Wingfoiling Session - 11/24/2020

Went wingfoiling with an old friend today (and his 14 year old son).  Wind was up 18 to 25 with gusts up to 30.  It was pretty cloudy and there was a downpour coming in from downtown.  We got an hour or so in before the rain dumped down.

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I worked exclusively on turns today - and I got my first jibe (without switching) today - from outbound back to inbound (my strong side - regular stance).  It was surprisingly easy - although I couldn't replicate it.  I did try tacking inbound - I was able to get around and even switch feet a couple of times, but I could connect the dots.  Try - try - try then do - do - do.  Fun session!

Evening Session - 11/23/2020

Hit PTs after work.  Swell was slightly smaller than yesterday, but significantly cleaner.  The tide was low, but I was careful and didn't have any issues with touching bottom.  I used the same setup as yesterday and got some really fun rides.  Longer runs backed up to tight turns.  I think I am going to reconfigure this setup - 72cm mast/HS1250/Uni300/50 cm fuselage - and see how that combo works.

It was windy enough to wingfoil - but I opted for the simplicity of prone foiling.  You can see another Armstrong at the left of the picture - new Armstrong rider Rick.

Evening Session - 11/22/2020

My original plan was to get some of the nuclear winds that were blowing through again, but when I got to Hickam, the wind strength had died off.  I beat feet home and picked up Marlon and my prone foiling gear and headed over to PTs.

The surf had some chop to it - made it a little hard to ride, but I got several really fun rides.  My last wave coming in was several back to back carving figure 8s.  Marlon said he nailed a helicopter turn so it must have been a good day despite the chop!

Not sure if the wind is going to hold up, or if the southern hemisphere will continue to send energy our way - get out and tap into whatever energy is out there.

Prefinal Sanding on the HS1550

I sanded down the excess epoxy on the HS1550 reshape today.

I'll need to put one more coat of epoxy, followed by sanding, painting the front of the wing (to clean up the sanding marks), clear coat, final wet sand and done.

Winging Session - 11/21/2020

Went for a midday wing foiling session.  The reports had the wind blowing steady from the NE around 20 mph.  I decided to rig Gary's Echo 5.0 (I'm borrowing it), and boy was I glad I did.  There were three lulls in the 2 hours I was out - but on the other end of that spectrum, there were several gusts that were well above 30mph (approaching 40).  This wing handled the gusts like a champ - confidence builder knowing I got through today with this size wing.  The only quirk I noticed was back pressure on the luff during the gusts.

I stayed on the bunny slopes - again to work specifically on my transitions.  I was nailing the outbound tacks - even get a few flying on the foil.  I got a total of 12.3 nm, with my peak speed at 14.2 mph.

I did manage to get the feel of my inbound tacks.  I also got in a dry inbound jibe.  There was a booby bird and several plovers flying around the inside area.  What an awesome session!

Wingfoiling Session - 11/20/2020

The wind was a little lighter today and there were some long lulls.  I opted to stay on the inside so I wouldn't get stuck down wind of the launch.  I also wanted to work on my jibe.

I was nailing tacks and even stayed up on a couple.  Today was more practice on light wind winging and not giving up gained ground.  The wind was supposed to be way up - Marlon went surfing at WPB and he said it was blowing strong over there and Eli was ripping.  I think tomorrow I'll try winging at PTs.

Wingfoiling Session - 11/19/2020

The wind filled back in yesterday - I hit the beach in the late afternoon while Noe was sailing.  I made a beeline for the outside break and got a lot of mileage in.  I am getting better at pumping in light winds to get up on foil.  I still need to work on my transitions.

I was able to catch a wave and flag the wing (although it still wanted to wander - might be time to sell the Echo and get an Ensis...).  I finally pulled off a couple of jibes - so Thursday was a good winging day!

Noe Flying - 11/19/2020

Noe during sailing class on Thursday afternoon.

