Yes, plastic sands fast, start with 220 wet on some sort of a thin sanding block, and only as much as you need to, to get the bolts to slide through. Consider using alternative holes in the mast plate if possible so you don't stress the damaged area.

Mount in A orientation. Those brass nuts don't fit tracks well (or the stainless ones that are the same shape). This style has much more contact and a more snug fit in the tracks, never dents them. https://kiteboarding.com/proddetail.asp?prod=foilite-titanium-m8-track-nut Don't overtighten those, or...

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For wing throws (aka using the wing to get up on foil then letting it go). This is a good exercise for crap wind, if you don't want to do it when the wind is solid enough for winging. Crap = Where a gust might be strong enough to get on foil, but then you're fighting to stay up and can't really try ...

If you had a huge dw board and a foil that did not require too much pumping, then maybe? But I can promise, as a wind person the first time you're 2km offshore without windpower in overhead swell.... loss of words from my first deflate dw shocker ptsd. Basically the same setup that you can calmly pa...

Thick swells! Definitely 90+cm mast territory. Major contrast from the cleanest CB in my memory the same day. Looked like Malibu north of the parking lot.

Impressive stress test. Exactly what I was looking to do to attach my paddle to my Mode, but the thicker heavier N weave just doesn't pack down as nice as my old V1 strike. Must be a lot harder on with the track on the strut. Wing packdowns on the dw boards work best with 2.5-3m soft handle wings to...

Look for wings geared toward upwind performance at a sacrifice of low end. The newer the better. Pair that with a fast high volume board to reduce resistance on takeoffs and will let you ride smaller inflatable wings. And a high lift low drag foil set. None of this gear is really meant for beginners...

Slake, I use those ion palmless mitts for winging. I find they're great for the 6C+ range. A lot of keeping your hands warm is in prep/warmup, and keeping the back of your hand protected for winging. Bring warm water to the beach, chill your hands while setting up and then warm them before going out...

I find the lamination itself is the one of the more straight forward parts of the process. Even with the vacuum bagging prep, it's maybe 10% of the labor to build a board from scratch. And I'd have to guess PVC + Al has got to be fairly close wet lam carbon + eps in costs. Al doesn't allow for error...

Yes, Dickson Park works. Fish and duck docks can be a better launch if they'll let you.

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I wonder how small of a pocket wing we could get away with if using a barracuda sup? Could be a life saver. Would also like a design that minimizes all those lines.

Hopefully someone comes up with plans so we can repurpose all those 15 year old kites.

If we had a gorge here we'd all be doing it already as well. Lake/inlet swells don't really have enough swell period on most days to let you glide. It'll be mostly a downwind pump, which is great training. I've found it difficult to make the transition from flat water paddle ups (which I can get 9/1...

It's not ideal, but possible with the right technique. The top guys can paddle up 5-600cm2 foils in the flats. Of course that's on a barracuda. They could easily paddle up that setup, but they already have the technique down. Weight is on your side since you won't have to be going any where near as ...