Standup Zone Forum
The Foil Zone => Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP => Topic started by: Admin on June 22, 2019, 09:15:47 AM
-
Maybe we can share some notes on hits and fails during the learning process. I have a few that may turn out to be all wrong but here goes.
A long wrist leash is not your friend. It is a lot more to reel in when you want to get started and if you are doing a leash uphaul style start from your feet then every second counts because you really feel at the mercy of the conditions until the wing is in lift position. Plus, in strong wind the wing has more room to get wild far out. I am going to get a short shortboard leash without coils and see how that goes.
With two leashes, tangles are a real issue. tangled up seems like the easiest way to lose skin.
If you are uphauling the leash from a standing position and you are starting on a beam reach, the board is going to want rotate to straight downwind as soon as you start lifting the wing. You can correct that once the wing is in lift position but it is an extra step. Getting up from a kneel with the kite already flying avoids that and the board is a little more stable due to forward motion. But, on a small board, getting up from a kneel without hands to help destabilizes the board. It is much easier on a bigger board.
For my gear the best carry position is with the wing right side up (flying position) with your fingers of the downwind hand through the wing's leading edge handle. That leaves the fingertips to also grab the board's handle. The upwind hand grabs the fuselage of the foil. That keeps the board, foil and wing off the ground with very minimal dragging.
-
I have been riding since December 2018 in Maui. I could write a book now :) Alan Cadiz HST Maui teaches lessons on the duotone foilwings and starts students on a 200L windsurf board with daggerboard and after you can stay upwind and jibe, then you progress to a very short mast hydrofoil.
I always hang onto my wing when I fall and protect my face with the leading edge. I don’t Let the wing out of my hands because the leash flagging the wing isn’t fun. I also feel holding onto it when I fall it keeps me farther away from the foil. I also recommend using a hydrofoil that stays down.
Duotone comes with a coiled wrist leash, but before I had that one, I tried a few. I recommend the creature of leisure bodyboard coiled leash. It doesn’t sag so it doesn’t get caught with the waist leash. I wear it on my right hand and a watch on my left.
I love my ion waist leash because I switch my feet riding.
Need to learn to ride on your knees and steer up and downwind. That’s your self rescue. With a boom you can set it on the board and it’s stable to use like a spinnaker of a sail boat. https://www.instagram.com/p/BzBhB7ynRb5/?igshid=5q49ufpvbdl
To stand up in no wind it’s the hardest. I clipped this for a friend. Being perpendicular to the wind you have the most power in the wing so that’s the best way to get started. Even if it means going into waves. The least amount of wind in your wing is downwind even if it’s the direction of the waves. https://www.instagram.com/p/BwkdkVtHDSH/?igshid=1ar5wio7atwpy
Getting started in high winds on a hydrofoil you need to know the exact foot placement for your front foot. I would not use foot straps either.
Here is Sky Solbach starting overpowered in waves
https://www.instagram.com/p/BweJw_nneJx/?igshid=9diy0j0x1ftt
-
https://www.instagram.com/p/BzBo7X5nWEV/?igshid=a15iyeusa67o
When the wind drops on your downwinder. Set the boom on the board and steer like a spinnaker.
-
I love my ion waist leash because I switch my feet riding.
We picked up some short 6' straight leashes for our wrists. I am going to check out that waist leash tomorrow. I like the quick release. Two coiled leashes is a headache for me. Way too easy to tangle and too hard to free up. As a beginner who is down a lot, I want leash management minimized. :)
-
I've just begun working on transitions. Jibes were easy; tacks not so much To jibe: turn downwind, switch my hands to the opposite side of the wing, the board follows through. Tacks: turn upwind, switch my feet, pretzel and fall. Any tips?
-
I've just begun working on transitions. Jibes were easy; tacks not so much To jibe: turn downwind, switch my hands to the opposite side of the wing, the board follows through. Tacks: turn upwind, switch my feet, pretzel and fall. Any tips?
This was posted this AM. Also interesting that he has his wing leash on a harness hook. I wonder how it would be to have the wing leash on the front for the waist belt for the waist board leash and have the waist leash off the back. Trying that today.
https://www.facebook.com/wingdotsurf/videos/2471114542938906/
-
Kite leash to his harness....
