Splurged on New CI MX

[the.ronin]

Well, maybe for some whose got the cash or the sponsorship, it may not be a splurge, but for someone like me (i.e., broke barney ) getting an Al Merrick board is very much a splurge ... so stoked!!!






It's 6'2" - 18 1/2 - 2 1/4 of Channel Islands goodness ... should I have been practical and gotten a Flyer? Probably. Could I have gotten a locally shaped thruster with basically the same dimensions for less than half the price (literally)? Yup. But dude I'm sorry there's just something about the CI.

[pkbum]

Yeah Kelly rides them so everybody wants to ride it too.

[ANZAC]

What do these sell for in the US $$ ?

[the.ronin]

pkbum ... although I did actually have a Becker custom made to Slater specs back when I was 18, I am well past the get-whatever-the-pros are riding stage. The get-what-looks-cool-even-if-its-impractical stage though, not so much haha.

ANZAC ... CIs are running low to mid 600s retail. I picked up this MX for 605 - about 630 Australian dollars.

Can't wait to get this thing out on its maiden voyage this morning!

[Rico]

let us know if it snaps

looks nice

[essex sucks]

the deck plug is pissed

[the.ronin]

let us know if it snaps

Hahaha nice dude!

Well I just got back ... and it rides pretty much like my other no name brand thrusters hahaha. In fairness, the waves were small, getting increasingly blown out, and, again, I am no pro rider. I do notice a nice little turbo boost when I sort of pump forward on a wave just before take-off (sorry, hard to explain). On take off, the thing is squirly man. Maybe 1 out of 3 waves, I'll pop up and find my sweet spot. Otherwise its the headless frog in a blender dance. Not sure if all this extra umph is because it is a new board and my other boards are old and likely water logged though. Still, I dig this board and no regrets with the purchase at all.

the deck plug is pissed

Do you mean it's not straight with the stringer? Hmmm ... not sure I've ever seen a straight one before.

[essex sucks]

yep spot on there straight on all 4 of my boards lol

[billie_morini]

the.ronin,
that is a beauty!

[CHarvey]

What are the bottom contours of the Al Merrick and your other short board?

[the.ronin]

CHarvey, the MX is flat all the way through but has some tail rocker. the 6-0 Becker has a v-front and flattens out. The 6-6 Kazuma is flat all the way through. Both the Becker and Kazuma have very little tail rocker. Entry rocker probably about the same on all the boards. All are squash.

[the.ronin]

Thanks for the note, billie_morini ...

So I figured that since I dropped this much coin on the board, I might as well go all out and pick up some sick Future Fins ...



Vector II Fam1 Black Stix (RTM) Engineered flex ... no idea what that means haha. Again, I am no pro surfer and I fully realize that in all likelihood I will not notice any difference between these and a half dozen popsicle sticks taped prepindicular to the bottom of my board ... but eff it. They look cool hahaha.

I’ll let you know how they ride this weekend.

[isaluteyou]

love taking a new board out, hope it works for you

[the.ronin]

Ok guys so it’s been a number of sessions with the MX ... I’d been hesitant to post after only a few sessions since I was worried any positive feedback was just my justifying the insane price of the board.

Well I think I can honestly say this board is pretty freeging amazing. Granted, it has been a loooong while since I got a new board. So maybe the technology has changed since then. Also my other boards are potato chips compared to this one, believe it or not. So the extra foam might be helping me out.

The first good wave I caught, the wave was sectioning and I was sure the board would just die and lose power. This thing just continued right up and powered right over the breaking section. Had I not lost my balance having been caught by surprise, I would have probably made it to the next section. On hollower waves, I’m used to the thing stalling and just falling over especially on late take-offs but this thing will dig in and hug the wave like a magnet.

This board is pure stoke. I love this thing so much. Only problem is now I am ridiculously over-protective of the board.