Get Started Wing Foiling - Beginner Gear

So, you have decided to take the plunge and join us wing foiling. Pretty soon your garage will look like mine (my long-suffering wife keeps asking “not more foiling gear?”). This article discusses what wing foiling gear best positions you to:

Succeed as a beginner.
Provide enough pathway to develop your skills.
Have fun learning (critical!)

The article discusses considerations for the board, foil and wing as well as sundry extras you need to get started.

Spend Smartly – New versus Used Equipment

Wing foiling is quite expensive and one important factor to consider is how to spend your budget wisely. The good news is that the rapid development of the sport has increased the possibility of finding bargains due to:

A thriving second hand market: Many foilers off-load their starter equipment as they progress to more advanced gear. Be careful about the condition of used equipment, but there are bargains to be had.
Discounts on older generation models: Prices come down quickly on older models of equipment once manufacturers announce new versions. Dealers will quite quickly sell old-model stock at a discount. While having the latest gear is nice, getting last year’s model won’t greatly impact a beginner’s experience.

Getting some ideas

Take lessons

One way to get a feel for suitable equipment is to take some lessons. The gear used during lessons will help you understand what you like and don’t like. Talk to the instructor about their recommendations. Be cautious, though, as early lessons often focus on wing handling and use big, stable boards (or even SUPs) that might be too large and limiting for most people to buy as a first board.

Talk to a dealer

Another good method is to find a local dealer that offers “try before you buy” on demo gear. Alternatively, call one of the bigger dealers on the internet to chat about requirements . In most cases you will be talking to a foiler who will want to steer you in the right direction.

Talk to other Wingers

If you have a local spot where there are wingers don’t be shy and ask people what they recommend. All wingers love talking about the sport and will be happy to share tips. You also may find that someone is selling gear that could be right for you.

Boards

What board should a beginner get?

Size of board

he key metric to concern yourself with is volume, which is the weight it can carry and still float. There is a fairly well-established rule of thumb that says you should get a board that has between 30 and 40 more litres than your body weight in kilos.

I used this for my first board and as I weigh about 78 kilos I chose 120 litres. This got me from beginner to confident foiler and I still enjoy riding it today. Superstar watersports gods often scoff at this guidance and suggest that such a big board will hold you back, I don’t agree, because:

Starting with enough float will make learning far more enjoyable, which means you are more motivated to go out. Time on the water is the key learning factor.
A board that is sufficiently buoyant is a must when the wind is quite light. Therefore it’s an important factor in choosing to go out on those marginal wind days. This is also important to time on the water unless you are lucky enough to live in an area of consistently strong winds.
Once you are on foil, the board has a very low impact on the ride you are experiencing. The foil is key as it rides through the water, the board is just a platform you stand on.
If you want to jump or do tricks then weight of board becomes a factor. It’s safe to assume it will take most people quite some time to get to that.
When you do “outgrow” your floaty starter board, you will be able to sell it on the second-hand market.

Type of board

There is now the question of type of board. This has become more complex than when I started out. Essentially there are three types of board to consider:

The “standard” wingfoil board. When I was buying my first board in late 2021 most boards were similar. Relatively short (6 feet or less), and wide and generally some form of epoxy/carbon construction. These boards remain the most common types of board you will see out on the water and available for sale. Thanks to improved design and materials newer models of boards are often smaller in dimension than an older board of the same volume. A smaller board will have better take-off and maneuverability but will be less forgiving during your first wobbly attempts to stand up. An older model board might, therefore, be preferable for the beginner.
Inflatables. Inflatable boards have come on a lot in the last couple of years. Most use a carbon plate system to attach the foil to the board which gives a stable ride once up on foil. The key benefits of inflatables are the ease of transport and the fact that they are very hard to damage (even for airline baggage handlers!). Once you are flying on a good inflatable the sensation is virtually indistinguishable from a hardboard. However the inflatable is harder to get flying, requiring better technique and will extend a beginner’s learning process. This is due to the fatter profile and materials used, which reduce acceleration when taxiing, cause the board to be less forgiving in chop and to stick to the water more. If you travel a lot and want to take your gear with you, or are seriously cramped for space at home or in the car then an inflatable board might be an option; for most beginners though, a hard board will be a better choice.
The downwinder or light wind board. These started to appear during 2023 as people realised that longer thinner boards designed for downwind paddle foiling could be used for winging in lighter winds. The longer thinner displacement hulls are designed to accelerate more easily and help to get foiling when the winds are light. On the face of it, the fact that the board accelerates more easily could help a beginner get first flights, however the narrowness of the board (between 19 and 23 inches) makes them an unstable platform to learn on. I therefore think this is not the best choice for a beginner.

