How to switch on foil

[scott1326]

Hello,
Learning to foil with an Alien Air board behind a boat before I venture out with a kite. Trying to find the most efficient way to switch mid-foil for later transitions. Currently, I put the board on the water, and then try a quick shuffle to get the other foot forward. Raise back foot and put it just behind the current front foot, yet backwards, and then move front foot to new back foot (riding strapless atm). I've been successful a couple times, but not consistent. Also considering a quick hop with the board on the water, too. Not sure how these would translate with foil up. Haven't seen much on youtube w/o a kite involved as well. Any tips appreciated.

Cheers.

[Starsky]

Both of those work, I do the step to my strong toe side, and the hop back, but eventually they blend.

Practicing on the water will progress naturally to doing it flying.

I bet the switch is easier with a kite than behind the boat. I usually send the kite a bit and sheet in for foot switches. I pump the foil a bit too.

[gmb13]

Hi.

Check out these two videos:

https://youtu.be/Obk5IKOhSoQ

https://youtu.be/WPH31Z2uqvs

--
Gunnar

[scott1326]

Thanks guys, these will help.

[lovethepirk]

I've tried to jibe and tack each separately about 10 times so far just getting a taste for the feeling. I feel like the tack is tougher to learn, but it feels like there is less danger potential from a board or foil strike to the legs/shin.

What's your advice on which to learn first, or should you throw both into the learning curve at the same time?

[cglazier]

The jibe is easier for most of us because it is almost the same as the surfboard jibe. And adding a downloop really helps.

The tack is more difficult and can take hundreds of attempts. A good way to start learning is to tack on your kite surfboard (which most riders have never done). If you cannot tack your surfboard, you cannot tack a hydrofoil board.


CG

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBs8RAksLkk

[junebug]

Hundreds? That doesn't sound so bad, considering it's taken me thousands and thousands of tries to get the foiling jibe, and I'm still not there.

[Brian H]

I found going downwind and working on getting your feet closer together to find the balance spot where you can ride with them together, then as you rise your kite up to unweight the board you switch your feet then down loop your kite from the high position.

[yomotha]

The jibe is easier for most of us because it is almost the same as the surfboard jibe. And adding a downloop really helps.

The tack is more difficult and can take hundreds of attempts. A good way to start learning is to tack on your kite surfboard (which most riders have never done). If you cannot tack your surfboard, you cannot tack a hydrofoil board.


CG

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBs8RAksLkk

Just curious, but can a duck tack be done in different ways or are there different names for each? For example, in the vid, the guy turns completely with the board (which does a 180) and he does a 360 with his body. The way I learned to do this was turn the board 180, but I turn my body with the board initially, but instead of a full 360, I turn maybe 90 degrees to get the board to swing around and then I turn 90 degrees back to my original body position with the board now facing the opposite way. Is that still a duck tack or does that have a different name?

[jeromeL]

I am working on those too, for Jybe I was able to switch my feet a few times while keeping foil up but kite falls out of the sky right after I try to turn, i guess I am not fast enough or turn too far downwind while switching feet or I need to downloop? I can downloop to toeside but don't have the confidence to do it with jybe yet.
Really slows down progression because kite falling out of sky in lightwind and inverting is a pain in the butt.
So far I had only one successful switch touching down but I was pretty powered on 9m...

I feel like on tack there is less issue of kite falling out of sky. Perhaps for now I should focus on jybe in stronger wind and for light wind tack?