Xenon La Luz 132 x 40cm 2009
Reviews / Twin Tips
4,724
At a Glance
When we first got our hands on these new boards from Xenon we were immediately impressed. The styling is just so tasteful and the finish is superb, every time we have had them down on the beach people have commented on the look and styling, which is clean and will appeal to lots of riders. With a wood core and a 3 year warranty you can be sure that inside the boards have been thought about too. Fixtures and fittings are also to a high standard and the La Luz features an upgrade on the footpads over the Rayo, they have an air core, which compresses and helps the pad mould around your foot. The straps are super comfy and easy to adjust and the 5cm G10 fins finish off the product giving it a real feel of quality. The La Luz features a full carbon laminate too, giving it some extra stiffness and improved flex and reflex characteristics over the Rayo.
On the Water
The La Luz is stiffer than its more freeride orientated brother the Rayo, this board is aimed squarely at the freestyle and performance market and when you put it on your feet you can see why. It has a big top end speed and the more wind you throw at the board the faster it goes, seemingly knowing no limits. It isn’t the comfiest of rides in the chop, the stiffness which makes it fast means it crashes through lumps rather than bending around them. But the speed is intense! Loading up the edge of the board to pop you can really feel it explode off the water. It displaces buckets and launches you into the air with a force that can catch you unaware. Make sure you are ready for it! The 132 is 40cm wide too so when you come down to land there is plenty of board underfoot to make sticking those tricks easy. Upwind the board flies, all that speed makes it easy to load up the back leg and drive the board to windward. If you are a good rider who wants something that has limitless performance yet is still reasonably forgiving then this would be a good choice for you.
For
Speed, speed, speed! If you want to go high you need to go fast, the La Luz is a really quick board with excellent pop to boost you out of the water for technical freestyle manoeuvres.
Against
Bigger riders may find the 132 a little small, and may find the 42cm wide 135 a little big in terms of the width.
Overall
A great top end performance freestyle board with awesome graphics and styling, it should appeal to plenty of riders and will offer you a solid, fast, exciting ride!
This review was in Issue 15 of IKSURFMAG.
For more information visit XenonRelated
By Rou Chater
Rou has been kiting since the sports inception and has been working as an editor and tester for magazines since 2004. He started IKSURFMAG with his brother in 2006 and has tested hundreds of different kites and travelled all over the world to kitesurf. He's a walking encyclopedia of all things kite and is just as passionate about the sport today as he was when he first started!
