Xtreme Board Company - Grom 4'9"

Gary over at XBC was kind enough to let us test his newest Grom model the 4'9". Jesse stopped by my office and dropped off a brand new board and traction last week.

In looking at the board, the first thing that struck me was the thickness. It's beefy from tail to nose.

I was lucky enough to ride the 4'6" about a month ago and was expecting the ride to be about the same. WRONG! Even more fun! Everyone on board described he board as fun.

I was able to throw a 3 effortlessly. The fin placement is such that they break loose cleanly and almost at will.

The board is fast down the line, the bottom is flat again a design that is unencumbered with fads. Lean forward and the board takes off. In fact, on my second ride on the board I leaned back just a tiny bit and the board shot out from under me!

Rail-to-rail responsiveness is fast, not as fast as the Walker Project Team, but is faster than Shred Stixx Stixxstreme or Ja Mako.

The only complaint I have about the board is the relatively small nose rocker. It takes some getting used to, unless you come from a skimboard background. This relative shallow nose rocker is part of what gives the board it's speed down the line.

Exceptionally fun board, suitable for small fry's and bigger more experienced folks looking for a fast, nimble and technical surfstyle board.

Lipslides were smooth and easy

The board had ample stability, while short it's relatively wide. This combines to provide down-the-line speed and still allows you to move about on the board without falling off.

James was able to toss the board around pretty much at will. James aired it out very nicely. Now is that a nicely placed company logo or what?

Our newest crew member Billy. Bill has been riding with us for a bit, but only started to step up his game this season. he liked the board also, but also commented that the rail-to-rail responsiveness was a bit less than what he preferred. It's a bit bigger board than what the boys were used to riding, and is suitable for bigger guys - like myself in the 180 to 190 range. I found I could push the board around pretty easily.

James has been praticing his shuvit's and had no problem tossing the XBC Gom - 4'9" around. If you look carefully at this pic you can see the tail is forward - fins are up front.

What happens at this point on a surfboard is you either have to throw another shuvit to bring the fins back, or what James does, is spin a surface 180 and rides backside fakie for a bit.

In this attempt, James threw a body varial at the end and landed that, but was too far back and drifted out the back. I'm not exactly sure why, but this board offers a great deal of stability and that is part of what helped James land the body varial.



This is a sick board and I'd highly recommend it in several situatons. For a 1 board family where kids are just starting, but mom and dad have some skills. For an intermediate to advanced board for folks stepping up their surfstyle riding.

Great fun!

Jeff,
Thanks for the great review.

I was wondering if you have ridden the Walker F-18 and if so how this board compares to it and what your opinion is on which one fits what style.

I am in the market for a new board, I live in CT and the only models around here are Hyperlite and Liquid Force unless you order online so I do not have a chance to demo. I currently ride the Hyperlite Broadcast and can surf the wake without any problem and just started to get some air. I find the Broadcast slow. I see my self staying more as a surf style rider and not a skim style. I weigh about 190lbs. I have ridden a Phase 5 Oogle and that was quicker but did not have the response I am looking for.

Thanks for any input you can give me.
Kevin

Yeah, I own several F-18's. The XBC in a comparable size is faster and a touch more responsive than the F-18's. The strong point with Mike's boards is that you can have them custom fit. So...you can have every single aspect of the board suited to you, including the custom airbrushing. If you KNOW what you want, exactly, then Mike's the way to go. If you aren't 100% certain, but think this size and shape board is close, the XBC is a better choice than the F-18.

Nothing is more frustrating that spending a bunch of time and money on a custom board only to have it not work as expected.

Mike is great, he can give you tons of guidance, but often the stock boards like the XBC grom or even something like the Shred Stixx JaMako is a better option.

Nice looking board and I would like to see if my big a@@ could get on it. I am still loving the SS Pirhana and my wife especially loves it but I love the small boards. Does it have a weight range?

Also, what is up with the white T?

Oops forgot to ask what kind of T handle that is?

Hey John, I don't think that XBC has put a weight range on that Grom 4'9" yet. I'm at 180 and that board was just about perfect for me.

Thw white T-shirt - I got a new USCG PFD and the seams actually cut into my arms such that I was bleeding - piece of crap Nevin Epic...anyway, didn't have a rash guard on the boat so I just threw my t-shirt on.

The T-Handle I got from Shoreline Lakeboards, but my understanding is they don't carry it anymore. I've seen a similar handle from Liquid Force.