Fourth Foil Sesh..Gettin There!

[surfercook]

The Naish Raptor w/GoFoil Iwa wing was returned today so now it's the V-Box from here on in. Clay inspired me to try a voice over.
https://youtu.be/yQE7IH5ZNP4

[Evan Lloyd]

Cool video. Love the narration. Couple of tips:  make sure your back foot is directly over the mast screws. You’ll never fly if your foot is in front of the screws. 2.  Keep the balls of both feet on top of the stringer. Your side to side foot position is going to get you hurt. The board is likely to flip and your body is going to meet the rail.

You’re doing great. Keep posting your progress.

[surfercook]

Love the narration.  make sure your back foot is directly over the mast screws. You’ll never fly if your foot is in front of the screws. 2.  Keep the balls of both feet on top of the stringer.

Thanx, EL. I really wanted to communicate what's actually goin' on w/my progress. You're one of my foiling role models! I always tell the foilers here about you and how accomplished you've gotten at foiling. How long you been flyin' now?
   I need to tattoo your advice to my brain. For some reason standing like that just freaks me out. It feels so unnatural, just like flying the board. I think at this point I'm ready to setup the deck for foiling. Need to set it up just like Clay's, his setup looks perf.

[Califoilia]

For some reason standing like that just freaks me out. It feels so unnatural, just like flying the board. I think at this point I'm ready to setup the deck for foiling. Need to set it up just like Clay's, his setup looks perf.

A piece of advice that resonated with me, and helped my foiling improve immensely..."Remember, you're not flying the board...you're flying the foil".

IOWs, you have to shift your focus 2' below the board into the foil, and simply use your feet, and the board to communicate with the foil, and telling it what to do. So if you think about that now, go back and review your recent, look at your feet on the board, how they're related to the wing 2' below, and what are they telling it with whatever pressures you're applying to the board with them, and down into said wing.

Now if your feet are further out towards the tips of the foil (relatively speaking), then as soon as you weight either foot (intentionally or not), you're now telling the wing through the pressure(s) you're applying to either of the outside tips that you want it to sink, and thus turn in that direction. Make sense?

Then next time you go out, really focus on your feet placement and weighting of them, and what they're telling the wing below, and if that is what you really want to be communicating to it. Now with these thoughts in mind you have two choices...

1. If you have your feet away from the centerline as in your current stance, simply be aware that as soon as you put any more weight into one than the other...you're going to be turning in that weighted direction, and prepare yourself to fly in that direction. Then be prepared to change your weight to either balance it evenly to head down the line in that direction, or if you inadvertently correct it too much...then know you'll be turning in the other direction, and prepare to make your future changes accordingly. Know what you're telling the foil...don't worry about trying to "fly the board".

2. If you want the foil/wing to go straight, get your feet over its centerline, let it track straight, shift your weight back slightly rearward telling the wing that you want it to go up/lift. Let it fly straight, adjusting your flight/lift with simply your weight fore and aft accordingly if you want to go down or up. If/when you're flying straight comfortably, and want to turn, simply introduce a little weight/pressure into the balls of your feet to go frontside, or into your heels slightly to go backside (a little tiny bit goes a long way)...all the while controlling the up and down with the weight shift of your body sliding/shifting your hips forward or back as your body weight is still centered over the centerline.

So in a nutshell, you're control up, and down by moving your body weight forward and back along the centerline of the board...and controlling your side to side with the pressure/weight you're apply to your feet heels or toes (balls of the feet) just slightly on either side of that same centerline . See, FOILING IS EASY as that! 

[PonoBill]

Yeah, you have to quit doing that. If you do get the foil flying you're going to fall on it. You aren't supposed to be surfing, you're foiling. That foot position will not work and it's going to get you hurt. Your buddy is doing better because his foot position is better. Still not perfect, but better. Your feet HAVE to be across the stringer and you HAVE to rotate your trunk and shoulders forward so your shoulders are square across the board. Practice it in your living room. Watch the Sam Pa'e videos and practice what he's doing standing on the wall. Hips and weight forward, then shift hips back without rotating your shoulders. It's a very unnatural position for a surfer to take on a board, but it's what you have to do.

And yes, you aren't surfing the board, you're flying the foil.

Your back foot has to be between the mast screws and your weight needs to be on your front foot. Don't try to get a long flight, just lift your front foot to get the foil started up and then push down with the front foot to bring it back down. Once you're comfortable with the feeling you can bring the foil up, get the board off the water a few inches, and fly. After that, it's just progression, but you have to get the basics down before you can get anywhere.

Some people get away with starting from a surfing position and then moving their feet to the right position, both feet centered across the stringer. But I find that much more difficult. If you practice paddling around a bit with your feet in the proper position you'll find you can do it--it's hard, and it's tippy, but you can catch a wave like that with a little practice, and your feet will be in the right position to start with. Then all you have to think about is body rotation (shoulders across the board) and foot weighting. I think it's MUCH easier to learn to catch a wave with your feet in that awkward position than it is to catch a wave in your normal, comfortable position and then move your feet to exactly the right spot.

One thing that helped me a lot at first was to hold the paddle in one hand as soon as I got the board up and flying. Then you can hold both arms out and down at a 45 degree angle which makes it easier to keep your shoulders across the board. If you're holding onto the paddle with both hands you'll rotate your shoulders to your normal position, which is unstable. Watch your video and you'll see that you do that.

[surfercook]

I'm really really really appreciating your detailed replies w/all the tips, advice, and warnings, Pono and SanoSlatchSup. Taking the time out to teach me what I'm doing wrong could be the difference between me flying or falling (and getting hurt). i am slowly overcoming my fear of the foil but it will always be there, which is probably a good thing.
I will search for that Sam Pa'e video w/the wall exercise. I have been standing in the "Stringer Stance" on dry land and it makes me feel like a warrior!

