This is my first run on my new slalom board (2019 Goya Proton Pro). Kind of tricky getting the feet in the straps, but I love the control of the heels on the rail and the big fin (38cm). Using 6.5m Speedfreak. Looking forwards to getting things dialed and trying to hit 30mph. Any tips appreciated.



Yesterday felt a lot faster than it was. I could not pass a bump and jump sailor on 5m, although I was pointing higher.

What volume?
If Coyote is over around 25, FSW boards are just as fast as slalom boards due to the chop.

38 fin, maybe 105?
Did that fast FSW sailor happen to be Duzzi?

Flatter conditions will help al lot. I've hit 30mph briefly (before I crashed because I'm still not great), but I was also going a bit more downwind (from what I can tell) and had raked the sail backward more. It'll take some experimentation. May want to fool with the mast track to find the right combination of control and speed in that chop.

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LeeD said..
38 fin, maybe 105?
Did that fast FSW sailor happen to be Duzzi?

could have been his name was Dan and his board was blue

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LeeD said..
If Coyote is over around 25, FSW boards are just as fast as slalom boards due to the chop.

I doubt that's true - unless you have some unusual voodoo chop.

A few of us on Isonic 86L and Mistral 91L (Chris Lockwood) slalom boards have done 34 knot peaks and 31 knot average nautical miles in the ocean in 25 knot winds - big chop and 2m windswells.

thedoor - tips;
If you want to easily go over 30 knots in big chop use a slalom sail.
38cm fin sounds big - we would use 28-34cm. Less drag and if you spin out at speed you can often pull it back in.
Head super downwind if you're powered up, running between the swell lines if possible.
Often it's faster in deep water - the wind is usually more constant away from the shore and the swell lines can be more orderly

What is the camera etc you are using? I wouldn't mind getting some clips like this...

Its had to tell because the angle/ wide angle lens sort of distorts things a bit. But I would say try to 'fly' the board a bit more on the fin, you look a bit windward rail down, flatten the board toward the leeward rail and get that fin working for you. Then you need to try to skip over the chop, it looks like you are riding the waves up and down a bit too much... Do all this whilst keeping the board and rig still/quiet!
Much easier said than done! the other thing is with going fast, power is your friend, its hard to go fast if you are just comfortable.

Opinions aren't worth much unless you've sailed Coyote Pt. on an ebb tide.
I have..at least 50 days.
Port Tack, you run straight into knee high windswell...talking 20 knot breeze..what a non surfer would call THREE FOOT waves, because the face is 3' laid at app. 30 degrees.
Slalom boards wet up to their mast tracks momentarily, slowing the board down every swell you encounter.
FSW has full rocker, less bottom exposed to inconiming windswells, don't get slowed by chop.
Hence, similar speeds.
Flat water like Oz has, full on slalom boards would be 4 knots faster than FSW, for sure.
We don't sail flat water spots in Calif anymore.

Oh, Coyote on an ebb is JUMP HEAVEN.
In those conditions, 21 knot peaks and tide dropping, good sailors get their fins easily up to 8' +. That is not good conditions for slalom speed sailing.

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LeeD said..
Opinions aren't worth much unless you've sailed Coyote Pt. on an ebb tide.
I have..at least 50 days.
Port Tack, you run straight into knee high windswell...talking 20 knot breeze..what a non surfer would call THREE FOOT waves, because the face is 3' laid at app. 30 degrees.
Slalom boards wet up to their mast tracks momentarily, slowing the board down every swell you encounter.
FSW has full rocker, less bottom exposed to inconiming windswells, don't get slowed by chop.
Hence, similar speeds.
Flat water like Oz has, full on slalom boards would be 4 knots faster than FSW, for sure.
We don't sail flat water spots in Calif anymore.

In your world is a 25 knot day on the ocean flat water - did you actually read what I wrote?

Ocean swell can be voodoo chop refraction backwash and conflicting swells.
OR......it can be smooth, almost flat water between widely spaced, long period, one direction swell that happen to coincide with the prevailing wind direction.
Guess which is better for speed sailing?

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LeeD said..
Ocean swell can be voodoo chop refraction backwash and conflicting swells.
OR......it can be smooth, almost flat water between widely spaced, long period, one direction swell that happen to coincide with the prevailing wind direction.
Guess which is better for speed sailing?

Ok you win - you're the ultimate authority

Of course.
I have sailed Coyote on ebb tides.
I have sailed dead flat Ponds.
I sailed the logs at Event Site, and Klickatat.
I have not seen Lake George, where a slalom board can hit really high speeds.
I've sailed flat water between 8' ocean swells.
And of course, plenty of days at voodoo chop Ocean Beach San Francisco.
Plenty of spots a FSW is faster than slalom board.

