Tkb Review: 2019 OZONE Torque V1

OZONE Torque V1
Sizes Available: 128 x 38cm, 131 x 39cm, 134 x 40cm, 136 x 41cm, 138 x 42cm, 140 x 43cm
Sizes Tested: 136 x 41cm, 140 x 43cm

Ozone Says:

The Torque is all about riding bold, it raises the bar for solid edging, ease of loading, power retention and the all important pop factor. For aggressive freestyle it delivers explosive performance with great flex and hold to stick your landings. Without compromising the smooth performance for freeriding, it’s fast and responsive.

The Torque carries the optimum width from the center to the tips, the square tip outline allows for straighter rails that have more surface area to load up against for an insane pop experience, whether you ride with boots or straps. The medium flex and rocker is a combination of the best of both worlds, soft landing and great upwind drive. A precisely tuned quad concave hull combats chop and projects from wave kickers. The stability and predictability of the Torque means it has never been so easy to boost high and progress with even the most advanced tricks – all the features needed for maximum performance, go send it and see!

Visit for more info: www.ozonekites.com/products/kiteboards/torque-v1

Our Testers Say:

“A smooth sailor through the chop, the Torque revs up to meet anything you throw at it. Nice medium weight, great load and pop with good edge control and excellent chop handling.” // Tib Anghel

“Forgiving for a freestyle board. Held an edge well and excellent pop, good chop handling, easy upwind, great for anyone.” // Bryan Waldberg

“Handled chop well, comfortable and carved upwind with good pop.” // Kiter Mike

Meet Our Testers

Tkb Says:

The Torque is the second twin tip to be added to the Ozone line of boards, satisfying the more freestyle performance-oriented needs of riders. The Torque features a quad concave bottom and boxier/more fuller tips to give riders more pop on jumps. The flex pattern feels a bit stiffer than the Code, Ozone’s all around freeride board, but in the broader scheme of dedicated freestyle boards the Torque features a flex pattern that isn’t quite as stiff. The Torque keeps the ride forgiving while still having enough reflex to stomp out some big load and release for unsent airs. The squarer tips help the board in jumping and may cause a little bit more tip spray than the Code, but that comes with the fuller freestyle tips and straighter rails. Despite this, testers gave the Torque high marks for its chop handling ability, and found it went upwind quite well. Compared to the Code, the Torque is a bit more skatier and requires a bit more energy to lock down the edge and keep it tracking, but for a freestyle-oriented board the Torque tracks relatively easily with good grip. Testers felt the Code was easier to carve rail to rail than the Torque, but when it comes to load and pop, you can put a fair amount of energy into the wood core and get a substantial amount of reflex out of it. The rocker on the Torque isn’t by any means aggressive, so the board feels fairly efficient and fast and led to excellent scores from our test team for upwind ability and range. Overall, the Torque is a board that offers freestyle performance while staying within the freeride realm of user-friendly and comfortable riding.

The Torque comes with three inserts for adjusting stance width and the pad has a couple settings for adjusting your stance’s duck. The Ozone pads and straps system is a fairly straightforward and easy strap system. The footpads are a fairly thick EVA with dual density zones incorporating a layer of memory foam. The setup sits a bit higher off the deck of the board, but also sit fairly flat against the board. The footbeds don’t have a ton of arch contour, but feature some good texture under the heel and a subtle heel bump that is appropriately placed to keep your foot locked in. The strap is a single adjustment strap system that’s got an overlapping Velcro strap adjusted on top that makes changes fairly straight forward but one dimensional. The under the strap material is cloth-like neoprene rounding out a comfortable, simple straightforward strap. This binding received solid reviews for comfort and while it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles compared to some other systems on the market,  it does boast a very simple and easy setup.