Garage Works - No.43 - 12/14/2025

It's going to be raining and weird south winds for a week.  I'm not anticipating much quality in the water - so I've committed to using this time to make another board.

After much deliberation, No.43 will be a "Shallow" trench board.  This will not be a standard depth trench board.  No.41 really can only be used for Foil Drive.  No.43 will have a channel cut into the center instead of a deep trench.  The channel will just be deep enough to reduce the drag profile of the mast base plate so mainly benefitting prone foiling (or wing/parawing).

It'll still reduce the overall profile of a Foil Drive unit, but honestly with the power of the Foil Drive Max unit, I don't see the need to have a deep trench (or a trench at all).

I am gluing these offcut pieces of foam to start the process.

I flipped the blank to stop the runaway glue.

And I'm going to have to pick a template.

I'm debating on whether to go with a pointed nose and block tail (the standard 5-0 I built No.41 around), a rounded nose - block tail (similar to a Tomo Neutrino), or a flat nosed, parallel railed board.

I'm also trying to decide on the dimensions.  I'm sitting on 5'0" to 5'2", 19" to 20", and 3.75" at the pontoon sections.  So a board that is somewhere between a mashup of No.41 and No.39

The shallow trench will make the bottom more "catamaran" like - but the main goal will be a return to faster battery changes (without having to undo the track bolts), and the ability to prone foil the same board.

When I get home from work tomorrow, I'll trim the excess glue, draw on the template, and get it cut out.  If ambitious enough - I'll try and get the rocker profile roughed in as well.

Evening Surf Session - 12/12/2025

The surf seemed better this evening - even glassier conditions!!!

I figured it would be a good comparative session.  Sweet Potato and the Tappy Twins on deck.

The waves weren't holding as open faced as they were yesterday.

That meant the rides were much shorter.

I did get a handful of waves, but what I noticed the most was I didn't have the same degree of control as I had using yesterday's setup.

I was generating more speed and carved with more drive yesterday.

Very interesting...

So for energy predictions below 35kJ, I am likely to take out a quad setup (if not the Large Vector 3/2 set), and if there is more energy than that, I'll take out the twins.

I also noticed going left a couple of rides, that I did not have the same degree of control (again compared to yesterday).

Testing is fun!!!!

W:58/FD:140/PW:72/S:20/PF:3

Evening Surf Session - 12/10/2025

Winds were light from mid-morning on.

Forecast was calling for a small pulse from the SW - and this was reinforced by Roland giving a report from a morning session.  He said it was chest high.

I got to the beach closer to 4pm and would you look at that - chest high glassy waves!!!

The tide was low, and I didn't have a Foil Drive battery charged up.

And I actually wanted to surf -

Perfect conditions for the Sweet Potato!!!

And I wanted to try these rear trailers - the quad set of the Vector 3/2 Alpha construction set.  I got these when La purchased the Album Twinzer Twinsman. 

The first half of my session was so much fun!!! Belly to chest high, and so smooth - 

I was able to crank some really great turns.  And these fins did what I wanted to do with the sections that presented themselves.

The second half of the session saw the swell start to lull out, and the crowd got thicker.

Prayot was out on his new (replacement) 270 DW SUP board and the Evo HA 1000 foil/Uglide 41

Roland was out on his Foil Drive.  He had just gotten a used Sport battery from Paul.  This was his second session with it.  I saw him blast a good jump.

And Eli came out late with his tow boogie.

I'm glad I surfed - no need to worry about grounding a foil!

W:58/FD:140/PW:72/S:19/PF:3

Parawing Session - 12/8/2025

Leaving work and on the drive home, there were signs of wind blowing.

I got home and loaded up the truck with big stuff.  

This is what I saw when I got to the beach - WIND!!!!  Never mind the really low tide - there were whitecaps!

Big stuff - AFS Enduro 1300/HA43, No.42 and the Flysurfer POW 5.0 

As soon as I hit the water, the whitecaps started to back off.  The wind did hold at levels that got me up on foil, but if I touched down, it was kind of an ordeal to get back up.

There were sets coming through periodically - I found three sets with shoulder high waves. 

The POW drifted nicely with the swell and wind directions.  It would have been nice to stash the PW, but I didn't want to risk dropping off foil while redeploying.

The wind kept lightening up throughout the time I was out.  At the onset I was not making my jibes, but as the session went on, I was nailing them.

I even got a downloop jibe in - the pw wasn't wanting to change direction, so instead of getting pulled to a stop, I redirected the wing to loop under and I got it to reinflate.  I'll have to work on this transition more deliberately.

