To start with foiling, you basically need a board with a foil. There are different boards, and foils on the market. Dependent on what you like to do (pumpfoilin, wavefoiling, kitefoiling …) you will need different foils and boards. Therefore, when deciding to go for your own equipment, make sure you know what your your intentions are.
However, independent if you go for wake-, wave- or pumpfoiling, the equipment will exist of the follwing main components:
Front Wing
The front-wing is responsible for the main lift. The physical principle is the same than the one of an aircraft wing.
Due to the shape of the wing, the air – or in case of a wing for a pumpfoil – moves faster on the upper side of the wing than on the lower side. As a consequence, the pressure on the upper side of the wing is lower than the pressure on the bottom side of the wing. The difference in pressure (on the upper and lower side of the wing) results in a force that lifts the wing up.
Stabilizer
The stabilizer is an additional wing attached at the rear-end of the fuselage. The rear-wing or “stabilizer” will – as the name states – help to stabilize the system. The stabilizer has to fit the front wing as they are acting together in combination.
There are different sizes and shapes available. By changing the shape and/or position the back wind, you can either gain stability or increase the flexibility of the system. In general, a bigger distance between the stabilizer and the front wing, will increase the pitch stability. By changing to a wing with a larger span, the roll stability will be increased.
