Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 26 i Foiling Magazine

Right, I’m going to attempt to keep this one short. Not because there’s any lack of things to talk about, but because I’m in the midst of packing/unpacking boxes, promiscuously jumping from wifi outlet to wifi outlet, and trying to keep track of where I last put the kettle. As many of you will understand, moving house really is a special kind of hell, and while I’d love to claim this editorial was tapped up from a calm, “minimalist” workspace, the truth is I’m surrounded by utter chaos, and the faint aroma of marker pen. Still, away from my personal upheavals, there’s plenty that’s been happening in the foilsphere, and as always, we’re here for it. Within this issue of the magazine you’ll certainly notice a good chunk of content…

August 27, 2025, 6 PM. I’m scanning the latest buoy readings off Oléron. No doubt about it anymore: the swell we’d been waiting for is finally here. A cyclonic pulse born from Storm Erin. South-southeast winds, maxing out at 10 knots, perfectly offshore. The kind of conditions that light up the rare tow-in spots of Charente-Maritime. On WhatsApp, Gaël and I are firing off voice notes. We decide to kick off the day on a marker buoy spot, surrounded by shipwrecks – a way to set the tone before aiming for our true goal. We all know where we want this session to end, but we’ll need to wait for tide and swell to wake up the mythical wave of Fort Boyard. Between Aix and Oléron, Fort Boyard is one…

On the last weekend of August, a team of ten fearless pumpfoilers met up in the rain on a Saturday morning, 900 metres above sea level, for the very first Foilhumence – a rally that mixes pumping and road-tripping to celebrate the start of the winter season, discover new spots, and, above all, share good times between some very passionate riders. The sky darkened as the weekend approached, and the wind had blown hard the day before. Everyone had made the most of an unforgettable Friday on Lake Geneva – downwind pump, downwind SUP, wing – and after that, everyone was feeling relaxed. The mist and Breton-style drizzle gave the Jura Mountains a mysterious atmosphere. After half an hour driving between the pines, we reached the first spot: Lac Saint-Point.…

The annual GA Wings and Tabou Boards photoshoot was definitely one for the books. From epic sunset shoots, one too many gyros and exploring an island with so much potential for winging. The location in question for the shoot was the Greek Island of Rhodes. It’s always tricky lining up these shoots in between a very busy competition schedule for all the riders, but as ever, the team were keen to be there and made it all possible in a very short time frame. We had Takuma Sugi fly in from Japan, Alexis Mathis and Tom Balanca from France, and then Kevin Greenslade and myself from the UK, with three of us swiftly moving to our next competition in Germany after the shoot was finished. For the shoot it was…

The Greatest Wing Spots Finn: The Hatchery is usually my go to wing spot as you get strong wind and big swell so it’s great for jumping or riding waves. If you’re looking for spots with flatter bumps and easier riding in general, then the waterfront park or the event is great! Aleks: For me, it’s all about The Hatch and Doug’s Beach. Both deliver epic wind and amazing waves for freestyle. On stronger days, The Hatch is unbeatable – steady wind, clean ramps, and that classic Gorge energy. When it’s a little lighter, Doug’s often blows stronger and steadier, making it the go-to spot for long sessions and perfect freestyle conditions. The Ultimate Downwind Runs Tom: For the best downwind experience, grab a shuttle up to Tunnel 4 and…

You’ve probably already read some great reviews of Vayu gear in this magazine, but for our Tarifa-based test team, this was our very first opportunity to try one! As always, Tarifa delivered perfect conditions the very next day after the Aura V3 arrived. Following our standard practice, we went in blind, knowing only that we had a 4m wing and, thanks to a tag on the bag, that it featured Aluula fabric. Even on the short walk from the van to the shore, we could already appreciate Vayu’s attention to detail. The bag includes a padded shoulder protector designed to rest your board mast while carrying all your gear. The real surprise, however, came when we opened the bag. We were expecting to find Aluula Gold, but instead, we discovered…

To celebrate its 30th anniversary, RRD delivers one of its most advanced wings yet, the Evolution Gold Wing. This latest creation is a showcase of RRD’s relentless pursuit of lightness, stiffness, and aerodynamics, using next-generation materials to push performance to the max. At its core, the Gold Wing combines Aluula with Insignia Dacron reinforcement inside the leading edge. This hybrid structure increases torsional stiffness while keeping weight exceptionally low. There are also some mini battens along the trailing edge that maintain a clean profile, even at high speeds. Visually, on the beach, you can immediately tell that this wing is a high-quality product: the Aluula sheen, tight canopy tension, and clean panel layout all point to a product designed with precision. The Quick Lock system allows seamless switching between carbon…

