RS:X

RS:X
Class Symbol
Class symbol
Development
DesignerJean Bouldoires & Robert Stroj
Year2004
DesignOne Design
Neil Pryde
NameRS:X
Boat
Crew1
Hull
TypeSailboard
ConstructionGRP & Carbon
Hull weight15.5 kg (34 lb)
Volume 231 L (51 imp gal; 61 US gal)
LOA2.86 m (9 ft 5 in)
Beam.93 m (3 ft 1 in)
Rig
Mast lengthmale: 5.2 m (17 ft)
female: 4.9 m (16 ft)
Sails
Mainsail areamale: 9.5 m2 (102 sq ft)
female: 8.5 m2 (91 sq ft)
Former Olympic class
iQFoil →

RS:X is a windsurfing class selected by the ISAF[1] to replace the Mistral One Design Class for the 2008 Summer Olympics. The discipline has similarities to Formula Windsurfing - mainly in that the equipment used was designed to allow windsurfing in low and moderate wind conditions with good performance.[2]

RS:X equipment includes a board with a daggerboard, and a sail of a specified size. The board measures 286 cm in length and 93 cm in width. Unlike formula boards, it is quite heavy at 15.5 kg, which is almost twice that of regular competition formula boards, but is very similar to the weight of raceboards such as the previous Olympic board, Mistral One Design Class. The Mistral board has a weight of 17 kg ready to sail, while the RS:X board weighs more than 19 kg.

The RS:X seems to be a compromise between traditional raceboards which work well in 5 to 35 kn (3 to 18 m/s), and Formula boards which go fast in 12 to 30 kn (5 to 15 m/s), and has shown itself to be competitive with past raceboards in the medium wind range.

The shape and design of the RS:X sail is based on that of the Neil Pryde windsurfing sail V8.

Starting with the 2024 Summer Olympics the IQFoil class has been selected to replace RS:X.

  1. ^ http://www.sailing.org/olympics/history-part-5.php Olympic sailing report ISAF
  2. ^ "The list of official windsurfing classes". Surfer Today. 31 January 2019.