I'm asking for someone who wants to get into some light wind (5 - 15 knots), freeride windfoiling on the lake. He's an experienced long time slalom sailor and weighs 100kg. I was talking to him yesterday and recommended 130 L board, 6m sail (3 or 4 batten wave or foil specific, and something that will also be light to hold onto and obviously be a good foil sail), and 1500cm2 front wing and matching stab.
just wondering what people think about this gear recommendation given the above rider weight and wind speed. Mabey there are some heavy weights out there that could tweak my recommendation ?
All comments appreciated. Tnks.
6 m sail sounds small for a 100 kg beginner foiler, at 82 kg my biggest wing is 1080 cm2 and in sub 10 knots I am on an 8 m no-cam sail.
7-8m foil sail, with 2 cams. Maybe a smaller foil.
Definitely want a board with volume, that's important for a bigger sailor to get going in light gusty wind.
AWalkSpoiled is similar weight and he rides an 8.5 Sailworks Flyer pretty well in those conditions.
Maybe he could start by trying his present sails to get a feeling of the power he needs. I am using some of my old 3 cam freerace sails (KA Koncept) and I find them great for foiling. Agree with a wing around 1400-1600 to make it easy to learn and then use for lighter wind
I'm right at 100kg also and agree that 6m is too small to start with. 6.0 is kind of a no-man's land for a heavyweight. I ride my 7.0 until it's really blowing 18, and then I usually skip my 5.7 and go right to a 5.2 wave sail.
I also think that on lakes cambers can be really useful - not so much for the gusts but to help handle the huge shifts you'll often get. 130 liters is about the smallest I'd consider because on a lake you'll often be limping out to or from the wind line and often be standing around waiting for gusts, so the board needs to slog well. If he has a superlightwind slalom board that's 85-92cm, or an old formula board, he should just start with that.
I agree with a 1400+ foil, and I'd just be sure that whatever he goes with also offers smaller, racier wings for when his skills allow. I use a 2000 for the lightest air and then switch to a 1250 and on the lakes where I sail in summer the 1250 is never too big. If I were starting from scratch I think I'd go with Sabfoil or AFS because their masts are so good but I really like the Severne 1400 setup too.
As far as sails I do like my 8.5 (in my avatar on a 91cm light wind slalom board) but if he's a really skilled slalom sailor he could probably just start with his 7.8ish slalom sail, possibly removing the bottom cam for easier rotation when it's underdownhauled.
I also am about 100 kg. The 130 liter board is about right (I use a Exocet Freefoil 132 in Florida and Stingray 140 at home). The 7.0 sail is about right (I use Flyer 7.0 in both places). The 1500 cm2 foil is about right (I use a i76 in Florida and SAB 950 at home). It is a pretty combination, and it's easy riding.
