I'm looking for help in choosing gear for learning to wing foil.
I'm 95kg and my daughter is 55kg. We have had half a dozen sessions on e-foils and a day winging on skis, as preparation for a goal of learning to wing foil together. We are based in Canberra, so our local conditions will typically be light and gusty (although we will travel to the coast too). We have 5.5m and 3.2m wings. My theory is that she could use the same large board + foil that I use to learn in the early stages (share the board, take turns - assuming that lots of crashing is exhausting), until we get our acts together and then invest in a smaller board + foil for her when she's ready then we could both be on the water at the same time. Specifically I had in mind 125L board with Axis SES 1040 kit that's currently on the marketplace.
Is that a bad idea? I assume the oversize board won't slow down her early learning but will the oversized foil?
For initial 10-20 hrs your strategy could be ok, after that, two sets of gear would be the go. Being on the water together would be worth it IMO.
Have gear that could suit you and could get it to your location.
PM me if you want more details.
Aloha
Select to expand quotemonkeypants said..
I'm looking for help in choosing gear for learning to wing foil.
I'm 95kg and my daughter is 55kg. We have had half a dozen sessions on e-foils and a day winging on skis, as preparation for a goal of learning to wing foil together. We are based in Canberra, so our local conditions will typically be light and gusty (although we will travel to the coast too). We have 5.5m and 3.2m wings. My theory is that she could use the same large board + foil that I use to learn in the early stages (share the board, take turns - assuming that lots of crashing is exhausting), until we get our acts together and then invest in a smaller board + foil for her when she's ready then we could both be on the water at the same time. Specifically I had in mind 125L board with Axis SES 1040 kit that's currently on the marketplace.
Is that a bad idea? I assume the oversize board won't slow down her early learning but will the oversized foil?
It's a good setup for you to learn. You will be on that 125 L board for at least 6 months. And it will be a very stable platform for your daughter to learn how to sail and handle the wing. It's all a lot harder than it looks. It's all fun though!
While I was at home in Broulee last time, I met quite a few guys who'd travel down from Canberra. They may even have some preowned gear taking up space in their shed that they want to get rid of.
For you OK with this board / foil for around 40 sessions with board. Go to smaller foil as soon as you can comfortable fly. More speed and glide it helped me to learn jibes.
For daughter for 2 sessions its ok, than She needs smaller lighter board around 95l max. And MA foil about 1500 cm
And add 4.0 wing
And go to the water together ????
PS i am 72kg 60yr and learned on KT 105l with 1500cm DUOTONE surf foil. After 10..15 sessions I changed foil to North Sonar MA1350 and MA1200????Now i changed board to NORTH Seek 4`10 78l. I regret not changing to smaller board sooner. It's better in all aspects.
Hi Monkeypants
In my experience, people learning on boards that are a bit too big is not a drama. It has a very minimal impact on your learning curve. Learning on a board that's a bit too small can potentially slow you up a bit in the early sessions.
As for foils, the SES 1040 will be really good for you. I've had friends of 65kg to 85 kg learn on the SES 940 and they've loved it. After 6 months they've transitioned to the PnG 910 and will probably stay there for some time. Someone as small as your daughter might find the SES 1040 pretty lifty, especially in windier conditions, but it will still be a usable foil for her in lighter conditions. For the both of you to learn, I reckon that's a good combo.
Big boards serve a purpose, but this is only in the very early days of getting up onto the foil and finding a balance point. After that I reckon they become a hinderance as the amount of effort to get them going by breaking water tension and the massive swing weight/length of the board slows progress and makes it less enjoyable. At 55kg, your daughter is going to struggle to really get that board going...you should be fine on a 125L board.
Thanks for the feedback. I may have missed my chance on that particular gear, but I'll keep looking for a board around 125L and similar foil. I agree it will definitely be good to have the two of us on the water at the same time and we will need a second smaller board/foil soon enough. Or two smaller boards, if the 125L one starts tool unwieldy.