I wonder how well that works. Harness would be restrictive. I would prefer attaching to a waist leash belt.
-
Kite leash to his harness....
amongst everything else goin on. What brand was that. Center boom, center handles, windows,
-
Kite leash to his harness....
I wonder how well that works. Harness would be restrictive. I would prefer attaching to a waist leash belt.
I sure wouldn't want the hook because you have to belly up onto the board to get started. The waist leash is a little improvement over a leg leash but honestly pretty minor. I am not sure why a kite leash would be better than a short straight leash. Maybe he likes the quick release idea. I think a very reduced waist belt with tubing over rope (front and back) like they use on the back of a kite harness would be good. That would allow the two leashes (one on front and one on back) to slide and maybe not snag as much.
-
Crazy wind this morning. Not super strong at Swell City--probably 25 gusting to 30, but the swell was HUGE for some reason. I went out with my 4M wing on Mr. Fugly with the M280 foil and I think everything was a little too big except my cojones. I got up on the foil about Mid River going goofy foot (starting from the Washington side toward Oregon makes that a necessity) and when I got up on the foil it kind of went out of control. I was still flying, but I turned downwind a bit on autopilot and got up to about Mach 2. I thought I could slow a bit by turning upwind. Why I thought that is beyond me. I accelerated to Mach 3 and then tossed everything away going up the face of a swell. The board went about ten feet up. I know it was about that because it hit the end of my ten foot waist leash. It came down on the deck with the foil up and the wing went after it like it had a guidance system locked on. I heard this familiar hissing sound and realized it was the sound of ripstop failing to stop a rip. The stabilizer cut right through a panel.
Lesson learned--if you think your sail and/or foil are too big, they probably are and you should step down.
I was able to fly the wing even with a one-foot hole on the upper wing. In fact it was more controllable, and since I was sailing regular foot back to Swell City I popped up on the foil with a little more control. Banged into a few swells, but mostly made it back to land under some semblance of control, though mostly not foiling.
I decided to find something more sane. Dropped the wing off at Airtime for repair and took my 3 meter out at the event center. I should have known the shallows next to the sand dune make for crappy wing foiling. OK for kites and sails foiling since they get up quickly and get away from the sand bar. But I was crabbing upwind, losing ground, so when I turned a little downwind to get up on the foil I lost depth. One screwup that put the board back on the water and the foil was hitting bottom. I made lots of screwups.
I finally gave it up and made my way in. I've never had so many people say "That looked really tough". One lady said "better you than me". I thought about trying the marina side of the sandbar, but decided I was exhausted. I almost left without my board for the second time today.
-
Ken Winner says “hold the wing high over head when over powered. Literally straight overhead. It took me a while to really get it and now it’s easy.
-
Ken says Viento would be better because of flatter water and decent wind.
-
Ken says Viento would be better because of flatter water and decent wind.
Good idea. I'll try that tomorrow if the wind cooperates.
I went to Rufus this afternoon because the western gorge was kind of flat/gusty. Rufus was way too bumpy--I was getting tossed off the board before I could do much, so I gave up and went to the Dalles Waterfront Park. I was doing well, got up on the foil a couple of times but then I fell in and my waist leash let go. It's a homemade leash and the line attaching the cord to the waist belt came untied. The board got away and headed briskly upriver.
I'd just been thinking that I wasn't all that happy with my waist leash. It's a little clumsy. I did belt and suspenders--both velcro and a buckle. And then the damned rope pulls loose. I've always considered myself good at tieing knots. I might have to revisit that.
I figured I'd swim the wing in and then chase the board down on the bank. Slow going, but then I realized I could get the wing flying and use it to pull me. That worked fine, a good thing to remember. It was like doing a body drag with a kite. I probably could have chased down the board in the water if I'd figured it out sooner, but I was close to shore and the board was a hundred yards upriver so I got to the bank, tied the wing to a stump, and hot-footed it down the muddy bank. Fortunately, the board pushed a little inshore and got mired in river grass. I got parallel to it and swam out fairly easily.
It was time to go home and feed the dog anyway. I'm switching back to a calf leash.
