Should I ditch wind foiling and go to wing foiling or do both ??. We have Multi sea conditions and wind strength I do love windfoiling but am I goin be seduced by the less faff with wing ding kit but expect more expensive times ahead

Ditch

Ditch

This is how it goes I, am going to do both . I start to lean wing foiling .Know i have to spend all my time wing foiling so I get to a Saturn leave . Then I can go back to both . That's what i, am telling myself still.

No doubt Wind foiling is a spectacular sport but the amount of gear you need to do in all conditions is insane . Those I've seen who come across just don't go back mainly for that reason alone , you are set up in minutes and your van all of a sudden has space for a bed and fridge again .

I'd also say another advantage is the gear development. Winging is probably 20-50x bigger than wing foil so the market is bigger and the gear is developing faster and is more competitive. As a mostly prone foiler I can say I'm grateful for the crossover between prone and ding, the level of investment in ding has resulted in some fantastic prone foils that wouldn't have happened otherwise.

id add that the strapped and loaded wind foil is so much harder on the gear. That torsional load on the fuse results in a need for massively overbuilt foils. The ding is probably the least loaded foil of all the disciplines, all the forces are nice and inline with the mast, it's all pretty mellow in comparison.

Given this is a wing sub I think everyone here will tell you to ditch the sails. I'm in a similar boat as you Nerdycross. I have been windfoiling for about four years and winging for two at my local flatwater super lightwind spot. Windfoil destroys winging for lightwinds though the gap is starting to close quickly with the first 8m F-One CWCs beginning to show up locally. Also my big sail just got a huge hole it in that's now held together with Gorilla Tape and replacing it is a major PITA in a town where windsurfing has been dead for decades. I buy my sails used and can either buy a bigger sail and spend more on a giant extension to fit it, or to a slightly smaller sail size and have to buy a new smaller mast as I can't get the sail that I have worn out. I am getting fed up with windsurf sails and dealing with stupid mast compatibilities and the hassle of hauling all the gear around. I am thinking of just getting a 7-8m wing myself and being done with it. If I lived a place with reliable winds above 15kts I would almost certainly be done with windfoiling in favor of winging.

Do both....simple.

I kite foil on light days....sub 14 knots.

Wing foil above that.

Kite foiling is like ballet on the water. I have had some of the most spectular sessions exploring areas on my kite foil and going right upwind.

The wing is great in waves.

Both different disciplines. All I do is change the front wing on my foil setup.

I still say I'll kitefoil on the right days for it, but realistically only done it a couple times in 2 years. I also intend to get back to kitesurfing on good wave days to mix it up.

The windfoilers I know....can't recall any of them going back ever. Some have gone back to wavesailing (gasp, surface riding!) once in a while on the good surf days.

If you are in a place with light winds and you like to chase the bottom end, keep the wind foil set up for those days. Personally I find winging in light wind is meh ... kite or wind foiling you can be powered up and going twice as fast.

I took the less faff road myself.

Ditch it. Simplify and enjoy the magic

Pros of Winging over windfoil
Out of the water:
1. Less gear to buy/match and maintain. No need to consider whether a mast or boom will fit a sail.
2. More space in your car. No need for a 1metre wide board if youre into course racing. No need for a long car or van to fit your masts and sails.
3. Quicker rigging and less space needed to rig up.
4. Easier to carry gear to the water especially if you have a long walk or obstacles in the way
On the water:
1. Flagging the wing and riding wind and ground swell. Complete freedom to surf.
2. Less swing weight when doing tight turns. No matter how short you make the windfoil board, the mast and sail will add to the swing weight due to the mast foot pressure/weight of the sail.
3. You can do massive jumps on the wing due to the horizontal positioning of the wing which can also softens the landings.

Windfoil at this stage is faster than wingfoil but its very early days. There are some people recently doing over 30 knots on a wing.

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Bombast said..
Pros of Winging over windfoil
Out of the water:
1. Less gear to buy/match and maintain. No need to consider whether a mast or boom will fit a sail.
2. More space in your car. No need for a 1metre wide board if youre into course racing. No need for a long car or van to fit your masts and sails.
3. Quicker rigging and less space needed to rig up.
4. Easier to carry gear to the water especially if you have a long walk or obstacles in the way
On the water:
1. Flagging the wing and riding wind and ground swell. Complete freedom to surf.
2. Less swing weight when doing tight turns. No matter how short you make the windfoil board, the mast and sail will add to the swing weight due to the mast foot pressure/weight of the sail.
3. You can do massive jumps on the wing due to the horizontal positioning of the wing which can also softens the landings.

Windfoil at this stage is faster than wingfoil but its very early days. There are some people recently doing over 30 knots on a wing.

I agree with all that plus:

a) Much easier to launch and recover in shore break than a windfoil board and sail

b) Crashes are usually painless and injury free because you either hit the water or land on the inflatable wing. I've had lots of nasty windfoil crashes landing on the boom or mast

c) Personally, I'm now faster on the wing because I'm happy to push it harder without consequences (see b) and find it easier to control. Having a separation between the board and wing means that one is not directly affecting the other

I LOVED Windfoiling, but after my 4th Wing session, I ditched and never looked back. Ditch away.

DC

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Dcharlton said..
I LOVED Windfoiling, but after my 4th Wing session, I ditched and never looked back. Ditch away.

DC

Wind foil in 10-15 I find it way more exciting than winging

Wing foil in 15 - 25 that's the fun zone, for sure!

30+ depends on the location if in swell I choose wind foil, and if I want to boost I choose wing.

I feel like a windsurf sail is still a bit more efficient + nicer to handle in very little wind. I hate having to hold up the wing when there's almost no pressure. Windfoil remains my lightwind option.

Long time wavesailor and windsurf-foiled for 2years, now mainly wing foiling.If you wanna race/freerace windsurffoil is speedwise hard to beat and if that is the style of sailing you like: stick with it.But when yoi hate big heavy rigs and wanna play around an 6m and decent foil is imo more fun. Once flying you are waaaaay more maneuverable wingfoiling. an 200m stretch of water and 12 knots is more than enough to play: jibe, tack, 360ers and even jumping if you are into that. When there is swell at your spot winging allows you to ride the swell in a way you never experienced before with an sail.

Nerdycross, I started out windfoiling. Did it for 4 years. Really enjoyed it too. Last year, a mate convinced me to give the wingding a go. I love it and am now not windfoiling at all.
I reckon try the 2 in unison and see what you prefer. There's a real big move towards the ding now, but there are still those who prefer the windfoil. And if you don't like the ding, you would easy be able to sell the gear.

I'm coming back to winging after trying it, not enjoying it and sticking with windfoiling for another year. I'd say the biggest reason I'm liking it now is rigid handles, I hate the floppy ones on the older wings.
In really light wind I'd rather windfoil. In high wind (sub 4.5m) I'd rather windfoil too. If there are breaking waves then I'd rather wavesail regardless of wind. Winging seems best in the 14-20kt range with some rolling swell.