With foiling currently the next big thing in Kitesurfing and given such amazing performance in light winds I am super excited to be a part of it and join the Fastafoil Team. Over the next few months I will be documenting my progress so that everyone can see the real learning process, giving you all the tips I learn on the way. Here is Part 1 of my Foiling Diaries which covers my first two sessions :)

The set up- The foil is a Batwing Sencillo by Fastafoil and is designed to get you up and riding as quickly as possible. It is a modular foil so once you are happy riding the foil you can upgrade the front wing to the freeride model or race wing for full speed.

The board is a 165x56 freerace board which I had tubes put in by Rowsell & Morisson in Exmouth enabling the mast to be bolted to the board. To start with I am just using the front straps so that when I crash my feet come out easily. Any directional style board will do but it seems wider means easier and it really helps when you touch down.

On the water- My first session was in 6-8knts of wind using the 2015 North Dyno 13m at Marazion. I was pretty nervous after hearing how hard foiling is and some of the stories of crashes. Starting off I was doing my upmost to keep the board on the water while bring the power on. After a few short runs back and forth I started to give a bit of back foot pressure as the power came on in the kite and the foil rose pretty rapidly up out of the water before cavitating and I got slammed. This continued to happen for the next few runs but gradually I was able to stay with the nose coming down and bouncing on the water. Trying to figure out what was going on I concentrated on keeping my weight forward as the board lifted and I started to fly. The acceleration is really noticeable as you start to foil and as such you need to depower the kite. At first my adjustments were a bit too extreme and I would lose too much power and drop back down but after about an hour, I found the groove and started to fly upwind in total silence and approaching a speed around 15knts.

Now I was way upwind and had to somehow go back down! To start with I went back to keeping the board on the water which was hard as the kite kept trying to fall out the sky in such light wind. With more confidence I started to bring the foil up and the acceleration was amazing until I was hit by a massive 8knt gust and exploded hard. Back on again and up and away for a couple hundred metres before another explosion, but I was back downwind after such quick runs and able to ride upwind again. Now with confidence and my skill building, upwind was becoming easier with full foiling runs and dropping down to tack before heading back downwind.  This time going down I really concentrated on the kite and keeping more constant power delivery and made it around 500m only dropping down slightly a couple of times before a big gust again and I exploded near the beach grinning from ear to ear.

Session 2 – Marazion again and it was blowing 6-8knts cross shore with a little bit of off. This time with the nerves gone I managed to pump straight up onto the foil and fly upwind on the 13m Dyno, making small adjustments with the bar and keeping the speed as constant as I could. For this session my main aim was to get comfortable downwind and on the second run I really found the groove making small pressure adjustments through my legs to keep the foil level and I really started to fly at around 20knts in total silence but feeling comfortable, that was until a lull in the wind and a big crash. Dropping down to gybe I headed out to sea on the other tack before coming back upwind. 

On the way back upwind I started to try foiling tacks and to my surprise almost got round on a few but also totally crashing as well on some. Back downwind and now it was time to try foiling gybes, downlooping the kite I almost managed to stay up but just touched down, totally buzzing with being so close and getting straight back up and flying away before rounding up in the same fassion as you do on a race board. Upwind again and I almost made another tack but then on the next attempt I crashed flipping over the board and the kite fell out the sky twisting in the bridle. In such light wind it was impossible to relaunch even with the 5th line in such light winds. Luckily I was only about 200m out from shore so decided to swim in and call it a day, buzzing from another amazing session.

For sure this foiling is hard and the crashes are big but the rewards are massive and as long as you persevere you will get such a buzz when you start to fly. The Sencillo from Fastafoil is amazing and seems to be an easy foil to learn on as I was not expecting to be flying as quickly as this! 

Find all the info at www.fastafoil.com 

Stay tuned for more Foiling Diaries and video coming soon.

Lee ‘Pasty’ Harvey
www.pastyadventures.co.uk 

The Frontside Waft or Fins Out Reo is an extension of the frontside re-entry that not only looks good but feels great as well. A wafting reo requires that you do a kind of rail side on the lip, getting your fins to hang out the back of the wave. The key to pulling one with a kite is to have zero kite power as you top turn, using board speed and timing to keep yourself in the right section of the wave. A slightly wider stance helps with this, so get your back foot right on the kick up at the end of your tail pad.

You can 'waft' in everything from cross-shore to onshore winds and, as with all critical manoeuvres, a good bottom turn set-up is key. Look for a slightly crumbling section, although you can even get your fins out on a closeout.

Here's whats happening in the pics below-

·         Fade your bottom turn (by carving upwind towards the breaking part of the wave) and bring the kite up towards 12, sheeting right out before you then carve downwind hard off the bottom looking up at the section you want to hit.

·         Try to come up as straight as possible with a good amount of speed, gently redirecting the kite so that it stays above you.

·         You need to be fairly compressed during your bottom turn so that as you come up the face you can pull your board under your feet and extend towards the lip.

·         As you hit the lip, aim to become weightless on the board – do this by keeping the kite moving above and in front of you while your body needs to spring upwards directly over the board.

·         When you feel the lip connect with your board. Twist your body by rotating your head, shoulder and hips and push the tail out with your back leg.

·         Bring your weight onto the front foot and as the fins reconnect dive the kite forward to pull you back down the wave and to keep the board planning.

·         Stay low so you can pull the board underneath you again moving weight onto the back foot enough to keep the nose from pearling.

