Wing Foiling Session - 11/29/2021

Yesterday's session was another experimental run.  This time it was the Lift 150 Surf V2 with the 25 Rear Stabilizer.  Same wing as last time, same mast, same board.

The bolts stayed tight on this setup so no issues there.  Where there were things to consider was on the water, this is really a small foil - front and rear stabilizer.  At just over 960 cm2, this is a smaller front foil than I normally use by a large margin.  I had brought it out thinking the wind would be much stronger than it was.  I had to move the foil all the way to the front of the boxes.

The wind had more North in it and it was gusting.  Not apparently the conditions where I do my best.  A lot of blue (slow motion) in the tracks below.

 

When I did manage to get up on foil, this setup moved fast.  It took me a few runs before I was able to get the transitions - but once I was, I could tack without coming down.

If there would have been more, steadier wind, I think this foil would have shined.  I think this one is going to be a work in progress - I think the 25 rear stabilizer is too small (unless it is nuking) - so using the adapter for bolting on different rear stabilizers will offer some alternatives.

I wish the strong steady winds would return... this soft, swirly stuff is driving me nuts.

Wing Foiling Session - 11/28/2021

First session with the 85cm Project Cedrus mast.  With the plate and the adapter, it is closer to 89cm - really good for committed wing foiling.  I bolted on the Axis ART 999 on the Ultrashort fuselage and added the 400 progressive rear stabilizer.  No question on what wing (OR Glide A 5.0).

Wind was there, but it made you work for it.  What made it worse was the bolt connection for the Axis adapter is a little different - one bolt goes through the adapter into the mast, another goes through the fuselage and the adapter into the mast, and the last one just goes through the fuselage into the adapter.  The first and last bolts fit really nicely.  The second one did not want to tighten all the way - seemed just a little too long.  I got it super close and everything seemed good to go so I hit the water.

Also tried out the GoPro 9 I got over the weekend (on really good sale for Black Friday).  I had gotten a kite strut mount a while back and the OR Glide had a spot on the rear of the boom that looked suitable.  Truth is it was too close to me and didn't quite get a wide enough field of view.

Surprisingly the ART 999 got up pretty quickly.  It felt really sensitive though - which I originally attributed to the form factor (super narrow chord, super thin chamber, really long span), but after the session and examining the bolts had loosened, it became apparent I need to address the bolt number 2.

Not really that much wind, so this front foil is really promising.

More experimentation coming up!!!

Garage Works - 11/27/2021

After a long afternoon nap, I hit the garage to get the messiest part of the board projects sitting there done (yes I've been stalling).  I got the footstrap insert slots routed out on the new 4'8" wing foiling board.  This was not hard - new builds are easier compared to repairs.

Speaking of repairs - Marvin asked if I could flip the footstrap inserts on a board he bought used.  He also asked if I could fill in the heel dents, fix a ding in the tail, put some anti-dent patches, and laminate a cap sheet over the whole thing.  I already fixed the tail ding.  And today, since I had the router setup, I went ahead and removed the old inserts and opened up the slots for the reinforcement blocks.

I'll fill in the voids with strips of EPS.  Tomorrow I'll epoxy the blocks into both boards and mark out where the strap inserts will go.

And lastly, I took the 32.5" Go Foil mast off the WWFB and setup the Project Cedrus 85cm mast for the Axis ART999 on the ultrashort fuselage.  With the wind forecasted to come up tomorrow, I'll be getting this setup dialed in.  I'll bring the Lift 150 Surf V2 out as well if I have enough time.

Wing Foiling Session - 11/26/2021

Based on the observed patterns from the past few days, yesterday after work, I decided to try winging.  Good call as there was good wind (even though it didn't look like it) and I made a change to the wing.  Same gear as I've been bringing out recently - the wide wing foiling board, the PNL185, and the OR Glide 5.0.

So this was the big change - I took the middle handle off and pulled the front handle back and the back handle forward into the vacated attachment points.  This effectively stretched the handles and removed the slack that was present before.  This changed the wing from a potentially great wing that handled well in stronger winds, to a fantastic wing that worked equally well in light winds all the way up to the gusts into the mid 20s.  Getting rid of the handle slack allowed way more direct control and really allowed this wing to pump efficiently in the lighter stuff. 

I spent the majority of this session out at Firsts.  There were some tiny waves coming through, but it was rare when they actually broke.  Still tons of fun and with the tweaked wing, I was working on trying to tack without coming down off foil.

During the session, there was texture on the water but rarely were there any whitecaps.  According to the report (HNL station), you can see the wind would dip down into the low teens.

Despite the lower wind, you can see I was up on foil for the majority of the session (way more blue than black).  I would say this is completely due to the new configuration.  It is amazing what a small tweak can do!!!

