So I'm mostly downwind winging in Perth - I think I can probably sup foil and I have a mate's board that might work sitting in the garage. Question is, should I? From those who do both, is there anything compelling about the SUP foiling vs the winging?

I see the pro of not having the wing bobbling about. I seem to spend a lot of time having to drop weed though, and that must get annoying on a SUP having to restart all the time?
Benefit of not needing wind, but the window of no wind + swell is pretty small here?

All that said, open to new adventures - how will I go with the gear I have already (background 70kg, good surf supper + winger)

Board - starboard hyperfoil 6'4" x 25" x 4", 92L
Armie foils - only HA's other than an old CF500 which I suspect is too slow - biggest HA is 1125 (others - 925, 880, 725, 580 - i really need to get rid of some gear)

Oh, and rather make a second post:

Should I prone foil? Can I prone foil?

(Same questions as above, I also have a prone board.)

More tools in your bag is a good thing. The sup board will be good in waves. More difficult to dw. See if you like it in waves first. Get used to paddling which is a skill in itself. prone is fun but I hate paddling my prone board now. I primarily wing in waves these days.

I'd be giving it a go for sure if you are already downwind winging, if you are in Perth and have access to the gear for free. Start by sup foil surfing to get a feel for it and develop technique and then progress to sup downwind foil which i believe is the penultimate waterman activity (aside big wave paddle surfing). Not having the wing flapping around when your going downwind is a gamechanger. Sup foil surfing will allow you to pickup tiny non-breaking waves that you wouldnt have thought possible.

Thanks. I was out on the river here the other day and saw some guys downwind supping on an easterly with the tiniest of waves and it has piqued my curiosity. I'll give it a bash. Really my only hesitation is if the gear i have already is suitable, if so i'll give it a go!

Your gear listed (hypernut and 1125Ha) will make learning to downwind sup a painful experience. I'd take the gear out in the waves when they finally appear over next few months and learn to surf sup foil. You really want to get on a 7-8 foot long board and probably the HA1080/1180 or APF1675 to get instant gratification downwind paddling. Otherwise you will be drifting and swearing a lot.

I'm someone who used to wing downwind Cott to Scarborough a lot. I now only sup foil the same run Why?? I can do it in any wind and water conditions if there is a hint of south wind and some ocean bumps. I find sup better exercise and I love stopping to paddle up again after clearing weed from my foil! You need to find a foil buddy your skill level willing to shuttle back to start. If there is solid waves I will go wingdinging.

I would happyily show you my current 8' downwind board setup and difference to a 6' board at freshie bay or dutchies next time I'm out on the water.

Wake thieving foiling behind boats in winter is one of the best training options for any wannabe downwind foiler. Plenty of glassy days and endless waves.

Select to expand quote

CH3MTR4IL5 said..
Thanks. I was out on the river here the other day and saw some guys downwind supping on an easterly with the tiniest of waves and it has piqued my curiosity. I'll give it a bash. Really my only hesitation is if the gear i have already is suitable, if so i'll give it a go!

the board is not really suitable for dw by the look of it but it will be perfect to learn paddling technique and getting balanced on the board and will work fine for sup foil surfing. If that clicks and you are interested in DW then definately go get yourself a long and narrow board which will be alot easier to pop up on in the bumps. I wouldnt recommend trying to learn sup dw if you are just getting started with sup.

Select to expand quote

baldy123 said..
Your gear listed (hypernut and 1125Ha) will make learning to downwind sup a painful experience. I'd take the gear out in the waves when they finally appear over next few months and learn to surf sup foil. You really want to get on a 7-8 foot long board and probably the HA1080/1180 or APF1675 to get instant gratification downwind paddling. Otherwise you will be drifting and swearing a lot.

I'm someone who used to wing downwind Cott to Scarborough a lot. I now only sup foil the same run Why?? I can do it in any wind and water conditions if there is a hint of south wind and some ocean bumps. I find sup better exercise and I love stopping to paddle up again after clearing weed from my foil! You need to find a foil buddy your skill level willing to shuttle back to start. If there is solid waves I will go wingdinging.

I would happyily show you my current 8' downwind board setup and difference to a 6' board at freshie bay or dutchies next time I'm out on the water.

Wake thieving foiling behind boats in winter is one of the best training options for any wannabe downwind foiler. Plenty of glassy days and endless waves.

Cheers. Any pointers on location for going out? I am hesitant as to where to learn to SUP surf in Perth without being a potential missile hazard and have a reasonable chance of getting out.

Select to expand quote

CH3MTR4IL5 said..
Thanks. I was out on the river here the other day and saw some guys downwind supping on an easterly with the tiniest of waves and it has piqued my curiosity. I'll give it a bash. Really my only hesitation is if the gear i have already is suitable, if so i'll give it a go!

I was probably one of the guys you saw on the river I did 3 runs from Applecross jetty to Point Walter a couple of weekends ago.

The Easterly was forecast to be stronger but ended up only just doable
As Baldy said though if you want to learn to dw SUP you need a big/long board and a big foil. For example I was using an 8' x 20" SMIK dw board and an Axis Art pro1401 (which is 1647cm2)
This combo has opened up downwinders when at times the wingers are struggling
The bottom picture is at the end of a run from CityBeach to Trigg
I think the OR graph was showing 10knots when I finished.