·         Fade (carve) back upwind towards the breaking part of the wave which will tighten your lines and allow you to initiate your bottom turn into the next section.

PROBLEMS:
When learning the waft you will probably come up too late or too early, but the great thing is you can still turn it into a good turn without wafting. To get your timing dialled simply takes time, so perseverance is key.

There is a fine line between pushing too hard with your back foot off the top and the board flying away from you, or just doing a little jive on the lip, but once you’ve nailed a few you will soon get the timing.

If you are ending up out the back of the wave it probably means the kite is still pulling that way, so trying moving it less throughout your bottom turn so you have to redirect it less as you come up the wave and try to rely more on generating your own board speed from an efficient bottom turn to climb up the face.

If you are getting pulled off the board back down the wave after releasing your fins then you are moving the kite forward too hard. The key to a good waft is having very little power in the kite, but to keep it just ahead of you.

If you find the board is doing an air rather than connecting with the lip then you have too much speed. Try fading your bottom turn more to kill the kite power and come up the wave more vertically.


Pics by: Joe Cockle www.jnpevents.co.uk


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Cheers
Pasty

With more and more people now riding surfboards a Board Leash has become an important part of our kitesurfing quiver again. Here you will find tips on when and how to make best use from using a board leash while kitesurfing in waves.

A standard 6 foot 6mm double swivel surf leash is best which needs to be attached correctly making best use of the rail saver. The double swivel is important to avoid twists.

When wearing a leash we do advise wearing a helmet but as you progress and get use to riding with a leash, you may not want to.

As you generally ride a surfboard less powered and with a high depower kite, with a bit of practise and technique, the leash becomes a useful tool, giving you more riding time as well as a lifeline when things go horribly wrong!

When should you leash-

·         Cross offshore winds

·         Reef breaks

·         Riding alone

·         Strapless

·         Crowded beach breaks

·         Competitions

Most of these reasons are for your own benefit to keep your board with you to ride more waves and if it all goes pear shaped, you still have a surfboard which you can use to paddle in.
On top of this added safety, wearing a leash means you can push yourself that bit more without worrying about losing your board and spending up to 10 minutes body dragging back to it.
In crowded conditions it’s important for other peoples safety as your board washing through the break can cause a serious injury.
During contests every second counts so you simply cannot lose your board.

When you shouldn’t leash-

·         Windy strapped riding

·         Strapless freestyle

·         Learning

When riding at an empty sandy beach break with onshore winds there really is no need to use a leash. Although the only time I haven’t in the last few years, my board washed in and hit the only rock causing a ding. So it’s up to you?

If you are riding quite powered up, this means you will hold more speed and power if you crash which could cause your board to fly at you. If you are powered it tends to be easier to body drag back to your board anyway.

Attaching the leash to your board-

·         The leash string should be 2-3mm strong rope. Avoid kite line as it can cut into the leash plug.

·         Tie an overhand knot with enough length so that you get 2 even size loops just wide enough for the rail saver to fit through

·         Thread the leash string through the board and squeeze the rail saver together to get it through both loops

·         Close the Velcro so that the knot is hidden inside

·         The rail saver is now doing its job protecting the rail and any corners on the tail

·         With this method it’s really easy to change the leash onto another board as well as being easy to spot any wear to the leash string

Attaching the leash to you-

·         You should attach the leash to your prominent back leg on the ankle. This is the right leg for Natural stance and left leg for Goofy.

·         Make sure the leash is pointing backwards

·         Ensure the pull release is on the front within easy access so it’s easy to pull off in an emergency

·         Avoid attaching a board leash to your harness!

By attaching the leash to your leg, it ensures that during a wipeout when the kite pulls you one way and the wave pulls the board the other, the inevitable board spring back will normally miss you. This is due to its attachment point being 5-6 feet from you head depending on your height. Attaching to your harness means the board will come back straight at the middle of your back or head, which is not ideal!

Possible problems-
·         I hear people saying a lot, that a leash gets in the way during tacks & gybes etc- With practise it becomes simple to step over it, which I would much rather do than body drag after my board.

·         Board flies at you a lot- Practise falling off, bringing your kite up sheeting out with no power to avoid spring back. If you feel the board pulling strongly on your leg, prepare to protect your head with your arm. Avoid riding overpowered!

·         The board goes through your lines or wrap around you causing a tangle- On rare occasions this does happen. You need to practise taken your leash off in the water so that when it does you don’t panic. Sometimes you can simply pass the board back through the bar, other times you need to get the leash off quick, so it’s worth practising and always make sure the leash release pull is on the front.

·         If you need to paddle your board in, loosen your harness off and rotate it around so that the hook is out that back not damaging your board.

·         Regularly check your leash and leash string for any wear or stretching- Pictured above are the same leashes, one I used at One Eye in 2011 and it saved me on more than one occasion (see Kiteworld Wipeout Wednesday) but is now stretched and unusable due to losing its strength and elasticity. Regulary check the swivels still turn.

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For Kitesurfing lessons in Cornwall & Kitesurf Coaching Holidays go to my school www.pastyadventures.co.uk

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Cheers

Lee Pasty Harvey

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It's important to get your wax job right on your board for it to last whether surfing or especially kitesurfing.
Here I am preparing my new Tokoro 6'8 for the huge swell coming our way. Not sure if I will be staying in Cornwall or flying south but now all my boards are ready and waiting for their top coats.