At what speed, will the hydrofoil will start to lift me ?

[cosmo]

I-ll probably say something stupid...but (sorry) what happend if you put something draggy in the mast, under the water but far from wings, so the foil can "fly" but not accelerate too much? until you learn how to control the thing.

[windmlv]

Just switched to my new Spotz 2 about 10 days ago.
I t certainly does start foiling below 10kts. The best part is the smooth predictable take off.
No pogo stick/ bucking bronco crashes for me. Too old for that.
It also seems to let me down more gently when going too slow to foil.
Maybe it is the combination of the 160 Aguera board and Spotz2 that work well together.
It can't be me.
No problem controlling speed. Should think one should have competent kite skills before attempting to learn foiling.
But once you unleash that speed even just a little, you get that WOW factor!
What a rush. Combined with the upwind speed/angle, it seems like magic.
Thank you CG, and several others for sending me in the right direction.
Just like the early days of learning to kite all over again.
Can you tell I am excited about foiling? hehe!

[meteo]

Just switched to my new Spotz 2 about 10 days ago.
I t certainly does start foiling below 10kts. The best part is the smooth predictable take off.
No pogo stick/ bucking bronco crashes for me. !

Lucky you... I can ashure you that my Spotz3 definitly does not foil before 10 kts... And is very unpredictable below 13kts... I have tried the Sptoz 2 and found it very easy to ride... For me the Spotz3 is infernal... I asked the local expert try my foil, he rides Spotz2... He said that it needs just a bit more speed to start... For him it´s nothing... For me it´s almost the end of the world... On a more positive note, once I get it going it´s stable and fast... Tried my first back rolls (both sides) and found it super easy... The foil already wants to shoot up in the air, so I just let it do what it wants and I get a "lofty" long back roll, with a smoothhhhh landing.

[Peter_Frank]

The more experienced you are, and the longer time you ride a given wing, the slower you can go even with the small flat race wings

Trust me, there is a huge difference, and when riding a new wing not into muscle memory yet, you can ride it yes, but it feels like it will stall and behaves odd most of the time except at speed where easy.

This will change hugely with time, and it will suddenly be smooth at low speeds

At first when you see this extreme change in low end speed you almost don't believe it, but it is a fact that it will move down a lot no matter which and how small your wing is.

So don't give up or let first impressions fool you !
Having said that, eventuality you must decide which style is "you", speed and race wings or freestyle/wave with bigger or medium wings (or both but not seen that often)

The same goes for turning and carving - with a new wing not tuned into muscle memory, you need to ride it faster in the turns to avoid stalling.
When your body (NOT your brain, it does not work in this respect) is in tune later, after riding for quite long on the wing - you can carve and turn at much lower speeds without stalling or being close to a stall (vibration) .

PF

[Tone]

Unfortunately I think Hawaiis is right...
...
I weight 165lb(75kg)...

You will find that 13kts is very fast for a beginner, that’s why a beginner starts with a beginner's foil...
...

OOPS , I did it again ; i hate it, when i choose poorly .
I already spent the money ; best i can do now , (is make it bigger) , or put a
flap on it . Dang-It !!

Bille

Chilly buddy, you will be fine. 14 knots is about right and is not very fast.

You'll be fine. The learning curve will be steep but that;'s part of the fun

[Alex-Kite11]

Cabrinha foil was much slower than the LF

Slower than slow
If that "slow" is due to poor hydrodynamics then the "fun" factor of feeling your foil "slice" thru the H20 is not there.
What a DRAG and ashame for guys who don`t know the difference.

Think carefully before you buy a hydrofoil which might be a bit easier for the first few hours of your learning process but then will feel like a slug compared to better ones.

Exactly my thoughts and why I try to let beginners know, buy once, buy correct, do your research!
R H

I also think that you get bored on too dragy Foils once you figured out how to handle it.
I learned on the Levitaz Element and it I'm still super happy with it. It has a really low take off speed but if you want you can ride it also really aggressive.
I tried the LF once and I personally think its not delevering this 'foil feeling'
Hope you guys understand what i mean

[Bille]

...
So don't give up or let first impressions fool you !
Having said that, eventuality you must decide which style is "you", speed and race wings or freestyle/wave with bigger or medium wings (or both but not seen that often)
...
PF

I think i already know, what style i want to do ; that would be the one where
i get this Big Grin, on my face, (from gliding over the water) !!!

Bille

[revhed]

i get this Big Grin, on my face, (from gliding over the water) !!!

Make it be, safely, with competent experienced assistance on and off the water, knowing your specific case!
R H

[Bille]

...
Make it be, safely, ...
R H

Thanks ; i'll do my best !!

I-ll probably say something stupid...but (sorry) what happend if you put something draggy in the mast, under the water but far from wings, so the foil can "fly" but not accelerate too much?

until you learn how to control the thing.

Not so stupid ; or i'm Stupid too !
Imagine knowing how to control a foil with a flap on it. That drag your talking about,
could be turned into Lift, at any moment of your choosing !! Talk about a a bit of Pop,
on your takeoff !! Don't Damn those Landings .

Bille

[Regis-de-giens]

My two cents with another "stupid Idea" of this valuable kind : I was thinking of a mast with several mini-wings all along the mats, hence you have an increased lift at the start (foil fully underwater, lot of submerged wings), which decreases step by step (and also the drag consequently) when you ride higher and higher ...

with an additional dream of being "autostable " : lift more when too submerged, decrease lift when riding too high
... need "just" to avoid putting your feet in-between wings during a crash