Are raceboards (formula) a thing of the past ?

[davesails7]

all who ever tried to compete on formula board now have acquired the foil boards and try to shave another tenth of the knot.

Nah, the switch to foils for racing wasn't about shaving a tenth of a knot. They are 20% faster around the course, but more importantly they are a lot more fun to ride. Have you tried a foil? It's a good time.

you do know that high AR wings and foil water boards are known for years, right?

When racing started in San Francisco (~2009), there were guys on foils but the course boards were faster around the course, so the foils fell out of favor. Just recently (last 2-3 years) foils were developed to be much faster.

and certainly do not invest in foil bubble. because it is just that - the bubble

What killed the raceboard was people switching to racing foils because they are faster and more fun to ride. Very few people bought a raceboard for any reason other than to race. With no one left to race, their value plummeted.

The sector and other freerace boards grew out of the raceboard "bubble", and the people who bought those boards for lightwind fun are still out there enjoying them. Sectors have held their value on the used market while full on raceboards tanked. Same thing for people with freeride foils. Even if all foil racing goes away, the LF foil is still going to be a fun lightwind board, so I'd say it's pretty bubble-proof.

On top of that, foils are just a lot of fun to ride. A lot of people (including me) are pretty much giving up all their other boards (twintips, surfboards, raceboards) and just want to foil now. That never happened with the raceboard. I liked the lightwind ability of the raceboard, but that was about it. If it was over 14 knots I was happily moving on to the twintip. Now I find myself on 25 knot days wishing there was a little less wind so I could go out on my foil

[windmaker]

all who ever tried to compete on formula board now have acquired the foil boards and try to shave another tenth of the knot.

Nah, the switch to foils for racing wasn't about shaving a tenth of a knot. They are 20% faster around the course, but more importantly they are a lot more fun to ride. Have you tried a foil? It's a good time.

you do know that high AR wings and foil water boards are known for years, right?

When racing started in San Francisco (~2009), there were guys on foils but the course boards were faster around the course, so the foils fell out of favor. Just recently (last 2-3 years) foils were developed to be much faster.

and certainly do not invest in foil bubble. because it is just that - the bubble

What killed the raceboard was people switching to racing foils because they are faster and more fun to ride. Very few people bought a raceboard for any reason other than to race. With no one left to race, their value plummeted.

The sector and other freerace boards grew out of the raceboard "bubble", and the people who bought those boards for lightwind fun are still out there enjoying them. Sectors have held their value on the used market while full on raceboards tanked. Same thing for people with freeride foils. Even if all foil racing goes away, the LF foil is still going to be a fun lightwind board, so I'd say it's pretty bubble-proof.

On top of that, foils are just a lot of fun to ride. A lot of people (including me) are pretty much giving up all their other boards (twintips, surfboards, raceboards) and just want to foil now. That never happened with the raceboard. I liked the lightwind ability of the raceboard, but that was about it. If it was over 14 knots I was happily moving on to the twintip. Now I find myself on 25 knot days wishing there was a little less wind so I could go out on my foil

Full on

[Edge19]

I feel people like new things. After riding for many years a new edge, feeling, sensation, experience etc keeps things interesting and fresh. We all want to ride in light winds, pushing our wind ranges of kitability, being able to go as low as possible and still making it fun.
Putting racing aside, this was why I got the Sector 60. I absolutely loved it, it pushed light wind, riding fast and great up wind angles etc. Race boards in the early days were renowned for being hard to ride and tame. This probably put people off and if they jumped on one for the first time, come away thinking no it's not for me.
Then the newer generation of formula board come along which was easier to ride. I've been riding my RRD Rapida for a good while now and I absolutely love it. In higher winds and choppy conditions it just feels alive, adjusting foot pressures , pushing hard on the fins.... It s just awesome. I will never stop using it. In fact if one came up for sale I'd buy it for a spare!

I started foiling end of last year and have since made my own. It's still early days and I do like it, it's very peaceful and surreal in light winds fast and fun, but for me personally if it's windy I'll be grabbing my Rapida..... I never use my sector unless it's a shallowing tide or flat. Everyone wants the latest technology and foils is it... What ever takes your fancy and yes Tone your right formula does have a bigger window at our spot