tommeltot wrote:Is anybody in a position to post a review on the board yet? What are the advantages over the ''slightly' bigger Duke?
Yeah, I really want a couple more of good sessions on it to make sure I don't miss anything.........unfortunately our governor in SC has called for a massive evacuation which in turn closed the beaches to non-residents (I live on an island 10 minutes away, yet can't surf/kite/anything until they say so). Can you tell I'm a bit frustrated?
Anyways - I'm 6'0, 175 lbs, and I ride mostly the Mako Duke and now Jester, and I've ridden the whole Mako line at one time or another, but these two are by far my favorite.
My overall thoughts on the Mako Duke/Jester is that it's the perfect directional for kiteboarding because it's made for what we are in typically - wind-driven, short period waves. I'd love to be blessed with long period, side-off conditions, but generally it's 4-5 second side-onshore bumps with chop. So, the line has an instant advantage over a traditional surfboard because it's smooth and has more grip, and therefore more speed in chop.
With all of that said, here's some thoughts:
-Ride/Feel
The Jester has the same smooth ride as the Duke, I really didn't feel much of a sacrifice there at all, the concave is doing it's job. It's definitely quicker rail to rail on bottom turns, and overall more nimble.
The trade-off is that the Duke will get up and going a bit earlier, but it's not a huge gap say from going from the Duke to a traditional twintip, probably a 1m kite size difference.
I rode the Jester as both a Quad and Thruster, and preferred the thruster setup, it is probably personal preference, but it felt a bit squirrelly when I got my foot to the stomp pad as a quad.
Build Quality/Deck Pad/Fins
-I'll say this, I'm extremely tough on gear, and the Mako Duke has basically set in my Jeep for the better part of a year and slammed around constantly (including into a bunch of rocks) and it's bulletproof, more so than any other board I've had. Jester I'm still trying to protect because it's new and shiny, but it's taking dings left and right with no visible marks. Deckpad is really comfortable, much better than the traditional raised grip on some boards. Fins are Futures and not your basic cheap-o stock fin. Haven't put the straps on, and never did with the Duke, but I'm tempted to try the Jester with straps because of it's lightness to do some airs, etc.
So who's the Jester for?
-I think it's ideal for anyone that wants to get into strapless airs, when you combine it's lighter profile and volume and the grip of the Mako, it's a perfect combination. I'm not very good at them, but I'm finding myself trying some shove-it's and backrolls (with little to no luck).
-It's probably a good complement for the Duke as well if you love the Duke and want something for when the wind/waves are really on, think of it as Razor:Jester as Duke:Prodigy.
-Anyone that wants to get into directional riding and wants a nice platform to learn to gybe, etc. and is in less than ideal waves.
Shoot me questions or whatever if anyone is on the fence trying to decide.
