Is it just me or does pumping a foil...

[Flyfish]

It's cool.

[Toby]

I don’t know now what you mean?

Looks really cool...


https://www.instagram.com/tv/Bxl-So-jxF ... t1ys0hrcjp

[longwhitecloud]

They look a bit like horse jockeys.

I can't decide if this, wing foiling, or Napoleon Dynamite are less kooky.

[jumptheshark]

Mentioned it in another thread and though it makes sense here too, that pumping is a really useful skill that can will help you progress in a lot of different ways.

Learning to pump out of what would otherwise be a failed maneuver is super gratifying.

Using it stay on a swell and really get the foil working in the wave without the kite is also very satisfying.

Once you develop it, it can help you get going on low wind water starts.

Have been playing around with pumping in light winds lately and find it keys you in to the timing and speed of clean foot switches. You set up the switch with a pump and perform the switch on the beat, so simply learning to feel the foil propel you with leg power teaches you more about how to ride your wing. It's a part of every hard carve as your "off the lip" moment is essentially a drawn out pump in order to get pushback from loading up the wing. This clip from earlier in the thread shows it perfectly when he sets up his hard corner on the swell with the tempo of pumping on approach.

That right there is what it's all about !

Will no doubt be a staple part of initiating small strapless airs too.

It definitely helps develop a better feel for your wing's stall warning as it slows down, and it becomes instinct to fire a few pumps while you get your kite in the right spot to take over.

Overall, its just one more skill in the tool kit to make you a better foiler. I feel like it has been just one more revelation on the learning curve to have a way to propel yourself that is completely independent of the kite and can serve to bridge little gaps that would have otherwise seen you come off the foil.

[TomW]

Hey, I'm not lazy, but I'd rather go mountain biking on those days, but I don't live in Hawaii.