Відео

Wow I got so much respect for people who build their own boards or foils. Well done!

Thank you so much!

This was part of the thank you email to participants from the Defi this year: Here the relevant part of the email text: "To conclude, we asked Philippe Bru to share his feelings about this 3rd edition. Here is his feedback below: "Wow! The little baby will grow up... 3 years of existence and already the Defi Wing, thus you, boasts of being the largest competition in the world. Excellent, right? Huge! A generous Tramontane on the rendezvous, just incredible, magnificent images, committed riders, lots of stories within the story. Congratulations. One day, we will be 1000 and more if you want 😉. The produced images have made a few rounds around the world, and we have recorded a few million views. Congratulations and thank you again. The future belongs to you, and for the youngest among you, you are the promising future... Our sincere apologies for our little "flop" regarding the proposed podium categories. In 2025, the proposals will be adapted and clarified with distinct age categories (Women 13-15 / 16-17 / 18-39 / 40+; Men 13-15 / 16-17 / 18-39 / 40-59 / 60+). Would that suit you? See you from Monday, May 26th to Wednesday, May 28th, 2025. The Defi Wing will open its run to 600 participants :-o " Take care Guys. Thks. Taquet. Bur."

@@windaddict wicked! Thanks a million, I will see you there 💪🏾

You are absolutely right. In long distance racing however it is all about speed. At the Defi you can probably fall in at every jibe mark and still make a decent placement if you are really fast and nail the start.

Thanks Den!

Hi Steve. I'm definitely not the best rider in my area. Jose Pinyana wing foils at the same spot here and he was Spanish wing foil champion. :-) I actually like having really good people around to learn from!

You're welcome. Looking forward to meeting you next year! I hope you keep posting content about going fast, I really enjoyed your videos!

Hi Den. You're welcome! Looking forward to meeting you at Defi next year too! Interesting to hear yout your Ypra-S S experience. I am still super unsure whether to get the Veloce 36 or Veloce 40 stab with it. Also I am waiting for the HM107 mast to become available again as my current mast is just too thick for a fast foil. No really looking at other brands currently as I still like the Gong price point. Your speeds are great! I am an amateur when it comes to speed but looking forward to trying my best with faster gear.

@@windaddict I don't know the current Gong kit but my smallest was Veloce S stab. Also I think you should go smaller only when you know that it's something that's slowing you down. You can't just jump on a tiny kit and think it will work as your bigger one but faster, it's more physically demanding and requires more skills which is only a matter of time spent on the water.

Wind speed at the Defi Wing? That was anywhere between 15 and 40 knots depending on the day and time

Great to hear about your experiences! I've noticed that at around 45 km/h with the HM 92 mast, there start to be occasional ventilations. I'm not sure if they are caused by the square-shaped fuselage, the flexing stabilizer, or the connections between the parts. Did you reach 50kmh with HM92 mast? Is there big difference between HM92 and 107? I would not like to buy 107 because I do not need so long in lake conditions. Now I use HM92 in freerace and waves. It's seems that the size of the front wing is not the only determining factor because, with strong wind and a flat water surface, I can reach close to 45 km/h with many foils: the Veloce H-L, Ypra Surf M, Ypra S-S, and Ypra XS. The smaller foils don't significantly change the situation. In my opinion, the Ypra Surf and Freestyle stabilizers are the most comfortable to ride because they are stable due to their stiffness. However, they are also slow in light wind conditions. I am also eagerly waiting for Gong's new race foils and curious about their price range. Gong likely has significant funds available for product development and a large market, so it would be great if they could bring stiff and fast foils to market at a reasonable price.

@@wingsurffi the HM107 is great, its a very slender mast and very very stiff. Quite impressive actually. The extra margin alows you to bank over the board more (hanging in the harness) without tip ventilation, and gives more control due to this. Also you have more margin on errors before you foil out. I much prefer the longer mast for freeracing, if they would have a 115cm mast I would have bought it.. It is faster as well, but not like +10kmh...at least I went from 46 ish to 50 with average 46, so +3 or +4kmh.

i got ypra s-M and DP5.5 too,my weight is 65kg,with HM 92 mast,so far i can only reach 35km/h,almost same as my fluid L(1475cm).i found the lift is to much for me when i ride the Ypra s ,maybe need a big shim too?

