Foils have been around for a decent while. I haven't heard any horror stories but there must be some cases of injuries from sailing about with long knives attached directly underneath you. Any injuries to report?

feet cuts when waterstarting

I heard about a prone foiler who cut his throat quite badly but survived.

So far thankfully, just my pride.

I did get a weird footstrap injury where I got pulled forward in an awkward crash while foiling and it sprained my foot (I've since adjusted the straps on that setup). Got a bad cut while finning and stepping on a sharp shell and that's been my worst one so far.

Someone, while setting up their new carbon mast, got sliced badly on their hand due to the sharp trailing edge when they accidentally brushed their hand down it. Helped him bandaged it up, it was pretty deep but he went sailing on it after a big patch.

Saw a bad cut that required stitches from a fall during a jibe, but that was with a weed fin.

Torn rotator cuff from hitting (sail) mast in a foil catapult

Perforated eardrum after a catapult...no fun

6 stitches on my thumb. A person (non-windsurfer) was trying to help me to get my board on a dock, and he pulled the board without knowing there was a foil. I tried to stopped him from pulling up and grabbed the foil mast and sliced my thumb. Pretty deep cut.
9 stitches on my heel. Waiting for a buddy to launch I hit the trailing edge of the front wing. both were stupid mistakes and I was not foiling.

I broke my ankle in two places attempting a jibe when I really wasn't ready for it. Strapless board, on a biggish (1600cm2) foil, in swell, nose reared up and I pulled the rig over me, jamming my foot under the mast, body twisted around, crack, busted ankle, all while up in the air. Too ambitious.

I foil with only front footstraps and try to hang on the boom when I crash, that has helped, because after 177 sessions since I started the worst I had was a bruise on my tigh when I hit the boom during a catapult: I should have pulled harder on the back hand.
Also I am not the fastest.. that helps too

I might be jinxing myself but I think windfoiling is one of the safer foil sports, meaning its pretty hard to land on your foil versus winging and prone foiling. Much much more likely to hit your boom or mast than the foil while crashing.

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thedoor said..
I might be jinxing myself but I think windfoiling is one of the safer foil sports, meaning its pretty hard to land on your foil versus winging and prone foiling. Much much more likely to hit your boom or mast than the foil while crashing.

Yup, I'd agree ... one of the best tips I ever read is to hang onto your boom when you fall, it reduces the chances of the foil flipping up and you landing on it ... didn't help me falling backwards (and I wasn't injured by the foil itself), but that's another story...

Broken hand from karate chopping the rail of the board when falling on a gybe

Cracked ribs several years ago from landing on the foil learning foil duck jibes. Now I wear an impact vest at the request of my wife

On a straight-down windward-side flukey fall I slammed my shin against my front wing (race wing not downturned). Cut that baby open wide to the bone and bled like crazy. Fortunately, the Columbia River does not have sharks.

By the time I got to a doctor it had been too many hours for stitches to bond since the skin flap had already died. So, I had to go through four months of wound care that kept me off the water during the best part of the season.

All healed now, but still below freezing outside. Yes, hang on to the boom at all times.

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aeroegnr said..
So far thankfully, just my pride.

I did get a weird footstrap injury where I got pulled forward in an awkward crash while foiling and it sprained my foot (I've since adjusted the straps on that setup). ...

Thankfully given my foiling style (I slog and push hard down to keep the board off the foil), I do not run any risk of injury. But I wonder if something like this might be a nice new safety device for feet and ankles: ventores.com/pages/footstrap

Others have tried to come up with a quick release strap but this one might be more ready for prime time?

Plenty of little nicks in lower legs and feet from kicking the foil when launching & water starting etc. Still in the learning stages of foiling, but use these for the rear straps only (normal front straps)... Easy to slide foot back and into them, but importantly they release when going over the handlebars! If you wedge your foot hard into the back of the strap they provide nearly as much stability & security as a normal strap. They wouldn't be any good for jumping but that's not even a consideration for me ! They can also be prone to catching harness lines when water starting but it's not a major.

