Evening Session - 10/13/2023

After work I got in a second session - this time prone foiling on the high tide.

The waves were a little smaller than this morning, but that was really attributed to the higher tide.

There was barely wind - but enough to put texture on the water.

Marlon came with and he foiled!!!  He was definitely showing he is more comfortable now.  I saw him get up on the board a lot, but the foil wasn't lifting as much as it should have been.  He did actually get up on foil several times - and after the session he said next time he'll move the mast more forward.

I brought out the setup I have been taking out on the days I do prone foil - Unifoil Progreesion 170/flex rear stabilizer/shorter Project Cedrus mast and No.21.

As much as I have been shortboard surfing lately, it showed on my prone foiling - I struggled for about half the session (but that always happens if I've changed gear).  Eventually it clicked again and I was getting my foil feet back under me.

Roland, Prayot, Duke and Marlon were the other foilers out.  The longboarders were being a little greedy/pissy today - and the newb crowd was thick on the inside - both making the conditions challenging.  But with patience - good waves were had.

Especially by Roland -

I got a few double dips and did pump back out to the lineup - so I guess you can say I shook off the rust pretty quick.

I'm still debating what to do on tomorrow's dawn patrol....

W:103/F:94/S:45

Wing Foiling Session - 10/9/2023

After running errands, I got a chance to get a winging session in this afternoon (yup - a full fledged double dip!!!)

It was white capping when I pulled up to the parking lot - and it stayed that way while I was launching.

The tide was on the higher side, but it was going to drop through the afternoon.

There were waves, but they were small.  Every now and then, there was a good set that came through - but it was lully. 

I setup No.32, the F One SK8 950/C200 stab/85cm Project Cedrus mast.

I had to hand pump the SW2 5.2 wing today  (electric pump battery died).

Really good stats!

The SK8 is really smooth.  I can maneuver in the pocket easily - similar to the Spitfire, but smoother (the Spitfire seems to crank through a turn easier than the SK8 - but the ride is more raw/visceral).

I need to work on completing them, but the tacks I pulled offshore were super tight.

I had plenty of wind all throughout the session.

I felt like I was riding more efficiently on the SK8 than I had been previously.  I also did just get a C195 rear stabilizer in the mail (I'll try that out next time).

Again - nice statistics.

Roland did show up (after I had been out for an hour and 20 minutes already).  And as I was headed in, Derek was on his way out.

I had a great session today - and it might be the last for several days...

W:103/F:93/S:42

Wing Foiling Session - 9/29/2023

Got in a pau hana winging session today - while I was setting up there were white caps on the outside.  I didn't have confidence that strength wind would last the whole session.  I also brought out the smaller gear (No.32, Spitfire 840), so I opted for the bigger wing today.

There were some waves still coming through - I caught several head high and a few overhead waves on the outside of the cabins.

Marlon was going to prone foil again today - but he ended up talking story with one of the other photographers who was taking pictures at the beach.

Decent stats!

I actually got in a bunch of tacks to drop on to incoming waves.  I also got in a tack off a wave on the inside (when a surfer took off on a wave I was on - had to bail to avoid getting stuck inside - made it!)

Mostly up session.  So much so my right quads were getting sore (but I can and did switch). 

Also mostly up session because I saw a decent sized shark...

Marlon did fly the drone - but he has not downloaded the footage yet.  I may edit this once he post processes.

Great session!

W:101/F:90/S:36

Wing Foiling Session - 9/25/2023

The wind was decent this afternoon.  With the high (but dropping) tide and a lully Tasman Sea born swell pushing through, this was a really fun session!

I opted to use No.25 today - but from using No.32 a lot recently, I did not think I would have the adjustment to get the Spitfires over to where they needed to be.  So to mix it up, I used the ART 999 mounted on the Advance + Crazy Short fuselage.

And the verdict is the Advance + fuselage really loosens up the characteristics of the ART 999.

Definitely had the mast pegged forward -

I had to paddle pretty far out to get to the wind line.  Once I was outside, getting up on the new setup was actually kind of easy.

The set waves were stupendous when they came through - over head (while up on foil) and a couple of them just kept churning down the line!!!

I've been trying to get in more toe-heel tacks - and I got one under duress today (the left had a pitching lip, so I exited right and had to tack to clear the wave).

I also caught a few waves by tacking on to them - epic!  I did botch more than I made - the ART 999 took some getting used to in this less stable mode. 

You can see the wind shifts on the image above and the chart below.

High speed was probably from one of the bigger waves.

I did trip quite a bit today - the ART999 felt totally different today - but it was super fun getting to feel a different flow from this foil!

W:99/F:89/S:36

Wing Foiling Session - 9/24/2023

Headed to Hickam again today.  On the weekends, the crowd at White Plains can be a little too much - particularly during launching and landing.  I prefer to remove myself from that equation - and why not.

This was a picture taken around 9 am - tiny white caps on the surface - so the conditions were doable.  And today ended up being an exercise in patience - ups and downs abound.

Marlon needed the truck to go to work, so I hitched a ride with Kalani.  I didn't want to bring a bunch of extra stuff like I normally do - so I packed just the SW2 5.2 and the SK8 950

So nice - I had to post it twice!

Two hours out on the water - just shy of 19 miles.

As mentioned earlier, the wind was up and down, and shifty - mainly from the NE back to E.