Not sure if the weather pattern will hold - the forecasters are calling for a low pressure system to settle in.  However - if the sun shines on Makakilo and the West Side... I'll be keeping an eye out for thermal generation. 

W:58/FD:140/PW:72/S:18/PF:3

Rear Stabilizer Differences

Rear stabilizers are probably the least understood component of a given foil system.  You hear a lot of chatter on the front foil.  And the distances between the front foil and the mast, and the mast and the rear stabilizer are things most people know how performance is impacted.

But there are just several things going on simultaneously with rear stabilizers -

For the AFS Enduro 900 - while on Foil Drive - I have historically used the HA40 stabilizer.  It works well - turns nicely, provides a lot of support, and glides easy.

I recently tried using the HA38 with the FD setup.  The system turned harder and picked up speed, but it lost the support (for pumping) and even though there was less form drag, it seemed to lose the "glide".

When you line up the HA38 and HA40, it isn't hard to see there is less chord, span and surface area in the HA38.

Now to mix things up, I recently got a Mako Carve 130

The photo above shows the HA40 and the Mako Carve 130, with the Mako having:

- less span

- maybe the same/similar surface area

- more chord and more of it centered

- narrower tips

Today was my third time using the Mako.  The first time I used it, the waves were decent sized and the system felt way more pitchy.  The second time I used it the waves had gotten a little smaller, and I had gotten used to the pitch "looseness" and even started using it to my advantage - banking turns harder.

Looking at the HA40 and the Mako - they probably have nearly the same surface area - just distributed very differently.

Today the waves were even smaller.  I was originally thinking I should put the HA40 to make sure I could get across flat sections - but then the tester in me said screw it, see what happens.

When Foil Drive-ing, the lower end of the foil system is never really an issue for me.  I just jam the throttle and get to foiling speed and take the drop on a wave - I have all the energy I need and don't worry about dropping off.  So riding with the Mako Carve/Enduro 900 was not really an issue today - I got the same performance even with the smaller waves.

I wouldn't say the same if I were prone foiling - I can't just pull a trigger and get powered up.

Long story short - the Mako Carve 130 will likely stay paired up with the AFS Enduro 900 for Foil Drive-ing.

Foil Drive Dawn Patrol - 12/7/2025

Smaller conditions this morning wave wise.

Tide was really high - overtopping at the showers...

Light northerly winds.

All put together, the high tide was reflecting the waves back out to sea - so it was relatively smooth, but bumpy.

Same lower foil and Foil Drive, but I switched boards over to No.41

I'm going to write another post on this Mako Carve rear stabilizer - but the turns I feel I am getting when I have this stab on... ho brah - so carvey!!!

With the super high tide, launching and landing were about as easy as you can get at WP.

I kinda felt bad for the surfers today - they weren't really catching much with the tide so high.

I would sit outside and cherry pick - catching and riding for really long distances.

From the tracks, you can see just how carvey this rear stabilizer makes the system.

25 fun filled rides!

So much fun from mediocre conditions!!!  

W:58/FD:140/PW:71/S:18/PF:3

Parawing Session - 12/6/2025

The forecasts aren't really lining up - so that means what happens is really anyone's guess.  From the signs around the house, it seemed as if the wind did want to pick up.

I packed up and headed to Hickam.

When I got to the parking lot, the trees along the way, the flags at the circle and even chop on the water were indicative of sufficient wind to parawing.

Once I launched... the wind dropped.

I had the Flysurfer POW 5.0 - and for the most part it was in the air.  No.34, and the AFS Enduro 1300/HA43 rounded out the equipment.  There just wasn't enough wind to even pump up on to foil.

I bobbed around for an hour.  The lifeguard even drove up to me and asked if I was ok.  I said 'yes, I'm fine".  Then he asked if I wanted a ride anyways - I'll admit there was a part of me that wanted to say yes - but I said - "No - I just need a gust".

After he left, I did get my gust!

I got four legs in to get back to the launch.  Three jibes and I got the PW to come around pretty easily (so no botched jibes taking me out).

That gust that went over 15 mph was what saved me from a skunking.

I'm glad I went out - but if I had been watching someone out on the water before I had gone out, I probably would have skipped this session.

W:58/FD:139/PW:71/S:18/PF:3

Foil Drive Dawn Patrol - 12/6/2025

Cleaner (but still a bit choppy) conditions this morning compared to yesterday evening.

