Ok I know everyone wants to ditch it, how many actually have? I am starting to really enjoy my downwinders on the wing foil but coming from kiting where I never use a leash this board leash is driving me crazy. Not fun having you coil leash jammed into your footstrap or wrapped around your mast.
Seems you could just use the wing to body drag to the board or swim upwind to grab it in most conditions.
Thanks for asking this. I've just tried Winging, got my second session in yesterday and forgot the board leash. I fell off the board a few times in light wind and the board stayed close, likely due to the infinity 99 I was using kind of acted like an anchor. I'm coming from windsurifng/windfoiling and really don't like the board leash.
I have all of 2 sessions under my belt and with any luck will get a third one in today so do NOT take anything I say seriously. I imagine if the winds are strong and you find yourself in waves, you're going to want stay connected to the board but I can't imagine having the board fly away in moderate or light winds and flat conditions but definitely want to hear the experiences.
DC
I had my 77L board's leash come untied in 25-30 knots in 3-4' rolling swell on the ocean (cold water). I thought "No problem, I'll just use the technique of dragging quickly downwind to the board". I was no where near able to keep up with the board. Thankfully a friend rescued it about 400M down wind. It's a sinking feeling watching $5000 accelerating away happily down wind while you're holding a stupid inflatable toy in your hands. Lighter wind on a lake or bay might be ok...
Watched a board take off, I 76 SS 130, rider flying 6.2 wing almost even, but losing ground to board. Wind 11-15. Once that board gets pointed downwind, it can go 2 mph.
Get a waistbelt with a coil leash and learn to live with it.Attaching the wing to the front of the belt frees your hands.
Takes some getting used to but it is by far the best solution i have tried.
I use a diver belt ,they have a strong,easy quick release.
Velcro works too.
Bayonet ,backpack style buckles are not reliable.
Leashes are a pain yes,but going leashless is like flipping a coin everytime you fall.
Select to expand quotemcrt said..
Get a waistbelt with a coil leash and learn to live with it.Attaching the wing to the front of the belt frees your hands.
Takes some getting used to but it is by far the best solution i have tried.
I use a diver belt ,they have a strong,easy quick release.
Velcro works too.
Bayonet ,backpack style buckles are not reliable.
Leashes are a pain yes,but going leashless is like flipping a coin everytime you fall.
And don't use two coil leashes, they tangle, coil to the board, straight to the wing.
I've watched a rider swimming after his board - board was getting blown downwind picking up little waves and semi foiling real well.
he didn't catch up to it - picked up by jet ski
My Balin waist mounted coil leash to my board is never a problem.. It's so good that it feels like there's no leash at all.. I've also heard stories of run-away leashless boards that good swimmers can't catch.
Just buy one of these belts www.oneoceansportsaustralia.com/accessories/no-logo-belt-only
Super comfortable 3 different attachment points so you can just attach what ever leash you have now to it.
I just run both the board and the wing leash to it and all though 2 leashes will always be a pain this is the best I have found for just general riding and DW.
Board with the foil in decent wind can get away pretty fast and if that get going at the right angle you will be hard pressed catching it so just easier to leash up.
Board leash is absolutely required when wing foiling, the board will get away from you super fast sometimes, it's nothing like kiting.
Short coiled waist leash hardly ever gets caught around legs or mast.
Unless you haven't seen it:
Select to expand quotebhc said..
Unless you haven't seen it:
I'd say it's possible but not guaranteed.
A few weeks ago my leash broke and my board took off with offshore wind. Tried to catch body dragging flying the wing the regular way but board was faster. Luckily a boat caught it. Then I saw the above video and tested the next day. It works when you do it Gunnar's way i.e. leading edge on the water, drifting dead downwind. However chop and waves may be a totally different ball game.
I use a coiled waist leash for board and a dyneema bungee cord wrist leash for the wing. Works well for me.