-
feed the dog or not, PB
you are one dogged human
impressive
pls dont hurt yourself--ill feel guilty for having enjoyed your journey
-
Wound up going to the wall with Admin and Chan. Almost perfect. I either needed a bigger wing, more wind, or more skill. But close, very close.
-
I tried attaching both the wing and board leash to the waist belt yesterday. That is my favorite so far. Arms and legs free is a nice change and a few less tangles as well. I am going to stick there for a while.
-
Someone asked about how to depower the wing. 1. Extend the boom 1-3 clicks. I did this yesterday. Also holding it overhead flat depowers it and going downwind depowers it. Conversely max wind is perpendicular to the wind so to get going you need to be there. I saw someone struggle yesterday trying to get going downwind and that’s the least amount of wind even with the waves.
-
Nice picture Julie, You look completely comfortable despite obviously being in some chunky Swell City or Hatchery swell. And good information as always.
That might have been me you saw struggling--if it looked like an Orca trying to strangle a seagull that was me with my 4-meter. I do indeed know I should be on a broad reach, but I wasn't getting quite enough oomph to get up with my crappy pumping. Pumping the M280 is a challenge--it feels like I'm pumping the wing in peanut butter. I got up a few times by gaining speed in the reach and then turning onto a swell to pop up like foil surfing, which feels more familiar. Unfortunately, when I did this I wound up a bit out of control and only made it about 50 feet before splashdown.
I'll get it together, and by November I plan to look as relaxed as you do, though probably still Orca-like.
-
Yay!! Breakthrough day. I was beginning to think getting up on the foil on the third day in Maui was just a fluke. I was out at the Hook again, on the 4M with the M280 GoFoil. I kind of hate that wing, especially with the 24" wimpy mast, but it redeemed itself today. I was running back and forth, successfully completing non-foiling jibes about 75 percent of the time, when the wind kicked up suddenly by about 10 mph. Just what I needed. Going on a port tack so my regular foot was in the footstrap and my back foot right on the mast, I pumped the wing and the board, and up it came, pretty as could be.
Following Julie's advice about de-powering I brought the wing up over my head and I could hold the foil in the narrow range that the 24" mast permits in the bumpy swell. Note to self--use the longer mast. I rode the foil all the way to the end of the island and then harvested a huge hunk of river grass and flung myself off the nose of the board. The wing helps a bit with sudden stops since it gave me something to hold onto while I was pirouetting daintily through the air.
Naturally, I was a little excited. My yelling and hollering attracted a windsurfer who assumed I was having a seizure. Nope, all good, thanks.
I got up seven or eight more times, my longest run was from the middle of the hook to fifty yards into the main river. I was trying to cross the river entirely, but my board was touching down lightly on the tops of the swells and it made it hard to stay in control. Faceplant. I'm a pro at those. Easy to see why everyone wants long masts in the river.
Anyway, success. I'm super pumped. I'd still be out there but I abused my knee a little and it started complaining. Seems fine now, but I thought I was done for the day so I came home and had a beer and a sandwich. I should have skipped the beer, the knee recovered quickly so I could have gone back out, but I know the effect even one 12oz beer has on my ability to do any balance sport. Not worth it. More tomorrow.
YAY!
-
I've just begun working on transitions. Jibes were easy; tacks not so much To jibe: turn downwind, switch my hands to the opposite side of the wing, the board follows through. Tacks: turn upwind, switch my feet, pretzel and fall. Any tips?
Here's another good one at slow speed. This guy starts switch, 12:00 o'clocks the wing, pushes it overhead and into the wind to do his hand transition and then does his whole board carve after that. He's fully on the new reach before he commits the wing at all. Sweet.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzi_MdfnDs5/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet
-
...and then this one. He's doing his hand switch after the carve. Clean. That SlingWing looks great as well.
https://www.facebook.com/wingdotsurf/videos/505066266967850/
-
harvester plant! lol
-
And this guy is doing his hand switch mid carve. Super smooth.
https://www.facebook.com/wingdotsurf/videos/744080179344326/
-
That is smooth. I'll shoot for that :). I noticed he switches his feet way early and then does a long carve prior to a quick smooth transition to the new front hand. I think I'm still rushing it and that isn't working. A few hundred more attempts and I should have it.
