Props to CoreAS @Peoplecreative for his video review. I Had been eyeballing the G800, and his feedback pushed me off the fence .
Surprisingly easy to launch, also the low stall speed. Drops of the foil a tad sooner than the PFI730, and needs a tad more speed to launch, but it seems to get to speed easily, so splitting hairs in that regard. The G800 is a super stable carve machine. The wider span makes it easy to control in large radius turns. Would be a great foil to learn jibing. The stability and glide give you plenty of time to get things sorted. Also a little easier hitting the sweet spot for speed up wind. I love the PFI 730 for the cat like, "spin" on a dime agility. The G800 will be for those "traveling distance days". Cant really comment on speed yet as the winds have not been great. Cant wait to get it out in some proper "white cap" wind conditions.

That is some smooth riding.

mesmerizing

Also great work on the footstrap release mechanism.

Super-smooth riding
I imagine you get epic boat wakes occasionally to downwind on?

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thedoor said..
Also great work on the footstrap release mechanism.

Matt

Your straps look cool

I have Franck's release straps which work super-well in a catapult but don't release falling backwards.
www.free-ride-addicted.fr/e-boutique/paire-de-fixations-de-securite-d-g-pour-footstrap/

Be stoked to buy yours, do you have them in stock and do you ship to Oz?
Have you found the retention/release force is reliably accurate once set?

one word EXCELLENT Matt

Your transitions and carving are super smooth, great work.

Bonus points goes to your drone operator as well, superb footage

BTW its Peaple with an "A"...lol, don't worry my surname has been spelt wrong my entire life,

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azymuth said..
Super-smooth riding
I imagine you get epic boat wakes occasionally to downwind on?

JJ,
Ya, I wish. The wake surf boats create some swell, but the typically stay near the cliffs where there's no wind. There are some big sport cruisers that make huge waves, but the are always going perpendicular to my path or I'm dodging jet ski's etc. Our lake is also 40' low, so half the surface area which forces all the motorized traffic 90 degrees from my path. Some of them are probably rideable, I'm just not there yet. I'm sure you could find a way though .. I need to head to the Texas coast someday to see what rideable swell is like.

Select to expand quote

azymuth said..

thedoor said..
Also great work on the footstrap release mechanism.

Matt

Your straps look cool

I have Franck's release straps which work super-well in a catapult but don't release falling backwards.
www.free-ride-addicted.fr/e-boutique/paire-de-fixations-de-securite-d-g-pour-footstrap/

Be stoked to buy yours, do you have them in stock and do you ship to Oz?
Have you found the retention/release force is reliably accurate once set?

Thanks JJ,
I'll check on shipping and PM you. Shouldn't be an issue. I just shipped a set to England. Can ship in about a week after order.

I had several design goals when I made these..
Reliable, repeatable, durable and low as possible stack height (I don't want my feet to know they are there). I adjusted mine initially and haven't touched the adjustment since (about a year). I went through 3 previous designs before the current model. I got some very positive feedback from a guy on the west coast who's had them a couple months. He had previous ankle surgery, and said they are working great. There is an "adjustment period" to get them tuned to your liking, but after that, should be repeatable. I still have crashes where my feet come out fine without the straps dis engaging, but that 5% when things go sideways, they do pop loose as designed. A month ago I hit a mostly submerged anchor(2500lb dock anchor) rope that wrapped around the mast at 20+ knots and I went down hard. When I found my marbles and came up. The strap had popped loose without me feeling it. I occasionally (maybe 1 in 10 sessions) have an accidental release, usually from kicking them from poor footwork during a jibe, but it's worth the inconvenience to me. I land, and pop it back in with my foot and continue on.

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CoreAS said..
one word EXCELLENT Matt

Your transitions and carving are super smooth, great work.

Bonus points goes to your drone operator as well, superb footage

BTW its Peaple with an "A"...lol, don't worry my surname has been spelt wrong my entire life,

Thanks CoreAS. Sorry about that. I'll know for the future. Most the credit goes to my drone guy (my son). He's built a few, and his flying skills are getting pretty good. I cringe a little thinkin about it in 150' of water though.

