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Starboard Flare 101 2012 action

Starboard Flare IQ 101 Woodcarbon

Stats Volume (L) 101 Weight (Kg) 6.7 Length (cm) 230.5 Width (cm) 62.5 Construction Wood Carbon Fin Drake Freestyle 18.5cm Price £1549

The low down
The Flare is Starboard’s hardcore freestyle board line, this is the seventh generation of the board and for 2012 it has had a complete reworking. It comes exclusively in Woodcarbon construction and is available in six different sizes including the 60 and 72 Pro Kids models.

At a glance
It has a short and compact shape, with a rounded nose and squared off tail. It is the narrowest board on test across the middle and also has the narrowest tail but it is packing plenty of volume in the hard rails and thickness. On the deck it has plenty of dome for comfort and grip, as well as subtle heel gutters around the footpads for a secure ride under foot. The fittings are top quality, with very good Starboard straps and a decent Drake 18.5cm freestyle fin, which now comes in the new Slot Box format for increased overall weight saving.

Performance
The Starboard is extremely quick to accelerate and lifts immediately onto the plane, so you can be quickly back into the footstraps, where the ride is very comfortable. The domed deck and heel gutters give you lots of grip and control so you feel perfectly connected to the board. It feels good in all conditions, delivering a lively ride on flat water and in choppy conditions the compact shape is also very easy to handle. This is a very quick board, the Flare shares the same rocker line as the iSonic slalom board range, which makes them super fast. It pops high off flat water and the narrow, compact shape is very easy to control and rotate in the air. Its fast top speed can also be put to good use when it comes to sliding moves and it will fire round these very quickly, opening up the possibilities of double or even triple moves.

The verdict
The Flare is a rapid freestyle board, it is a completely new board for 2012 and the new shape has really pushed up the performance levels of the Flare but at the same time, it hasn’t lost any of its original character and is still a really good fun board to ride. Suitable for all freestylers that like it fast and powerful.

www.star-board.com

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