Efoiling Land Simulation Drill

Efoiling Land Simulation Drill


Hi everybody. I'm Erik.

And I'm Pat.

We're instructors for MACkiteboarding, and we're doing some videos on how to hydrofoil, whether it's with eFoils, wakefoils, or wing foiling.

Yes, we're going to cover some safety stuff to get you started out with. We want to do some basic boater safety stuff: know your surroundings, be aware of where you're at in the water, obstacles around you, as well as people on the water. You're also going to need a PFD--a life jacket for personal use--and we also recommend a helmet.

If you've never heard of goofy and regular stance, it means you probably haven't ridden on a surfboard or a wakeboard or a snowboard, so we're going to explain that now. As a general rule, your dominant foot goes in the back. I'm left-handed. I kick a ball with my left foot, so that's my back foot and this is called "goofy stance". Now, if I was right-handed, I would probably have my right foot in the back and that would be a "regular stance". To figure it out for yourself, you can put on a pair of socks, run down the hall on a slick floor, and try sliding. Whatever foot slides out in front, that's the one that's probably going to be the one in front when you're riding on a board.

The Pop-up Drill

Today we're going to be covering a land simulation drill. The goal is to help you learn all the ins and outs of board and hydrofoil control before you get in the water. The concepts are actually simple, easy, and fun.

To start, lay your board in the grass. For this drill, we're going to work on popping up and how to balance on a board with a hydrofoil. In the down position, hold onto the rail of the board and push up with your arms. Keep your weight on your hands and place the front foot between your hands. Note: maintain more pressure on the front foot. This will hold the nose of the board down.

Shift your weight from your hands to your feet while standing. This is ideal while you're getting used to the board and will prevent the board from lifting up onto foil.

Now that you're standing, let's talk about body posture. Keep your head high and look forward to where you're going. Remember, don't look down at your feet and don't stick your butt out. You want to keep good posture in the riding position. Repeat the drill, alternating your front foot to build muscle memory.

Controlling Your Lift

Feeling good? Great! Let's talk about basic board control. For this drill, you may use the soft foam from the packaging to create a parallel balance beam in the middle of the board. You may also simply lay the board in the grass if you're not comfortable balancing. Note where you shift your weight. Balancing your weight between both feet and the pressure of your heels and toes will control the direction of the board and the lift of the foil.

If you keep your weight forward, the nose of the board will stay down. Gently shift the weight back to favor your back foot, and the foil will lift the board off the water. In order to steer, you will use heel-to-toe pressure, starting with your feet in the center line of the board. Let's talk about arm position. If you keep your front arm extended forward, this automatically increases pressure on the front foot. If you extend your arm to the side, this creates increased heel or toe pressure, initiating a turn. Extended to the rear will angle the hydrofoil up and rising.

Bringing It All Together

All these moments will apply later when you get up on a foil. The e-Foiler starts in a taxi stage with their weight forward on their hands. As they pop up, they're looking where they want to go and are standing in the riding position with heavy front foot pressure. To lift off, the rider is shifting their weight back and is balancing front and back foot pressure to control lift, while using heel and toe pressure to steer the board. Be sure to practice the land simulation until you fully understand these concepts, and then you will be ready to get in the water. When you're ready, be sure to check out our beginner videos for e-Foiling or boat foiling.


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For a good time call 616-607-9355
10th May 2023 Pat & Eric

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