Wow thanks for the very detailed reply. I love this about creating content on youtube. I talk about a topic I don't know too much about and then the experts come and but great info in the comments! A lot to learn! Interesting to hear that the Pulse DP gives a much higher average speed! I didn't expect that!

Good point. When I get to the spot I get on the water as fast as possible. I don't think I could handle "waiting" for a warm-up :D

No, the average level at Defi is pretty high!

Haha, I think so. After all it's a French event

The Gong fuselage? 16cm

Thanks Axel!

My pleasure!

Glad you like them!

Good to hear you have the same impression!

Thank you! If you come, will see you at Defi Wing next year!

I used the HM86 mast!! Maybe it's really the thick mast that is the main problem. If I don't push high speed for a long time, I don't have a problem with it. One suspicion I have: I may not always be careful to not touch the mast (when carrying the board) and I have sunscreen on my hands. That is not ideal. Next time I should really clean the mast before any race with a microfibre cloth to make sure the surface is not greasy.

Thank you so much for your long comment. I watched your videos a while ago, you certainly have much more experience than me when it comes to going fast. You are right, the Ypra-S is aimed at slalom (hence the S), i.e. cross wind. If you have upwind / downwind racing a higher aspect Ypra would be much better. Most races I have been at around here do slalom setups. The main one being Defi a slalom foil seemed to make sense for me. Also the slightly lower aspect of the Ypra-S should make it easier to take off and easier in jibes. Regarding stabs: I will get the Veloce-H 36 stab for my setup. It's very small, so will be interesting to see if it gives enough front foot pressure. Regarding fuselage: The tip-to-tip total length of the Gong foil (Ypra-S S + Veloce H 36 stab) is 74cm. Richard from the channel Speed Wingfoiling says 66-68cm is ideal for going fast. So it seems the Gong setup is very long (but the stab very small), so let's see how it works. Regarding heavy board: I have the Cruzader Diamond 5'8 (80L) now. With footstraps and leash it weighs 6 kg. Feels very nimble to me, but I am used to bigger boards. The Pro Gong rider Francesco Capuzzo used the Gong Racer board in size 70L at Defi Wing. He is very fast, so I don't think a "higher" volume like this is unusable for racing with a small foil.

@@windaddict I'm interested to hear how your new setup feels with the 80L board. New 2024 Veloce-H 36 might work well. They say it is a bit thicker and produce more front foot pressure. Old veloce H 40 worked fine with gongs new 1 degree fuselage but it might create more drag also. Big board isn't a problem; I personally just want stabilizer with more front foot pressure with bigger board, longer fuse would help also. For example, the Freestyle 37 and Ypra Surf 700cm² are nice all-around setup with a 47L board, but with heavy 80L board, I prefer the Freestyle 41 stab.

Hm, I wonder if I should get the Veloce-H 40 stab instead. If I want to use the Ypra-S S foil also in light wind racing below 14 knots (where I live, winds tend to be fairly light), I may have to use it with the Cruzader 7'0 board (122L) which is huge.

@@windaddict I haven't had the chance to test the new Veloce stabilizers, so I'm not sure how much the feel has changed with them. Personally, I might go for the Veloce H 40. However, it might be a good idea to ask Gong as well to see what they think?

Thanks a lot Chris!

Thanks Fran! You are right. Cold mind before jibing is a good one! Ideally you do the foot switch before the jibe to exit with high speed, something I really need to practice.

I just changed a bunch of my quiver. Foils: Gong Sirus XXL (156cm, 2000cm²) Gong Veloce v2 XL (99cm, 1300 cm²) Gong Veloce v2 M (82cm, 900 cm²) Gong Ypra-S S (70cm, 610cm²) Wings: Gong Superpower 6m² 2023 Gong Neutra v2 5m² 2022 Gong Neutra v2 4m² 2022

Optaría por la Cruzader 6'6 o incluso 7'0 para lightwind. Pero no la versión XL. XL solo necesitas para remo.

Great to hear!

Thank you! Great comparison and insights vs kiting, which I never tried!

@@windaddict Thanks for your kind words! :)

You should try it! It's different, but great!

@@windaddict I have booked a trial lesson next Wednesday. Very curious how it will turn out.