The WFS Pro v2 is Eleveight’s flagship wing, comes equipped with a carbon bar, and is available in the same sizes as the previous version of the WFS Pro, namely 3.5m, 4.5m and 5.5m. The premium feel is noticeable right from the start. Even the bag reflects high quality through its design and materials. But it’s when we took the wing out that we truly saw the attention to detail that makes this wing stand out. Let’s begin with the material selection. The WFS frame is built with Aluula Gold, a fabric that delivers exceptional rigidity while keeping the weight impressively low. For the canopy, Eleveight uses a 4x4 yarn construction, reinforced with 6x6 yarn in the trailing edge and high-stress zones for extra durability. The wing also comes equipped…

The Aura X3 is described as VAYU’s most advanced wing yet. How has it evolved from the popular Aura X2? The Aura X3 takes everything riders loved about the X2 and pushes it further. The new STRUT X frame makes the leading edge ten percent slimmer, reducing drag and giving the wing a more responsive and precise feel. With the full Aluula Aeris X airframe, it is stiffer, faster, and even more stable through gusts. The result is a wing with a wide usable range that flies early, stays comfortable when fully powered, and feels perfectly balanced in the hands. The ten percent slimmer STRUT X leading edge is one of the big changes. How does that reduction in diameter affect performance? You feel it straight away. The thinner leading…

Well, this immediately sings “fun” to us. Tell us all about the Twister… Absolutely, the Twister is all about triggering pure fun and excitement when riding creatively. It’s our dedicated freestyle board, designed to make every move in the air feel natural and every landing forgiving. We wanted a board that reacts instantly, with a shape that helps riders go bigger, spin faster, and still maintain control when they touch down. The Twister is playful and neutral at the same time, easy to get airborne, balanced in the air, and ready to carve once you’re back on the wave. In the end it proves to be much more than a freestyle board, it’s suited for everybody who enjoys a compact shape. It’s designed to balance aerial freestyle performance with surf…

RIDER Brandon Scheid LOCATION Hood River, USA PHOTOGRAPHER Benjamin Strang Brandon: This summer in Hood River, specifically at the now famous Hatchery, saw an explosion in the new windsport discipline, parawinging. Partly, I believe, because of the world class conditions present almost daily in the Gorge. Ample wind, easy downwind access, and bumps galore made for ideal breeding grounds for parawing-curious participants. Riders came from all across the globe to sample the amazing conditions found 300 miles inland, created by our magical little wind machine. I certainly have been taking full advantage, logging some serious frequent flier miles on, or should I say above, the river. RIDER Kari Schibevaag LOCATION Lofoten, Norway PHOTOGRAPHER Sakrisøy Rorbua Kari: Summer in the north was unforgettable. The sun seemed endless, shining day after day,…

Nothing could have prepared us for how raw and real this place felt. The giant cliff faces and the power of the ocean smashing together. It was one of those rare strike missions that actually came together. We were watching the charts, waiting on the right forecast for the perfect weather window to open along the North Atlantic coast of Europe. The wind and waves were lining up to be just right, and within a day we were on a plane. The spot itself is known in the windsurfing world, but it’s rare to see anyone wingfoiling there. The beach break is heavy, unpredictable, and getting out is a battle. After a few solid wash ins, I finally made it through, and it was pure magic. Clean right hand lines…

For several years now, the AXIS family has been growing, a team of riders from all corners of the world, each with different stories, styles, and strengths. Yet they all share something deeper than just the love of the ocean. What unites them is a genuine friendship with the creators of the brand and a shared drive to keep pushing the limits of performance. AXIS is not a brand like any other, it’s a living, breathing community built around passion, trust and innovation. This summer in Hawaii, during the legendary races that bring the foiling world together, that sense of unity shone brighter than ever. Whether professional or amateur, every rider found their place. Each one felt seen, supported, and valued, not for their results, but for who they are…

The third year of the Kernow Foil Classic and a change in format from last year meant for a whole week of foiling froth. A difficult thing to get right in our fickle autumn climate – but five days spent with your mates in a caravan on one of the UK’s finest beaches was never going to go down badly. Storm Annie tried to spoil our fun, but we simply closed the door to the pub in the evening and kept on going. The brainchild of Chris Burke of Poseidon Watersports, the KFC event brings together like-minded, wave-oriented foiling folk and throws them into some proper conditions in the wave capital of the UK – Cornwall. Chris – a man who’s been around the high end and competitive side of…

There’s a moment when you first see the Columbia River from the plane, it looks too clean, too perfectly carved, as if someone designed it just to make wind junkies happy. You can almost feel the jetstream of gear talk, beta sharing, and foil-nerd enthusiasm rising off the water like heat waves. This is Hood River. Downwinder heaven. The kind of place that doesn’t just have a “scene” – it is the scene. A natural laboratory where physics, weather, and obsession collide daily. When Jouke van der Meer and I landed in Portland, there wasn’t a single knot of wind. Not one. You’d never guess that just an hour east, whitecaps were already piling up like cordwood. But that’s Hood River for you – calm in one world, swell party…

