We know you are curious about how the Ronix Bandwagon rides with it’s camber rocker, so we decided to test it in our Editor’s Pick from the April Issue. In case you missed it in the mag, we brought it to life on the web. Take a peek and see if camber could your new favorite feature. Enjoy!
Gear | Editor’s Pick | Words: Brandon Judd | Photo: Bill Doster
2014 Bandwagon ATR by Ronix
I’ll be totally honest with you: I was completely surprised at how this board rode. I generally tend to gravitate toward continuous rocker boards with very subtle bottom features, and thinking that camber was an even more extreme version of a three-stage board, I naturally had my reservations. I also worried, given my limited understanding of hydro physics, that the combination of camber and kicktails would create some kind of suction and increase the drag, slowing the board down dramatically. What I experienced when I rode it was pleasantly surprising.
I really wanted to put some time on this board to make sure my experience wasn’t just a fluke. So I rode it on the wake, on one of the 2.0 setups at Lake Ronix and at Orlando Watersports Complex’s full-size cable.
As soon as the board touched the water on the cable, I was surprised at how fun it felt underneath my feet. The board rode relatively high on the water, which was the opposite of what I had expected. This made the already lightweight board feel even lighter on the water and very playful. I could easily feel the contact points underneath my feet. In other words, the lowest points of the board were in two spots directly under my boots, which allowed me to really feel everything my board came into contact with. The camber also draped nicely across rails during board slides and lip slides, encouraging proper technique.
The tip and tail of the board have a little step on the base to break the flow of water from sticking to the kicktail. Without this step in place, the tail of the board would create suction and add a considerable amount of drag. This feature was extremely functional, and I did not feel any tail drag whatsoever. Along with the board’s flex, the kicktail made nose and tail pressing pretty fun too. Not that it made me press any further, but it gave me an extra confidence boost knowing that the nose would never get buried in a loose panel or an imperfection on the obstacle.
Behind the boat, this board landed incredibly softly. I thought that the camber would make the landings rough, but after realizing that you almost always land on edge, that worry became immediately moot. Add the board’s flex to the equation, and landing down the transition of the wake was almost cloudlike.
At the wake, it released at the step near the kicktail. This means that the board releases quick at the wake for its size, which will allow you to ride a little bit bigger board than you normally would. While coasting completely flat, the board was a little slower in comparison to how quick it is when on edge. While on edge, it sat nice and deep and locked in on the rail even with the smaller “Babooshka” fins.
Overall, I was impressed with the Bandwagon. Its camber feature really did create an experience that I had never felt before on the water. Even if you decide not to add this board to your quiver, testing it out will be well worth your time.
MSRP: $510
