I have been foiling for almost two years, sailing from 10 to 30 knots with sails from 3.5 to 5.7 and a SlingShot wizard 125 using a infinity 99 and 76 , Iam 195 cm and 99Kg so a pretty heavy foiler.
I was looking for a high wind board for when the 125 start to be too big, in my country Spain I found avaliable at a reasonable price a brand new wizard 105 and a 103, the 103 seems to be pretty radical, I am wondering which one would suit my conditions and weight, looking for a board for surfing and maneuvers.
Thanks a lot for your help!!!!!
I windsurfed for 40+ years and it was simple: the stronger the wind the smaller the board. I now foil. I have a 125 fanatic stingray and this year bought a used 105 Goya airbolt. I am not yet convinced that "big wind means smaller foil board." My 125 works well with a 3.9 when the wind is up here in Nova Scotia Canada, which it has been for the past 3 days. I am still figuring out the airbolt. Would be interested in other views on foil board size and wind strength. FYI I am 75 kg.
I have both a low & high wind foil boards after 3 seasons of foiling
-(RRD Pocket Rocket 200 140L) works for 4.8-7.0 sails. I can foil in low - medium winds and go strapless most of the time w/1100 SabFoil
-(Wizard 105) 3.2-4.2 sails. Been in 30kt wind and waist high waves w/790 SabFoil. Great board. FYI, it was my first foil board, but light winds where challenging...but doable.
Two board quiver works for me.
This is an interesting question. Less foam in rougher water is better and the decreased swing weight does have some impact on maneuverability. But as NS said once flying control/maneuverability is mostly a function of your foil geometry and especially the sail mast to foil mast distance.
Do you uphaul much in the wind range you would want to use the smaller board? I hear that its near impossible to uphaul the 103, 105 is slightly more challenging than 125.
I have never tried the 103 but I think it will certainly have less overlap with your 125. So that might give you the best in terms of range of experience. If you think you can uphaul the 105 then it would likely replace your 125 for all but the lightest wind days.
The other option to consider is something with more compact geometry eg the freestyle or a newer wizard. I find a closer sail to foil mast distance helps me navigate big swell, but it also makes it harder to gybe. There are bigger volume boards that have compact geometry eg a newer wizard or something like the bigger MB Basilisk or Bobcat
Great question, I also want a high wind foil board and its bit of a dilemma for my local conditions.
The Slingshot Wizard 130 is an amazing all-around board but for Wave Wind Foiling I need something smaller to turn tighter in the pocket, my issue with the Wizard 114 is the width, its drastically different.
The best WWF conditions here (Florida East Coast) we have a nasty shore break and no matter how windy it is on the outside there is no wind to water start on the inside and you don't want to be messing around with a foil when a 4-5ft shore break is bearing down on you, so the quickest way is to uphaul and the W114 may not be the answer....just wishing there was a Wizard 120 around 70-72cm wide 
Select to expand quoteCoreAS said..
Great question, I also want a high wind foil board and its bit of a dilemma for my local conditions.
The Slingshot Wizard 130 is an amazing all-around board but for Wave Wind Foiling I need something smaller to turn tighter in the pocket, my issue with the Wizard 114 is the width, its drastically different.
The best WWF conditions here (Florida East Coast) we have a nasty shore break and no matter how windy it is on the outside there is no wind to water start on the inside and you don't want to be messing around with a foil when a 4-5ft shore break is bearing down on you, so the quickest way is to uphaul and the W114 may not be the answer....just wishing there was a Wizard 120 around 70-72cm wide
Except for reef warrior, in my opinion WWF boards are too narrow. My one board solution, custom Tillo, 172*80 118l, with huge bevels on the side, and double concave, when board interacts with water it's like tiny wave board under <50cm, minimal swing weight in the air, still can tack, uphaul in comfort when wind goes to zero. After almost 2 months of testing, Tillo will be making another one for me for Cabarete, but this time in factory in Thailand. changes: track a little back ,more volume in the nose, less in the body, new volume 114l, some foot strap plugs re alignment, double track vs. deep Tuttle
When It gets windy I like to keep my distance from the rig to give me more room and also more leverage on the rig. A lot of small foil boards bring the mast track back which I am not keen on.
My current high wind board is a patrik foil-ride 105. I used to have a JP 105 which was nice but the patrik is better. Also at 195 there is still a good chance of surviving touchdowns which can't be said for shorter boards. I have a 5'9" patrik AIO that I can sail but for the reasons given above I don't class it as a high wind board.
Select to expand quoteSailrepair said..
