2012 is in the news as a period of change and progression – and MauiSails are extremely positive about their latest offerings: We expect the solid appreciation for the way our sails FEEL will be widely known and we will reach more and more happy sailors. The changes to some of the wave and freestyle sails are driven by the need for softness and foil response as a means of expanding the efficient wind range, while still maintaining true performance characteristics of speed and pointing ability. Wave sailing and freestyle are disciplines that benefit from both, rewarding the sailor with better position in the lineup, making it easy to catch more waves for the energy expended. There is power to jump and maneuver to the max. Our first focus is on this total performance character.
In the value department, we have added a superb lightweight X-Ply™ material developed in conjunction with Dimension/Polyant Sailcloth. Through the use of lighter yarns and film and a tight yarn pattern, weight has been reduced while keeping the stability and durability. This well tested material is amazing for all but the very heavily loaded areas of the sail. Art has also been able to use a third color, or even to mix two colors, and this adds to the brightness and recognition of the designs. The staggered weight (6mil/5mil) open scrim window material is now part of the Loco range this year, adding to the durability and value.
There is going to be one difficult thing coming for 2012 though. You’ll have to make your choice among the great products to find out what we mean when we say “Cut the crap!”
FEATURES AND BENEFITS
- Custom lightweight (SmallYarn/Light Film) laminate SYLF … an imaginary being inhabiting the air
- Low profile batten tensioners with stainless steel screws
- INOX clew rings
- Finest U.S. manufactured laminates from Dimension Sailcloth
- ODL04 Technora™ (Ghost XT only)
- Durable but lightweight padded tack protection
- Brass wheel triple pulley for easy rigging
- Unidirectional Kevlar™ reinforcement structure on all edges, batten pocket seams for non-stretch stability
- Square cut boom opening to maximize height range
- Molded PVC seam and foot protection.
2012 LEGEND – Maximizing your potential
Wave sailing is a race, even more so when there is a competition. You only have so much time to enjoy a good swell and only so much energy. To be most upwind, first in the peak, to have power through the whitewater, and to have speed to jump, you need maximum efficiency, power, and pointing ability. There is no start-finish line, but the needs are the same.
The Legend design has experienced significant evolution for 2012, fueled by a combination of technical knowledge gained during race sail development and a passionate desire to exploit the most critical sections of the wave. The Legend reaps the full benefits of daily development and testing, both in the loft and on the water, in the worlds best wavesailing conditions. A modified, shorter luff and higher cut foot outline combined with softer shaping has resulted in a sail that fits perfectly into any wave and will put you wherever you want to be. Light feel and smooth, balanced power allow the Legend to perfectly transition from driving hard bottom turns to flawlessly releasing during radical cutbacks and maneuvers.
The shortened luff length moves the forces down, and allows 10kg less tension on average for the softer luff curves. This translates into easy acceleration even on the most radical short wave boards, and unmatched ability to get upwind quickly. Catch more waves, in less time using less energy. A nearly straight foot makes all the aerial maneuvers and wave riding smooth and easy without interference.
The Legend is a full XPly™ wave sail made with the finest U.S. manufactured laminates, including for this year, a specialized Small Yarn/Light Film material used in the upper portions to keep the light feel and smooth handling necessary of tight turning down-the-line sailing. Adding a third color to Art’s bold graphic designs makes these new MauiSails most recognizable on the water, complimenting the amazing performance.
2012 GHOST XT – Barely there
Even though this whisper soft, wonderfully efficient, pure wave sail feels barely there, it has the substance to create more demand as the word spreads about how well it performs. The original goal was to make super light larger sizes that would carry well in big surf and light wind. As more and more people tried and liked them, they also asked for smaller sizes, simply because of the feel and the durability of the 100% Technora™ laminate (ODL04).
Now in its third year, the revolutionary, ultra light Ghost XT benefits from a new shorter luff and higher foot outline similar to the Legend. This results in the most unbelievably light handling and agile wave sail available. Not only is the Ghost XT light but the Technora™ fibers used in the Ghost laminate X-Ply™ are three times stronger than polyester yarns used in other “light weight” materials. Over the past two winters Art has been abusing his Ghost XT on the northshore’s biggest days, and not once has there been a torn sail body panel.