Thank you for inspirational video, could you please elaborate on the wide positioning of the harness lines?

I have ordered the free fall hook from France:
www.free-ride-addicted.fr/e-boutique/boucle-free-fall/
and the Dakine T9 Harness:
wind.dakine.com/products/02-t-9-classic-slider-harness?variant=41080336416951
I`m still a bit intimidated from previous experience with rough stops while fin windsurfing in the past with a seat harness.

Your tip concerning foil placement and mast positioning on the Wizard V4 130 L works well. I`m currently on 4 cm mast placement and the mast 4/5 to the rear and I`ve just mounted 4 Slingshot Half Straps the way Azymuth has them on his Wizard 115l.

I primarily want to use the harness to go upwind and try to get some rest, between the sessions where I practice S turns on the way to master gybing......

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norwegianblue said..
Thank you for inspirational video, could you please elaborate on the wide positioning of the harness lines?

I have ordered the free fall hook from France:
www.free-ride-addicted.fr/e-boutique/boucle-free-fall/
and the Dakine T9 Harness:
wind.dakine.com/products/02-t-9-classic-slider-harness?variant=41080336416951
I`m still a bit intimidated from previous experience with rough stops while fin windsurfing in the past with a seat harness.

Your tip concerning foil placement and mast positioning on the Wizard V4 130 L works well. I`m currently on 4 cm mast placement and the mast 4/5 to the rear and I`ve just mounted 4 Slingshot Half Straps the way Azymuth has them on his Wizard 115l.

I primarily want to use the harness to go upwind and try to get some rest, between the sessions where I practice S turns on the way to master gybing......

I have my harness lines setup for comfort in various points of sailing. I slide the hook forward for slogging to support the rig, which can be up to 20 minutes if I'm up the lake and the wind dies. I'll also be hooked in on a broad reach if the wind is not crazy. Any energy I can save means more time on the water. Also easier on the hands (I'm no spring chicken ).

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WsurfAustin said..JJ,Ya, I wish. The wake surf boats create some swell, but the typically stay near the cliffs where there's no wind. There are some big sport cruisers that make huge waves, but the are always going perpendicular to my path or I'm dodging jet ski's etc. Our lake is also 40' low, so half the surface area which forces all the motorized traffic 90 degrees from my path. Some of them are probably rideable, I'm just not there yet. I'm sure you could find a way though .. I need to head to the Texas coast someday to see what rideable swell is like.

For epic fast wake rides - heavy big-ass boat or ferry doing 15-20 knots.
Wind 15-25 knots

Cross through the wake close to the stern, keep the wing deep in the water to avoid kooking it in the turbulence

The section marked in red can be quite smooth and walls up and peels like a wave - we've had chest high.

Superfun flying downwind at 20 knots holding the clew in to maintain power and speed, keeping weight well forward.
Average wake ride might only be 100m or so before we lose the boat or run out of wind - possibly the most frothy 15 secs in foiling

Thanks for your contributions to the sport Matt! Your videos and riding just keep getting better and will undoubtedly encourage others to try windfoiling. The FCS is going to prevent a lot of injuries!

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azymuth said..

WsurfAustin said..JJ,Ya, I wish. The wake surf boats create some swell, but the typically stay near the cliffs where there's no wind. There are some big sport cruisers that make huge waves, but the are always going perpendicular to my path or I'm dodging jet ski's etc. Our lake is also 40' low, so half the surface area which forces all the motorized traffic 90 degrees from my path. Some of them are probably rideable, I'm just not there yet. I'm sure you could find a way though .. I need to head to the Texas coast someday to see what rideable swell is like.

For epic fast wake rides - heavy big-ass boat or ferry doing 15-20 knots.
Wind 15-25 knots

Cross through the wake close to the stern, keep the wing deep in the water to avoid kooking it in the turbulence

The section marked in red can be quite smooth and walls up and peels like a wave - we've had chest high.

