Southern Surfest Overall Scoring
 

Here are the 2015 Southern Surfest overall review scoring for our event. All riders rate each boat in 18 different categories that include wave quality, interior, storage, wave push and so on. Our riders represent beginners to pro's so it is a diverse crowd which we like. We aggregate all of the reviews and average out each category (scale is 1 to 5). We then add up each category average to give an overall scoring for each boat. A couple of boats had some mechanical issues so these ratings include some sessions where the riders experienced some issues beyond their control. These boats were the Malibu, Supra and Supreme. We will also post the boat set up, speed and other settings once we have the full reviews posted on our website. In the meantime here are the overall results:

1. 2015 Nautique Boats G23: 86.03
2. 2015 Supra Boats SE 550: 80.50 (3 sessions were in the SG)
3. 2015 MasterCraft Boat Company X23: 79.95
4. 2015 Centurion Boats FS33: 78.81
5. 2015 Malibu Boats 23 LSV: 76.32 (includes 3 different LSV's)
6. 2015 Axis Wake Research A24: 73.16
7. 2015 MasterCraft Boat Company X20: 70.19
8. 2015 Tige Boats Z1: 69.26
9. 2015 Moomba Boats Mojo: 62.16
10. 2015 Ski Supreme Boats S226: 54.38 (ballast issues all weekend)

Our full reviews will include details and some commentary to better understand these results.

It is good to see Supra establishing itself. I am surprised to see that.

No Tige Z3 there I assume?

Thanks for providing the info! I know that takes a lot of time and patience to compile all of it.

The only manufacture with two boats in the mix and they could only get third?
:banghead:

And the 7th place MC just barely beat two $60-$65K boats

So whats the criteria for this? Theres really no standard for a surf boat... And i agree with Scott on that one.

This still is just a bunch of opinions about a bunch of boats that were set up by a bunch of different people. It would be much more impressive if one person who is very knowledgeable about surfing picked each manufactures best surf boat. Then set up that boat to produce it's best wake. Then judge each wave on usable pocket,push and consistently staying clean. Also consider fuel usage and ease of wave setup and ability to switch sides in a reasonable amount of time.

Many of the boats are provided by the respective boat makers with highly maximized setups with very experienced/skilled/knowledgable drivers. All are given very clear input to bring max possible setups since they all know riders are doing reviews. I do not believe there is one person that would know the max setup for all these boats nor would it be practical in an event like this when all ten boats go out at same time. Tige Z3 did not participate.

Well can we a sample of one of the sheets that each rider was given? I think a little clarity here would help us all get an idea of how these boats were "scored". Maybe next year there should be an accredited rider there who can truthfully score these boats.

Talk on some of the other forums is not all the boats were set up to make their best wave. Events like this are cool but not an accurate review. It would have been better if you invited owners to bring out their boats. Most know dealers don't know or will not set up a boat to make its best wave.JMTC

Xstar. It wrangles duck sauce.

Sounds like this should be the new slogan for MC?

I'm just going to quietly point out the G was rated the highest.. haters gonna hate.

I'm sure my 11 year old Centurion Avalanche I paid 38K for puts out a better wake then any of those boats listed.........Haha! I'm not about the bling bling, I just want a perfect wake for me :) Much rather have the girls run to my boat cause of my good looks and not what my boat looks like LOL Boat whores? who needs them!

I'll take #6 for half the cost and then actually spend the time to dial it in lol

Test results and haters aside.

Pretty cool to have over $1 million worth of boats to play around with and compare. If I was out for my evening stroll and came up on this collection of rigs I would poop myself! (in a good way).

Catch 22. Nobody will want you in their boat with poop all over your pants.

Good Call. That would be a disappointing end to an exciting time.

I bet the XXXStar would take the poop and turn it into righteous wake pudding.

also keep in mind that a lot of the riders are kids, if their parents owned a Bayliner, they would rate it over the G, or they did last year and said my wave was too big and gave my boat low wave scores, no butt hurt here just don't read to much into it

for clarity, 4 riders out of 40 were kids for this yr. last yr there were 4 kids out of 32 riders.

Bottom line. Most people that can afford these boats are at least 30 to 40 years old and males probable average 200 or more pounds. Taking that into consideration I would bet your test didn't include very many participants who fit in that category.

looking at the reviews from last year, only 19 of the 32 riders turned in reviews, or thats all I received. 5 were kids (over 25%) I remember a 6th (NC), but he did not turn one in I guess, I would be happy to refresh your memory with initials for clarity's sake

2 of those kids from last year are mine and both are World Wakesurf Champions. They have ridden plenty of waves and know good from bad.

