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AMERICAN WINDSURFER MAGAZINE
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SIMMER
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REEF WAVE 4.2
Mast: 400/19 Boom: 148
Battens: 5 Cams: NONE
Weight: 8/3.6kg Speed: 3.80 Power: 4.00 Stability: 3.80 Range: 3.80 Wtrstart: 4.00 Overall: 3.88 Price: $479
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REEF WAVE 4.2
If the seminal Simmer was a bulletproof down-the-line wave sail, things haven’t changed so much. So is the 2000 Reef. With 90 percent tight-weave X-ply, five battens and every seam glued, taped and triple-stitched, our 4.2 weighed 8.0 beefy pounds. Not surprisingly, Simmer says its feel is conservative, further softened by the PVC window that gives a lot, and has memory.
SCORE: (5 ratings)
Speed 3.8 Power 4.0 Stability 3.8 Range 3.8 Waterstart 4.0 Overall 3.88
COMMENTS:
“A nice feeling sail. Soft, well balanced,” said Tony Cicale. (“Isn’t that what I said?” we hear Klaus Simmer saying.)
“Extremely powerful and somewhat unstable when the wind was at its peak,” said Jackie Butzen.
STAFF: Stein Erik Gabrielson gave it straight 5’s, rigged on the Starboard Starfish on the day he says he blew them all away in the waves. Andy and Hedy Gurtner’s ratings were thrown out because they have a close relationship with Simmer (an exclusion which actually increases the overall score, if there were one, but… oh, you get the point).
The 4.2 Reef was also one of 12 sails that Steve “Newfie” Hutchinson gave straight 5’s (including three of the four Simmers), all of which regrettably had to be thrown out, for their unfailing generosity. Most of his comments went like this: “Great in all respects!” But here’s what he had to say about this sail: “The 4.2 Reef was a great sail that could be turned off easily while on the wave, and powered up again when needed.
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WAVE COMP 4.7
Mast: 400/19 Boom: 158
Battens: 5 Cams: NONE
Weight: 8.5/3.9kg Speed: 3.86 Power: 3.86 Stability: 4.00 Range: 3.57 Wtrstart: 4.14 Overall: 3.89 Price: $489
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Well-balanced feel, great sail for duck jibes.”
WAVE COMP 4.7
The WaveComp is the same sail as the Reef with stiffer and lighter materials, affording better reflex and response to pumping, as well as 80 percent of the weight. It uses extensive monofilm, and about one-third as much X-ply. Simmer says it’s more
manageable and stable at the high end. Anders Bringdahl, who’s paid to swear by it, swears by it. He’s also possibly the most technically-minded World Cup sailor. He isn’t easy.
SCORE: (7 ratings)
Speed 3.86 Power 3.86 Stability 4.0 Range 3.57 Waterstart 4.14 Overall 3.89
COMMENTS:
“Powered just right, I had quite a bit of fun riding it.”
“Felt tuggy with a lot of backhand pressure,” said a dealer who gave it 3’s and a 2, and whose crosstown rival sells them.
“I really liked it, it felt so stable, probably because the wind was perfect for it.”
“The downhaul line is about to break!” We checked. Was not.
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