GONG WING FOIL BOARD LETHAL FSP PRO 2023

Use

The must in wave riding without concession.

Presentation

The Lethal is the most radical wave riding board in wing foiling.

Tightening turns, hitting the lip, going for big airs has never been more intuitive than with the Lethal. It has closed the gap with surf foiling. Wrapping every turn, playing with whitewater, landing clean. The Lethal is all about committed surfing.

In jumps and tricks, we have a minimalist board that allows the craziest moves. It’s up to you to set the tone: the Lethal will follow! Landings make you pop out again towards the next trick.

The science that propels this shape lies in the flow. Its narrow shape pushes very little water, preferring to channel it. But its secret lies above all in its tail: it releases water without restraint. So the board takes off 2 knots earlier. And that’s a big difference because you don’t have to overpower or exhaust yourself pumping. As a result we dare to try more things and progress faster.

This new shape is even more extreme to satisfy the most demanding riders. Ultimate finesse for a wing board and a new volume distribution for more control/forgiveness that make the Lethal our most suitable board for extreme carves and pure wave riding.

The new sizes perfectly meet everybody’s needs. Small volumes like the 35L for sinker boards fans. Instead of the 80L board, we now propose two sizes for more precision: a 75L and a 85L. With 9 sizes from 35L to 120L, all pure waveriders will find their dream board.

This is the wave board for the pros !

Shape

A narrow board, with a magic tail: the recipe for instant flights.

Let’s first talk about its nose bulb which gives that little extra tolerance that changes everything. With this additional volume at the nose, we are obviously more stable when stationary. But we also have a real gain when sailing, especially when pearling or landing: the board pops up again immediately.

Adding volume to the nose allowed us to lower the deck plan at foot level for the same volume. This volume that has slipped at the nose allows you to be closer to the foil with a lower deck under your feet, and therefore have much more control and responsiveness. Here again, the gain is considerable.

Its very narrow outline also boosts take off and speed on the water. Once in the air, responsiveness is at its best with an instant rail to rail without any feeling of heaviness, but above all a unique ability to go for a lot of angle in the curves without touching the water.

Its very hydrodynamic kick tail allows it to embark “hidden volume”. Indeed, the tail is thick but with its magical glide it’s only positive. Unlike beveled tails, our Magic Tail promotes flow. The board glides much better before the flight. We don’t have this depression at the tail that sucks the board back. Remember that beveled tails were created to lift SUP foil boards. And keep in mind that the flight occurs before the wing board’s planing speed. A cut tail is not the most relevant choice for wing boards in regards to the take off. With our magic tail, we therefore gain in stability, on take off, on repop, and in approximate landings.

The facets on the rails allow you to fly without fearing a crushing blow at the slightest touchdown on a chop or in tight curves. Even smaller, they do their job with an 85 cm mast. The top rails are full to keep a flat deck closer to the outline and maximize lateral stability.

The edge to edge is wider than in 2022. Paradoxically, the narrower 2023 boards have more hull width than the 2022 which had a wider outline. With the facets being more vertical on the rails, we gain in performance and sharpness in the piloting. This shape makes it easier to get planing. Take-off is further improved.

The double concave under the nose coupled with the bulb and the narrow outline make the touchdowns totally harmless. Instead of braking, the Lethal will bounce off the water and immediately recover the flight. It’s really amazing when landing jumps or in the air when surfing. This absence of sanction pushes you to try tricks and will make you progress.

Equipments

The set of footstraps is offered with the board. For 2023 we have reviewed the outline of our straps to further improve comfort. Developed for wing foiling, these straps with less cover do not bend when put on.

More rigid, they offer a more precise steering but are still as comfortable. There is less surface area on the feet so there is less risk of staying stuck in the straps or banging your foot on the edge of the strap when rushing into it. It also allows better leeward control (tip of the foot) and therefore a more natural attitude in wing foiling.
We have worked on every detail to improve your experience on the water.

The V-shaped footstraps perfectly center the foot on the front of the board. The position is thus more natural and allows direct and precise control in maneuvers.

For 2023, our SCS system launched on the HIPE is integrated on all our foil boards. It’s beautiful, efficient and above all it saves time you can spend on the water. With its 4 entries, the GONG double entry box facilitates the assembly and adjustment of the foil. Performance without the hassle. We leave the nuts and the screws on the plate, just insert the foil, screw and off we go! Setting up the foil is much faster and easier. It is the plug and play solution which facilitates adjustments! (inserts not supplied with the board).

A handle developed by our R&D and our ergonomics engineer has been integrated into our boards this year. We can better close our hands in it: a firmer and more comfortable grip. The depressurization screw is directly integrated into the handle.

