Still progressing.

Wind season is just showing signs of starting here. I went out today for the third time in a row.

Something clicked lately and some thoughts:

Learn the difference between signs of sail overpowered vs. too much lift
This is very hard to do when just learning foiling on race foils, or just foiling in general, because everything happens so fast. You get a gust, and then bam you're out of the water and crashing back down. Both today and yesterday there were times where the gusts were pushing 20mph. I was nervous today because those gusts also came with a change in direction that would just slam me over backwards (land shape doing its magic to the wind).

However, after I overcame the jitters I just dropped the boom and tightened the outhaul. Those 20mph gusts started to become way more manageable and the sail felt about 2m smaller when on the foil. It absolutely saved my session.

I would also have the outhaul a little looser today to get going then tighten it once up in order to depower for the gusty wind line. Only a cm or so.

I'm still trying to find better ways to describe it, the signs of overpower vs. foil trim issues, right now I only understand it intuitively.

Ride the harness line hard
The move-the-hips to control ride hide only really works well when you've sunk in the harness. If you have too much pull coming from your arms from an unbalanced harness, or just old habit, the hips won't be as effective. Even if you have to frogleg it when overpowered and squat over the rail a bit, your hips will be more effective if the harness is fully loaded. Line length may be a problem.

My solution for avoiding breaching is to use the right size sail AND front wing, with stabilizer trimmed properly too. I always had problems breaching in +14 knots until I started to switch over from my F1080 cm2 wing to the F770 cm2 wing. On the F1080 wing it can be hard to get enough front foot pressure to stop a breach, but with the F770 I can easily use front foot pressure to keep the foil in the water, just have to be prepared for the speed increase if I do not sheet out too!

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Sandman1221 said..
My solution for avoiding breaching is to use the right size sail AND front wing, with stabilizer trimmed properly too. I always had problems breaching in +14 knots until I started to switch over from my F1080 cm2 wing to the F770 cm2 wing. On the F1080 wing it can be hard to get enough front foot pressure to stop a breach, but with the F770 I can easily use front foot pressure to keep the foil in the water, just have to be prepared for the speed increase if I do not sheet out too!

IQ foil uses one sail and one foil wing for all conditions. The kit is designed for maximum VMG in racing rather than comfortable cruising like your freerace setup.

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Grantmac said..

Sandman1221 said..
My solution for avoiding breaching is to use the right size sail AND front wing, with stabilizer trimmed properly too. I always had problems breaching in +14 knots until I started to switch over from my F1080 cm2 wing to the F770 cm2 wing. On the F1080 wing it can be hard to get enough front foot pressure to stop a breach, but with the F770 I can easily use front foot pressure to keep the foil in the water, just have to be prepared for the speed increase if I do not sheet out too!

IQ foil uses one sail and one foil wing for all conditions. The kit is designed for maximum VMG in racing rather than comfortable cruising like your freerace setup.

Yeah there's a huge difference in intention.

I mean it though that tweaking that sail makes it feel like there's a 2m difference. You absolutely need to manage boom height and outhaul tension to keep control. At least for my skill level.

Breaching is more of a function of board speed. I think tilting the board more to windward helps as well, I'm starting to notice/feel it but I don't have consistent skills there. Hard to tilt to windward without steering further upwind or losing control of the board. Will take time.

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Grantmac said..

Sandman1221 said..
My solution for avoiding breaching is to use the right size sail AND front wing, with stabilizer trimmed properly too. I always had problems breaching in +14 knots until I started to switch over from my F1080 cm2 wing to the F770 cm2 wing. On the F1080 wing it can be hard to get enough front foot pressure to stop a breach, but with the F770 I can easily use front foot pressure to keep the foil in the water, just have to be prepared for the speed increase if I do not sheet out too!

IQ foil uses one sail and one foil wing for all conditions. The kit is designed for maximum VMG in racing rather than comfortable cruising like your freerace setup.

I have seen AFS race foils in two different sizes, think Lokefoils also has two race wing sizes, if I was on a AFS race setup would do the same and switch to a smaller wing. Nico Goyard was on a 430 cm2 race wing in 35 knots. If the IQ foil does not have a smaller race wing I would get a foil that does!

