Messages

1

Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP / Re: Getting Off the Back Foot

« on: January 26, 2023, 09:54:14 AM »

I definitely feel that adjusting my balance and foil position to be more front foot oriented helped my foot switches.  For me, that meant moving the mast forward and keeping my feet in the same position.  That way, when you unweight the back foot and overweight the front foot (for a moment), you don't dive.

Another thing that helped me was adjusting angle to go downwind slightly, thereby depowering the sail.  This will center your balance more and simplify things.  Contending with the balance, while having the sail pull you is too many inputs to manage.

This is counter to what @ponobill says, but I found that being aggressive with the board pop was helpful.  This is going to be even more important if you have a back foot oriented setup.  If you don't pop, your foil is going to dive.  The timing also helps me.

2

Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP / Re: Intriguing Beings Podcast - Ralf Grösel - the future of wing/kite production

« on: January 05, 2023, 07:24:07 AM »

One example is a proprietary cloth welding technology that does away with all seams

My favorite board shorts are welded seam O'Neils. I don't see any in their current lineup but the ones I have are super flexible and comfortable.

Years ago I had a pair of welded seam boardshorts that i loved.  Wore them a lot - probably more than I should have....  On their last use, I took them waterskiing with a bunch of friends.  The driver punched the gas, I popped up, and my shorts had blown out all of the crotch seams and turned into a sort of loincloth.

I (and my friends who were on the boat) hope the technology has improved!   

3

General Discussion / Re: 4/3 Wetsuit - 2023?

« on: December 23, 2022, 08:14:27 PM »

It’s all about what fits you. A well sized mid tier wetsuit will be better than a poorly sized top tier wetsuit.

I swear by O’Neill because the sizing is perfect for me. If the sizing works for you then I recommend both the Psycho and Mutant Legend.  The psycho has amazing flexibility and feels super light on me. The Mutant Legend is much warmer and more durable and the hood feature makes it extremely versatile (but slightly less flexible).

Need Essentials is pretty impressive for the money but not as good as O’Neill quality.

Budget - Need
Warmth - mutant legend
Flexibility - psycho

4

Foil SUP / Re: Another revelation about the Barricuda style Kalama board!

« on: December 21, 2022, 05:50:52 AM »

No one I've seen is riding these things as sinkers. The boards are deep from the first third to the tail, and 7' X 19" boards are in the 120l range. And those are the small ones (though I've seen a few 14" wide ones). I'm sure someone will try a sinker barracuda, but they don't really make sense. From seeing how people are riding these things I think the days of tiny boards and sinkers are numbered. Given the way the boards can be constructed the nose (the front third of the board) probably weighs a pound or two. Overall they're practically weightless. A sort, wide, thin board is mostly skin (heavy), and a long, narrow, deep board is mostly foam. They turn like a lunch tray, foil smoothly, and get up on foil with a breath of wind. There has to be a downside, but I haven't seen it, other than they probably aren't for geezers like me, though I just ordered Mark Raaphorst's latest ideas in a board with similar dimensions (7' X 25" 125l) that he's aiming at geezers like me. I hope to see it before I'm 77. Mark has a hideous waiting list.

We might be talking past eachother. When I brought up sinker I was referring to winging.

Look at the FFB Nugget or yet to be released Armstrong boards (and more on the way). Lower volume, shorter wing boards with barracuda inspired tail features. I agree that there is a market for long and narrow east takeoff boards for downwind and lightwind but I disagree that lower volume sinkers are going away. Guys riding wing freestyle and doing serious wave riding aren’t going to be on a 7’ board. They are just going to be two categories.

5

Foil SUP / Re: Another revelation about the Barricuda style Kalama board!

« on: December 19, 2022, 06:32:00 PM »

In my mind, the theory works well for a neutral or positive buoyancy lightwind board, but I don't really see the benefit on a sinker like the FFB Nugget.  On a sinker, I feel like most of the resistance is in bringing the board to the surface - and I can't see the barricuda tail helping there.  If Im powered enough to get the board onto the surface, I generally don't have much struggle pumping up onto foil from there (which is where the barricuda would have the most benefit).

I suppose if the board has less resistance on the surface, I might be able to ride a smaller foil - if thats what I was after.

I would love to try one and my suspicions could very well be proven wrong.

I think that's because you're "overpowered".  Now try riding on a day with not enough wind.  I can imagine that a low resistance hull can get up to foiling speed with very little pull from the wing allowing you to ride with a much smaller wing or on a day with what others consider not enough wind

That’s why I said it would work for a neutral of positive buoyancy lightwind board. I’m still skeptical on a sinker. If you aren’t powered on a sinker you aren’t going to get the board to the surface and the tail isn’t going to help with that.

6

Foil SUP / Re: Another revelation about the Barricuda style Kalama board!

« on: December 19, 2022, 01:30:20 PM »

In my mind, the theory works well for a neutral or positive buoyancy lightwind board, but I don't really see the benefit on a sinker like the FFB Nugget.  On a sinker, I feel like most of the resistance is in bringing the board to the surface - and I can't see the barricuda tail helping there.  If Im powered enough to get the board onto the surface, I generally don't have much struggle pumping up onto foil from there (which is where the barricuda would have the most benefit).

I suppose if the board has less resistance on the surface, I might be able to ride a smaller foil - if thats what I was after.

I would love to try one and my suspicions could very well be proven wrong.

7

Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP / Re: Waterproofing to your wing?

