“The top end is phenomenal on this wing. In terms of feel, the shape is awesome. It’s a compact design so, the 5m really feels like a 4m while working it. The construction is industry standard and frankly, Starboard x Airush has killed it. Two big thumbs up!”
– MACKiteboarding
Who is MACKiteboarding? Located in Grand Haven on the shore of Lake Michigan is a group of the friendliest folks you could hope to share your passion for boardsports with. Their team of kiteboarding experts’ depth of knowledge is nothing less than impressive.
Let’s see what they have to say about each key feature of the FreeWing Air
Window
The Starboard x Airush FreeWing has a nice functional window. They are quite large and they extend down a little lower so, you can see where you are going.
Leash
Leash attachment works really well. Especially if you are spinning your wing a lot in one direction, the system helps spin the leash out so, it will not be tangled up.
Inflation Valve
The inflation valve is really reliable and easy to find a replacement (if required). It also deflates really quickly. It’s simple but it makes your life a lot easier when you pack up.
The Angled Handle
This handle helps support the leading edge and also give you a nice handhold spot. For me, I tend not to use these handles as much as I do on the other wings. This is because the FreeWing is more balanced on the back handle. The angled handle is the nice transition point to the other handles if you’re moving from your luff handle to your riding handle.
The Handles
The handles are pretty standard. They are solid. They are stiff but comfortable. They are in a nice size so, you can hang on using your fingertips, you don’t have to grab the whole big thing. And they are big enough where you can share two hands if you need to when transitioning. But it’s a little bit tight for that especially if you have gloves on. And they are well-placed.
Harness Attachment
The harness line does not come included with the wing but the FreeWing comes with these little handy attachment points. They are sewed in nicely and really robust. It’s also well-placed. So, when you’re leaning into it, you are not overpowered or underpowered. It’s very well balanced.
Structure
The structure is what sets this wing apart. It has a really really big boom. It gives you a lot of rigidity and this is what transfers your energy from your hand into the sail, helps you control it, helps you pump it. And having a really stiff, big boom really help you transfer the energy well because it’s not flexing and twisting. For me, this really sets this wing apart. It’s really rigid both the boom and the leading edge. So, when you transfer power through this wing, it really creates a lot of responses to the power and that really shows in the light wind ability of this wing. It pumps so well. It’s so responsive in the pumping because of the rigidity and the stiffness.
Canopy
The canopy is another thing that’s really crucial about a lot of wings that I like is a nice taut crisp canopy. You don’t want a lot of ‘flappiness’ because that makes it ride loud. It makes it less efficient. It makes your pumping really weak. As you can see this FreeWing has a nice reinforced trailing edge to help reduce flapping and increase durability. This wing is not to tight where it can’t curve naturally and create power but it’s tight enough for when you pump, it really creates some good power. On to the point of low end, this pump power has allowed me to use the 4 while others are on 5m wings. You can really make it work if you are willing to learn how to pump well. A few good pumps and your ripping. The top end is phenomenal on this wing. In terms of feel, the shape is awesome.
Back Panel
The back panel refers to the shape of the wing behind the boom and when that create the right airflow section, it creates a lot more lift. It captures a lot more power per square meter so that’s a real key feature that I like in a lot of wings too.