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Sandman1221 said..

Grantmac said..

Sandman1221 said..
My solution for avoiding breaching is to use the right size sail AND front wing, with stabilizer trimmed properly too. I always had problems breaching in +14 knots until I started to switch over from my F1080 cm2 wing to the F770 cm2 wing. On the F1080 wing it can be hard to get enough front foot pressure to stop a breach, but with the F770 I can easily use front foot pressure to keep the foil in the water, just have to be prepared for the speed increase if I do not sheet out too!

IQ foil uses one sail and one foil wing for all conditions. The kit is designed for maximum VMG in racing rather than comfortable cruising like your freerace setup.

I have seen AFS race foils in two different sizes, think Lokefoils also has two race wing sizes, if I was on a AFS race setup would do the same and switch to a smaller wing. Nico Goyard was on a 430 cm2 race wing in 35 knots. If the IQ foil does not have a smaller race wing I would get a foil that does!

IQFoil is a class with 900cm2 front 9.0 sail (men's) and the same board. Either 115+ or 95+ fuse. Any conditions that are sailable are that setup, unless you use the huge drake formula race fin that comes with the kit.

A starboard 650 front wing will fit because it's a starboard wing. I have one. But, then you're no longer in the IQFoil class. You could do that for PWA I suppose.

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aeroegnr said..

Sandman1221 said..

Grantmac said..

Sandman1221 said..
My solution for avoiding breaching is to use the right size sail AND front wing, with stabilizer trimmed properly too. I always had problems breaching in +14 knots until I started to switch over from my F1080 cm2 wing to the F770 cm2 wing. On the F1080 wing it can be hard to get enough front foot pressure to stop a breach, but with the F770 I can easily use front foot pressure to keep the foil in the water, just have to be prepared for the speed increase if I do not sheet out too!

IQ foil uses one sail and one foil wing for all conditions. The kit is designed for maximum VMG in racing rather than comfortable cruising like your freerace setup.

I have seen AFS race foils in two different sizes, think Lokefoils also has two race wing sizes, if I was on a AFS race setup would do the same and switch to a smaller wing. Nico Goyard was on a 430 cm2 race wing in 35 knots. If the IQ foil does not have a smaller race wing I would get a foil that does!

IQFoil is a class with 900cm2 front 9.0 sail (men's) and the same board. Either 115+ or 95+ fuse. Any conditions that are sailable are that setup, unless you use the huge drake formula race fin that comes with the kit.

A starboard 650 front wing will fit because it's a starboard wing. I have one. But, then you're no longer in the IQFoil class. You could do that for PWA I suppose.

So are you training for racing in the IQFoil class?

If you are not training for a IQFoil class race, then you should think about why you are making windfoiling overly difficult by limiting yourself to one sail and one wing. Why not match your sail/wing to the conditions to make the foiling gybe easier to learn?

Yes the plan is to race. With the wind here, I get the absolute best range out of the IQ setup. Flying before everyone else is, not having to re-rig, and not having to change equipment. Everyone's been telling me to stick to the IQ kit to learn it in all conditions. Can't be intimidated by a 9.0 in 20kts on a race day, and have to know how to trim it and control it.

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aeroegnr said..
Yes the plan is to race. With the wind here, I get the absolute best range out of the IQ setup. Flying before everyone else is, not having to re-rig, and not having to change equipment. Everyone's been telling me to stick to the IQ kit to learn it in all conditions. Can't be intimidated by a 9.0 in 20kts on a race day, and have to know how to trim it and control it.

Okay, good luck! For me the step from my 8.0 to 9.0 sail brings significant extra weight (sail, bigger boom, longer mast) and increased effort to uphaul. Used to use my 9.0 for light wind foiling, so know how to manage those factors (was always hooked in, did not drop the sail, and used "Easy Beach Start" to initially uphaul), but no longer use the 9.0 in light winds and do not miss it!

IQ is built for max VMG around a course or for slalom with the 95+ fuselage. It's a different beast than your freerace setup and simply flying at OK angles isn't the point.