-
https://youtu.be/fZgKyoDWj64
-
So my buddy an I got out the other day in some wind finally. I will call 10-15mph. It was towards evening so closer to 15 to start and backing off as it got closer to sunset. We had the slingshot sling wing on a 6’5” flying V with a 200 maliko foil. It was on a like with a foot or two of chop. He is a very good foiler, kiter, surfer and I think windsurfer. Me just good surfer, beginner kiter and foiler.
He gets out and gets the feel and within 5 minutes or so takes off the foil and away he goes. I was following in a boat. He said it was so easy and so much fun. Went for a while and came down, don’t remember why. But then he could not get back up. Tried different hand positions and angles and still not getting back on the foil.
It was easy to deflate the wing, out it back in the boat, and head back to where we started. We were starting in deep water too. Now, one time I took the wing to the bow of the boat and was just holding it at the different angles to see where it felt good and that kind of thing. This was actually pretty neat to do because it pulled the whole boat. Different from fighting it while standing on land. He did a second run but still had issues with getting back up on the wing.
I went and started on my knees while holding the wing and getting moving and feeling how everything moved. My smallest sup surf board is 7’10 so I was a little leery of the smaller flying V in the chop. After a few minutes I went for standing up and flying the wing. I was able to do it pretty easily once I felt the lift of the wing an ride standing up. Never made it up on the foil.
Some things of note
When trying get the wing out of the water when it was upside down, we both were muscling it in a rotational fashion to get it right side up. This involved getting the water off the wing too. Just by saying “eff this” I did something different that worked way easier. The wing was upside down, leading edge towards me ( into the wind). I basically just lifted the leading edge to flip it going with the wind (downwind) . So now I had the topside of the wing on top and handle hold side on the bottom where it needed to be. It was now backwards with the trailing edge facing into the wind. From there, I just rotated it until I had a handle and it would lift right up. All of this was while sitting or kneeling on the board. From doing this it became very easy to now use the wing to get me standing right up.
Now by doing this, another A – HA moment showed up.
My buddy with his windsurfing background seemed like he wanted to hold it more towards the leading edge. It seemed like his arms were bent most of the time trying to hold it some what like a windsurfing sail. I did the same thing when I started. We both had issues with catching that lower wingtip in the water and lots of cuss words.
The prototype slingshot he has only has handles about half way down the center strut. So we had been holding just off the leading edge with out lead hand and on the back handle with out trailing hand. One time getting up using my new found flip method I held the wing towards the back handle with both hands. One as far back as possible and the other one about 6-8 inches in front of it. The wing practically pulled me to a standing position. Hmmm… Now flying it while standing up with this new hand position made it a little harder to control, but I was able to get more power in the wing and more speed. Also, I was able to fly the wing now with more straight arms.
From watching all the videos, I have seen a lot where the hand hold in more centered. With lighter wind we were flying in, I guessing I was opening the wing up to more wind. Where the videos I have seen holding it more towards the front in higher winds allows to spill power more easily. Also , the wing is more horizontal too.
Another thing we noticed was that the way we were holding the wing initially was very easy to go upwind. I mean like we could not get down wind. Trying to turn downwind resulted in the dreaded wingtip drag. Granted we had a big foil on it. But it worked against us in the chop trying to develop speed to get on the foil. Once I held the wing more centered. Going downwind was not a problem.
I never felt like I was straining any muscles and did not feel like my shoulders or my hands or my legs were tired.
Overall it was great FUN. The tips on here have been great for learning this. I hope my story helps some. Welcome to any pointers or mistakes you may have picked up from my story.
Here is my buddy.
https://www.facebook.com/brian.lefeve/videos/pcb.10219443530708036/10219443522507831/?type=3&theater
Not bad camera work for holding the phone/camera in one hand steady while running a boat with the other.
-
Ninja,
Sounds like you had a great time. Your buddy did terrific!
What size is that Slingwing?
