It'll be great to see you again! You'll laugh at, that after 20 years, we haven't improved much, maybe gotten worst.
The Park situation is a mess, not charging anywhere, restrooms at Vanns Tavern and Van Pugh have storm (tree) damage and are closed. But we still can sail (at Vanns Tavern and Old Fed)!
The best part about coming back after a long time is that you can skip several failed iterations to reinvent the sport, such as no nose boards, formula boards, kitesurfing, block head sails, and too many others to remember. Now you can go directly wing foil* and skip all the stuff in between.....Or just buy some of the gear abandoned by those who tried all that stuff.
* Unless you are a diehard windsurfer then go to windfoil.....
—
What happens in a black hole stays in a black hole.
I was about to write and essay but the gist of it is shorter (from 210-240cm mostly), wider (from 58cm high wind boards to 85-100cm light wind planing and foil boards) and floatier on the light end. There are still long boards though more often in the form of WindSUPS or something like the Kona which is a bit wider than the classic race longboard.
As Randy said, foils have transformed both wind and kite surfing. For us in the not-windy south, the much lower drag at board speeds up to 20ish mph means either using smaller sails or going in lighter winds or both. Once you get the hang of it, you'll be using 1.5-2m2 (or more) less sail in the same conditions. At the low end, with some skill, we can get going before there are even white caps. So many of those days where we'd drive up to the lake and there just wouldn't be enough wind are now good to great days. You don't have to foil, of course, but it really has changed how often most of us can go and what gear we need. Also, because it requires less power and is a smoother ride, harness and footstraps are optional. This actually makes it easier for intermediates than we all thought it would be.
As well, foils have spawned the bastard child of kites and windsurfers: the wingfoil. The wingfoil is the biggest innovation in windpowered sports since the advent of the kite 20 years ago.
Windsurfing on a planing board is still very cool. The rigs are lighter and boards, imho, easier to ride. At first, it will feel funny not having all that nose up front but you quickly find that the volume of a new school board is in the proper place: under you.
Hit us up with questions if you have them. Anybody you see will be happy to tell you more. I'm off the water probably for a couple months which is probably good for you or you'd have to hear me prattle on more about foiling. But, we all hope to see you out and about soon.
One thing missing this year will be the full version of the regatta although Chris intends to keep the streak alive with something so keep an eye out. It really is as much fun as you remember.
Thanks for all the information. I got rid of nearly all of my gear. I kept the Mistral Screamer and 6.4 race sail. I always needed 15 knots or more to start grinning ear-to-ear.
It sounds like you guys have foils. Are they substantially better than what we rode 20 years ago?
It will be neat to see them in person instead of YouTube
It sounds like you guys have foils. Are they substantially better than what we rode 20 years ago?
Quote:
It's all I want to do.
- Chris Voith circa 2018
On any given day, foils will be from half to 2/3 of the boards on the water unless it's much over 20.
Speaking only for me: winds less than solid mid 20s? Yes, hands down. I haven't been on a finned board outside of Hatteras/SC Coast in over two years. My quiver 95% of the time (6* - about 27 or 28 mph) is 7.7, 5.4, 4.7 and just two boards, several foil wings. At the low end, there have been countless sessions where there's been hardly a white cap. There's still something special about being on a small regular windsurf board, banging through the chop, looking for jumps and carving down the swells so that's why a lot of folks go to a regular board in those conditions.
btw, If you decide the wingfoil route, it's even simpler: one board, one foil (maybe a couple of foil wings) and two wind wings.
All that said, the regular gear is better, too, as mentioned before. Things are just easier in the same conditions. We're not fighting the gear as much as we did back in the day.
Alan took this drone video up at Old Fed. It's in high def so definitely go full screen and set the resolution to at least 1080p on it. I think that's Gene, Langdon and Hamdi in there. He got me actually making a jibe at Van Pugh at the end. I don't remember who was kite foiling.
Changing gears for a moment, here's the vid for the new Tabou (they are part of Gaastra) 3s. I have a 2014 116l. I bought from Tim Carter and it was the board that boosted me into the modern era. Mine is approx 235x66 and I use it with a 7.0 and 6.0. Worth watching if you want to get an idea of what newer shapes look like and what's going on. The "longer" 3S classic has dimensions similar to mine while the 3S is a few cm shorter.
The skills at the pro level, especially in freestyle, have exploded in the last 20 years. Balz Muller was just a Swiss rugrat 20 years ago. He's been pushing the boundaries of regular and foil freestyle the last few years. Freestyling regular, foil, wing foil
G.T......Brown?
Van Pugh is currently closed but join us at Old Federal or Vanns Tavern.
Gene
Gene Mathis
Yes.
Thanks for letting me know about Van Pugh. Are Old Federal and Vann’s Tavern parks still free or do they charge a fee now?
It'll be great to see you again! You'll laugh at, that after 20 years, we haven't improved much, maybe gotten worst.
The Park situation is a mess, not charging anywhere, restrooms at Vanns Tavern and Van Pugh have storm (tree) damage and are closed. But we still can sail (at Vanns Tavern and Old Fed)!
