The Appletree Apple Skipper Midlength Board has recently been launched, and we already tested it over several weeks and in a wide variety of conditions in 67 l.
The Skipper Midlength is not a board for beginners. It was specially developed for experienced foilers who want to get the most out of their sessions.
Depending on the volume, it should work for prone, wing, and parawing foiling. We only foiled it with a wing in our hands.
It is available in seven sizes from 5’0“ with 37 l to 6’8” with 97 l.
On land
The Appletree Apple Skipper Midlength has a displacement hull that resembles a streamlined canoe in shape. There is no trailing edge at the tail. On the contrary, the tail has even been given a little extra rocker.
The board is quite narrow. The nose tapers to a point. In terms of outline, the Skipper Midlength is reminiscent of a classic pintail surfboard.
The rails are still round in the front third and then run relatively sharply to the stern.
In the underwater hull, the nose is characterized by a moderate V, which transitions into a flat section. The flat section is not completely flat, as is usually the case, but slopes very flatly towards the rails at the sides. At the tail, there is a strong V shape over the last 15 cm. There is a recessed grip in the center of the underwater hull. The double US box is long enough to accommodate foils of all brands. It is also equipped with a scale for adjustment.
The deck in the standing area has a slight concave shape, which houses the comfortable pad. A foot strap can be mounted at both the front and rear. If you want to ride a triple setup, a V-strap must be screwed into the front area.
As usual with Appletree, the workmanship of the Appletree Apple Skipper Midlength is also very high quality. The board is constructed as a full carbon version. Inside is the so-called 50K foam, which is free of air pockets and can withstand very high loads (50 t per m²). This core is used exclusively in Appletree boards. Due to the lack of air pockets, a vent valve is not necessary.
The board weighs 5.7 kg (weighed by us).
On the water
The first time you step on it, you notice that the Appletree Apple Skipper Midlength is narrow. But it’s still wide enough to get up on it without any problems.
Once you have wind in your wing, you’re off. The board immediately converts the wind energy into motion and takes off really early. You don’t even need proper pumping movements to take off. The transition from displacement to flying is smooth. Even without a trailing edge, the Skipper Midlength lifts off the water perfectly.
Once in the air, the Appletree Apple Skipper Midlength feels smaller than it is and behaves accordingly. Because you still have quite a bit of tail behind you and the nose is correspondingly short, there isn’t as much momentum to move through the turn. The board feels super agile and easy to turn.
Touchdown
The touchdown behavior is truly sensational. During test runs, we rode into a clump of bladderwrack, which would normally have caused an immediate takedown. However, thanks to the elongated displacement hull, the board was not abruptly stopped upon impact with the water, but continued through the water at reduced speed.
The characteristics described above make the Appletree Apple Skipper Midlength a reliable partner in the waves. The narrow width allows you to lean even further into turns without the rails touching the water. Once you’ve come off the foil, the shape and length of the board help you make the most of the wave’s thrust and get back on the foil quickly.
The board also performs well when jumping. Its nose does not dip during takeoff and generates enough pop to push off. The landing is easy thanks to the touchdown behavior described above. Even 360s are possible with the Skipper Midlength. However, the landing must be clean. This means that the 360° must be almost completely completed in order to land the maneuver. As is usual with many compact boards, the last quarter of the turn cannot be “cheated” through the water with the Midlength.
Conclusion
With the Apple Skipper Midlength, Appletree comes very close to creating the perfect all-rounder. The board combines many features from different categories in one.
Thanks to its excellent planing characteristics, you can definitely ride it one size smaller than usual. This gives the Skipper Midlength the potential to replace all other boards in your quiver. It is absolutely top-notch in waves.
However, the board is not suitable for beginners due to its narrow width, among other things. They are better off with the Appletree Appleslice V3. (Click HERE for the test.)
One minor criticism is that only V-straps can be mounted at the front. We would have liked to see an option for two normal straps as well.
