Passionate interview with Radovan (Rado) Kubin, father of the rVision R1

Passionate interview with Radovan (Rado) Kubin, who last year registered a new Raceboard board at World Sailing, the rVision R1(https://www.rvision.fi/). Presentation and questions to Rado about his specific production on the bangs of the major manufacturers, which culminated in a world title in 2022. He confirms that his board is well born and will be the one to beat in 2023.

FRA: First of all, congratulations Rado on your commitment to the development of raceboarding! Can you introduce yourself?

Rado: I'm originally from Slovakia (born in Czechoslovakia to be precise) but moved to Finland 21 years ago. I started windsurfing at the age of 13 and have been competing since 1987. We had to build our own boards back then as long boards (DII, DI) were not available or simply too difficult to obtain. I remember building my first raceboard by taking measurements from photos in a magazine in the early 90s. Fortunately, I only used this board for a season or two and then I got my first real raceboards from AHD, F2 and Fanatic before the new generation of raceboards came along.

My connection with manufacturing/engineering? I have a Master's degree in Information Technology and have worked in this industry all my working life. I like to have projects in my personal life too, not just at work. As a result, I'm always inspired by new technologies or inventions.

I love European-made Raceboards and thought it was time to make one using all the latest materials and technologies (including 3D modeling) to produce a high-quality one.

What is your official involvement in windsurfing and what do you stand up for?

I'm president of SPLL (Finnish Board Sailing Association). We work for almost all windsurfing and kitesurfing classes. The main mission of the association is to develop the sport by getting more people interested. We also update and maintain the local class rules and calendar of events (including races).

There are a lot of interesting sports that people, especially the younger generation, can do, which is why we compete with other sports when we try to attract more people into sailing sports. Raceboard and longboard classes in general are not as attractive to the younger generation as some of the newer classes. SPLL needs to make sure we don't drift from our objectives by not promoting any one class, but rather we'll make sure people understand all the options available, including freeride equipment.

 Can you tell us what rVision R1 is? Is it a company? A brand name? Where is it located and why?

rVision Oy is my own company, which I originally set up to provide IT services. The company is based in Finland's capital. When I thought of starting a project related to the Raceboard, obviously it was easier to start it with the same company using the same available financial resources including IT services. The R1 is my first raceboard and therefore the name of the raceboard. R1 stands for Rado1 which, with a bit of imagination, comes from Radovan (van pronounced "one").

Can you describe your development and production team?

This is the most interesting topic for me. In 2017, when I decided to invest in Raceboard development, I needed someone to model the vision I had in mind. My father, a lifelong user of 3D modeling, helped me make the initial model. I tried to develop and build the board in Finland, but I lacked a real company with experience in building sailboards. After having the first 2 prototypes built in Finland, I was pretty sure that would be the end of the project. Fortunately, while trying to find a company that sold carbon mast foot rails for long boards, I found the company (Onehundredboardz), which also built custom boards. That's when the collaboration between rVision and Onehundredboardz began, and we managed to get prototype number 3 built very quickly at the end of 2020. Shortly afterwards the^4th proto was made to test different wings/wing but also without this option...

Once prototyping was complete, the R1 was ready to go into production, and that's where my good friend David Jones came in. He had already helped design the R1 logo for the first prototype.

 In short. The team is made up of very few people involved in the development and construction of R1. The collaboration with Onehundredboardz (Matic Meza being the main person) allowed R1 to get the best custom technology and parts like the carbon mast foot rail. I focused on the visual and shape designs, while Matic concentrated on the technology to build it.

Recognizing and honoring collaboration - the rVision R1 powered by Onehundredboardz - is clearly marked on the sides of the board.

What were your goals in building a model on the bangs of global companies like Unifiber and Starboard? How can your business model stand up to companies that produce according to well-established models with global manufacturers like Cobra?

The main objective is to build in Europe using all the technology and materials available to achieve quality, lightness and durable boards. As already mentioned, R1 is the result of a project done in my spare time. I have officially registered it with World Sailing to enable other competitors to use it in official races.

We pay great attention to detail and build quality. Many parts are cut by computer-controlled CNC machines from our own designs, or manufactured with highly precise high-pressure molds. Our boards are composed of other parts that we also manufacture.

The R1 is literally a true "racing machine" and as such can't really be manufactured in the same way as those produced by global companies. We can, for example, customize the position of the footstraps to suit the rider's preferences and style.

... and how can you be competitive with your final selling price since you include a significant amount of hand-made time to build a high-tech model with carbon sandwich technology. Everyone knows that this time is very impactful in Europe. What's your final price with mast step and centerboard?

As I'm not dependent on a need to make a profit on R1, I can keep production in the EU and control prices by selling the board under the direct-to-consumer concept. The current price is EUR 3990 excluding VAT. VAT is charged in the EU for purchases made by its consumers. We'll see how the price evolves in 2023, since every increase in energy or materials has a direct impact.