Gene
Gene Mathis
The best part about coming back after a long time is that you can skip several failed iterations to reinvent the sport, such as no nose boards, formula boards, kitesurfing, block head sails, and too many others to remember. Now you can go directly wing foil* and skip all the stuff in between.....Or just buy some of the gear abandoned by those who tried all that stuff.
* Unless you are a diehard windsurfer then go to windfoil.....
What happens in a black hole stays in a black hole.
Welcome back!
I was about to write and essay but the gist of it is shorter (from 210-240cm mostly), wider (from 58cm high wind boards to 85-100cm light wind planing and foil boards) and floatier on the light end. There are still long boards though more often in the form of WindSUPS or something like the Kona which is a bit wider than the classic race longboard.
As Randy said, foils have transformed both wind and kite surfing. For us in the not-windy south, the much lower drag at board speeds up to 20ish mph means either using smaller sails or going in lighter winds or both. Once you get the hang of it, you'll be using 1.5-2m2 (or more) less sail in the same conditions. At the low end, with some skill, we can get going before there are even white caps. So many of those days where we'd drive up to the lake and there just wouldn't be enough wind are now good to great days. You don't have to foil, of course, but it really has changed how often most of us can go and what gear we need. Also, because it requires less power and is a smoother ride, harness and footstraps are optional. This actually makes it easier for intermediates than we all thought it would be.
As well, foils have spawned the bastard child of kites and windsurfers: the wingfoil. The wingfoil is the biggest innovation in windpowered sports since the advent of the kite 20 years ago.
Windsurfing on a planing board is still very cool. The rigs are lighter and boards, imho, easier to ride. At first, it will feel funny not having all that nose up front but you quickly find that the volume of a new school board is in the proper place: under you.
Hit us up with questions if you have them. Anybody you see will be happy to tell you more. I'm off the water probably for a couple months which is probably good for you or you'd have to hear me prattle on more about foiling. But, we all hope to see you out and about soon.
One thing missing this year will be the full version of the regatta although Chris intends to keep the streak alive with something so keep an eye out. It really is as much fun as you remember.
Hi GT! Still have a racebored??
We’re planning an abbreviated Fall regatta in October. Stay tuned to this channel for news soon.
No raceboard needed. There are enough raceboards available to supply an entire fleet.
https://eastnc.craigslist.org/bpo/d/aurora-13-windsurfers/7198652942.html
What happens in a black hole stays in a black hole.
Thanks for all the information. I got rid of nearly all of my gear. I kept the Mistral Screamer and 6.4 race sail. I always needed 15 knots or more to start grinning ear-to-ear.
It sounds like you guys have foils. Are they substantially better than what we rode 20 years ago?
It will be neat to see them in person instead of YouTube
Speaking only for me: winds less than solid mid 20s? Yes, hands down. I haven't been on a finned board outside of Hatteras/SC Coast in over two years. My quiver 95% of the time (6* - about 27 or 28 mph) is 7.7, 5.4, 4.7 and just two boards, several foil wings. At the low end, there have been countless sessions where there's been hardly a white cap. There's still something special about being on a small regular windsurf board, banging through the chop, looking for jumps and carving down the swells so that's why a lot of folks go to a regular board in those conditions.
btw, If you decide the wingfoil route, it's even simpler: one board, one foil (maybe a couple of foil wings) and two wind wings.
All that said, the regular gear is better, too, as mentioned before. Things are just easier in the same conditions. We're not fighting the gear as much as we did back in the day.
Alan took this drone video up at Old Fed. It's in high def so definitely go full screen and set the resolution to at least 1080p on it. I think that's Gene, Langdon and Hamdi in there. He got me actually making a jibe at Van Pugh at the end. I don't remember who was kite foiling.
https://windsportatlanta.com/content/sunday-am-32220
* I can fly in 6 but it probably takes 9 or so for me to get off the water.
Changing gears for a moment, here's the vid for the new Tabou (they are part of Gaastra) 3s. I have a 2014 116l. I bought from Tim Carter and it was the board that boosted me into the modern era. Mine is approx 235x66 and I use it with a 7.0 and 6.0. Worth watching if you want to get an idea of what newer shapes look like and what's going on. The "longer" 3S classic has dimensions similar to mine while the 3S is a few cm shorter.
The skills at the pro level, especially in freestyle, have exploded in the last 20 years. Balz Muller was just a Swiss rugrat 20 years ago. He's been pushing the boundaries of regular and foil freestyle the last few years. Freestyling regular, foil, wing foil
Fn Balz and a bunch of locals in Greece
Windfoil
Wing
Another big advantage of coming back after 20 years. Boards have gotten a lot cheaper. This board would have cost over $1000 20 years ago. It just sold for $50. https://windsportatlanta.com/comment/49893#comment-49893
What happens in a black hole stays in a black hole.
Great video from France showing how much fun you can have with a 5.2 on a 15 ish sort of day
https://www.facebook.com/gwenael.gourlay.3/videos/10219762899117826/