Wings

The wing is your power source converting the wind into the drive that lets you take off and fly. Wing design has come on quite a bit since I started in 2021. I have replaced all of my original wings and the extra power generated by the newer designs is very significant. If there is one area where you consider investing in new over second-hand, I think it should be here. The Wing in the illustration is a 5.5 M Duotone Unit DLAB with a light stiff Aluula frame and hard handles

Wings are measured by the surface area of the canopy. In general, the bigger the wing the more power it will generate from the same amount of wind. As a beginner your wing handling will not be efficient and you want as much power as you can handle to gain first flights. That said a bigger wing is more difficult to handle and there is more chance of catching the tips of the wing in the water.

As a rule of thumb an average person will want a starter wing somewhere between 5 and 6 m². A smaller lighter person opting for the lower amount and the bigger person the higher amount. The conditions at your local spot could also influence this, if you live somewhere where you get 20 knots plus frequently (lucky you!) you would go smaller.

In thinking about a first size, it might be worth considering that you will most likely add wings in the future to end up with a “quiver” of sizes to select for different conditions. In my case at 5’9’’ and about 78 kilos my quiver consists of 4m², 5.5m² and 7m². These three wings allow me to ride in all conditions from 10 knots to over 35 knots so if you are an average size it’s worth considering 5.5m²as a possible starting point.

Wings are the most vulnerable pieces of equipment you will buy. The wing canvas is obviously at risk from anything sharp (like a foil!) and tears to the wing are not uncommon. Over time, with use, the material will also bag out losing shape and lose some efficiency. More serious problems can occur with the inflatable frame where a small leak will cause the wing to lose its shape and lose power and puncture to the bladder is clearly disastrous. For these reasons I would be very cautious about the condition of second-hand wings.

There are a few design features to consider, which will be a matter of preference.

Boom – some wings notably the Duotone Slick and Slingshot Javlin come with a boom in the central strut for you to hold rather than handles. People that have come from a windsurfing background in particular seem to like these. The one minor disadvantage is that the boom is an additional piece of kit to transport (and lose or forget!)
Hard Handles. Many modern wings come with hard handles for example Duotone Unit, Ensis Score, Cabrinha Vision. These composite handles are attached to the central strut and give you greater direct control over the wing than previous generation soft handles. I personally use Duotone Unit wings and love the direct power transfer when pumping. Disadvantages are you have something hard to fall onto, or bash the board with when learning.
Soft/Semi Soft handles. Generally, these are some form of webbing (possibly with inserts to add some rigidity). Naish, Starboard Airrush and F-One Strike all offer soft handles. Those that like soft handles like the simplicity and lack of hard edges.

How will you know what you prefer? Either try to get some experience through lessons, talk to a local dealer or chat to the riders at your local spot.

Foil

What is usually referred to as the foil is actually a number of components (as illustrated to the left):

The mast is the part that attaches to the board.
The fuselage connects to the mast and provides a platform to the front and rear foil.
Rear foil or stabiliser (stabilizer for any Americans reading). This is like the rear wing of an aeroplane and as the name suggests stabilises flight.
Front foil (often called wing just to make life confusing).