The centerboard and mast track are two common problems to overcome when producing a raceboard on your own. How did you manage these strategic subjects to get them reliable, high-performing and at an acceptable cost?

Thanks to the collaboration with many existing parts produced by Onehundredboardz, such as the famous carbon mast track used for the D2. It was already available. We had to improve it slightly to take account of the higher speeds and bigger waves in which the R1 can be used compared to the Onehundredboardz DII. This is exactly where my raceboarding experience came in handy.

I only managed the daggerboard in 2022 and, as a result, the board was first delivered with Onehundredboardz's DII daggerboard. Now we recommend using it with the 85 cm long Boss R1 centerboard. As a result, we had to redesign the daggerboard head to fit the R1.

Since the beginning of this year, we've been delivering the R1 with a brand-new 85 cm daggerboard, which is very solid. The shape is very similar to the Boss daggerboard, but the hydrodynamic profile is slightly different.

A second very important point is the daggerboard case, which is a very technical part to manufacture to make the board durable and light. Many a surf, paddle or funboard shaper who has wanted to build a raceboard with a daggerboard case has been confronted with a really difficult subject. The daggerboard case can become a real nightmare for the builder if it isn't robust.

Yes, the drift shaft makes fabrication complex. The well must be built separately before it can be inserted into the laminating board. Once everything is done, the lips of the drift can be glued together.

This is another area where R1 differs. It's very precise; the drifts are very light and everything runs smoothly.

What was your final choice in terms of technology and why did you choose to shaper instead of aiming for a hollow board that should be lighter (The foam core weighs around 5kg for 300L). The last manufacturer to make hollow raceboards, as far as we know, was Lechner, with semi-custom production.

Sorry for the correction, the last manufacturer to have done so is my friend Kale from Finland, who has just registered his board with World sailing.

I've never been a big fan of entirely hollow boards. 300 L of volume, and a possible high water intake due to lack of watertightness . I'd be more in favor of filling the space with super-light expanded foam. IF the hollow board opens up, it could fill with water very quickly, turning the story into a rescue exercise. Such a production requires some R&D and surely larger quantities of boards to manufacture.

I used R1 in a 35-knot wind with a 7.3 m2 slalom sail. The board was more in the air than on the water, passing a 1.5 to 2 m swell at high speed. The R1 handled the situation perfectly, no damage, all parts working as expected. If I'd crashed and broken the board, I'd have been able to come back, since the sandwich laminate doesn't allow the board to sink.

Is it difficult to fully respect an identical production series with your way of doing things, since all the models registered at WS have to be absolutely identical?

Respecting the tolerances allowed is not so difficult. Everything is designed in 3D CAD, cut by computer, laminated in molds. We carefully measure every board and supply a certificate with it. As a result, every customer knows the exact weight of the board.

Your shape is a success, since your board won a double world title last year with Patrik Polak. Perfect proof of concept! What were the precise details you worked on with your team to achieve maximum upwind and downwind performance? The scoop line? The outline? The batwing design? Patrik is reported to be particularly effective at maintaining planing downwind.

Patrik, my brother-in-law and a very good childhood friend, is simply a very strong competitor in many classes.

I designed the board for lazier and slightly heavier competitors like myself. So the question was whether Patrik would be slowed down by a board with less volume than the R1.

When I sent him the first video of the proto 4, he got interested. When he got his R1, I think he was still a little worried about whether this board could really take him to the top, but after a few tries, he was one with the board and ready to win.

The R1 prototypes and the final R1 produced were designed and tested in the demanding conditions of the Baltic Sea, mainly by me. Baltic waves are high and short. I had to do a lot of testing to find the best shape to cope with such waves upwind and downwind, and with the best possible angles.

I don't want to go into too much detail about the shape, but let's just say that without the wings, the R1 wouldn't be the same.

 To conclude this long interview, a major problem for the hoped-for development of raceboarding is currently its accessibility. Nowadays, boards are very easy to use, not so technical and perform well in all wind conditions. This is the definitive advantage of raceboarding. But it's now relatively expensive and fragile because of the high technologies chosen by all manufacturers. Do you think it's possible to produce a "cheap" European raceboard for everyone, like the windsurfer, who wants a daggerboard, a sturdy board with a high-performance shape for sailing long distances, in club fleets, ... without targeting absolute performance?

 It all depends on demand and initial investment. Unfortunately, loyal competitors in the Raceboard class are limited. Those who really want to compete require high-quality boards, myself included.

If there were a strong demand for the development and construction of affordable European raceboards, there would also be interest from potential investors. In addition to the support and dedication of all the major European windsurfing communities, countries are also needed. Under these circumstances, there would be a common will to do so.

I'm currently concentrating on high-performance racing. That said, I'd be happy to help develop an affordable Raceboard if asked.

What would you like to add?

The big question is always what comes next.

Secondly, I'd like to make more people happy by appreciating the good quality of the R1. I'd like to try out other technologies, and finally it would be nice to offer a model with a slightly smaller volume too.

Thank you Rado for your commitment and congratulations on this great success. All the best for 2023!