StellaBlu wrote: ↑Thu Apr 15, 2021 5:38 pm
You literally described me. Same experience, similar weight (77 kg), etc...
After a lot of deliberation I got the following setup:
- Quatro Wing Drifter 5'8" - Considered the 5'6", but the difference was minimal and I want to maximize my days on the water even if lighter wind (15 kts). If I was only winging 20kts+ I would have sized down.
- Lift 250 HA (I think v1 and v2 are the same) + 50 stab (because I already have it for kiting, but might experiment with smaller) - I might have gone with the v2 surf wing if it had been released. Slightly concerned that people have told me the 250HA is very advanced.
- Cab Mantis 6
Considered the Fanatic, but people steered me away from it. I recall it was a bit heavy. Regarding volume, I figure I will just go with a big board to start -- accelerating the learning curve. By the time Im getting into waves of any significance I will probably get a second lower volume board. The big board will eventually become a light wind board.
The board and wing came recommended from Mac (Tucker) and confirmed with others.
I haven't used this setup yet (still waiting on the wing), but will report back when I finally do. I was told that the Mantis 6 is shipping this week.
Ive now used this setup several times and am really liking it. I could have probably gone to 100-105 liters on the board without sacrificing too much, but the board also doesn't feel overly cumbersome at this size. Super easy to get going from knees to feet.
I was concerned after hearing that the Lift HA setup was "advanced" and while I don't have a lot to compare it to, I found it to be pretty stable. Im working on pumping, but it feels like I can generate power with this setup. My only concern would be that there is too much lift if the speed picks up, but there is so much space on the board, I can always adjust position slightly to keep the wing from breaching. I get the sense that there is a speed limit on a wing this size and at some speed you might need to downsize surface area -- but I won't be there for a while. I did notice some quirkiness when turning -- It felt more susceptible to popping up on the side I was falling towards, which is kind of scary. Definitely not as turny as the v1 surf 170 Im used to on the kite, but a lot more glide. I would be curious to try some of the smaller tails to see how much this loosens the turning and how much you lose in stability.
Again, not a lot to compare to, but these Mantis wings seem to be very straightforward and easy to use. The mini boom handles are great and very easy to micro adjust placement. I find that even a small movement (particularly on the front hand) changes the power and characteristic a lot, so I can't really imagine having handles which would require much larger movement. The bag is junk, which is annoying (too small and really basic in construction). I also tore one of the wings on its maiden voyage, but probably more to do with operator error than anything else.
I got my wings from AdventureSportsUSA, who was the only dealer who had them in stock (they are related to Cabrinha). They were SUPER to deal with and gave me a discount and sent me some extras.
On this setup I was on foil in my second session and doing inconsistent jibes on my third. I was able to pump onto foil on a 13knot day with the 6m wing (and some tide helping me). Not sure I would have done anything differently in terms of gear. Im very happy with the setup and stoked on winging. Get set up and have fun.