PIERRE MORTEFON
“In Fuerteventura I was mostly using my 6.3 and sometimes my 5.0 on the 99 Falcon. I did a few heats with the 7m, still on the 99. The most difficult part of this event was dealing with the chop. It made it very tough and technical sailing. Sometimes I could use a bigger sail but most of the time I used a smaller sail to make it easier on the gybe and to avoid crashing. Since a long time we have had amazing speed with the 99 but now it gybes extremely well also. When I go into the mark I can steer where I want with confidence. The board is also a machine in a straight line, it’s not too sticky in the water. In Fuerteventura it was super challenging conditions but I could really control my board. This is super important. I have a powerful sail. It can be hard on my legs when the gusts hit me but out of the gybe my gears flies straight! The power can be a bit much in such strong winds but I could control it and at the last gybe I could attack with my speed out of the mark. The wind in Fuerteventura was very strong and gusty and controlling any equipment was difficult so obviously the balance between control and speed is vital. My board is probably a bit more biased towards speed but that is the way I like it. I live in Marseille France which also has a lot of strong winds so I am used to sailing in these conditions. It’s a bit flatter at home. Fuerteventura has some of the most challenging slalom conditions you can race in. I am using the Z fin and the Choco fins between 32 and 34 depending on how choppy it is. As I am using a 99l board I cannot go too small. So for sails 5m to 7m I use 32 to 34 fins. A 99 is still a relatively big board in high winds so you need at least 32 cm of fin. The board is ideal for 6.3m and 7m but I feel I could be on a smaller board on a 5m. The small equipment we are riding is amazing, a few years ago you would never have expected to be able to sail in those conditions on a 100l board. Now these boards handle the conditions remarkably well. I use quite long lines for high winds anything between 32 and 35cm. You need long lines for more control and leverage. The ideal situation with your equipment is when you can trust the board and sail to do their job and just focus on the racing. Then you can focus on what you have to do, where are you? Where are your opponents? Where is the wind? Where is the mark and how you approach the start! So as long as my equipment is prepared and I know all of my settings and combinations then I can just stay focussed on the racing. For sure in lighter winds the 9m and 138 combo is also amazing but most of my equipmenwt is really good. The 6.3 is fast, the 5 is easy and the 7.7 is very fast and the acceleration is amazing. Most of the races we use the 9 and now 6.3 and we have not raced on many of the sizes in the middle. For sure our 9 is one of the best sails on the market. Two years ago we changed a few things and now it has become our magic sail. A lot of the other brands are racing on 9.6 or 9.5 when I am using the 9m in a race, so I have a smaller sail with the same power but it is less of a handful to race with. I am using less mast, less boom and it is easier to control! The sail is super light and it works well!”
“ As long as my equipment is prepared then I can just stay focussed on racing ” PIERRE MORTEFON
CRAIG GERTENBACH
“In 2016 we were looking for the right balance of outline, rocker and tail release to give each size the trim needed to help the racer stay focussed on the race and not to worry about the boards flying away. The 90 and 99 were made for stronger winds like Fuerteventura and for maximum control and gybing performance around the course. The 112 and 121 Medium boards work best on sail sizes from 7-8.4, which give our riders enough lift to fly effortlessly over chop. The 129 and 138 were designed to plane as fast as possible and get you up to speed holding on to a 9m sail. Each have their own special shape features designed for the wind range they are used in. Next year’s Falcon range will be all about speed, control and range of use. The new shapes are 89/114/136 while the 99/121 and 129 remain unchanged. R&D took place at Lake Garda, Maui, south of France, Tenerife and South Africa. On the 89 we made the main goal to improve control through a new tail outline and bottom shape and tested it in winds of over 50 knots. Our most important board, with the biggest range is the 114, for riders using 8.4 all the way down to 7.0 on this shape; here we added a cm of centre and tail width to improve the light wind range, whilst other features in cut-outs and bottom shape have greatly improved control in strong winds. The unbeatable 138 has been updated after two years of R&D, with a new 136, which is shorter with a fuller nose outline. Planing in light winds has greatly improved whilst rocker and outline have been adapted to add the all-important control for the widest range possible. With 4 out of 6 wins on the 2015 PWA tour and currently leading the 2016 slalom rankings, we are confident that the 2017 range will continue to lead the way in slalom competitions worldwide!”