Not saying you don't have MORE experience in varying conditions......
But what you say is very closed minded....categorically " slalom is faster than FSW"

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cald said..
What is the camera etc you are using? I wouldn't mind getting some clips like this...

Its had to tell because the angle/ wide angle lens sort of distorts things a bit. But I would say try to 'fly' the board a bit more on the fin, you look a bit windward rail down, flatten the board toward the leeward rail and get that fin working for you. Then you need to try to skip over the chop, it looks like you are riding the waves up and down a bit too much... Do all this whilst keeping the board and rig still/quiet!
Much easier said than done! the other thing is with going fast, power is your friend, its hard to go fast if you are just comfortable.

gopro max on k4 harness mount. My body does block the board mostly though.

Thanks for those tips. I think I improved as the day went on. the second half of this video has me on the opposite tack where swell is less of an issue

Edit: I added gps data to the video. I hit 26mph later in this vid

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LeeD said..
Opinions aren't worth much unless you've sailed Coyote Pt. on an ebb tide.
I have..at least 50 days.
Port Tack, you run straight into knee high windswell...talking 20 knot breeze..what a non surfer would call THREE FOOT waves, because the face is 3' laid at app. 30 degrees.
Slalom boards wet up to their mast tracks momentarily, slowing the board down every swell you encounter.
FSW has full rocker, less bottom exposed to inconiming windswells, don't get slowed by chop.
Hence, similar speeds.
Flat water like Oz has, full on slalom boards would be 4 knots faster than FSW, for sure.
We don't sail flat water spots in Calif anymore.

Opinions aren't worth much unless you've sailed the latest modern slalom boards.

I was shocked at the difference between my 2008-2010 and my new Starboards in moderate chop.

Huge difference!

Of course there are conditions where an average sailor on a FSW will be more comfortable, or simply able to be kept under control, and therefore relatively faster. But it's the exception rather than the rule.

Videos. especially onboard, wide angle, make the roughness very deceptive, but I can tell looking at this that board and sailor are not struggling/out of control. Therefore talk of FSW boards being an advantage in that situation does not seem very relevant.

Beam reaching speeds in moderate, open water, organised chop typically varies between 20 to 25 knots, depending on the wind strength in my experience, a bit higher for the very skilled. If it is safe to go broader, low to mid 30's is achievable by most, and peaks in the mid to high 30's by the very skilled. In pyramid, mixed direction backwash or confused chop, nothing is really fast. Sailable maybe, but not fast.

I only have one session under my belt, but I did get the impression that with this board I did not get that "banging into chop" feeling I normally get on my freestyle board

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thedoor said..
I only have one session under my belt, but I did get the impression that with this board I did not get that "banging into chop" feeling I normally get on my freestyle board

The feeling you are looking for is flying level, just touching the tops of the chop, with only your fin in the water over the troughs

hey door don't follow others track when trying for top speeds ,,,on the gust bare off and head down wind ,
great little vid ...it makes the world look round .

Constantly Gybing, but not.

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thedoor said..




gopro max on k4 harness mount. My body does block the board mostly though.

Thanks for those tips. I think I improved as the day went on. the second half of this video has me on the opposite tack where swell is less of an issue

Edit: I added gps data to the video. I hit 26mph later in this vid

That looks really good, definitely not as flat as where I hit 30 for like a brief moment and looks like you have better control than I do. Most of my TOW is foiling because the wind just isn't there, and when it is I'd rather be catching waves on a different setup. Maybe I should try higher speed blasting in more open water like that more?

BTW I love totally dusting sailboats like that. Something about screaming by at over twice their speed.

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aeroegnr said..

thedoor said..




gopro max on k4 harness mount. My body does block the board mostly though.

Thanks for those tips. I think I improved as the day went on. the second half of this video has me on the opposite tack where swell is less of an issue

Edit: I added gps data to the video. I hit 26mph later in this vid

That looks really good, definitely not as flat as where I hit 30 for like a brief moment and looks like you have better control than I do. Most of my TOW is foiling because the wind just isn't there, and when it is I'd rather be catching waves on a different setup. Maybe I should try higher speed blasting in more open water like that more?

BTW I love totally dusting sailboats like that. Something about screaming by at over twice their speed.

is that your foil board you did 30 mph on the fin?

Although I have been foiling >90% of the time, I am hoping to dabble in multiple WS disciplines, to keep things fresh and because they are all great.

The footstrap video from guy crib got me interested in slalom and Kasper's amateur series helped too. Prior to watching the guy cribb video I don't think I really understood what slalom had to offer (even though my entry to windsurfing was flatwater blasting, which has always been a great thrill), but he basically points out the value of all disciplines and pumps up the pros of each.

