Quick: Any Ronix surfboards worth owning?

[IDBoating]

I have an interestng problem. We have some nephews visiting until next Wednesday. They are here specifically for wakesurfing with me and my 10YO son. We have been using my IS Infectious and having a blast, but we're trying to get air and this skim-style board with its little fin just isn't making it. I can get it about halfway off the water but no more.

I've been wanting to get a surf-style board anyway but haven't really researched yet. It would be great to get one while the nephews are here, but I don't want to get into some piece of junk just because I rushed into it.

I weigh 175. My son weighs 90. The largest nephew weighs ~200. I realize that's a wide weight range so a single board may not work.

We have several Ronix dealers around here, and that seems to be the only brand that is well represented. I can get to 4-5 Ronix dealers within an hour's drive. But I don't know the Ronix lineup. One dealer with whom I have a great, years-long relationship is pushing a new carbon fiber Ronix board that comes with huge assortment of fins but that feels like overkill for someone just getting into air moves. On the other hand, I'm no fan of outgrowing new gear too fast - sometimes you need to just force your way through the learning curve with better stuff.

With all that - any suggestions? Should I skip it and just tell the nephews "next time"? Or is there something in the Ronix lineup that would be a reasonable investment for a couple of years?

Thanks for any quick responses!

[Wickedcummins]

I loved my ronix Koal and I love my new ronix thruster... THe thruster is the best board in there lineup and funnest to ride!

[IDBoating]

I loved my ronix Koal and I love my new ronix thruster... THe thruster is the best board in there lineup and funnest to ride!

The Parks Thruster is the "carbon board" I mentioned that my local trusted dealer was pushing last time I was there. Is it really that great? Which size do you have?

[Ewok]

I have heard good things about the Ronix CF board from the Ronix dealer on E Sprague but I have not seen it in person. I have my IS Blue Lake and SS Pro you can use if you want, I'm stuck at work this weekend so no boating for me.

Have you tried calling these shops to see what they have in their inventory? They are the local IS dealers from their website.

Carstens Marine
Spokane (509) 928-8480

The Shop
Spokane (509) 483-9253

Winter Sport
Spokane (509) 328-2030

[wakemitch]

If you want to get into airs, dont waste your money on a Ronix. Even the Carbon Parks board is a gimick (and an expensive one at that!).

You should look at the Shred Sitixx Pro Model or Walker Project Bomb Pop or Signature if you want to get air. If you tried any of the Ronix boards against a Shred Stixx or Walker Project you would feel the difference immediately.

I know you want something right away, but it will be worth it to wait.

And the Inland Surfer Infectious is capable of airs, but it is not the best skim for airs. The Danielo Diamond and Keenan are much poppier.

[IDBoating]

First:

THe thruster is the best board in there lineup and funnest to ride!

...but then:

dont waste your money on a Ronix. Even the Carbon Parks board is a gimick

Ah, decisions decisions!

Ewok, I did look up the local dealers for Inland Surfer and was literally driving on my way to WinterSport when you called. Turns out they used to be an IS dealer but now only carry Liquid Logic.

After checking three places, I ended up getting the Carbon Thruster. Reasons: 1) WickedCummins spoke well of it (and I didn't see wakemitch's comment until after I got home with it); 2) it's different than Ewok's IS Sweet Spot Pro so we can do some comparisons together; and 3) the dealer said I could bring it back after trying it for a few days if we don't like it. (They are an awesome dealer - we've been doing business with that family-owned ski and board shop for almost 30 years.)

Also, the dealer let us take their Ronix Huntington demo for a few days for free. This thing is absolutely huge, like a solid foam Blue Lake, and they said it is really easy for people to learn on it. Both my wife and the 12YO nephew are just learning so it was a nice opportunity. I told them "You were the only shop offering a two-for-one deal on surfboards!"

We got the shorter Carbon Thruster, the 4-7 version. It's slightly less optimum for our 200 pound 25YO nephew but he's only here for a week each year, whereas our immediate family tops out at 175 - and it will allow our 10YO son to be more aggressive with it. I just couldn't see him throwing around a 5-1 board while weighing 90 pounds.

I would have liked to get a Bomb Pop but this turned out to be a zero-risk chance to get us onto a higher performance board while our older nephew is here. He's pretty physically active and is the only relative that hits it as hard as I do, so I wanted to share the "experiment" with him.

I'll report back on whether we keep it and how it works out. If we don't like this one the Bomb Pop and Sweet Spot Pro are my next choices.

Thanks for the responses!

[majestic]

First:



...but then:



Ah, decisions decisions!

