We gathered around our school on Sunday, March 10th 2024 for our second Women's Foiling Clinic at our Miami location.
The women all had the same goal in common, wanting to learn how to wingfoil and have a fun day with their friends on the water.
If you are new to the sport of wing foiling, it's important to breakdown the sport into two categories : Wing ( Wind / Sailing) and Foiling (Board Skills).
We started with a theory clinic on land where we covered the information related to the wind, or " wind window" . Understanding terminology , some basic sailing skills and how to properly handle the wing or sail. We inflated a small 3 meter Cabrinha Mantis wing on land and one by one , everyone had a chance on land to fly the wing and learn how to properly handle it.
We then covered the foiling aspects of the sport, and moved on the foil board. We like to use the e-foil boards to teach new riders how to foil before getting them into a wing foil boards. This helps the process tremendously as it allows the student to focus on foiling skills without having to create speed with the wing. For the first time lesson, we used the Lift 5'9 e-foil which is large enough to provide a solid platform to learn how to stand comfortably . This size board equipped with a 300 front wing , makes for a perfect match on the water. It allows riders of all levels to foil at slow speeds without any difficulty .
Once everyone was up to speed with information and safety , we then boarded the school boat and divided the team into two groups, so some of the ladies could focus on learning how to foil on the e-foil and others got to practice sailing the wing on a high volume wing foil board ( 135 L JP foil board ) and do a short downwinder with boat support.
Learning how to wing foil is a process, it takes dedication, time and good conditions . We prefer to teach foiling on the e-foil board in flat calm conditions as to allow for an easy progression. As for the wingfoiling classes we require a minimum of 12knots of wind to properly fly the wing .
With this information in mind, you should keep an eye on the forecast and plan your activities accordingly . We rely on apps such as Ikitesurf, Windguru, NOAA and any other local webcams and stations to read the wind and make a decision based on actual weekly forecast.
The Clinic was a great success and we needed with a fun picnic on the nearby island where the girls had a chance to share their stories over a glass of champagne and discuss future plans to get back on the water soon.
Our upcoming Women's clinic will be announced on our page soon. Stay tuned for more information.