1 of mine, who will ride in the Pro division this year, participated this year and another of the kids is also a competitive rider.

And do your girls happen to favor a manufacturer or ride for one???

Drew I love ya man, but the ratings they gave were not consistent with each other at all

Why does it always have to revert to my brand is better than yours. I have said this before that this evaluation, although trying to be objective, is still very subjective. This is no ones fault, just how it is in my opinion. I think the intent of Surfest was to give the consumer and one stop place to compare see and test surf related products. The style of a rider may reflect one way or another regarding the shape of the wave. My brand is not at the top, but I know it produces a killer wave. I am content in that knowledge.

There are many factors that go into purchasing a new or used boat. Most people want to be happy with how it looks followed more closely by how much does it cost. How often can you get a chance to see this many surf boats in one place? Also in consideration is the selling dealer regarding service and overall reputation. Also, how often can you get an opportunity to try several types of new boards. I have a closet with boards useless to me now.

Lastly, I am pretty certain I could create a pretty decent surf wake from any of the boats above. Take what you can from the information and make your own informed decision. In the words of the Lion King .... Hakuna matata ... peace out!

Drew R - thats correct for last yr my goof-there was a kids boat then one youngster rode w his Dad. I don't recall the 6th. This yr we highly focused on numerous improvements including review quality, completeness and hand-in rate by providing swag bags for all riders that turned in a completed review book so we got 38 of 40 which is pretty good.

Dennis C - you got it right big time! Surfest is all about riders having big fun doing their thing with top boats and LOTS of boards. We then seek to capture info to share w others that cannot make it. And there's all kinds of special stuff that goes on ad-hoc that riders just flip out with. Here's one I'll share: The last group in the G23 on Saturday stayed out real real late and I was worried at the dock. Well Drew Danielo and Jodi Grassman offered to stay out w that group after they had finished their cycle to do some training and do tricks until dark. Those riders were bedazzled. One guy thats a good surf buddy of mine said it was the highlight of the event and that alone was worth the fee. Now he got to see TWO world class wake surfers up close and bedazzling. He was nuts EXCITED. We did not plan that- it just happened. A few others did more fun stuff.

Some of the most fun I have had would be something unplanned. Drew and Jodi are always up for more riding and promoting the sport.

While I understand the attempt at trying to give an accurate review of each boat - it is almost impossible to quantify something that is so subjective and has so many variables. If you are going to post the overall points - you really need to include all of the data and the questions asked. This is frankly a dis-service to the manufacturers and dealers that make the event possible. It is also not really helpful to the people who read this when it becomes nothing more that a fight of brands. It is not about "what is the best boat" it should be about "what is the best boat for me and my family"
An overall score only paints a partial picture and does not really help people understand the full value of each boat. For instance - Some boats may have to be loaded with more ballast, some boats were virtually running stock - which might make it an easier day on the water or setting up their boat for surfing. One question was something to the effect of "time to switch ballast" the if a boat like the Tige didnt have a switchable "side to side system" It could have had a lower score by 3 to 4 points while the quality of the wave could be great. Some wakes may be huge but lack push where it is actually big. Maybe some boats suck fuel and other sip it

Again - Too many variables to really get a sense of the "Best Boat" The best option for anyone seriously looking is to go visit their local dealer and take a ride - They will take you out and let you surf and drive the boat yourself -- For free!

During Southern Surfest the Supra SE had a prop issue and was quickly exchanged out for a 2015 Supra SG. 70% of the boat reviews on the Supra Boats was for the SE and 30% of the reviews for the SG. Interestingly enough the SE averaged 80.48 overall and the SG averaged 80.55. We found this interesting and wanting to share the info with you!!

Looking forward to seeing some of the board reviews.

I think this type of "event" has merit and could be a good place to check out a lot of boats and boards at one place.
Is it perfect? Not for everyone - as nothing usually is.
In the future you might want to break the boats down into two groups - above 100K and below 100K

I do see a problem with a 65K boat being tested against a 125K boat. I sure hope the big money WINS!!!! LOL
As far as the set up goes - I have seen dealers (sales person) demo boats with incorrect settings. Since they were allowed to add or move weight as they saw fit for the event, they can only blame those in charge of that setting.
Looks like fun - maybe next year!

^^^^ hahaha good one!!!