The SX has been in the Slingshot stable for 6 years now! It has to be one of their most popular kite boards too. Aimed squarely at the free ride market the SX is the kite board that can do it all. Happy carving out some turns in the waves as it is boosting huge on windy days, or even throwing down some freestyle the SX can do it all.
This year the construction has changed slightly utilising the FRT Future Response Technology that was born in the wakeboarding lab, which Slingshot is now heavily involved in. The kiteboards are still constructed in the US too; this sets them apart from a lot of the other boards on the market which are constructed in the snowboard factories around Europe, or even the Far East. The outline of the SX is a classic it hasn’t changed much this year and still retains the narrow tips that it is famous for.
On the Water
If you’ve got big feet, then the pads on the SX won’t appeal, sadly they are quite short and anyone with large plates of meat will find their heel overhangs a little. However, get past that and you still have a fantastic kiteboard that we have loved in the past.This year it feels a little sharper and more responsive in the flex. Yet the outline helps it to cut through the choppiest crappiest water states you can imagine. If you aren’t blessed with crystal clear flat-water perfection at your local spot, and instead have to put up with brown choppy slop then the SX can really transform a session.
Upwind the board is good and it you don’t get any spray in your face either which makes for a very smooth comfortable ride. The pop is still impressive and on windy days you can be boosting huge on the SX. Once the sea state gets up into some rough stuff then the SX comes into its own. As a rail-to-rail carving machine we can’t think of another board that puts such a smile on your face. If you want to carve up some waves, yet still want the comfort and ease of a twin tip then the SX should definitely be on your radar.
Pros
A fantastic all round free-ride machine that excels in choppy crappy conditions and delivers a very smooth and forgiving ride; it delivers some impressive performance as well.
Cons
The footpads are a little small in length and people with large feet will want to change them. For 2010 though there is a new footpad, which looks much improved.
Overall
6 years in the business and the Slingshot SX still delivers, performing the same remit as it did back in the day, it is the all round free ride machine that packs a surprising punch. Comfort doesn’t get much easier than this!
For more information on the Slingshot SX 2009 or any other kite surfing enquiries including kite surfing lessons, contact your local Surface2Air Sports Store.