Learning to Sew

La is teaching me to sew using the Sailrite.  This lesson will end up being covers for the rear stabilizers I've been making.

I've been wanting to learn to sew so I can take all the ideas stuck up in my head and make them a reality.

So starts another journey (same with the drone - hmmmm - new decade, new interests???)

Drone Action with Marlon

Marlon has gotten to be really good with his drone.  The past few sessions I've been going out with him to begin developing my own drone skills.

The family behind Marlon had the same drone, but you could tell they were just getting started (they were just doing basics and staying at a higher altitude - Marlon was trying to get as low as possible to the grass and banking as he pulled up out of the low runs).

Marlon was doing searches in the shallow waters for wildlife - he saw tons of turtles and found an eagle ray.

Our parking spot from the previous days was better - this spot up high was cool, but really dusty.  I parked here thinking we would be out of visual range of the beach goers - but when we flew overhead, Marlon said he saw a few of them pointing back towards us.

Definitely not as much exercise as foiling and surfing - but almost as much fun!!!

Wing Foiling Session - 11/21/2021

Finally there was enough wind to wing foil!!! The last time I was out winging was 11/5.  A lot of the regulars came out to partake of the wind (not sure when we will have it again - not any time soon according to the forecasts).  Matt was out when I got there.  Bill, Arvin, Harris, Jim and two others I do not know their names were all out.

PNL185, the refoiled No.9 rear stabilizer on the 32.5" mast, all bolted on to the WWFB.  Pumped up my "big" wing (Ocean Roden 5.0 Glide Series A).  This was the view from the launch when I drove up.  The wind was pretty much up into the OR Glide 5.0's range, then back down (check the chart below for what the wind meters were reporting and my correlated speed).

With the exception of one run out to Firsts to see what was going on out there wind-wise, I spent the majority of today's session making runs in and out, and really focusing on getting the transitions tweaked.  Surprising to me was making almost windless tacks and jibes - not sure why I wasn't getting these before today.  I even attempted the elusive in bound tack.  I actually really like turning.

Powered transitions are super fun with this wing - it just goes wherever you send it.  No arguments, disagreements or delays - start carving, send the wing and switch hands.  Lately I've also had more time to get through the transitions - I'm thinking that may be more from the PNL185, but I'm sure the wing isn't hurting the process.

Speaking of the PNL185 - if you are frustrated with the HA foils from the other brands - with their high stall speeds, their stickiness in the turns, and other lack of user friendliness, the PNL185 has been the best high aspect foil I've used so far. 

I got in 17.75 miles today in 2.5 hours.  You can pretty much see between these two graphs that when the wind was below 15mph, I was schlogging.  If it was higher than that - I was up and going.

Truthfully - I think only having a 5.0 on the low end of the wind scale has been making me a better winger.  More attention to easing the foil up and picking up speed using apparent wind are some of the things I'm thinking about more, and am glad when I get going in lighter and lighter winds - but a 6.0 or bigger would have made winging much easier today. 

Good time on the wing today!

Resetting Foil Straps and Board Repairs

This was Friday evening - I finished the repairs on Shari's board and moved on to working on Marvin's.  He asked that I change the front foot strap inserts over to a regular foot stance, and level the deck (from all the pressure dings).  First cut was to see what I would be dealing with - no high density foam.

Marvin did come over to go over the new foot strap locations - here is where we settled.

This will be a project - but should be fun.

Evening Session - 11/17/2021

This is a catch up post from Wednesday.  There was rumors on the internet that a late season south swell was present.  I hit it after work to see what the buzz was all about.  4'8" prone board with the GoFoil GL180 and one of the new thin rear stabilizers.

Roland was there (not napping in the van this time).  But that was a good as it got - the break was super crowded, the surf was small and the tide was on the low side of comfortable.  I caught three and called it - I needed to get back home anyways to work in the garage.

This is me trying to find way to keep the hollow void inside the Takuma masts free from water. 

I've already went through two different methods, and have an idea for a third. Blah...

Evening Session - 11/16/2021

I hit the beach at 3:30 to get a session in with the GL180 and one of the new thin rear stabilizers.  The waves were about thigh high, the tide was a low high at 1.3' and there was barely even a breeze.  I caught a bunch and just glided along (until irresistible sections came up and I just had to crank some turns). 

The thin camber functioned just like a flex longboard fin - stores and release energy through the turns.  I need to test these some more just to make sure they won't crack at the bolts holding them on to the fuselage. 

The more I use the GL180, the more I actually move the mast around. 

More Progress on Garage Projects - 11/15ish

Yesterday I skipped foiling to get some garage work done.  Not sure why this fuselage got all funked up - but I used a green scrubbing pad to knock off all the weird powdery white crusty stuff.  I only kept the front foil on for a few sessions... I'm not going to chance this happening to the rest of the rig so I'm going to break it down completely from this point forward.