Fitting an Iwa onto a Go Foil Mast

This is another foil project I got asked to do.  The Iwa front wing would not fit onto the Go Foil mast.  I had to drill out the front cavity of the female spigot and clear out a bunch of weird material (looked like powdered metal).  After the ferrule was cleared, I poured some milled fiber/epoxy to take up the void and water proof the interior of the ferrule. 

All done!

Reshaping a HS1550

Not mine - someone from the beach I surf at.  He asked if I could reshape his old HS1550 into something flatter.  He used the HS1850 to define the tips - this is me getting the shape dialed in and the tips foiled.

Since these pictures were taken, I've already gotten the exposed core and kevlar layers reglassed.  I just need to fair that work in and this reshape should be done.

Dawn Patrol - 11/15/2020

Dawn patrolled Pine Trees with my old friend Lance.

Waves were a little smaller than Saturday's session, and a little more inconsistent - but we both got some rides in.  Almost every wave I got was a double dip or pump back out.  

If the waves had been more consistent, I was planning on switching to the 4'6" to see if I could start getting the mast positions identified on that board.  Maybe next time.

Dawn Patrol - 11/14/2020

Went on the dawn patrol this morning.  The wind has backed down and there is a minor swell hitting that originated from the Tasman Sea - waist high on the sets so who is complaining.

I had to paddle the foil upside down a bit - the tide was dropping fast from 1.2' when we got there to 0.4' by the time we left.  I got plenty of rides, and even a few really long pump back outs with a double dip to boot.  

Largely made possible by the HS1850 - such a fun wing!

Hopefully this swell sticks around through the weekend!

After Work Wing Foiling Session - 11/13/2020

Hit Hickam again after work today.  The wind had lightened up a bit by the time I got there (4pm) so I pumped up the 6.0 - the board and foil were the same as the previous days.  You can see in the picture the wind was fairly light on the inside - but if you squint, you can see Harris riding on the outside and he is lit on his 4.4.  I got lit too once I made it out there -

Even though it looked light, I was able to milk enough juice to get up on foil quickly.  I was pulling upwind easily so I decided to fall off a bunch to get to the channel and I rode out to the end of the runway where Harris was.  I was able to get lined up, and got on a couple, but it wasn't like prone foiling.  I also couldn't flag the wing (never had to before) and that made me outrun the waves.  The wind started to get light so I started back.  Then it pretty much died for about 20 minutes.  In these lulls I practiced pumping the wing and the foil to get up sooner than just waiting for the wind to blow harder.  I also got more practice on the tacks and even got a couple of jibes in (because I had to way out there).

I took this picture just because - need some gas?

After Work Wing Foiling Session - 11/12/2020

I brought all my stuff to work just in case the wind was blowing - the wind was blowing!  All the same equipment as yesterday.

This picture was taken after I packed up.  When I got there the wind was really gusty - I figured I'd keep testing the 5.0 and rigged it loose.  For all but one and a half runs, I was up on foil pretty quick.  I was nailing my outbound tacks, and focusing on my inbound jibes.  I tried tacking inbound - honestly I think I'm going to nail the tacks before I get the jibe down.  I've been thinking I need to try all this on a skateboard so I can just practice on the turns. 

It was a fun and productive session!

Wing Foiling in Nuking Conditions - 11/11/2020

 The winds were super strong today - 25 mph with gusts to 35 mph.  I was using a borrowed 5.0 Duotone Unit - with the exception of one run, this wing was perfect for today.  I had it rigged up on the tight setting and never really felt overpowered.  When the really stiff gusts hit, I just put the wing in neutral and reduced the backhand pressure.

I got 7.13 nm in and my fastest run was 13.1 mph - I could have gone faster but I didn't want to crash hard in these gusty conditions.

With today's outing, I believe winging for me will be a two wing quiver - the 6.0 and a 5.0.  I got a few dry tacks on the outbound leg, and I felt I got really close to the inbound jibes.  I think if I practice with a skateboard, I'll get this transition down faster.  It's nice to have wind back again!!!  Thanks to Marlon for his patience and for taking pictures.