There seems to be a hype recently about WING foiling.
I am a regular windsurfer. I wonder if anybody has firsthand experience and comments about using a 5 m. Wing ( a Duotone or Slingshot) to pull a SUP, but without a foil.
I have no great ambitions about speed or planing on a SUP.

Just wanted to use the wing to have more traction, if possible, in light winds. Some say it is better than paddling. Admittedly the bar is very low, but if true, I wouldn't mind to go ahead and try it until I am in the money for the real thing : foiling..

As usual in windsurfing, opinions are mixed..ON the web it seems to be OK, but a local expert here does not recommend it, because in light winds ( 12 knts) the 5 m. wing will not have sufficient power to pull the board.
Secondly, he says that in light winds, a wing is very tiring on the shoulders .He suggests instead that a 6 m. sail is 10 times better than a wing, even without a foil, which is exactly what I have been doing so far,

In addition , he says that using the wing on a SUP makes it hard to control the direction of the board.

I'd would say it should work, because, the board ( 14 kg) is very floaty ( 220 lt) and once you lifted the weight of the rig from it ( 12 kg approx) , it should become even floatier, most likely floatier than with the rig.

In addition, regarding the direction control, I was wondering if the centerboard could help ( full or half down) Any comments?

Thanks

Francone

just bought one so give me a week to play around and will tell you, using a inflatable with the wing

Used a 4m Wasp wing on a Starboard Whopper, board is stable and good for getting used to handling the wing. Impossible to stay up wind basically on a down wind mission no matter what you do with board and wing. A bit of lateral resistance from a dagger board would be useful and help to stay upwind.

You will tire quickly without planning on a foil, I think once you've nailed the wing handling technique you would want to progress to a foil

Yes this is quickly becoming a new thing , it started out with guys in Hawaii doing DW wing foil on Maliko 14 footers (non foil ) and they have been having a ball. Spoke to JB about it and he has been doing it on 10 foot Sups as well . Lots of fun in the bumps and way easier than foiling. Some fun in the flat works as well but soon becomes hard work getting dragged around trying not to loose ground , you can also go out play in some small waves on your 10 footer with the wing heaps fun but the DW ocean runs is the one even in light winds.

Yeah good fun,I started with a 10' Naish mana with the largest fin I could find,slow down sideways drift,with a 5m Duotone.I put the fin as far back to n the track as possible,you need straight line control not turning.
Easy as, if you want to control the board use the old windsurfing trick place the tip of the wing against the nose o f the board to help go up or down wind.
I sometimes paddle a 14' glide up wind, attach the paddle to the board using the attachment points and hoot back to The starting point,tuff to control but fun.
I think most of us,non wind types (not coming from kite or windsurfer back ground)start with a long board to gain confidence before graduating to a foil.

have fun buy an impact vest,would be my next suggestion,you need to think about the wing and board not trying to stay afloat as well

Use my 3.5m FOne to power up my 15' downwind board. It's a blast in small dw conditions. 15-20knots, could even take upwind an I have no windsurfing experience at all.

If you drift downwind, try weighting your heels to lower the windward rail of your board to get lateral resistance. Or step towards windward rail a bit.

there was this video, don't know if you saw it or not

www.facebook.com/895922744133061/posts/1173993429659323/?vh=e&d=n

I currently have a 2nd hand deal in sight either for a 5 m Duotone wing or a 4.2 m Slingshot.I am undecided for 2 reasons

1.the prevailing winds are about 12 knts here and some say that if I later want to put a foil on my SUP, it will take at least 15 knts to lift off with a 4 m wing, whereas a 5 m wing will need only 12 knts or less, but at the same time the tip of the larger 5 m wing can dip in the water more easily...

2.Duotone vs Slingshot: the Slingshot, albeit smaller, looks a lot sturdier than the Duotone, because the Duptone boom looks a bit flimsy and, especially in the hands of a novice, it can get crushed or bent if it hits something. At the same time, the Duotone has the advantage of allowing adjusting the shape of the sail, which is a great advantage.

May be somebody can comment on the trade-offs

Thanks

Francone

I finally bought a 5 m wing ( Duotone 5 m.), seduced by the hype surrounding this new concept and by the idea that it takes only a few minutes to be on the water. No rigging, no laborious trimming of the sail, Just inflate it and off you go..I have used it only three or four times with a 12 ft SUP ( no foil) , which is very stable.

Here is my take .
A bit disappointed.
Much more difficult than learning windsurfing.
Very daunting to sail with it unless the water is as flat as a mirror, but then there is no wind..

First, even with the least chop it takes the skill of a tight rope walker to keep the balance, while precariously holding on the wing, hands up in the air and wobbling like a cork on the water , I can paddle on it all right, but with a wing it is more difficult.

At least with a conventional windsurfing sail you have the support of the rig..

Secondly and more importantly, the wing shows an uncanny ( and disturbing) propensity to go downwind, as though on. automatic pilot, no matter how you orient it.

Upwind is quite another thing, unfortunately, even with a 12 ft SUP and a fully deployed centerboard.
This is because on a conventional windsurfing sail, you can keep a steady angle of attack to go upwind, whereas the unsupported wing continuously changes the angle of attack, because of the erratic movement of the body trying to keep balance and the ensuing swaying of the arms holding the wing .Then you invariably find yourself all of a sudden facing the wind and you fall.

This is my take. I know there is a learning curve, but it is not easy..

Francone

Something like this will help you alot , especially with getting blown downwind.

www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Slingshot-Sup-Winder-stick-on-keel-fin

Sales of kite SUP and windsurf gear must be slow atm?

Select to expand quote

Piros said..
Something like this will help you alot , especially with getting blown downwind.

www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Stand-Up-Paddle/SUP/Slingshot-Sup-Winder-stick-on-keel-fin

Great video, thanks. It gives me renewed hope
I wonder, though. I already have a center board on my windsup. In addition, I had already replaced the original dolphin fin with a regular, longer fin ( about 40 cm) for windsurfing. . Will that Slingshot glue-on fin really make a difference?
I noticed that it is placed well ahead of the rear fin, towards the center., sort of midway between the centerboard and the rear a fin.
I don't know the dimensions, but it also looks bigger than than the centerfin. Is it perhaps the position and the size that makes the difference?

Francone

My background is shortboard surfing and minor number of sessions prone surf foiling. I got into SUPing strictly to learn SUP wing foiling, as my 5'6" prone foil board was a non-starter for my 200 lbs arse. So I had zero experience on a SUP or wind sports, and still consider myself a newbie. After buying a first generation Naish 4 m2 Wing, I then purchased a SUP foil board. Started by first paddling around and couldn't believe how difficult it was staying upright in the ocean. Then started wing SUPIng . Found it to be difficult. I was green, and didn't know about cross wind sailing. All I knew to do was going downwind. I would constantly go really fast until hitting chop Hard and falling off. From those early days, I Learned the importance of adjusting back foot pressure and digging the rails when going up wind. Since then hella fun. Yesterday was blowing 15mph, and didn't have a foil. Long story for another time. All kinds of people out kiting, wing foiling, etc...Made lemonade anyway with the wing SUP session.