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How to slow down the foil

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kiteswede
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How to slow down the foil

Postby kiteswede » Mon Sep 14, 2020 2:25 pm

Hey

Where is the break? ;)

Any good tips how to slow down the foil?

If I put the kite near 11-12 my foil starts to raise from water.. If I keep it down it keeps runnig forward.

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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby joekitetime » Mon Sep 14, 2020 2:30 pm

Put the kite high and go straight downwind (usually folks think they are going downwind when they really aren't).

Put the kite high and point as high to windward if you can.

If your kite is lifting you and the foil out of the water you are flying to big of a kite. Unless your aim is to race, then put the kite all the way down to near touching the water and edge against it, which is the formula to go faster, not slower.

Hope that helps a tad.

Larger foils like to be ridden slower. Smaller foils like to be ridden faster.
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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby joriws » Mon Sep 14, 2020 2:55 pm

Or push front foot and touchdown with a board for water drag. Combine with carving either way for more faster effect. Downwind is more effective because your carving turn is more quicker rotating wind window and driving kite quicker to window edge. Upwind carve, you need to pull the kite through a lot of power to window edge.

Or buy a kite which depowers properly from riding speed, i.e. pushing bar forward really takes kite's pull away on any speed. For example Peak4 which is made wind range from valleys to mountain tops on single ski-lift. Works perfect also with hydrofoil.
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Mossy 757
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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby Mossy 757 » Mon Sep 14, 2020 5:15 pm

kiteswede wrote:
Mon Sep 14, 2020 2:25 pm

If I put the kite near 11-12 my foil starts to raise from water..
Sheet out to maintain ride height as the kite comes overhead, then when you feel yourself slow suitably, sheet back in to repower the kite and ride slowly with the kite high. The bar is now your ride-height control, out=down/in=up.
If I keep it down it keeps running forward.
Yeah, any time your pull vector is in a forward direction the foil wants to go fast in order to keep your ride height stable. As the kite comes overhead and begins carrying your weight, it unloads the weight off the foil and allows the foil to carry you at a consistent height but lower speed because the kite is sharing the work.

I find that when I'm doing a max speed run, it's usually downwind with the kite barely above the water, when I need to slow down I begin by steering the kite upwards and riding towards the kite, i.e. underneath the kite in order to reduce the line tension. In order to keep the kite from crashing as I slack the lines by riding towards it, I gently start steering the kite up to 11 or 12.

So again, here's the acceleration-through-deceleration sequence:

Cross-wind, begin diving the kite.
As the foil speeds up and you begin rising out of the water, head towards the kite to slow down by releasing some line tension.
Carefully balance line tension with speed by heading towards/away from the kite at your desired speed and angle. The bar does less here to manage ride height than controlling line tension with your course and speed.
As you begin to slow down, head gently towards the kite to release line tension and reduce apparent wind.
At the same time, begin gradually steering the kite up overhead.
As the kite comes overhead and begins pulling upwards, sheet out on the bar to prevent yourself getting yanked off the board.
Maintain line tension during this deceleration by gradually heading back upwind as the kite comes overhead.
Once stable on your new course, "give-away" your kite pull in the upwards direction through the harness and transform that into forward speed (and therefore lift) by bringing the kite back down towards the water to accelerate and gain line tension...repeat.
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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby Foil » Tue Sep 15, 2020 6:57 am

Har!
All great tips above, but
We all forget that when we were learning way back when this out of control speed run of death happened to us all,
We were so scared of this overload of feeling completely out of control we simply froze, unable to twitch a muscle as any slight muscle twitch would make things worse,
But it only takes a few crashes to recognise that moment just before it all goes pear shaped, and your new found reflex's mentioned above quickly take over and you slow down.
After a few more years experience then it becomes a self challenge to see how fast you can push into a turn off wind when overpowered, even pushing through the wall of fear and looping the kite a few times to give extra drive, crash jacket and helmet recommended!
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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby plummet » Tue Sep 15, 2020 7:02 am

Use a smaller kite. No more death run when you are only just powered.

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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby Foil » Tue Sep 15, 2020 7:54 am

plummet wrote:
Tue Sep 15, 2020 7:02 am
Use a smaller kite. No more death run when you are only just powered.
so true!
but as a beginner you may well fail to get up and going as skills have not been developed well enough to get up with the right size kite that experienced foilers can get by with,
but it drives home the point why so many newbies do go into the "fun" zone of fear, they have to go big to get up, and then they get out of control after getting up.
another reason why newbies should start off on a high volume board which needs less kite for the first days of learning, but that's another subject and another can of worms to open.
as a learner, give yourself a great deal of room, well away from hazzards, ie swimmers, windsurfers, rocks,reefs, boats, etc, in other words plenty of space downwind to safely ride out a mistake,
but rest assured, it only takes a few of these "arghhhhh I cant slow down arghh crash!" situations before it clicks and you learn to prevent it happening again.
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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby AndersP » Tue Sep 15, 2020 8:36 am

When you are up and foiling pull the depower a bit. Then it's easier to get rid of power.
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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby Gestalt » Fri Oct 30, 2020 4:55 pm

joekitetime wrote:
Mon Sep 14, 2020 2:30 pm
Put the kite high and go straight downwind (usually folks think they are going downwind when they really aren't).

Put the kite high and point as high to windward if you can.

If your kite is lifting you and the foil out of the water you are flying to big of a kite. Unless your aim is to race, then put the kite all the way down to near touching the water and edge against it, which is the formula to go faster, not slower.

Hope that helps a tad.

Larger foils like to be ridden slower. Smaller foils like to be ridden faster.
It makes sense that large foils like to be ridden slower....and I'm curious do larger foils inherently move slower as well? I guess I'm trying to ask as a beginner, can a larger foil through more surface area create more drag/resistance to help slow things down? Does a larger foil "resist" going faster or can it go into death run just as easy as a smaller foil?

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Re: How to slow down the foil

Postby elmarco » Fri Oct 30, 2020 5:10 pm

Gestalt wrote:
Fri Oct 30, 2020 4:55 pm
joekitetime wrote:
Mon Sep 14, 2020 2:30 pm
Put the kite high and go straight downwind (usually folks think they are going downwind when they really aren't).

Put the kite high and point as high to windward if you can.

If your kite is lifting you and the foil out of the water you are flying to big of a kite. Unless your aim is to race, then put the kite all the way down to near touching the water and edge against it, which is the formula to go faster, not slower.

Hope that helps a tad.

Larger foils like to be ridden slower. Smaller foils like to be ridden faster.
It makes sense that large foils like to be ridden slower....and I'm curious do larger foils inherently move slower as well? I guess I'm trying to ask as a beginner, can a larger foil through more surface area create more drag/resistance to help slow things down? Does a larger foil "resist" going faster or can it go into death run just as easy as a smaller foil?
Larger foils go much slower and are much less intimidating for beginners.
sounds like you're also on too big of a kite.
big kite is good for your first time on a foil, but once you get up on foil, you should size down and work the kite a little more to get up on foil, you'll feel way more in control.
I do remember the days when the foil felt lightning fast, and I've recently felt that sensation again as I'm forcing myself to learn to ride switch toeside, I feel like a complete noob!! Its great! haha
For any of you experienced foilers, give it a go if you never have, try a switch HS to switch TS transition and continue riding switch TS, its terrifying!


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