Horst Sergio wrote:Nice picture
..
and I don't think it's off topic. I was close to open a similar thread. For sure many kite-foilers are kiters from first hours with a windsurfing history too and therefore interested in windfoils, especially, if there is chance for dual-use.
As I have seen French community is, once again, far ahead.
My questions to all manufacturers and users are:
1. What are the main design differences between wind and kite foils?
Apart from, as I understand it till now:
a) bigger and more lifting front wings without anhedral
b) stronger fuselage (frontwing to mast conections)
c) shorter masts
2. Are there more kitefoils that are reasonable useful as windfoil apart from those sold for both like the horue windfoil?
For example the Zeeko Alloy with the high lifting carbon-freeride-wing or the Levitaz with its strong fuselage. And does a plate-connection influence the take-off significantly?
3. As I imaging: reaching deep water with a windfoil under some onshore conditions could be pretty impossible/difficult: Has anybody ever thought about a windfoil construction with a double folding board to mast (similar to daggerboard) and mast to fuselage conection, which allows starting like a normal Board and (dis-)assembling by two strings and a threaded bar (through the alloy mast) that tensions the system when running?
Phil, Nicolas, Adrian ... any thoughts,
thanks Bernd
1a. They have anhedral too, and only bigger in size when learning, just like for kitehydrofoils.
So smaller and faster are offered too, by Horue.
1b and 1c, I dont see any difference wind-kitefoil really ?
1extra. To fit in trim for a windsurfer with a tuttle box, you need to have the wing further forward, either by having a wing or even mast forward sweep, or bigger distance wing to mast, or both.
Which eventually would lead to 1b suddenly being the case
2. I am pretty sure you could use every kite hydrofoil as a windfoil, if you mount the box or plate a bit further forward.
Of course, I dont know for sure if any differences - but I dont see any.
3. In my view, it would be easier to get out to deep water, particulary in light or marginal winds - as you can go out till you can just reach the bottom, and from there, uphaul or waterstart if windy, and then ride extremely slow so IF hitting something, the risk of destruction is minimal, compared to a kitefoil where we go faster trying to stay afloat on our small boards, and always losing upwind when starting in onshore so we might hit the bottom on kitefoils ?
Windfoil you can also put the board upside down foil sticking up, sail in the water, and swim out - easy compared to fighting/looping a kite in marginal winds and onshore.
For long distance trips, I see a windfoil much better than a kitefoil, because you dont have the issue that you go down if the wind stops.
You could in reality stop and eat your lunch, while waiting for a few knots of wind - which will be sufficient for slowly getting ashore.
Much safer than a hydrofoil, where we have to swim with the kite rolled or packed down, on a small board - and no chance of a relaunch once packed down.
The downside is the depth of course - not better nor worse than a kitefoil, but scary if going into "new land" on trips
Upside is again, you can go ultra slow so able to watch whats underneath
- not really possible with a kitefoil
Peter
PS: It has always been called a "windsurfer" here, so everybody knows what that is, and it is a common national word in different national dictionaries.
If I were to use the word "sailboarder" (existed as a windsurf magazine in the past I recall), nobody would know what I was talking about