And here you can the wind direction shifts.  At the front end of the session I was staying close in because of the up and downs.  Ryan came out and asked if I was going out to the waves.  The wind was starting to fill in better so I said sure.

Outside was a bit more consistent, but there were still some lulls.  The waves were intermittent with the rising tide - but I was able to pick off some fun ones.

Not a bad top speed - blasting at the end of the session in the gusts!!!

This shot is proving to be most elusive - what is happening here is a wave is breaking and I'm communing with it as it transforms from a gravity wave into turbulence and friction.  I am heeled over trying to stay in the pocket of the peaking wave and looking for a spot to redirect 180 degrees.  The GoPro isn't picking all of that up because it is mounted too high.

The GoPro does grab the tacks pretty well - but it is hard to see how leaned over I am to make this transition.

Oh well - I guess I'll just keep on trying ;)

W:98/F:89/S:36

Wing Foiling Session, Part 3 - 9/23/2023

Last change - swapping out the -0.5 shimmed Progressive 375 rear stabilizer for a straight Progressive 350.

On the forums, there is a lot of chatter about what rear stabilizers work best with the Spitfires - most posts say the smaller the better.

I keep saying this, but with the Progressive 350, this setup is as close to a high performance shortboard.

The 350 seemed to smooth out some of the abrupt feeling that the 375 had - this may actually be a figment of my imagination.

I was down more than I was on the previous session.

This one ride was sick!!!  I thought I had placed the camera in the correct spot - but the wing was not horizontal enough to get the shot I was trying for - but this is close.

Was just in front of a decent sized breaking wave.  The GoPro seriously makes big waves look small accentuates bellies.

I took the back footstrap off - I am not really interested in jumping with a foil.  This freed my back foot so I can actively balance out the foil.

Tacking onto a peaking wave!!!  Incredible feeling when the timing is perfect!

Tomorrow I think I am just going to stick to one foil - 

Wing Foiling Session - 9/17/2023

I skipped out on the dawn patrol this morning (because I took La to brunch!) - and instead hit WPB when the thermals lit off.

I had figured with the weather the way it was (super sunny skies) the thermals would fill in and we'd have good conditions - well I was wrong... we had great wind and some really good winging surf - solid south swell!!!

Prayot was already out - SW1 4.2 and the Eagle 990

I setup No.32 with the SK8 950/C200 monblock tail.  So much for having moved the track boxes forward... I should have moved them 2" forward.  The thermals were really strong - I decided to inflate the SW2 4.7.

Launching was really tough - I had to swim out to the wind line which was about a 1/4 mile out.  The winds were coming ENE, maybe even straight E so the normal patterns were off also (had to point straight south to get up to speed).  I tried climbing on the board too early (No.32 sinks a bit) and hit the bottom a few times (5h!t).

A few sets came through while I was swimming out.  I escaped without any battle damage - but Kalani ended up with a torn corner on his SW2 6.0

I stayed out for almost 3 hours - and got in over 33 miles.

The waves were epic!!! Head and half high mountains!  I lost count of how many I rode....

I did not try to tack today - I wanted to get more familar with the SK8 before trying.

I was really tired when I got in and the last hour I was riding goofy to give my right quads a break. 

Straight east winds.

This is super considering it was driven by thermals!!!

I think the errant speed reading was on a crash.  I found a 20.3mph reading in the group.

Epic day!!!

W:94/F:89/S:35

Wing Foiling Session - 9/11/2023

Late afternoon wing foiling session at WPB.

I have to be honest in my hesitancy going out in marginal winds with No.32 and the SK8 950 - sinker board and a foil I haven't 100% gotten the feel for - I just didn't want to have to swim in...

Norm was hesitant because when he pulled up and was setting up, the wind was cranking - but as he was getting ready to pump up his wing (5m BRM) the wind dropped off big time.  I told him that I was going because you could see the white caps offshore and you can't turn down a high tide launch...

Plus I had the SW2 5.2 - I was going to be good to go -

I put the mast in the same spot I had the SK8 mounted yesterday.

I did have to paddle out further to get to the wind line.  But once I was there - I had plenty of wind to get up on the SK8 950.

I got in 13.26 miles in just over an hour.

In order to not have to restart with a sinker, I opted to not tack today.

There were some waves that would come through every 10 minutes or so.  If the tide was slightly lower, those waves would have been epic!

Good wind while I was out.  And I got in before the drop off.

I only fell once.  I used that opportunity to tighten up the wingscrews.

I also did go through white water once - the SK8 didn't fall out, but I totally felt every bubble interacting with the foil.  This is why I still own the Takuma Kujiras - rock solid through turbulence.

Great session today!!!

W:92/F:85/S:35

Anointment of No.32, Part 2

If the transferred positioning wasn't spot on, it was close.  I'll go ahead and mark this, but it'll be subject to further testing.

Still have a little room for foils that need more lift.

Same test run results - tack and jibes both ways without too much issue, nice flat out runs - 

Smaller foil - faster top end speed (no surprise).

Faster jibe with the Eagle 1090 (could have easily used the 890 today).  I really felt like I was able to lean more in the turns with the gear today.

This board really feels good under foot.  With less real estate, and a smaller sweet spot, I was not really moving my feet around.  I may hold off on installing footstraps for a bit to get a better feeling for the board.

This foil is definitely a session saver (there were lulls in the wind and I would sail right through them, until my momentum dropped).  This board is small enough that it pumps really nicely.