Back foot placement

[Lamilu]

I see lots of pictures where riders place the back foot behind the mast or directly above.
For me, even thought I way 110kg, I can only stabilize with my back well foot in front of the mast and mast placement the most far back as possible.
Is this OK, or is there something wrong with my stance or setup.
I feel I need a lot of board in front of me…and mast way back…
Cant imagin short boards I see advertised…
What is the katch?
I use an Mirrage 1000 with 95cm mast and a custom board similar to a Cabrinha Cutlass Foil.

[vakiter]

I find a good stance has even loading in both feet . This depends a bit on how fast your riding . I have only one strap up front so I can change stance . I generally ride with my back foot at rear or behind mast . I actually Moded my Moses/newind board to have mast more forward .

As long as your balanced I think it’s ok .

[Kiteski]

I have noticed the same thing. My back foot rests directly over the mast. I have Moses 679 and 483 (with 483 shimmed down to reduce weight on front foot). It must have to do with the foil itself (wings and fuselage combination). Having back foot behind the mast must be a completely different feeling. It looks more natural to me actually, as if the mast is the rear set of skateboard wheels, so you pivot around it as opposed to out in front of it.

[Peter_Frank]

Yes, even load on both feet and it is just fine.

Only if you feel it tends to seek "nose up" when going faster, the trim (stab size and angle) could be better.

Otherwise it is just okay if it balances, no matter where you stand

How wide is your typical stance between center of heels?

Peter

[Lamilu]

For me…normal stannding up stance distance…
Use front center wide strap…and a back half strap opening pointing forward mostly to mark where not to step backwards of…and in the future attempt some jumping.
In videos I also notice racing stance to be very wide open…
Doesnt work for me…

[leeuwen]

I personally prefer a bit more front foot pressure.
I am guessing I am riding with about 75-25% (I am riding strapless though so I can easily move around if required)
My reasoning is that for things like footswitches it is a bit easier if you already have more of your weight on your front foot.

[purdyd]

I think it depends on the width of your stance, and center point of lift.

The latter affected by the placement and chord length of the front wing, and the size and angle of the rear wing,

Bigger lower aspect wings you tend to ride more in front.

Also, bigger rear wings with more negative lift (more angle down) you ride more up front.

And I think when you first start you tend to have a bit more rear foot pressure and as you progress you to go more even or maybe a favor a bit more front foot pressure?

I wouldn’t worry too much where your rear foot is and just keep foiling,

[mirza23454]

I move my rear foot back behind the mast for tighter turns, and forward for better pumping.

If I pump with my rear foot behind the mast, I seem to stall out, but I think with more practice it might work?

105kg kiting on 107cm and 86cm boards.

[Trent hink]

As my foiling ability has very slowly progressed, I find myself putting my back foot farther back than I used to.

So, from my point of view, it is possible that just re-learning the point of balance is is the problem.... And it is completely different from a twintip, and even totally different from a surfboard.

Experience with those two different methods of riding can only hinder your ability to learn how to ride a foil.

Think of balancing on a plank placed on top of a ball.

To do that effectively, you need even foot pressure on both sides of the ball.

On your foil, you just have to learn where that imaginary ball is located.

I suppose that location moves back ever so slightly as you start testing your limits of turning with power, and forward a bit with more speed.

But, really, the imaginary ball is pretty much always in exactly the same spot.

Once you figure it out, if you don't like it you can move the strut mounting location or consider shimming the stabilizer as methods of moving the imaginary ball.

[mirza23454]

i think of that balance point as dynamic and changing with your speed, the condition of the water, the speed and direction of the wind, the position and movement of your kite, the width and depth/squat of your stance, the lean of your body, etc. In my mind it’s like riding a bike. Once you learn to ride and balance a moving bike across varied terrain, that muscle memory transfers to different bikes of all kinds of dimensions and shapes. On a strapless foil board you can ride all kinds of different positions and stances intuitively without really thinking about it.