I think you nailed it with your analysis. I'm a long time windsurfer and love carving the board through the water, especially when wave sailing. I'll be possibly moving to a lower wind spot in the next 6 months, thus am thinking about winging as there is no windsurf scene there as majority of time it is light winds. My first and foremost thoughts are about using a wing to catch anything that looks like a wave or swell.

@@brianmckenzie1318 light wind wingfoiling is more realistic and more fun the less you weigh (because of board, foul and wing size). Of course a big board, wing and foil will get you going, but it does feel a bit clumsy in my opinion. Worth it though if there are some waves to play in. I surf with two guys who still love cruising in light wind without waves. They only weigh about 60-65 kilos though, and a 5m wing gets them going where I struggle with a 7 But better being on the water than not at all 🙂🤙

I know the feeling of wanting that windsurfing sensation and missing it at first with wingfoiling. But wingfoiling grows on you, especially with waves as you say.

Glad you liked it!

Hi Henry. Depends on the use you want to give it. My preferences were to use it for light wind winging (5-12 knots). So the 7'0 was the right size for me with 90kg. If you are unsure, best to ask the Gong advisors

For do-it-yourself systems you have to factor in the work / effort of designing and building it. I personally don't want to do that and I don't want to have a bulky battery on top of the board.

Thanks a lot for your comment. This is so inspiring! Great to hear that wingfoiling is a great sport for you. It can truly connect many generations

Let me know if this helped!

@@windaddict I missed my opening and have been working since then. Soon!

Thanks a lot! The starts definitely bugged me the most. Will work on them in upcoming races.

Thank you! Yep, looks like it's a fast wing

Haha, it certainly feels like an eternity

Thank you!

A fellow defi-winger! Yes, see you next year!!

@@windaddict make sure to come with a 2.5... it's only used during the defi ^_^.

Haha, I know!

Thank you so much! It's so great to hear that this video inspires people

Your comment made my day!

My HM86 mast has a thickness of 17mm at the bottom but 20mm towards the top. The normal carbon mast in the "racing size" of 100cm is 17mm top and bottom. So it may be slightly faster but mostly the same. The best racing mast is the new HM107 and that one is 13mm throughout. That's a big difference. I talked to a Gong advisor and he said "yes excatly the HM86 is too thick...too big stab + too thick mast = ventilation = crashes !". Of course I don't know if maybe the front wing played a role too. But I feel you would see that on the footage. And it's an Ypra-S which is made for high speeds. Yeah it's too big to go really fast, but with my modest top speed of 32 km/h I just doubt it would ventilate. So I can only really blame the mast and stab. And I had many weird crashed because of this. I guess the only way to find out is to try reach higher speeds with more adapted gear for racing and see if the problem disappears.

@@windaddict With your speed which is about the same speed as ours, ventilation is hardly possible. My buddy also has a relatively fast Gong Fluid M-H frontwing of 1000cm2 and he never ventilated anything. His topspeed is 35kmu. Did you ever ventilate with your mast and your Fluid H? What I meant was that I think that you were too high in the water without noticing, so that your front wing ventilated or breached.

No, I don't recall ventilating with my mast and the Fluid H. But I never really pushed speed or kept high speed for a long time. At Defi Wing it happened more often at certain parts of the course. Maybe currents were strange there. First I thought it was seaweed but other riders didn't seem to have problems with that. It was definitely not me being up too high or breaching. I know when I am too high. You can see on the video the weird splash that is produced before the fall. If that's not ventilation, then I have no clue what it is. Sometimes I felt the board was rotating towards the windward side and I had to put counter pressure with my back foot to avoid crashing. Again my assumption was that this was due to ventilation.

@@windaddictI agree it LOOKS like mast ventilation seen from above. And it would explain the turning motion. But it doesn't explain the sudden loose of lift. Or the air would have been sucked down to the frontwing. I am familiar with weed, when it slings around the mast or the wing, the flow is disturbed suddenly. This can be an explanation, because you had it more in certain parts of the course. But it does not explain why other did not seem to be hindered by it. (but you do not have a rearview mirror :-) Btw I hardly notice when I am too high above the water, only after I crash I realised I was too high...... Interesting topic!

Thank you! Much appreciated! I had the mast all the way in the back actually because I felt this was the only way to get more control.

@@windaddict I think you did right. The stab you used is indeed relatively big compared to your frontwing.

Nice!!

Thanks so much!

Yes! So cool to see! At first I couldn't believe my eyes