Hi All,
Thought I'd start a thread where we can post videos, links to resources for beginner Wing Foilers wanting to learn about this sport. Trying to centralize this with all the best info so we can point new riders to this and hopefully make learning easier.
Thanks,
FTG
"No one has more experience across windsurfing, kitesurfing and now wingsurfing when it comes to using footstraps, so we threw the most commonly asked questions about if, when and how to use them at Mr. Naish"
magazine.wingsurfworld.com/issue-03/foostraps-with-robby-naish/
This video has English subtitles after the Italian explanation - how to duck gybe. . Like the windsurf duck gybe timing the wing/sail flip is crucial.
Learning to jump (the foil sleeve shown in this video looks like an in expensive way to extend your mast):
Btw for the duck jibe, am I mistaken or i've seen videos of riders from this forum and they were releasing the back hand instead doing it ? ? la windsurf ??
A windsurf duck gybe -- when the back hand is released (maybe 60 to 75 degrees off the wind [90 degrees is dead downwind] depending on wind strength) and replaced with what was the front hand the sail goes over the head (the duck) to the other side as the board is carved around the sail's mast. The sail's boom is now be grabbed by what was the back hand (now the front hand) on the other side and you switch your feet and sail away. With the wind foiling duck gybe the front hand is released and it replaces the back hand in the strap or on the boom (Echo) as you head well off the wind -- you pull the wing back a little with the back hand to help you position the wing so you can quickly grab it with the new front hand. The wind wing upon release of the back hand swings around in front of you while you carve (follow it) through the turn and what was your back hand (now your front hand) grabs a forward strap or the forward part of the boom (Echo) and you pick up power as you finish the carve and exit the gybe -- you might have to give the board and wing a couple of pumps to stay on foil if the wind is light. You can now switch your feet (if you didn't do this before entering the gybe) or not and foil away.
At the 4:30 mark in the attached video Balz Muller shows and explains how to do the duck gybe.
Thanks dejavu, i was doing it the same way this winter om snow. But i find this version and i think it might be simpler? Am I mistaken but same kind of turn but different ? hand job ?
It looks to me that in the video you posted that the rider is letting go with the back hand well into the gybe (a late release)-- rotating the wing close to 90 degrees or more before letting go with the backhand and replacing the front hand with it while the old front hand (now the backhand) is moved to the rear handle. In the videos I posted the front hand replaces the back hand as the rotation of the wing commences, which allows the wing to float for a few seconds with only one hand holding it. In your video the back hand replaces the front hand (the reverse of what happens in the Muller video) later in the gybe -- keeping the power on for longer.
If you have a lot of mobility in your shoulders then obviously you can switch your hands later in the gybe -- your back arm will come up under some tension and closer to your head as it follows the wing's rotation since it is still holding on and your back arm's shoulder will rotate higher and under greater load than in the other versions of the duck gybe. I don't see a problem in lighter winds but in heavier winds the wing might get yanked a bit as you start the completion of the gybe since you haven't let go with the front hand so the wing is not allowed a few seconds to float (much less tension on the arm holding onto the wing) as it continues to come around to the new direction. In this style of duck gybe the wing is more locked into the wind as you start to come out of the gybe. On the other hand, you will be keeping power on longer, which should help keep you on foil (good for light to moderate winds). You're basically allowing the wing to swivel with both hands attached through more of the gybe before switching them = more power in the wing. I suspect that the wing foiler in your video releases the front hand sooner and switches it out with the back hand if the wind increases. If you're an older winger and/or have rotator cuff issues it might be advisable to release the front hand first and have it reach back to replace the back hand (new front hand) if the wind increases (to make sure the tension on the back arm and shoulder is minimized) and you glide through the gybe rather than powering through it. I guess one is a "power" duck gybe and the other is more of a "glide" duck gybe.