Hi,
Yes, thanks for that!! The speed difference Edo had over the field is unbelievable. At first glance appeared to be something like a ~10% advantage - unheard of in foiling or sailing. That would explain coming back from 5 min of not getting up to winning by almost 6 minutes. A few percent is typically enough for no one else to have a chance.
Br,
Chris
@Chrisrad99 - I think you are spot on - curious, how would you rank these factors from most important to least important for Edo’s 10% advantage?
that’s a tough question… I’m a little biased, so maybe not the best person to respond to that!!!.. we designed the foil to require less energy to sustain speed, however Edo is super-human as well as the he most prepared athlete I’ve ever come across. Everything is important though.
It was suggested that SS were offered a price with branding on, and a price for blank equipment - willing to shed any light on that?
Edo’s physical performance is beyond debate. He’s turned himself into one of the world’s elite athletes. You could imagine him throwing this type of focus and preparation into just about any discipline and being at the pointy end.
Some thoughts:
Brands. I took a look at the top brand performance of the top 3 riders score for each brand in my made up ranking over the past 18 months. There may be some gaps and yes Slingshot has an Asterix and Obelix to qualify it. Also I accounted for movements eg Jarrod Code->F-one to get a better feel for the foil performance independent of the riders. Results I think reflect focus and attendance, with noteworthy F4 obviously missing from this, but no doubt there in spirit, see point 5. I really had to laugh in the episode where Raiarii chatted to James at 16:31 he basically said the new Axis race foil is super hard to ride.
Pump fest: The word “Pump fest” has not been used much of late, which is a positive turn. I like the outlook that for better or for worse the events are able to run and that for some you’ll get 10/10 days like M2M this year and you’ll also get glassed out days like M2O and the challenge is to win regardless. It is positive because it puts the rest of the year in the same light of maybe getting a place at its best or at its worst, but as long as the event is in the windy season you’ll get something from it (does this allowance extend to sea weed?) even if the main event is an unexpected challenge
Foil choice: As much of a challenge as ever. Jarrod had a shocker by choosing too small a foil, Edo won but almost lost because he chose the smallest foil that he almost couldn’t get going, but did. Sports should be won by the risky slim margins like this to be entertaining.
Zeke:
The Zeke interview is so good, really funny, a bit chaotic, I felt like it’s a great reminder about why downwind is so epic. It’s mentally a grind, and I think a good throwback to the SUP days where it’s just about not stopping. I like to think this proves (to me) that downwind foil racing has a future where athleticism, grit and technology come together in the ocean.
I also thought that it was another unbelievably glowing and unvarnished/ untainted praise for F4. Proof is in the pudding, as they say. (eg Kai Lenny to the list lol)
Hi Matt,
I’d suggest to add Slingshot/F4 on the list. There are many other riders using the F4 foils sponsored by other brands, Slingshot wasn’t the only one with challenges. There must have been 20-30 riders on F4 in the pack - all production foils.
Br
Chris
