Wingfoiling has become a discipline that has gained more and more followers in recent years, and this is due to several factors. The first is that many beginners who have no previous experience with any water sport, find it less dangerous than kiting and less frustrating than surfing. And the truth is that yes, in some ways this may be true. And for those people who already have previous experience in other sports, such as kiting, windsurfing or surfing, they see the perfect combination of these three in a single discipline.
The possibility of being pulled by the wind (like kiting and windsurfing) but without the need to carry a lot of equipment, which is often tedious (especially in windsurfing), and having everything more accessible or at hand, gives wingfoiling an advantage over other sports. Besides, once we have control of both the wing and the board, the sensation of levitating over the water is simply incredible, and if we add to this the possibility of surfing on waves, we understand why every year we have more and more people asking for courses at our school.
That led us to think very carefully about the importance of developing a very good teaching methodology, to first avoid the possibility of potential risks for students (this means giving the student tools so that they can solve problems in the water and nothing bad can happen during classes), and second; maximizing the learning curve, optimizing class time and reducing the frustration that often leads the student to inhibit themselves, lose patience and therefore, not trust themselves, which is very important to incorporate the techniques with both the wing and the board.
After analyzing several cases, we came to the conclusion that the students quickly learned control over the wing, but what they found most difficult was stand up, balance and control on the board. So how did we solve that? We innovate with the support of a boat, focusing first on our students’ learning and mastery of the board, then moving on to wing riding. And guess what? Yes, it was a complete game changer.
Too much swell? Too much wind? Not enough space? That’s a thing of the past, as with the support of the boat, the instructor can choose the best place to start the lesson and can
ensure flat waters and optimal conditions for progress.
Return tow upwind to avoid the student having to carry all the equipment back.
This method allows the rider to be on the board for 1h 50m in each 2h lesson while being in constant contact with the instructor.
We highly recommend that everyone try it, you will progress faster, save energy and will surely become better and happier foilers.
