GUNSAILS RAPID 7.2 2020 TEST REVIEW
THE VERDICT
Effortless to tune and with real range in its riding style and application, the Rapid provides an excellent all-round performance, and at this price it simply can’t be ignored.
OVERVIEW
The Rapid is Gunsails’ no-cam freerace sail, sitting between the freeride Stream and twin-cam Exceed in the brand’s extensive range. For 2020 the Rapid’s weight is said to have been brought down, using Kevlar tendons to control panel profiles and movement, whilst the luff sleeve has been enlarged to improve rigging ease. Tested here on a Select 460 cm SDM, it sets easily, using the F.R.E.D. marker as a guide, the tack pulley oriented to mitigate any unnecessary friction. There is plenty of looseness all the way down the leech, reinforced by mini-battens along its whole length, before using the two distinct clew eyelet positions to vary power delivery. There’s also plenty of rotation in the lower battens, whilst all seven are said to be tube-battens, adding to the impression of detailing included in the Rapid. There’s beading along the lengths of both bottom battens, abrasion pads throughout, a padded tack fairing and x-ply in the vulnerable head and foot panels. It’s a well thought out product and at the exchange rate as we go to print, comes in at just over £460.00. On paper it looks like cracking value for money, so let’s get it on the water and check its performance.
BRAND CLAIM
“How to combine slalom with effortless freeriding? The solution is the Rapid. The easy handling of a no cam sail within an ambitious 7-batten slalom outline.”
PERFORMANCE
Using the upper clew eyelet extends the Rapid’s boom length to 209 cm as well as raising the boom geometry. As a result the power produced in light marginal winds is significant, the moderate luff curve and expansion in the Dacron luff panel helping to amplify the sail’s pumping efficiency. Accelerating smoothly in the hands, the energy delivered is easy and balanced in the hands, allowing the Rapid to be locked into a comfortable stance. It feels large and full bodied, generating the drive to furnish any widestyle freeride platform; yet there’s an ease and practicality to the delivery too, the sail breathing into life and powering in a measured manner, so as to not unsettle the rider’s stance. There’s a good natural range to the Rapid’s setting too, downhauling the sail to F.R.E.D. and using the upper eyelet for light airs, or dropping to the lower clew eyelet for strong winds. Changing to the more inset eyelet makes a big difference, the extra boom rake and increased twist in the leech enhancing control and predictability. Its performance comes easy, requiring little technical input of effort from the rider and whilst it may not possess the slippery efficiency of the no-cam slalom sails in the test, the ease in which its performance is achieved makes it more than enough for most recreational blasters. In transition the Rapid’s speed and manners can be used to enter corners confidently, the movement in the Dacron luff panel helping the sail to de-power easily mid-transition as the battens rotate smoothly. This movement is also a real asset in unforgiving seas, the sail moving around the rider and helping them to remain comfortably locked in their stance, covering distance without expending too much energy.
SPECS
Size: 7.2
Luff: 468 cm.
Boom: 200/209 cm.
Battens: 7
Ideal Mast: Gunsails 460 cm SDM.
Available Sizes: 5.7, 6.2, 6.7, 7.2, 7.9, 8.6.
PRICE: €509.00
OTHER SAILS IN TEST