do it while youre on big/ slow foils, easier than learning later when you’d rather be riding faster foils
2 Likes
I love them. They are a joy to sail. Super going upwind and I’ve found that they offer a nice tow into big fast moving ocean bumps.
The 4.3 is tricky for me to douse. I don’t have long arms. The A lines split into a Y a foot or so from where they attach to the leading edge. It is challenging for me to get all of the very front lines pulled in all the way and so there’s a pocket outside of my hand that catches wind. It has also been a little more prone to tangling. I think a lot of this is technique on my part. I’m catching big open ocean swells and trying to keep on foil while also trying to figure out what is going on with the wing.
The 3.0 is pretty easy to douse and handles really strong wind really well. Very well behaved.
It may not be imperative for your normal riding conditions, but I don’t think you would regret learning how to do it. Spend 15 or 20 minutes of your session while you’re fresh working on it. Way more fun to ride switch than toeside on a long reach.
Two thoughts on Parawinging
- Back to kitesurfing: listening to Dylan and Walt get pumped on the PPC Orbit, it made me realise we might be seeing a kitesurfing/sailing/foil-kiting revival, where people are just stoked on “sailing”, and then get more stoked on riding bumps. I thought that was cool, and super unexpected. A parawing is a small kite, clearly. I wonder if you see hardcore foil kiters switch (the most stick in the mud of all the kiters). I can imagine PW racing as a simpler more fun more entertaining version of kite racing. Now there I would encourage a strict “production class” for racing.
- Dream travel setup: Josh on his midlength made me realise that the dream simple setup for simple travelling is a mid length that is long enough to parawing and fun enough to prone. I’ve been trying a 55L wingboard for prone, that I can parawing and it’s almost there, it’s old, but surprisingly fun. I could imagine a Kruzer 50L with a Tuttle (so it packs flat) and an Orca (single all round foil?) and a PPC Orbit (massive range) as a pretty comprehensive “quiver killer” downwind / prone / parawing flat water / ocean setup. What appeals is that it would travel under 6’ so no real airline hassles, and could pack super neatly with no protruding hard edges (someone make a lazer cut foam packing setup to keep it all robust). Put a Riift tuttle box in it for storage and assist at home.
7 Likes
I traveled like this last winter and it was perfect. Whole kit fit in a Creatures 6’ double fish travel bag and weighed just under the airline limit of whatever it is, 22kg/50lbs I think? I brought a 60L KT Super K, an Armstrong kit with two front wings, and four parawings all in the bag with my wetsuit, pfd, leash, booties, etc. Minor compromise proning but I had a lot of fun, and parawinging was just fine on the 60L which is just a hair under 1:1 for my weight. Honestly I’m so happy the sport has found this path, it’s really a dream for me to minimize gear and still be able to have fun in a broad range of conditions, and the combo of midlength and parawings is what makes that possible. It’s a good time to be a foiler for sure.
5 Likes
I have a plus v1 4m that I have upgraded and 3m plus v2 and a Takoon cloud 4,7. I had a PR v1 also. The gong plus v2 is by far the easiest of them all. Super easy to fly and gybe. Does not tangle, because of the thick lines and material, I would recomend it to anyone that is starting out, because it is so easy. With a harnes I have saild it in 40knts gusts, and you only have to go more upwind, put it further up in the wind window, to make it fly calmly. The v1 works about the same as the v2 after the upgrade. I hated the Takoon at first, but I have been used to it, not sure if I get more low end out of it than the 4m gong though.
2 Likes
6 Likes
Thank you for the reply. I’m surprised about what you said, I’ve heard the gong has a really limited range, but maybe with a harness it changes. How do you compare it against the PR v1? And what would you say is the low end for them?
I´m 74kg and usually bring one extra PW, and use the 3m from 9m/s up to 20m/s gusts using mostly a 10AR 890 foil. The PR is nice to sail as well, but I didn’t like the thin lines and the fact that you only could use the middel lines for collapsing. That made for a easy tangle and a lot more hassel. The PR felt more premium and a bit softer in the grunt. The nice thing with the plus v2 is that it is cheap, easy to fly and gybe, and when you get a tangle it is easy to get out of. It dosen’t pack as small as other wings, but in the beginning you probably have enough with reading the bumps and surfing anyways. Here is a video from a nuking day on the 3m: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UssunbyQXA
2 Likes
Mayhem out at Rufus today, hopefully some of you all got some or are still getting some. The waves were soooo good. I tore the wingtip off of my PRv2 1.9m, maybe in a gust? I didn’t see it contact my foil at all but it’s possible that did happen. I honestly wish someone made a 1m, I’d buy one. It would have been epic today with something like that.
