes), beginner paddler
Daryl is one of our most knowledgeable experts here [...]

Beautiful Weather and an Amazing Demo Day!

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

Tons of people braved warm weather and blazing sunshine to join us last Saturday for our Naish Stand Up Paddling Demo, and we want to extend a hearty thank you to everyone who showed up! We also want to shout out a huge thanks to the guys at Naish for putting together this fun-filled [...]

Packaging Your Board for Airline Travel

Monday, April 28th, 2008

It’s no secret that baggage handlers can be rather unforgiving when it comes to the proper care and feeding of your precious windsurf board. International travel can be an especially trying endeavor, and it’s wise to do everything in your power to give your gear the upper hand in any mistreatment scenario. Sailing [...]

New Big Winds Product Comparison Tool!

Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008

We love helping people find the best gear for their needs, and we know that shopping for a rig can be an overwhelming experience. For instance, in our current 2008 lineup we have more than 30 types of boards from six manufacturers. Each of those 30 boards includes numerous sizes and constructions, such [...]

David’s Review: Aquaglide’s Amundson 11′3″ Stand Up

Wednesday, April 9th, 2008

Board Tested: 2008 Aquaglide Amundson 11′3″ Stand Up
Paddle Used: 80″ Werner Spanker
Dates: Winter/Spring 2008
Location: Baja California Sur, Sea of Cortez
Conditions: Surf, small wind chop, and lightwind windsurfing
Rider: David
Gender: Male
Height: 6′0″
Weight: 170 lbs
Skill Level: Expert stand up paddler, expert windsurfer, expert kiteboarder
In small on-shore wind chop, the Aquaglide Amundson 11′3″ is a very stable stand up [...]

April 26th is Naish Stand Up Demo Day!

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

Join us on Saturday April 26th, 2008 to try out the entire stand up paddling lineup from Naish. Naish and Big Winds will be running free demos all afternoon from 1:00 to 4:00, sending people out on the Mighty Columbia River to try out some of this awesome gear.
The river is frigid this time [...]

Dane’s Review: 2008 Mistral Pacifico Wave

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

Board Tested: 2008 Mistral Pacifico Wave 11′1″
Paddle Used: Werner Spanker
Date: April 2, 2008
Location: The Event Site - Hood River, Oregon
Conditions: Flatwater paddling, 0-5 mph
Rider: Dane
Gender: Male
Height: 5′5″”
Weight: 135 lbs
Skill Level: Beginner paddler, Advanced kiteboarder
Along with the Naish SUP 11′6″ that I reviewed, yesterday I also had a chance to paddle the 2008 Mistral Pacifico Wave. [...]

Dane’s Review: 2008 Naish Stand Up 11′6″ EVA

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

Board Tested: 2008 Naish Stand Up 11′6″ EVA
Paddle Used: Werner Spanker
Date: April 2, 2008
Location: The Event Site - Hood River, Oregon
Conditions: Flatwater paddling, 0-5 mph
Rider: Dane
Gender: Male
Height: 5′5″”
Weight: 135 lbs
Skill Level: Beginner paddler, Advanced kiteboarder
Yesterday evening I had a chance to get out on the 2008 Naish Stand Up 11′6″ EVA board, and having never [...]

David’s Follow-Up Review: The Mistral Pacifico

Thursday, May 24th, 2007

David has spent some more time on the Mistral Pacifico since his first review, and he has some more thoughts on this board. David has now had this board out in a wide range of conditions, both stand up surfing and windsurfing, and it sounds like he’s still a huge fan! His words [...]