Kasper is a great example. Full on slalom dude that seems to rip pretty good in Euro waves

Tardy's got it right.
For speed, choose your own path, not the path another sailor chose.
Given slalom vs FSW, either higher upwind to take advantage of wider tail, harder rail, and longer flat rocker......or close to broad reaching, avoiding windswells, heading downhill, using your bigger sail, and standing more outboard to unweight....plus your superior fin if you chose aftermarket.

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thedoor said..


is that your foil board you did 30 mph on the fin?

Although I have been foiling >90% of the time, I am hoping to dabble in multiple WS disciplines, to keep things fresh and because they are all great.

That's my Blast 145 which I use for foiling on freeride (slingshot) foil gear when the wind drops. Very versatile board, learned a ton, but may eventually move to a dedicated slalom and separate freeride foiling board...not sure and not in a rush.

I've also got an IQFoil kit which I've been preferring over everything except on windy/wavy days. Mainly because I can go soo deep upwind and downwind and go long distances quickly in almost any condition (unless it's gusting close to 30kts then I find it too scary/difficult to control at my skill level). I get more TOW with that than anything else.

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aeroegnr said..

thedoor said..


is that your foil board you did 30 mph on the fin?

Although I have been foiling >90% of the time, I am hoping to dabble in multiple WS disciplines, to keep things fresh and because they are all great.

That's my Blast 145 which I use for foiling on freeride (slingshot) foil gear when the wind drops. Very versatile board, learned a ton, but may eventually move to a dedicated slalom and separate freeride foiling board...not sure and not in a rush.

I've also got an IQFoil kit which I've been preferring over everything except on windy/wavy days. Mainly because I can go soo deep upwind and downwind and go long distances quickly in almost any condition (unless it's gusting close to 30kts then I find it too scary/difficult to control at my skill level). I get more TOW with that than anything else.

How fast have you gotten the IQ kit to go?

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thedoor said..

How fast have you gotten the IQ kit to go?

I think 25?But it takes almost nothing to go 20mph. Going into the mid 20s starts to get hairy downwind (at least for me, I'm sure there's a lot I could do to improve this). I may get a smaller front and more like a 7.0 foil sail to push into 30s comfortably.You can also see how much sailing angle affects speed. I turned upwind here before jibing, which increased the wind noise but dropped my speed before the entry. It isn't quite as obvious (to me) on a fin because the angles seem less

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aeroegnr said..

thedoor said..

How fast have you gotten the IQ kit to go?

I think 25?But it takes almost nothing to go 20mph. Going into the mid 20s starts to get hairy downwind (at least for me, I'm sure there's a lot I could do to improve this). I may get a smaller front and more like a 7.0 foil sail to push into 30s comfortably.You can also see how much sailing angle affects speed. I turned upwind here before jibing, which increased the wind noise but dropped my speed before the entry. It isn't quite as obvious (to me) on a fin because the angles seem less

Nice. I have a buddy with IQ foil and it is very versatile, and he is really hard to catch, mostly cause I can't compete with his angles with my freeride foiling gear.

My new slalom board has a foil ready box so I may try it with a race foil too

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thedoor said..

aeroegnr said..

thedoor said..

How fast have you gotten the IQ kit to go?

I think 25?But it takes almost nothing to go 20mph. Going into the mid 20s starts to get hairy downwind (at least for me, I'm sure there's a lot I could do to improve this). I may get a smaller front and more like a 7.0 foil sail to push into 30s comfortably.You can also see how much sailing angle affects speed. I turned upwind here before jibing, which increased the wind noise but dropped my speed before the entry. It isn't quite as obvious (to me) on a fin because the angles seem less

Nice. I have a buddy with IQ foil and it is very versatile, and he is really hard to catch, mostly cause I can't compete with his angles with my freeride foiling gear.

My new slalom board has a foil ready box so I may try it with a race foil too

I *really* like race foils right now for stability and speed over freeride foils, but I'll have to revisit that thought after I get back on the freeride foils...at some point.

I'm in the same boat.
Love my hi aspect 600 wing.
But love the stability and turning of my 1220 delta wing.
Worse, I still slalom sail pretty good, but almost everyday the wind is bump n jump speeds.
And past month, being pulled towards wing foiling.
What's a guy to do?

thedoor.....
If you go higher, and not lose ground, you ARE going faster than the other guy.
Use that upwind ability to climb even, then bare off slightly to increase speed and climb over the top while giving him your dirty air.
Since you are covering more ground, but same overall direction, you are going faster, by definition.

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LeeD said..

Use that upwind ability to climb even, then bare off slightly to increase speed and climb over the top while giving him your dirty air.

aha that sounds good