Joe Bark 12′6″ SUP Stand Up Paddle Race Boards
I recently visited Joe Bark’s SUP and paddleboard factory and he showed me a couple of his new 12′6″ racing stand up paddle boards. These are the same boards that will be produced by Surftech in 2010 and the same ones his team riders raced at Battle of the Paddle 2009.
The 12′6″ x 28″ Bark stand up race board
First was the 12′6″ x 28″ race board with a black carbon bottom. It is shaped with a piercing nose and a wide tail to give the board stability. The curves on the board also adds to its stability and speed.
The carbon bottom is fairly flat and although the black finish has a really nice look, it gets super hot (temperature) quickly so Joe suggests a a board bag for the board when not in use. I asked about the convection heat from storing the board in a bag in the sun and he said that the direct heat from the sun is what really does the damage. Either way, keep these out of the sun when not in use.
The tail is a fairly wide squash tail to add stability and help catch swells. Joe gives a pretty in depth overview in the video.
Next was the 12′6″ flatwater stand up racing board. It’s also shaped with a piercing nose but with a round bottom and a pin tail. This board was design exclusively for use in glassy, flatter water conditions like in lake Tahoe. They sacrificed some of the stability to gain speed, according to Joe. You definitely wouldn’t want to be in the surf on this board.
The 12′6″ Bark flatwater stand up race board
Round bottom with a pintail for good release
The knife-edged nose
Check out the video:
(click thumbnail to launch video)
What kind of price range will these be offered at?
The 12-6 retails for $2,500 with a carbon and glass combo layup. They did really well at Battle of the Paddle and the unique feature was not only were they fast but they rode breaking waves really well because of hard edged squash tail. Noland Martin jumped on Aaron Napolean’s the day before the race when everyone was switching and trying boards and was absolutely ripping the 3′ surf on it. He looked like he was on a 10-0 at Makaha and didn’t want to give it up. We should have a demo in the shop soon or we can order for you.
Aloha,
Jeff
wetfeethawaii.com
Thanks Jeff for the response. I was going to give you guys at wet feet a call after I saw this posted. Lookin forward to this board.
How do you think the flat-water board handles choppy water?
Adam – So far I only tried a prototype 12′6″ in strong offshore winds and the board is very stable. The board I tried was a custom for a 170 lbs guy so the volume wasn’t enough for me. The other guys that were trying it like Robert Stehlik and Jeff Chang liked it.
Fast forward to today…I tried the 14′ that is the same design but 14′ and a little wider. I demo’d the board last week twice and was blown away at the glide, especially in the flat water. I have yet to try it on a downwinder and it’s not mine so hopefully the trade winds will come back and I’ll get a chance to try it in bumpy conditions. The 14′ is stable too. The question for me is going to be how well it connects the bumps. So far it seems like it will catch bumps pretty easy.
Thanks for the response! Let me know how it goes, I would love to hear
Anyone know if there will be a SurfTech 14′ Bark Race SUP,on the market soon? A stretched out version of the Bark Race SurfTech 12′6″.
Dave – I think the 14′ will be released after the 12′6″.