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Are monofoils the future of foiling?

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TritonFoils
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Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby TritonFoils » Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm

The dynamic duo at Our Kite Life (Laurie & Yuri) have recently reviewed the Triton T1 monofoil and are posing the question: Are monofoils the future of foiling?



Here is our honest take on this question and we know we are hardly a neutral party when it comes to this topic but your input is super helpful and give me a moment to explain why.

Two years ago when we started designing with our monowing for kiting with partners at a leading Canadian university aeronautics department at we saw three immediate advantages to monofoils:

1. Safety - 90% of all serious foil injuries come from the rear stabilizer. Agreed?
2. Travel - no stab and no fuse = a smaller, more compact foil
3. Fun - inherently more carvey, turny...basically a freestyle machine.

We were also aware of the traditional disadvantages:

A. Pitch instability - no fuse + no stab = a bucking bronco style ride
B. If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It - e.g. traditional foils have become way easier to ride
C. Pumping - hard to pump and glide a foil without a fuse and stab

We would humbly submit that the T1 monofoil has overcome A, makes B largely irrelevant (see Laurie's video) and has made some progress on C while still leaving room for improvement.

Given the many advantages, few real disadvantages and the many seemingly happy riders on monofoils sharing their experiences we are genuinely curious about why more people aren't converting to a monofoil.

Help us out here!

Why are you reluctant to ride a monofoil? Too experimental? Happy with your existing ride? High aspect foils are your priority #1 re: new gear? Kite foiling is DOA in your books?

Any and all feedback welcome.

Thx.

Rudy, Co-Founder, Triton Foils.
www.tritonfoils.com
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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby jakemoore » Mon Jul 18, 2022 6:45 pm

This could be the new ram-air vs tubes debate?? You might need a PMU style troll to keep the threads lively.
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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby Flyboy » Mon Jul 18, 2022 7:11 pm

In my limited experience with the T1 it does everything it's supposed to do. It's quite easy to use, is lively & quick turning, light & compact. It does not - understandably - have the same "tracking", "locked in" feel as a foil with fuselage & stabilizer. One thing I would say: people worrying about using it with a light carbon mast are focusing on the wrong thing. The foil as a whole is very light to carry (very little swing weight) & floats on its side forever. I have a hard time seeing the point of using it with a carbon mast.

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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby mr-markus » Mon Jul 18, 2022 7:19 pm

like mentioned in the clip, big air is a no go? then the T1 aint my cup of tea yet.

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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby tkaraszewski » Mon Jul 18, 2022 8:35 pm

TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
1. Safety - 90% of all serious foil injuries come from the rear stabilizer. Agreed?
Based on what? I think there's no data so you can't make this claim. Even if this is true, it seems it would likely not be because there's a stabilizer, but because there's something in the back of the foil to hit. Remove the stabilizer and you'd hit the mast or trailing edge of the front wing instead.
TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
2. Travel - no stab and no fuse = a smaller, more compact foil
That monowing is enormous. It looks like it takes up more space than a 3-peice traditional foil in luggage. Being 1800sq cm it's just big.
TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
3. Fun - inherently more carvey, turny...basically a freestyle machine.
Depends on what you enjoy I guess. I haven't actually ridden one, so I can't comment on this.

TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
Why are you reluctant to ride a monofoil? Too experimental? Happy with your existing ride? High aspect foils are your priority #1 re: new gear? Kite foiling is DOA in your books?

Any and all feedback welcome.
They don't do what I want, which is to say, go fast.
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TritonFoils (Mon Jul 18, 2022 11:48 pm)
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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby Flyboy » Mon Jul 18, 2022 10:06 pm

tkaraszewski wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 8:35 pm
TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
1. Safety - 90% of all serious foil injuries come from the rear stabilizer. Agreed?
Based on what? I think there's no data so you can't make this claim. Even if this is true, it seems it would likely not be because there's a stabilizer, but because there's something in the back of the foil to hit. Remove the stabilizer and you'd hit the mast or trailing edge of the front wing instead.
TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
2. Travel - no stab and no fuse = a smaller, more compact foil
That monowing is enormous. It looks like it takes up more space than a 3-peice traditional foil in luggage. Being 1800sq cm it's just big.
TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
3. Fun - inherently more carvey, turny...basically a freestyle machine.
Depends on what you enjoy I guess. I haven't actually ridden one, so I can't comment on this.

TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
Why are you reluctant to ride a monofoil? Too experimental? Happy with your existing ride? High aspect foils are your priority #1 re: new gear? Kite foiling is DOA in your books?

Any and all feedback welcome.
They don't do what I want, which is to say, go fast.
What makes a conventional foil so awkward is the fact that you have parts going at right angles to each in every dimension. The T1 cuts out two of those directions, which is helpful. You're much less likely to hit the front wing than the fuselage or stabilizer - when you're carrying it, or when you're in the water with it.

The T1 is quite bulky in a "squarish" way.

If your main interest is going fast - or jumping - the T1 is not the right foil for you.
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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby Willy1234 » Mon Jul 18, 2022 10:39 pm

Hey guys,

I have now over 40 sessions with my t1. And I can still not believe how fast you are able to learn new tricks. Especially tricks that a good rider isn‘t capable of learning because you aren’t riding every day and getting money for kiteboarding. The combos of using the foil for top of the water surfing is also amazing and very playful. But of course. If you want to go high speed, this wing is not for you.

I can just say to everybody. Try it, if you are an rider that wants to learn new things with an amazing Allrounder, you will love it!

