It's truly amazing and dream come each time I get feedback on my signature board 'Apelviken' from Appletree Surfboards.
The Kite Mag have made a very nice review after recently have tested it.
Me riding Apelviken 5'2" at my homespot in Sweden, Photos are taken by Anderas Holmström this October.
"Kite surfboards specific to lighter weight riders are an oft neglected market sector, with downscaled versions of the industry standard for the age-old “85kg rider” benchmark being the norm for most brands. Appletree are in a unique position, Johanna-Catharina Edin being one of their key female team riders. She’s struggled historically to find a board she’s comfortable with, and with Appletree’s unique production facility easing the prototyping process, an elegant solution was found in the new Apelviken model, named after her home spot in Sweden.
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With this design intention, dimensions are obviously a critical factor, and they’ve taken logical steps to tailor a board to task. The litreage on our 5’4 was sat at 20.5l. The outline and the volume distribution sits a little more centralized and suits a narrower stance with the widest point of this board at a sensible 18”, so the board still has a respectable low end considering the volume when you bring the lighter rider weight into context. The planing surface is still a decent size and feels efficient, accelerating up to planing speed easily and with a fast general cruising speed.
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What’s impressive is how the shape worked in a variety of conditions; we had it out in anything from clean side offshore where its grip and control helped control an unruly kite and stay where we wanted on the wave. In onshore mushburgers, the speed and agility was impressive, again letting you get in position well and not feel overpowered, letting you decide which part of the wave you want to attack rather than having it dictated to you. Particularly when paired with faster kites under 9m, you could really feel the magic happen, which makes sense as this is what most lightweight riders will be using.
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The Apelviken is a specific and extremely successful design exercise, which has produced a unique product in the marketplace which any smaller human should definitely consider, regardless of age or gender."
Read the full review HERE
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