Flight's Primary Ignition

The parameters suggested to the brands for our inaugural wind foil sail test were left incredibly broad and open, for one simple reason. We wanted them to decide which product to put forward, and in doing so provide some understanding of their design direction. A sort of litmus paper test to gauge whether there was a consensus amongst the largest sail lofts.

- Maurin Rottenwalter, Joe North & Dan Hallam

When wind foiling first came into the limelight, one of the most alluring points was its perceived ability to inject life into light marginal winds. There were plenty of bold statements made by various brands that full foiling bliss could be achieved easily in less than 10 knots … but in reality, even spicing up those 10-15 knot days was a real draw. With the introduction of the new power source, the ability to reduce the sail size used was compelling - no one would grumble at being able to use a smaller sail, with the obvious upside of ease and handling.

Step forward a few years and the progression in foil and board technology has been meteoric. The change in the sail’s role has also been analysed, understood and evolved, leading to many foil-specific designs appearing. Our brief to the brands for this review was to provide sails for foiling use in winds between 10-18 knots. It has given rise to an eclectic bunch of sails, in sizes from 7.8m to 5.8m, which is testament to the belief of many that when foiling a rider can get away with sails two square metres smaller … or two sail sizes down from the sails normally used.

FINDINGS