2010 RRD Poison Limited Edition (133cm x 41) Review

At a Glance
The Poison is a dedicated freestyle kiteboard from RRD, aimed at the top end of the market looking for the ultimate in performance. It features a snowboard style laminated wood core with a fully wet sanded polished finish. The overall look is pretty stunning especially with the polished effect. There is a step cap construction in the tips and the board has a very thin edge profile; perfect for cutting through the chop. The tips are very wide, as you would expect from a board of this style. The board comes equipped with RRD’s Screw-it system, which makes putting the straps on a breeze. You don’t even need a screwdriver! Just twist the plastic pieces into place and then put the strap on top. Easy and simple!

On the Water
We always say that one of the first points of contact, the footpads, can make or break a ride on a kite board. They need to be comfortable, offer plenty of grip and also allow the rider to still feel connected to the board beneath, rather than giving the feeling of being sat on top of it. The new Screw-it foot strap and pad system from RRD fills all these criteria perfectly and offers a super comfy connection to the board. Plenty of padding for those big powered moves and also lots of grip so there is no chance of the board flying off your feet after you pop for a trick.

The board itself feels super crisp under foot, the stiff mid section making for a fast ride. In the chop the thin rails cut through it, but this board really comes into its own in the flat water where it can reach lightening pace. The pop is excellent with the wide tips giving the rider a huge platform to boost off and also offering a super wide and stable landing platform. Upwind the board flies too, those sharp hard rails allowing it to point really high. If you like a fast crisp board with bags of pop for your freestyle then the Poison certainly delivers in those respects.

Pros
Good looks, excellent fittings and some fantastic top-end freestyle performance make this a awesome kiteboard; great pop and excellent upwind ability.

Cons
No complaints from us on this one, free riders will probably prefer a more all-round chop killing machine, but if you want freestyle then this is perfect kite board.

Overall
For freestyle heads out there the RRD Poison offers a perfect balance of speed and pop with a huge landing platform to help you nail those tricks.