Kiteworld Magazine | The original international kitesurfing magazine

Great speed for a board of this robustness and generous rocker that makes tricks and chop handling easy

THIS TEST FIRST APPEARED IN KITEWORLD #104 IN MARCH 2020

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TESTED BY: CHRIS BULL AND JIM GAUNT. FIND THEIR DETAILS AND TEST SCORE BREAKDOWNS HERE.

TEST TEAM NOTES:

The Motion rocks some rocker; providing assured landings and generally lots of forgiveness – there’s less edge in the water to catch. The sacrifice of such a deep rockerline is usually speed. More rocker may mean more control, but it also means more drag and therefore you usually need more power. So, is the Motion sluggish? No! Naish have kept it uniformly stiff throughout the length so that the board cuts through the water and gets you up and running without much effort. The base has been designed to send flowing water straight to the prominent fin, so it has good upwind drive for a board with this much rocker.

IN CONTROL

The Motion is quick to respond to input and easy to ride. A great combination. Even in lighter conditions, where boards can be overly sensitive, if you hammer on your back foot the Motion digs in nicely and you can feel the fin and rail engage. This also lends itself to being grippy when riding at the more powered end of the spectrum. You feel in control on this board, even when there’s turbulent water underneath you. When dealing with heavy white water, just push down on your back foot, lift up with the front and the Motion will stabilise nicely. Engage the rail and the Motion will nudge forward and kick into action.

On landings the Motion glides comfortably and gives the feeling of suspension underneath your feet. In lighter winds it also generates speed well, so when you’re coming down from a height with speed and don’t feel quite enough support from the kite, the Motion will continue to drive forward on landing. There’s more performance available in average conditions thanks to the stiffness mixed with the easy rocker.

The firmness doesn’t ruin the benefits of the rocker, it merely delivers speed whilst allowing you to cut through chop and cruise over white water with pace without having to think too much about it. A rare quality, the Motion keeps pace when toeside without losing drive and leaving you to compensate by moving your kite to find more power. Just focus on the wave or the turn in front of you.

This is not a light board, but in high winds this can be an advantage as we’ve mentioned in previous reviews as you’re less likely to get blown around. Lighter boards make you feel younger and more agile, but the weight of this board makes things very smooth and you always have a very good feeling for where the board is. The excellent straps also help with this.

NAISH APEX BINDINGS

Naish’s Apex bindings have a four-point adjustment and are super-soft underfoot without giving the feeling of disconnection from the board. They cushion really well and are as grippy as they come. The Apex is amongst the top pad / strap combinations out there.

SUMMARY:

The Motion gives you a bit of everything – it’s easy, eats up chop and is comfortable but with enough drive to hold speed and go upwind. This is the definition of ‘all-round’ and is ideally suited to both strapped and boots riding styles. Naish’s posterboy, Ewan Jaspan, chooses the Motion for kite testing and product shoots because it’s a board that he can do absolutely everything on. We think that says it all.

KW LIKED:
Great speed for a board of this robustness and generous rocker that makes tricks and chop handling easy.

KW WOULD CHANGE:
It’s been softer in previous years, which some will miss and very early intermediates will find a straighter, flatter rocker to be a bit easier when learning to go upwind.

MOTION BALANCE POINTS:
Build quality: 9
Fixtures and fittings: 9
Speed: 7.5
Pop: 7
Drive: 8.5
Flex: 6
Comfort: 8
Looseness: 6
Grip: 8
Upwind: 7.5
Slider proof: It’s tough, but not dedicated to it
Boots applicable: Yes – all day long
Freeriding: 8.5
Freestyle: 8
Ease of use: 8.5

SIZES: 142 x 42, 138 x 41.5 and 134 x 41cm