Maybe we all will have some sort of efoiling gear at some point, tow boogie, assist, etc.
But I certainly hope people learn to respect others in populated surf breaks.
Unfortunately it will take one arrogant prick that will ruin it all. Its inevitable and Ive already seen firsthand some bad actors in various places.
That could set the precedent to ban all forms of efoiling and the bring it to an “end”
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Show and tell!
That’s exactly what it’s like. But an electric drone that will take you back to any point on the mountain you like, with no wait (or weight) in silence.
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Funnily enough, I had the most intense leg workout in ages. It felt like “first day of the season” where my legs got destroyed from the constant full power turning.
Mine is dead simple, no follow mode. I just tow up when I see an outside set, whip in, carves for about 500m to the inside, paddle back out, repeat.
Or, pump back out, which keeps the cardio super high. Not like the FD where you go pie-mode and motor out.
Very high intensity session on the prone setup. I think I could manage a tow foil without too much hassle, maybe slightly fuller volume board.
Without overemphasising, I think (if you can get away from crowds and people who will take issue), this is the future.
Fits in the city car, can carry it under one arm, board in the other, over rocks, launch in reasonably punchy beachbreak, wait for a lull, hit the gap, then it’s just powder day.
Mine doesn’t work in onshore chop, and has numerous shortcomings, but for the price (if you know how…), it is ridiculous.
This came to mind. Electric anything is going to smash your dopamine receptors quite quickly. Beware!
Another thought - if you want to understand how “pros” are so good, it’s because they tow. The repetition you can achieve is crazy compared to paddling at your average break (obviously there are exceptions).
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I should also add, Saturday was great, Sunday something shorted and now requires a full rebuild 
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How did it short? Bad waterproof connector, water ingress to box? Would love to know as Im building my own fd at the moment.
I used a single cable gland for phase wires and overheated when a friend tried who couldn’t foil. It was an old faux drive so not designed for the higher amps. Now each phase wire gets own cable gland. I don’t think an issue for FD if just being used for assist. Camdenboss has been very reliable, and I haven’t bothered with waterpoof connectors for first pass, but doing the silicon push connectors for the second go.
Obvious shoutout to Foil.zone where there is a wealth of knowledge. Hadou’s thread is basically what I did and would recommend. $2000 all in
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To distract from the Fliteflab launch, I thought to share my thoughts on the next thing on the horizon, the Duotone Ab-cruncher.
My first time riding a FD felt like learning to foil again. Extremely cautious, but this no doubt you can overcome, but really got me onto the idea of what the backpack setup would feel like, as the DIY tow boogie is such a smash hit for offshore days, but lacks a bit in downwind capabilities (working on that too).
So I turned my eboog power setup into a foil assist waist belt setup. It only needed a mast pod and cable to make it work. I just threw the box into a small backpack (basically this), with a long coiled cable.
Impressions
- Having the weight on the back is way more intuitive than weight on the board.
- Interestingly enough, the frustration of the pod-dips is still there, this is crazy hard! Feels crazy. Something to get used to, like a training aid. Infuriating initially.
- The motor being a few kilos, together adds quite a lot to the setup, all makes it feel delayed and bulky, even without the battery on the board.
- Cable getting in the way is a bit of a pain, clanking around. Explains the Duotone fish tail board. I’ll be making a hole through my board to reduce cable swinging and clanging.
I think there is a future in it, but was surprised by the pod-dip and motor weight.
Compare this with the Tow boogie, which was just instantly up, zero adjustment, straight away whipping into waves and shredding on repeat.
Other misc e-thoughts
- A spinning blade near crotch is terrifying, I think FD people 100x underestimate the danger. I feel like FD remotes should have a trigger guard and some dual confirmation to prevent accidental shreddage. That prop will rip holes. Tow boogie feels MUCH safer in the surf, but staying away from propellers when launching or fiddling is it’s own thin
- If Duotone’s whizzer is at all modular, I’ll be having a close look.
- E-foiling around feels pretty lame, but is quite practical for upwind/downwinds
- E-assist chips are great and probably the best all around (30km downwind sends are a thing),
- Tow boogie is the dream setup for sure, especially seeing what people are doing with long distance stuff. The future is robotic assistants and I absolutely believe that that extends to tow partners
- DIY only if you are looking for a new hobby, same as building your own board, it is cheaper only in materials, not in time. You have to enjoy fixing things. If you want clever, buy from a retailer.
I think the future will look like
- One ergonomic, modular power setup, that can go into a tow boogie or backpack. This will be “the main investment”, hoping FD does something here.
- Big batteries in boogies. The crazy thing about the tow boogie is that it isn’t weight sensitive. I plan dropping to a cheaper larger battery format and getting a ton of them. Like why not 150kg of battery (other than fire hazards, big issue with all the water)
- A few motors on different masts (the prop is the relatively expensive part, motors are like tails, get lots!)
- Foil Drive / Amp style travel batteries will become the industry standard, and you can link them up for the various applications with adaptors. Foil drive batteries are really nice. The main issue with the entire DIY endeavour is that if the thing gets wet then it quickly wants to explode. FD have created a nice robust water compatible battery/drive package.
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I’m wondering who’s going to develop a small jet assist that fits into the new trench boards 
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If FD isn’t working on it they’re idiots!
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The new zerotow can handle two batteries at once. Guys are doing channel crossings in Hawaii with them auto following.
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That’s fine if you’re looking at it as a jetski replacement. If you want to keep it in the trunk of your car and be able to carry it over a rock or driftwood covered shore, too much weight is a big problem.
Ya that is who I had in mind, so rad.
The beauty is that it currently lives in the trunk and I can carry it with one hand and foil over the shoulder. Incredibly easy with 90min of battery for chip ins.
The other beauty is that I could if I wanted cart a jetski’s weight in batteries down the beach and ride into the sunset.
At 5k to 8k $$$ entry fee, i will be listening to the electric future on the radio.
I get the use-case for DW and non-breaking waves. But even a 2ft shorey is enough to have hours of 2-for-1 foil heaven. Why would i want to add budget stress, battery weight, prop noise and pod drag to that experience?
Tempting. What’s the approximate material cost?
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I’ll DM you my parts list, but it’s all pretty generic stuff
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I’ve realized most of this stuff - electric, downwind paddle, parawing - isn’t really about making small mushy surf more rideable. Garbage surf is made for prone. It’s about making places with “real surf” survivable on foil. It’s about answering the question - “How can I catch a not breaking wave because the breaking waves where I live are scary?”
I live in a place with garbage surf and I also only devote 0% of my brainpower to catching waves and cannot fathom spending 4 figures(or 5) on that part of my game.
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Can you teach me how to use zero brain power to catch waves prone?! I use all my brain power and still struggle catching waves haha.
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What does the setup weigh without the backpack, just board, motor setup and foil set?