Surf Check and Garage Works - 4/29/2024

I had the intentions to surf the Hammah Fish this afternoon, but when I got there the wind was howling onshore.  That was not forecasted and I figured it wouldn't be worth the paddle out.  Chris and Felipe had just paddled back in from being skunked for a while.  Felipe was swapping out wings and was going to go back out.

I left to pick Marlon up from the rail station and saw Roland headed down Ku'alaka'i

With Marlon on board, we headed back to the beach to see if anyone else was going to surf, wing or foil.

Felipe was out and ripping on the 5.0/Eagle 890.

Eli was on the beach contemplating going out - but didn't; you could feel the pressure subsiding.  And Felipe felt the same thing and headed in.

And Roland was waiting to get his hands on the F One Strike V4.  This one was a 5.0 - Roland was wanting to test a smaller wing.  It felt balanced and well powered in the light wind.

Glad to see no one had to paddle in.

We got home and in between cooking and clearing some other things, I shaved down the polyurethane top block and dialed in the shape of the rear part of the top deck.

I added a subtle concave to the rear of the top deck that goes 1/2 up.

I used sanding screen again and got it all faired in, including the slight side cuts for the where my legs would go when I'm sitting waiting for a gust.

I cleaned up the little bleed through of the gorilla glue that came through a slot where the mast track block had a void (bonus).

And I remarked the center line and made adjustments to the rear footstrap placement.

There is a bias to my strong side - but that's ok since that's where I'll be jumping (the only time I'll be in the rear strap - if I even jump at all). 

I'll cut the footstrap insert reinforcement block slots tomorrow and get those epoxied into place.

I also think that I won't be using a SUP handle on this one, as I can hold the board under my arm (it isn't too wide).

Once that work is done, I'll start laminating.  I think I'll have both the decks laminated by the end of this weekend (although there is some really strong wind coming our way starting Thursday... not too much work happens when the wind is nuking).

Garage Works - 12/27/2023

I saw a clip on Instagram - and immediately started planning out No.34

I'm going to sit on this for a day or so.  I want this one to be more versatile than No.30 - more accessible wing foiling and more efficient prone Foil Driving (this one will be planned for a FD Assist Max) and even regular prone foiling.

The width of this current outline is just over 19.5" at 6'4" length.  I'm wondering if a 6'0" length with 20" waist will be better for what I want this board to do...

Wing Foiling Session - 8/21/2023

The wind picked up after lunch.  I headed out around 2pm - 

Rising tide, whitecaps outside and some small-ish surf (weird how the size at Campgrounds was not present at WPB).

In preparation for the race on Saturday, I decided to start using smaller foils.  Today I brought out the F One Eagle 890 (with the KD Marlin 14" on the "short" length fuselage).

With the wind still up and down (but doable) I opted for the SW2 5.2 to make sure I didn't have power - because I wanted to practice pulling upwind.

Prayot was at the beach, but didn't go out (but he did take this picture).

Pretty good stats today.

Mostly a consistent ENE wind today.

When I wasn't pulling upwind-downwind, I was taking advantage of the surf (the surfers were way inside today, which gave me more room to ride).

I got several tacks in today - so the 890 can huck them also (just not as easily as the 1090).

The chart was from Hickam - I think the wind was more steady and consistent at WPB.

I only went down a handful of times today - felt really good to be up on foil for as long as I was.

Teh forecast calls for good winds (until this weekend...)

W:82/F:80/S:32

Birthday Present 2022 - North Nova Light Wind 8.0

The other reason I called it this afternoon was to get home to this - my 51st birthday present!

It's a 2023 North Nova Light Wind 8.0 m wing in Sunset Yellow.

I had been contemplating an option for when there was no surf, and the wind was light.  One direction was to get a new kite that I could foil with in 6 to 14 mph winds.  Phil does this with his 15m Flysurfer.  The reason I did not go this route is the limited places where you can do this type of flying - Kailua and Mokuleia.

In the end I opted for a large, modern light wind wing.

As with all the wings I purchase - I pressure test them to make sure the bladders are good to go.

The wing span on this wing is not excessively large.  I feel the OR Glide A was proportionately wider.  For sure this wing is longer front to back.  And while on its nose, the top of the rear handle is at the top of my head.

I have good expectations for the performance of this wing in light winds.  In researching this, the designer - Dano See - lives in the Philippines and usually rides in the 6 to 8 mph winds prevalent there.

The struts and leading edge are massive!  I can't wait to get this out (tomorrow is supposed to be really light in the afternoon).

And since I got this wing, of course the wind is forecast to ramp up.

New Clydesdale Project Cedrus Mast

Today I received the Project Cedrus Clydesdale Mast I ordered back in June.  These are made to order and take 8 weeks to get to you - but they are totally worth the wait!

I had contemplated the need for a mast this tall when I noticed I was breaching more than I thought I should be - the last session I was winging out at Jump City (Kailua) got frustrating when I would jibe onto a large, steep faced wave only to breach.  I also noticed during the downwind race, I would breach when I was jibing on a wave face.

Here's the unboxing:

Sticker, Axis fuselage adapter and the Clydesdale Mounting Plate still wrapped up.

The mast -

The checkboard pattern is a dead giveaway that this is Clydesdale.

This extended mounting post is an upgrade to the standard mast.  The mounting plate also has three M8 holes, so this was designed to handle the higher loads imparted by bigger (than prone or kite foil boards) wing boards.

At 96cm, when the mounting plate and the adapter/fuselage are bolted on, this is a meter tall mast - over 4 additional inches over the 85cm mast.  I'm counting on this to stop the breaching (but it'll probably be a pain paddling it out to even deeper water...). 

Kalani Picked Up His Wing Board

Kalani came over this evening.  He brought over the deck pad he found at Blue Planet and we did some trimming and setting to get the board all finished.

Happy camper!  

This was a long journey getting to this point.  We're making plans to bring this out on Sunday!!!

Taking Measurements and La to the Beach

Through a long chain of acquaintances, I was able to get my hands on this board (custom Jimmy Lewis wing foiling board specifically made for Derek Hamasaki - the Master).  Of course, I templated it.

And since I was going to the beach to meet up with Roland to get the board back to him, La asked to come with.  How often does that happen???...

Nice time at WPB!

Evening Session - 10/18/2021

After my nap and time spent at the grinding bench, I put together the 4'8" and headed to the beach.  I opted for the GL180 and the newly completed "Crepe Spatula" 15" rear stabilizer.

The swell was waist high, the tide was probably 1.5' and the wind was on the light side.  Roland was just coming in from a winging session - he said proning was a better call.

I caught four good ones.  After the first one I moved the mast forward to get a bit more lift.  The waves behind that first were really fun - long, lots of carves and got to pump back out.

When I got back in, Roland showed me what his rear stabilizer did to his 4.5m2 wing.  I asked La if she would fix it - she said yes.  Stay tuned to see that!

Wing Comparisons

Maintenance day for a couple of the wings - if you take care of your gear, it'll take care of you.

Size comparison between the Reedin 3.6m and the Ensis 4.5m.  You can see the difference in the span and the chord.

Here is one of the bigger differences - the strut has a significant arch.

Here you can see the differences in the reinforcements along the leading edge.

And here you can see the differences in the strut shape - the 4.5 has a much straighter strut.

And here you can see the size difference - nominally the difference is 0.9m^2

Don't forget to make sure your wings are dry before putting them away!