This was the breakthrough advice I needed during my lesson with Gwen. Highly satisfied with my lesson in Stuart this week. Once Gwen explained and corrected my stance riding became almost effortless (pulling behind jet ski) I struggled on my own for several months on my own. This lesson pushed me forward with the right skills to practice. We moved over to the wing and it was like magic. So much more easier to get on foil and control any height. * ride wide, no glide * taking back all the stoke to my Home beach - Holland MI- thanks Gwen!
Glad we could help you Carlos! Would really appreciate if you could copy paste this and post as a review here: g.page/r/CefvZApOisnuEBM/review Thank you! Happy New Year!
I wonder if you made this video after my lesson with you! I was super happy to see the difference in the board after you told me to narrow my stance. Your lessons are the best! I highly recommend!
Excellent and super precise as usual. I think you guys are the only channel going into those specifics it's incredible advice. Vous êtes les meilleurs !!
i just moved my front strap back about 2 inches which made me have to bring my back foot forward about the same, narrowing my stance made it easier to pump. thanks for the advice
I've always set my mast position so that the sweet spot for takeoff and the sweet spot when foiling are the same, so I always feel comfortable and don't need to change my foot position after takeoff. It seems to work fine for me, but I'm interested to hear if there are any drawbacks on this.
I also prefer to have my stance in the center of board boyancy and move mast to comfortable position , is definitely makes touchdowns safe especially in rough conditions.
Good stuff. Moving my feet closer together really helped me make my foot transitions better. Can you tell me what kind of vest you are wearing at 6:29 in the video? It looks like it would be good for open water. Thanks
Thanks for that really excellent video, I knew my stance was too wide, and it was affecting my foot swops . Now I understand the mechanics of what I'm doing wrong, I can work on it. Have subscribed!
Thank you for this excellent video.I still have this Problem and always fall down when the foil comes up . Next time I am sure to try to move my fron foot back like you have said.I hope this trick will work. I am very small und very light and always struggle to put pressure on the front foot. Nil
Hoi, I’m currious About the placement of the backfoot. On my wingdrifter 105 it looks like I’m never in the position of the rear strap. I use no backstrap, but look at the position of the holes, but are never with my rear foot in the backstrap area. Thanks an keep making these video’s. René from the netherlands
Great work as usual (and sounds eerily familiar)...right now when standing before take-off, if I have my front foot back in good position and weighted enough to keep the nose down, I find the nose getting buried a bit before I pickup speed, and I'm not sure if I just need to do some extra weight shifting at different points of take-off, or perhaps I need to move my mast back, so that the sweet spot is further back and I have some extra volume in front of where I'm standing.
Thanks Gwen, I’ve foiled with foot straps and not changed them much since starting out, so going to make a few changes (two years in, riding toe-side, gybing etc) the straps are currently: front foot furthest forward and back foot furthest back, which I’m now going to modify given your advice. Once I’ve brought the front foot strap back do you recommend bringing the back strap as far forward as possible to further optimise a stance that facilitates subtle fore/aft trim adjustment?
Thank you for the excellent video and description, especially the bit where you make note of keeping track of back leg burn as a general indicator. Is there a general rule of thumb with respect to foot positioning relative to mast/foil for homing in on the sweet spot?
I feel on my AFS whitebird I have to have my front foot way more forward than my 60 liter Go Foil board but maybe I can try shifting my weight instead.I'll try it next time.
Excellent video! Tnx for the info! I do try to keep these rules however when transitioning to flagging the wing in the surf (especially when Im on my toe side) I feel like Im a lot of times Im too far back on my rear foot and without good control over the pitch and yaw of the board (Im a little offset with my legs and in toe side I do face with my front foot more "open"). I dont feel this when I surf foil (without the wing) and I wondered if I can improve my stance/balance. Maybe you could do a follow-up video on that
I am still learning , and find on the foil i find it hard to keep the pitch level , the stab is not to small . I think i am trimming by bending legs , think it is done in hips , have not got to carving is that by hips ! .
