Hi Tech ultra lite opinions

Does anyone have any experieince with the Hi Tech ultral lite (9'? i am looking at one that'a around a '95. I have little experience with boards so any ideas would be helpful! thanks

Hello AJ, Not sure about the ultra lite part of this, but the Hi-Tech 9.0 was a very nice little slalom board. Very fast, if you knew how to sail it, and quite light for the technology available back then. Not great for durability (mine 'blew up' in a hot car i.e. my fault and the entire bottom delaminated). Wish I had one to compare to a modern slalom board in the same size range (Carve 99) to see if it was really as fast as it seemed. I'm sure the Carve will plane earlier (it's wider at the back) but if you want a board for powered up 7.5-5.5 BAF sailing, the Hi-Tech should still be pretty

good. Hope this helps, Roger

Thanks a lot Roger..it really does help. My concern was with durability. This board I am looking at is supposedly in mint condition. I am a university student on a budget so not much sense comparing it to the carve 99. thanks again!

Hello AJ, Mine was pretty durable, until I left the vent plug tightened up and took the board with me on a business trip. I was working out on an airfield in the hot summer sun, and my board was 'cooking' in the car, in a white bag no less. The damage was repairable, but I had moved on to some newer boards by then so I never had it repaired. It may have had a little water in if from the previous owner or maybe I left the plug loose once. Either way, the steam inside the board delaminated the skin

from the core foam. Other than this incident, the board was pretty strong and durable, but I treated it fairly delicately. It was a carbon sandwich board. It's a good board, so if the price is right, you will have something pretty fast, even by today's standards. Regards, Roger

Ajarchie,

Be sure about the age of this board. Hi-Tech had a really sweet 9'0' slalom board, but I recall it being an older design (late '80's, poss. '90, I think). Just make sure the shape of the board is more like newer designs. If it is an older shape, the mast track will be pretty far forward. Not a problem if you are also using older sails, but a sail built in the past 5-7 years will not balance quite (they have been designed w/ less rake in mind).

JC