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Grantmac said..
IQ is built for max VMG around a course or for slalom with the 95+ fuselage. It's a different beast than your freerace setup and simply flying at OK angles isn't the point.

Yeah I'm still amazed how much freedom of movement I have on that kit. I can do deep downwind then carve back upwind and around everyone else mowing the lawn on freeride foils. It's not even close.

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aeroegnr said..

Grantmac said..
IQ is built for max VMG around a course or for slalom with the 95+ fuselage. It's a different beast than your freerace setup and simply flying at OK angles isn't the point.

Yeah I'm still amazed how much freedom of movement I have on that kit. I can do deep downwind then carve back upwind and around everyone else mowing the lawn on freeride foils. It's not even close.

If freeride foils are mowing the lawn, that's their own fault - their kit is capable of so much more. It adds an entirely different element than finning can. Perhaps, it's just habit from their finning days.

Back on topic though, yes, upwind/downwind demands max power plus the design intent of the IQ was to cover 5-35 kts with one sail, one foil wing, a fin and one board. Having anything more would have diminished greatly the likelihood that World Sailing would have chosen it, for both cost and transport reasons, and making it more likely that we would have been stuck with the RS:X for at least another cycle.

Even if one didn't race, Starboard have produced a kit that has quite a wide range of use. I sail the HGO 8 (my weight is more in line with the women's fleet so it's a good match for me) and with adjustments like aeroegnr suggests, it has a remarkable range. As just a rec sailor, I can sail it into the low 20s and with a 4.7 I could cover into the high 20s probably with just one foil. Although I do sail with more gear. I've sailed it into the mid 20s and it does get a bit sketchy for my skill level there.

aeroegnr, appreciate your updates.

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Paducah said..

aeroegnr said..

Grantmac said..
IQ is built for max VMG around a course or for slalom with the 95+ fuselage. It's a different beast than your freerace setup and simply flying at OK angles isn't the point.

Yeah I'm still amazed how much freedom of movement I have on that kit. I can do deep downwind then carve back upwind and around everyone else mowing the lawn on freeride foils. It's not even close.

If freeride foils are mowing the lawn, that's their own fault - their kit is capable of so much more. It adds an entirely different element than finning can. Perhaps, it's just habit from their finning days.

Back on topic though, yes, upwind/downwind demands max power plus the design intent of the IQ was to cover 5-35 kts with one sail, one foil wing, a fin and one board. Having anything more would have diminished greatly the likelihood that World Sailing would have chosen it, for both cost and transport reasons, and making it more likely that we would have been stuck with the RS:X for at least another cycle.

Even if one didn't race, Starboard have produced a kit that has quite a wide range of use. I sail the HGO 8 (my weight is more in line with the women's fleet so it's a good match for me) and with adjustments like aeroegnr suggests, it has a remarkable range. As just a rec sailor, I can sail it into the low 20s and with a 4.7 I could cover into the high 20s probably with just one foil. Although I do sail with more gear. I've sailed it into the mid 20s and it does get a bit sketchy for my skill level there.

aeroegnr, appreciate your updates.

You may be right about the freeride foilers not taking full advantage. I have however noticed a huge difference between the slingshot 76 and the 900 with 115+ fuse as far as angles to the wind. I just can't push the 76 as far upwind, and I can also easily outrun the guys on their slingshot gear in just about any normal condition. The 76 reacts very very slow in comparison as well, not hard to keep from breaching now.
I want to get more time on the 650 front wing to see how I can push it, but winds aren't looking that favorable at the moment. It had a noticeable lack of pointing ability compared to the 900 wing when I used the 115+ fuse, but I also wasn't that powered up. I've got it sitting on the 95+ fuse right now with a +1 shin (recommended per starboard) in the hopes of breaking some new PBs on a windy day... might actually downsize my sail for some speed runs in that case.
The boom setting is quite sensitive. I mean taking a hands width lower, it really depowered the sail. I had to nudge it up a bit to feel properly powered. But, normally, I've got it all the way to the top because on a normal day here this summer I was having to pump pretty hard to get flying.

