berowne forum posts in last 60 days

These setups seem tame.
one day was up at Myall lakes with barely 6-8 knots blowing so I had my 8m rigged hoping for the best and waiting. Then it finally picked up to about 12 and I thought. why not try the 400 front wing. Managed to pump it up for two runs. Felt fine once up! I remember thinking. how is this working???
I've also done 32kts on a 7m sail and the 400 CA older front wing. I'm often amazed at how well the smaller HA foils work!

I've done a few training videos over the years...and added some from others to this playlist.Enjoy the journey Obelix! www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrHB6IE31HOsooGGme1-dUCawbXCrgySq

Out is good. as your confidence builds you push against the rail with legs to make sure the sail is sheeted in hard! still hanging low of the harness.

I windsurfer for about 30 years then saw foiling so got a Windfoil and competed after 13 goes. Got hooked on racing as a great way to improve faster! last year and this year I've had a dozen WingFoil sessions. Some old habits about foot swap are hard to give up and never wave riding is a hindrance when riding toeside. I haven't ridden fin for about 3 years and before then just a couple times each since I got the foils.
I love the freedom and light wind of all foils and not scared of the crashes at 30kts . But so far winging is proving kinder and cheaper!

January is almost over so that means it's time for the final round of the NSW Slalom series.

Heat 4 will be held this Saturday (31st Jan) at Shingle Splitters Point on Lake Macquarie. Lots of you would remember the great racing we had there in a cracking Seabreeze a few years ago. Forecast looking good for a repeat this weekend.
Briefing around 11am. Please pre-register for $25 on our website.

marmongpointsc.square.site

Google maps link: maps.app.goo.gl/Ks9UyQVfpuxQK2sA8?g_st=ic

Here's some pics and a video from the last event there in late 2023.








more details in Windsurfing NSW forum

Apparently the WIP doesn't like being laid upon. Hook them locks over harness lines!!!

Video format for those that don't like to read!

quite the view!

Great review Lukesta and keeping it personal was a nice touch.

Good session yesterday...
www.ka72.com/Track/t/553836




Might have cost me a parking ticket.... tbd!

Getting "good" at the regular switch to goofy pigeon toe pirouette. And I managed a goofy switch to regular which was an amazing relief to unlock.
a few points not in the video above.

Be FAST. I'm aiming for one swift exchange in under 1 second! Slower swaps always end up being stuck in a bad position too long Bend the knees on landing so you have a bit more control
Toe of back foot should land near rail. Heel of front foot near the other rail
Ride the foil flatish and be centred over it on all dimensions.
My most common mistake is relying on the boom and leaning too far back!

For the foot swap technique. does anyone go back strap to back strap after a gybe or tack??

So another habit I'll need to unwind.

When you crash wind foiling if you fall forward the mast hits the board and you get a cracked nose. so I tend to try not to do this. crashing backwards if possible. However,
If you crash a Wingfoil backwards then the foil tips come out of the water and damage ensues!

Fixed in 24 hours. Gotta love Barracouta sails!

Found out why folks use smaller wings as the wind increases. the expensive way. At least I only pierced the canopy!
Winging for WindFoilers. Don't pierce your wing!


And for reversing muscle memory. Pigeon toe Practice Pad v2.. foot switch unlearning!

Manilo 25kt on a big foil - I only managed about 25/26 on my F4 course racing foils, but it has kind of fallen out of favour around here.

Agree with subsonic, leverage helps. Short of this, railing the board so you can control the lift,... because you need power to point but then it isn't as easy to control off the wind. Let us know how you go!

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aeroegnr said..

berowne said..

Hey WillyWing

I'm new to winging, and don't use the harness much yet (still sub-20kt top speed)... but I'm pretty sure racers load the harness up after pumping... especially upwind legs from what I understand.

Curious how you feel about winging vs. windfoil after getting into jumping and such on the wing.