« on: December 16, 2022, 07:10:50 AM »

Theres a diluted shoe goo concoction that kiters use.  If you search kiteforum.com you can find it.  Kites and wings definitely come coated with something to repel water.

8

Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP / Re: best packing system?

« on: November 15, 2022, 07:32:15 AM »

Roof box.  I throw everything other than the board into it and it keeps the car (SUV) clean and organized.  Ive even set up a pressured shower in there to hose off.

9

General Discussion / Re: My Shark Story

« on: October 27, 2022, 12:22:35 PM »

You are an excellent writer.

This sentence is so relatable, and well-put:
"I’m not escaping anything, but disengaging enough to get some perspective."

Really sorry for your losses, but inspired by your perspective.

10

Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP / Re: 2022 New Wings Thread

« on: October 13, 2022, 03:03:45 PM »

I have a Takoon v2 as well.  Its a very good wing for the money.  Its not the best wing I have tried, and it doesn't have a very premium feel, but the things that matter are well designed (good handles, good canopy tension, luffs stable, very grunty for the size) and it cost about half what a premium wing costs.  I use them to fill sizes that I don't use often and I buy more premium wings for my 1 or 2 most used sizes. I bet resale is not very good though.  Windance has a few sizes used at the moment.

If cost were a priority I would have no qualms with a quiver of these.  Performance would be 95% as good as anything else out there. 

I bought mine from the EU distributor and had it shipped to the US (US distribution is very new for them).  I also have a board travel bag from them that has served my purposes well.

11

Random / Re: Apple Watch Ultra

« on: October 08, 2022, 07:13:55 PM »

Spent the last several days with the watch on the water.

The Apple workouts app that I lauded for running is pretty spotty for water based workouts. The issue is that most of the workout categories don’t actually employ the gps. For example if I use “surfing” or “sailing” for my winging it doesn’t use gps and just applies a calorie burn assumption to the duration of the activity. Instead you either need to a category with gps (outdoor running, cycling or hiking) or use workoutdoors. Feels like a big miss for apple here. You should at least be able to customize a category and add gps.

This is a longshot but I also wish I could control my GoPro from the watch. Basically have an app that mimics the crappy wrist remote.

12

Random / Re: Apple Watch Ultra

« on: October 06, 2022, 09:21:00 AM »

Ive got the Ultra and am liking it.  Im a runner and this is my first apple watch coming from Garmins.  I had heard that the Apple Workout app was terrible and that for any serious training I needed Workoutdoors, so I bought it.  Honestly, I much prefer the apple app so far - particularly since it incorporates the lap button on the watch.  The negatives of Workoutdoors is that the options to lap are not very good (you can add a screen button or configure the scroll wheel, but neither feels very "secure"), but the REAL issue is that there is a screensaver that you can't turn off.  When I'm working out I want to be able to look at the watch and get my figures immediately without flicking my wrist around to deactivate the screensaver.  The apple watch doesn't have this screensaver issue, but workoutdoors does and there is no way to turn it off.  I do like how configurable the screens are on Workoutdoors, but I find a good-enough degree of configuration available in the native apple app.

I apologize if some of this is overly-specific to running, but I think the screensaver feature would also be annoying in the water for me.

Either way - workoutdoors is a one-time fee (I think it was $10), so its not a big deal to play around with it and see if it works for you.

The apple watch ultra is really nice so far. Don't have time for a full review ATM, but so far so good.  My biggest complaint is that the heartrate monitor isn't accurate or even usable for any serious training.  The readings are really bad (much worse than the wrist readings from Garmin).  Im using a bluetooth external strap and its fine.  No real complaints for watersports usage yet.

13

Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP / Re: Board shape with HA foils

« on: September 16, 2022, 06:11:20 AM »

The hard edged tail cleans up release of flow at the back of the board and makes the hull more efficient, resulting in more speed.  It also serves to increase the effective length of the board (vs a ramped tail) which will flatten the board on the surface and generate speed.

I'm definitely not a board design whiz, but based on my understanding there are a few concepts getting tangled here.  Planing speed doesn't really have an impact on foil takeoff.  Speed is what impacts foil takeoff.  Even if a board planes, the foil takeoff speed is likely going to be lower than that planing speed.  There are boards that will plane at a lower speed, but that doesn't necessarily mean they will takeoff easier.  There are boards that will never plane (barracuda), but their efficiency makes them faster and that speed is what will get you onto foil.  With a HA foil you are generally just looking for speed (vs acceleration on a lower aspect foil).

14

Random / Re: Apple Watch Ultra

« on: September 09, 2022, 10:59:11 AM »

They said something about the extra button being user configured. I sure hope it can be configured to solve the inability to use the touch screen when wet. That drives me nuts. I’m always forgetting to turn apps on before getting in the water.

Bummed to see trade in value of old watch only applies to 8, not Ultras. Even though trade in values are always near nothing, it still gives me an excuse to buy. 

Im almost certain that this is the exact reason for the new button.  The inability to use the touch screen button with a wet (or sweaty) hand is a major reason why the prior generations weren't suitable for running.

Im also hoping that GoPro comes out with an app which allows for the use of the button to stop/start a camera.  They used to offer this functionality through an app, but discontinued it. The button might make this usage more functional.  The GoPro remotes are garbage and this seems like an obvious use for the watch.

15

Wingsurfing, Windfoiling, Wingfoiling, Wing SUP / Re: AWSI Show 22’ - News & Releases

« on: September 09, 2022, 06:29:01 AM »

For context, my 5m A series was exactly 4 lb (with all three handles but no leash).