Great video, thank you! I'm a noob and really like how clear and applicable your tips are. Question: what are your thoughts on front foot placement in the LATERAL direction? Do you have a video explaining that? Difference between take-off and while being on the foil? An experienced guy told me just recently my front foot should be on the center line, but that gives me such an unstable feeling. It's scary 😅
Hi Gwen I have the question.Do I have to narrow my stance before the foil comes up or immediately in the moment that the foils comes up. Another question is when I am on the foil ,it comes higher and higher and I loose control and at the end I fall down in the water. How can I solve this problem. I have the front footstraps on the board . Do you think it ist better to ride strapless? I had some Wingfoil lessons with the board with footstraps and they say it is easier to have the front foot in the straps . What is your advice. Do you use the straps in your lesson? Nil Ebert
I ride that way also and it's no issue under good power. I struggle on very light wind pop ups both winging and SUP downwind because I find when popping up and getting my weight over the front foot - the board naturally wants to turn heel side. That's the only time I am working to focus on placing my feet closer to the centerline - when the pop up will be slow and close to stall speed. Then I center them more and adjust when I get up.
Thank you Gwen - your tips and videos are fantastically helpful. One question - this was good info about fore/aft foot placement; how about side to side? I have had issues trying to figure out if my feet should be along the center line of the board or not - like one windward one leward..?
Yes offset is better for side to side stability, so front foot slightly upwind of center line, back foot slightly downwind of center line when riding with heel side edge
@@DamienLeroyRUclips I was kinda stuck trying to place my foot as near the centerline as possible and was always loosing balance. Lately i decided to place my feet in a way more wider stance side-to-side and now I can fly consistently. It's not a pretty stance nor super stable but hey at least now i can fly and manouver a little. My hope is that as i gain more hours of flying I will be able narrow my stance more closer to the centerline without loosing balance.
Very helpful advise Gwen. CAn you go back to foot placement when first climbing on the board. I am still struggling with getting up on the board without falling in. I tried on a a SUP with a SUP WINDER fin and could easily climb to my feet and sail with the wing. Being old and less flexible is also an issue. Lol. The Drifter 161 liter board is Plenty to float me. So I must overbalancing or placing my feet initially on the board poorly. Are there specific dry land exercises that might also help get me on the water to board transition.
Gwen, this advice helped a lot with my chronic back foot over-emphasis. However, as I jibe into switch stance I find I have to work twice as hard to maintain front foot pressure. As I ride switch and pick up speed I can just feel my weight shifting back, rendering a foot switch impossible. Any suggestions?
That's great. 'Right foot placement' sorted. Now, can you please do a video on the correct placement for the left foot ........ 🙂 Isn't the English language a pain sometimes ?
When you fly consistently without going up and down, you are balanced over the sweet spot, from there reduce your stance and make sure both feet are equally loaded.
The most efficient is to place your feet to get the best glide and speed of your board on the water and then to adjust the position of your mast to get the required front and back foot pressure when flying.
For sure, when the sweet spot aligns with the center of gravity it’s perfect. Question is, how far away from the sweet spot can the center of gravity move with a wide stance VS narrow stance. So I think stance and position affect the center of gravity when riding and adapting to changing conditions
@EdasTelycenas I understand why you might think this, anyone who has ridden foot straps when winging might think they don't move their front foot, but the back foot often does the same as Gwen describes too. Starts forward, and moves back. In my experience, this is true of all my setups, winging with straps, DW SUP foil without, board balanced flat when holding foil, and not balanced. Even James Casey recognizes the phenomenon in his coaching material, so it's definitely something to consider. Maybe you've found a magic set-up!
I find moving my foil to the back of the track helpful for this exact reason. There is at less repositioning for sure. Without moving it back I struggled a lot
@@AAAAAAAAAAAAaron that's one option, but one that brings compromises. Moving the foil back reduces responsiveness and increases swing weight. Your view on how important this is will vary...
