Another downwind session, but prone with 40l.
So I was able to push more than on a SUP board.
2:40-2:50 min/km for a 680 at 95kg.
On this kind of conditions, I would usually be on Lift 120HA.
They have kind of the same range, but KT is easier in the low end (more pumpable, easier to stay at low speed without stalling). Lift is faster and with some speed it has better pumping.
About carving, I’m happy with both. KT is a bit easier to initiate turn, but I feel Lift generates more speed when turning.
Super happy with this KT.
I’m very happy with Lift too, but in France, the price a really a pain point. New M6 mast will be probably something like 2300€, new Florence 91X wings like 1500€.
I mean I have have a full AFS foil with the UHM mast for the price of the Lift M6 mast only. And in used conditions I can have it for the price of the Florence 91X.
So I guess I’ll not upgrade my Lift set up and slowly moving to KT.
Somehow not yet Might get the 850 that mounts on the fuselage, or wait for the silk v2 supposedly in the works atm. Still in love with the enduro 700, surfiest high aspect I have tried, beautiful on swell lines, the tubercules smooth a lot of the noise and give extra grip in the turns. Still on the nomad 700/830 when it’s in the pocket of breaking waves, it feels like they need more stab than an equivalent size without the deep concave, to counteract the pitching moment at top speed. Stock settings with nomad 155 is a touch draggy but ok. Disappointed with the atlas 570 and 680 that do everything great except the turning that is not very surfy, often some twitchiness and adjustments mid turn. Keen to hear if anyone can compare silks and nomads, if I try it out I will report back!
570 behaves super well with the 145. Depends on you conditions I guess, but I am light weight (72 kg) and the 145 is pretty much all I need, and it’s so smooth in the turns. Would love to have even smaller stabs though, and maybe in some steeper (and slower) waves a smaller Nomad stab would also be interesting.
Actually had a friend lend me his silk 850 Well first feels are that the silk is smooth, easy, intuitive, fast roll, does not lock in roll at top speed, breaches great on banked turns, very decent pump and glide for AR8. A little bit slower than fone sk8 and kt nomad I think, if anything I would make it a touch faster and bring a size 750. The nomad has a bigger speed range, especially the very friendly low end where you can pump it back up so easy, but you loose a bit of the surfiness compared to the silk in the wave, as the camber can bring some pitch sensitivity sometimes in algae/current/choppy conditions (silk has flatter/reflex profile), and the lack of tubercules inspire less confidence/grip in the turns. But silk/nomad/sk8 all exceptional foils with their own feels and pros and cons. What a time to be alive!
Kane saw some proto Armstrong foils and then shockingly KT releases high camber foils. Wow how did they do it… Carbon mast with an aluminum fuse. Foils mount like a Axis. It’s cheap and easy. I think they mentioned doing a carbon fuse but probably couldn’t get it right at the cost they wanted.
Last weekend, I had the pleasure of taking Kane’s personal Solus — the foil he used in M2M and M2O — over to Oahu for a local race John Hearn was hosting.
I’ve been on the Lift 110 all summer, but recently I’ve been experimenting with a few different foils. I only sampled Kane’s Solus once before the race, so I didn’t fully understand it — but I came away seriously impressed.
This Solus is in the high-700 cm² range, paired with a very specialized mast that narrows considerably toward the foil. When riding high on the mast, the whole setup comes alive — more responsive, very fast, and lively without being pitchy. This is a race foil, but it still turns well and is fun to ride.
The Hawaii Kai run isn’t easy. It has big, fast-moving bumps coming out of the channel and small bumps following the offshore wind. To go fast, you really need to catch and stay with the bigger, faster bumps coming out of the channel, but there are holes so you need a fast moving foil and one that can pump well. The Solus lifted easily, linked bumps effortlessly, and let me keep pace with the big boys.
One thing that really stood out was
its acceleration. A lot of high-AR foils are great once you’re at speed, but you need to build that speed, and if you make a mistake with the line, the penalty is stiff. The Solus is not a high AR wing…maybe 12:1 ?! And it gave me that punch to accelerate onto the bump you want, settle in, and then sit on in and glide with minimal effort.
For the first time ever, I completed a Hawaii Kai run in under 30 minutes — something I’ve never done before. Hoping to get more time on this foil soon. Very impressed. Thanks Kane
Might get the 850 that mounts on the fuselage, or wait for the silk v2 supposedly in the works atm. Still in love with the enduro 700, surfiest high aspect I have tried, beautiful on swell lines, the tubercules smooth a lot of the noise and give extra grip in the turns. Still on the nomad 700/830 when it’s in the pocket of breaking waves, it feels like they need more stab than an equivalent size without the deep concave, to counteract the pitching moment at top speed. Stock settings with nomad 155 is a touch draggy but ok. Disappointed with the atlas 570 and 680 that do everything great except the turning that is not very surfy, often some twitchiness and adjustments mid turn. Keen to hear if anyone can compare silks and nomads, if I try it out I will report back!
Well first feels are that the silk is smooth, easy, intuitive, fast roll, does not lock in roll at top speed, breaches great on banked turns, very decent pump and glide for AR8. A little bit slower than fone sk8 and kt nomad I think, if anything I would make it a touch faster and bring a size 750. The nomad has a bigger speed range, especially the very friendly low end where you can pump it back up so easy, but you loose a bit of the surfiness compared to the silk in the wave, as the camber can bring some pitch sensitivity sometimes in algae/current/choppy conditions (silk has flatter/reflex profile), and the lack of tubercules inspire less confidence/grip in the turns. But silk/nomad/sk8 all exceptional foils with their own feels and pros and cons. What a time to be alive!