A local surfer/journalist that writes a weekly column in our little rag paper here interviewed me and a bunch of the other local surfer/foil enthusiasts and pretty much covered our foil scene here. he used a bunch of my fotos and also tossed the forum in his write up.
https://thesandpaper.villagesoup.com/p/foils-provide-lift-for-local-watermen-and-shops/1766275

[Beasho]

Sam Pa'e here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La5WoDEYC74&t=7s

[surfercook]

Sam Pa'e here:

Thanx...shame about all that wind noise. But I'm getting the whole concept. Actually doing it once I catch a wave is another matter! 

[Beasho]

Buy these footpads from Amazon.

The raised Arch Bar is perfect for the front foot.

Put a mark 25" in front of the FRONT BOLT for the GoFoil Mast mount.  Center the arch pad there.  If your front foot is NOT on the pad you will NOT be able to fly.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008OOVCN8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[surfercook]

Buy these footpads from Amazon.The raised Arch Bar is perfect for the front foot.

That arch pad looks awesome. But I couldn't locate the front foot raised/arch bar on that Amazon link. So I made my own w/some old padding and duct tape. It helped alot to force my stance. Quite a workout paddling around like that on my lower vol board that got converted. The V-Box is only like 29-1/2" wide compared to the 33" or so on the Raptor that I started on. But surfing the V felt way more in cntrl when my feet were proper. Flying is a different story. I launched 5 times and only landed one, wiped all the others. I've yet to sustain any flight for more than a coupla secs. Felt good today but I still need more time in. My buddy did nice on the V-Box also for his first go. Beautiful control and confidence.

One thing that helped me a lot at first was to hold the paddle in one hand as soon as I got the board up and flying. Then you can hold both arms out and down at a 45 degree angle which makes it easier to keep your shoulders across the board. If you're holding onto the paddle with both hands you'll rotate your shoulders to your normal position, which is unstable.

That's a great tip. I kinda overlooked that one for sesh #5. Will give it a go next time. I saw Jeff Clark doing that in Clay's 75 Sessions vid, which is an excellent video! That vid should be pinned here!

Session 5- https://flic.kr/s/aHskCt9KLn

Foot-markers by surfercook, on Flickr

vlcsnap-2018-08-05-13h36m35s491 by surfercook, on Flickr

vlcsnap-2018-08-05-13h45m22s660 by surfercook, on Flickr

vlcsnap-2018-08-05-13h41m16s379 by surfercook, on Flickr

[PonoBill]

That's all part of the process. You need to have it in your head that you're going to press the board back down as soon as it lifts. In fact, you have to be thinking down as you start to lift. It's beginner stuff, but it's how you get there. Don't try to get the board high. Lift a little and push it right down. Do that as many times as it takes to get confident you can always push the board back down.

Liftoff is a little movement, with a quick lift while you are keeping weight on your front foot, hips forward, weight on your front foot.

Once you have that down you can do the same thing and move your hips slightly back to maintain. What Sam refers to as sitting down. Keep your knees bent, weight on the front foot, but shift a little weight by sliding your hips back. Don't lean back, there's no control doing that. Your upper body should stay still and in the cross the board position.

It might help to see another beginner do it:
https://www.facebook.com/PonoBill/videos/10155604927273668/

[digger71]

It might help to see another beginner do it:
https://www.facebook.com/PonoBill/videos/10155604927273668/

It's like your paddle is a remote control!  Just flick the paddle up and up the board goes onto foil.  Genius

[supthecreek]

Go cookieman!
I like that you are doing this from step one
very helpful to those who are considering the foil.

Pilot Pono....nice vid, good to see you doing this!

[surfercook]

Press the board back down as soon as it lifts. You have to be thinking down as you start to lift. It's beginner stuff, but it's how you get there. Don't try to get the board high. Lift a little and push it right down. Do that as many times as it takes to get confident you can always push the board back down.
Liftoff is a little movement, with a quick lift while you are keeping weight on your front foot, hips forward, weight on your front foot.
Once you have that down you can do the same thing and move your hips slightly back to maintain. Keep your knees bent, weight on the front foot, but shift a little weight by sliding your hips back. Don't lean back, there's no control doing that. Your upper body should stay still and in the cross the board position.

My last go out (#7 at this point) I put this concept into play and it definitely helps. The 6 sec short period windswell hasn't been exactly foil friendly but it was super clean w/light offshores at least. My fear of the foil is still present but it's in check and my confidence on the flying beast is slowly growing now that I have a few sessions in.

Go cookieman! I like that you are doing this from step one. Very helpful to those who are considering the foil.

Seems I have spent more time studying the concepts and rules of foiling more than actual water time! So I try and pass on all my collective knowledge about foiling to all beginners. I was at Island Srf n Sail yesterday and one of the noob foilers showed w/a foil demo return. He did pretty good for the first go but had no clue about the proper foil stance and weight on front foot thing.


This was one of his only successful rides/flights and he wasn't over the stringer but at least his feet were aligned enough that the board trimmed off the back of the wave for a clean exit.

[Califoilia]

This was one of his only successful rides/flights and he wasn't over the stringer but at least his feet were aligned enough that the board trimmed off the back of the wave for a clean exit.

Yes, did that multiple times as well starting out.

Up, flying, and then turning up, over, and out of the wave...with exultations from my older foiling buddies that I was able to safely exit the wave like that so gracefully. Little did they know that I was just along for the ride, and where the board/foil was going so was I. Fortunately it was up, over, and out...and not up, in, and breeching out....did that plenty as well in the beginning. I found the former to be a much more comfortable landing exit than the latter.