Just got off a marathon session doing runners in waist high east coast 200 lb(i’m down 20 which is nice!) Rode the North SF 930 with 178 tail on the 72 mast borrowed from my buddy Forest (thanks bro!). Just wanted to share how great this setup was.
Normally ride the 170 Progression and in the non-stock way i have it set up i is great for small conditions but feel alot of nose diving at speed. Also had some construction issues (i’ve cracked many unibody foils) and price issues so i decided to look at the north.
I found the setup to be stiff enough - not the best in the world but certainly servicable. There was a HAIR of mast fuse movement and equivalent fuse wing movement but defintely not a deal breaker. I LOVE the price of the wings, etc. I can actually afford to have a quiver and always be on the right wing - which i feel like would make up for any deficiences in design (being on the right size wing trumps being on the best design) but i don’t feel like the design was lacking.
For a “better wave foil” it was awesome. Handled excess speed really well, no nose diving at speed, stayed predictable but still had some pump to it - certanily not an all day pumper like the 170 but servicable for with the wind runners or and some 3+ dips on a beach session.
I feel like the biggest deficiency is the mast sizing. 72 was servicable but having soemthing a hair longer without jumping to the next size up (85!) would be great. I’m going to make a 77 (north, if your listening steal this idea and do a 77!) which should be perfect for a better wave foil. With that compact span on the 930 (900mm) the 72 was OK for breach resistance on turns and being so predictable i didn’t need the extra length for recovery while blasting through turblence/nosediving.
Looking at the rest of the SF range it seems really well proportioned for surf focused foils. Slightly lower AR than something like the Prog, etc so probably not pumping quite as well but based on the 930 the turning of the shorter span seems to make up for it. I like how they aren’t totally proportional size changes and but also don’t leave the span the same for all. The whole range looks well done - i’m definately eager for a good day to get on the 680. I’m thinking keep my prog kit (repaired, $0 resale) for groveling conditions, 930 for decent waves, and maybe 680 for winging and being ambitious (and maybe end up disipointed) on epic days.