Ewok, I did look up the local dealers for Inland Surfer and was literally driving on my way to WinterSport when you called. Turns out they used to be an IS dealer but now only carry Liquid Logic.

After checking three places, I ended up getting the Carbon Thruster. Reasons: 1) WickedCummins spoke well of it (and I didn't see wakemitch's comment until after I got home with it); 2) it's different than Ewok's IS Sweet Spot Pro so we can do some comparisons together; and 3) the dealer said I could bring it back after trying it for a few days if we don't like it. (They are an awesome dealer - we've been doing business with that family-owned ski and board shop for almost 30 years.)

Also, the dealer let us take their Ronix Huntington demo for a few days for free. This thing is absolutely huge, like a solid foam Blue Lake, and they said it is really easy for people to learn on it. Both my wife and the 12YO nephew are just learning so it was a nice opportunity. I told them "You were the only shop offering a two-for-one deal on surfboards!"

We got the shorter Carbon Thruster, the 4-7 version. It's slightly less optimum for our 200 pound 25YO nephew but he's only here for a week each year, whereas our immediate family tops out at 175 - and it will allow our 10YO son to be more aggressive with it. I just couldn't see him throwing around a 5-1 board while weighing 90 pounds.

I would have liked to get a Bomb Pop but this turned out to be a zero-risk chance to get us onto a higher performance board while our older nephew is here. He's pretty physically active and is the only relative that hits it as hard as I do, so I wanted to share the "experiment" with him.

I'll report back on whether we keep it and how it works out. If we don't like this one the Bomb Pop and Sweet Spot Pro are my next choices.

Thanks for the responses!

The sweet spot and Bomb pop are not good comparisons I own both

[IDBoating]

The sweet spot and Bomb pop are not good comparisons I own both

Sorry, I haven't had time to do a lot of research. Those are just two boards I've heard good things about. I'd love to get smarter... care to share your opinions since you own both and can do a side-by-side comparison?

Thanks!

[Wickedcummins]

you will love the carbon thruster and YES YOU CAN AIR IT.. lol its a killer board!

[skippabcool]

My buddy has one and loves it, the thruster.

[IDBoating]

First afternoon of research.

Everyone loves the Carbon Thruster. The universal reaction is "It's so LOOSE!" As in, like riding on a sea of ball bearings. That have been lubed with grease. I did not expect that, since its underside has no discernable tail rocker and it has a very glossy surface.

My 10YO 90 pound son took all of five minutes to get comfortable with the board. After about 30 minutes, he could feel the difference in the number of fins we installed. His "sweet spot" was big before, but now he can go anywhere. He's starting to shoot for air.

My 200 pound nephew kept saying "I absolutely LOVE this board". His "play area" has also expanded tremendously from the Infectious.

At 175 pounds I found the board to be incredibly loose and slippery. It's ultra-responsive. Just "think" forward and you're charging down the line toward the swim deck. Almost before you start thinking "brakes" the board is slowing down. It's so loose that I can now maintain position well outside the gunwale of the hull where there's hardly any slope at all. I can also recover from several feet farther back than I could on the Infectious. In other words, my play area has enlarged a LOT, and I wasn't unhappy with its size before!

We've only just begun to start playing with fin configurations. So far the favorite is either two small fins in the forward positions, or that combined with a large center fin for a total of three. We tried five and could really feel the board slowing down. Lots more experimentation to be done in this area, starting tomorrow!

[IDBoating]

Quick update.

We spent several more hours on the Carbon Thruster today. The favorite fin configuration is currently two of the shorter, 2.3 inch fins in the rear of positions 2 and 4.

Interestingly, we tried two of the longer, 2.9 inch fins in the front positions of 2 and 4 and three separate people could feel the board acting sluggish compared to earlier performance. I was actually checking the cruise control and the ballast setup because it felt like something was wrong with the wave - it was that dramatic. Swap out the fins and two minutes later it was like a whole new world. Remarkable what effect 0.6 inches of fin length and a slight repositioning can have on a board.

My spotters say I'm getting close to pulling the board off the water's surface. More research Wednesday!

[Wickedcummins]

told you... I love riding it.. Probably the best board Ive ridden.. Boards rails and launches great!

[IDBoating]

It's amazing how much difference you get with the various fin configurations. I didn't expect a little bit of fin height to have such a dramatic effect on speed, for example. And I'm no one's expert so if *I* can feel the difference, it must really be big for people who know what they're doing!

[Wickedcummins]

I run a FCS5 in the outer boxes then the 2.6 in the two next to it in the forward position.. Board rocks and cuts and sticks like glue.. Love it