F-ONE Kiteboarding Mitu Monteiro Pro 5’10 2015
Reviews / Surfboards
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At A Glance
The biggest news for this hugely popular board this year is the new construction. Gone is the double bamboo sandwich, and in is a new technique that F-One are calling the HD Foam Flex Composite. It is stronger, less susceptible to impact damage and also gives the board a slightly softer flex more in tune with how a glass surfboard feels.
The excellent Camel Deck is back again; this contours the deck of the board to mirror your foot. Think of it as pre heel dented so the board feels like an old friend right from the get go. In addition, F-One have used a super grippy and soft EVA pad that further enhances the connection to the board.
Moreover, to this there is a new heel shock absorber built in to reduce the impacts on your foot from freestyle tricks and big airs. Design wise all the Mitu’s are a centimetre narrower than last year. The reduced width speeds the board up and helps you to get it cranking on the waves. There is also a new shape in the nose with channels to give stability when riding backwards and also an improved grab rail too.
On The Water
Like many modern surfboards you need to size down a little to ensure you get the right size. The Mitu is still a pretty wide board and it carries a lot of that width up into the nose area. This has many advantages, it allows the board to get planing really early, it offers control in the air, and it makes riding the Mitu backwards really easy.
The extra volume from the larger boards can, however, make them sit up in the water a little bit, so when buying a Mitu think more about the volume than the length. This is another board suited more to back foot weighted riders, if you ride this board off the front foot it is easy to trip the wide nose on the top turns.
That said, get the weight right over the tail of the board and really drive off the back foot and you get unparalleled performance from the Mitu. The thruster fin set up offers good drive balanced with a loose feel depending on the fins you run. The supplied ones might feel a little soft for heavier riders, we found them fun and loose on the wave though, again it depends on your weight.
Perhaps our favourite feature of the Mitu was just how easy it is to ride. In terms of learning gybes and tacks it’s a real dream. Some of our less experienced wave testers had a go on this board and absolutely loved it. The Mitu does a good job of making you look good.
It is also very smooth through choppy water, the new flex pattern coupling with the soft rails to offer a svelte like ride over the rough stuff. Even when the wind is pumping there is plenty of control and the board is easy to handle. In light winds and small waves the Mitu is fantastic, it gets going really early and the added speed from the extra volume and wide plan-form helps to keep it tight and fast on the wave.
"The Mitu Monteiro Pro offers snappy turns with plenty of drive."
Overall
We took a while to get used to riding the Mitu, it is a big board with a really wide nose. Once mastered though, and if you really drive it off the back foot, it is very forgiving to ride in waves of any size and offers snappy turns with plenty of drive. The new construction is really tough and provides a very smooth ride in the choppiest of waters and there is plenty of control at high speed.
Videos
This review was in Issue 50 of IKSURFMAG.
For more information visit F-ONE KiteboardingRelated
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!
