At the top of the R&D agenda for 2009, Dream Team Taty Frans, Nicolas Agkaziyan, Kiri Thode and Sara Quita Offringa have set ambitious goals for the new freestyle range, working with Tiesda You to produce the World's lightest freestyle boards and the most advanced shapes possible.

WoodCarbon
Starboard's WoodCarbon technology is the first board construction in the World to utilize an ultralight, pure unidirectional carbon fibre that is flat-weaved for total mechanical efficiency. The unidirectional flat-weave fibre generates equal tensile strength as biaxial or woven carbon fibre but at half the specific weight. A layer of 0.6 Australian pine wood runs along the spine of the board to provide rigidity, additional integrity and increased strength in the most stressed areas of the board. WoodCarbon - the combination of a wood spine and ultralight carbon: a new composite material matrix that sets a new benchmark.

New shapes
Building on the success of the 2008 Flares, the 2009 Flare 98 and 106 are designed to bring even more speed and acceleration to the mix. The core evolution comes from a new DFC (Dual Flat Concept) rockerline, inspired by the results from the iSonic R&D program. The DFC rockerline features a short, flat tail section from 0cm-30cm and a secondary flat that extends from 30cm to 95cm. This extended flat provides an extremely fast ride with a new level of acceleration and early planing.

Any other shape changes?
The width of the Flare 98 has dropped by 2.5cm and the length is shorter by 2cm to regain more top-end speed and maneuvering accuracy in high to medium winds. The boards are thinned out to lower the centre of gravity for more control. The length of the the Flare 106 remains at 239cm for greater tolerance and more lightwind float. The front footstrap angle has been increased from 45 degrees to 55 degrees.

Other features
Starboard's trademark freestyle feature, the heel gutters, continue on all models, providing an exaggerated deck dome for more comfort and more grip. The tail shapes pack some extra volume for more float and tolerance during reverse and sliding transitions. The back footstraps use four screws instead of the conventional two screws for extra strength and a mechanically twist-free function.

The Flare 88
Together with the Flare 60 and 72, the Flare 88 shape continues unchanged for 2009 with its slalom rockerline and slalom vee. It remains the team's weapon of choice for highwind conditions or lighter riders. Now also available in WoodCarbon.

Summary:

• New WoodCarbon construction
• Super-fast freestyle boards with more speed and acceleration for 2009
• New DFC (Dual Flat Concept) rockerline on the 98 and 106 models

Features

1. Slalom rockerline for speed and acceleration in the 88
   New DFC rocker in the 98 and 106 for improved speed, early planing and acceleration without compromising on maneuverability
2. Heel gutters exaggerate the deck dome effect for more comfort and grip
3. Drake Crossover CNC G10 fins - designed by Curtis Hesselgrave
4. Double-screw fittings for the back footstrap for maximum insert shear resistance
5. Thinner shapes for a lower CG: maximum aerial control and increased responsiveness
6. Increased tail volume for more float and tolerance in reverse moves
7. WoodCarbon: the world's lightest board construction that combines ultralight UD carbon and a wood spine.
   Wood: a unique freestyle specific construction that combines Carbon/Kevlar under a full layer of wood: lightweight, high impact resistance and stiff.

Specifications