After mucking around in the marsh waters every morning catching snakes for the past week, I couldn’t help but think that I was being a bit ripped off. I mean, yea, some of the snakes were big and all, but none of them were really all that fat, you know? I suppose I was on a search for something plumper, juicier, and a bit more rotund. Luckily for me, I was able to find my feet planted firmly on the new Loaded Fattail recently, and it seems as though my desires have been met.
The specs can be found in my previous post here. I must say that I was a bit skeptical when I first laid eyes on the Fattail; I thought the Ceviche and the Bhangra may have gotten together and created a baby. Well, in some ways I was right and in others I was wrong.
Remember the old description of the pintail? Something like “You will stop sleeping. Sorry, but it's true. Versatile, light and fluid, this board is designed to promote an assertive, dynamic riding style. It'll hold its own on hills, banks, commuting, and beer runs. But if you're anything like us, it's all about the late night parking garage sessions.” Well it all holds true for this board as well. This board is indeed still the Loaded Pintail that you learned to love when they first released it years ago, with some slight modifications. It really comes alive under your feet; full of more spring and rebound than any other board I have been on before (even my Vanguard felt a little damp in comparison). Paired with some high rebound bushings (I have the 80a Nipple barrels all around) and some 150mm trucks, this board will keep the energy you put into the turns and may even spring you out with a little bit more (I was able to get some decent pumping action on this setup right out of the box). One thing is for sure, the Fattail is a little beast of a commuter.
Now, some people were wondering if you can ollie/kickflip/hardflip/backflip this board and while I’m sure you can, I just wasn’t quite feeling it for this type of riding. I weigh 175 and ride the flex 2 with the board at its shortest wheelbase and the tail seems a little too floppy for me to really get a good pop out of it. I would suggest that if you want this board to do more flip tricks and whatnot that you should definitely check out the flex 1, especially if you are sort of in-between on with weight/flex charts like I am.
I was also asked about how the board is for sliding. Well, with my current set up, the board is definitely more geared toward gripping the pavement than going sideways on it, so my thoughts may be a bit biased. As is, it is not really a sliding board due to how flexy it can be. However, due to its fairly short wheelbase, its compactness, and the kicktails, one can certainly adapt to sliding on it. It is easy to flick this board around and is great for low speed sliding. Also, the stock grip that Loaded puts on the deck and the little bit of concave can lock your feet in fairly well.
So, as it turns out, the Loaded Fattail is a killer commuting creature and performs perfectly for plundering parking garages. The updated shape is definitely an improvement over the old pintail in that it provides a bit more versatility to the deck. If you have the chance, I would definitely recommend checking it out.