I'm still learning... I find it ridiculously hard to move the backfoot forward before moving the old front foot after a gybe. Like stupidly hard to fight 30+ years of 'muscle memory'. So, I can connect gybes if I sail regular stance rotated toe side back toward the beach then gybe heelside to go back out... all without moving my feet! But gybing GOOFEY is less reliable for me, but my goofey reaching is getting quite good now. Gybes on Goofey are 1 in 5 or worse, and I don't get far enough around to sail goofey & Switch! See my youtube/insta.

Jumps are WIP. Only done one and I lost the board about 1m up... Need to tighten the straps but don't want to do that yet.

And today I only used the front strap except when pushing a PB (21kts!) and fighting jellies!!! Most of the time I only used the front strap!

Back straps worked well today! Really helped get the rhythm of pumping and what others have said about circle pumping the rig makes more sense when the circle pull also involves pushing the board forward.
I found the foot straps also work really well for foot placement and even knee placement.
I also learned to do the opposite of Windsurf pumping. With the sail I found that sheeting in at the end of a pump gave a power and speed boost. But on wing it doesn't help at all. I have to retrain myself to keep the wing at about the same angle during the pump.

My other tip is to not hold the back handle too far back. Just at the front of the rear handle is enough to power the wing. More power comes from the front of these balloons.

Hey WillyWing

I'm new to winging, and don't use the harness much yet (still sub-20kt top speed)... but I'm pretty sure racers load the harness up after pumping... especially upwind legs from what I understand.

Select to expand quote

CJW said..
As Jeroensurf said when windsurf foiling, the fact that the mast is connected to the mid-front of the board takes out the rotational axis and pitch axis instability, it damps it all massively. On a windfoil that's all in your feet, much more delicate control is needed.

You'll get it, when I started, and as you know, come from the same racing 'IQ foil' style background as you I had the same issues but over a few sessions you'll figure out the more neuanced control required, just take practice to learn that new muscle memory. Foil setup is also important but from memory you had an F4 setup so it's probably good already.

Despite so so so many posters on here suggesting it to new wingfoilers, particularly those with deep rooted windsurfing backgrounds, to remove the straps I think is actually a ridiculous idea. I listened to that advice when I started, despite my better judgement and literally foiled like 100m and went, this is the stupidest idea i've ever heard of, went straight back in, put the front straps on and have never looked back. Having straps, the front ones only to start, makes so much of a difference to the control, foot placement and general consistency when wingfoiling I honestly don't know why people would not use them....particularly if you come from a very high level of windfoiling and windsurfing. I can understand it if you're just crusing around on a massive foil at like 12kts just 'feeling the flow' but if you want to progress bigtime, you need straps, imo.

I would also practice toe side riding both sides, a lot. It's an important skill, much more important in wingfoiling that in windfoil as you really need to be able to do it well once you progress to foiling tacks etc. There are so many videos on learning to gybe on youtube and that's the best way as a video is much easier to digest than a description on here. They highlight how imporant the wing switch timing is when you're starting etc...and you need flat water too at the start, makes it much easier.

Thanks for the confirmation on foot straps... I had previously said many times that when the board was new, I could hardly foil goofy, and I sat on the board after falling and thought why is this so hard... I windsurf both directions all the time (otherwise I'd be in NZ!). So, after I put the foot straps on, my brain flicked a switched and said, oh you're not riding goofy, you're in a footstrap, I know what to do, lets GO!.


I do want to get into some racing, and ultimately waves, so I will be using the straps to hone these skills. But I'm going to swap out the windsurfer ones and get some thin flat straps that are easier to stand on!

Toe side on my good side is working out now, but I haven't made enough fast port gybes to get onto goofy toe side, but being back foot forward and twisted with back arm forward sounds like a disaster on a timer.

Next question. Why do I suck at toe side gybe stability... on WindFoil I gybe toe-side all the time but switch feet mid-turn to finish heel side.
On the wing the second half of the turn is where I struggle. early days but any tips appreciated.

My pumping seems much more effective with the rear strap! I know the foot placement is way back. but I'm so used to powering up both legs when I pump the Windfoil, it really helped. Without it my pumps felt like they were cancelling out and just bouncing vertically not forward!

