It's a wrap - The KANOA Tryout Days 2024

WITH THE RIGHT PARTNER, EVEN A TEST TOUR BECOMES A WALK IN THE PARK

The number of stops, the test quiver and the rest of the material needed to give you the boards to test is of course quite a challenge for us as a surfboard brand.  

With the right partners, however, it's a piece of cake. Rocket Camper provided us with their Rocket Surf'n Sail for the Tryout Days. The van, specially designed for surfers, not only has plenty of space to load boards... Despite more than 20 surfboards, board racks and accessories, the Surf'n Sail still offers enough space to live comfortably and enjoy the time outside of the test days. You can see in every detail that Rocket Camper has designed the van for surfers. The Surf Travel luxury liner has several board racks, a wet room and endless other features that make every surfer's life easier.

WHERE EVERYTHING STARTED: BLACKFORESTWAVE

Our first stop was the Blackforest Wave. A relatively small wave in the middle of Pforzheim.

The community is super committed and built the wave itself and looks after its operation. We were able to experience the top community there, are still stoked and were able to surf the wave ourselves.

The FIRST BIG WAVE IN LINE: RHEINRIFF DÜSSELDORF

The Rheinriff is the largest and currently newest citywave in Europe and was a special second stop on our Tour.

The local community is correspondingly motivated and almost snatched the boards out of our hands. After many tests, conversations with you and several great sessions , we were certain that the EPX boards are a great fit with the wave.

On the super-strong and 9 meter wide wave, the new boards are a top choice for intermediate to advanced surfers.

A REALLY SPECIAL WAVE & LOCATION: MARKKLEEBERG CANOE PARK

In Markkleeberg near Leipzig, we stopped at a wave that not every river surfer has on their radar. The canoe park has a stand-alone wave at the end of the canal, which the operators designed themselves. And the plan worked, the wave has plenty of pressure and steepness, so that it offers enough space for sweeping turns, tricks of all kinds and much more.

During three days of testing, we were involved in the local paddle festival and so the local surfers were able to test our quiver extensively in several 2-hour slots. Foamy FLOW X and Foamy FLOAT X proved to be the clear favorites for the fast waves between the concrete walls.

THE TEMPLE OF RIVER SURFING- WELLENWERK BERLIN

After Leipzig, it was obvious where we had to go next... to one of the most iconic Citywaves out there, right in the heart of the German capital...Wellenwerk Berlin, one of our absolute favorite rapid waves. Not only is this wave one of the strongest around, but it also has a wide face perfect for extended bottom turns, offering endless possibilities.

Plus, Wellenwerk offers much more than just the wave itself. With a connected DEUS shop, an in-house shaping bay, and a cozy bar with a restaurant, the days just flew by.

Wellenwerk has been around for a few years now, and you can feel how big the community has grown. Our boards were in constant demand, the feedback was fantastic, and the surfers’ skill level was truly impressive. Our performance models, The Creek Pro and Swallow Creek Pro, found some surfers here who really pushed the new shapes to their limits.

THE BIRTHPLACE OF RIVER SURFING: MUNICH'S EISBACH & JOCHEN SCHWEIZER ARENA

For our final stop in Germany, there was one city we couldn’t skip: Munich, the birthplace of river surfing. Since we were eager to hit the river with our new boards, a morning session at the Eisbach in the English Garden was a must. Here, the Swallow Creek Pro quickly became our clear favorite.

As soon as the Jochen Schweizer Arena opened its doors, we headed straight there. This wave, Germany's first Citywave, remains a landmark to this day and is always worth a visit.

After three full days testing with the Munich community, we couldn’t be happier. Our new shapes were put to the test, fine-tuned with feedback from our team, and it was amazing to see that we were on the same page with the local surfers. The Creek Pro was crowned the clear favorite on the 6-meter-wide Citywave. Huge thanks for three days of incredible surf, great conversations, and delicious food at Schweizer’s Kitchen.

AUSTRIA'S GREATEST: CITYWAVE & THE RIVERWAVE EBENSEE

For our stops in Austria, we teamed up with Surfer's Mag. In Vienna, you had the chance to test our EPX boards as part of the Surfer's Test Tour.

In Ebensee, we then became part of a truly unique event. The first-ever Surfer's Surfboard Testival invited everyone to extensively test boards from all well-known river brands. You could spend the entire day trying out various brands, and our EPX Riverboards and foam boards were almost as constantly in demand as the wave was packed with surfers.

The Riverwave, a semi-natural wave with serious power in Austria’s Traun River, offers an absolutely unique surfing experience in the mountains.

A HIGHLIGHT AT LAST: WAKEPARADISE MILANO

A wave we've always dreamed of surfing. The Unit wave in Milan is one of those spots you keep seeing on Instagram, with videos that make you want to be there. Not only is the wave impressively wide, but cruising along its face looks incredibly relaxing. And the location? It’s next level—set in the middle of a lake, right next to a wakeboard park and surrounded by a beautiful park. Could it get any better?

Yes, it can! The community and atmosphere here are simply amazing. Surfing here quickly feels like a mini festival. After the sessions, the bar and restaurant are perfect places for surfers and wakeboarders to hang out over a few drinks and chill.

IT'S A (RAPID) WRAP!

We couldn’t be more stoked to share our quiver with so many surfers, chat with you about the shapes, and join you on your favorite waves. Your feedback throughout the tour has been invaluable, and we’re incredibly grateful to each of you for that.

Throughout the entire tour, one board emerged as the clear fan favorite thanks to your input. Your feedback has made The Creek Pro the standout choice.

With its performance-oriented outline, squash tail, and extended double concave, this high-performance riverboard is not only suited for advanced surfers up to pros. On Citywaves, it’s also perfect for intermediates and above, enabling a fast, responsive surfing style that intuitively responds to your movements.