Operator 850

The perfect gear change

I'd been on the operator 1050 with an 80cm mast for 6 months before I felt I needed a longer mast, so decided to order the 850 at the same time. I was concerned as an intermediate that the smaller foil was going to be a handful, well I needn't have worried as it's the same consistent and reliable operator 1050 feeling, just dialed up a few notches. The two foils are now, for me, the perfect quiver. The 1050 for tiny to shoulder height surf and the 850 for anything bigger. The 850 is also super fun in nuking conditions (It's the best tacking foil I've ever used) and performs incredibly well with foildrive as well.

100th session update...

I started riding the Operator foils early December 2023. Today (June 19th) was my 100th session (63rd day) winging on the foils. It's hard to know where to start when describing the 850 (build quality, speed range, carve-ability, pump-ability, etc..). I've done back-to-back sessions with other high performance brands, but for the type of riding I'm doing (river swell, bay chop, flat river flood, etc) nothing feels as good as the 850. At 86 Kg, I ride it with the 87 mast and Flux 60L board - it's a perfect combo. If the wind drops below 16 mph, I'll switch to the 1050 and maybe the larger Flux 84L board if it's really low (13-14 mph). What makes it great? It is so smooth and predictable - to the point where you feel confident really pushing it. You know exactly what it's going to do. It's not the fastest foil, but its range is amazing with a great low end that takes care of you during those occasional sloppy gybes and tacks - it can almost come to a stop and not drop off foil. That's not a feeling I've had on any other foil. The result for me has been major progression this season. Mastering tacks, carving hard, and just having a blast on the water. I can't recommend this foil enough - or the 1050 if you're a heaver rider, looking for more stability, or riding in lower winds...