A complete unidirectional Kevlar™ frame and full XPly™ construction, including our custom 6mil window XPly™, guarantees shape stability and durability. And the new Legend style outlines make all aspects of surfing fluid and controllable. The Ghost… it feels like it’s hardly there. The lightness and response are so good the experience will haunt you in the best of ways.
In response to the Ghost XT’s immense popularity and customer demand for smaller sizes, we have also added an amazing new 4.5 to the range, designed and developed for the MauiSails SRS Wave 370 rdm mast.
What is TechnoraTM
TechnoraTM is a very strong and light para-aramid fiber. Its tensile strength to weight ratio is 3x greater than that of fiberglass, polyester or nylon yarns which are other common fibres used in laminate sail cloth. TechnoraTM also has excellent fatigue resistance which means that it holds up very well to repeated loading, flexing, abrasion and UV. The TechnoraTM laminate cloth used in the GHOSTXT provides the ultimate in light weight and stability with good durability.
2012 GLOBAL – Power for everything
The 2012 Global remains the design for getting the most out of what the world brings in terms of conditions. When you have punishing on-shore wind and need tons of power to punch through nasty whitewater and have to generate the speed to catch the wave, Global will deliver. If you travel to many places with varied conditions, the softness and controllable power will still serve well in side-shore or for blasting bump-n-jump. Weight aloft is reduced by the use of our SmallYarn/Light Film laminate, and window areas of dual (5mil6mil) weight open pattern X-Ply™
Foot profiles are all slightly straighter, reflecting the use of the sails for smooth water freestyle, adding to the all-round versatility one would expect from top performing PowerWave sails. The Kevlar™ 1000 denier yarn skeleton structure adds ultimate strength to the attractive graphic design elements, are all considered to take the sailing loads and disperse them correctly.
2012 LOCO – Quick, lively, total control
When Taty tells us what he wants, we want to give it to him so he can continue to advance his professional performance and maintain that magic smile. Nothing makes him happier than coming to Maui for the Spring tuneup to find his new sails exceed expectations. Based on his daily use of the sails in all conditions, we have learned about the special characteristics that make a freestyle sail excel. The rider must have total confidence the wing will react smoothly, be firm enough to support all the odd flying and leaping, yet be soft enough to quickly find the power and accelerate into maneuvers.
Although ‘softer’ and ‘tighter’ may not seem to fit together, and Taty’s request for a slightly flatter top added to that challenge, we took the logic for that and turned it into reality. The softness comes from slightly reduced total mast bend, with emphasis on the upper sections, and the tightness develops from changes to the body shaping to increase mid-leech tension. The result, to quote Taty, “SICKKKK! You got the POP!”
So I guess we did it.
This year the Loco has the added durability of our custom XPly™ window mesh to make it extra crash proof. The Kevlar™ structural skeleton, appropriate reinforcements, and integrated graphic elements, all add to the value and performance of this lively design.
2012 SWITCH – Nothin’ but fun
If there is one sail in our line that speaks windsurfing, it is the Switch. That’s windsurfing without waves, as the tube/rod battens are not suited to wave crashing, but for everything else people like to do, it’s the tops. Speed blasting, bump-n-jump, power tricks, even a little freestyle, all fit with the specialized design character of this six batten joy to sail. Always light for the size, Switch feels perfect for hours of total fun.
Magazine tests, user feedback, and even some competition results, all verify the easy handling, excellent gust response, acceleration, and top speed. Fast is fun, and speed always derives from similar combinations of tension and twist, regardless of outline or other factors. Carving a hard laydown jibe or pulling out of a tight Spock all depend on this delicate relationship. Switch is now in the fifth round of refinement since it was initially developed for Super-X racing, and every year it continues to improve as we update the subtle shaping with new ideas that usually come from race sail development.
By adding our new Small Yarn/Light Film laminate to the upper sections, and elegantly integrating it into the graphic look, we add durability as well as weight reduction. Tube/rod battens are in tapered pockets to lower weight and keep the batten tips in column for best shape stability.
Switch will be the first choice for all around free sailing, doing best what windsurfers love to do.
More at www.mauisails.com http://mpora.com/videos/leTdfaS3O
