Shhhh - I snuck in a session during a long lunch break today. The forecast called for winds from the SW at wingable strength - finally a break in the wind drought!!! I can't complain about not getting to wing - I've either shortboarded, prone foiled or prone Foil Drived for days on end with the clean conditions and decent late season surf - but my shoulders have been screaming for a rest.
I did not want to get skunked so I brought out the bigger stuff - No.25, the F One Eagle 1090 and the North Mode Pro 6.8 (I got this to race with - this is the inaugural run and a good test of the high end). I set up the wing with a harness line and a leash line pigtail.
The canopy material (Matrix) is really interesting - it is supposed to hold its shape for a very long time. It is supposed to resist stretching so the wing will retain its shape for much longer. The N-weave 45 also made for a stiffer wing. And for half the cost of an Ocean Rodeo Aeris AA Glide series wing...
The Mode Pro has a flatter profile - so it is indicative of a wing with forward drive and less low-end grunt (which North advertises). I found this to be true - I couldn't find the top end, it just kept wanting to go. The bottom end was not horrible, but at times I thought I could get up in these winds with the SW2 5.2 (but the SW2 does have a much smaller wind range).
Honestly - I was just glad to be able to get in a lunch session to test out a new piece of equipment!!!
Different pattern today - pretty much the mirror image of normal South Shore.
The Mode Pro handled the stronger winds without any issues (as they advertise). It is definitely bigger than the Reedin SW2 5.2 (see the picture below), and I really didn't have to pump the wing much. When I did pump it, I did notice the wingtips would get caught on the surface - probably because I'm short and the wing is big (not nearly as big as the Nova Light Wind 8.0m I sold to Nick - but definitely had to manage the wing placement; interesting I didn't feel like I had to do that when I was borrowing Kalani's SW2 6.0)
When the wind blows in from the SW (or even the W) small waves roll in to the inside of Hickam Harbor. If you look on my track, you can see the wiggles on the inside where I was riding the bumps. On one instance, I'm pretty sure I got the foil out of the water and on to a power slide - I recovered and am now curious about doing this at will.
I made it out to Firsts. Same conditions outside - sloppy, disorganized bumps coming through.
This wind was definitely doable with the SW2 5.2 - but it is confidence building that I could take it out in this much wind and not feel overpowered. This is a great characteristic for a racing wing.
I did a lot of transitions to test the Mode Pro's handling. On the conventional jibes, I needed to swing the wing over to the new tack, and I had to keep it higher than my head to clear the handles. This wing seems to require more user input than the SW2 or the RS - but I'm sure I'll get used to it. I did get a duck jibe in successfully also.
Then towards the end of the session I tried both toe-heel and heel-switch tacks. I nailed three sets back to back. Not sure if it was the wing, the front foil, or a combination of both, but all 6 back to back were high and dry - more confidence building attributes!
I finished up trying to see how fast I could get this wing. Comparing my speed with the wind graph, I'm seeing I matched wind speed - which I've only been able to do with the Ocean Rodeo Glide A Series.
I need to figure out how to better fold the wing to get it back in its bag.
As I write this, I do feel the lower tendon in my left elbow is a little sore. I had this bad and to a worse degree when using the RS wings. It was worse with those wings as they did not like being overpowered at all. I get a little concerned when I use a wing with hard handles for this reason. Maybe this soreness is due to getting used to the wing - only time will tell.
Now back to surfing -
W:104/F:97/S:50
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