This is a board that I've been hoping to try for quite a while, as you might be able to tell from my earlier playing around with a regular CrossFire:
As an enthusiastic, yet less than technically perfect skater, I find that much of my weight (around 65 kilos) is put through the front foot in order to lever the steering. I also ride too inflexibly in the vertical position, with a resultant raised heel on the rear foot, thereby lowering the weight and traction over the rear wheels.
The S-Camber goes a long way towards meeting the raised foot and so allows more downforce directly over the rear truck. Because the camber has a kicktail effect, the trailing foot can confidently apply greater pressure because there is a reduced fear of losing one's grip over the tail of the board. In other words, the rear foot is forced into the centre of the deck by default rather than in the other direction. This means that the critical placement of the rear foot is reduced by a couple of degrees, thereby giving the rider the confidence for foot adjustment on course without jeopardising race speed for fear of losing control over the back wheels.
Even with the setup above, I would like to take out more steering from the rear if it were possible, but I have yet to try the deck through cones. The board I'm riding is the Medium Stiff version which is comparatively rigid under my weight. For me this is a good thing. If it were to flex under the front foot then the resultant action from the tail would be to steepen up, thereby giving the back truck greater turnability. I prefer the rear to follow rather than to steer, so I'm happy with the lack of deformation offered by this deck.
What I did find, however, was that more traction than expected was being applied through the back wheels. I discovered this through the non-scientific means of losing the tail in a patch of water. I went down fast and hard; my left knee paid the penalty.
What may have gone unnoticed through the photographs is that the griptape on these later Roes is far courser than that of last year and gives much improved traction. I'm currently running a TnR footblock on the front of the S-Camber which I initially thought might be unnecessary, but what it does is not only to stop the front foot creeping forward over longer courses, but also to allow and maintain accurate foot placement over the front truck from the off.
The S-Camber is a confidence-inspiring deck to ride. In conjunction with new bushinged Radikal trucks and softish wheels (81/ 82a) it is very smooth and precise. With the rockered tail you can also tic-tac turn in extreme situations, making the deck very versatile and extremely chuckable in a good way. It may not have made me a technically better rider, but this deck allows and forgives foibles of style whilst amplifying my efforts. I'm only left wondering what a less accentuated S-shape GS Bullet might be like to ride...