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AMERICAN WINDSURFER MAGAZINE
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STORM 5.0
Mast: 430/21 Boom: 170
Battens: 5 Cams: NONE
Weight: 7.5/3.4kg Speed: 4.29 Power: 4.29 Stability: 4.71 Range: 4.57 Wtrstart: 4.71 Overall: 4.54 Price: $496
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TUSHINGHAM STORM 5.0 5.5
The five-batten, heavy-duty Storm is Tushingham’s breakthrough sail in 2000. In ‘98, the Scrambler, precursor to the Storm, leaped over the top of the mast to reduce drag at the tip. That done, in ‘99 the head was widened, which enabled the leech to react and twist more. Tushingham believes that the absence of a mechanical system at the tip of the mast makes the Storm’s head configuration the most aerodynamic with the lowest drag of any sail on the market—although that’s obviously a boast based on intuition, if not salesmanship.
Now, in 2000, the evolution moves down to the luff. “We think we have a winner,” says
Tushingham of the new Storm.
The Powerfoil Luff System, using a wider and shorter luff, was transferred from the Hekler freeride sail, where it was successfully introduced last year. “The shape of the entry greatly affects the characteristics of the sail,” he says. “The new shorter luff enables more accurate control of the entry, preventing deformation over a greater wind range.” Tushingham adds that with the draft staying more forward, the rotation during tacking and jibing is more solid. The sail also powers and depowers more smoothly, and there’s no twitchiness or backhand pull. But mostly, he says, it goes through gusts without changing feel.
SCORE: (7 ratings, combining both the 5.0 and 5.5, whose scores were virtually equal)
Speed 4.29 Power 4.29 Stability 4.71 Range 4.
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STORM 5.5
Mast: 430/21 Boom: 170
Battens: 5 Cams: NONE
Weight: 7.5/3.4kg Speed: 4.29 Power: 4.29 Stability: 4.71 Range: 4.57 Wtrstart: 4.71 Overall: 4.54 Price: $496
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57 Waterstart 4.71 Overall 4.54
COMMENTS:
“The 5.0 is a great sail! It has the stability and range of a race sail. Very smooth acceleration. It’s the best uncambered sail I’ve ever used,” said Mark Stumpp, who sailed it in some very decent waves.
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VULCAN 5.2
Mast: 430/21 Boom: 173
Battens: 5 Cams: NONE
Weight: 7.5/3.4kg Speed: N/A Power: N/A Stability: N/A Range: N/A Wtrstart: N/A
Overall: N/A Price: $542
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“The 5.5 is very smooth, but felt heavy in sub-planing conditions,” said his wife, Ilona.
Dealer Gary Stone, said of the 5.5, “Very, very smooth. No leech flutter at all, no jerkiness in the puffs. Smooth and seamless power delivery.”
STAFF: In the introduction to these reviews I mention that I was not a tester, having disqualified myself for a number of practical reasons. But evidently no other staffer got to this sail, and my impression was extremely strong, so I’ll offer it here (in the third-person voice). Sam Moses found the 5.5 Storm so steady it confused him. The wind was not particularly consistent, and he saw gusts blowing ripples on the water, but the feel in the sail never changed during a brief session. It was like a dream, some kind of strange magic. He was fully powered, but didn’t know if he was going fast or not. He actually came back to the beach to try to find out what the wind was doing out there.
Vulcan 5.2
This sail is also a new model in 2000, intended to be an all-purpose high-wind sail, not just for waves. It has the Powerfoil Luff System and the fat head. “It’s softer and more flexible so it powers and depowers more easily,” says Tushingham, “because higher skilled sailors are more likely to find themselves upside down or backwards.”
Mark Archer was the only sailor who rated it. He said it was rugged, stable and especially powerful, “all things a good wave sail should be.”
Raptor 6.4
This is a twin-cam, seven-batten race sail, whose claimed virtue is user-friendliness—easy rigging, smooth rotation—with no sacrifice in speed. In two ratings, it got all 4’s and 5’s. Gus Taylor of Neil Pryde Maui said, “This was a very stable sail when powered up. Easy to handle in jibes and
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RAPTOR 6.4
Mast: 430/21 Boom: 194
Battens: 7 Cams: 3
Weight: 9.5/4.2kg Speed: N/A Power: N/A
Stability: N/A Range: N/A Wtrstart: N/A
Overall: N/A Price: $613
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reasonably fast. Very user friendly.”
The only thing about dealers’ bias was they naturally felt an obligation to find something wrong with the competition, and sometimes they had to look for it. Added Gus, “The only thing I didn’t like was the foot of the sail; the stitching and production was very sloppy. It looked like the assembly was off on the seams.”
It’s most likely a fair and sharp observation, despite Mark Archer’s general notes on construction say “very good attention to detail.” But it’s also noted that the material around the batten tensioners needs reinforcement, and that the downhaul is via a single grommet, which would bely easy rigging.
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