With the release of last year’s Halo Pro, CORE made a lightweight, stiff, high-end wing aimed for more advanced riders with a full Aluula airframe. In a move to make something both performant and more affordable, and in a trend we’re seeing across the wing and kite market from various angles, existing models are being reverse engineered from an Aluula airframe, which has been a recent technical and marketing focus for many brands, back to more traditional Dacron. The Halo comes in a comprehensive range of seven sizes, from 2.4m all the way up to 6m, and it comes in a long, narrow storage bag with shoulder straps to house the boom. A waistbelt or wrist leash is available to purchase separately depending on how you like to roll. So…

Two years ago, it’s fair to say, Armstrong’s original A-Wing XPS wing sparked a market-wide revolution in canopy tension. You pumped it up and it was preloaded drum-tight. The cut of the canopy was immaculate, and in practice this gave the wing a super wide wind range and very smooth and stable characteristics. Cash Berzolla took it to Jeffreys Bay and filmed an incredible video that also shook the whole industry. Its stripey cut-in pattern makes it instantly recognizable and its solid performance, particularly into wind and in waves, made it an instantly popular choice across rider levels. MkII is here, and at surface level you’d be forgiven for thinking that not much has changed. Aesthetically, a familiar cross panel sail pattern is comprised of triangles of three-core ripstop which…

So firstly, how does the Chaser complement Eleveight’s existing board lineup? Well, the journey started with the Evolve, which was our first innovation in creating a proper wingfoil board. Over the years, we’ve fine-tuned shapes, added more sizes, and then came the Evolve DW, a pure downwind board too. Now, in the surf world, the rise of mid-length boards showed that you can actually combine the two worlds of glide and maneuverability, and the Chaser does exactly that. It’s got the smooth glide and efficiency of a downwind board, but with the versatility and playful handling of a shorter, wing-specific shape. It’s built for light wind fun and early planing, with that fast, narrower outline that wingfoilers love, even when it’s barely blowing! Light wind performance is a key focus…

So team, what were you setting out to build with the PURE 600? What were those original intentions? As always with AFS, our main goal is to make real performance accessible to everyone. With the PURE 600, we wanted to create a foil that delivers the same level of performance as the pros, but remains accessible to ambitious riders. The idea was clear: bring World Cup performance into everyone’s hands. And now it is! Working with Axel Gérard, vice world champion on the GWA tour, we set out to build a foil that accelerates your progression and transforms every session into pure adrenaline. Globally the PURE range was born to push limits: go faster, fly higher, and feel every sensation with absolute precision. Yeah the PURE 600 is a collab…

This new collection marks something of a reunion for some of the NeilPryde team. Can you tell us a little about how that came about, and what that’s meant for the development of this range? Yes, it really is a reunion in the best sense. After NeilPryde Limited’s original factory closed, we had to redevelop large parts of our range with new production partners – a long process that taught us a lot. But about two years ago, we reconnected with some of the original people who helped build the foundation of NeilPryde Waterwear. They now operate in a new facility, bringing back decades of experience and craftsmanship that perfectly align with our brand’s DNA. Working with them again means we can combine their deep understanding of our fit, materials,…

Hi Simon. So firstly, when did the idea for putting together Charged Water first take shape, and what was the motivation behind it? I’ve been obsessed with eFoils for over seven years – riding, developing, tweaking setups pretty much 24/7. From the moment I first lifted off the water on a foil, I knew I wanted to share this feeling with as many people as possible. It’s more than a sport, it changes how you experience nature, exercise, adventure, even your mindset. And like many great ideas, Charged Water began during a late-night session chatting with friends. I was raving about eFoiling (as usual) to my buddy Philipp Edler, who happens to be a talented filmmaker, and the next day I took him out for a ride. When we came…

Mauritius is a special place for me. I’ve been visiting since I was very young – it’s where I learnt to kitesurf and where I caught my first waves wingfoiling. It’s where it all started, and it never gets old. The ultimate playground for riding waves and truly one of my favorite places in the world. I was in Le Morne, with my family for two weeks at the end of August. My brother, dad, and I were chasing waves whilst my mum was happier kiting in the lagoon. It was great to come back here with my family and with more winging experience so I could really take advantage of the spot. Straight off the plane we had a session in some big swell, and it felt so good…

