Author Topic: Inflatable foil boards..  (Read 12427 times)

Wetstuff

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Inflatable foil boards..
« on: January 09, 2020, 01:49:42 PM »
I am starting a list. I know some may think of this as talking about tricycles on the 'Tour' forum but I am approaching this from the position of 'if I can attenuate one stage of a potential two-stage injury sequence' then this old body is ahead.  And the second part, as cheap as I am, I do not want to pay (and muscle) out/back a hardboard to someplace like the Dominican or Costa Rica. 

This first one is MANTA from New Zealand.  I see three that may be of direct interest: the '72' - '110' - '170'.  Thankfully, they name them in Liters.  The 72 liter is 150x50cm (4.9'x19.6") at 4.5kg (10lbs). The 110 liter is 160x70cm (5'x27") at 9kg (20lbs). The big one, the 170, is 225x78cm (8'x30") and 11kg (24lbs)

The 72 is presented as a Surf/kite foil board ... the 110 as SUP/wing foil board ... the 170 as SUP/wind (windsurfing to me) board. 

Tuttle box .. front foot straps (170 has those wide, side ones...' must be a windsurfing config).  To me, they look nice, not overly decorated.  But, are they reminding the owner he needs a pump by putting 'Inflatable' in large letters on the side?

Like anything item, you'll have to determine if the price represents a value to you.  The only way to discover shipping to the States was to go thru the checkout process.  I am not ready for that.  There is more to see.

They are: mantafoils.com

...there are more, please add what you find and/or comment on the prospective use of an inflatable.  I have zero experience, even with SUP.


Jim
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Dwight (DW)

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #1 on: January 09, 2020, 02:34:44 PM »
My only worry is how the soft flexible inflatable affects the feel for the foil. Foiling is a finesse sport. You need delicate feel through your feet, for what the foil is doing to fly well. Sure a good foiler could deal with it long enough to make a YouTube promo video, but what about the kook trying to learn foiling. Does it add to the learning frustration

gone_foiling

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #2 on: January 09, 2020, 03:09:08 PM »
I am with DW on this one. Also foot strap inserts seem way off to me, even for winging.
Addicted to foiling at the moment.
My shenanigans on insta @gone_foiling

supkailua

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #3 on: January 09, 2020, 03:53:01 PM »
I have used an inflatable SUP but not for foiling. I think the boards are hard enough for foiling. An inflatable is definitely on my might buy list for my next board and there are more coming out.

F-One has some nice ones at https://www.f-one.world/product/rocket-air-sup/.




Dwight (DW)

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #4 on: January 09, 2020, 04:58:50 PM »
Another thought....you have to master pumping the board onto foil. Without this critical skill, winging doesn’t work. You’ll be just like so many frustrated newbies needing massive wind to make it work.

Pumping the crap out of an inflatable board isn’t going to translate that pump energy to the foil below.

surfcowboy

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #5 on: January 09, 2020, 06:53:16 PM »
I’ve owned 2 inflatable sup and I like them. But yes,I’m not sure they’d be stiff enough to transmit the pump either.

I’d 100% demand a demo or a super easy return policy. I think a soft top foil board is the jam.

supkailua

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #6 on: January 09, 2020, 07:20:33 PM »
DW, these inflatables are 6'11', 7'6", and 7'11".

I ride the Slingshot Airstrike and Slingshot Outwit. They are both over 7' and I glide with the power from the Wing to get going. I don't normally pump the board to get up. I do pump the wing to get the board up to take off speed.

So my question to you is can you really pump a board that is this long, even if it is a hard board? If so I need to try it more.

Once in a while in really light winds I will do a pump against the wing with these boards, but I have to be up in the air first and then head down and up again. It does increase my speed, but it is not vigorous pumping. Just one pump most of the time, and again I have to have enough speed to come out of the water before I can do this pump.

Wetstuff

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #7 on: January 10, 2020, 07:30:00 AM »
Dwight's 'engineer processor' kicked in.. You can imagine what a camera pointed at the bottom of the inflato sees where the mast enters.  F-One, for example, wants good-money for these.  The should take one, flip it over, and show us what it looks like when the foil is jerked around. Then I thought that perhaps would be an easy negative demonstration, but maybe not; it may compare to a 180lb. body leveraging this joint standing in the air, off-water.

