Strapless kitesurfing 21: foil and quad on the lake Grevelingendam-North

Another trip to this lake, known for a tricky launching/landing between the trees and bushes. On a positive side, 100 m space of waist-to-chest deep waters, enough for my Gong foil 1100cm2 on the short 65cm mast. My plan was to practice waterstarts with the help of Wildert, an expert in foiling, and later a relaxed cruising on a directional surfboard. So far, my kitefoiling progress is minimal and I could just wobble a bit after the waterstart before losing balance while engaging the foil. According to Wildert, I need to learn flying a kite higher – an important skill in foiling. This reduces the board drag/sinking at taxiing, the most difficult stage before rising on a foil. Of course, a strapless foilboard is also a challenge on its own, and my Naish Hover 155 is quite twitchy due to a rounded skim shape. Unlike, my Slingshot quad 147 (with a parallel rail outline) is very stable and comfy for riding strapless. It takes no time to waterstart and get on plane after 1-2 power strokes. Fast rocker line and 10cm fins provide enough support to keep planing and gain upwind even underpowered.