When trying get the wing out of the water when it was upside down, we both were muscling it in a rotational fashion to get it right side up. This involved getting the water off the wing too. Just by saying “eff this” I did something different that worked way easier. The wing was upside down, leading edge towards me ( into the wind). I basically just lifted the leading edge to flip it going with the wind (downwind) . So now I had the topside of the wing on top and handle hold side on the bottom where it needed to be. It was now backwards with the trailing edge facing into the wind. From there, I just rotated it until I had a handle and it would lift right up. All of this was while sitting or kneeling on the board. From doing this it became very easy to now use the wing to get me standing right up.
Do you mean that you are flipping the wing so that it the leading edge is further downwind of you than the trailing edge (the leash would be over the top of the wing)?
-
Do you mean that you are flipping the wing so that it the leading edge is further downwind of you than the trailing edge (the leash would be over the top of the wing)?
Yes you are correct with that. It flipped over and just stayed there.
The slingwing is 4.2m
-
Do you mean that you are flipping the wing so that it the leading edge is further downwind of you than the trailing edge (the leash would be over the top of the wing)?
Yes you are correct with that. It flipped over and just stayed there.
The slingwing is 4.2m
That position has caused me trouble if the wind gets under the trailing edge. The trailing edge then pressures up against the leash and if it is very windy it can pull you as well or cause a tangle. This is much worse on the bigger wing because a lot more of the leash is taken up crossing over the wider wing. Does your board get in the way of rotating the wing. I have found that this one takes me a minute to clear. I try to get out of that position right away now if I find myself there.
-
Ninja: Flipping the wing over is easier if you swing a wingtip into the wind and rotate the wing as the wingtip raises. You need a little momentum because it will want to stop when the lower wing starts getting air. You also need to be ready to catch the wing on the downwind side because it will want to continue flipping and turn 360 right back where you started.
The quickest way I've found to get a wingtip out of the water, or keep it from getting there to begin with, is to raise my upper hand. That gets the nose of the wing pointed up and pops the trailing edge up.
Your buddy did great. People with a lot of kitefoiling or windfoiling experience seem to get this pretty quickly.
Good day at the Hook. Gusty but fairly strong wind both down the back of Wells Island and out in the River. Got up on the foil a few times when the wind was strong enough. I really need something 20+ to make the 4M work. Once I got up I felt pretty relaxed. Pumped a little to get the board higher, but the wind was gusty and if a gust hit when I'm near the max for my short mast I overfoil and slam down. When I went out in the middle of the river the swells got big and kept slapping the board when it's at comfortable ride height.
I found a good spot by going hard upwind across the river (not foiling) and then doing the same on the starboard tack, winding up about the middle of Wells Island. I could take a break and rest my legs in the shallow water, and then take off on a port tack with my front foot in the strap and get up on the foil when the wind was strong enough but the swells weren't nuts. Unfortunately, the only direction I have been able to foil in control is port tack, and the middle of the river was pretty nutz with swell, so it was short foiling runs out, fall in when the swells get too frisky, then dragging back. I've got the non-foiling jibe down fairly well, so it wasn't as exhausting going from starboard tack to port as it could have been.
I have a 29.5 mast in the truck, but the 24 was already mounted. Lazy fuck. I also have my Axis with a huge 90CM mast in the truck but the hook area has been really shallow. It wasn't today with the river high--Kiteboarders 4 Cancer probably asked to have the level raised.
I was coasting a lot on the foil today. Raising the wing up and even one-handing it to decrease the power. Once I'm up I generally have too much and I go out of control if I don't let the wing fly up overhead. During one coast I wandered downwind a bit while I was one-handing and reached up to grab the boom to get some power and turn back upwind. I rotated too far and the wing went over my head, turning the board briskly through a jibe. I almost made a complete foiling jibe with the wing to my back side before I realized what was happening and freaked out. I got a feel for what it would be like to do it on purpose. I still think I'm going to be switch-footing this thing, but backside didn't feel impossible--just clumsy.
The good news is, I'm thoroughly convinced I can do this. The bad news is, I'm pretty sure it's going to be a year-long (at least) odyssey to get competent.
-
Admin, I understand what you are saying about the trailing edge. It is something I have thought about. Maybe it was the lighter winds that made it more controllable. Also the trailing edge on the slingshot is inflatable. So that might help it not be so reactive. Also with that inflatable trailing edge being inflatable. It tends to hold water when upside down easier. Flipping it the way I did was a quick and easy way of removing that water. Still experimenting with it.