At my homespot we have a lot of people that are interested in the t1. Unfortunately lot‘s of them have a new SAB setup. Not everybody wants to invest that often in new equipment. I think t he more tritons we see at the spot, the more people want to try it and will love it.
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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby TritonFoils » Mon Jul 18, 2022 11:48 pm

Thanks for the feedback. See my responses in italic bold. :) Let the debate begin!
Flyboy wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 10:06 pm
tkaraszewski wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 8:35 pm
TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
1. Safety - 90% of all serious foil injuries come from the rear stabilizer. Agreed?
Based on what? I think there's no data so you can't make this claim. Even if this is true, it seems it would likely not be because there's a stabilizer, but because there's something in the back of the foil to hit. Remove the stabilizer and you'd hit the mast or trailing edge of the front wing instead.

Agreed, I think the peer reviewed paper from Harvard is still in the works. ;) But, in many conversations, how many times have friends you know who got a nasty gash said they they were sliced and diced by their rear stab? Almost every instance in my circle but hey maybe I am hanging around with the wrong people.

TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
2. Travel - no stab and no fuse = a smaller, more compact foil
That monowing is enormous. It looks like it takes up more space than a 3-peice traditional foil in luggage. Being 1800sq cm it's just big.

It fits with the wing, mast, our pocket board and two kites in a single regulation check in bag under 158cm total dimensions. That is pretty small, and pretty convenient in my books. :)

TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
3. Fun - inherently more carvey, turny...basically a freestyle machine.
Depends on what you enjoy I guess. I haven't actually ridden one, so I can't comment on this.

Lets make this happen. Where do you live?

TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 4:23 pm
Why are you reluctant to ride a monofoil? Too experimental? Happy with your existing ride? High aspect foils are your priority #1 re: new gear? Kite foiling is DOA in your books?

Any and all feedback welcome.
They don't do what I want, which is to say, go fast.

The T1 is rated with a top end speed of 24kts. Sure not a race wing but what race wing also gives you a low end speed of 8kts and incredible low end wind range? Its a question of trade offs and with the T1 you don't have to make as many as you do with a lot of other all round wings on the market currently.

What makes a conventional foil so awkward is the fact that you have parts going at right angles to each in every dimension. The T1 cuts out two of those directions, which is helpful. You're much less likely to hit the front wing than the fuselage or stabilizer - when you're carrying it, or when you're in the water with it.

The T1 is quite bulky in a "squarish" way.

If your main interest is going fast - or jumping - the T1 is not the right foil for you.

BTW, we have a reinforced wing especially for jumpers rated to 30ft on our custom mast. They go on sale next week. Jump to your hearts content on your T1 this summer. :)

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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby tkaraszewski » Tue Jul 19, 2022 12:26 am

TritonFoils wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 11:48 pm
Thanks for the feedback. See my responses in italic bold. :) Let the debate begin!
Flyboy wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 10:06 pm
tkaraszewski wrote:
Mon Jul 18, 2022 8:35 pm

Based on what? I think there's no data so you can't make this claim. Even if this is true, it seems it would likely not be because there's a stabilizer, but because there's something in the back of the foil to hit. Remove the stabilizer and you'd hit the mast or trailing edge of the front wing instead.

Agreed, I think the peer reviewed paper from Harvard is still in the works. ;) But, in many conversations, how many times have friends you know who got a nasty gash said they they were sliced and diced by their rear stab? Almost every instance in my circle but hey maybe I am hanging around with the wrong people.

That monowing is enormous. It looks like it takes up more space than a 3-peice traditional foil in luggage. Being 1800sq cm it's just big.

It fits with the wing, mast, our pocket board and two kites in a single regulation check in bag under 158cm total dimensions. That is pretty small, and pretty convenient in my books. :)

Depends on what you enjoy I guess. I haven't actually ridden one, so I can't comment on this.

Lets make this happen. Where do you live?

They don't do what I want, which is to say, go fast.

The T1 is rated with a top end speed of 24kts. Sure not a race wing but what race wing also gives you a low end speed of 8kts and incredible low end wind range? Its a question of trade offs and with the T1 you don't have to make as many as you do with a lot of other all round wings on the market currently.
What makes a conventional foil so awkward is the fact that you have parts going at right angles to each in every dimension. The T1 cuts out two of those directions, which is helpful. You're much less likely to hit the front wing than the fuselage or stabilizer - when you're carrying it, or when you're in the water with it.

The T1 is quite bulky in a "squarish" way.

If your main interest is going fast - or jumping - the T1 is not the right foil for you.

BTW, we have a reinforced wing especially for jumpers rated to 30ft on our custom mast. They go on sale next week. Jump to your hearts content on your T1 this summer. :)
I live in Hood River, OR, so if you can get a demo unit here, I'm probably not the only one who would be interested to try it (maybe there has been one here already, but I haven't seen it). Like I said, I am unlikely to buy one though, Just because even if it does what it's advertised for quite well, it's not really my primary focus in kiting. Maybe it'd be a good foil (or maybe by the then theT2 or T3) to switch to when I get tired of racing.

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Re: Are monofoils the future of foiling?

Postby TritonFoils » Tue Jul 19, 2022 1:02 am

Got it. Would be good to get your feedback regardless. Reach out to TJ at Big Wings - they have it in stock - and tell him Rudy sent you. He will set you up with a demo unit. Enjoy!

Rudy, co-founder, Triton Foils
www.tritonfoils.com


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