Damn, I don't want to be the 'Mikey' on this, but I sure would like to travel as a novice with a board I could foilSUP and/or Wing. I'll worry about being an expert in my next life.

Jim
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biggins

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #8 on: January 10, 2020, 03:41:59 PM »
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=x82QBdluZ7Y

Not sure how to paste a video...

Seems like for getting started and traveling it could work. Probably not great for pumping but never tried.

steamroller

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #9 on: January 13, 2020, 02:14:36 AM »
these Mantafoil boards are badass...they work!...really...you guys that know. me know that Uliboards and specifically the "Steamroller" model wrote the book on inflatable surf and SUP boards...i spent 15 years on inflatable SUPs so i KNOW inflatable surfboards...Uliboards. com is no more but the technology lives on...im not sponsored by Mantafoils or a team guy or anything like that...i bought my prone board from them retail because i wanted to take my foilnonna motorcycle to the beach...

down the line the board is SOLID under my feet...no flex no wobble...pumping back out for a 2 for 1 i can feel.a.litle flex so i have to be smooth and have a bit.of rythm to the pump....i cant stomp the hell.out of it like im riding.my carbon board..
but hell im.built.like a 240 lb bowling  ball...the board is way thicker than my carbon board so it takes aboit 3 waves to get used to the feeling  of being a little further from the foil...the real advantage is PADDLING...that sucker will catch anything and can compete with the longboards when paddling back out to the lineup

ive only tried the prone board not the SUP...if anybody has an inflatable SUPfoil out in southern California  or oahu...i love to check it out some time

here's some videos i made just for S and  gs


https://youtu.be/jF5DE2K9-8o

https://youtu.be/thEMT9SyK-8

https://youtu.be/aL2NKnmzy0c

https://youtu.be/ARXYbM2NIIo


Wetstuff

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #10 on: January 13, 2020, 06:26:31 AM »
Thanks, for the input Roller.  Seeing is still believing.  I suspect you're one who could get it to flex! ..you obviously make it back out without a paddle.

Supporting Dwight, ...on the latest progression podcast https://soundcloud.com/progressionproject. the guest, Eric Christensen, agreed that (not a perfect quote) "any flex is bad". He said he was able to feel 1/4".   

It is difficult.  Do we get paralyzed in that old trap...' Perfection is the enemy of the good.'?...  Especially those of us who never do deep bottom turns and, rather than off-the-lips, do little roller coasters along the face ..if caught.

An interesting line of inflatables is -not from- but called INDIANA.  Gunnar Biniasch from Canary Is. Did the design work and added a lot of the right hardware bits. It looks like good kit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs4kL5--Nik


Jim
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Wetstuff

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #11 on: January 13, 2020, 07:42:05 AM »
Here is a backup comment to F-One Rocket Air video supkailua posted.  I asked our Swedish friend about flex.

"The rocket board is a great learning board when you get better you will probably want to get a smaller hard board but to start with the Rocket air i really nice.  it pumps fine :)"

Mvh
Arild Kristiansen
Surfskolan Varberg


....the emoji added here?!


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Wetstuff

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #12 on: January 13, 2020, 08:00:45 AM »
More from the Indiana board designer, Gunnar Biniasch, in reply to my question about flex.

"What makes the Indiana Inflatable Boards different to the others currently on the market, including the kiteboard, is that they do not flex in front of the box. This makes them perform almost as well as the Hard boards on the water, and just like a hard board when flying.  It took a lot of testing and experimenting to get to this level of stiffness.  A year ago I would not have believed that we could get them this stiff."

Jim
 
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Wetstuff

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #13 on: January 13, 2020, 11:47:43 AM »
Pics of the Indiana 'Wing' board.  Notable: 6" thick.

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surfcowboy

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Re: Inflatable foil boards..
« Reply #14 on: January 13, 2020, 07:11:06 PM »
Ok, so who’s first to get s foil, wing, and board into an XL suitcase and beat the airlines.

If Steamroller can’t bend it, it’d be hard as a rock for me. If I wore swim fins he could use me as a paddle.  ;D

 


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