Virgin Foiling

With the new Starboard Hyper Nut 4 in 1

We are living in interesting times. Everyday there are new inventions popping up and we can decide for us if they might improve our life or if it’s just another hopeless marketing campaign.
Like for a lot of people, foiling is something completely new for me and it’s was about time to give it a try.

I was about to escape the winter to Cape Town, where I finally wanted to learn how to “fly” over the waves instead of just riding them.
I didn’t wanted to take an extra foil board as my bags were more than packed having all the new eco test board with me. I needed a board that I could use for various discipline and found the new Hyper Nut 7,4 ( 4 in 1) in the starboard range. It‘s a board that can be used for Sup Surfing in Waves, Foil Sup, Windsurfing and Foil Windsurfing. It comes with a Tuttle box, FCS Fin boxes, a Mast track and foot strap plugs.
In addition I choose a freeride foil, that gave me enough lift for SUP Surfing as well as for light wind sailing.

Finally settle in Cape Town, I waited for a day with small mushy waves to try my luck on the SUP foil setup. First of all it was a pure struggle- I was about to learn a total new sport which I didn’t expect. Its’ not easy to find the balance when suddenly the board lifts up. I also had a few gnarly crashes where the board suddenly flipped. It’s kind of comparable with learning how to windsurf when you constantly make catapults. The foil is not as sharp as a regular fin but the edges can give you quite a few bruise as well.

Sooner or later I realized that foiling is all about using the legs as kind of suspension. You have to lean more forward than on a conventional board and push the nose down to keep with the board horizontal over the water.
As soon as the wave generates enough speed you can glide weightless over the water, kind of flying in a really slow paste. It is a dam good feeling when it finally works. I didn’t do crazy turns but had the feeling to go in the right direction.

Foiling with a Windsurf sail against was way easier as the wind gives you all the power to lift the board. In the beginning the boards tends to jump out of the water and than suddenly drops down when the front wing gets air. Sooner or later I also managed to work that out as well by shifting the balance from one leg to the other while trying to keep the foil in the water. Once the board is up in the air the pressure in the sail disappears and everything gets really smooth. It feels a bit like snowboarding in fresh powder. I still didn’t manage to jibe properly but I was stoked with making some progress.

In conclusion I have to admit that from now on I am pretty hooked with foiling. Even though I am not keen to carry more toys with me around the world, the possibilities with a XXL fin in the bag are pretty amazing. Especially if you had an “all in one board” that also works with regular fins for SUP and Windsurfing. Foiling definitely extents your time on the water, when you usually would have stayed on the beach. You don’t need perfect waves or strong winds anymore. You can have fun with almost anything.

Go out there and try it yourself.