Superfun flying downwind at 20 knots holding the clew in to maintain power and speed, keeping weight well forward.
Average wake ride might only be 100m or so before we lose the boat or run out of wind - possibly the most frothy 15 secs in foiling

Thanks for this JJ!

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azymuth said..

WsurfAustin said..JJ,Ya, I wish. The wake surf boats create some swell, but the typically stay near the cliffs where there's no wind. There are some big sport cruisers that make huge waves, but the are always going perpendicular to my path or I'm dodging jet ski's etc. Our lake is also 40' low, so half the surface area which forces all the motorized traffic 90 degrees from my path. Some of them are probably rideable, I'm just not there yet. I'm sure you could find a way though .. I need to head to the Texas coast someday to see what rideable swell is like.

For epic fast wake rides - heavy big-ass boat or ferry doing 15-20 knots.
Wind 15-25 knots

Cross through the wake close to the stern, keep the wing deep in the water to avoid kooking it in the turbulence

The section marked in red can be quite smooth and walls up and peels like a wave - we've had chest high.

Superfun flying downwind at 20 knots holding the clew in to maintain power and speed, keeping weight well forward.
Average wake ride might only be 100m or so before we lose the boat or run out of wind - possibly the most frothy 15 secs in foiling

This was filmed during lock down so they where just out in the bay cruising around slower then normal.
This ferry is 160 feet and is the holy grail of ferries on SF bay when it's at full speed the wake is logo high

Select to expand quote

azymuth said..

WsurfAustin said..JJ,Ya, I wish. The wake surf boats create some swell, but the typically stay near the cliffs where there's no wind. There are some big sport cruisers that make huge waves, but the are always going perpendicular to my path or I'm dodging jet ski's etc. Our lake is also 40' low, so half the surface area which forces all the motorized traffic 90 degrees from my path. Some of them are probably rideable, I'm just not there yet. I'm sure you could find a way though .. I need to head to the Texas coast someday to see what rideable swell is like.

For epic fast wake rides - heavy big-ass boat or ferry doing 15-20 knots.
Wind 15-25 knots

Cross through the wake close to the stern, keep the wing deep in the water to avoid kooking it in the turbulence

The section marked in red can be quite smooth and walls up and peels like a wave - we've had chest high.

Superfun flying downwind at 20 knots holding the clew in to maintain power and speed, keeping weight well forward.
Average wake ride might only be 100m or so before we lose the boat or run out of wind - possibly the most frothy 15 secs in foiling

Wow, that's cool, whole other skill set I have yet to devlop. I'll be chasingt big boats from now on...

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Gwarn said..

azymuth said..

WsurfAustin said..JJ,Ya, I wish. The wake surf boats create some swell, but the typically stay near the cliffs where there's no wind. There are some big sport cruisers that make huge waves, but the are always going perpendicular to my path or I'm dodging jet ski's etc. Our lake is also 40' low, so half the surface area which forces all the motorized traffic 90 degrees from my path. Some of them are probably rideable, I'm just not there yet. I'm sure you could find a way though .. I need to head to the Texas coast someday to see what rideable swell is like.

For epic fast wake rides - heavy big-ass boat or ferry doing 15-20 knots.
Wind 15-25 knots

Cross through the wake close to the stern, keep the wing deep in the water to avoid kooking it in the turbulence

The section marked in red can be quite smooth and walls up and peels like a wave - we've had chest high.

Superfun flying downwind at 20 knots holding the clew in to maintain power and speed, keeping weight well forward.
Average wake ride might only be 100m or so before we lose the boat or run out of wind - possibly the most frothy 15 secs in foiling

This was filmed during lock down so they where just out in the bay cruising around slower then normal.
This ferry is 160 feet and is the holy grail of ferries on SF bay when it's at full speed the wake is logo high

That's awesome. We don't have boats that big