Some exciting sails landing in Oz shortly. S2 Maui the combined effort of Art Szpunar and Barry Spanier:
To achieve the highest possible performance, lightest weight and exceptional strength, S2 Maui closely with the world-leading sail cloth manufacturer to design and develop the ultimate super-light and strong laminate sail cloth, SpaceLight™ to be used exclusively with the S2 Maui range, load oriented WARP-PATH™ sail construction.
www.s2maui.com/technology/
2017 Wave Range:
4 Batten - DRAGON:
Competition performance, Power and Agility
3 Batten - CATALYST:
New School Radical Surf
2 Batten - DUALIST:
Wave Riding Purist
5 Batten - ALCHEMY:
All-round Wave, Stability, Control
Race sail - Venom:
[/b]
Yeah, saw the race/slalom sails being presented at Berkeley Ca. I turned down the chance to demo them.
Basically, race/slalom sails without the Phil McGain influence.
Looks like S2 decided to drop down to 8 battens instead of 9 like their "previous" designs. Would be interesting to see how it goes
Maui Sails TR's are the only sail that has 9 battens. Ridiculous in 5.5 sizing.
S-2 is an attempt to go mainstream and attract more customers, to sails that don't weigh a ton and ride stiffer than a barn door.
Don't forget the Severnes! I think they have 9 in the larger sizes (7 and up).
I always thought MS was the softer of the race sails?
it's funny in the picture the model reads 'MONEY'
What's the difference in feeling compared to the TRs?
I demoed the venom locally, mixed feelings :
pros :
very light rig
quick to get planning if helped a little
great gybing with fantastic cam rotation (silent and barely noticed)
price : (locally) 7.0+ mast = under 2000$
works well on other brands masts (tried it on a P7 after using the s2m)
Cons:
lacks top end speed
difficult to lock in in an upwind fast tack
unstable, you can't just forget the sail like some brands
personal taste : colours and design a bit average....
all in all, an easy sail with what seems like a solid built despite the lightweight
Select to expand quoteseanhogan said..
I demoed the venom locally, mixed feelings :
pros :
very light rig
quick to get planning if helped a little
great gybing with fantastic cam rotation (silent and barely noticed)
price : (locally) 7.0+ mast = under 2000$
works well on other brands masts (tried it on a P7 after using the s2m)
Cons:
lacks top end speed
difficult to lock in in an upwind fast tack
unstable, you can't just forget the sail like some brands
personal taste : colours and design a bit average....
all in all, an easy sail with what seems like a solid built despite the lightweight
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! Have you sailed the MS TRX and XIs? If so how do they compare? I was considering getting Venoms to replace my quiver of KAs but having second thoughts. KA is a bit difficult to get here so...yea
sorry, only had a titan gs few years ago, had a chat with a few other sailors who previously had MS, they find them quite similar (not hard to see why) just not as locked in
Thanks, the boyz around where I sail, Berkeley Ca., get new TR's every year, including this season's models in double quiver's for 4 different sailors.
I see no advantage in having 9 battens, unless you're talking a 11 meter or bigger sail. Maui Sails TR in 5.5 has 9 battens. Good for 40 mph winds, but that's about all.
Select to expand quoteseanhogan said..
I demoed the venom locally, mixed feelings :
pros :
very light rig
quick to get planning if helped a little
great gybing with fantastic cam rotation (silent and barely noticed)
price : (locally) 7.0+ mast = under 2000$
works well on other brands masts (tried it on a P7 after using the s2m)
Cons:
lacks top end speed
difficult to lock in in an upwind fast tack
unstable, you can't just forget the sail like some brands
personal taste : colours and design a bit average....
all in all, an easy sail with what seems like a solid built despite the lightweight
We obviously disagree a little with the negatives 
. The sail may have needed more fine tuning. The 7.0 and smaller sizes seem to rig very close to spec and larger sizes need an extra 2cm. So far rigging the Venom on Mauisails K series masts.
Recently achieved some good speed on the 7.0, not mind-blowing but still decent for the conditions/size sail I thought.
gpsteamchallenge.com.au/sailor_session/show?date=2016-07-23&team=33
The long distance races "Tahiti Freeride Cup" we did last July would be a better judge of performance. I dare say the S2 Maui Venom was among the fastest with the Mauisails TR16 over 20km races (about 5km per tack). Christophe Vignes (Mauisails TR16) and myself had some epic battles catching up with most of the field after some very average starts (see photo and spot the Venom!).
Other top Caledonian sailors Alex Rouys NC1, Marc Kerandel NC42 can testify of the top speed of the Venom
I personally cannot feel many similarities between the Venom and Mauisails TR apart from an outline that looks similar on paper.
