Foil Drive Session 1 and 2 - 5/30/2026

Burned two batteries this morning.

Swell was big on the sets - seemed to be coming from straight south (and closing out the break just west of Campgrounds).

Tide was low, but Norm didn't want to deal with the crowds at WPB - so Norm, Stu and I Foil Drive-d Pavilions 

After yesterday evening's session, I wanted to start today with the AFS Silk 1050/142 

And this foil surprised me yet again!

After watching the break towards CG closing out, I trended towards going left towards Tails/Swabbies (to avoid the closeouts).

16 rides this first session.

These rides had more than sufficient glide and the turns were good.

Went back in to swap batteries and changed the Silk 1050 for the Silk 850.

Turns were much better than the 1050 - rail to rail, bouncing back and forth between peaks. 

But the odd thing was this was foil didn't go as fast as the 1050.  Might have been the waves I was riding...

10 rides the second go around.

These last two sessions has made me think I need to use the Silk 1050 for parawinging...

PF:8/W:2/PW:55/FD:40/S:17

Foil Drive Session and J Splee Test Drive - 5/3/2026

Woke up and got the AFS UHM 80cm mast setup with the Zip Pod.

I headed out - but realized I forgot my battery.

Then I saw a text from Prayot that the surf was pumping - so I doubled back and grabbed the AFS Silk 850

Surf was good size and breaking on the outside.

It's hard to see but there were three monk seals swimming by the orange buoy.

It was a pretty low tide...

Had to paddle pretty far out to avoid grounding this foil.

The AFS Silk 850 is such an amazing foil -

I had the blue props on, but trying the catch the swell outside meant running up to a faster speed (which the black props do better).

I didn't miss any waves - but this is one area where I know by trial and error that I should swap out props.

The waves I caught outside awesome - overhead, pitching lip and standing up super tall.

Using the Silk 850 to maneuver around the breaking sections and to carve up and down a running wall - nothing else like it!!!

Eleven rides, and then I called it because I wanted to get to the Hapa Surf Shop/J Splee Surfboards demo day.

I ended up trying three surfboards - Quinn's 6'0" Tanto Twin (this is a phenomenal board - felt way better than the Great White Twin, but maybe on par with the Reveo Max).

Then I tried the Blue Beam (it realistically was too small for me, but the on the waves I caught, this board was super fun).

And I should have tried the Aurora... but went for the Double Chin - which definitely was too small for me.  But again, on the waves I did catch, it turns and keeps wanting to turn/pivot - where the Hammah fish wants to roll and carve more (which lately is more my style).

Super fun talking board design with JC!!!

Totally drained and stoked!!!!

PF:6/W:2/PW:37/FD:34/S:15

Parawing Session - 3/31/2026

Today was a bit stronger wind than yesterday, but smaller waves.

Nice high tide again - definitely made launching and landing way easier.

Two monk seals were basking away today.

Parawings are so easy to carry - and that leads to swapping.  I initially took the Maliko 5.1 out, was a tad bit overpowered then went in to swap out to the Maliko 4.0

And something else new - I used the Silk 1050/Silk 142

This graph usually goes before the speed graphs, but since I went out twice, I'll put it here.  If I had thought it through, I would have packed both and swapped out when the wind dictated.

I took the Maliko 5.1 out first

I waited a bit, but when the wind and the swell were aligned more side off, I started throwing tacks.  I got in at least three riding out of, and a few more that I got hung up on.  Heelside tacking feels way more like you are about to crash the parawing nose first compared to an inflatable wing.  I'm getting more accustomed to this now so it should start to feel less critical.

Not bad for the Silk 1050 -

I did go in and I moved the foil forward a couple of notches and I swapped PWs out to the Maliko 4.0

Unfortunately the wind started to get a bit more up and down.  I was still able to get up, but it involved a lot more pumping.

With the Maliko 4.0, I could tack over easier and jibing was almost automatic.

I got in several more tacks - some good, others where the wind seemed to fade as I was coming back down.

And there was a big lull where I needed just a couple more mph to get up.  I thought I was going to have to paddle back - but I did manage to get up and had enough wind to get back to the launch point.

Always a great session when you don't have to paddle back!!! 

PF:4/W:2/PW:29/FD:23/S:9

Prone Foiling Session - 3/6/2026

And in the afternoon, La was working on some projects, so I figured I'd hit the beach.

These guys were chilling.

And Kalani had sent video - it seemed junky so I figured I should practice prone foiling again.

Silk 1050 on the long fuselage with the Silk 142 rear stabilizer.

I don't remember how taxing prone foiling is... definitely humbling.

I actually feel like I surf better than I prone foil (which used to NOT be the case).

