Foil lessons

Just spent 2 hours with Tris Best at the OTC in uk.
http://uk.otc-windsurf.com/windsurf-foiling/
This is where they did the testing for the foil test in the July Windsurf magazine.
Great location with all the latest foils. Amazing to see the variety of foils in the flesh and talk to the guys that have ridden them. Wished I had more time to try a few. Flat water area to play in
Tuition was excellent using www.bbtalkin.com
Helmet with radio communication allowing you to get real time feedback while flying.
Used a JP 160 with a Lokefoil and 5.6 GA sail in wind averaging 11 knots but gusting to 16. I am around 70kg and we started on a 6.5 cheetah but was a bit of a hand full. I have had about 6 outings previously on gear borrowed from Azymuth.

Went from being able to fly for a few 100 m but feeling like I was wrestling the gear before the tuition to relaxed comfortable flying including upwind and deep downwind and even made it around my first gybes (not foiling all the way).

So if you do get to the UK go to the OTC you won't regret it.

Real "Men" don't get lessons

Just bruises

Nice work Mark

Stability of the foil is important, any movement creates problems. Flat wings work better flat rather than heeled over. Although higher aspect foils have better performance, thicker ones stall less easily and are more forgiving in gybes. Curved rear wings track better than flatones. Lower aspect wings are more suitable for downwinding
Good amount of info in the July Windsurf which you can get as an e copy online

Last month, I had the good fortune to attend a week-long Sam Ross "Flight School". Some brief details:-

Getting there etc:-
The school was at Skala Erresos, on the Greek island of Lesvos. It required four flights, Canberra to Sydney, then to Abu Dhabi, then Athens and finally Mytiline. Skala Erresos is a 2 hour bus ride west of Mytiline.

I organised the land content of the holiday through the UK's Neilson Travel.

There were six others in the class.

Off the water:-
Sam is meticulous about gear setup. Basically everything needs to be optimised "to the conditions". Boom height, harness lines position and length, sail outhaul, battens, downhaul, mast base position. Even foot straps are candidates for adjustment during the day - rearward, if more lift required, and forward if too much lift, but always outboard.

THE most fundamental setting to get right, in Sam's opinion, is to have the mast base in the correct spot. THE starting point is 110cm forward of the front bolt on the foil box. From there, minutely adjust forward if too much lift, and minutely back if more lift is required. Be aware that 110cm may not be at the centre of the mast track, hence it should be measured. Indeed, when I got home, I found that the 110cm spot is almost at the front of my Gecko track.

At the end of each day, at the bar, Sam would put up on the big screen the most telling of the photos he'd taken. Then he'd pose "what's wrong here?", and "how do you think this ends?" We all learnt from each other.

On the water:-
We all started with the "Freeride" configuration of the Starboard foil. That is to say, 1100 sq. cm wing, 500 stab, 75 cm mast and fuselage. During the week, some graduated to the GT setup (see Sean's post on Starboard foil guide 2018/2019 for details). I stayed with the Freeride.

Boards were Starboard Carves, 147s, 122s.

We rotated the use of a radio helmet to communicate with Sam. He would chase us around, either foiling or in an inflatable, taking video or still photos, and make suggestions for improvement. His eye for detail was amazing; for example, in one instance, he suggested I put my front thumb on top of the boom (vs. under). Yes, it did make an immediate difference.

The wind co-operated every day. Super-smooth off-shore conditions.

The video:
Speaks for itself.