I also saved a woman. There was almost nobody out because the wind was so wild and her and her friend were the first ones in the water. I saw the friend go downwind and I assumed she did too as I wasn’t tracking them while I got suited up. I went out on my 2.4 and after a couple reaches and a short DW run I turned right around to get my 1.9 and thank goodness I did. As I neared shore I was heading into the sun and saw what I thought was a fish net buoy in the glare. As I rode past I thought I heard a voice and turned my head and realized it was someone’s head and they were barely above water, in big waves and trying to call for help but almost unable to. I’m so glad I happened to pass close by or she was not going to make it. There was nobody else on the water or anywhere nearby. I gave her my board and used the para to body drag us back to shore and she was fine, but it honestly was close. She said she was about to pass out from exhaustion, she had no PFD and I think she had lost her board and parawing on the far side of the river and had swam back about 3/4 of the way and was just completely exhausted. Honestly I can’t believe she kept her head above water in those waves without a PFD for as long as she did, it was crazy out there.
I know lots of people don’t wear a PFD but please consider starting if you don’t. It’s so nice being able to float around effortlessly and they really don’t get in your way. All it takes is one leash failure to end up in the same situation.
Here’s the wind gauge at Maryhill from the day, I was out about 11am to 1pm. I guessed there were some gusts to 50mph and it looks like it was maybe possible.
15 Likes
Good on you for stopping and getting her back. Agree with pfd comment as a former rescue swimmer. Also no harm in doing some cross training like swimming or prone paddling when it isn’t windy. Cam really make you feel safer knowing that you can swim a long time if you need to.
3 Likes
Interesting post
4.2 dwing vs 3.5 orbit
No difference in upwind angle but difference in speed upwind
1 Like
The balance of angle and speed gives you best VMG.
In low winds our speed relative to the windspeed is higher so our apparent wind veers more into our nose making our angles worse.
In higher winds we can close the angles more.
People riding big foils slowly can get great angles as they have a more favorable apparent wind, but it dies not necessarily translate into higher VMG.
I like to visualize a classic America’s Cup 12m plodding slowly in deep upwind angles vs a catamaran doing shallow zigzags at higher speed.Turtle and hare.
I personally think we are getting incredibly fast and easy upwinds already, not willing to sacrifice ease of use for a couple kt more of VMG.
4 Likes
I’ve been riding the 4.2m DWING for a while and have been doing my research to see which of the new releases would best suit my needs (upwind angles being the priority). The AB ticked many of the boxes but the price has held me back. The Orbit was near the top of the list but not much cheaper than the AB.
The post you referenced surprised me in that I was expecting the Orbit to crush the DWING in upwind angles. With an extensive background in dinghy sailing, I am very familiar with VMG. While I know faster and same angle results in higher VMG, I’m not necessarily looking to go faster as I just want to point higher as I recover from my downwind lap. All that said, somewhat shocked that a v1 parawing that’s 1.5 years old still points as high as a new double skin.
2 Likes
If you’re riding in the same wind and able to survive on the 4.2m D-wing you’re probably in the absolute bottom end of the 3.5m Orbit, so the VMG will obviously suffer a lot from that. I’m quite confident that the Orbit crushes the D-wing when properly powered. Having owned both I’d say even the v1 Frigates were a big upgrade from the v1 D-wing in terms of wind range, comfort, speed and upwind angles.
2 Likes
I happened to pull out my old D-wing 3m the other day on a downwinder and was reminded what a fun, turny wing it is. I have been on S3’s and loving them but had forgotten what a pleasure jibing and running downwind the d wing is compared to the s3.
3 Likes
Is this the best result or your upwind VMG average?
Lachie White is a competent winger
but the comment jives with what gwen letutour said about orbit namely that its not really the angle but riding comfort (and speed) that the double skin provides.
would love to see a 3.5 vs 4.5 orbit comparison. bigger sail = just more speed or also more angle?
I took my 4.2 dwing and a borrowed 3.8 BRM Paia double skin to the gorge in July. When I got blown off the water with the dwing, I would at times struggle to get started with the Paia. Never quite figured out the Paia. On true DW runs. I preferred to get yanked on foil with the Dwing and then wrestle it down to stow and pack away in the strong wind.
If I was trying to go upwind though. The Paia once on foil was a dream to fly upwind. Where the Dwing I’d be hanging off the front lines for dear life.
I just sold my Dwing to get a 777 5.7 hybrid. While I like the hybrid. The low end is slightly better than the Dwing. Using a parawing at the bottom of it’s range is difficult, and the bigger the parawing the more difficult it seems to be. Not sure it was the best trade up. But it will get me more days on the water at home since the dwing 4.2 was too small for our local wind.
What I’m saying is the Dwing is a good wing. I’d love to see a comparison between a Dwing and a Naish Hatch v2.
2 Likes
Did you buy that $400 Paia? I bet in about 30 knots that would be quite nice but yeah, the takeoff and relaunch was quite technical.