Ronix 2017 Season Preview

Trying to determine what Ronix is going to do is like blindfolding a child, spinning him around, handing him a dart and saying hit the bullseye. That is the truth behind the mad scientist that is Paul O'Brien and his R and D department. I didn't truly expect the Bandwagon to go after 2 years in the range and be replaced by a more streamlined version, but hey it did, and i sure didn't think we would see the end to the William. That is the fun in trying to predict these things, sometimes it pays off or in Ronix's case you just guess and hope. So where should we head? Well Ronix's flagship model the One is safe as houses, as it's gone from strength to strength. It truly doesn't look like Danny Harf and Ronix can put a foot wrong with this model, as every iteration has been heralded by all who ride them. The Parks could possibly be under fire from an update and an ageing class of the past generation of wakeboarders, though with Parks Bonifay always having a strong part to play at Ronix, if it does change, it will definitely retain his name. Shota Tezuka managed to get his name to a board finally after the stylish kid out of Japan continued making waves, which in it's first year and it's strong sales figures will have a few more years on the mill before we see any update. The one board i do see ending completely, and wether it gets replaced or not is another question, is the Code-22. While it has proven itself year after year, with the phasing out of the other intelligent core model last year, the William, we may be seeing the end of this core construction in the Ronix range. In reality the writing is on the wall, all the while the Code-21 continues to be much stronger on the sales front and Dean Smith still attached to it, we could finally see the trimming of a wakeboard range for the first time in a long time. As for the lower end of the range, like most brands they tend to live a longer life than higher end models, so don't expect to much change on that front other than new graphics. The Cable range is extremely hard to predict with Ronix, they are always open to change and development on the biggest growth market in wakeboarding. We should definitely see some changes, and with Ronix's eclectic nature, there could be a full overhaul of a range that we have only seen a season or two out of. That's where i'm going to leave this one, simply because it's to hard to call. One of the biggest criticisms of the women's Ronix range last year, was that other than the Krush it was a fairly expensive range, so we should definitely see a more even spread across the 2017 season line. The Krush should remain as it has for the past few seasons, while Dallas Friday's pro model the Limelight being the only ladies camber board, shouldn't change either. This leaves the Quarter to Midnight as the board to come down in price, expect them to keep the shape it had last year, but trim the extra's off it to keep the price much more friendly than it was last year. I would almost have said we may expect a fourth women's board in the range, but most companies tend to cap their women's range at 3 boards. Also this wouldn't keep with the idea of Ronix trimming their range, so for ladies we should see some minor shifts from the past season. Ronix are known for being progressive and proactive with their wakesurfers, every year they have developed or adjusted something new to their range. Last year we saw Technora added to the range and the Hex Shell Blender, while previously they brought in the power tail shape, so keeping true to nature we can expect range wide adjustments. What does this mean, well with Ronix's out there idea's it's tough to say what they could do, whether it be to add another new material or adjust shapes. With the growth of the sport, we also expect that they will re introduce a cheaper end range, long a sticking point to their surfer line, while possibly bringing in some other goodies. And with that, we've rounded out expectations for Ronix and what they have in store for 2017. It's not the most straight forward, but then again, with Ronix it never really is, they like to keep everyone guessing. Trying to guesstimate what they are going to give us is the equivalent of rolling dice and hoping for a 7. But if what i hear floating around the rumour mill, and by guesstimation is true, then we should see at least a few changes for the coming season, quenching our wakeboard thirst.