I saw these vests at a local shop for about $350. Looked pretty good, except I would agree, the hook looks a pain to remove. I'm currently using a waist harness and the hook roles flat when you lie on the board. Pretty handy!


www.coastwatersports.com/forward-wip-wing-50n-impact-vest-buoyancy-aid-with-hook-p-27427.html
Forward WIP Wing Impact Vest - Kitepower Australiawww.kitepower.com.au/products/forward-wip-wing-impact-vest

Good tips everyone, thanks for the encouragement. Good thing I've got a few weeks holiday this summer, plenty of time to watch videos and put it into practice!

He crew

I'm a long-time windsurfer and Wind Foiler... getting into Wing Foiling.

Any Tips?
I'm saving good videos to a playlist so I can find them easier...


For Example...
Pump with the front hand:
If bounding the foil gets too high at an angle, your backfoot should move forward
Practice toe side riding and turning - I never wave sailed and it is hurting my WingFoiling.
Foot straps are your friends - especially the front one. I couldn't wing goofy until I used mine!

Any others?

I'm seeking tuning and 'feel' tips to break the 30kt foil speed barrier. I've made the switch to F4 and feel like they definately have the potential for great speeds. After 3 months I have improved speeds from 20 knots to 27 knots as of yesterday. I'm adding my tuning tips here, and am keen for anyone to share there experience.

I typically ride with high boom, long adjustable harness lines and a seat harness (have done for 30+ years). For context, I'm 188cm and weight 80kg. My Foil board is FMX Hyperion 91cm - awesome board!. Some of you may be familiar with it... www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/Foiling/Foil-board-Repair-Job-The-new-nose-you-all-need

I wrote an F4 Foil review soon after getting my new wings: www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Windsurfing/Review/F4-Race-and-Slalom-Foil-Sets-2021--Long-Review

560 (700 wide) front with, small 190 rear wing on 90cm short fueslage Mast base 128 (full back!)
This was the setup I used for max speed. I had the mast track all the way back, just in front of the bold hole so about 128cm on my FMX 91 Hyperion. Front straps are in the 2nd front holes and no rear straps.
At first I had the 0.5mm small shim in and my back foot was nearly hagging of the back of the board to control ride hight.
After removing the shim my back foot was over the rear holes of the back straps (I sail without rear straps).
Trim still felt too far forward, occasionly I would dip the nose too easily when sheeting in but felt very balanced and was happy to push more.

On deep downwind runs needed very little downforce to balance the lift and achieve top speeds... probably need to commit more to the harnesss as speed increases but was very light feeling at 27 knot run!
(Compare this to my PB of 28 knots on AFS 800 set where I was bracing for impact fearing death...! But with 2 years less experience!)

I've read some riders on the short small F4 slalom setup actually put a shim in backwards! I'm yet to try this.

81cm board? I've occasionally felt my feet were too far outboard, rotating the heels inwards. Is a narrower board better for top speeds on small wings?

100cm & 115cm fuselage
Other times I've used the 100cm fueslage with mast base at about 133cm felt about the right balance point, probably more nose down taps rather than too high moments. I've used this length more and think I prefer the extra stability (sligthly less responsive).
I tried the 115cm fueslage with the small wing once, brings it further back c.f. the 100 and felt quite good too.

Prefered sail is 5.5 or 6.3. I'm using old slalom sails with a new clew hole mounted just above the long batten.
The 560 is quite a small wing, so needs about 15kts board speed to flly so decent planing speed, and you can get stuck in a lull :(. Responds well to power in the sail and is surprisingly comfortable with a 8m sail when the wind gets lighter!

620 (800 wide) front wing, 190 and 210 cm rear on 100cm fueslage
Definately has more and earlier lift than the small wing, making gybes easier to fly through too. My speeds are about 2kts slower on the same day c.f. the 560 with this wing, but I'm sure it has more potential.

I started riding with the mast at 136cm but quickly moved back to 133cm and reduced shim from 1mm to 0.5mm.
The 100cm fueslage has the wing further forward than the 115 so does need more harness commitment. I haven't tried all fueslage options with this wing yet.

