The Beginner's Guide to Foil Surfing

RYAN HARRIS IVAN VAN VUUREN

NICK LEASON

ANNIE REICKERT MIKE NICHOLS

2020

DEREK HAMASAKI

ZANE SCHWEITZER BRIAN GRUBB

KAI LENNY

HISTORY DISCIPLINES GEAR SAFETY THE BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO FOIL SURFING

THINGS HAVE CHANGED A LOT IN SIXTY YEARS.

We are living in the golden era of recreational hydrofoils. More people are riding these incredible pieces of watersports ingenuity than ever before. Here at Foiling Magazine, we bring you the premier content of our sport, and now we’ve created the ultimate beginner’s guide. The following pages will teach you about foiling’s growing disciplines, give you a solid understanding of gear and construction, and teach you ways to learn foil surfing safely and do so with respect for your fellow surfers.

Let’s enjoy this incredible sport with aloha.

- Kjell van Sice, U.S Contributing Editor, Foiling Magazine

FIRST HYDROFOIL WATERSKI

1963

AIRCHAIR

1990

LAIRD HAMILTON TOWS AT PE’AHI

2000s

KAI LENNY SELF-POWERED FOIL

2016

NAISH MALOLO

2016

FIRST COMMERCIALLY PRODUCED E FOIL

2017

Dave Kalama in the early days of the sport / Erik Aeder

DISCIPLINES TOW This is the discipline that truly gave birth to foil surfing. Pioneered by legendary Maui watermen Laird Hamilton and Dave Kalama, the story goes that Brett Lickle brought an Airchair back to Maui which Laird modified to be ridden standing upright. Practiced by just enough riders to count on one hand, the emerging sport was brought to the wider surfing world’s attention in the 2003 film Step Into Liquid. Although today it looks the same, tow foiling has transformed entirely as the wave of technology that’s driven the design and construction of hydrofoils has allowed for faster, more stable tow foils to emerge.

Benny Ferris getting lit on a solid Cloudbreak swell / Stuart Johnson

Kai Lenny going airborne somewhere south the equator / Julien Le Prevost

FLATWATER It’s been proven that flatwater foiling is the best way to get the attention of non-foilers. Let’s be honest: flatwater foiling is more of a workout and experiment in good technique than anything else.

Starting from a dock, rock, or the beach, flatwater foiling is 100% rider powered. When done well, it looks effortless, but requires light and precise footing to hop on the board and pump away. Learning to foil in flatwater opens up entirely new bodies of water to ride, from mountain lakes to inland rivers, lagoons and even swimming pools. It’s the definitive cure to laydays!

WING SURFING The brother-to-another-mother, sister-to-another-mister of windsurf and kite foiling, wing surfing actually has a distinct history of its own, and is fast becoming the hottest discipline in foiling. With its roots in the 80s, modern reinterpretations coming about in the 2000s, and the latest generation starting in 2018, wing surfing has brought many surfers into windsports, and reinvigorated veteran kiters and windsurfers. Some are even bringing wing surfing into waves, towing themselves in and back out on really windy, gusty days. Several major watersport brands now make wing surfers. If you like windsports, give this one a try.

Sky Solbach, foil wing innovator / SimonCrowther

Maui waterwoan Annie Reickert has been a consistent figure in the emerging discipline of downwind foiling

BEGINNER’S GUIDE 2020

SUP This is where foiling as we know it today really began. In 2016, Kai Lenny put into practice the potential of “self-powering” a hydrofoil with the original SUP foil/board combination, the Naish Malolo. A modified 10’ race board, this hybrid between downwind raceboard and foil board is a real piece of history. SUP foilboards today are short and packed with volume, making for a curious sight at the start line of the Molokai 2 Oahu race amid the other paddlers on 14ft or Unlimited class boards. Don’t be mistaken, though - once foilers power their way into flight from a deep water start, they blast by even the fastest traditional race boards...

