1st Exclusive UK Review of The NEW Severne Fox

May 28, 2017 10:03 pm Published by Leave your thoughts

So the NEW Severne Fox is the most widely anticipated new windsurf board in recent years. This new line of boards from the Severne stable is said to be a Freeride board which excels in chop but very little else is known about it. What does Ben mean by a Freeride board for choppy conditions and is it a Freestylewave board or not…. and if not why not?

Well Neil Greentree, our Principal Team Rider and probably one of the best people around to test any new Severne product drove down to Defi Wind at Gruissan, France to test the new boards (not just the Fox!) and to compete in the race alongside the one and only Ben Severne. On the Tuesday before the event the wind was a solid 25knots on the course and so the stage was set for a long day of testing the Severne Fox in real life conditions.

Initial Thoughts:

God this board looks good in the flesh. The graphics designed once again by Brit ‘Milky’ have come up trumps. The 95 Ltr board I’m testing has both single rear footstrap and double rear strap configurations. Its the only size to accommodate the single rear footstrap.

Shaping: 

The hull is a double concave shape but the key difference to all oter boards is the V in the width. This gives the board great stability when carving through the chop of any kind. The rocker of the board is approx 6mm which will give the board ‘get up and go’ we all love. The straight rails also contribute to the stability and drive of the shape. The rails are also quite soft which give it carving credentials.

On The Water:

Well this is the $64,000 question……….

I went out on the Blade Pro 5.7 overpowered and gusty but the board got on the plane super quick. Like I said,I first used the 95Ltr Fox in the double footstrap and the rear straps take commitment to get in – but once locked in the board flies!! The way it shrugs off all chop or mess is something I’ve never experienced before. You normally hold back a little just in case the nose buries itself into chop and you head straight over the handlebars – but not with the Severne Fox, Oh no!!, just stack it in and it WILL get through without drama – its unbelievable……and bloody enjoyable!!

In the afternoon I swapped the strap positions to a single rear footstrap position – and O..M..G!!

The board planes up quickly and getting comfortable is easy. The board lets you hang off and load it up with complete commitment and boy it feels good. It just makes light of those sea states we hate because we cannot them. Once you have grown into the design you start playing going for jumps and wave rides at will. This is not claimed to be a Freestylewave board but a Freeride board – but change the fin from the Freeride shape to a Freestylewave shape as seen in the video and I believe this board could really be (in the 95 and 105Ltr shapes) the Freestylewave board for some. No, it doesn’t have a wave shape but it is ideal for Bump & Jump blasting inland or on the sea. Having fun racing your mates or bump & jump fun off the coast.

Sailor Suitability:

Any of the Severne Fox will suit sailors intermediate upwards. The hull shape is Uber dependable and the board is stable meaning intermediate sailors can enjoy great blasting without the crash risks. For Inland sailors the bigger size boards are perfect with the early planing ability of the hull and fin. For the higher level sailors the 95 and 105Ltr are really special – for coastal blasting they excel. Being dependable enough to allow 100% commitment, these boards deliver power sailing like no other but are still manoeuvrable enough to have some fun in the ramps.

Summary:

Well, what can I say – this Range of boards has had its fair share of Pre Release Hype. But that Hype is very well placed. Its the first board I can see intermediate sailors having as much fun on as the expert sailors will, but for different reasons. The intermediates will love the dependability of the Fox and how it deals with biz unlike previous intermediate boards which just ‘dull’ the sailing sensation. The experts will love how it an be pushed and pushed right to the edge by the sailor and yet I had great fun light jumping this board.

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This post was written by James Connor

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