Towards the end of last season, North had been working on an innovative new product which they said could change the way we windsurf. It's supposed to give riders more control and therefore higher top end speeds through feeling more comfortable.

However, very few people had tried the product outside of the North camp, until now. Watch the Shox in motion by following this link HERE and HERE.

It certainly looks like it moves on the video, and therefore must be doing something to dampen the movement of the rig. It'll be interesting to see if North's slalom team, consisting of Cyril Moussilimani (Starboard, North), Jimmy Diaz (Starboard, North), and Pierre Mortefon (Fanatic, North) change over to the Shox for the first world cup event in Korea.

If North's claims of 'immediately being 1-2 knots faster' are true, then we could see Moussilmani out in front, battling with Antoine Albeau (JP, NeilPryde) for the 2010 world title. Only time will tell.

To find out more about the North SHOX.XTR, click HERE.