A mate and i raced on the weekend in 25 knots with the IQ Foil setup ( 900wing, 115 + fuse etc ) with smaller slalom sails (6.4 m) and found it quite manageable and quick. The 900 wing gives you the pointing ability to keep up a decent VMG and the smaller sail gives a bit more control. Obviously if it was the IQ fleet we wouldnt have been able to use those sails, but it was a fun experiment that ended up working well. Managed to finish 1 & 2 in a mixed fleet of moths, wasps, I14's and sharpies, so it wasnt too slow either. I think the IQ Foil is a lot more versatile than people realise.

I gave my 9.0 sail one more try in light wind today, the 8.0 was better!, lighter, easier to rig, pump, uphaul. So will be selling the 9.0 rig, it really is a bear compared to the 8.0. The iQ foil kit sounds great, and I guess the wing needs the bigger sail for light winds, but just does not sound fun. I can go all over my bay with the AFS F1080 and F770 wings, though I do get better upwind angles with the F770 but that can be a pain sometimes when I am in 15-20 knots with 2 foot waves, plus a channel with bigger waves, and end up deep in the bay. Then mowing the lawn is plenty enough!

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aeroegnr said..You may be right about the freeride foilers not taking full advantage. I have however noticed a huge difference between the slingshot 76 and the 900 with 115+ fuse as far as angles to the wind. I just can't push the 76 as far upwind, and I can also easily outrun the guys on their slingshot gear in just about any normal condition. The 76 reacts very very slow in comparison as well, not hard to keep from breaching now.

The Infinity 76 comes alive wave-riding, downwinding ocean windswells for miles, gybing fast and tight off swells, stealing boat wakes and carving every big chop or swell in sight - with an awesome wind range of 10-30 knots.
Top speed is 24 knots, not racefoil speed for sure but probably fast enough for the above

azymuth, agreed - horses for courses and all that. It's the right tool for a different job. I'd also say that the IQ kit goes upwind so well is a sum of the parts - the sail, the + fuse, the stiffer foil mast, the 94cm wide board. Substitute any of that with freeride or even freerace gear and the angles suffer.

As always, there are going to be tradeoffs. However, as aeroegnr, azymuth and maddlad point out, there are some bits of kit that seem to have less trade offs than others (ie cover a greater range of use) and it's worth sharing that with others.

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azymuth said..

aeroegnr said..You may be right about the freeride foilers not taking full advantage. I have however noticed a huge difference between the slingshot 76 and the 900 with 115+ fuse as far as angles to the wind. I just can't push the 76 as far upwind, and I can also easily outrun the guys on their slingshot gear in just about any normal condition. The 76 reacts very very slow in comparison as well, not hard to keep from breaching now.

The Infinity 76 comes alive wave-riding, downwinding ocean windswells for miles, gybing fast and tight off swells, stealing boat wakes and carving every big chop or swell in sight - with an awesome wind range of 10-30 knots.
Top speed is 24 knots, not racefoil speed for sure but probably fast enough for the above

Fair point. I'll likely try that sometime when the wind kicks off here. Set my Blast up with inboard straps and go. I've caught some small waves but my usual sailing spot has disorganized voodoo swells that I usually try to just cut through.

I know a very light sailor who rides swell with the M1000/95/330 setup on a FoilX 105, it's definitely not holding him back although now he wings and I believe uses the 75 fuselage for that.

If you want to ride swell while still using your ultra stiff IQ foil mast you can source a Supercruiser fuselage and wing setup, in my experience it's everything the I76 is but much better engineered. Conversely I have a custom starboard based setup that I like even better for that now (but your need a machine shop to make it).

Fairly lightwind session today. Mostly 8-12ish, maybe a little more, with it falling to ~6 knots before I left.

It was pointed out that my pumping technique isn't quite right and after switching it up to a more circular motion I think I'll be able to pump more on the lower end. I was almost getting going in the 6ish knots at the end but I was tapped out by then.
I switched the harness lines from chinook race to a custom race set. They easily slide around on the boom and the cleat is very easy to adjust for length. And they are LONG. Because I can tweak the position for COP easier, I'm able to just get it perfect. So far, they are so long that I have them all the way shortened.