When It gets windy I like to keep my distance from the rig to give me more room and also more leverage on the rig. A lot of small foil boards bring the mast track back which I am not keen on.
My current high wind board is a patrik foil-ride 105. I used to have a JP 105 which was nice but the patrik is better. Also at 195 there is still a good chance of surviving touchdowns which can't be said for shorter boards. I have a 5'9" patrik AIO that I can sail but for the reasons given above I don't class it as a high wind board.
Volume and shape of the nose, rocker/scoop(?) design is the key to much more forgiving touchdowns on shorter board, at 172 cm length works fine for me.
Thanks for your replies, not sure about buying a small board,yesterday was on my wizard 125 Infinity 76 and naish chopped S, (3.8m) sailing ok in 30 knots,may be I shoult try a Infinity 65 for strong winds
Select to expand quotealbertem said..
Thanks for your replies, not sure about buying a small board,yesterday was on my wizard 125 Infinity 76 and naish chopped S, (3.8m) sailing ok in 30 knots,may be I shoult try a Infinity 65 for strong winds
In my experience, don't change to smaller foil, go down on sail size, best decision i made is to get fringe 3.3, if i would have days with >30kn much, i would get 2.4 or 2.8
Select to expand quotealbertem said..
Thanks for your replies, not sure about buying a small board,yesterday was on my wizard 125 Infinity 76 and naish chopped S, (3.8m) sailing ok in 30 knots,may be I shoult try a Infinity 65 for strong winds
FWIW, @135lbs, the I76 was a handful in winds over 25 knots. I'm on the PFI730 now which really is much more controllable. Doesn't sail as close to the wind, but higher speed. I was going to try the 65, but pulled the trigger on the phantasm setup. $$$, but very happy I did. Still crazy low stall speed like the I76, but way more stable at high speeds (at least for a featherweight).
I was finding the 76 difficult in high winds (25+ knots) and got the 65 as well. That made a huge difference. I use them both with a wizard 125 and sails from 3.7 to 5.8m. Im 82Kg and sailing in the Perth ocean. I feel that once the board is off the water the foil is the main factor for control. The lower swing weight and dfferent geometry of a smaller board must also make a difference but I haven't spent the $$ to try that yet. I was looking at the phantasm range and wondered about how the smallest foil in that range would go on the high wind days.
albertem,
I have owned both the SS Wizard 125 and 105. Like thedoor said there is some cross over between the two and at 99kg I'm not sure you will get a lot of benifit in going the 105.
Highly recommend the Infinity 65 as a high wind option or even a Timecode 68 if you can find one.
My life changed with the Phantasm 103W and PFI 730. Works in super high winds and carves way tighter and higher top speed than the i76. If you already have an aluminum mast you could try the adapter and buy just the. Fuse/wing /stab lower. At my weight, 100kg I think the mast makes a huge difference because it's so stiff.
I also got.wizard 130 at the same.time but I think the foil makes the more difference in higher winds than the board within reason.
Select to expand quoteBiggD said..
My life changed with the Phantasm 103W and PFI 730. Works in super high winds and carves way tighter and higher top speed than the i76. If you already have an aluminum mast you could try the adapter and buy just the. Fuse/wing /stab lower.
My experience as well. I bought the phantasm to HG adapter while waitimg on my w103 carbon mast. It worked, but the mast really is a huge factor when loaded up at speed. I hear that the Aluminum wide body phantasm mast works really well too without $$$. The 103 length is also a huge benefit for me with all the boat swell/slop from wakesurfing boats. I used to stand up straight and depower to get throgh them on the I76 as it tended to follow the surface of the swell.
With the phantasm and long mast I can blast through at full speed without foiling out.
I am 90 KG and have had both the W125 and the W105. Along w/ the i76, I credit these setups to really advancing my wind foiling. As other have said, higher wind demands more foil and sail control vs a smaller board. So maybe a smaller front wing (I second the idea of the Time Code 68), or a smaller sail would be the first priority.
That said, I really loved the W105 as it helped my "feel" what the foil was doing much better than on the W125. Lots of folks talk about swing weight as it relates to maneuvers which is valid, but esp. with low aspect foils, the shorter nose and less weight upfront and maybe the mast track farther back on smaller boards helps you feel small changes in wind and wave power.
The 103 is quite radical compared to the 105 IMHO. Because of its width I found the 105 to be relatively easy to slog around and be off-foil with.
Thanks for all the information, I found all your coments so helpful.
I think I will go for a Infinity 65,I am the only windfoiler in my spot,many wings,fin windsurfers even IQ foilers.
I am having so much fun windfoiling after 30 years of.windsurfing.