My shins look like roadmaps from beachstarting/waterstarting and forgetting where the stab was; torn pectoral muscle light-air waterstarting (dumb idea - I had plenty of volume to uphaul), and a weeks worth of whiplash headaches and neck pain from a big hooked-in catapult when I grounded out at the base of a swell. So far, that's about it. I've been hurt much worse finning but of course I've been doing that much longer.

Ankle Injury from the straps learing to Jybe

I just saw a winger get cut along their shin up to the knee, was bleeding pretty good, fortunately foil only cut through an inch of skin, rest of 10 inches was just purple from bleeding under the shin, they did not have any protection below the knees. I always wear something covering my legs, wetsuit in colder water, compression pants with Gorilla taped shins in Summer.

First time I demoed a foil and board from Britt at North Beach Windsurfing he let me go out without any protection or warning, and got a minor cut on my shin, was lucky I guess.

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Sandman1221 said..
I just saw a winger get cut along their shin up to the knee, was bleeding pretty good, fortunately foil only cut through an inch of skin, rest of 10 inches was just purple from bleeding under the shin, they did not have any protection below the knees. I always wear something covering my legs, wetsuit in colder water, compression pants with Gorilla taped shins in Summer.

First time I demoed a foil and board from Britt at North Beach Windsurfing he let me go out without any protection or warning, and got a minor cut on my shin, was lucky I guess.

Oh that Britt - always gambling with his health and that of his poor customers. Wades around Tampa Bay barefoot, encouraging us all to risk tetanus or cooties, flies around on a tiny Predator making us think sinkers are safe, pumps with his legs instead of his arms like a real man etc, etc...

Seriously dude, it seems a little harsh to lay that one on Britt. If I buy a brick I don't expect the salesman to warn me not to drop it on my foot.

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Awalkspoiled said..

Sandman1221 said..
I just saw a winger get cut along their shin up to the knee, was bleeding pretty good, fortunately foil only cut through an inch of skin, rest of 10 inches was just purple from bleeding under the shin, they did not have any protection below the knees. I always wear something covering my legs, wetsuit in colder water, compression pants with Gorilla taped shins in Summer.

First time I demoed a foil and board from Britt at North Beach Windsurfing he let me go out without any protection or warning, and got a minor cut on my shin, was lucky I guess.

Oh that Britt - always gambling with his health and that of his poor customers. Wades around Tampa Bay barefoot, encouraging us all to risk tetanus or cooties, flies around on a tiny Predator making us think sinkers are safe, pumps with his legs instead of his arms like a real man etc, etc...

Seriously dude, it seems a little harsh to lay that one on Britt. If I buy a brick I don't expect the salesman to warn me not to drop it on my foot.

A responsible business owner should warn a customer of any potential dangers associated with what they are about to do and make sure they are properly attired. When I go white water rafting out West I have to read and sign a release form which tells me of the potential dangers, and wear a wetsuit, life jacket, and helmet, because it is a legal responsibility for the business owner!

If I was renting foiling equipment I would not allow anyone to use it without full protection for their body, including a wetsuit or something similar and a helmet. It is common knowledge by anyone in the business that the trailing edges of foils can cut through skin, but not obvious to someone trying it for the first time, especially because they often can NOT see the foil in the water.

Around here, Tampa Bay and Gulf-coast areas, there are several different fleash eating bacteria present in the waters that can infect people through open wounds, including fresh tattoos, and results in the loss of limbs every year through amputation since antibiotics are usually not effective, and deaths too of course.

So Britt put me at risk for the loss of a limb, so yeah, I will lay that on him.

Shin guards. And good grief, you can't lay that on Britt. Or Bruce or anybody in Maui or any vendor. Come on. When you buy SABfoil gear you get all this paperwork about risks. In 16 languages.

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segler said..
Shin guards. And good grief, you can't lay that on Britt. Or Bruce or anybody in Maui or any vendor. Come on. When you buy SABfoil gear you get all this paperwork about risks. In 16 languages.

