Source: www.thekiteboarder.com
TKB SURF TEST: F-ONE MITU PRO FLEX
JULY 10, 2019
F-ONE Mitu Pro Flex
Sizes Available: 5’2 x 17.7″ 20.2L, 5’4 x 18.1″ 21.8L, 5’6 x 18’1” 22.8L, 5’8 x 18.5″ 23.9L, 5’10 x 19.1″ 25.4L
Sizes Tested: 5’6 x 18’1” 22.8L
F-ONE Says:
With the compact outline, the deep single concave remains the DNA of the Mitu Pro Model which is known for its easy planing, sharp acceleration and great directional stability. The bottom features a channel at the front of the board to help while landing fins front.
The maneuverability is really impressive and takes advantage of a much refined rockerline. Traveling back along the bottom of the board, the concave fades progressively towards the back marking a rounded kick in the rockerline which further helps making the turns smooth and effortless.
Combined with some thin rails at the back, the fish tail remains the best compromise between planing, stability, turning and pop. The range includes 5 sizes from 5’2 to 5’10 with the smaller ones having more focus on maneuverability and speed control, while the largest sizes have a bit more emphasize on the planing ability and general stability. All share the same shape features with their specific outline to make the most of the wave’s energy.
The Mitu Pro Flex uses the HD foam flex construction where the ability of the board to flex has been emphasized to provide an outstanding comfort and an amazing feeling in the waves. Built with HD foam of various densities together with fiberglass and epoxy resin, this construction also features some deck stringers for more durability. The comfort while riding is further enhanced by the shock absorbers and the full pad. The Mitu Pro Flex has some deck inserts built-in so they can be equipped with foot straps. They come with a thruster fin setup and a set of F-One Flow RTM fins.
Visit for more info: www.f-one.world
Tkb Says:
The Mitu shape underwent some solid changes in years previous, morphing this directional surfboard away from strapless freestyle to pure high performance surfing. The Mitu features a single concave through the board that starts with channels in the nose and fades towards the small swallow tail and a solid amount of rocker through the entire length of the board. The Mitu comes with a plush diamond grip ¾ deck pad that features a bump on the front and a kick on the back. Of all our tests, the F-One pad is probably one of the softer EVA pads available and the Flex version we tested comes with two forward and aft foot strap options for your front foot and two options forward and aft for you your back foot with an extra set of inserts to put some duck in the rear strap.
At 5’6” this board felt a little bit smaller for our 160lb testers which makes this board feel incredibly active in the water with very little effort required to initiate turns. The Mitu is super fun in smaller trashy surf at this size with the rail easily carving into any sized pocket. The easy turn initiation took a little bit more focus as we committed to choppy bottom turns but the Mitu rail will take you anywhere you want to go. The tail traction falls in the middle of the road with sufficient confidence to lay into heated bottom turns but not so sticky that you can’t blow the tail out when you want or take advantage of the forgiving traction for aerials and freestyle.
Going upwind, the Mitu feels fast although it takes a little more focus to steady the rail through the chop – we often found ourselves putting our foot forward to gain more control in the bouncy chop. When it comes to strapless freestyle the Mitu’s tail rocker is really responsive to load, release and pop for good solid airs and its shorter length helps the directional through front and back rotations. The flex construction feels really good underfoot both while railing into waves and on the harsher landings. The Mitu in the flex construction isn’t quite as light as the carbon version, but its flex is still quite capable when it comes to strapless airs. In comparison to the carbon version, riders will note the flex and softer feel of this board, which was also noteworthy across all the boards in our surf test.
Overall the Mitu is a classic performance board that mixes reliable control with a fun and playful loose feeling that keeps it fun and active in smaller trashy surf. While riders of all levels seem to love this board, the Mitu is the board in the F-One lineup that might be more ideal for motivated wave riders that charge with confidence and are looking for a more aggressive ride that can excel in all styles of surf and strapless freestyle.