Its a very good question i think a lot of people are asking themselves... (what/when to foil).
I got into winging, with the intent to ride waves... but after a 6 months of learning and spending a stupid amount of money.. i realised i much prefer kiting than winging... winging feels so encumbered.. and more importantly dangerous (getting pummelled in surf with a foil and wing is too risky for me).
But i have been wondering about SUP foiling... as i loved being up on foil and i SUP alot.... but i have been put off from the board weight/size from winging (had a 95L duotone) compared to when prone foiling a 4'6 40L board which is just foil heaven.. but getting up and pumping is hard (im 52 and shoulders not great)
I see the guys downwinding on 7-8' pencil thin boards.. that realy does not appeal.. **** to paddle (balance on... for me) and when on foil, i have found anything over 5-6kgs takes away from the foil experience (let alone having to swing something that long). Again, thats my experience.. others obviously love it. If its windy i want to be kiting (surfboard) anyway... way more fun and a lot more action, cutbacks, than mowing the lawns downwinding on foil dragging excess weight.

So i have come to the conclusion that foil drive/electric assist is the best option (for me).. as it opens up every discipline (waves, bumps, downwinding) on a small prone board.
However as these FD units are unrealistically expensive (but they look amazing), I'm building my own (see foil.zone - loads of people doing it... can be done for around $1kAUD).
Also, if looking at this route.. again weight matters... so a SUP (weight)plus SUP sized foils (weight and drag) will chew battery.. hence I'm so bent on prone sized boards or nothing .. i still love and prefer SUP surfing.. easy, cheaper, and way less unencumbered than foiling... but I'm hopjng that electric assist overcomes the obvious foiling hurdles.

Select to expand quote

thuffam said..
Its a very good question i think a lot of people are asking themselves... (what/when to foil).
I got into winging, with the intent to ride waves... but after a 6 months of learning and spending a stupid amount of money.. i realised i much prefer kiting than winging... winging feels so encumbered.. and more importantly dangerous (getting pummelled in surf with a foil and wing is too risky for me).
But i have been wondering about SUP foiling... as i loved being up on foil and i SUP alot.... but i have been put off from the board weight/size from winging (had a 95L duotone) compared to when prone foiling a 4'6 40L board which is just foil heaven.. but getting up and pumping is hard (im 52 and shoulders not great)
I see the guys downwinding on 7-8' pencil thin boards.. that realy does not appeal.. **** to paddle (balance on... for me) and when on foil, i have found anything over 5-6kgs takes away from the foil experience (let alone having to swing something that long). Again, thats my experience.. others obviously love it. If its windy i want to be kiting (surfboard) anyway... way more fun and a lot more action, cutbacks, than mowing the lawns downwinding on foil dragging excess weight.

So i have come to the conclusion that foil drive/electric assist is the best option (for me).. as it opens up every discipline (waves, bumps, downwinding) on a small prone board.
However as these FD units are unrealistically expensive (but they look amazing), I'm building my own (see foil.zone - loads of people doing it... can be done for around $1kAUD).
Also, if looking at this route.. again weight matters... so a SUP (weight)plus SUP sized foils (weight and drag) will chew battery.. hence I'm so bent on prone sized boards or nothing .. i still love and prefer SUP surfing.. easy, cheaper, and way less unencumbered than foiling... but I'm hopjng that electric assist overcomes the obvious foiling hurdles.

We are all different so you have to find what works for you.
I used to love kiting and sup surfing, however I hardly touch either anymore.
That may be completely different if I lived in a different location

Select to expand quote

tightlines said..

I used to love kiting and sup surfing, however I hardly touch either anymore.
That may be completely different if I lived in a different location

So what's your poison now?

Select to expand quote

CH3MTR4IL5 said..

tightlines said..

I used to love kiting and sup surfing, however I hardly touch either anymore.
That may be completely different if I lived in a different location

So what's your poison now?

I've been pretty close to 100% sup foil dw all summer. Figured if I wanted to learn downwind I would have to put the wing away for a while but now I never seem to have any desire to wing or kite.
if there was more surf in Perth I might kite and wing more.

Now the wind is pretty much gone though I will probably do a little bit of sup foil surfing which I have been doing for years and probably try to get my prone foiling happening a bit more through the winter.

Select to expand quote

tightlines said..

thuffam said..
Its a very good question i think a lot of people are asking themselves... (what/when to foil).
I got into winging, with the intent to ride waves... but after a 6 months of learning and spending a stupid amount of money.. i realised i much prefer kiting than winging... winging feels so encumbered.. and more importantly dangerous (getting pummelled in surf with a foil and wing is too risky for me).
But i have been wondering about SUP foiling... as i loved being up on foil and i SUP alot.... but i have been put off from the board weight/size from winging (had a 95L duotone) compared to when prone foiling a 4'6 40L board which is just foil heaven.. but getting up and pumping is hard (im 52 and shoulders not great)
I see the guys downwinding on 7-8' pencil thin boards.. that realy does not appeal.. **** to paddle (balance on... for me) and when on foil, i have found anything over 5-6kgs takes away from the foil experience (let alone having to swing something that long). Again, thats my experience.. others obviously love it. If its windy i want to be kiting (surfboard) anyway... way more fun and a lot more action, cutbacks, than mowing the lawns downwinding on foil dragging excess weight.

So i have come to the conclusion that foil drive/electric assist is the best option (for me).. as it opens up every discipline (waves, bumps, downwinding) on a small prone board.
However as these FD units are unrealistically expensive (but they look amazing), I'm building my own (see foil.zone - loads of people doing it... can be done for around $1kAUD).
Also, if looking at this route.. again weight matters... so a SUP (weight)plus SUP sized foils (weight and drag) will chew battery.. hence I'm so bent on prone sized boards or nothing .. i still love and prefer SUP surfing.. easy, cheaper, and way less unencumbered than foiling... but I'm hopjng that electric assist overcomes the obvious foiling hurdles.

We are all different so you have to find what works for you.
I used to love kiting and sup surfing, however I hardly touch either anymore.
That may be completely different if I lived in a different location

What do you do now instead and why do you prefer it?