I’ve got maybe 30 sessions in SE Florida. Rising a 170ha lift / 32 glide / 28” mast, all lift , on a Amundson Nubby V2 4’6” 36L.
I can pop up fine and the lift isn’t difficult anymore, but the thing has a mind of its own. It starts turning and I lose my balance, like it’s really unstable.
I put my buddys setup on it 148 havoc, 24” mast, 32 glide, all Lift. And It was super easy. I rode down the line and was pumping, got probbaly 75ft.
I hear the 170ha is a good front wing to learn on, What can i improve on? Been getting frustrated last couple of sessions
Is your mast old? Some of the older lift masts are like noodles, I’d check to see if that feels flexy as my starting point, assuming you have already checked all the connections.
It’s the dirty secret of prone. Incremental improvements in balance, riding efficiency, and pumping take YEARS of consistent effort and 3-4 sessions per week at least. I love it and I’m addicted, but now I try to talk people out of doing prone because most won’t be able to endure.
The havoc has a narrower wing span yes? The wide wingspan of the 170ha will be more difficult to control at first. You might slightly offset your stance. With your front heel closer to the rail and your rear toes closer to the rail. It’s just something that naturally happens though. You don’t have to exaggerate it.
Go where the foil wants to go. Keep both hands out in front like frankenstein’s monster. Initiate turns with your head, then your shoulders (both hands will turn the way you’re trying to go) Then hips will follow, then the board will follow. Basically try to yaw into turns to begin instead of leaning over the rail like a surfboard.
Prone foiling is hard, thats just how it is. Lots of comments on this forum about gear being the issue, just keep practicing, itll be worth the struggle later
I put this link in “Does Balance board help”. This board is a true 360 degree balance practice. Very close to foiling balance. Great to jump on to just work on balance in general.
As Hdip stated, that’s huge foil for prone. Unless your waves are very small and weak or you’re over 200lbs, it takes a lot of skill to get a wide foil tracking straight and stable whilst dropping in. Sounds like you’re simply not able to settle it and it is lifting and turning under you. This happens to me if I try to prone my biggest foils and try to take off in the whitewash or the wave has any power. If I prone my downwind board, that’s about the only way I can ride such a big foil as I can get up so early. Smaller foil and take up winging!
It hasn’t been that long since I was struggling with the same problem on the same wing. There’s a post from a while back trying to figure it out too.
Things that are just practice:
Hdip was right in my case about the wide wingspan. They’re harder to get a handle on turning in the beginning. They won’t respond as quickly to small corrections on your part, might seem to do nothing or lead to a taco. I hated the 170 for this in the beginning. The crazy part is, 6 months later, I don’t even notice it’s a thing. Reps and muscle memory have just erased any drama with this.
dillionaire was right about the regular practice for me. I started when I was really busy and was only able to get out 1-2 times per week. Later in the year I took a week off and did two a days for an entire week. Huge gains during that week, and since then I’ve tried to go 3-4 times per week. Even if it’s short, regular practice builds muscle memory and keeps things fresh in your head.
Gear changes that helped me:
When I was in your position I was STRUGGLING. I tried a bunch of gear and some things helped and some didn’t. I rode a Unifoil 170 Vyper setup for a month that was just so much easier to get up and riding. Turning was easy and it I gained a lot of confidence. At the end of the month I started hopping waves and then learning pumping became a struggle. A friend rode my setup and said it was awful for pumping. I think the gear change helped the turning temporarily and set me back for a while when I got to pumping. In the end I think changing front wings was a waste of time for me.
I agree that the 170 is an excellent all around wing to get going, not great at anything but solid at everything. Never rode a Havoc, but the 170 is probably better with pump and low-end.
If you’re going to change anything, you might try a different stabilizer. 32 glide is flat with almost not angle of attack. It’s going to be more squirely in all directions than something like a 26 carve (with extension) or a flow. A friend of mine has been riding the 36 glide and loves it. It’s a glide with winglets. I rode the 26 carve plus extension for a while and a tail with a little more angle of attack and winglets gave me so much more confidence in control. I think any front wing changes might be diminishing returns, but borrowing a different stab might make things a little easier. I wouldn’t recommend a carve without an extension though or you might have trouble controlling pitch.
Stay at it. It’s totally worth it. Getting through this hurdle with give you confidence to get through the next one (linking waves for me right now).
My appologies, I was thinking of the 180 HA x when I stated huge foil. The 170 HA is an oldie, but a goodie. Listen to HDIP and Gibbon, etc.
-if you’re a good surfer, it’s hard to get used to foiling with a narrower and more forward looking stance, and keeping the nose low while dropping in and turning. So easy to shift weight to back foot to drive the board hard through a turn, but that can cause slipping and breaching… just concentrate on staying high on the wave using glide and when up to speed and stable, then work on changing direction.