Appletree Zapple | Is This the Best Foil Drive Board Ever?

If you've ever had a chance to ride a board that came out of the Appletree factory, you know it's something special. These boards are designed and built by the people who use them. The Foil Drive was also designed and tested by actual riders. The Zapple lets you combine the two, and it's magic.

Getting a Foil Drive may be the best upgrade you could make to your foil setup, but at the end of the day, it's still an add-on and adds some drag. Going with an integrated mast helps by getting the cable inside the mast rather than taped along its trailing edge, but you've still got the power box slowing you down while you're planing and trying to get up on foil, and your favorite carbon board may block the signal from the remote, requiring you to run an antenna.

The Zapple was designed specifically for the Foil Drive and seeks to reduce or eliminate these two issues, allowing you to integrate your Foil Drive nearly seamlessly into your board. Ryan has had a chance to get out on the Zapple with a Foil Drive, and it worked very well and he had an absolute blast.

Zapple Features

Like the other Appletree boards, the Zapple has a closed-cell foam core. This means that it won't take on water if you get a ding, and you can safely finish your session or trip without making things worse.

The traction pad does such a nice job with or without booties that Ryan didn't need to wax it at all. He could just hop and ride. He does like it when there's some sort of centerline indicator, as well as marks near where your feet go for quick reference when you're popping up from your knees, but the lack of that isn't a dealbreaker by any means.

The nose of the Zapple is specially designed to allow signal transmission through to the Foil Drive unit mounted under the board. You'll still want to pack the foil track with foam to ensure as much signal gets through as possible and to keep water out since water will block a Bluetooth signal as well, but Ryan had no issues losing his connection at all.

The most obvious feature of the Zapple is the trench cutout in the track area under the board. It's designed to fit the Foil Drive unit so that it sits flush with the bottom of the board, allowing water to flow past and out the back unimpeded. It also gets the weight up closer to your feet so it's a lot more responsive by letting you feel and respond to the foil.

Who's It For?

The Zapple's design is based on Appletree's prone foilboards, so if you want to use your Foil Drive to get in the waves, this is the board for you. It's available in three sizes: 5'0"x18.5"/38L, 5'4"x18.5"/46L, and 5'8"x19.5"/54L. Because these are fairly narrow boards, they're going to feel more nimble up on foil.

Like other mid-size boards, the size is less important than the board's shape, its planing surface, and how efficient it is. You can easily go down a size with this board, though Ryan prefers to ride his usual size in liters while sizing down his foil.

The track is placed quite far forward, which means your stance will be more centered on the board, rather than further back. This adds to the board's surfy feel by minimizing how much nose you've got in front of your feet and reducing the swing weight. This makes the board feel smaller than it is, which is why Ryan chooses to go down a size on his foil rather than the board. He felt like the track was placed well for all the conditions he rode in.

Does It Work?

In a word, yes! Having the Foil Drive unit recessed in its custom trench made a huge difference when planing and popping up on foil without the assistance of a wave. The board was so much more efficient without the added drag of the Foil Drive. It was especially noticeable when riding swell on Lake Michigan. Ryan was able to boost his wave count during his session, which meant he had a lot more fun.

Having the weight of the Foil Drive closer to the deck of the board made carving much easier to control and get nice, tight turns. It also helps keep the nose from wanting to drive up and requiring you to move forward or widen your foot placement, meaning you can have a more natural stance.

Do keep in mind that your motor will also ride about 5cm higher if you keep your same cable length. Since the Foil Drive unit essentially becomes part of your mast when mounted on a standard foilboard, recessing it into the board effectively shortens your mast length a bit and gives you a little less space between your motor and the bottom of the board. This means you'll have a little less room to keep from touching down while using the motor. Of course, if this is a problem, you can always go with a longer cable to keep your ideal spacing and enjoy all the other benefits you get from the Zapple.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the trench is sized for the Max unit with the larger battery options that use the "A" nose cone. If you use the shorter Sport battery with the "B" nose cone, then there will be a gap between where the trench begins and the Foil Drive starts, and the turbulence this creates is noticeable. If you do this, you'll want to cut some foam to fill that gap and tape it in so the water can flow past smoothly.

On a similar note, if you use the Foil Drive Slim unit, it will be a little over-recessed and you'll have the same issue with turbulence. The Zapple really is designed for riders with the Max unit who are using one of the larger batteries.

If you tend to change batteries mid-session, you'll need to remove your Foil Drive to access that. The latches are snug against the side of the trench and, of course, the nose cone is down in there, too. Ryan uses the CWS toolless track screws, so it's not a huge issue for him to quickly pull the mast off and put it back on to swap the battery, though.

Summary

The Zapple makes your Foil Drive unit as close to fully integrated as you can get in a board, and it worked so well that Ryan was having a tough time getting off to demo other boards. The upgrade in performance was noticeable and, of course, it's a premium board by Appletree and felt great in its own right. It let him size down his foil and relax the front foot pressure that was needed on other boards with the Foil Drive. Ryan absolutely would recommend it to anyone looking to upgrade their Foil Drive experience, especially in the waves.

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