Red Tiger XL Dark Arts (Red Deck)
The XL version is exactly the same, with stock dims built to suit the bigger, stockier surfer, or for more novice surfers looking to level up in their surfing by downsizing to a smaller board.
Silky smooth, even in junk waves, and possibly our fastest board yet, The Red Tiger XL Dark Arts (Red Deck) is John John Florence’s new High-Performance Shortboard unlike anything we have released in the past. It is the ultimate performance machine for medium-sized, slower, weaker waves, based on John’s simple guidance - ”make it Fast and Fun”.
The idea for this board was hatched when John began riding some different “fun” boards during some breaks from competing. By far his favourite in the last year has been our new flat rockered, Funformance board, the White Tiger (5’6’’), and he asked me to turn that design into something he could take back on tour to ride when the surf was less than pumping, or on the weaker side.
The outline is a touch on the plump side for a HPSB, but the wide point sits a more traditional inch behind the centre, keeping the emphasis on surfing it off the mid to back half of the board. The wider tail-block squash helps to keep area in the tail which provides lift and drive, and also helps create “pop” when going to the air. A moderate hip by the front fins puts a break in the outline to help create a pivot point that allows for tighter radius turns and release in the lip.
The rocker and bottom contour are really what sets this board apart from other boards in this category. It’s our flattest HPSB so far and that rocker translates to easy, consistent speed from the moment you stand up, through flat sections and even in super weak, small waves. But, flat rocker can feel sticky and tends to make you surf flat, so we run single to double concave (JJF’s favourite bottom contour) through the front 2/3s of the board and then blend that into a significant double concave/deep vee combo through the fins and off the tail. This bottom keeps the flatter board easy to roll rail-to-rail and the vee of the tail works to allow easy vertical surfing and short-arc carves, even in tight, pockety waves.
The front of the board is just barely thinner than the back half. The deck is flat-ish, keeping more foam (volume) out towards the rails. The actual rails are full just in from the outline (under the ball of your hand if you are holding the board under your arm) but are tapered to keep sensitivity and bite.
Ride your Red Tiger around an inch shorter than “normal” HPSB, and a bit wider. Volume should be close but go up a ½ to 1 litre for added zing in weaker waves. The board will easily turn your everyday sessions into something special and we believe it will outperform any other HPSB in under-par waves AND still come through when the surf turns on!