850 (900 wide) front wing, 190 rear on 100cm fueslage
I've spent the least amount of time on the small race wing. I expect it would be really helpful for bottom end slalom racing especially at the gybe marks for a small tradeoff in top speed.

945 (1000) front wing, 210, 230cm rear wings, 115+cm Fueslage
The big course racing wing has a LOT of lift and the power really increases with speed. Takes commitment to ride fast
I need the 1mm shim to control the power of this wing in anything but the lightest winds.
I started with mast base at 138, almost all the way forward in the box, but have brought it back to 135 now.
Top speeds for me are 23kts so far with 9.0 and 10.0, but I've heard it can "easily" do 28!

Ride Feel - Board Setup
To go fast you need to be comfortable. When I started foiling it felt nearly impossible to get enough downforce on the nose. At one point with my Slingshot foil I even tried building some footstrap adapters to bring the straps further forward. Yesterday I rode the F4 @ 27kts with the mast base right at the BACK and felt really balannced, which goes to show setup is everything!.

Tap down
The most significant change I've noticed lately is how to identify when your mast base is too far forward. It is fine to ride and you can fly just fine but what happens as you accelerate is that the downforce from the sail (even without extra from the harness) pushes the nose down and you tap the waves. This unsettles your balance needing back foot pressure, which then risks going to high and either breaching or porpoising.
If this happens, move the mast base back a cm at a time.

Back Foot too far back?
With too much rear wing shim on I noticed that I had to have my back foot a long way back to maintain ride height. Again not a problem sub 20kts but as you accelerate the balance points are too far apart... reduce rear wing shim helped me here.

Ride Feel - Sail Control
Once the board is under control trim is mainly from the feet, which will discuss next, and sail control. The biggest tip I can think of here is that when you are close to breaching or tapping down, your ride dynamics are only off by a few %, so don't over adjust!. Make small adjustments, trying to maintain harness line pressure and use small movements to adjust ride height, then move back half way to where you were.

You can also send the nose down by sheeting IN the back hand, which seems counter intuitive if your about to breach! Don't sheet out too much... ever!

To make small adjustments moving the hips back/forward/inboard/outboard a few centimeters can have the desired effect, but try to remember to keep the harness pressure pretty stable.

For smaller sails at speed, a high boom with long lines seems to be popular. I'm definatly finding it to be helpful, and am happy I've got adjustable lines on most of my booms.

Reaching at speed can require an amazing amount of downforce, Sometimes I think I've had about 70% of my weight through the harness lines a few times, which can hurt with a waist harness, and is why I prefer a seat harness. This is probably too much downforce and is likely a symptom of mast base too far back, but I'd appreciate some tips here!

? How much downforce to you use thorugh your harness, when sending it!?

Ride Feel - Foot Control
The use of foot control for up and down should be pretty obvious (pitch control).
While riding fast, especially through chop, perhaps less obviuos is the importance of roll control!
Unlike slalom on a fin (windward rail up) you will want to keep the windward rail down foiling, to prevent gusts going under the board and launching you! Especially on wide arse boards like mine.
I typically roll the foil more to windward if getting too much lift, and use the back foot to roll the board flatter if I'm riding too low. These movements can be smaller and more subtle than stomping on the back foot to get up.

Out of Control ?
Finally, what do you do if you're out of control? If your harness is set just right, hopefully you can unhook with a quick tilt of the hips. People often say "Don't let go!" and I tend to agree, especially if airborn backwards, you can more easily land on the foils. I've catapulted forward and looked up just as my board - still foiling - came straight at me.

If you have time, stomp on the windward rail, hard, and roll to windward as fast as possible, angling the foil will reduce lift and if you do breach hopefully you fall backwards instead.

PULL DOWN hard and fast on the boom to drop the foil can sometimes work..

WOBBLE BOARD can also help, as changing the foils angle quickly reduces lift.

The biggest problem as far as I have experienced is that when you get out of control I typically sheet out and even then, I don't slow down so the foil still has too much lift, and now I have less downforce.

Accelerate Slowly... avoid rapid acceleration as you may find yourself out-lifted before you know it!