Switched the outhaul cleats back to the topside. I was adjusting them a lot while flying today as the boom at the top was a bit much when foiling, and a cm or two immediately fixed the feeling. Way easier to pull it in right away with them on the top.

Think I adjusted the boom position half a dozen times today. It makes a big difference in power when the wind changes.

Overall, I felt really good today. Almost stayed flying a couple jibes, one of them I thought I had right before a breach when I was flipping the sail.

I think that as soon as I perfect this different pumping technique I could stay out longer. I can do all day on a fin, but my endurance for the IQFoil stuff lasts for about 3 hours before I'm tapped, mostly from pumping inefficiently.

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aeroegnr said..
Fairly lightwind session today. Mostly 8-12ish, maybe a little more, with it falling to ~6 knots before I left.

It was pointed out that my pumping technique isn't quite right and after switching it up to a more circular motion I think I'll be able to pump more on the lower end. I was almost getting going in the 6ish knots at the end but I was tapped out by then.
I switched the harness lines from chinook race to a custom race set. They easily slide around on the boom and the cleat is very easy to adjust for length. And they are LONG. Because I can tweak the position for COP easier, I'm able to just get it perfect. So far, they are so long that I have them all the way shortened.

Switched the outhaul cleats back to the topside. I was adjusting them a lot while flying today as the boom at the top was a bit much when foiling, and a cm or two immediately fixed the feeling. Way easier to pull it in right away with them on the top.

Think I adjusted the boom position half a dozen times today. It makes a big difference in power when the wind changes.

Overall, I felt really good today. Almost stayed flying a couple jibes, one of them I thought I had right before a breach when I was flipping the sail.

I think that as soon as I perfect this different pumping technique I could stay out longer. I can do all day on a fin, but my endurance for the IQFoil stuff lasts for about 3 hours before I'm tapped, mostly from pumping inefficiently.

Ive never really changed teh boom when im foiling, coz i feel like it makes my lines too long, even though i have adjustables. How much are you moving it?

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Maddlad said..

aeroegnr said..
Fairly lightwind session today. Mostly 8-12ish, maybe a little more, with it falling to ~6 knots before I left.

It was pointed out that my pumping technique isn't quite right and after switching it up to a more circular motion I think I'll be able to pump more on the lower end. I was almost getting going in the 6ish knots at the end but I was tapped out by then.
I switched the harness lines from chinook race to a custom race set. They easily slide around on the boom and the cleat is very easy to adjust for length. And they are LONG. Because I can tweak the position for COP easier, I'm able to just get it perfect. So far, they are so long that I have them all the way shortened.

Switched the outhaul cleats back to the topside. I was adjusting them a lot while flying today as the boom at the top was a bit much when foiling, and a cm or two immediately fixed the feeling. Way easier to pull it in right away with them on the top.

Think I adjusted the boom position half a dozen times today. It makes a big difference in power when the wind changes.

Overall, I felt really good today. Almost stayed flying a couple jibes, one of them I thought I had right before a breach when I was flipping the sail.

I think that as soon as I perfect this different pumping technique I could stay out longer. I can do all day on a fin, but my endurance for the IQFoil stuff lasts for about 3 hours before I'm tapped, mostly from pumping inefficiently.

Ive never really changed teh boom when im foiling, coz i feel like it makes my lines too long, even though i have adjustables. How much are you moving it?

Last session I was light wind (8-10 knots) and I tried moving the boom way up for the first time. This is a huge difference! More power in the sail and better response to pumping. You should give it a try.

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Maddlad said..


Ive never really changed teh boom when im foiling, coz i feel like it makes my lines too long, even though i have adjustables. How much are you moving it?

Sometimes 1-2cm, sometimes a fist width. Depends on how hard the wind is blowing and what the sail feels like. If I'm terrified, I drop it a lot.

I guess with the lines it doesn't matter as I just adjust if I need to.

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Robertos said..


Last session I was light wind (8-10 knots) and I tried moving the boom way up for the first time. This is a huge difference! More power in the sail and better response to pumping. You should give it a try.

Yeah even a couple of cm upward when trying to pump makes a huge difference in light wind. And loosing all the outhaul.

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Robertos said..

