Author Topic: Big wing + big foil + big board = big success!  (Read 12147 times)

clay

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Big wing + big foil + big board = big success!
« on: September 20, 2019, 08:55:42 PM »
Finally! 

Today I had a huge breakthrough and was wing dinging all over the water, heel side and bit toe side too.

The only thing I had left to try was a huge board, I have exhausted all the other factors and if that didn't work - I was the problem.

I went with a 180 liter board, 50 liters more than my daily driver foil board.  I was super reluctant to try it because I knew I wouldn't ride it any other foil discipline.

Having a stable platform to stand on allowed me to go both perpendicular to the wind and upwind in rough water, and then
 get enough board speed to lift and fly in any direction I wanted for as long as my legs could handle.  Toes facing upwind was a bit more challenging and I could only go downwind or a bit less than perpendicular, holding the wing across my body felt really unnatural.

Yesterday I discovered I could wingsurf on a small board in offshore wind with smooth surface conditions, in rough onshore conditions I had flailed miserably on that same smaller board.

I'm glad I ignored the seeming trend towards smaller boards.  All the techniques for balance and pumping up on the foil did nothing to help me fly.  Yeah they helped get up on the foil but with out enough power and speed i would fall right back down.

My setup today was 7m wing, 2400 foil, 180 liter 8 foot board, and the iwindsurf sensor had the wind averaging 15mph. I weigh 200 pounds.
Aloha, I welcome and appreciate all responses of positivity and good feeling.

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supkailua

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Re: Big wing + big foil + big board = big success!
« Reply #1 on: September 20, 2019, 09:14:26 PM »
Awesome post, thanks for sharing.

When I started I tried a small board in very choppy water, and never got on my feet.

I changed to the Slingshot Airstrike 7'6" which is a very stable board and am having a lot of success.

Your post makes me realize I did the right thing and I need to get rid of that small board envy and enjoy the ride.

What board did you use?

Admin

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Re: Big wing + big foil + big board = big success!
« Reply #2 on: September 21, 2019, 02:28:27 AM »
Hi Guys,

This was a progression for us.  We started on a 6'6 and a 5'10 board which we had purchased as a complete guess.  They proved to be very difficult for us in learning the knee start and we were generally failing.  So Bill lent me a huge board and Chan used my 6'6 and that made an immediate difference.  So much more stability.  We started learning.  We purchased a 6'10 Fanatic (now for sale in Classifieds) so we could continue on with that without bumming from Bill any longer.  When our knee starts began to feel solid we tried our smaller boards again and wow, they felt fantastic.   We were still mostly on the surface at that point but they were just so me more manageable in our Gorge Swell and chop.  I had a session yesterday on Chan's 5'10 and it was fantastic.  You can dip the rails from side to side, edge with board, twist it with your hips into position.  Super nimble and fun.  The knee starts are much better than on the first day I tried it.  Not glamorous yet, but still quick and workable.  The cool thing is that the board is 11 lbs (6 lbs lighter than my 6'6 which is pretty wide) and even with a smaller wing and smaller foil it popped up easier.  It also feels much less draggy once it is moving.  I am still a very early foiler but even to me it is very noticeable not to have the extra nose out there pulling down on your foil kit. 



GL

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Re: Big wing + big foil + big board = big success!
« Reply #3 on: September 21, 2019, 05:27:28 AM »
I have used only one board, it is 7'10" by 30" and 130 litres. I weigh 175 pounds.  I have had success right from the the start. I can stand up on the board without the wing even in rough water especially if the nose is pointed slightly into the the waves. So minimal struggles with the board and I can focus on getting up on the foil. The foil mounting position is well forward on the board so it does not feel that there is a large amount of board in front of me while flying. I am quite happy with the board for now and would not want go a lot smaller in the near future. I am more of a cruiser happy riding about and catching the odd swell. Just learning flying jibes. Can fly through but tend to drop off on the new tack before I power the wing up again.  The large board means no drama dropping off the wing and starting again. I guess I am just a low performance guy. I just enjoy being up on the the foil and cruising along. Not sure if a smaller board would make that a lot more fun at least at this point. I suspect my immediate success was in large part due to the large board and foil. I am sure that at this point struggling with balance on a small board would shorten my sessions reducing my fun. Maybe down the road.

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Re: Big wing + big foil + big board = big success!
« Reply #4 on: September 21, 2019, 07:04:02 AM »
One thing to add.  The bigger boards tend to get beaten around by Gorge chop, swell and current where the smaller boards fit much more nicely and seem much less susceptible to that.  My goal, of course, is to spend almost all of the time in the air and at that point it seems like less is always more. 

surfcowboy

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Re: Big wing + big foil + big board = big success!
« Reply #5 on: September 21, 2019, 08:34:36 AM »
Sounds like all those starter converted SUP foil boards are about to get new life as starter foil wing boards.

 


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