As I said. Finally waist to shoulder high waves to learn on my 6th session. Probably the best waves I have had ggor foiling.
Did I cruise, cutback & pump. Nah! Hung on for dear life! Ha!
But got a variety of different situations like foil lifting to nose dive, foil running below wave face to make me hop back up, foil turning without notice to make me bail over side and good runs for me to practise control. And catching waves by getting in the surf stance when side on to coming wave. Which is the most comfortable for me.
Happy with my 7ft Coreban Hyper / Wahine & H4 Slingshot Wing with mast in wing so far.
Can't wait for next session!
Looks like a terrible place to be learning to foil 
Sorry if you have answered it in a previous post, but how did you decide where to place the blocks on the board? Do you find them useful?
Hi cantSUPenough. Yes the blocks are very usefull. The back foot block is great & easy to feel that my back foot has gone far enough back. The front foot block was a little high & felt a bit slippery so marked some grooves with a sharp knife. Feels good now.
By reading our posts on foot placement & watching heaps of videos.
I found that most riders have, & talked about the back foot being directly above or just behind the mast. So I put my block one full width of my foot behind. I have in fact placed my back foot behind the block too when trying to pump in small waves which felt ok too.
Once I marked the position of the mast on the deck, I then stood on the board in my natural surf stance & marked the position of my front foot. Although I decided to place the block a little more in front due to thinking I need the front foot weight to help push against the upward force of the foil. But this may not always be the case as I have found that the more you put your front foot forward the more your centre of balance shifts further back. Thus making your front foot down pressure lighter. But I may compensate as it is my front foot that is placed first which I can easily slip back behind the pad, currently my foot sits on top. So I think marking your natural surf stance from the back block would be quite satisfactory.
And oh, I have noticed most foilers have the ball of their front foot on the board centre line & not their arch. So my front foot block was placed to do the same.
So far very happy with the pool noodle blocks. Very cheap & haven't budged by being glued down with hot glue. 
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It would be interesting to know how your foil does perform in comparison to the original SS H4
Thanks Alex. Forgot to mention it is a chinese knock off.
And wishing now to have been more patient for the real H4.
The delivery took ages & the seller only communicated to China to send me one. Which I could have done for about another $400. Less.
The seller was advertised as being local to me. That's why I bought it in case of an easy return.
As far as performance. It is similar in feel to a Naish Thrust medium that we towed behind a boat. It was attached to the same kind of board. But hey that is my beginner opinion at this stage. Only an experienced foiler would know.
But so far so good.
SS h4 has been good for me to learn. Still learning. In a year or so will see what's the go but the price point was just the deal sealer.... mortgage/kids etc. It is strong too. As a feather weight at 73kg I figured the SS h4 being a little heavier would be irrelevant compared to a normal 80-90kg rider.
Not affiliated with SS. Just bit the bullet and got it....let the flights and splats continue!
Select to expand quoteSeajuice said..
Hi cantSUPenough. Yes the blocks are very usefull. The back foot block is great & easy to feel that my back foot has gone far enough back. The front foot block was a little high & felt a bit slippery so marked some grooves with a sharp knife. Feels good now.
By reading our posts on foot placement & watching heaps of videos.
I found that most riders have, & talked about the back foot being directly above or just behind the mast. So I put my block one full width of my foot behind. I have in fact placed my back foot behind the block too when trying to pump in small waves which felt ok too.
Once I marked the position of the mast on the deck, I then stood on the board in my natural surf stance & marked the position of my front foot. Although I decided to place the block a little more in front due to thinking I need the front foot weight to help push against the upward force of the foil. But this may not always be the case as I have found that the more you put your front foot forward the more your centre of balance shifts further back. Thus making your front foot down pressure lighter. But I may compensate as it is my front foot that is placed first which I can easily slip back behind the pad, currently my foot sits on top. So I think marking your natural surf stance from the back block would be quite satisfactory.
And oh, I have noticed most foilers have the ball of their front foot on the board centre line & not their arch. So my front foot block was placed to do the same.
So far very happy with the pool noodle blocks. Very cheap & haven't budged by being glued down with hot glue. .
Thanks - I was curious whether you got flying and memorized your foot position or used a technique like you did. I don't understand why the foil-board makers don't integrate the back foot block into the board. They know where the mast is. But thanks for the tips.
I have spent zero time on the foil, but I am going on a surf trip and will take it. It could be a HUGE mistake if I hurt myself on it... But it will be a chance to get towed behind a boat and to ride the fat part of the wave if the line-up is crowded. I hope it is a good idea...
Select to expand quotecantSUPenough said..
I have spent zero time on the foil, but I am going on a surf trip and will take it. It could be a HUGE mistake if I hurt myself on it... But it will be a chance to get towed behind a boat and to ride the fat part of the wave if the line-up is crowded. I hope it is a good idea...
I would try to spend some time paddling with the foil at home, at least to get used to the different balance.
If your foil wings are blunt enough, I dont think the risks of hurting yourself are too high.
Dipping the tips of the wings in some liquid rubber (the thing to cover tools handles) may be a good investment for a trip: the edge of the rubber being parallel to the water flow, it should not add too much drag, and you can peel it away if it bothers you.
Select to expand quotecolas said..cantSUPenough said..
I have spent zero time on the foil, but I am going on a surf trip and will take it. It could be a HUGE mistake if I hurt myself on it... But it will be a chance to get towed behind a boat and to ride the fat part of the wave if the line-up is crowded. I hope it is a good idea...
I would try to spend some time paddling with the foil at home, at least to get used to the different balance.
If your foil wings are blunt enough, I dont think the risks of hurting yourself are too high.
Dipping the tips of the wings in some liquid rubber (the thing to cover tools handles) may be a good investment for a trip: the edge of the rubber being parallel to the water flow, it should not add too much drag, and you can peel it away if it bothers you.
Thanks Colas - I am having second thoughts... I tried it yesterday and still have all my limbs, so that's good. Is it the wing or the mast that causes the injuries? I assume it is hard to hit your own mast. My Naish foil has nicely rounded edges to the wings, but anything I can do to minimize the risk is a good idea. It was fun to feel the lift and the moments of flight.
I have seen the Naish foil in a shop, and from memory it does not seem dangerous to me.
I think the wings are the parts we hit:
- The tips and trailing edge of the stabilizer (kicking on it in the water). Dit it once.
- The tips of the main wing, when falling in a "folding knife" (never happenned to me)
If you foil only on small fat waves on your trip there should not be more danger than regular surf / SUPing.