And yes I will lay that on any vendor!, so when I go white water rafting on "rented equipment" I do not need to wear a wetsuit, helmet, and life jacket? Or if I rent a boat or jetski, no life jacket then either? Oh wait, there is a Federal law, enforced by the US Coast Guard requiring life jackets, jeez, wonder why?

Right exactly like you said Segler, "When you buy SABfoil gear you get all this paperwork about risks", so why not get that same information before renting a foil?

I mean, it is not like you only get a seat belt when you buy a car, you get get one when you rent a car too!

You guys are just being plain "fill in words" about this! Why would not want to protect customers from injury?

So for everyone else, foils have dangerously sharp trailing edges that can cut deep into skin and muscle, and because you often can not see the foil in the water it is easy to hit it with your legs by accident, or get hit by it in a crash, therefore as a responsible business owner I am requiring you to wear booties, wetsuit, helmet, even gloves, before renting foiling equipment from me. Now if you decide to buy foiling equipment, you can do whatever you want, but at least I have warned you!

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Sandman1221 said..
So for everyone else, foils have dangerously sharp trailing edges that can cut deep into skin and muscle, and because you often can not see the foil in the water it is easy to hit it with your legs by accident, or get hit by it in a crash, therefore as a responsible business owner I am requiring you to wear booties, wetsuit, helmet, even gloves, before renting foiling equipment from me. Now if you decide to buy foiling equipment, you can do whatever you want, but at least I have warned you!

Sounds like foils and masts should be painted white or safety yellow!

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ozzimark said..

Sandman1221 said..
So for everyone else, foils have dangerously sharp trailing edges that can cut deep into skin and muscle, and because you often can not see the foil in the water it is easy to hit it with your legs by accident, or get hit by it in a crash, therefore as a responsible business owner I am requiring you to wear booties, wetsuit, helmet, even gloves, before renting foiling equipment from me. Now if you decide to buy foiling equipment, you can do whatever you want, but at least I have warned you!

Sounds like foils and masts should be painted white or safety yellow!

If foils and masts are going to be painted yellow, should water have a safety sticker labeled , " do not breath in ".
I agree with Sandy that first timers renting should be warned of the sharp bits .

Someone will not get discounts from Britt anymore.
poor Britt, he was once dragged to a local windsurfing forum because a guy was taking nonsense.

Heaps of little cuts on the shins and ankles from waterstarts and walking into foil.

Lukewarm coffee and blunt fins, sounds like a dull life... ;)

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Imax1 said..

ozzimark said..

Sandman1221 said..
So for everyone else, foils have dangerously sharp trailing edges that can cut deep into skin and muscle, and because you often can not see the foil in the water it is easy to hit it with your legs by accident, or get hit by it in a crash, therefore as a responsible business owner I am requiring you to wear booties, wetsuit, helmet, even gloves, before renting foiling equipment from me. Now if you decide to buy foiling equipment, you can do whatever you want, but at least I have warned you!

Sounds like foils and masts should be painted white or safety yellow!

If foils and masts are going to be painted yellow, should water have a safety sticker labeled , " do not breath in ".
I agree with Sandy that first timers renting should be warned of the sharp bits .

Given how well he takes advice here, not sure how much stock I'd put into his version of events. The shop he's slagging has fostered one of the most successful youth foil programs in the US. All those young groms kick my butt without the benefit of Gorilla tape and look no worse for wear.

btw, the only serious cut I've gotten over the years was from a 35cm fin. No warning sticker on the stupid thing. In the process of sending a sternly worded email to my local gov't rep and starting a FB support group for fellow victims and survivors*.

*not clowning on people who are dealing with real * in their lives. Glad they are getting help and support they need.

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Paducah said..
btw, the only serious cut I've gotten over the years was from a 35cm fin. No warning sticker on the stupid thing. In the process of sending a sternly worded email to my local gov't rep and starting a FB support group for fellow victims and survivors*.

Maybe you should have had some kind of underwater periscope device to check for fin location before kicking it, or a airplane wingtip strobe light on the tip of the fin!