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The long wait of 9 months is finally over - the latest throw of the Firewire Tomo EVO has finally reached us.
We could not wait to ride the new Kitesurf boards hardly, so we have a threesome made their way to the Baltic Sea to the sizes 5.1 and 5.3 for testing. We are each 115kg, 100kg and 80kg heavy. Wind conditions were onshore and side/onshore on the Baltic Sea with chest to head high short waves. Kite sizes were 9m and 7m. For direct comparison, we have the boards changed frequently and also included the Vader in 5.3 with.

Technical details of the shape you can see here quite well: http://shop.firewiresurfboards.com/c.../evo-kiteboard
What immediately catches the eye at first glance are scoop and rocker - you might think Daniel Thomson had a banana used as template

We still need to ride EVO in good condition, but the following, we can already say:

- It´s pretty fast
- It can be turned by back foot or can be ridden in the pocket over the front foot
- It takes the speed with of the turn
- It immediately slips and goes extremely upwind, even more than the Vader
- the quad setup us liked better than the thruster setup
- Choppy water is absorbed by the board, even more than when Vader
- The stance on the board is variable
- It is easy to "popping" out of the water and stuck in the air at the foot
- The surf feeling is enhanced by the extra volume (5.3 EVO against 5.3 Vader) again.

FireWire is the recommendation the board a number less than to drive the Vader. What to include clear with when we consider not only its own weight, but also the length of the body! At 190cm and 100kg, I can drive the 5.1er EVO, but something is missing in volume and I had the feeling sometimes to push the nose down. Andreas with its 115kg and 205cm had this feeling also. Our lightweight Alex, however, the 5.1er EVO was fantastic! He was a little too large at size 5.3er EVO. I opted for the size 5.3, because I drive 60/70% of the surf day in German Seas and this little extra-volume to high esteem. The EVO has made an average day on the water a very fun day on the water!

ALOHA,
Daniel

http://www.united-ocean-sports.de

I am 100kg and have the 5.3 EVO.

I took the EVO (tri fin) out this weekend on three 8km downwinders flying a 12m Cloud on the first one and the 9m Cloud on the other two.
Fantastic small surfboard. Almost no swing weight, turns on a dime. Very nice nose rocker!!!

I have no comment on the upwind capability yet due to the fact that I was doing a downwinder, but, I did more tight turns on this board in my first run than I have ever done. Got quite dizzy.

I think most direct comparison is the North CSC Nugget. I suspect the Nugget is tougher (also heavier), but it doesn't turn as well as the EVO.

IMHO, I rate the Vanguard and EVO as equal, and Vader just behind.

Do you have a Vader bigtone ?
I find it interesting that you rate the Vanguard ahead of the Vader, why is that so ?

Evo looks sick, I have to get one.

Please don't compare Evo to nugget, they are very different!

bigtone667 wrote: I think most direct comparison is the North CSC Nugget. I suspect the Nugget is tougher (also heavier), but it doesn't turn as well as the EVO.

small wave kiter wrote:Please don't compare Evo to nugget, they are very different!

Why would you discourage someone from providing useful information?
The mistake you are making is thinking the valuable information is about the board. The valuable information provided above is about the reviewer, not the boards.

bigtone667 wrote: IMHO, I rate the Vanguard and EVO as equal, and Vader just behind.

Thanks for the review, especially the fact that you've ridden all three boards as that really helps those of us with one or the other.

Can you elaborate on why you rate the VG and Evo, two very different boards, as "equal" and put the VD "behind" them? I'm not bashing you at all (I hope it didn't come out that way) I'm really curious as I currently ride a 5.4 VG and have been eyeballing the Evo really hard ever since it came out in regular surf construction. I've passed on getting the VD just because I thought it seemed pretty similar to the VG and there would be too much overlap having both of them.

topmick wrote:Do you have a Vader bigtone ?
I find it interesting that you rate the Vanguard ahead of the Vader, why is that so ?

Evo looks sick, I have to get one.

I found the Vader a little to corky for me but the Evo and Vanguard just sat really well.

small wave kiter wrote:Please don't compare Evo to nugget, they are very different!

I ride them both, so I find them similar. Shape, size etc.

Have you ridden the CSC Nugget and the Evo?

Bushflyr wrote:

bigtone667 wrote: IMHO, I rate the Vanguard and EVO as equal, and Vader just behind.

Thanks for the review, especially the fact that you've ridden all three boards as that really helps those of us with one or the other.

Can you elaborate on why you rate the VG and Evo, two very different boards, as "equal" and put the VD "behind" them? I'm not bashing you at all (I hope it didn't come out that way) I'm really curious as I currently ride a 5.4 VG and have been eyeballing the Evo really hard ever since it came out in regular surf construction. I've passed on getting the VD just because I thought it seemed pretty similar to the VG and there would be too much overlap having both of them.

I found both the Evo and Vanguard worked really well for my weight in the surf I was in. And I was not expecting the Evo to have the same lift/float/planing as the Vanguard, but it sure did have. I suspect the Vanguard will have better straight line speed but will not turn nearly as well as the Evo.

I thought the Vanguard and Vader were very similar as well and I came across a couple bargains and thought it was worth having them both. I just found the Vader a little corky. But I will continue to use it to see if I can find the right conditions for it to work for me.

As I stated, It is just my impression. I know a few people who love the Vader.

Would you recommend the Evo to a strapless beginner? I'm only 62kg/137lbs, what size should I opt for? 4'10 or 5'1?