Windsurf MagazineGOYA MARK PRO 7.2 2020 TEST REVIEW

THE VERDICT

The Mark Pro combines an involving high-adrenaline nature with a level of control that can’t help but inspire even the most timid pilot. With an excellent natural range, it’s worth deciding your mast diameter according to your individual riding style.

OVERVIEW

The Mark is in the Goya lineup for another season, denoted as their six-batten freerace option. The 7.2m is the third largest in the range and sports the same dimensions as its predecessor. It is also actively promoted this season as compatible for use with RDM and SDM, and as luck would have it, we have both to test it with this year, the sail sent with the Hundred Pro in RDM and SDM. Rigging is uncomplicated, thanks to the guidance provided by the visual dot at the tip of the top panel’s mini-batten, and the fact that only one clew eyelet is offered. Whichever mast diameter is used, the three lower battens retain rotation around the mast, the draft locked forward whilst the leech falls away progressively along its length. It really does have a stunning set, without a blemish or crease in any of the panels. X-ply is utilised in the luff and foot panels, leaving the brand’s preference Mono-Ply Film (MPF) in the window panel, and coloured monofilm around its perimeter to complete the visual impact. Sporting alternating battens, and the brand’s familiar carbon stretch control tendons, it is certainly standout in its new neon yellow/fuchsia get-up, the colours reversed to make even more of a statement for the all x-ply Mark Pro X version. And as with the Banzai and Nexus tested earlier this season, the Mark Pro will remain unchanged for two seasons, making this exact sail current for 2021 as well.

BRAND CLAIM

“Delivering impressive low end torque and acceleration combined with easy handling when super powered, the Mark Pro allows you to focus on your line and tactics rather than managing your sail.”

PERFORMANCE

Rigging the Mark Pro on the SDM provided initially, it feels small in the hands at rest, the short boom and high skin tension making the feedback pinpoint precise. It nevertheless has a useful bottom-end in marginal winds, tuned with slightly less tension and responding positively to the energy and input from an active rider. Accelerating rapidly, it settles into a comfortable locked in position, the high boom rake helping to contribute to the sense of control, whilst the sail’s immediacy in response really keeps the rider engaged and involved. In comfortably powered conditions, a little more downhaul brings the looseness to the marker in the top panel and settles any draft movement, fine-tuning the sail’s profile depth and power delivery on the outhaul. As such, the Mark Pro displays excellent natural range on this single setting, pulling through lulls well and actively accelerating in the hands during gusts. The centre of effort is focussed low down in the sail, but a little further back than some, helping to deliver useable feedback through the back hand. In this respect, it has a similar character to the Banzai and Nexus tested earlier this season – a crisp and involving ride that gives the rider the power the instant it is required. Partnered with a fast freerace or slalom board, it offers the impetus and drive to drag race in confidence, finding particular favour with those that thrive on participating rather than just going along for the ride. And this is also true in transition, the Mark Pro’s energy spurring the rider on during entry, its short raked boom helping rig movement mid-transition and encouraging the rider to keep their weight low. For lighter riders or those with a more passive sailing style, changing the mast to an RDM could be a solution, the mast response more gradual, which, coupled with the extra breathability in the luff sleeve softens the directness of the delivery. You do need to apply extra downhaul and outhaul tension in powered conditions, yet the feedback is more sympathetic and tempered, proving particularly welcome in choppy coastal seas.