Anyone rides the Medusa Pro 869? How is it and what stab do you choose? Not much infos yet around for windfoiling.
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I've tried the 769 Medusa Pro and currently have the 669 in the car ready for a stronger blow.

I'll compare to the Onda 835 which is my #1 pick for freeride/wave riding if this helps.

The 835 is 926cm2 with 150 chord 835 wide
The 769 is 700cm2 with 133 chord 769 wide

Back to back in the same conditions they both flew well in 20knot breeze on 3.3 sail. So amazing lift from the 769 for a wing with 226cm2 less area than the Onda 835. The marketing about their high lift for size characteristics is correct. Popped up quickly on foil for its size in the conditions. Impressive stuff.

Definitely fast due to the high aspect ratio and it glides well at higher speeds. A great high performance wing.

Downsides for me: The thin chord makes the wing a little bit more pitch sensitive in a bit of chop. Definitely more sensitive to turbulence than the Onda 835 which just charges through it all. You can feel the wing fidgeting a bit. You need more front foot pressure and speed to drive on carves and gybes. The wing needs a little bit more speed/commitment to perform manoeuvres than the 835 and did drop off a little if it wasn't pushed. Maybe understandable given the surface area. It depends what on your riding style/conditions you ride in whether this is a good or bad thing.

Nice wing but I preferred the Onda which is a bit smoother and predictable for my style and carves just as hard. They're too similar to have both so the 869 isn't for me.

Looking forward to trying the 669 which could be a high wind beast.

I was using the S380 rear stab with a 0.5 shim. Loving the Onda 835 S380 combo.

Thank you for your detailed assessment. My absolute #1 is 940. Compared with the 869 the benefit would be better lift and glide as i see in the comparison. But the small surface makes me suspicious.

Have Medusa 899, Onda 940 and 430 stab Whilst the 899 is low wind the 940 has been and will continue to be awesome for 12-20 knots and moderate swell.
Have the 769 and 399 arriving tomorrow in order to give me more range. Windy week ahead, will report back after a few sessions

First sorry for my english (I'm from belgium). I have a medusa pro 869 that I have used a few times. Usually I ride a 899 that I love but I wanted something better to jump. Here come the 869!

I have used it in gusty wind (inland lake) from 12 to 20kn. I dont think that I could do better for the lower. The 869 accelerate really quickly to 18-20kn, then you need more commitment to push further. The longitudinal stability is really good, foot pressure does not change with speed. I have found the lateral stability a little bit to high ( but I come from de 899 ). In the jibe you need to keep a minimum speed/pressure in the sail to be comfortable. You can not be passive. I think the stall speed is around 10kn.

Jumps is where the wing really shine. As soon as you push on the rear foot the 869 get out the water without any resistance. I mean you really don't loose any speed during this phase (don't have the feeling of pushing water). Immediatly your jumps are higher and as you keep speed the touch and go is also easier.

The down for me and my level are that I really need more focus and commitment with the 869 than my 899 where everything is easy.
The extreme maneuverability requires attention with foot pressure.

I really want to try the 909 to have more low end and using my 899 only when the wind is really low (8-10kn)

If you have other question about the 869, don't hesitate! I've also a few navigation on the 769 If you want some comparaison

I use the 869 with the 430 stab + 0,5shim.

I've been on the 796 medusa recently and tuning/swapping stabs etc. I found the magic setup for me and am totally stoked after lots of experimenting.

Option 1. 769 with SS PS400 stab: no issues getting going, took a little more speed before launching, but once up easy to ride. Problem was
too much lift at speed. Had to back off before foiling out.

Option 2. 769 with SS 340 turbo tail. Solved the over lift issue. Did a lot of rides with this setup. Downside was the small tail made it a lot more pitchy to control, Turning to hard can blow the tail out as the yaw is also slippery. Had to adjust to wider jibe radius. Good speed with the 340 tail, but had to be heavily engaged to control pitch especially in gusty winds.

Option 3. 769 with PS400 and -0.5 degree shim. Same as before, too much lift, but locked in yaw which I love.

Option 4. 769 with PS400 and -1.5 degree shim. BINGO!!. Great carving control at speed, easy to control lift, turns like it's on rails. the interesting part is I was getting more speed with the draggier tail (PS400) I think because I had so much more pitch control at speed, I could confidently ride high with little mast in the water. I hit 23 knots multiple times, where I could only do 22 with the turbo tail and my ass clenched . The larger tail also improved stall speed a lot over the 340. Same day, same conditions back to back.

Things change as skills improve, but at my current state, this is my favorite setup for 18+ knots of wind.

Hi Vinc88, I'm using the 899 as well and really love it; especially how simple it is to ride and easy to learn any tricks (no jumps). I weight 65kg, use a 75l board and sail it from around 10/12knts till around 20/22knts. Above that it doesn't make as much fun anymore. Therefore, I'm looking to change after 2 years to the new 869 or 909, which should be faster then the 899 and they should also have a higher top end.Do you or anyone else have any experience with the 909 as well? how would you compare the 869 to the 909 in stall speed, low end and top end. I'm not 100% sure which one i should take as my 899 replacement; right, ideally i should try them both at first, but that's not easy over here. Thx !

