Every Board,
One Scale

Downwind foil

Paddle onto a passing bump, then ride open-ocean swell for kilometres.

Downwind foiling means riding the wind-driven bumps of open water on a hydrofoil, travelling with the wind from one point to another along a coast or across a channel. Riders usually paddle up onto foil, then link one bump to the next for kilometres with almost no effort. It began with Hawaiian SUP downwinders and now has its own races, record attempts and long, narrow boards.

Wing foil

A hand-held inflatable sail, a short board and a hydrofoil.

Wing foiling pairs a hand-held inflatable wing, held free of the board, with a short board on a hydrofoil. Once the foil lifts the hull out of the water the noise and chop drop away and the ride turns smooth and quiet. Kiters, windsurfers, surfers and plenty of complete beginners took it up after the first production wings appeared in 2019.

SUP foil

Paddle power alone, flying over small waves and open swell.

SUP foiling is stand-up paddling on a hydrofoil board, powered only by the paddle and whatever energy the water provides. Riders paddle onto small or weak waves, swells and wind bumps, and once on foil they can glide and pump far past where a surfboard would stall. It grew out of Maui in 2016 and is the root of downwind foiling.

Surf

Riding a wave's moving slope on a board shaped to fit it.

Board surfing means paddling a board into an unbroken wave, standing up, and riding along its face as it breaks toward shore. Most of a session is paddling and waiting, and the ride itself lasts seconds. It covers everything from beginners on long, soft boards at sandy beach breaks to Olympic finals on the reef pass at Teahupo'o.