Review by: Dom Gaud

Construction: Carbon Kevlar

Size: 14' Long, 28" wide, 6 ½" Thick, 279,6L volume

Fin's: Single fin

Shaper: Niki Carstens

Designer: Ivan van Vuuren

The guys from Coreban provided us with one of their new Carbon Kevlar 14” Alpah Race boards, and we got to choose any colour we wanted!! Looking at the impressive range on offer it was not an easy choice.

First impressions:

The first thing I noticed was the board bag that it comes in. The bag has got to be one of the better bags I have received with any new board. It has convenient handles on the nose and tail, solid zipper that has a unique path towards the nose, and good construction. When I removed the board from the bag the first thought that jumped to mind was “this is a sexy looking board!” The board is very light and can be easily handled with the well-placed carry handle.

Starting at the nose, the board resembles that of a surfski with a displacement hell style shape with a little rocker which goes into a double concave ending in a pin tail. The bottom finish on the board has a ruff finish to it, which helps with speed. The deck of the board has an in-step, which lowers the center of gravity and assists with stability. This desk is also shaped to allow easy water run-off to the tail.

In the water:

Flat water: I first took this board out on our local Canal testing ground for a few laps and a time trial. When cruising the board felt really stable and glided effortlessly. The nose breaks through the water smoothly and is easy to maneuver. When paddling at race pace I found that it felt like I was starting to push water a little in the front and rooster tail in the back, which only happened when I was really pushing hard. It would be nice to see how lighter riders fair in this regard.

Open ocean: After my first downwind run on this board I realised what a divers board this is. It catches runners with ease and with the in-step deck it is very comfortable and stable. On bigger runners the nose managed to push trough the water and then the width pulls itself up onto the plane, which helps compensate for the minimal rocker, however it feels like you want more rocker. However when you have smaller runs the board seems to glide forever which allowed me to link up runs together and others have to work hard to keep up. After my first run I changed the standard fin to a surf fin and pushed it right to the back of the fin box to help with surfing the runners. I also waxed up where the deck grip ends before the tail. It would be nice to see the deck grip extend further back.

Ratings:

Appearance :                     10/10

Quality and Finish:              10/10

Paddling:                             7/10

Downwinders:                   7-9/10 (depends on the conditions)

Stability:                             8/10

Manoverability:                    8/10

Conclusion:

This board is great for all round paddling, which can hold it’s own on flatwater and open ocean. It has proven itself in our downwind series with riders like Greg Bertish, Ross Lahuna, and Ivan van Vuuren wining events in the highly competitive elite class. So if you are looking for an all-round board that will allow you to compete in both flatwater and open ocean events then this board will do you well.