Why are high aspect foils said to be for intermediate to advanced riders? Wouldn’t increased glide help learning?
High stall speed isn’t very forgiving if you’re not used to going faster. I was winging with my son when he was in the process of learning and his idea of fast was way slower than my idea of even going slow.
Higher take off speed, higher stall speed, more locked in and cumbersome to turn, more pointy tip to impale yourself on
Having said that it’s not a drastic difference and I’ll presume you meant “high aspect” as in 13:1 or more DW specific foils. As your 9.5:1 or so “high aspect” is kind of the norm these days.
I’m comparing foils of equal area that have aspect ratios of 8:1 and 11:1. If I don’t stay right on top of the energy the AR 8 foil slows and either descends or stalls and drops out beneath me. I try to pump at out of these situations, but it’s a struggle and usually ends badly. I was thinking that the added glide of a higher aspect foil might buy me time to reconnect with the energy by either turning toward it or pumping to it. That assumes that all else is equal, which, of course, it’s not. The addition of speed, the increased take off speed, the higher stall speed, the locked-in turns, taken altogether, may outweigh the benefits glide and pump-ability offer the novice.
The newer HA foils are much more user friendly but, in general, the MA foils are a little more natural feeling rail to rail for a beginner.
Your thinking is correct. Added glide buys you time. However, it sacrifices maneuverability. So, you can get better at linking swell by mastering your MA foil with good positioning but often times it’s nice to have a glider in your quiver too so you can just go out and have fun on the HA without struggling.
I started towing on 8.5 ar wings and they are really the best for bigger waves including steep/hallow waves. But I got the 9.5ar foils initially for prone since they pump better, but then I tried it for towing and basically the difference was you can go almost one size down like a 800x9.5 instead of a 1000x8.5. and you almost never need to pump. This was great in conditions like side offshore where the wind pushes you back. I’ve learned how to turn the 9.5ar wings, they are more challenging than the 8.5ar but it’s just a different skill. Now I am towing waves on the 13ar, which again let’s you go one size down like 650x13ar. And even in strong offshore wind, you never need to pump. So basically the stronger the offshore wind, it’s great to go with the highest ar. Even the 13ar can turn well after many months of practice, and I don’t miss being on the lower AR wings. But really the feeling is like your doing more longboard longer drawn out carves whereas on the lower aspect your surfing in the pocket doing snaps like a short board. Both styles are great, but I think it’s well worth learning how to ride waves on 9.5-13ar wings just size down and you Wont be overfoiled