Author Topic: 13 year old Finn Spencer passing everyone on a foil board at Paddle Imua  (Read 8931 times)

blueplanetsurf

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I have not seen this video posted yet.  I'm super impressed by 13 year old Spencer Finn who made it to the harbor entrance first on a small foil board at last weekends Paddle Imua Race on Maui,  it's amazing how he links the bumps together without touching the water:

https://youtu.be/Zi_E38zLI_0

For more information:
http://www.supthemag.com/features/13-year-old-proves-sup-hydrofoils-future/


Robert Stehlik
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TallDude

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Kids!  They are the masters of the hop. I've seen a little grom in ankle high waves generate a crazy amount of speed by pumping his little short board and pull off a 360.
It's not overhead to me!
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Beasho

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1st to the Harbor, 5th Overall.

"Enter Finn Spencer, 80-pounds,  4’11”, 13 years of age. Young Spencer managed a fifth-place finish at Paddle Imua after a long stretch of the race spent holding the lead position. But how?
  Spencer was the sole entry for a new board class that, prior to the Paddle Imua, had never appeared in an official downwind SUP race. . .The only reason he didn’t win was because the final mile was a windless stretch into the harbor. His fifth-overall finish came with a time of 1:10:48–just over three-and-a-half minutes slower than the fastest paddler."

Read more at http://www.supthemag.com/features/13-year-old-proves-sup-hydrofoils-future/#7WyrCLMEjzSBUJUs.99
« Last Edit: May 11, 2017, 06:04:26 PM by Beasho »

Kookalicious

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Wow, unbelievable! I'd like to know what foil wing he was flying on, kai, maliko, custom?? I read Go foil has a new front wing "Nalu" for lighter riders.

PonoBill

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The video says he's on a Kai, and that's what it looks like.
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Night Wing

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The young boy is a "natural" for sup foiling. A real pleasure to watch him in this video.
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headmount

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For Downwind it's fantastic to be as light as he is.  Sam  200+, tried it and he simply said he failed.

LaPerouseBay

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Wow, unbelievable! I'd like to know what foil wing he was flying on, kai, maliko, custom?? I read Go foil has a new front wing "Nalu" for lighter riders.


I'm a bit curious myself.  I don't know beans about foils and never will.  I saw him holding his foil in the gulch and asked him if it was "the Maliko or the Kai?," he said "neither."  So I said "Oh, so now they have 3 sizes"? And an adult standing out of vision said "Yes, it's in between."  I wished him well and moved on, so no more details. 

Checked the website a few days later and noticed the 'coming soon, foil for lighter riders" and the mystery for  me began. 

As for custom boards in the early days of downwinding, custom stuff was prevalent and very obvious.  My guess is that foil was custom, not a Kai. 
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blueplanetsurf

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For Downwind it's fantastic to be as light as he is.  Sam  200+, tried it and he simply said he failed.
Yes, for 80 lb Finn whatever size he is riding is a huge foil.   We did a downwinder yesterday and Sam tried it with his 10'6 foil board and Maliko Foil for the first time and did not get a single lift off, but it was only blowing around 15 knots and the bumps were small.  I think with 25 knots it will work, I'm waiting for the right day to try it.  I think it's really a matter of having the right size foil with enough lift and good conditions.  I'm thinking downwind foils for bigger guys need to be quite a bit bigger than even the Maliko Foil to work well.
« Last Edit: May 11, 2017, 11:39:27 PM by blueplanetsurf »
Robert Stehlik
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Zooport

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For Downwind it's fantastic to be as light as he is.  Sam  200+, tried it and he simply said he failed.
Yes, for 80 lb Finn whatever size he is riding is a huge foil.   We did a downwinder yesterday and Sam tried it with his 10'6 foil board and Maliko Foil for the first time and did not get a single lift off, but it was only blowing around 15 knots and the bumps were small.  I think with 25 knots it will work, I'm waiting for the right day to try it.  I think it's really a matter of having the right size foil with enough lift and good conditions.  I'm thinking downwind foils for bigger guys need to be quite a bit bigger than even the Maliko Foil to work well.

Did you get your foil board mastered, Robert?  Looked pretty tough.
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PonoBill

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I think Sam is around 230. There is a fundamental problem with foiling for bigger guys--the lift/drag ratio. This stuff is right at the edge of not working at all. More lift means more drag which requires more power to overcome. The available power comes mostly from the wave, not the person, but even though you might expect a bigger, well-muscled guy to have more power than a skinny kid, the power to weight ratio works against Sam. But much more important is the amount of power available in the wave and the speed required to get lift. Add more thickness to the foil (increase the foil coefficient) and you increase drag. Make the foil bigger and you increase drag. It may well be that the amount of power available to lift 230 pounds and get to a lower drag is more than what is available.

I've watched Sam's videos carefully because they are relevant to me. He is marginal in surfing waves, and it's not lack of skill or effort. It's weight.
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Amazing to watch that.......unfortunately I was 80 lbs when I was 8.

So your saying adding a tuttle to my Vec would be pointless... >:(
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PonoBill

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Amazing to watch that.......unfortunately I was 80 lbs when I was 8.

So your saying adding a tuttle to my Vec would be pointless... >:(

No, you can al;ways use an extra fin.
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

blueplanetsurf

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For Downwind it's fantastic to be as light as he is.  Sam  200+, tried it and he simply said he failed.
Yes, for 80 lb Finn whatever size he is riding is a huge foil.   We did a downwinder yesterday and Sam tried it with his 10'6 foil board and Maliko Foil for the first time and did not get a single lift off, but it was only blowing around 15 knots and the bumps were small.  I think with 25 knots it will work, I'm waiting for the right day to try it.  I think it's really a matter of having the right size foil with enough lift and good conditions.  I'm thinking downwind foils for bigger guys need to be quite a bit bigger than even the Maliko Foil to work well.

Did you get your foil board mastered, Robert?  Looked pretty tough.
I would not say I mastered it but I'm having a lot of fun.  Here are a few recent videos of Sam and myself, I'm 195 and use a Kai foil in the surf.  Sam is about 230 and uses the Maliko Foil.
https://youtu.be/G2s25cdDrbo
https://youtu.be/5QwH3XosP7I
https://youtu.be/qV_TDRTh36w
https://youtu.be/WIsO2mD0JN4
« Last Edit: May 12, 2017, 03:13:06 PM by blueplanetsurf »
Robert Stehlik
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PonoBill

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Sam gives me some hope for surf foiling, though he's a heck of a lot better surfer than I am.
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

 


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