There are three equilibrium points 1) the board floating in the water (without speed) 2) the board navigating in the water 3) the board flying on the hydrofoil The ideal situation is to have the three points in the same place, but 1) and 2) depend on the shape of the board. You can adjust the foil in the rail to have the coincidence between 2) and 3). If you can’t your setup is not “perfect”
This was the breakthrough advice I needed during my lesson with Gwen. Highly satisfied with my lesson in Stuart this week. Once Gwen explained and corrected my stance riding became almost effortless (pulling behind jet ski) I struggled on my own for several months on my own. This lesson pushed me forward with the right skills to practice. We moved over to the wing and it was like magic. So much more easier to get on foil and control any height. * ride wide, no glide * taking back all the stoke to my Home beach - Holland MI- thanks Gwen!
Glad we could help you Carlos! Would really appreciate if you could copy paste this and post as a review here: g.page/r/CefvZApOisnuEBM/review
Thank you! Happy New Year!
I wonder if you made this video after my lesson with you! I was super happy to see the difference in the board after you told me to narrow my stance. Your lessons are the best! I highly recommend!
Danke!
Excellent and super precise as usual. I think you guys are the only channel going into those specifics it's incredible advice. Vous êtes les meilleurs !!
I moved my front strap one step back and … Wow … better upwind angle, no leg burning and more speed … you are more than welcome in South America.
toujours le meilleurs tutos! merci!!!!
This is my exact problem and where I’m at in my progression. Thanks for such a detailed video.
Great video and explanation !!! Informative and it comes off you are trying to help people..
i just moved my front strap back about 2 inches which made me have to bring my back foot forward about the same, narrowing my stance made it easier to pump. thanks for the advice
I've always set my mast position so that the sweet spot for takeoff and the sweet spot when foiling are the same, so I always feel comfortable and don't need to change my foot position after takeoff. It seems to work fine for me, but I'm interested to hear if there are any drawbacks on this.
Same. Would be interested to see what Damien says! It seems like the only reason not to do this a poor match between board and foil?
I also prefer to have my stance in the center of board boyancy and move mast to comfortable position , is definitely makes touchdowns safe especially in rough conditions.
Excellent video, thank you! Please keep working on this subject, it’s so important and I think there are still things to be discovered about it.
Thanks Gwen this helped me!
Glad we could help! 🙏🙌
Good stuff. Moving my feet closer together really helped me make my foot transitions better.
Can you tell me what kind of vest you are wearing at 6:29 in the video? It looks like it would be good for open water. Thanks
Looks like the Dakine Seeker vest in the 2022 Florida Blue color way.
Thanks for the explanation, it would be great if you will make a similar video about wave riding
Another excellent lesson
Thanks for that really excellent video, I knew my stance was too wide, and it was affecting my foot swops . Now I understand the mechanics of what I'm doing wrong, I can work on it. Have subscribed!
Thanks for your help today Damian! Im gonna watch a bunch of these videos and try to figure this out!
Thank you for this excellent video.I still have this Problem and always fall down when the foil comes up . Next time I am sure to try to move my fron foot back like you have said.I hope this trick will work. I am very small und very light and always struggle to put pressure on the front foot.
Nil
Great explanation 🤞 I would anyways recommend to use footstraps, then its not needed to split extra your focus on another thing as a beginner.
Thanks you guys! Great advice, going to work on it!
Thank you very much. I needed to understand this and you nailed it 👌
this is such useful info, merci beaucoup!
Glad to you.meet you on the beach Sunday, hope you got that other wing inflated
Nice meeting you at the beach, all good on the other wing, haha!
Hoi, I’m currious About the placement of the backfoot. On my wingdrifter 105 it looks like I’m never in the position of the rear strap. I use no backstrap, but look at the position of the holes, but are never with my rear foot in the backstrap area.
Thanks an keep making these video’s.
René from the netherlands
Brands tend to place the back strap for jumping, that’s why they are so far back to get the required pop.
