Hi just started wingfoiling. I had my first flights. Just wondering about turns what should be the learning sequence: ie do the non foiling tacks first and move to foiling gybe next? What are your thoughts , experience?

Select to expand quote

Andrzej said..
Hi just started wingfoiling. I had my first flights. Just wondering about turns what should be the learning sequence: ie do the non foiling tacks first and move to foiling gybe next? What are your thoughts , experience?

Gentle S turns.

I suggest watching a few jybing videos, practice onshore then go for it and commit.

Thank you. So I am enjoying my first flights but need to change direction eventually. What do I try to do? Come of the flight and tack (like when starting windsurf foiling)?
Or
Try the flying gybe straight away?

Select to expand quote

Andrzej said..
Thank you. So I am enjoying my first flights but need to change direction eventually. What do I try to do? Come of the flight and tack (like when starting windsurf foiling)?
Or
Try the flying gybe straight away?

The non foiling jibing was (and still is) much easier to me than tacking.

Learn the non foiling jibes first and start to go for foiling jibes (at least partially foiling) after that.

Just go for the gybe.

Select to expand quote

Grantmac said..
Just go for the gybe.

Thanks. I did. Managed one non flying gybe once but had a lot of fun anyway

Non foiling gybes.

What worked for me was the foiling gybe on my dominant side. Ie if goofy footed riding starboard to port or right hand fwd to left hand fwd. This part was relatively easy. The challenge and the skill that took the longest to learn was being able to ride away toeside, which initially would end up with a spectacular splash. So for me the first skill to learn, assuming you are already carving the foil is practice riding toeside. Start practicing riding toeside off the foil. Switching feet mid gybe is for more advanced riders in my opinion and best learnt further down the track. Half the stoke of this sport is learning something new and having a crack. If you need more motivation then checkout this video.

In my experience it was a lot different from windsurfing, where practicing the slow pivot jibe translated into better carving jibes. Practicing slow off foil jibes winging didn't translate so I just went for the foil jibes. Best advice I got was to stop looking at the wing when jibing and look where you are going. Keep going for it, resist the urge to look up at the wing, look in the direction you are headed and your body adjusts.

The toe side rides will feel absolutely crazy abnormal at first but keep at it and it will become second nature and even fun as you progress.

Above all, have fun!

DC

Don't waste time non-foiling anything. Go for a foiling jibe - you'll be non-foiling plenty when they don't work out. A non-foiling jibe is not a skill you need.

If you fall before you were ready to jibe, don't get started the other way - force yourself to get going the same way and do a jibe attempt. The more attempts you do the better. Really, once you can foil, you should be jibing every 50 yards until you can jibe 75% of the time. Imagine doing 50 attempts at a jibe per session, you will be a jibe-master in no time. It's just that you have to temper this with you desire to have fun and not get frustrated and enjoy foiling. Plenty of people learn to foil around and don't really nail their jibes for a year +.

You will come out of your jibe toeside and have to switch feet. This is good practice since the other jibe you will likely want to switch feet first and then jibe.

S turns will get you there and get in your head that you have the skills to jibe, you just need to sort the wing out. Search this forum for how to jibe threads (hint, get the wing out of your mind and focus on the foil until you are through).

Select to expand quote

JohnnyTsunami said..
Don't waste time non-foiling anything. Go for a foiling jibe - you'll be non-foiling plenty when they don't work out. A non-foiling jibe is not a skill you need.

If you fall before you were ready to jibe, don't get started the other way - force yourself to get going the same way and do a jibe attempt. The more attempts you do the better. Really, once you can foil, you should be jibing every 50 yards until you can jibe 75% of the time. Imagine doing 50 attempts at a jibe per session, you will be a jibe-master in no time. It's just that you have to temper this with you desire to have fun and not get frustrated and enjoy foiling. Plenty of people learn to foil around and don't really nail their jibes for a year +.

You will come out of your jibe toeside and have to switch feet. This is good practice since the other jibe you will likely want to switch feet first and then jibe.

S turns will get you there and get in your head that you have the skills to jibe, you just need to sort the wing out. Search this forum for how to jibe threads (hint, get the wing out of your mind and focus on the foil until you are through).

Thanks sounds like a good approach.
If understand correctly when jibing in one direction it is jibe first and switch feet later but other direction is switch first gybe after . Or it just depends what feels easier?

Do whatever is easiest. Most people end up doing the same thing.

If you are regular footed naturally, you are on port tack (left foot forward) and jibe without moving your feet. You come out toeside feeling awkward and want to switch your feet afterwards. You want to learn how to ride toeside this direction because it's how you will come out of jibes and tacks and how you will go into jibes and tacks. People also ride like this for a long time if they are surfing waves and aren't really trying to make upwind progress.

Going on starboard tack, you should have your right foot forwards, which is unnatural for a regular footer. If you jibe without moving your feet you will be riding toeside on your unnatural stance. It's a double negative. There isn't really a strong reason to ever learn to ride toeside on your weak side. So, just switch your feet before your tack/jibe. It's also the best turn, to switch feet and then jibe you can rip a turn.

The great news is that you can do every turn with your natural foot forward. So if you can do S turns, you can already tack and jibe, you just have to learn to manage the wing. Keep telling yourself that.