Sorry if this has been asked before but tried a search with no results. I'm 80kgs, ex windsurfer kiter.
can you learn on a HA ratio foil? what would be a recommended front foil size.
getting conflicting advice from shops, a couple said HA ratio is the way things are moving. I don't want to buy one and then swap it in a couple of months.
can see me going out in lighter winds 10-20 knots, and poss surfing with wing or paddle.
all help appreciated as it's a minefield out there. looking at the new fantastic range.
Thanks in advanced.
I'd look at it this way.. If you want to learn to skateboard you can choose a gentle slope or a very steep hill.
A LA foil will give early lift.. Be more stable.. and be slow and in control..
A HA foil will not lift as easy.. Be unstable.. Be fast and you will be out of control.. (for most learners).
So.. You can choose the steep hill to learn on if you like.. but I wouldn't recommend it.. because learning should be fun.
I'm thinking a foil at least 2000 in size.. and it will most likely be at least a year before wanting to progress to a smaller HA foil.. Not just a couple of months.
i think it really depends on the particular foil. some HA foils aren't really all the HA, and AR doesn't address foil section, outline, fuselage length, stabilizer size, etc...
In my experience, the Fanatic HA 1750 w/ the 80cm fuselage is one of the easiest foils to use, and I absolutely recommend it to beginners (either buying, renting, etc...) It as an AR of ~5.7 IIRC, and it lifts very predictably and controllably. Anybody who was on a Slingshot i99 or i84 who I put on the Fanatic thought the latter was easier to foil. I found the low end and overall range to be great as well.
I was talking to a wing curious wind-foiler the other day (big guy) and he was wondering if he should go with a super short fuselage. I think long fuselages make learning way easier as well, and advised him so.
Not all HA foils are the same or even similar in my experience.
Unfortunately, the Fanatic foils are almost impossible to get. Many people here are also learning on the SAB W1100 with good success.
