I popped into SHQ to have a look at the new Coreban 14' flatwater race board.. and took some pics for those who've not seen one.
The bag was very nice.
It was a bit different the way the bag lid zipped off and straight away you could see the high quality and finish on this beautiful board.
Up on the rack it was very boat looking and very different to my 14' Naish Javelin.
Different to my Jav the deck is slightly recessed.. and it also comes with a stick on foam splash guard (that I wouldn't fit on).
The deck shape at the rear should allow water to drain out.
Here's a view of the rails.
The bottom is also interesting and some views of the concaves that will try and turn this displacement hull into a planning hull.
Slight v at the very rear.
Very quickly you can see the double barrel concave appearing even before the fin box.
Ahead of the fin box the concaves begin to deepen and stay deep through most of the bottom..
Right in the nose area you can see a slight single concave.
The graphics are nice and classy.
The fin is exactly what I expected.
Stickers.
The board has some very nice lines.
A final view of the rocker.. It will be interesting to see how it goes against my Javelin.
DJ
Very nice gees I wish we had real board shops here .Last two boards I have brought with out seeing or trying
Great shots DJ. Thanks for posting those.
Beautiful board. Sure wish there was a place to demo the Coreban boards over here
I’m assuming the dull finish on the bottom is to reduce drag. How is the bottom surface done? Is the gloss sanded off, or does it come out of the mold that way?
Great overview DJ!! Really smick looking board.
I noticed the Shapers name was Nicki Carstens, small world, he was my main rival (and a good mate) from the goat boat days!
Thanks DJ.
I was going to buy that exact board sight unseen last month - in that colour but decided against the risk of an unseen purchase - looks good but the nose shape is as you say 'boaty'.
I think the Jav shape screams speed whereas this one is more stable and glide rather than being able to keep up with the Jav on the flat water albeit maybe better in chop.
The cover looks great - much better than the Naish. My 17' cover is currently getting a fin slot put in as they didn't add one which is ridiculous.
Great looking photos DJ !! 
I seen these boards yesterday at the Greenline race.
They would look great on their own but in a sea of race bred DC's and LK's probably not a difficult choice to which you would really want to paddle.
Sorry to offend but just my personal opinion looking at them side by side without paddling one. Probably worth checking the others as well if you were in the market.
Thanks for the review and photos DJ.
All you haters see hes not just a N**** pimp after all.
so whats the criteria that puts a thread into "board talk and reviews" or leaves it in the SUPS section???
seems the normal consistancy though
Just got the Alpha 14" from the Coreban guys a week ago. I'm hoping to put it through it's paces over the next week or so with both flatwater and downwind runs before I write a review on it.
The "Battle of the Bay" (based largely on the format of the Battle of the Paddle) was held last Sat 13 Nov.
Venue was False Bay (Cape town) with a 5km course from Fish Hoek to Muizenberg. Interesting choice of venue as I believe the Bay is known as a breeding ground for Great Whites. Apparently to do the race they had to have guys in surfskis and a lifeguard boat with shark pods acting as a barrier to prevent sharks coming too close - sounds like a pretty good reason to paddle as fast as possible to me!!
Relevance to this thread is that the Coreban Alpha race boards fared pretty well with the:
- Alpha Race 14' taking out the top 4 positions in the 12'7 and over class
- Alpha Race 12'6 taking out the top 2 positions in the 12'6 and under class
Results and photos can be found here:http://www.suphq.com/news/latest-news/369-battle-of-the-bay-2010
I also found this review of the boards from California:
californiastandup.com/index.php/component/k2/item/53-coreban-alpha-race-series
I paddled this new Coreban 14 yesterday in perfect glassy/sunny conditions.
It looks amazing on the water.. It paddles nice and smooth and stable.. It would make a great all round flat water board.
SHQ here in Melbourne have a demo.
DJ
