RRD Spitfire - The Speed Machine !!!

6th Apr 2006 @ 08:33:29 AM

Called simply a “speed and slalom board” by RRD, the X-Fire’s hull shape is quite traditional, being thin and relatively long (actually only 242cm, but this now feels comparatively long!) The max width is 62.5cm, and both the tail and nose are quite wide (41cm), giving a board that feels quite big in the water and is capable of taking some pretty big sails. The X-Fire is very smooth and easy onto the plane and accelerates quickly to a fast top speed, all the time remaining very easy to trim and control, so much so that it has some clear crossover into pure freeride territory. The strap positions are outboard and wrap your feet right around the rail, right in position to drive the board hard and fly off the fin (there is also a set of slightly more inboard positions if you’re not up to the full outboard stance yet). It’s happiest on flat water, but will stay controllable in swell as long as you keep the power on, otherwise the nose can have a tendency to lift and cause some control issues. The board is pleasingly responsive and forgiving to gybe. The rails at the back may be hard, but they’re also thin enough to bite, making it relatively easy to adjust your arc mid-gybe – ideal for slalom gybing because you can go screaming in on a wide arc, but tighten up hard at the end, to exit tight to the buoy. Guesters’ view: Generally very well liked. Considered to have a ‘traditional feel’ and be slightly more technical to sail than the freerides but ‘fast’, relatively easy once in the straps, ‘smooth’ and not hard to gybe. Fittings: It comes with a good quality 40cm Tuttle fin, and will benefit from the additional purchase of something smaller (say around 32cm) for the windier end of the board’s range. The straps are perfectly comfortable but showed signs of wear by the end of the trip. Overall: The RRD would suit any competent sailor seriously into speed and fast blasting. We found it best with sails from 6.0 up to 7.5m, used as well-powered up as possible. A very nice slalom board, enjoyed by all who sailed it.