Fanatic Ultra Gecko 278 Review (Boards Magazine, February 1995)

The Fanatic Gecko 265 was one of the most exciting boards of last year, offering and incredibly throwabout feel and performance for a board this size, but then doing well in slalom and speed competitions too! The combination of very rounded plan shape and slalom rocker profile in the rear half, coupled with hitherto unprecedented amounts of nose rocker combined to produce an incredibly versatile machine, so we were really pleased to hear that Fanatic were extending the concept into the mid-length slalom board and 295 categories.

Like the 265, the Gecko 278 is wide (the widest here) and has lots of nose rocker. It has the volume concentrated very much towards the tail (aided by a fairly Teardrop plan shape), giving a nicely domed deck that is extremely comfortable under-foot. The footstraps feature the impressive new Quicklock adjustment system, with 4 settings over a 7.5 cm range. The fin supplied is a trimbox 34cm G10 Blade.

Performance

Blasting: This is and exceptionally easy short board to sail, largely due to the large amounts of volume uder the footstrap area, making it very easy and stable for getting into the straps. This width and volume also makes for excellent acceleration and weight-carrying abilities. When up and running, it gives a cmooth ride, and is equally happy just jollying along or really going for it sheeted in hard. It's very comfortable and forgiving through chop and over swells, particularly when sailing off the wind. The high nose gives excellent clearance, but the board still sails very flat, so there is no problem with the nose getting blown or knocked around in more gnarly conditions. The upwind performance isn't quite race-capable, but is more than adequate for recreational needs.

Sail Size: This is where the immense versatility of this board really shines through. It is as happy blasting about in big swells with a 5.0 as it is in marginal 6.5/7.0 weather on flat water. While obviously a smaller board will be more throwabout, the high nose of this board still ensures excellent performance in stronger winds, and there would be no reason not to use this board with even smaller sails if nothing with less volume in available.

Manoeuvrability: The extra width coupled with the teardrop design gives a very rounded plan shape, which makes for extremely easy gybing and manoeuvring. The high volume in the tail does detract from the 'slashiness' of the board somewhat, so experts will find it less ideal for radical laydowns than some of the more slalomy boards in this test. However, those experts will enjoy the excellent jumping performance for a board of this size, and the fairly wide range of gybing styles on offer. One word of warning; The rearward volume distribution does mean that the nose will sink when tacking, uphauling or standing forward of the mastfoot - something that doesn't happen on the more traditional short board designs of similar overall volume (i.e. Screamer).

Overall

This board really stands out - it is so appropriate for a very large section of the market, due to its sheer all-round appeal. It is ideal for learning the basics of carve gybing and other short-board skills, but then remains an excellent machine for the more competent sailor to use in Force 4-5, as a light wind, big sail partner to a wave board or smaller convertible. So it is very much a board that you can 'grow into'. Plus which, other than for the racer wanting a dedicated course-slalom machine, or the sailor weighing over 80kg, there would be no need to own a short board bigger than this, as it has such food early-planing and marginal conditions capabilities. It's a really good board for heavyweights, too.

Tis is exactly the sort of boards we have been campaigning for over the last few years. It has the right nose rocker, volume and width, and is about as close as we could imagine to the perfect all-round shortboard, and absolutely ideal for the intermediate. But this isn't just us saying this; it's the feedback we've been given from many such sailors who have tried it during our teaching courses and demo weekends. They've found it easy to sail and gybe too!

Gecko 278 Review (Boards, March, 1996)

Overall: Well, it's certainly withstood the test of time! There's no board we know of this size and length with such a stable and reassuring feel underfoot in such a wide range of conditions. Its user-friendliness in gnarly conditions belies its size - it feels much bigger than its volume in terms of stability on the water. The Gecko 278 remains in our opinion the best all-round first time slalom board on the market for anyone likely to sail in a fairly wide range of wind and water conditions. It's also an excellent heavyweight's board, particularly as a fun all-rounder for the more competent sailor.

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