The Venom obviously feels lighter (8 battens, laminate combined with progressive weight film), more locked in with less leech movement. Initially thought the Venom would have the edge on the Mauisails TR over long distance but the recent racing proved it was on par.
The Mauisails may have a better 2s top speed from its softer feel and slingshot effect.
All in all very both very competitive but very different feel.
The thing I've always liked about the TR's is the nice even twist they have always had the smoothest looking leech around. They certainly look sexy.
I think we have to remember Mauisails are awesome high end product and are every bit as good as the best sails out there for GPS and slalom but still very enjoyable and attainable high performance for the weekend warrior. Just ask anyone that owns them and they are not that keen to sell them.
You can feel the years of development, dedication and quality in the product, for me pick up any version of a TR and they are fantastic. That's why people hold on to them for a long time, they are durable easy to use and feel amazing when wound up and hold there intended shape for years. My 5.5 tr9 took me to 45 knots so I think they are amazing high wind speed sails with nine battens is fantastic on the perfect day it just sat there and did it's job and after four years it still looks like new.
I know S2 will be good as well and sure they will sell and sail well as they become established in Australia.
Cheers Russ 
Select to expand quotekeef said..
has anyone rigged these sails on a n/p x6 flex top ?
Rigged so far on P7 460, Unifiber CC and Mauisails K series. All are CC with slight variations and seem to work equally well. The closer to the flex top end they get the fuller below boom and looser up top the sail gets.
Anyone interested to try the Venoms who are in WA I have a 7.0 an 7.7 with masts available for demo. Just pm me. Very impressed myself with the lightness an rotation. Think you will be surprised.
I Love Maui sails and have been so happy with them but I am keen to change to the new S2 they look the goods and have a great write up from the overseas pros.
I think either would be great but I am thinking of going the S2.
I have been on MauiSails since 2006 and now have a set of S2Maui Venom sails since past Spring.
Have to say, both are fine products; but obviously show differences. The TR-'s are super easy and very refined products; Venom's on the other hand are definitely aimed at top performances, with a more "physical" feel. TR's are so well built and reinforced that probably one could say they are overbuilt, while Venom's are anyhow more than enough (or at least: waaaaaaay better than "some other competitors") well built. TR-'s are not heavy at all actually, just very few 100 gm's more than 7-batten Warps or 8-batens NP's, while Venom's are the lightest race sails on the market period (and about 400 - 500 gms lighter than TR-'s).
A tough choice indeed. If I had one quiver of each, probably I'd like better the TR-'s in smaller sizes and in nastier chop; and the Venom's in larger sizes and flat water where it's easier to exploit a larger share of their power. As for range, I suspect the Venom's have an edge as are very powerful and very stable/locked at same time. The deeper shape down low of Venom's asks for jibes to be dealt with quickly and fluidly, while the TR-'s cater for so-so jibers like me better.
Also, I think the Venom's are equivalent to around 1/2 size bigger TR-'s (say a 7.0 Venom power is almost half-way between a 7.0 and a 7.7 TR-'s).
What do Venom's and TR-'s leave one to wish: well, I wish I didn't have to choose and all of the guys, Barry, PMcG and Art found a way to work together.
A few more shots including the 2017 Venom and a short video with Buzianis and Angulo:
2017 S2 Maui - Venom:
so ...
Josh Angulo went from Maui Sails to Gun Sails and now is back to S2 Maui Sails ??
hmmmm
guess he is okay with Barry and Art, butt ...
Had a go of the current s2 6.3 and first thing you notice is its nothing like the maui at all. It might have design looks similar but that's all. It is lighter and just locked in from the bottom end range to the top.
I think top speed appears no different to the maui.
I like the colours they look really cool on water and stand out unlike some other brands.
Both maui and maui s2 are great sails.
Used the Maui S2 demo sail from Remi 6.3, CA44, delta17 fin only blowing max 28 sometimes 5 LOL.
Took a bit to tune in the demo sail i.e. not enough down haul or outhaul but once I did wind backed off.
Still over a dozen runs above 40 knots it was so flat and so much fun best day in ages at Budgi lake.
So happy with the trial of the new sail very light very stable even if under done a bit. Was around 25 maybe 28 max so 7m would have been better?
You notice its weight is very light and the sail so stable and just wants to go. I will be changing from Maui to Maui S2 and I have been with Maui for many years. Maui is still a great sail but.
Wow!!! Super nice, and super light ... the sexiest sails for '17!
Did you rig on proper S2Maui Venom masts? What about rigging impressions? And, I see the clew grommets, is that because it's pre-production samples?
