Select to expand quoteSup-Foil or Surf-Foil?
I Kite-Foil for 2 years (small kite, big front wing, strapless) and would like to foil also when there's no wind. I never surfed with a surfboard or a SUP and would like to read your advices regarding the following questions:
1. Which will be easier and safer for me to start with?
2. Better to practice without a foil first?
3. The phantom 1480 by F.One would be good to start with (weight 65kg)?
* Hoping to get comments from people who had a similar (lack of) background
** Hoping to get comments from people who do both
Well, an interesting question.
I guess both paths will prove a quite challenging learning curve. I do not know if we can predict which one will be the easier for you.
In my opinion, it will depend on:
- your age/fitness: the younger you are, the easier it is to learn the prone surfing takeoff. Plus you will have more athletic capabilities to later learn to pump for a long time, which is where surf foiling shine [1]. Hips and hamstring flexibility are critical for prone takeoffs.
- your temper: efficient SUP paddling requires watching tutorials and understanding how to better your technique. prone surfing is more instinctive. Especially, efficiently paddling the short SUPs that are fun for foiling takes hundreds of practice hours.
- your spots: surf foiling requires that the wave breaks, at least a bit, for takeoff, when a good SUPer (which takes a long time to learn) can take off on non-breaking waves. Also SUPing in chop is very hard balance-wise [2], whereas surf foilers can enjoy onshore conditions more easily. And going in and out the water is easier without a paddle, and with the lighter surf foiling boards. And SUP boards get destroyed more easily in whitewater due to their bigger volume [3].
This said, in general I would advise surf foiling over SUP foiling if you are not already a good SUPer because of [1] and [2].
My background: windsurfer, surfer, SUPer. Quit surfing due to hip stiffness (I am 60), learnt to SUP foil (50 sessions), but not foiling anymore because of [1] [2] [3]. I have more fun SUPing than SUPfoiling in Hossegor (powerful whitewater) where I live.