“One of my favorite ocean sports is downwind foiling. I initially learned to downwind on my SUP board and have come to love the added speed and maneuverability that the foil and smaller board offer. During the summer months when the trade winds are strong on Maui, I usually do one or two downwind runs a day. I’ve competed in the foil division of the M2O for the past two years and I have to say there’s nothing quite like chasing bumps for 32 miles on the open ocean. It’s an incredibly special feeling. I can’t compare it to anything else.”

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Annie Reickert, competitive paddler and foiler

PRONE Prone riding is the simplest, freest form of foil surfing, and one of the most popular disciplines. First innovated by Kai Lenny around 2016, this is where the radical idea of pumping back out to link another wave began. Part of what makes prone foiling so appealing is its simplicity. A thin, small board gives the rider a direct, responsive feel from the foil, adding to the magic carpet effect. Today, many high performance prone riders have taken to riding their boards with footstraps, allowing them to perform aerial maneuvers not unlike what we first saw with the Airchair in the 1990s.

“After doing it for some time now, I still look for empty, barely breaking waves. That is without a doubt why I love foiling, escaping into my own little world by myself or with friends...�

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Kai Lenny, foiling pioneer

Big wave surfer Paige Alms / Pedro Gomes

BEGINNER’S GUIDE 2020

WAKE For those who love wakeboarding, waterskiing, wakeskating, or wake surfing, may we present another option to fill your boat’s racks: wake foiling.

“The great thing about wake foiling is how easy it is to learn behind the boat and then how much you can do on the waves that the boat makes. I’ve been able to teach many people how to foil behind the boat in the last few years and it quickly lets new riders get up on foil and learn the basics.”

Brian Grubb Professional wakeskater Lift Foils/Freedom Foil Boards team rider

Brian Grubb scoring some inland flights / @jeffshotthat

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E-FOILING This may very well be the closest you can get to a true magic carpet ride. An increasingly popular discipline in the sport, e-foiling has redefined powered watersports by allowing riders to get silently airborne virtually anywhere, whether in the ocean, on lakes, rivers, canals, or anywhere deep enough to get up and going.

The only downside? Coming in at over $12k new, may we suggest trying to get a sponsorship...

“There is so much you can do on the efoils. I have taught people with very little board sport experience that have never foiled before how to get up and safely fly in about 20 minutes. Those people then know what that foil feeling is like and it makes learning the traditional foils much easier. The efoil is also a great tow vehicle. You can beach launch the efoil and then tow another foil boarder around and into waves. It doesn’t make any rollers and being electric its ultra quiet so it doesnt ruin the waves other people are surfing like a jetski does. The battery life is insane.

I’ve done rides over 15 miles and almost 90 minutes of ride time. That lets you go exploring on some pretty long adventures.”

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Brian Grubb Professional wakeskater Lift Foils/Freedom Foil Boards team rider

Lift Foils founder Nick Leason cruising effortlessly on the Lift E-Foil / Lift Foils

GEAR BEHIND THE BUILD The modern foilboard is a complex piece of technology. In a short number of years, it has evolved significantly with respect to weight, stiffness, and strength. Foil boards are fundamentally different from surfboards as flight exerts lifting, sheer, torque, and cantilever forces into a concentrated point in the Divinycell foam, layered in carbon, and sometimes finished with an inegra patch. The box is then dropped into the blank prior

6’8 - 155L

board. Foil boxes are typically constructed from high density

to shaping.

It’s become common for boards to have scooped decks, radically channeled bottoms, and a wide variety of tail shapes.

Prone boards vary from 2’6 - 6’0, 18-70L, while SUPs generally range from 4’6-8’0, 70L-150L. For prone boards, the board/foil connection is now most commonly a 4-bolt top plate, which can either be a separate part attached to the strut, or a single molded piece on higher end examples. In prior years, the deep ing where sheer forces were significant. Tuttle receivers are still common on SUP foil boards, mainly due to the loads presented by a larger board.

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4’2 - 30L

“It’s simply mechanical engineering 101. The sheer point loading and stresses that the foil places on the board requires much stronger construction. From the glassing schedule to the mount system, everything must be way stronger than how a traditional surfboard is glassed.”

