Foil Drive Session - 7/27/2026

The wind looked promising - but I opted for the safer bet (Foil Drive).  Originally Stu was asking if I wanted to go to Kailua (nope, the traffic back would suck).  Then Norm and I were gonna do the WP-PV run on parawing.  But the wind was already breaking down.

So Foil Drive it is!

And Roland was anointing his new Foil Drive board!  Amundson 4'1"  

I setup the Whippit 850/Union 180 Rear Stab/Apex 78cm mast all bolted on to No.40

This setup flows through the water smoother and turns like a greased pig.

The wind was side-off shore so the waves were relatively clean.  It looked to be doable for parawing, but Foil Drive-ing was a blast!  Top speed almost 22mph!

The swell was still pushing through - nice rides to be had and you didn't have to wait too long.  The runs to the right of the takeoff spot had peak bashes galore -

While the runs to the left had super long walls.

16 rides - the Whippit is fun!!!

Tomorrow I'll set up the AFS Silk 850/USurf 135...

Another direct back to back comparison!

PF:9/W:3/PW:86/FD:56/S:20

Afternoon Parawing Session - 6/24/2026

The wind line was further off shore... signs that the wind had a lot of north in it.

There were some good sized waves still coming through. 

No.34 with the Cabrinha setup - Apex 78cm mast, Prestige 905 and the Union 180 Rear Stabilizer.  I wanted to try the 180 with the 905 to see if this setup was more balanced (compared to the 160).

Prayot and Kalani were there when I parked.  Roland came out later.  There was a debate about which size PW to take out.  I opted for the BRM S3 4.2, while Prayot took all three of his out.

The wind was not as strong as the forecast said it would be.  And it was way up and down (where the forecast called for steadier winds).

The flavor of the day was to ride out, catch a wave and retract the parawing.

We all had some bomber waves - overhead in the breaking area.  I had a few waves that went on for really long rides.  One of these I miraculously was able to redeploy in light wind and rode back to the outside.

If the wind had materialized as forecasted, this would have been epic.  It was still a great session, but getting a no stress, good wave riding day at WPB would be nice sometimes.

The peaks were definitely the long rides.  Flying along pretty much prone foiling on waves you would have never been able to catch paddling in -

Hopefully the wind fills in solid -

PF:8/W:3/PW:62/FD:52/S:20

Evening Foil Drive Session - 6/23/2026

Rain clouds moved in - so the wind was marginalized.

That's what Foil Drives are for!

There were still some bigger waves - but it has definitely come down.

I opted for the Cabrinha Whippit 850/180 monobloc rear stab setup today.

Despite the rain and the wind induced chop, I had some great rides.

One thing I will add to the Silk - Whippit comparison, the tubercles on the Silk offer "grip".  There were some waves today where I felt I was "slipping" when pushing the foil hard through a turn if there was chop.  Not every turn, but cranking under a developing hook mostly.

I never had that happen with the Silks.

Norm came out and he was on the Silk 1050.  Roland passed today (even though he was hanging in the parking lot again).

22 rides in 1.25 hours - pretty ridiculous!

I did fall a bunch the second half of the session.  With the clouds overhead, I lost the ability to discern wave from flats and I'd lose it.

The rest of the week should be perfect for parawinging!

PF:8/W:3/PW:61/FD:52/S:20

Foil Drive Dawn Patrol - 6/21/2026

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there - and also Happy Summer Solstice 2026 - the sun starts it's journey back south after today.

The conditions were similar to yesterday - really fun surf (not thrilling or dangerous) in the overhead size range.  There was a little more wind on the water - so there was a little chop.

Cabrinha Whippit 850 with the Union 180 Rear Stabilizer - turns out this setup worked perfectly!  Just goes to show you that in a world where foils seem to be converging, there are still some unique offerings out there - I went into the Cabrinha line thinking the sizing aspects would be similar to the other foils I had been using.  But I never thought I'd be prone foiling on a 905 front foil or be using a 180 rear stabilizer on the higher end of Foil Drive-ing.  I'm glad I got into this system!

I went out with the foil in the position I had last used the Whippit in.  I took two waves and noticed I had slightly more back foot pressure than I wanted.  I moved the mast up a 1/4" and the foil performed perfectly!!!

With the 180 stab, the Whippit now balances the system weight (including my 190 pound ass) so nicely.

The Whippit is smoother and more pitch stable than the Silk.  The Silk can carve a few notches harder than the Whippit, and it can rip through whitewater without blinking an eye.  The Silk also demands more focus in order to deliver the higher performance. Despite having the same surface area and similar aspect ratios, these are different animals.

Both foils drew similar lines in similar conditions - 

According to the max speed recordings from yesterday and today, the Whippit is faster by over a mile per hour - and that was with the choppier conditions today (so there is likely more potential speed to be had).  I would not have come to this conclusion without having used the 180 rear stabilizer and finding the window where this foil works for me - no more twitchiness, no more fighting to get on foil, just something intuitive and fun with the right amount of lift.

Like I've said with the Prestige - I am not going to be getting rid of the AFS foils.  Those are incredible fun and definitely take me closer to the edge of what is possible.  The Cabrinha Union foils are just plain fun!

20 or so rides - I know I did miss a few (the wave was traveling too fast).  This weekend has been awesome for riding overhead plus, super long waves -

PF:8/W:3/PW:60/FD:51/S:20