A genius idea for SUP foilers this week, which will leave you wondering why you never thought of it!

Stand up paddlers are used to the idea of using rail tape on their boards to protect against paddle chips and scrapes, but what's protecting the nose of your board? Because foilers spend so much time with the boards upside down on the grass, sand or carpark, nose damage is extremely common.

When you bolt on your foil to your board, how much force do you use? If your board has a tuttle box, chances are - quite a lot! Even those foils with a plate system still require some pushing and shoving to get lined up just right - all the while your boards nose is being ground into the carpark. Protecting the tail is easy, as most of the time a deckpad takes the force. For the nose, it's easy too! Just grab an offcut of rail tape and use a heat gun to stretch it over the nose of your board. It works on all nose shapes, from stubbys to the extra pointy ones, and will prevent ugly scratches on your foiling pride and joy.

Don't have an offcut of rail tape? Drop by your local SUP store, they've got plenty, and they might even give you a hand to fit it without any bubbles.