I am a little surprised no one responded that they are going without the board leash in certain conditions. I mostly wing in the ocean in side on conditions. I can see it being a little sketchy if you are way off shore but at most it seems like it would be an inconvenience have to drag to shore to retrieve your board assuming you stay close to shore. Based on my kite experience there are definitely times when a wave can catch the board and take it all the way to shore. A lot easier to deal with that with a kite as you can body drag very quickly and safely. Where as using the wing would be quite a bit slower and certainly sketchy in the surf zone.
Not looking to be a pioneer on this one, probably better safe then sorry. May just need to try a shorter coil leash with a belt
In my case, the board was pointed dead down wind and took off down the swell. If the board is turned sideways; no problem catching it. But that's only IF. Not a great gamble.
And wind would turn a board dead downwind because your foil/fin is the anchor at the tail of your board.
Even if you do this you probably wouldn't admit it. That one person who died because "the guy in the internet said it works" would be one too many. If you must, test this with a buddy in safe conditions and decide for yourself. One time chasing my board down the beach while playing around convinced me. Foils can grab currents we don't even feel.
Half the stuff I thought was unbearable as a new guy I don't even consider now.
Select to expand quotebhc said..
Unless you haven't seen it:
Gunnar gave a really great interview with Blue planet.
I'm not sure about how you'd go if you got a wind increase and it went to 25 knots+ with that "No leash recovery technique". Not saying it can't work, but it looks like it could be a mess if your wing is big and conditions are too. If the wing just keeps getting flattened then it looks to me like you'd struggle.
I have a coil leash to wrist from wing.
Have coupled it with a home made waist leash to the board. The waist leash is a piece of climbing webbing which attaches to a cam strap (for tying stuff down on roof racks). So the cam makes it adjustable around your waist - and it's a poor quick release.
Have attached a kiting leash to the webbing (it's a metal clip) and it can rotate around the webbing so that if your waist leash is on the wrong side of your body after a crash, you can simply grab hold of it and spin it around your waist to get it in the right place. The kiting leash also has a quick release for safety - which is what I'd use IF I got in a BIG tangle and had to free myself.
I've had the whole assembly tangle mildly on a few occasions and have found it always easy and fast to untangle.
Im learning - and falling in a lot. The leash is great for board recovery. Just give it a tug and the board is back next to you. No chasing it downwind. For more advanced riders who fall off far less often than me, yeah maybe no leash is the way to go. Each to their own.
But I wouldn't risk riding without a leash - especially while learning. Once I improve, I really doubt I'll drop the waist leash.
I don't use board leash as I ride in a small bay or on a lake most of the time, where chop does not get very big. I use Gunnar's way to catch up with the board and had so far a problem only once. It was in the bigger bay where wind swell formed to about 2 feet, nicely organized. I was surprised how this tiny swell was able to carry my board downwind at a pace which I had hard time to beat body dragging holding 5m wing vertical in 13-15 knots. It took me at least 5 minutes to chase the board down as it ended up a little bit to my side. I can't imagine doing this in larger ocean swell.
My conclusion: tiny chop or swell = no board leash, 2' or higher wind swell = board leash
Can't wait to here all the additional stories about lost boards from bros who think they can catch their boards.
I have been going leashless at my lake which has a sandy shoreline. I stay close to the launch so if it takes off its an easy swim or walk in shallow. If it is windy and theres bigger swell, and I want to go out further I put it on. So, its nice without it in 10-20mph at the right spot. I mostly try and grab it immediately after a crash. If I have to body drag to it, its 50% shot of getting it. As I am getting more into freestyle and rotations, its nice to not have a leash to get all tangled in.
This keeps coming up. I feel like the grumpy old timer ... because I have felt the helplessness of watching my board fly downwind without me ... and it seems so immensely stupid to lose your board and put yourself at risk for so little gain.
Beyond session #3 or so, once you are used to dealing with the board leash, it is a non-factor. Especially a reel leash attached to waist.
There is a similar kite leash debate, except the opposite: in kiting leashes are dangerous, so the rule is you only use them in situations where it overall reduces danger (eg a reef pass 1km out with currents). In winging, maybe a similar rule is to only remove the leash if having it adds more risk than it resolves (being attached to your board falling from 20 feet up).