I can say with confidence that Foil Drive-ing makes your prone foiling SUCK!!!

HUGE difference in track patterns in FD and PF.

I did manage to get three rides, with the last one being more indicative of what I used to get (before Foil Drive).  Having the Silk 1050 on may have been a factor...

I did make an adjustment on the mast position - moving it forward a notch and it did work better.

I think next time I'll use the Uni Progression 170 - and continue using that foil until I get used to doing this again...

PF:4/W:2/PW:20/FD:20/S:9

Evening Prone Foiling Session - 2/6/2026

I had two rest days in a row - today was a get out and get some foil positions down on No.43 day

The waves were generally small, but they were supposed to pick up a bit and the tide was coming up - so generally a favorable forecast.

These three were basking - we don't usually get three this close in proximity.

No.43 with the AFS 75cm UHM mast (freshly modified), Modular Silk 1050/Silk 142 mounted on the standard Fuselink fuselage. 

With the waves on the small side, prone foiling was even harder than it is normally.  And it didn't help I was trying to be extra cautious with the new foil.

After a long wait and many failed takeoffs, I finally caught one and got up to ride.  The Silk 1050 is amazing!!!  Turns super hard, pumps through flat spots and is uber maneuverable.

On this wave the system felt like it could use more raw lift.  I moved the foil forward and tried again.

The second wave I caught felt way better -

The pressure felt balanced front and back, and the turns were even easier to make.

Both waves were decently long, but with low wave energy, I had zero chance of pumping back out.

Prone foiling is no joke - I'll mix this in more to regain my proficiency.

PF:1/PW:8/FD:12/S:7

Evening Foil Drive Session - 10/2/2025

Slightly smaller than yesterday - but still fun.

Large crew out today - Brent, Prayot, Roland, Robby, Stu and me

And this guy - 

I swapped out the foil to the Silk 850/142 - I LOVE THIS FOIL!!!

Similar stats to yesterday - but I had better battery usage today.

And even the track pattern was similar to yesterday.

Lots of hard turns today with the Silk 850!!!!

And some rides were ridiculously long.

I know I had a couple of missed waves - so I'm calling the wave count at 18 today.

Fun session!  And I talked board building with Brent afterwards - 

W:56/FD:121/PW:44/S:8

Dawn Patrol - 2nd - 9/27/2025

I went in to swap out batteries and Norm drove up.

I also switched out to the Silk 850/HA40 (and that's the reason I'm counting this as a second session).

Tide had dropped a little and the waves when they came through were a little more energetic.

I used the "fat finger" distance I noted on No.40 for the initial spacing on the Silk 850.  I ended up moving it forward a bit to get a little more lift - I was having a hard time getting the foil to carry through.  This foil won't have the carry of the Enduro foils, but it was dropping out too early.  After the adjustment it was good.  The back end felt a little more loose - but that was the Silk 142 rear stabilizer.  I marked this position.

I had a bit more trouble riding the Silk 850 on No.39.  Having way more reactivity on the roll axis, No.39's narrower width made control that much more critical.  But after I got it dialing in, it was awesome on the bigger waves.

11 rides - some of the peaks shown are blown waves due to me adjusting.

I think No.39 will be the next board I use to parawing.  It has forward footstrap inserts already (to help with pumping) and it's propensity to build speed quickly will work to engage the foil faster.  And using the Enduro 1300, the narrower width sensitivity will get dampened a bit.

Now we just need wind...

W:56/FD:119/PW:43/S:8

Evening Foil Drive Session - 9/9/2025

Fol Drive session with Roland, Norm and Stu (Duke prone foiled later).

The wind from Hurricane Kiko was influencing the local weather - swirling wind.

Head high surf on the sets - but pretty full tide.

Same setup as Sunday - but I switched out the HA40 rear stabilizer to the Silk 142.

I didn't scratch the Silk 850 today - I did enough of that on Sunday.  I could still put another coat or two over the badly scratched areas - but for now the repair work is fine.

The tide kept the waves from breaking more consistently on the outside.  But inside - they stood up pretty vertical (super fun to carve up).

I had to do a quick partial charge on my HO battery - so I didn't have the entire battery available.  And I also thought the boost wasn't adjusted for maximum output (from switching between the regular Max battery).  And the last excuse I'll put out there is the Silk 850 vs the Enduro 900 - the Silk picks up steeper waves better, but flatter waves slower.

Went right mostly today to avoid the surfers at Fenceline.

13 rides - and the 142 stabilizer opened up the Silk 850 even more... 

I'm going to have to move the mast back a notch if I'm going to stick with the Silk rear stabilizer (it has more down force than the HA40).

Fun session!!!

W:56/FD:114/PW:31/S:8