Looking to start wing foiling

So back with some more questions please.

I have had my board and Ozone Wasp 4m wing 6 weeks now and have been out for 5 sessions on relatively flat water. As a total novice it has taken me longer to work this all out than most I imagine. In hindsight however, only this last weekend was in conditions that were close to ideal. All the other sessions were in much less wind or conditions too choppy, but good to practice in all conditions as it is rarely ideal. So all up has taken me about 7 hours to cruise along with the wing on my 2 in 1 Sunova with fins (no foil yet).

I can now stay up wind, turn and basically stay out as long as I like and end up back where I started. So pumped that I do not have to do the walk of shame any longer.

So my question now is onto the foil. Below is my board for info. Weighed myself yesterday and I am 68kgs. I know people will say get a smaller, foil specific board but this is what I have for now so advise on a set up for this board would be great.

Sunova 2 in 1 Foilboard Eco
7'4"
111L
Foil system: 2 track and tuttle

Any recommendations on foil size and brand would be much appreciated. Assume I want a larger, slower one for beginning on.

Also, I do not have foot straps on my board. Do you need them? Can they be retrofitted if need be?

Thanks

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hilly said..

Macca1410 said..
Assume I want a larger, slower one for beginning on.

Yes if light wind really large 2000cm plus. I use a 2400 and it goes really well. Strong wing 1200 to 1600cm. 70cm mast

Macca1410 said..
Also, I do not have foot straps on my board. Do you need them? Can they be retrofitted if need be?

No not need but Yes you can fit

Axis, GoFoil, NP, Armstrong, Naish, Fanatic, Unifoil, Takuma, etc all make foils that would suit. If you want to save money buy secondhand. Because you are learning you do not need the latest and greatest but if you get foil brain it will save you money in the long run.
Look for wing compatibility as well some brands eg GoFoil not all wings fit all fuselages and masts.

The journey is the fun part enjoy.

Thanks for the input guys. Lots of research to do. As you say all part of the journey.
Cant sleep with the excitement of getting on a foil.

Bugger ,how did it happen?

Expensive accident. Repairable? Will take your advice hilly. Sorry to see that.


So me being impatient and all, I have gone and bought the following:

www.naishfoils.com/product/surf-foil-jet-1650-complete-abracadabra/

Gets delivered in next couple of days. Praying for decent conditions on the weekend.

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hilly said..

Macca1410 said..
Expensive accident. Repairable? Will take your advice hilly. Sorry to see that.


So me being impatient and all, I have gone and bought the following:

www.naishfoils.com/product/surf-foil-jet-1650-complete-abracadabra/

Gets delivered in next couple of days. Praying for decent conditions on the weekend.

Fixable. Foil looks nice. JB would be proud

Reading JB's posts on it when it came out last year definitely swayed my decision.

Good luck fixing the wing.

This failure is very common. Wing struts are quite large, and if the wing is folded by a wave the reduction of available volume in the strut is huge and it bursts. It doesn't help that pressure manifolds on the pumps are often unreliable and you can unknowingly put too much pressure in your wing. Basically avoid any situation where the wing could fold under pressure.

Kite shops can repair it easily, and avid wave wing foilers have begun to learn to repair it themselves. Just like with SUPs most of us learnt how to repair dings :-)

There are some tutorial vids on youtube, such as:

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Macca1410 said..

Does anyone know anything about these products and if they are any good? Any other suggestions would be appreciated.
...

Hello
just an update to the original Question.
In this german forum there are some discussions about the manta board (just use translator to get the most info)
surfforum.oase.com/showthread.php?t=177058

I will test the Indiana inflatable board (not available yet), looks quite stiff in this video


knatti

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knatti said..

Macca1410 said..

Does anyone know anything about these products and if they are any good? Any other suggestions would be appreciated.
...

Hello
just an update to the original Question.
In this german forum there are some discussions about the manta board (just use translator to get the most info)
surfforum.oase.com/showthread.php?t=177058

I will test the Indiana inflatable board (not available yet), looks quite stiff in this video

knatti

Looks pretty good. I still may get an inflatable down the track for travelling with.
Another question to the wider community. Can you use the wing when it is raining? Not pissing down but in showers? I ask because tomorrow's winds look good in Sydney but it is raining. Just want to get out as much as possible. I am gonna get wet anyway. Thanks

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Hdip said..
You have to dry off kites when they get fresh water on them or they will mildew and get moldy. Salt water is ok. You can put them away wet if it's just salt water. I'd wager the same is true for wings.

Didn't think of the fresh water aspect. Very true. Thanks Hdip. To be fair I always dry my wing out before packing away though.

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Macca1410 said..
Hi all, been out a fair few times now and lovn winging. Just can't seem to get up on my foil. Guess it will come with more practice. Will be out trying again tomorrow.
I noticed when washing down my foil and mast on the weekend that I had some water maybe 50ml splashing around in the mast. I have a Naish current model mast. Is this normal? Thanks

Don't know if it's 'normal' but it's happened to mine as well. Bit annoying... I've found it'll mostly drain if you leave it vertical but not all the water comes out. In fact you've reminded me to try and sort it out...