4’6 - 45L

tuttle system was standard - this came from wind and kite foil-

Ryan Harris, Earth Technologies

3’0 - 20L

BEGINNER’S GUIDE 2020

Surf foils are comprised of a strut (a.k.a mast), fuselage, front wing, and horizontal stabilizer. Like foil boards, surf foils themselves have undergone tremendous changes from the early days when the original Maui crew towed in at Pe’ahi on modified Airchair foils.

Consumers now have the choice of low aspect, mid aspect, and high aspect ratio wings. Stabilizers and fuselages come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and thicknesses, as do struts. There are designs and materials to cater to virtually every rider and riding style.

“In the world of surfing, larger wings have been the primary evolution to allow people to surf. We were used to smaller wings behind a kite and they were not sufficient for surfing.”

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Nick Leason, Lift Foils

“Since we first used the initial aluminum foils on Maui in 2005, I would personally say that some of the greatest developments I appreciate was firstly, the shift across to incorporating carbon composites into the gear. These precision products resulted in lighter, more efficient performance foils.”

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Ivan Van Vuuren, Signature Performance Gear

ENTRY BUILD Metal parts made from extruded aluminium. Composite flight surfaces made in a two-piece mold with a foam or putty-type core.

Assembly screws made from anodized aluminium. Heavy, lack of complex metal shapes, but good durability & price point.

INTERMEDIATE BUILD Metal parts made from CNC’d aluminum. Composite glass and/or carbon flight surfaces. Lighter, possibility for more complex metal shapes, average durability, middle ground price point.

PERFORMANCE BUILD Typically all pre-preg carbon with epoxy core. Cloth robotically cut and hand-laid into molds, cured for 24 hours. Finished in a high quality gel coat. Assembly screws made from titanium. Very light, infinitely complex shapes, lower than average durability, exceptional performance, premium price point.

GEAR QUIVER BUILDING Building your first foil quiver can be frustrating at best and downright intimidating at worst. Starting with the board, look for something with 20-30L more volume than your mid range shortboard, and around 5’0-6’0 in length. As for the foil, determine your price point, then look for something in the 1500-2000 sq/cm range.

You’ll want enough lift to get you flying, but not so much that it’ll be too much to handle the first time around. Ideally, you’ll end up with something you can grow into, adding wings and other parts and pieces later on.

“If you try to go too small in the beginning you’ll get frustrated and possibly give up after a few sessions so get something that you’ll be able to comfortably stand on and paddle around. As far as foils, get on a foil that’s wide and stable with a slow speed and go out to a mushy break.”

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Derek Hamasaki, competitive SUP surfer

“When it comes to prone surfing foil boards, we experimented with creating super short 2’8 and all the way to longer 6’ boards. Our general consensus is that size has a big part to play but correct volume/ to riders level is also key. Too short and under volumed can be frustrating, too long and too much volume can be limiting. Best all around size for a rider with average weight of 75kg has seemed to be around 4’6.

We went small and have now shifted back to +-4’ boards for advanced riding- this size enables good all round paddling, foiling / riding ability. Beginners starting to prone foil we suggest having added volume with boards being around 5ft – as rider progresses move towards a 4’6 size range.”

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Ivan Van Vuuren, Signature Performance Gear

BEGINNER’S GUIDE 2020

MAINTENANCE & REPAIR “Salt water is the demon when it comes to metals, which is bad news for foil equipment. But good news is with some simple maintenance you can avoid stuck bolts, wings, mast, fuselages, etc. Even if you are using titanium, stainless steel, brass, aluminum, carbon fiber the best practice is frequent rinsing with fresh water. This means disassemble then rinse well and not just a light spray. With bolts it is also good to provide some sort of lubrication. Whether it is just dipping the bolts in some sort of multi purpose grease or if you want to go all out using something like Tef-Gel which can help address dissimilar metal issues. Regardless, it is best to rinse frequently and grease all bolt and treads to help prevent parts locking on your equipment.

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Mike Nichols, Cyclone Surfboards

Corey Colapinto in California / Kjell van Sice

Repairing dings can greatly range when it comes foils. A lot will depend on the material, construction methods and extent of damage. Also you have to consider that most foil construction uses advanced or composite materials so knowledge of how to work with these materials will factor into your decision to tackle a ding repair. In general small dings can easily be repaired using some basic materials. Regardless it is important to make sure your foils are in good shape and are not subject to possible failure, especially while riding.”

