The Duotone Wing

[Jfoil]

I will add that I think duotone is pretty late in their info and marketing.

[cglazier]

Thanks for posting Jfoil.
It is most informative to hear from someone who has actually used them.

[scottnorby]

Im surprised how many people are trying to compare an inflatable wing to kiting?

When the first BMX bikes came out I don't think people were saying it would be useless with only one gear.
The point was that it was tough, had fat grippy tires, a small uncomfortable seat, and better handle grips to ride and jump the bike in dirt.

The wing is not going to replace Kiting....and as my petite wife says.....the wing is not an extreme sport....and thats good for 90 percent of the population.

For sure many people will try the wing and decide to later take lessons for kiting.
And kite instructors could use it to teach basic wind dynamics on an SUP before they put a kite in the air.

I would just like to see people on the water....even riding 2mph across a lake.
And especially KIDS who are only excited to go outside if they are chasing Pokeman on their phones.

Just good to see people reaching out for a new natural sport---- and not just watching someone else do it on their virtual reality goggles.

Super portable...super simple....many options for playing with it...and small enough to take it everywhere you travel.

Its a positive thing....and no need to make a solid carbon version with GPS tracking and a heart monitoring system integrated.
KEEP IT SIMPLE

[windmaker]

Time will tell . Usually if something is too easy to learn, it is not worth learning or you get bored with it real fast, anyway I do.
Not sure about kids or people with little or zero knowledge of sea, water and rights of way interfering or endangering other riders by their ignorance because it is easy, probably the best way for more bans and regulations .
Anyway ,not much can be done, the circus just became bigger.

[windmaker]

Time will tell . Usually if something is too easy to learn, it is not worth learning or you get bored with it real fast, anyway I do.
Not sure about kids or people with little or zero knowledge of sea, weather and rights of way interfering or endangering other riders by their ignorance because it is easy, probably the best way for more bans and regulations .
Anyway ,not much can be done, the circus just became bigger.

[Matteo V]

Im surprised how many people are trying to compare an inflatable wing to kiting?

Ya, lots of us that used to windsurf, did the comparison thing between windsurfing and kiting. Lots of pros and cons of both. Kiting wins out because of the extreme capabilities of a kite with a significant wind-window. That property of kiting allows the use of tiny boards with no volume that can simulate anything from wakeboarding to being able to surf a child sized surfboard in small waves. So comparison is very much valid for those of us who did all 3! - Again, I used a kitewing for some time on the snow while at the same time snowkiting. Then I sold my kitewing and went exclusively to kites.

Time will tell . Usually if something is too easy to learn, it is not worth learning or you get bored with it real fast, anyway I do.

Kiting, for the vast majority is much easier to learn than windsurfing. But the capabilities of kiting were so expansive that the ease of riding was made up for by allowing things to be done that could never be done on a windsurfer. Almost all of the skilled windsurfers switched over, and essentially never looked back. Even now, the last of the "I windsurf when the wind is 'x' speed, and I kite when the wind is 'y' speed", are disappearing or switching to kiting exclusively.



So the comparison to kiting of the "wingythingy" is very much similar to the comparison of kiting to windsurfing. And honestly, I have got to say that the "wingythingy" is just way too much of a windsurfing sail that is unattached to the board to not be compared in this way. Again, I have some experience with this.



On top of that, look at the forces involved for stress on your back. While I never had back problems while using the Kitewing, I think the potential is there. And when you essentially eliminate the older/injured market from a new sport by this, you wind up with only the hotshots doing a sport that is not conducive to showing off.

[Toby]

[bragnouff]

"more freedom of motion than either windsurfing or kitesurfing"
Upper body freedom of motion, maybe...
That's kind of ignoring the elephant in the room, namely the fact that you're riding a chunky SUP with a BIG foil, for which the agility is questionable.
Sell your product, but don't oversell bullshit!

[juandesooka]

"more freedom of motion than either windsurfing or kitesurfing"
Upper body freedom of motion, maybe...
That's kind of ignoring the elephant in the room, namely the fact that you're riding a chunky SUP with a BIG foil, for which the agility is questionable.
Sell your product, but don't oversell bullshit!

I use my 6' SUP and 84" wing to surf 600m long waves that are more or less unsurfable with any other craft. I do it with a paddle in my hands. If I can get the same surfing experience, but without paddling, that seems like a good trade ... worthy of the attempt at least.

And yeah, I could maybe kite those waves too. But not if there's a wind shadow for half the break or the launch isn't doable due to high tide or bad geography. Or, if I simply prefer to experience "surfing" the waves, rather than "kitesurfing" them. The subtle distinction being the use of wind to initially catch the wave, but then riding it without any power source other than the wave's energy ... that's how I define surfing anyway.

Though my hoped-for use is probably a very narrow slice of their marketing. Hopefully I can buy mine cheap off Joe LakeSupper, once he gets tired of the novelty.

[bragnouff]

(...)
I use my 6' SUP and 84" wing to surf 600m long waves that are more or less unsurfable with any other craft. I do it with a paddle in my hands. If I can get the same surfing experience, but without paddling, that seems like a good trade ... worthy of the attempt at least.

I fully understand that in some cases, this might be the right tool for the job. I just have to call bullshit when someone (even someone highly respectable like Ken Winner) makes claims like that one above.

A more correct wording would be "more freedom of motion than either windsurfing or kitesurfing, in conditions you couldn't windsurf nor kitesurf"