If you are doing freestyle and jumps, then you can make an expert decision not to use a leash. Seems to me these debates are inadvertently encouraging newbs to make dumb misinformed decisions that could put them at risk.
Select to expand quotejuandesooka said..
This keeps coming up. I feel like the grumpy old timer ... because I have felt the helplessness of watching my board fly downwind without me ... and it seems so immensely stupid to lose your board and put yourself at risk for so little gain.
Beyond session #3 or so, once you are used to dealing with the board leash, it is a non-factor. Especially a reel leash attached to waist.
There is a similar kite leash debate, except the opposite: in kiting leashes are dangerous, so the rule is you only use them in situations where it overall reduces danger (eg a reef pass 1km out with currents). In winging, maybe a similar rule is to only remove the leash if having it adds more risk than it resolves (being attached to your board falling from 20 feet up).
If you are doing freestyle and jumps, then you can make an expert decision not to use a leash. Seems to me these debates are inadvertently encouraging newbs to make dumb misinformed decisions that could put them at risk.
Just a thought - perhaps we are all informed adults that can make our own decisions. Describing questions as reckless and labeling people as "newbs" is not helpful.
The question was, I know we have all thought about it, how many are actually going without a leash. If you stay close to shore on a small side on day at a beach break I think it can be done relatively safely. I know it could be inconvenient at times, but I don't think its always a show stopper. The freedom of motion would be appreciated.
Clearly from the responses the vast majority of us are sticking with the tethered life and probably should. Just chill on the labels , fear mongering, and name calling. Lets keep this a positive place to share ideas and stoke about this awesome sport. 
It's IRRESPONSIBLE to encourage leashless windsurfing.
I've seen a handful of cases where the board just heads downwind and downswell at over 4 mph.
Now if you never fall, you may go leashless.
Ok, I finally tried a waist leash today and I have to admit it did help as long as my board leash stayef in the back. Noticed when it moved in front I started catching the leash under my feet again but still much better than my old set up of wrist and ankle leashes which I do not recommend. Hopefully waist leashes will become the industry standard.
A big break through I had in enjoyment of sessions is to slow down and get organised when starting after a crash.
Make sure the leashes are not tangled or wrapped around the foil.
Make sure the waist belt is spun around so that it hangs in the right position.
Make sure the leash is not between my legs (or stuck between my toes 
).
Get sorted and go.
Even then, watch for waves or gusts or anything that will get in the way when you're trying to start off.
None of these things are session ending, but anything that detracts from riding and having fun is a pain.
As for leashless, on the Blue Planet interview Gunnar couldn't show any boards because 3 of them were off being repaired after ending up on the reef. He said it's the price of riding leashless.
I use a waist leash from One, www.oneoceansportsaustralia.com/accessories/no-logo-waist-leash
It works fine. I removed the little carabiner because it put a tiny surface scratch on my board. I grabbed the velcro end off a Balin leash and that fits nicely. It's very easy to mix and match leashes and belts and swivel ends and stuff to customise your leash.
I tried using a vey long coiled leash to avoid the upside down foil of death situation. The long leash did not help because the board did not stream out to the end of the leash. It flipped and ended upside down upwind of me.
Flipping seems to happen less with more experience in strong winds and I have found lying on top of the wing stops it trying to impale itself on the foil and leaves my hands and legs free to fend off the foil. I lay my body across the leading edge in kite self rescue position so there's no real risk of bagging out the wing.
Twice I lost air in my wing. Once a fell hard on the LE and blew it out completely. The other time I managed to fall just right and knocked the connection hose off. If I had to deal with no board leash on top of a deflated wing... don't know how that would have turned out in that winter 45 degree water.
Waist strap and 5 foot coil leash really stays out of my way and the only little hassel is rotating it around the waist every so often.
Totally new to this as not been on a foil yet, but Kited for years, from the early days of wearing a surf board leash, to going without one.
question, best leash combo and length. Coil/straight
thanks.
Jesus wear one or don't depending on water and wind conditions. Try it out see what works.
To add and try and be useful I have a waist leash (coil) and it works just fine with the non coil wing leash attached at the front on the waist leash band. Don't even know it's on. Get on with it fellas.