SAFETY AND A WORD ON ETIQUETTE “The first time I learned to foil it was on a first generation Rush Randall Foil back in 2008 in Fiji.

Since then Hydrofoils have changed a lot and what’s possible has as well as the technology over the last 5 years has allowed for rides in the surf without Jetski assist and much more. Teaching hydrofoiling over the last few years with our surf camp and school, Maui Sports Adventures, has given me a lot of experience and patience to translate what’s necessary to fly with confidence along with etiquette and control maneuvers of this craft. If I were to share a few tips for someone just getting into the sport I would recommend the following...

1. Stand up to your front foot with weight forward as the foil will want to fly right out of the water if your jump to your back foot as we do surfing without a foil.

2. Keep your center of gravity over the board and foil avoiding leaning too far over the water with your chest or butt- stand with a more erect stance over the stringer or centerline of your board.

3. Control your weight distribution with your center of gravity shifting forward and backward over the centerline of the board. Start with your weight forward over your front foot and center, slowly shift your weight back along the centerline until you feel lift.

4. When you feel your initial sensation of lift, slide forward again over your centerline and front foot to bring your board back to the water and learn a controlled landing. Do this a few more times lifting higher and higher to build your confidence Landing. Once you’ve had a few flights to smooth landings, practice this same motion up and down in altitude but without the board touching the water/wave.

5. Controlling your direction and turns takes a whole lot less than you think. Try to minimize the amount you roll the rail with toe to heal pressure. Control your direction with where you direct your focus/eyes along with slight twist of your head and chest. A lot of the time I feel we need to keep

a step ahead of the foil.

6. Once you’re dialing in control of your flight and direction on a wave, you could practice your foil pump by carrying the speed from your wave ride into the channel. Depending on the type of foil you have, you want to find the rhythm of your foil. For a more traditional single scoop shaped wing I feel more of an elongated sense of drive and a full body motion going into the pump, while a more high aspect wing feels comfortable pumping with a short and quick bounce at high altitude. It’s important that through your technique of pumping you keep your motions and momentum created forward to back, back to forward and not side to side, toe to heel.

7. Work the top end of your altitude rather than the lower end of your altitude. While keeping your flight high mast elongate the sensation of pressure on the top side of the wing by driving your weight forward and down extending legs and standing tall, followed by a quick spring or bounce off the back foot applying pressure to the bottom side of the wing simultaneously lifting your front knee to chest creatweightless sensation that lifts your altitude back to high mast.

8. Allow your whole body to work dynamically for you and not against you. Spring and drive using the extension of your legs and body and the throw of your arms forward and up, back and down.

you are moving through your foil pump the more efficient and effective your pumping will be. Remember to control your breath.

10. Eye down a wave or bump that you could carve into from the channel and start planning your desired radius of the turn in order to go from a foil pump back into a glide on a wave or swell.

In the beginning it helps to keep the board flat and create a more pivotal change of direction with a twist of your body and shift of your focus. Turning is tighter when applying your technique on the lift of your altitude rather than the decline of your altitude.

If possible, learn behind a boat or a Jetski. If possible, find a mentor, instructor or friend to learn with that can allow you to practice this craft in a safe environment with the “Buddy System”.

If you don’t have an instructor or mentor in your area, take precautions such as having a lifeguard or friend keep an eye on you and stay clear of other ocean goers respecting other crafts and people around you. When searching for a place to practice in the surf with your Hydrofoil, remember that you don’t need to be at a popular surf break and can be riding waves with not as much size, power and ideally not as many people.”

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Zane Kekoa Schweitzer Founder and Lead Instructor at Maui Sports Adventures waterman camp/school, and InZane Clinics Mobile

9. Find your foils rhythm and foil pump tempo and remember to control your breath. A pump back out to the lineup can take a lot out of you so remembering to breathe will help with your cardio. The higher you are in altitude and the faster you are moving through your foil pump the more efficient and effective your pumping

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