It doesn’t feel like a whole year since I last struggled to sleep on the flight back to the UK from Portland after the AWSI event 2024, yet here we are. The two trips Liam and I have done now couldn’t be further away from each other in terms of riding types and enjoyment levels (for me especially). SUP foiling for us mere mortals has come and gone in Hood River with only a handful of the hardcore holding on – the age of the parawing is upon us, and my god what a breath of fresh air it is. Hands-free riding swell on smaller boards and smaller foils is glorious. We thought last year Hood River might’ve already been overrun with ‘Trash Bags’ by the industry insiders in town…

I live in Hood River, Oregon – the epicenter of wingfoiling in the United States. With steady wind funneling through the Columbia River Gorge and a passionate community of water lovers, it’s a playground for anyone drawn to wind. To be honest, ever since I learned to wing about five years ago, my kiteboarding sessions have slowly dwindled. Wingfoiling has reshaped how, and where, I ride. But as a kiteboarder firstly, Tarifa has always been on my radar as a must-visit. So when Armstrong Foils announced the 2025 Armstrong Women’s Week Athlete Summit in Tarifa, Spain, I was all in. For years, I’d heard about Tarifa, Europe’s kiteboarding mecca – where the wind blows nearly yearround and the beaches buzz with energy. As someone who studied abroad in Barcelona, I…

I’d just got home from a big stint working on Namotu Island Resort. This time back home is usually when I catch up on real-world stuff and pick up some fresh FLITELab* gear from the office in Byron Bay. I figured, why not turn it into a little foil mission weekend? I could test some new FLUX front wings with Chris Reynolds and muck around on the AMPJet. So, I hit up one of my mates from home, Beau Blake, who also works as a coach and photographer on Namotu. I told him we were going on a road trip, to pack his camera, and that we were going to film some stuff. He was keen straight away. The weather was looking a little suspect, but we didn’t really care…

You describe the Blackbird range as “not just a new foil, but a new way of foiling.” What does that mean to the rider in practical, onthe-water terms? When we say it’s a new way of foiling, we mean that the Blackbird doesn’t just improve performance – it redefines how the entire system interacts with the water and the air. On the water, riders immediately feel a smoother, more connected sensation. The foil feels alive, as if it’s reading the water and anticipating your moves. Every input – pitch, roll, speed – translates into clean, progressive lift and glide. It’s more intuitive, more balanced, and it gives riders that “flying” feeling that the name promises. A big focus is the active fuselage. Can you explain how making the fuselage “fly…

Hi Svein. You first disrupted windsurfing back in 1994 with the Starboard Windsurf gear that accelerated progression – how does the new wing range aim to do the same for wingfoiling over 30 years later? Winging brings my 50 years fascination with water sport gear development to the next level of engagement. We look at all the variants in our sport, like the low aspect Source model avoiding wingtips from touching the water while progressing. The Bowstring development enables a 60% slimmer leading edge than a traditional wing, making freestyle rotations easier, while opening up for new dimensions of performance within racing. We specifically develop lightweight, durable fabrics with selected material suppliers and apply them efficiently. Back in 1999, we introduced Dyneema to water sports with our D-Ram tech, now…

RIDER STATS AGE 18 HEIGHT 173CM WEIGHT 67KG NATIONALITY SPAIN SPONSORS CABRINHA, CABILDO DE FUERTEVENTURA COMPETITIVE FOIL DISCIPLINES COMPETITIVE FOIL DISCIPLINES: WAVE, FREESTYLE AND RACE Hey Ancor. Let’s start with where you’re based right now and where your local spot is? Hi! I’m from Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands, and I normally wing, windsurf or kite on a flat-water spot called Matas Bay on the south of the island. How did you first get into foiling? What was it that drew you in initially? I was already into windsurfing and kiting at the time wingfoiling was getting more and more popular. There was this one day when Airton Cozzolino came to my spot with his new wing quiver and I was really curious about it, so I asked him if I could try it out. That…

01 MEXICO SURF MEXICO GETTING THERE Fly into Puerto Vallarta (PVR), just 25 minutes away. Transfers or taxis are easily arranged to Bucerías. GEAR SETUP A medium-aspect 1000 to 1250 cm² foil and 4 to 6 m wing, or simply rent our full setups on-site. WHICH WETSUIT? Boardies/bikini most of the year; shorty or 2mm top for cooler winter mornings. BEER About 60-80 MXN (3-5 USD) TYPICAL DINNER Fresh ceviche, grilled fish tacos, shrimp burritos, and tropical cocktails at beachfront palapas. LATE NIGHT… Beach bars, live music, oceanfront dining, or sunset drinks in Bucerías and Sayulita. THE LOWDOWN Surf Mexico is one of the leading foiling and wingfoiling centers in Latin America, based in Bucerías on the beautiful Riviera Nayarit coastline. With over 25 years of experience in ocean sports,…