The next rider up in the Pro Quiver series, is third placed Jamie Hancock. Jamie appears to travel a lot lighter than most of the other pros, is this by choice? Does the fact that he is a little lighter than the others affect what equipment he chooses?
Second up in the series was Ben Proffitt, find out what he has in his van here.
Name: Jamie Hancock
Current BWA Ranking: 3rd
2011 PWA Ranking: 16th
Sail Number: K218
Height: 5’6
Weight: 68kg
Sponsors: Gaastra, Tabou, Body Glove, Finisterre, Sutsu.
Favourite conditions: I like to jump but I think riding down the line is my number one.
When your equipment works best: Works well in most conditions, travelling light is always the best!
Describe your sailing style: Consistent and all round I would say. After years of travelling round the UK and learning port tack I can happily turn up at any beach and feel pretty comfortable. I’m pretty tough on myself usually and always feel I should be better.
Sails:
IQ current production 4.0 4.5
IQ prototype 3.6 4.2
Pure 4.0 4.4
I have three different types of sails all of which I have spent time over the winter testing. Usually, I would just come with the IQ, but at the moment I also have some of the freestyle sails, the Pure, and I have a couple of prototypes for next year too.
The 2013 sails will build on the success of the 2012 ranges, but with a few key changes. There will be a new lighter weight material, which also gives a bit more power. The prototypes I am using now are great, these will see even more improvements before they they go into production.
I really like the freestyle sails for some wavesailing conditions as they have a bit more power, for example when you let the clew out in onshore sailing they will give you more power through the turn. Therefore I would pick the Pure 4.0 or 4.4 when the conditions are a bit more onshore and I need the extra power. They are also quite twitchy and on/off, which as a lighter sailor I sometimes like.
The freestyle sail only goes down to 4.0 so below this I have only the IQ. The IQ is also a lot stronger and made a lot more for the hardcore wave conditions, which means I am a lot less likely to break them when it’s really going off! Also, the fact that the Pure is really light is why I love it but this also means it is a little unstable which is why it is not recommended for wave use.
I would in the future like to have one sail range through my whole quiver, but at the moment it is really nice to swap, change and work out how the different sails are working.
My biggest sail is 4.5 and I don’t honestly think I need anything bigger! I jump from a 4.0 to a 4.4, which is quite a big jump for me, whereas for a bigger person this wouldn’t be as noticeable a change. With a bigger sail you get more power, but you also get added weight and I don’t think I gain anything more from a 5.0 in terms of early planing.
Masts:
I have my old Vandal masts, plus some newer softer Gaastra masts.
Booms:
I just have one! I am waiting for the new booms to come out in production because they look amazing.
Boards:
72 80 (both custom)
They’re the biggest I’ve ever had! I used to always have something around 65litres and then mid 70s, but now through the use of multi fins it is not an advantage to have a smaller board. The bigger boards are turning as well as the smaller boards, so it makes sense to go a little bigger as you get a lot from the added volume. I used to find I was at a disadvantage in lighter winds. In order to get great waverides I had to take a smaller board, as I found the bigger ones didn’t turn well for me, then of course I lost out with early planing. Now with the new shape and fin set ups, I can take bigger boards, turn them as well and have the extra volume that I need.
Tabou ask the riders individually what they want from their board and then produce prototypes/customs for us. Fabian then takes what we suggest and like, along with what he knows will work in production to then shape next years boards. This year, I asked Fabian for 5-6cms extra length on the boards I had last year, this automatically increased the volume to approx 72 and 80litres, but I kept the same tail shape. The boards are quite wide, a little longer but the tail is still relatively thin.
I have these over a production board, mainly I needed the tail shape to be a bit thinner. For me turning an 80litre production board is quite hard, it takes a bit more to push it through the turn because I haven’t got the weight.
Set Up:
I generally you my big board with sails of 4.0m and up and the smaller 72 litre with 4.0m and below.
Fins:
I’ve been using K4 fins for the quads, I’m asking for some more a little stiffer as I think for the tri fins options the Tabou fins are working better as they’re stiffer. Thorpy is brilliant at developing exactly what works for which boards and which sailors, so it’s still trial and error figuring out exactly what works best.
The boards have five fin boxes so I can vary the set up. I have been using quads most of the winter, but I am now using a tri fin set up, I feel this works better for onshore sailing. If it was side off I would be using quads. In the white water the tri fins still give a bit more release, where as quads give a bit more grip.
Accessories:
Gasstra waist harness and body glove wetsuits, winter suits for here!