I do not recall my board getting in the way of rotating the wing. Not anything meaningful. Sitting or kneeling on it, the nose would hit it and I just shifted my weight to put the nose under water and get the wing closer to me. Not an issue at all but I remember doing it. I am talking about after I have flipped it if that is what you are asking. Once I flipped it, I think I just grabbed the trailing edge a rotated it hand over hand to the leading edge and then to center. But as I was grabbing the leading edge, the wing would become lighter with a little wind under it.
Pono, I think I understand what you are saying and I will have to try next time i get a chance to get out and see what happens.
I also wondered if it may be better to have a leash on a wing tip to flag it out easier, but quickly shot that idea down with having to switch wing positions.
-
Ninja,
I hear you. You are 100% right about factoring in the wing design. A lot of these little details that smooth out the process are very wing specific. Just in the wings that we own some of these little motions that we have each developed don't translate at all to another wing design. All of these wings look fairly similar at first take but they are actually pretty radically different.
-
This guy is single leashing it. I wonder how well a backwards foil works as an anchor.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B0GIp6BnPwh/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet
-
Wow, that's worth testing. I could move the attachment point to one that makes it more likely to drag a lot.
-
Wow, that's worth testing. I could move the attachment point to one that makes it more likely to drag a lot.
Could you also test passing it through a waist belt so both wing and you
are attached to the board with single leash or do you foresee any issues
with that setup?
-
Is it not better to make a attachment point on the nose or use the GoPro plug?
the leash is less disturbing under the feets and the HandWing is further from the Foil for nasty contact.
-
Is it not better to make a attachment point on the nose or use the GoPro plug?
the leash is less disturbing under the feets and the HandWing is further from the Foil for nasty contact.
I think anything in front of the mast and the wing is going to pull it forward and it will be gone. The wing and the foil may act as anchors for each other with a tail mount. I am going to try it. What do you figure, 10 foot leash? These leashes are driving me nuts. I can't feel if they are under my feet and it is getting old. I had a great session today but I am willing to swim a little to get rid of a leash. :)
-
.....I am willing to swim a little to get rid of a leash. :)
You can’t swim fast enough to catch the board.
In high winds, the dam thing foils away like its got a motor.
-
For sure, DW, I would not consider it if it weren't leashed to something. I am wondering, though, if the board will still run being pulled backwards. Will the foil act as a brake it in that position? Worth checking out :).
-
It will auto spin downwind and take off.
The only time foilboards don’t fly away is when they float on their side. Kite boards with huge floaty wings do that.
-
Hi Ninja,
You may have already worked this out but here is a good look at a guy flipping your Slingshot wing to get started. He is going pretty close to the wingtip to do his flip.
https://www.facebook.com/wingdotsurf/videos/484275032115854/
-
Thanks for that video. I don't have a slingshot yet, just a demo.
There is a handle about 16-18 inches or so on each side from the center handle. It looks like he used one of those. He had more wind than i did, which could very easily help. It also looked like he did not get any water on the wing either. Just waiting for another chance to get out and hopefully with more wind than last time. I watched the video of myself and the wind looked pathetic. BUT. It did give me ideas on handling so not a total loss.
-
I changed my foot position and came up smooth as glass, first try. Then the wind dropped 5mph and I was back to struggling. Of course, as soon as I got out of the water the wind picked back up. Tomorrow is supposed to be even better and I'm a bit pooped from an hour of OC6 paddling this morning and two hours of wing flogging. But I might give it another go this evening if I get bored working on the MoHo.
-
I’ll be honest. I have only seen the wing foilers out a few times. Mostly at the hatch. What is it they are trying to do? If is to give others something to laugh at, they are succeeding. I am not being harsh, but really....The kiters on foils, the good ones, are like god’s on the water. If I was wanting to foil, the kite 100%.
-
I’ll be honest. I have only seen the wing foilers out a few times. Mostly at the hatch. What is it they are trying to do? If is to give others something to laugh at, they are succeeding. I am not being harsh, but really....The kiters on foils, the good ones, are like god’s on the water. If I was wanting to foil, the kite 100%.
