Contact   Imprint   Advertising   Guidelines

Mast: 90cm vs 100cm

A forum dedicated to Hydrofoil riders
rnelias
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 1133
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2019 11:07 pm
Local Beach: RJ, Brazil
Favorite Beaches: Arubinha, RJ
Cumbuco, CE
Barra da Tijuca, RJ
Praia da Bica, RJ
Style: freeride
Gear: Boxer 9m for foiling
Rebel SLS 8m or Crave HL 9m for boosting on twintip
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 290 times
Been thanked: 269 times

Re: Mast: 90cm vs 100cm

Postby rnelias » Wed Jun 01, 2022 12:47 pm

I think it will mostly depend on the discipline you're aiming for.

For people riding shallow water and waves the answers is obvious but for those cruising long distances offshore, longer masts with smaller and higher aspect wings will make your life easier. The size and AR of your wing will have a big influence on this choice. Imagine a high aspect and wide wing in a short mast (~80 cm), it'll hard to edge upwind and keep wing tips under water. This combination, high aspect wing and short masts are more used by folks winging since they usually ride more leveled.

In my case, I've been using 95cm and on my local spot, depending on the tide, I must walk 200-300m to have enough depth to water start on lighter winds, however, I love the feel to run over waves as they don't exist :)

bkkite
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 562
Joined: Wed Aug 17, 2016 6:45 pm
Local Beach: South Oyster Bay
Favorite Beaches: Dakhla
Style: Freeride
Gear: Core XR5 15m , xlite 12m, Nexus 2 9m, XR5 7m

Core Fusion 139, Slingshot Celero 5’8, Slingshot Dwarfcraft 110cm with a Hover Glide Foil and Apollo 60 front wing
Brand Affiliation: None
Location: NYC
Has thanked: 35 times
Been thanked: 115 times

Re: Mast: 90cm vs 100cm

Postby bkkite » Wed Jun 01, 2022 6:09 pm

I ride a 90cm slingshot hover glide mast, and find myself wanting a taller mast, like over 100cm when I'm in rougher choppier waters for more clearance. Other than that I'm pretty happy on the 90cm

StellaBlu
Frequent Poster
Posts: 441
Joined: Fri Jul 31, 2020 6:19 pm
Kiting since: 2015
Style: Winging
Gear: -
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 69 times
Been thanked: 108 times

Re: Mast: 90cm vs 100cm

Postby StellaBlu » Wed Jun 01, 2022 6:32 pm

Totally personal. Here are a few of the isolated considerations:

Speed - Shorter is faster (less drag)
Chop - longer is better
Stiffness - shorter is stiffer
High Lean Angles - longer is better
Pumping - personal, but I find mid length is best
Responsiveness - shorter is quicker

Personally, I like 80-85 cm for winging and kiting as its the best blend for my riding and conditions. I find longer gets too delayed on timing, flex becomes more noticeable, pumping gets more awkward, water depth requirements get more restrictive. I do have shorter masts that I use infrequently, but find shorter I breach tips too often, can't pump efficiently, too many touchdowns and can't get enough pop for airs.

User avatar
Flyboy
Very Frequent Poster
Posts: 2715
Joined: Thu Oct 17, 2002 1:00 am
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 157 times
Been thanked: 288 times

Re: Mast: 90cm vs 100cm

Postby Flyboy » Wed Jun 01, 2022 6:38 pm

kitenight11 wrote:
Wed Jun 01, 2022 8:17 am
Hi and thanks for the input. It seems that most of you prefer shorter masts for surfing small waves in kitefoiling. Unfortunately I wanted to hear exactly the opposite :(
I wanted to change to the Gong - system und have the choice between the 85 and 100cm carbon masts. and since I am fine or sometimes breaches with my actual 90cm mast, I don't want shorter - but also don't want to loose lots of carving potential in waves...
Hmmmm... what to do....?
Btw, when I mean waves. these are mostly only hip hight onshore windwaves....
I've been using the Gong 85cm carbon mast for a couple of years now. Before that I had the Gong 92cm alu mast & before that also had a 100cm carbon mast. The reality is, you adjust your technique to suit the mast length - you learn to keep a shorter mast at the appropriate height to avoid breaching. I would recommend the 85cm Gong mast for the use you're describing.

kitenight11
Medium Poster
Posts: 142
Joined: Wed Feb 28, 2018 3:18 pm
Gear: North
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 4 times

Re: Mast: 90cm vs 100cm

Postby kitenight11 » Wed Jun 01, 2022 10:18 pm

@FLYBOY: I assume you did not used the 92cm V2 alu mast? Otherwise could you describe your decision to stay with the 85 carbon mast and got rid of the 100cm? I assume you are talkijg about kitefoiling, right?
BTW, are there any videos out there where I can see somebody kitefoil or wingfoil with the 100cm mast in waves?


Return to “Hydrofoil”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: cglazier and 67 guests