I also noticed that there was water in the mast (75cm).  I drilled a hole in the silicon at the base section of the mast and drained the water.  I'll reseal the mast at the silicon caps (in between the screw holes and all should be good again).

Tonight (16th) I also re-taped the male ferrule.  The 1210 was a perfect tight fit - but the 980 was still a hair loose.  I guess this is what the crowds are talking about when they say the components of the Takuma suck.

I also got these five rear stabilizers finished.  The top two are standard thickness.  The top one is Marvin's and second one is Prayot's.  I've tested both and these are really awesome rear stabilizers.

The bottom three are made a degree thinner than the top two.  More on the performance in the next post, but I'm really happy with these!

And I got some more progress done on Shari's board. I took the spliced on EPS foam block down below the finished point yesterday with the random orbital sander.  I did not take a picture of that, but it was noticeably lower than the surrounding portions of the board.  This evening I went ahead and cut out the fiberglass patches for the fill portion of the repair.  I mixed up a batch of epoxy with cappuccino resin pigment and added some aerosil.  I got everything on the repair area.

Next step on this board repair is to sand the fill and apply a last layer of epoxy that has orange tint in it to get the top coat to match the surrounding - then it is sanding and detailing.

Dawn Patrol and the Double Session - 11/14/2021

I pulled double duty today.  Opened up with another time constrained dawn patrol session (this is a weird picture of Marlon - my phone couldn't handle the low light situation).  The surf was definitely smaller... tide was low at 0.6' (so you would have thought there would have been more breaking waves), and glassy conditions.  I caught a handful and had to call it - I had an 8:00 appointment to sell my Armstrong HS1850.  

Right after the discussion I had with the guy who bought the HS1850, Greg and his family drove up to the house so I could get him the 5'2" prone foiling board and a lesson on how to prone foil.  This second session was totally opposite of the dawn patrol.  1.6' high tide, stiff onshore breeze (associated with a squall coming through - and yes it was strong enough to wing but too onshore to do), and a sizeable swell pushing through.

I caught a bunch of waves and was ripping.  I was able to pump out the back of most of my waves - but the wind would slow me down to the point of stopping.  I did get a few two for ones, but not as many as I could have if the wind weren't as strong as it was.  Greg total got up on foil - at least three decently long waves.  Must have been a good coach that he had....

I'm glad I had the second session.

Dawn Patrol - 11/13/2021

Friday I decided to stay back and get a bunch of progress in on the garage projects.  I finished fixing the HS1532CS, templated out three more 15" rear stabilizers, and helped La get ready for a yard sale.  The afternoon tide was not good for foiling anyways.

Marlon and I made up for it by dawn patrolling on Saturday.  I used the same setup that I have been - 4'8" prone board, Kujira 1210 and the rear stabilizer I just made for Marvin (I needed to test it to make sure it was good to go - which it totally is) 

We were on a time table - I had to take Noe to Driving Class (even though she already knows how to drive).  I also had to give back the HS1532CS and pick up a Lift HA25 stabilizer.  

Back to the waves - the session was kind of weird - the tide was rising so the waves should have been good, but they were hard to catch.  I was able to catch a handful so it was time well spent.  Tim told me a story of a guy getting his foot cut open from the top across the ankle up at Puena Point.  The guy was duck diving and the board shot back at him tail first after botching the dive.  Not good.

Garage Works -11/11/2021

After foiling and breakfast, I headed to the garage to knock out some progress on the projects.  I sanded the HS1532CS trailing edge for a third time and placed a third coat of epoxy on.  After it cured I sanded it down yet again, and later this evening I'll get the last coat on, and get that through the whole sanding regime.

Then I sized up the latest ding repair job.  Went ahead and drew out what I thought needed to be cut out.

Taped off the deck so the wax job doesn't get gummed up.

Cut out the ding.

This looks like 100% fiberglass - no carbon...

And then I spliced on another piece of EPS.  I may get this dialed in this evening (cutting off the excess and sanding it down so the fiber can be laminated on).

Then I got the fiberglass cut out that will live at the bottom of the divynicell sheeting.

And I epoxied it in place.  The glass was 6 ounce fabric under the front decking and 4 ounce in the rear foot decking.  I mixed up 4.2 ounces of resin in order to make sure the cloth was saturated (the glass only weighed 1.5 ounces - so almost a 3 to 1 ratio.

The last thing I did in the garage before lunch was to sand Marvin's 15" rear stabilizer through the 40 grit sanding.  Lunch and errands are ongoing now - but I'll likely hit the garage again once I get back home.