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The 2024 Take Off is a fresh design that applies what Starboard has learned from past versions. What's new, and how does that translate to the real world? Tucker has ridden it and has some insights to share.IntroductionThis board has kind of an alien shape. Starboard wanted to make the experience better without going with a standard shape. They're pushing the limits of design and construction to give you a unique model, and there are some cool advantages to this unique shape and some of th …

Axis has released their new Spitfire front wings, and Ryan and Cole have had a chance to ride them. Where do these wings excel, and what sort of rider will enjoy them?Cole: I got on the Axis Spitfire for the first time when I was prone foiling, and I was absolutely blown away by the turning performance of this wing. It pumped really well, yet it still had great edge-to-edge performance, and this is something that I haven't really seen in wings that pump well. I was able to connect three or …

Getting Up and Riding | Ease of Use The primary purpose of a light wind wing is to get you up and riding with ease. Jeff and Ryan both agree that when it comes to “get up and go,” the North Loft Pro takes the win. It's easier to handle and builds speed effortlessly. The Loft Pro offers excellent stability and doesn't require aggressive pumping to get moving, even in sub 10 knots conditions. The Duotone Ventis, on the other hand, isn't far behind. It may require a bit more technical handli …

Pat is at King of the Great Lakes Test Fest with Ty from Slingshot. They're checking out the new V4 Slingwing for 2024. Pat: Ty, what's new this year? Has there been a bit of redesign? Ty: I love the Slingwing V3 and think it's an amazing wing, but for V4 we narrowed the profile down a little bit, which tightened up the canopy. The marketing term we use is "high tension high performance", and you feel it when you pump because there's so much more efficiency in this tight canopy. However, …

Tucker meets up with Billy from Manera and F-One at KoGL to chat about the new 9m Strike CWC. Wait... a 9m wing? Why not! Tucker: This is the behemoth, the big lady, of the range. Billy: Yes, we have here the 9m CWC. Tucker: 9 meters of goodness... that is a lot of wing! Billy: We've brought it to the right place to test the low end, and we've actually been quite successful here. Tucker: It's pretty sick. It doesn't look like a 9m. Billy: It definitely has the low end power, bu …

Longer Front Handle Design The 2024 Duotone Unit Wing has a new, unique design feature. It still has the rigid handles, but now the front handle is a lot longer than the back handle. Although you don't necessarily need all the real estate in the middle, it allows you to fly one-handed, almost like it's a boom. In fact, there is only a very small gap between the front and back handles. Duotone has positioned the front handle in just the right spot to really choke up on it and get a bit of …

Cabrinha Fusion X-Series | The All-RounderThe X-Series MkII hydrofoil offers enhanced maneuverability with refined profiles, a moderate aspect ratio, and a redesigned wingtip shape, making it suitable for various board sports. While maintaining its forgiving low-end performance, the all-around lean profile now provides an extended speed range. The new tip design allows for freeing the tips during turns without worrying about cavitation, a result of research conducted at the SINTEF facility. A …

Welcome back to MACkiteboarding Foil Fridays with Tucker. Today I'm going to talk about two exciting new stabilizers for the Slingshot Phantasm carbon foil system. The Jet and the V are smaller stabilizers for the lineup.They've had the 400 as a standard stabilizer for quite a long time. It's a bit larger and more stable to provide ease-of-use. At the other end of the spectrum is the 325, which is small and has winglets to help with tracking ability at high speeds. In the middle has been a …

Cabrinha's Daniel Ware chats with Aaron from MACkite at King of the Great Lakes Test Fest. Together, they tackle the most common questions about the Fusion Foil System. Daniel: Thanks for having me, Aaron. Aaron: Yeah dude, welcome. It's always good to see you. Daniel: It's flat and straight offshore, but we had some fun winging yesterday and got some pumping around behind skis today. Aaron: You milked every little bit out of that. It's nice to be able to show people what is possib …

Pat is with Kevin Wade at King of the Great Lakes Test Fest, checking out the new 2024 GT1+ Wing from Eleveight. What does the "Plus" mean, and is it right for you? Kevin: We have the Plus Series now, including the RS+ kite and the Process and Master C+ twintips. We're building out a comprehensive upper echelon line to highlight which products have a little bit of extra special sauce and higher quality materials. If you're looking for the top of the top in terms of performance, the Plus …

Welcome back to MACkiteboarding Foil Fridays with Tucker. Today we're going to look at a fun new release, the Slingshot Phantasm 899 PTM Front Wing. It is a high-aspect wing, and it's very thin and sleek with a lot of anhedral and wingtips that curl back up. What is the PTM 899? It is a very special wing in Slingshot's line. I expect it to be a bestseller for intermediate-plus wing foilers because it has a massive range. The aspect ratio and foil section gives it great low-speed lift, …

Tucker from MACkite is at KoGL Test Fest with Dave Tyburski from Ozone. They chat about two new wings in the lineup: the Flux and the Fly. Tucker: With these two wings, you cover the whole gamut for anybody that might be into winging right, Dave?Ozone Flux V1 Dave: Absolutely. You've spent a lot of time on the Flux, Tucker. The Flux is a high-performance wing with nice, high lift. It has rigid carbon handles and it's got the lightweight Dacron, so it's a very lightweight, stiff wing wi …

Tucker from MACkite is with Billy of F-One and Manera at the 2023 King of the Great Lakes Test Fest checking out some hot new gear for foiling. What is it? Is it for you?F-One Rocket SUP Downwind Series FoilboardBilly: We have our new Rocket Downwind Series board, available in a few different constructions and different widths. We already have the CNC custom boards, handmade, vacuum-bagged, and full carbon. We also are going to offer a bamboo collection, coming soon.We've got three differe …

Performance The 2024 Duotone Unit Wing retains the essence of its predecessors but with enhanced top-end speed and efficiency. It's versatile, suitable for jumps, waves, and especially for new riders. Its lift and grunt make it forgiving for those still refining their technique. For the best wind range, you should consider building your Unit Wing quiver to allow for 1m to 1.5m between sizes.Features and DesignLeading Edge Starting at the leading edge, the surf handle remains minimalist, l …

Ryan Hooker from MACkite and Matt Aiken from North chat about the North Sonar Foil System for wing foiling, surf foiling, and kite foiling. Find out who it's for and what's new for 2024. Ryan: I've been riding this system for the past six months or so, and a few things that I've been liking about it are that it's a really solid setup. It's one of the stiffer foils that I've been on. The mast goes all the way down to the connection of the fuselage. You also have the option of the full ca …