Almost all foils will attach to any board that supports the standard 2 track system. There are a number of considerations across the components.

The Mast

These are usually either aluminium or carbon fibre. Aluminium is the cheaper option but slightly heavier. Masts also vary in length. A good starter length is around 70 to 80 cm as this allows clearance from chop and small waves, gives you some wiggle room to avoid breaching the foil (breaking it out of the water). Taller than this provides a less forgiving height to fall from.

The Fuselage

This has to be compatible with the mast. Try for a fuselage that is compatible with a range of front foils and stabilisers so that you can progress to more responsive set-up in time using the same foundation. Fuselage sizes vary, you want the standard one for wing foiling.

The Stabiliser

A stabiliser will generally be compatible with multiple front foils (from the same manufacturer) so you will choose this based on front foil selected. Typically, as a beginner, you will want a larger stabiliser around 400 mm in span and 250 to 300 surface area.

Front Foil

This is the key component when it comes to making your choice because it is the main influence on your foiling experience.

Foil design has progressed over the last few years in particular with regard to the aspect ratio of the foil. Essentially this relates to the wingspan of the foil compared to its’ volume.

High aspect wider and slimmer (think glider wing).
Low aspect shorter and fatter think delta winged jet fighter.
Mid aspect, somewhere in between (but you knew that!).

Rather than go into the technical detail here, let’s focus on are the characteristics of the foil that will help you in the early steps.You want a foil that:

Takes off easily at a relatively low speed.
Has a low stall speed.
Is stable and forgiving so that it doesn’t react too much to every shift in weight that you make. Later you will want a foil that carves as soon as you tell it to, as a beginner a foil that keeps going in straight line until you really mean to turn will be your best friend.
Has rounded or even curved edges to reduce the risk to you and your wing when you fall (and when you bash your shins on the foil whilst launching).

Therefore, you want a bigger, low or mid aspect foil. The size depends somewhat on how heavy you are. I would suggest all but the lightest of beginners should be looking for a surface area of 1800 cm² or up. I started with a foil with a 2400 cm²surface area and that took me to zero to OK (if not hero!).

Other Gear

There are a number of other things you need to go on the water.

Impact vest. You are going to fall in a lot, there is lots of hard equipment below you, protecting ribs and back seems obvious. An impact vest also provides a certain amount of floatation. When you rarely fall, you can be brave and ditch if you like. I still wear mine.
Same reasoning as above and you should probably care about your head even more than your ribs. I have had my foil hit my head and put a tiny crack in the helmet with no ill effects (except the cost of a new helmet).
Leash for board. It probably comes with one but if not get one. You will fall off a lot, you need your board to get back in.
Leash for wing. They usually come with one but again, if not, you need one – you will drop the wing when you fall, if it blows away you are swimming.
Pump for wing. Obvious, but when you buy a wing new it won’t automatically be included. Most wings use a standard double pin hose attachment but not all. E.g. Duotone have their own unique system so you need a Duotone pump for a Duotone wing.
Wetsuit. Required if you are in England or anywhere where it is not super warm. It also helps protect your legs from the board which you will be grateful for in the early days. If you are lucky enough to live somewhere warm and don’t want a wetsuit, consider getting some protective knee pads for the beginner phase.
Wetsuit booties. Even if it is warm enough I like to protect my feet getting in and out.
Waist belt. This is not a must. However most people use one for the board leash as it reduces the risk of the leash getting tangled with the foil. Some people also secure the wing leash to it keeping their hands totally free.

There are numerous other items you might consider, gloves, harness, electric pump, changing robes, car key safe, gps tracker etc. etc. A great thing about being a winger is it’s easy for your partner to identify gifts at birthdays and holidays.

What Now?

If you have stayed with me this far then thank-you. It’s now time to stop reading and act. Google is your friend, you are but a few clicks away from the best purchase you will ever make.

See you out on the water, let’s Go-Wingfoil.

Get Started Wing Foiling – Beginner Gear