Nice super high tide to make launch and recovery pretty easy.

There was some swell pushing in - but this is likely the wind swell from the SE.

Same gear as yesterday - wanting to continue developing a feel for the small rear stabilizer.

The system seemed less pitchy (but it was probably just as pitchy and I was getting used to it).  It felt like I could turn harder (smaller stabilizer has less drag and resistance to directional changes - when the waves have sufficient energy, I should try to use it in the forward mounting position).

Full house today - Dennis, Roland, Stu and another guy using Armstrong foils were out on FD; Noel and Andrew were on SUP foil; and I saw Ben out on prone (and maybe Scott).

With the high tide, I launched and landed close in.  The tide was focusing the takeoff spot (shallower pinnacle).

The wave size did come down from yesterday, but periodically good sets rolled through.

I did get a few double dips - 22 rides in total.

Fun session!!!

W:58/FD:139/PW:70/S:18/PF:3

Evening Foil Drive Session - 12/5/2025

Foil Drive convention today at WP - Eli on his Tow Boogie; Norm, Stu, Roland and I on Foil Drive Max.

The waves were definitely bigger than the previous days - mainly because of the SE winds.  But that also made the water pretty choppy.

No.34, AFS 80cm UHM mast, Enduro 900 and the Mako Carve 130 rear stabilizer.

This is a pretty small stabilizer.  Not knowing what this rear stabilizer was going to do, I placed it in the rear position and only used a +0.25 degree shim.

My first few rides were pitchy.  But as I got more time underfoot, this just became faster and more maneuverable.

This is going to be a fun addition to the quiver of foil setup choices.

Norm was on the Code 980S he recently got from Kalani - and he was ripping - even in the choppy surf.  Stu was having trouble in the chop.  Eli and Roland were hanging further inside to avoid the chop (but were closer to the surfing crowd).

I had some really short rides (because the swell wouldn't stand up), and some really long rides.  With the Mako Carve, the turns were more fun than with the HA40.

Tomorrow I am going to move it up to the short position.

17 rides - pretty darn fun!

The wind is supposed to start making a comeback... one can only hope that the forecast materializes

W:58/FD:138/PW:70/S:18/PF:3

Evening Prone Foiling Session - 12/4/2025

Similar conditions to yesterday - but the tide was a little higher and the waves just a notch bigger.

I got a Mako Carve 130 rear stabilizer in today, and I thought I would take out the Foil Drive with the Enduro 900 (swapping to the Mako stabilizer to test that out), but Roland said he was going to prone foil, so I figured I'd join him.

I bolted on the 68cm Project Cedrus mast to get a little more grounding clearance.

I caught five longer rides today - double dips, tight top turns, and gliding runs were the highlights of today's session.

Prone foiling is starting to come back -

W:58/FD:137/PW:70/S:18/PF:3

Garage Works - 12/3/2025

I sanded down the window fills on all three window sites on Kalani's board today in preparation for the cap sheets of fiberglass.

And while I was doing that, the suspected leak showed itself.

Now I've got it marked and I can get it repaired.

Tiny pinhole opening - but it still is an opening for water infiltration.

I got the cap sheet on the bottom window tonight.  That'll clear the way for working on the top deck tomorrow (2 windows and a pinhole).

Evening Prone Foiling Session - 12/3/2025

Yesterday I went to the beach - but I had brought the Volcanic Sweet Potato hoping that it would be rideable.  Roland and Brent were there - Roland was chilling and Brent was taking a break from prone foiling.

Brent went back out and proceeded to catch three waves on some tiny breaks.  This motivated me to go and prone foil again - which I did today.

The conditions were similar to yesterday - but it seemed to be a notch smaller and the tide a bit higher.

No.24 (for it's volume), the Project Cedrus Classic Carbon mast (75cm - probably should have brought out the 68cm one with the tide the way it was), and the Progression 170

I caught 5 pretty fun rides - getting in some really good turns and getting reacquainted with the low speed glide this foil offers.

Prone foiling is definitely all about the takeoff - after that it has the same mechanics as prone foil driving (duh).  But the takeoff is probably the hardest part - especially when the waves are on the small side and the tide is lower than 0.7'

Eli came out with the Tow Boogie he recently built.

This one has a single motor and the controller is integrated into the motor - these are the differences from Jesse's setup.

He was catching waves that I would have caught using the Foil Drive - but I told him I am trying to keep surfing and prone foiling relevant in my repertoire so back to prone foiling it is!

W:58/FD:137/PW:70/S:18/PF:2