Rip in 6 to 10 knots?!

[ronnie]

It is possible to body drag while holding your hydro foil board. As you might guess, it will angle you upwind very well while doing this.

CG

That's good - I thought it might be a sea anchor and have to be abandoned.

Mr. Koch doing it his way.

[RickI]

Damo just put up a video on Lift with some foil boarding imagery.

[KiteboardingTampaBay]

I am curious about the foil design, skeg length, and what works the best in light wind conditions.
It seems like the actual board that is mounted on it isn't as critical as proper foil design.
Can anyone give some insight on this, or know where to find info on building one?

Thanks,
www.kiteboardingtampabay.com

[cglazier]

There is an active forum about foils here
http://kitefoil.forumactif.org/

It is in French but has an English version.

CG

[ChristoffM]

I am writing up a bit on the design here: http://kitehydrofoil.com/index.php/design/design.html

A larger board definitely helps to get enough speed to get flying in really light wind. My board is about the area of a 5'10 surfboard, but a bit shorter and thicker. It works very nice. Most dedicated hydrofoil boards are a bit small for cruising is super light wind in my opinion. A good low aspect foil can hold you up in really light wind if you have either the board volume or the kite size to get up to speed.

[exuma kitesurfing]

'Rip in 6 to 10 knots?!', why?
i know the feeling of wanting to get on the water if you haven't kited in a while ... but for me this would be a too boring, even with one of the blender blade boards.
try:

reading a book
spending quality time with your SO
SUPing
surfing
seeing a movie
riding a bike
volunteering
mowing the lawn ... literally
washing the car
learning a language
calling/visiting your parents
digging deeper into social/political issues
moving to a windier location

just sayin' (sarcasm intended)

[RickI]

I agree at the low-end with conventional boards it does get pretty sleepy at times. I feel the same about flatwater too for that matter after while it just gets boring. That is unless there's something really good worth photographing. Haven't tried foils yet so I really can't comment yet but the sensation does look different and fun. You've tried foils and they're boring Exuma? How do you cope with all that flatwater over there?

[ronnie]

The foil board may actually be too peaceful and lacking in sensation?

This is gear from 3 years ago so I'm sure the latest gear is faster in the same wind, but it is still a good advert for kiting below 10 knots.

[SupaEZ]

With this persistent southerly wind flow we have been having upwelling happening in the ocean
Just a week ago our surf temp was 84.8F......now it is down to 74.7F
That is great news if you are a kitesurfer
The wind over the water is so much more powerful in the kite when riding
The illusion is stunning on "side shore" SSE to S light winds of only 6 to 8kn max
No need for foilboard.......on that day...glassy ocean
My wife and i went out on our strap surfboards and large kites 17 & 19m2
We had to depower half way...."it felt as if we were in 12-14knots"
We were ripping...jumping high.....in what seemed really like too little wind to even go

Warm wind over sudden cold ocean water effect

It was more than 2-4kn ......very Epic session

[exuma kitesurfing]

RickI - to be honest, i've never tried a foil board, however my background is advanced windsurfing (laydown jibes, big airs, etc) motorcycle road racing (3 of 10yrs professionally), mountain biking - cross country and down hill, and giant slalom style hardboot snowboarding, so kiteboarding in 6-10kts on any board, to me is simply boring and not very appealing. that said, i do enjoy SUP, it's the180 of kiting, serene - wave SUP is a blast too, because it's a new challenge for me.
as for exuma, yes, flat water is the feature here, but we do have waves ... you just need to know where to go to find them. the best waves here are from emerald bay to rolleville - i'm not saying it's mancora, but still lots of fun.
at the end of the day, to each his own.
happy 4th!!