Salut Damien ! Super vidéo ! Peux tu nous monter en pratique ce que ça donne en navigation ? 😊
great tip, have been trying to sort this for a while
Great work as usual (and sounds eerily familiar)...right now when standing before take-off, if I have my front foot back in good position and weighted enough to keep the nose down, I find the nose getting buried a bit before I pickup speed, and I'm not sure if I just need to do some extra weight shifting at different points of take-off, or perhaps I need to move my mast back, so that the sweet spot is further back and I have some extra volume in front of where I'm standing.
Thanks Gwen, I’ve foiled with foot straps and not changed them much since starting out, so going to make a few changes (two years in, riding toe-side, gybing etc) the straps are currently: front foot furthest forward and back foot furthest back, which I’m now going to modify given your advice. Once I’ve brought the front foot strap back do you recommend bringing the back strap as far forward as possible to further optimise a stance that facilitates subtle fore/aft trim adjustment?
Thank you for the excellent video and description, especially the bit where you make note of keeping track of back leg burn as a general indicator.
Is there a general rule of thumb with respect to foot positioning relative to mast/foil for homing in on the sweet spot?
Thank You.... This explains why with 12 years of competent kite foiling I've had persistent right (back foot) pain. My spread is too wide
I feel on my AFS whitebird I have to have my front foot way more forward than my 60 liter Go Foil board but maybe I can try shifting my weight instead.I'll try it next time.
Excellent video! Tnx for the info!
I do try to keep these rules however when transitioning to flagging the wing in the surf (especially when Im on my toe side) I feel like Im a lot of times Im too far back on my rear foot and without good control over the pitch and yaw of the board (Im a little offset with my legs and in toe side I do face with my front foot more "open"). I dont feel this when I surf foil (without the wing) and I wondered if I can improve my stance/balance. Maybe you could do a follow-up video on that
Keep it up guys! Great video
I am still learning , and find on the foil i find it hard to keep the pitch level , the stab is not to small . I think i am trimming by bending legs , think it is done in hips , have not got to carving is that by hips ! .
Explication très claire ! Il ne me reste plus qu' à la mettre en application ....
Great video, thank you! I'm a noob and really like how clear and applicable your tips are.
Question: what are your thoughts on front foot placement in the LATERAL direction? Do you have a video explaining that? Difference between take-off and while being on the foil?
An experienced guy told me just recently my front foot should be on the center line, but that gives me such an unstable feeling. It's scary 😅
We recommend having your feet slightly off set from the center line to have better control side to side
@@DamienLeroyRUclips Thank you! Ready to head out again and give it another try :)
Hi Gwen
I have the question.Do I have to narrow my stance before the foil comes up or immediately in the moment that the foils comes up.
Another question is when I am on the foil ,it comes higher and higher and I loose control and at the end I fall down in the water. How can I solve this problem. I have the front footstraps on the board . Do you think it ist better to ride strapless? I had some Wingfoil lessons with the board with footstraps and they say it is easier to have the front foot in the straps . What is your advice. Do you use the straps in your lesson?
Nil Ebert
And centerline? I have my feet really on the edges. Is that good or bad
No problem to have offset stance for wingfoiling imo
I ride that way also and it's no issue under good power. I struggle on very light wind pop ups both winging and SUP downwind because I find when popping up and getting my weight over the front foot - the board naturally wants to turn heel side. That's the only time I am working to focus on placing my feet closer to the centerline - when the pop up will be slow and close to stall speed. Then I center them more and adjust when I get up.
Thank you Gwen - your tips and videos are fantastically helpful. One question - this was good info about fore/aft foot placement; how about side to side? I have had issues trying to figure out if my feet should be along the center line of the board or not - like one windward one leward..?
Yes offset is better for side to side stability, so front foot slightly upwind of center line, back foot slightly downwind of center line when riding with heel side edge
@@DamienLeroyRUclips I was kinda stuck trying to place my foot as near the centerline as possible and was always loosing balance. Lately i decided to place my feet in a way more wider stance side-to-side and now I can fly consistently. It's not a pretty stance nor super stable but hey at least now i can fly and manouver a little. My hope is that as i gain more hours of flying I will be able narrow my stance more closer to the centerline without loosing balance.
