The Fire Ride is RRD’s brand new Freeride board for 2010, replacing the outgoing Z and X -Rides. RRD have pushed an early release on this one, so it was the very first 2010 board we got our hands on this year and is already available for sale within the shops.

We were given their smallest (125 litre) model to try, which weighed in at a very respectable 7.48kg (bare) and has a maximum width of 69cm.

The remit of a ‘freeride board’ is very large indeed. The range of use can vary massively, with the biggest demand for versatility placed on these smaller sized freeride boards. From lightweights mastering the use of foot straps, right through to high wind bump and jump sailing for heavyweight riders, it’s no surprise that there are many different connotations on how to shape a good freeride board.

Having sailed a good number of freeride boards in our time, there definitely feels to be three lines of thinking when it comes to design;

1.There are the brands who feel as though they started out with a very stable, easy to sail board and then tried to extract as much performance out of it as possible without losing the easy going nature (Tabou rocket would be a good example).

2. Some other brands feel as though they started out with a freewave theme and made the board easier to plane, more comfortable in a straight line and more tolerant of clumsy technique (Goya FXR being a good example of this line of thinking).

3. Finally, there is the third style of freeride board, which feels as though the designer started out with the basics of a performance slalom board and then de-tuned the shape to make it easier to sail. This is how the RRD Fire Ride feels (in the tested 125 size).

The Fire Ride is aptly named because in the right conditions, the board is bullet fast. It feels lively underfoot and really makes for an exciting ride.

The board is definitely most at home when comfortably powered up using sails of 8.0m or smaller, and down to 5.8. Its an ‘active’ ride which requires some input to take control, but adds to the more involved, exciting feel of the board.

In lighter winds, the Fire Ride requires slightly more subtle technique than others to keep the trim. In moderate winds it feels lively and exciting, whilst in well powered-up conditions, it requires just a little more skill and leg strength to keep it controlled than some of the more ‘passive’ riding freeride boards.

We tested the board with the supplied 40cm fin but felt that a larger and more swept back fin would improve the light wind abilities and perhaps add a little bit more control in some conditions. RRD must have been telepathic as we have just been told that all the new boards will now be supplied a 42cm more swept back fin design!

If you can carve gybe already, you will find the Fire Ride one of the most exciting freeride boards on the market to gybe. It allows the rider to carve hard and fast with good flexibility of turn radius. Less experienced gybers will find good carving ability but slightly more response to foot pressure than some other freeride boards of this size, making it not quite so forgiving of clumsy technique but definitely a board that you can grow into as you look to develop your gybing skills.

Overall, the 125 Fire Ride is not a freeride boards that will massage your ego and flatter your technique through impeccable manners and ease of use...but then leave you sailing back and forth in a world of boredom.

Instead, it is more likely to inspire you to put the hammer down, overtake your mates and step up your blasting and gybing skills so that you can realise the full potential of the Fire Ride.