Well you'd better join the gods then. ;D
Or do you want us to explain why we like it so much?
-
I’ll be honest. I have only seen the wing foilers out a few times. Mostly at the hatch. What is it they are trying to do? If is to give others something to laugh at, they are succeeding. I am not being harsh, but really....The kiters on foils, the good ones, are like god’s on the water. If I was wanting to foil, the kite 100%.
I see your point. The good kite foilers are incredible to watch. Same goes for the windsurf foilers now. I watched a handful of pros windsurf foiling at the Hatchery last week and they were really impressive. With wingfoiling we are all beginners. The most experienced guys have been at it for a year. The "moves" right now are the most basic fundamentals (foiling reaches, tacks and jibes). A handful of guys with deep windsport foiling experience are getting controlled airs but I haven't seen that here in the Gorge yet. And...the people you are seeing at the Hatchery are likely the more experienced wingsurfers here. They are likely foiling or mostly foiling, sailing reaches and doing the fundamental transitions to some degree. What everyone calls mowing the lawn for the older windsports. I can definitely see where that would seem pretty mundane in relation to the more established sports. If that has you underwhelmed you should see the newbs in action :). We are quite a sight!
So why do it?
Learning something new is a hoot and if you don't mind making a fool of yourself this, in particular, is really fun to learn. We have had a lot of great laughs and it has already made this a very memorable summer.
There is a lot of reward for even the stuff that appears basic. When we are up and foiling with the wing it is a unique and amazing feeling. Impressive only to ourselves but awesome all the same.
The upside is there. We aren't there yet but the potential exists. You can already see videos of the most experienced guys doing incredible things. Jumping higher than most windsurfers or kiters ever will, sailing faster, etc.
It is a really simplified experience. Little blow up doll of a wing and a foilboard. No lines, no mast, no pully tools, etc. It is very direct. The leashes do suck so there is that.
Low wind waves. This will be a lot of fun for really marginal wave riding.
-
I am always baffled when people ask 'WHY"? DUH, such a not winning attitude, But I think Admin summed it up quite nicely. Thank you!
Glad at least we are providing you with some entertainment, don't expect that to end but more likely to increase by a ton! Sorry, Not Sorry 8) C U on da H2O
-
Here is an excellent vid for visualizing take offs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uhamb6kNVhY
-
and another for transitions:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKNFKZLSPuI
-
They sure do make a 7m look like a reasonable size to own. Maybe the other brands need to play catch-up
-
They sure do make a 7m look like a reasonable size to own.
I sure hope they are, and it's not just Patrice making things look easy...cuz I've got one pre-ordered for their next shipment scheduled for the end of August.
Btw, if you ever wanted to make time to stand still...order something that's not available for over a month. :(
-
They sure do make a 7m look like a reasonable size to own.
I sure hope they are, and it's not just Patrice making things look easy...cuz I've got one pre-ordered for their next shipment scheduled for the end of August.
Btw, if you ever wanted to make time to stand still...order something that's not available for over a month. :(
I agree.
I'm seeing a parallel with where foiling was a few years ago, smallish 1100 wings and most the bigger guys struggling, now seems everybody is riding bigger wings. So maybe the 5,6, and 7 meter handkites are what most of us will end up needing more often than not?
oh and my 5m was supposed to be here by now...ask the universe for patience and you get a line at the foil store.
-
Absolutely. I have seen it mentioned in videos, etc. that the wind minimum for the sport is 18 to 20 and that is way off. It is likely half of that. This is great news because all of those light wind locations being possible and very fun. That is going to require a 5 for most of us and a 7 for many. Design for windsports usually happens in consistently windy locations and by 160 lb dudes. Easy to get myopic.
a 4 is 33% larger than a 3. A 5 is 25% larger than a 4. A 6 is 16% large than a 5. At the larger sizes a 7 makes sense as a reasonable jump from a 5.
-
I'll settle for a 5, but yes, I can see a seven in my future.
I think as we get better the wind requirement will drop a bit. I did a lesson with Dan Gavere (River) yesterday and his instruction made it easier for me to get up with my 4M in wind that I previously would have struggled with.