It is placed on the hull to allow one-handed carrying. You can have the wing in the other hand to get past the whitewater or to get out of the water. And as we always do things seriously, the handle is placed in a block of hydrophobic PVC foam and covered with fiber.

The top-of-the-range 5mm thick integral pad provides maximum grip and comfort when sailing, while protecting the board from shocks. This year we have changed the grooving to provide even more comfort and more grip. This hard brush pad sublimates the board. This flat pad provides absolute comfort and a magical grip with more precision. This is obvious on long sessions: the feet are less tired.

Construction

These boards are equipped with our innovative technology called FSP Pro. The highest quality on the market.

This full PVC Carbon sandwich offers the best dynamism while preserving strength, at an incredible weight. It’s quite simply the ultimate in vacuum technology for customs, used as standard on our production models : the same tech as the one used on our prototypes made in our shape rooms in France.

FULL sandwich means that the entire board is covered with a layer of 3mm high density hydrophobic PVC foam. This includes the rails, which allows better resistance and perfect sealing in the event of an impact. Above all, the sandwich on the rails are essential to have a rigid board as they work as a solid frame when the board takes flex. The dynamism is really superior and the durability of the board is second to none. This tech is not adopted by all competing brands. What they call sandwich construction is often a simple PVC reinforcement under the feet (and sometimes on the hull). At GONG we do things as seriously as they can be, so in full sandwich.

The carbon fiber that completely covers the board boosts its performance. It is clearly much livelier. Its response time is ultra fast, it does not twist, you are in direct contact with the foil and the elements.

All the lamination steps of the high density sandwich and then of the fiber are carried out under vacuum. The board is under strong pressure, from 2 to 4 tonnes depending on the stage, to ensure flawless bonding of the layers. With the use of drains we optimize the amount of resin on the board leaving only the optimum. Your board is light and super compact. A durable board made to handle all the stresses of a board’s life, its construction also offers a sound basis for any future repairs. So your board will stay like new for years or decades with proper maintenance. This durability will make a lot of people happy from one owner to the next, and avoids polluting with “disposable” boards.

To implement this very complex technology, we need time. A board without a full sandwich is built in 6 to 8 hours. GONG full sandwich boards take 12 to 14 hours of work. You understand that all these steps lengthen the production circuit and are therefore a monumental investment in quality.

For 2023 we have replaced the classic US Boxes, which everyone uses but which were not originally designed for foiling, with our own US Double Entry GONG Boxes designed and tested by our design office for extreme use in foiling. These new boxes are specifically reinforced in areas of high stress and are molded with a high fiber content. Durability is increased tenfold. We are clearly on the best BOX on the market which corresponds exactly to our needs in terms of resistance and functionality. What could be simpler than aligning the 4 nuts with the 4 entrances and sliding the foil into the box? 3 turns with a screw tightener and it’s ready. It’s so easy that you’ll wonder how you could do it the old way for years hahaha.

The foil boxes are placed in a large PVC 80kg/m3 reinforcement thicker than the boxes. Without any risk of water infiltration in the EPS sandwich, even with an intense impact. This reinforcement is connected to the PVC sandwich of the deck with PVC slats to ensure the cohesion of the whole and to avoid any play in the reinforcements over the years. Everything is fitted with fiberglass reinforcements for tolerance and carbon to limit bending. The handle is also set in a waterproof PVC block.

Remember that the high density PVC blocks that house the boxes and the handle are in addition to the full PVC sandwich. The anchoring is absolutely perfect. Not to compare with a reinforcement simply held by layers of fiber. Our reinforcements take hold on a high thickness of rigid material that you would not be able to bend by hand for example, which you could if it was only layers of fibers.

Our technology is truly the ultimate in board construction. Durable, efficient, repairable, we can count on one hand the number of brands able to offer a total PVC sandwich on a big scale production of wing boards. GONG is the leader!

At GONG, our boards are the highest quality. Our low prices can only be explained by our direct sales model, eliminating margins. If by misfortune you break them, they can be repaired from A to Z with the components we keep in stock for your favorite repairer.

3D View

Your benefits are clear:

1. An efficient shape created by the wing foil world champions.
2. A design at the cutting edge of R&D and ahead of its time.
3. A proven construction on thousands of boards.
4. A “Full Options” finish at a crazy price.
5. A light, solid board with one of the best technos on the market!!!
6. An incredible price that can only be explained by our direct relationship with you.
7. A simple maintenance and easy repairs because we have all components in stock.

We recommend to complete this board with our bag luxe.