Maddlad said..

aeroegnr said..
Fairly lightwind session today. Mostly 8-12ish, maybe a little more, with it falling to ~6 knots before I left.

It was pointed out that my pumping technique isn't quite right and after switching it up to a more circular motion I think I'll be able to pump more on the lower end. I was almost getting going in the 6ish knots at the end but I was tapped out by then.
I switched the harness lines from chinook race to a custom race set. They easily slide around on the boom and the cleat is very easy to adjust for length. And they are LONG. Because I can tweak the position for COP easier, I'm able to just get it perfect. So far, they are so long that I have them all the way shortened.

Switched the outhaul cleats back to the topside. I was adjusting them a lot while flying today as the boom at the top was a bit much when foiling, and a cm or two immediately fixed the feeling. Way easier to pull it in right away with them on the top.

Think I adjusted the boom position half a dozen times today. It makes a big difference in power when the wind changes.

Overall, I felt really good today. Almost stayed flying a couple jibes, one of them I thought I had right before a breach when I was flipping the sail.

I think that as soon as I perfect this different pumping technique I could stay out longer. I can do all day on a fin, but my endurance for the IQFoil stuff lasts for about 3 hours before I'm tapped, mostly from pumping inefficiently.

Ive never really changed teh boom when im foiling, coz i feel like it makes my lines too long, even though i have adjustables. How much are you moving it?

Last session I was light wind (8-10 knots) and I tried moving the boom way up for the first time. This is a huge difference! More power in the sail and better response to pumping. You should give it a try.

I already run it quite high Robertos, but i just leave it there even when the wind picks up coz i dont like the feeling when i drop it. I might have to do some more experimenting with the boom height in stronger breezes to see if i can find a happy medium when lowering it coz im often overpowered with the 9m HGO.

From comment here. I noticed how much his boom position had changed based on sea state while he's out on the IQFoil gear:





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Grantmac said..
I know a very light sailor who rides swell with the M1000/95/330 setup on a FoilX 105, it's definitely not holding him back although now he wings and I believe uses the 75 fuselage for that.

If you want to ride swell while still using your ultra stiff IQ foil mast you can source a Supercruiser fuselage and wing setup, in my experience it's everything the I76 is but much better engineered. Conversely I have a custom starboard based setup that I like even better for that now (but your need a machine shop to make it).

I'm 85kg and I'm also on the M1000-800 fw's, 95+ and 330 tw but on the FoilX 125.
use the SC or freeride 1100 wing... it all works !

Here's an example of being too powered with the boom too high in the gusts, crashing, and dropping the boom 2-3cm for control.

These conditions were gusting to about 20knots, hard to be sure, when crossing the windline that caused the crash. The land formations here do weird things with gusts and angles because of the buildings and everything off camera. In the gulf or greater bay the wind is way smoother and easier to deal with.

I crash early and drop the boom about 50seconds in. This was a poor jibe attempt from shaky legs because of an intense workout yesterday. I froze a bit and got too far through downwind and didn't even try to move my feet apparently. Backwinded and it just went bad. Getting closer on other attempts though.

Good to know I am not the only one still messing up the gybes
Somehow you manage 20 knots with the 9.0, thats crazy.

I feel like I am on a suicide mission when I do that and crash hard when I lose control. I don't want to damage the equipment so from 16 knots I use the 6,3 racing blade with a smaller wing.
You loose a lot on up and downwind angles but it sails much more relaxed.

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Robertos said..
Good to know I am not the only one still messing up the gybes
Somehow you manage 20 knots with the 9.0, thats crazy.

I feel like I am on a suicide mission when I do that and crash hard when I lose control. I don't want to damage the equipment so from 16 knots I use the 6,3 racing blade with a smaller wing.
You loose a lot on up and downwind angles but it sails much more relaxed.

Next time you're overpowered on any gear, I highly recommend dropping the boom to experience the difference, especially on foiling. It's much more noticeable while foiling than on a fin for me.

There's still more you can do to depower the 9.0, and it's to drop the clew attachment to the lower hole. That'll loosen the leech even more. I have yet to need that though.

FWIW I don't want my first time dealing with 20ish knots or more to be a race. And they are coming up soon.