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watomi007 said..
Hi Vinc88, I'm using the 899 as well and really love it; especially how simple it is to ride and easy to learn any tricks (no jumps). I weight 65kg, use a 75l board and sail it from around 10/12knts till around 20/22knts. Above that it doesn't make as much fun anymore. Therefore, I'm looking to change after 2 years to the new 869 or 909, which should be faster then the 899 and they should also have a higher top end.Do you or anyone else have any experience with the 909 as well? how would you compare the 869 to the 909 in stall speed, low end and top end. I'm not 100% sure which one i should take as my 899 replacement; right, ideally i should try them both at first, but that's not easy over here. Thx !

I will try my new 909 in 2 days (waiting for the wind). The 869 don't replace the 899 for sure...for me it's already a medium wind wing. I guess the 909 will be ok around 10-12kn...maybe less I hope !

OK. as 869 is not replacing 899, I just got myself the 909. We should have also Mon or Tue some wind and then I hopefully get on the water to see how it goes. Looking forward to your feedback.

First try on the 909 (comparaison with my usual 899)

Condition: my little gusty lake, 6-17kn (mainly 10-12kn)
Equipment : Slingshot FS115, sabfoil kraken 93 mast, 430 gullwing stab, 903 fuselage. Gunsail torro 5.3 and 4.7

Takeoff:
909 needs 2-3kn more board speed to takeoff than my 899 so I need to pump a little longer or choose a bigger sail (0,3-0,5 m?)
The 899 offer a better support in the water to pump the sail but the 909 is not far back.

In the Air:

909 accelerate fastly to 17-18kn (not reach 2 0kn that I was hoping but maybe not enough wind? Or maybe the stab?
In the same condition my 899 speed is usually form 14 to 16 kn.
Very good stability in all axis (much better than the 869). The 899 has a better stability though.
The glide is amazing!!! You can enter a jibe killing the sail power and yet keeping an outstanding speed through it all. It makes this wing as easy for jibing as the 899! The stall speed is quite the same as the 899 in my opinion (and much better than the 869) Together it makes the 909 a very efficient wing to chasing gusts in my lake.

Jump:

I love to jump a lot! This is why I wanted the 909! She was supperb in this exercice compare to the 899. I was afraid to brake something with the 899 (to big). The 909 is made for jumping! When you pull the trigger, you don't feel any resistance to make her climbing in the air. With the 899 you really feel that the wing push water to get in the air. The 909 cut through the water in the air. And you get instantly a much better high. In addition, I'm no longer afraid to brake my mast at every jump.

Nice review Vinc88!

Do you think you will keep using your 869 now you have the 909 wing?

In regards to jumping on the foil, how is the board holding up?

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Roy said..
Nice review Vinc88!

Do you think you will keep using your 869 now you have the 909 wing?

In regards to jumping on the foil, how is the board holding up?

I don't think so...I perfer to keep the wing that I'm used to and put a smaller sail. I like to ride my 899 in 20-25kn with a tiny sail

I hope that my 909 will be the one "do it all" because "less is more"

Finally, I was able to ride the 909. What an nice wing. I'm full stoked :) I agree to all the points that are said above. I did love my 899 but with all the additional benefits that the 909 has compared to the 899, i have sold my 899 already. I still have the 769 and it will be interested to see, when i rather use that one for stronger winds then the 909.

I'm curious about which wing is better for jumps: the new Medusa Balz Pro 909 or the Medusa Pro 769.
My guess is the 769, but I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I usually ride with the W799 and W699 paired with the S399 stabilizer. On flat water, I can jump much higher with the W699 due to its higher top speed. I also have the W899, but I rarely use it because it feels too slow for jumps, unless I'm using a wave as a kicker.

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Vinc88 said..

Roy said..
Nice review Vinc88!

Do you think you will keep using your 869 now you have the 909 wing?

In regards to jumping on the foil, how is the board holding up?

I don't think so...I perfer to keep the wing that I'm used to and put a smaller sail. I like to ride my 899 in 20-25kn with a tiny sail

I hope that my 909 will be the one "do it all" because "less is more"

Hello Vinc88,

did you had the opportunity to ride more the 909? Is that the "do it all" front wing?
I got actually the 899,799 and 699 and looking too reduce at one max2 front wing and use my wavescape from 5,4 to 3,5 on my JP freefoil 105. Riding mainly in Zeeland i got similar condition as you.
thank you for your feedback

I am also curious in this comparison, i only have a 799 with 399 and thinking about a upgrade tot 909. Freeride foiling with 4.8 5.2 5.6 foilfreek on horue tiny 105 ltr also in the Netherlands