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Macca1410 said..
Hi all, been out a fair few times now and lovn winging. Just can't seem to get up on my foil. Guess it will come with more practice. Will be out trying again tomorrow.
I noticed when washing down my foil and mast on the weekend that I had some water maybe 50ml splashing around in the mast. I have a Naish current model mast. Is this normal? Thanks

With that 4m ozone, you'll want solid 20kt for learning. And as large a foil as you can find as far forward as it goes. What is surface area of your foil? The unpleasant surprise with winging is it takes more wind than you'd think you need. Similar to learning kiting, you want to be nicely powered when you're learning. Later on, when you learn efficiencies, you can find power on lighter wind days and economize your movements to maximize it.

I don't know if you're a wind chaser otherwise, but from beginning kiting I can tell you most newbies completely overestimate wind strengths. All those blown out surf days? Not even close, 6-8kts wrecks the surf but isn't enough for anything fun in the wind. Test #1: if you turn and walk with the wind, if you don't feel it on the back of your head, it's under 10kts. Test #2: if water has no real texture, then it's under 15kt...at 15 you'll start to see tiny little caps here and there. 20kt plus you start to see lots more caps and the wind waves will make it hard to stand on a little sup foil. Having a cheap anemometer is a good investment at the start, to add some reality to the "stoke goggles". :-)

But luckily, getting in wrong with winging just means tired arms and maybe a long paddle. Getting it wrong kiting is a world of hurt.

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juandesooka said..

Macca1410 said..
Hi all, been out a fair few times now and lovn winging. Just can't seem to get up on my foil. Guess it will come with more practice. Will be out trying again tomorrow.
I noticed when washing down my foil and mast on the weekend that I had some water maybe 50ml splashing around in the mast. I have a Naish current model mast. Is this normal? Thanks

With that 4m ozone, you'll want solid 20kt for learning. And as large a foil as you can find as far forward as it goes. What is surface area of your foil? The unpleasant surprise with winging is it takes more wind than you'd think you need. Similar to learning kiting, you want to be nicely powered when you're learning. Later on, when you learn efficiencies, you can find power on lighter wind days and economize your movements to maximize it.

I don't know if you're a wind chaser otherwise, but from beginning kiting I can tell you most newbies completely overestimate wind strengths. All those blown out surf days? Not even close, 6-8kts wrecks the surf but isn't enough for anything fun in the wind. Test #1: if you turn and walk with the wind, if you don't feel it on the back of your head, it's under 10kts. Test #2: if water has no real texture, then it's under 15kt...at 15 you'll start to see tiny little caps here and there. 20kt plus you start to see lots more caps and the wind waves will make it hard to stand on a little sup foil. Having a cheap anemometer is a good investment at the start, to add some reality to the "stoke goggles". :-)

But luckily, getting in wrong with winging just means tired arms and maybe a long paddle. Getting it wrong kiting is a world of hurt.

Thanks fo re advice juandesooka. Much appreciated. I think you are right about needing more wind. I am there pumping the board and wing as much as I can and still not getting up. No doubt most is due to my poor technique as in the same wind 12-15 knots I see heaps of other guys up. As you say once you have more experience it will be easier to get up in lighter winds.

My foil is 1,650cm2 got this size as thought it would be fine once I worked it out compared to a bigger front wing to start with. Also thinking of buying a 6m wing to help in the light winds.

I do go out on any day that is even half decent (and I am free). Couple of times been the only person out on the water as no one else thinks it is worth it and find it frustrating as do not get going much but at least I learn something each time.

Thanks for advice on understanding wind strength will take all that on board.

Cheers

Well I just had my first go at winging and despite having watched a lot of videos of people who rip I actually didn't get up and start shredding instantly!

Wierd I know, they made it look so easy. Instead I fell off a lot, drifted down wind, even hit a rock and scratched up my foil, barely got up foiling a couple times and spent a lot of time underpowered trudging around.

Need more time and more wind!

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Youngbreezy said..
Well I just had my first go at winging and despite having watched a lot of videos of people who rip I actually didn't get up and start shredding instantly!

Wierd I know, they made it look so easy. Instead I fell off a lot, drifted down wind, even hit a rock and scratched up my foil, barely got up foiling a couple times and spent a lot of time underpowered trudging around.

Need more time and more wind!

Where did you go? No wind today.

Hey Macca,
The 6m Ozone wasp is a solid choice if looking to get going earlier. I use the 6m from about 12-19kts. I have mainly been using the Starboard foils, 1700, 2000 and 2400 and switch up with the wings to maximize my wind range and the type of conditions. Since you have the naish foil 1650, I would recommend adding the 2000 and even the 2450 foils to your quiver so to maximize your wind range.