Very worthwhile lesson, BTW, I've got a solid weeks worth of things to work on, mostly in keeping the foil under control and maintaining speed. And somehow I need to bend my creaky knees more. I see more Advil in my future.
-
One bit of shared knowledge: It's easy to say "embrace the speed" but that's a little hard to do when you feel out of control. One simple trick from my racing days is that speed is local. If you look at the track surface whipping past the nose of your race car the speed seems unmanageable, but if you look ahead instead of down at the track, it feels much slower and easier to control. I started looking out ahead at where I wanted to go instead of where I was, and the frantic pace disappeared.
Also, the idea that the foil is going to stop flying if you don't have power applied is false. Not only could I coast for quite a distance from speed, but also as long as I maintained front foot pressure I could convert height to forward motion. Leaning back or straightening up leads to a stall and splash. Knees bent, front foot pressure maintained and the damned thing goes a very long way.
-
Absolutely. I have seen it mentioned in videos, etc. that the wind minimum for the sport is 18 to 20 and that is way off. It is likely half of that. This is great news because all of those light wind locations being possible and very fun. That is going to require a 5 for most of us and a 7 for many. Design for windsports usually happens in consistently windy locations and by 160 lb dudes. Easy to get myopic.
a 4 is 33% larger than a 3. A 5 is 25% larger than a 4. A 6 is 16% large than a 5. At the larger sizes a 7 makes sense as a reasonable jump from a 5.
Is this a test to see if I’m reading??
So what brands have 160lb myopic designers? LOL :) definitely Boards and More has a big size variety. Boards and More is the owner of Duotone & Fanatic. Ken Winner is 185-190lb, Sky Solbach 200-210, their testers range from 125lb females :) and a 10 year old kid Bobo Gallagher, to various sizes. Have you been to Maui? We have no wind days and Nukin days. All winter long we complain we want the summer winds back.
Here is Ken and I riding the 5m Duotone downwinging Maliko in no white caps, light winds avg started at 15mph so less mostly, and dropped to zero. Downwind is even less apparent wind. Dutone has 6m prototypes, but not always posting prototypes. As you know they are trying to meet the current size demands
https://www.instagram.com/p/BzEPnhcnOE8/?igshid=1l4h6v8cutqq9
Check out 11 year old Bobo Gallagher a Fanatic Team Rider, 70lbs, he’s the future,he usually uses the 2.3m production Foilwing that is for sale also.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bz-kKUNntXj/?igshid=5ixs8kktcnrx
-
Hi Julie, Yes, we had our hapanoa in 2000. The chi-chis were spectacular. :). We lived in Haiku for 11 years and have done a million Mailiko's, South Shore runs and channels as well. If you were doing downwinders during our tenure we certainly crossed paths. A million may be an exaggeration but 800,000 for sure. Standupzone actually started on Maui in 2007 right as the first production SUP's were becoming readily available. It was almost exactly where we are now with wingfoiling. The surf SUP boards were all in the 11 foot range (many were larger) at that point :). I expect we will look back at our current wingfoiling gear about like we look at that old SUP gear now.
We know that you guys have larger wings available and coming. Some brands are touting that a single size is all that is needed. That does seem a bit limited but I am sure that they will correct that shortly.
-
2020 wings comparison https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xl6oD6ost5g
-
Admin....just to let you know. Your site is going super, super, super slow. It’s not me. It’s been slow all day....fun day on the water...
-
Admin....just to let you know. Your site is going super, super, super slow. It’s not me. It’s been slow all day....fun day on the water...
Apologies for that. We are in the process of launching another site on this server and it has been causing some problems. I think we have it now and it should be back to normal in a few hours.
-
WingZone??
-
Hah! Not yet. It would be really hard to build traffic for a tiny niche like wingsurfing is now. :)
-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID2N-PjEjh4
-
Overall Winner: Sky Solbach
Race 1: 1Robby Naish, 2Sky Solbach, 3Ken Winner.
Race 2: 1Alex Augera, 2Sky Solbach, 3Robby Naish.
Race 3: 1Sky Solbach, 2Alex Augera, 3Alan Cadiz