Very helpful advise Gwen. CAn you go back to foot placement when first climbing on the board. I am still struggling with getting up on the board without falling in. I tried on a a SUP with a SUP WINDER fin and could easily climb to my feet and sail with the wing.
Being old and less flexible is also an issue. Lol. The Drifter 161 liter board is Plenty to float me. So I must overbalancing or placing my feet initially on the board poorly. Are there specific dry land exercises that might also help get me on the water to board transition.
I am also elderly and not as flexible. I use one of those balance balls each morning as part of my workout
Gwen, this advice helped a lot with my chronic back foot over-emphasis. However, as I jibe into switch stance I find I have to work twice as hard to maintain front foot pressure. As I ride switch and pick up speed I can just feel my weight shifting back, rendering a foot switch impossible. Any suggestions?
Merci mec!
That's great. 'Right foot placement' sorted. Now, can you please do a video on the correct placement for the left foot ........ 🙂
Isn't the English language a pain sometimes ?
Especially true with eFoil too
How would you know if you’ve found the sweet spot?
When you fly consistently without going up and down, you are balanced over the sweet spot, from there reduce your stance and make sure both feet are equally loaded.
The most efficient is to place your feet to get the best glide and speed of your board on the water and then to adjust the position of your mast to get the required front and back foot pressure when flying.
I cannot get my rear foot over the center of the mast when i prone. Would a shorter fuse help?
A stabilisator with less lift would help
@@YvanPillet thanks, it is working
Bon conseil
Am I to ignore the placement where the foot straps are positioned? Your rear foot looks a long way forward compared to where my rear would be.
Yes inserts position isn’t always ideal
@@DamienLeroyRUclips thank you for that information
Bon pédagogue.
Merci!
Interesting, but at the end, the effect on the foil just depend on the position of center of gravity, not stance
For sure, when the sweet spot aligns with the center of gravity it’s perfect. Question is, how far away from the sweet spot can the center of gravity move with a wide stance VS narrow stance. So I think stance and position affect the center of gravity when riding and adapting to changing conditions
Hello. Amusant on dirait un accent français... je comprends tout ^^
Je suis du Morbihan 😉 - Gwen
nah… foil front wing = board boyancy center = foil front wing centered between legs. easy teke off and no foot repositioning later
Thanks for sharing! Would be interesting to see if this rule works with any setup, foil profile, aspect ration, stabilizer, etc…
@EdasTelycenas I understand why you might think this, anyone who has ridden foot straps when winging might think they don't move their front foot, but the back foot often does the same as Gwen describes too. Starts forward, and moves back. In my experience, this is true of all my setups, winging with straps, DW SUP foil without, board balanced flat when holding foil, and not balanced. Even James Casey recognizes the phenomenon in his coaching material, so it's definitely something to consider. Maybe you've found a magic set-up!
I find moving my foil to the back of the track helpful for this exact reason. There is at less repositioning for sure. Without moving it back I struggled a lot
@@AAAAAAAAAAAAaron that's one option, but one that brings compromises. Moving the foil back reduces responsiveness and increases swing weight. Your view on how important this is will vary...
There are three equilibrium points
1) the board floating in the water (without speed)
2) the board navigating in the water
3) the board flying on the hydrofoil
The ideal situation is to have the three points in the same place, but 1) and 2) depend on the shape of the board. You can adjust the foil in the rail to have the coincidence between 2) and 3). If you can’t your setup is not “perfect”
Excellent, well explained advice! Except, you must put your right foot forward, not your left!
😆🙏🙌
@@DamienLeroyRUclips I ride goofy!
You can ride any way it feels most comfortable.
I feel balanced on port tack starboard is another thing. But this video makes sense will try and bring feet closer and find the sweet spot
Salut Damien ! Super vidéo ! Peux tu nous monter en pratique ce que ça donne en navigation ? 😊