My vision was to design a raceboard that would be light, rigid, durable and produced in Europe.
From my background in computer science I was familiar with computer-aided design (CAD) so I started there, and My Father assited with building a 3D model. Then I needed someone who could help with manufacturing a custom raceboard. Two protoypes were built in Finland while my friend Davy Jones, helped to design a logo based on the name I had chosen.
My name is Rado, I have enjoyed developing the R1 Raceboard.
During development improvements in the manufacturing process were needed. I contacted Onehundredboardz, based in Slovenia who produce mast tracks using carbon fiber. I was interested in a mast track and at the time began discussing building a third prototype with the founder Matic Meža. That final design was rigid and super light and the addition of the extraordinary carbon fiber mast track made the prototype ready for testing in windsurfing competitions.
Perfecting the shape of the board and fitting changeable wings to find the optimal wing design, required the creation of an additional prototype. And after a few months of further development the R1 Raceboard was born, and just in time to start the summer season. That summer was spent testing latest prototypes. Comparing the performance of various wing shapes in different wind and wave conditions while achieving decent results in local competitions in Finland.
The R1 raceboard required a simple visual design that would also represent Finland, the country, where it was born. After reviewing several ideas the final design mockup was ready.
And the final missing piece was World Sailing approval required to use the R1 raceboard in international competitions. And finally, in October 2021 my dream became a reality!
