Performance Wind-Foil Slalom Competition
FOIL PERFECTION
Incredible! Faster and faster foil flying! JP's fastest foil boards just got even faster – again! This year the most important performance-enhancing feature of all these boards is their construction: S-TEC gives the boards a new and completely different look and makes the already very light boards even lighter! The boards take-off earlier and are easier to control in the air.
The range has been streamlined to the core sizes: 80, 85 and 88. The main focus has been on efficiency, specifically minimizing resistance and enhancing control in the air. To achieve this, the boards feature a flat nose scoop, a thin rails in the front, and a slightly domed deck at the nose to optimize the airflow. The deck shape in the standing area is flat, with raised pads that extend above the rail, providing consistent leverage towards the foil. Only the main competition size, the 85, now comes in a completely new shape.
Optimizing weight is especially an issue on performance board. So, the new and groundbreaking S-TEC construction is also used for JP’s race boards. The estimated average weight saving of the S-TEC for the HydroFoil Slalom is expected be up to 0.3 kilo. Considering that previous boards were already extremely light every additional weight reduction is impressive!
This is achieved through the following changes:
- No paint
- Reduction of anti-slip, used only in standing areas
- Reduction of UV-paint
- Smaller and thinner pads – less EVA and less glue
- Refined custom lamination process, with fibres prepared and laminated separately
Durability remains at the proven level as all important reinforcements remain unchanged and especially through the use of Biax-Carbon. Only items that have no relevance for strength and durability are reduced or abandoned.
The other essential contribution to weight saving comes from the optimized lamination process which not only creates a totally new look, but making the boards up to 300 grams lighter this year and contributes to improved performance.
What a great feature for all HydroFoil Slalom boards !
The weight-saving design involves minimal use of UV-resistant paint, which may lead to slightly different shades of colours in certain areas over time.
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Compared to fin racing, foiling has become much more than just competitive; foils predominantly lead the rankings. Today, they excel in all areas of slalom racing, unless restricted by rules or organizers.
The PWA only allows one size of foil board in a racer’s quiver, so shaper Werner Gnigler designed a completely new core size to meet this challenge.
HYDROFOIL SLALOM 85
The 85 was designed to optimize airflow around the board, enhancing top speed and stability in the air.
To achieve this, Werner made it much shorter, incorporating an exceptionally sharp V-shape along the underside of the nose. This allowed the board to be only 2 metres long, making extremely compact and minimizing drag.
The V-shape helps maintain directional speed for early take-offs, previously only associated with longer hulls. The sharp V ensures smooth touchdowns and lifts the board instantly back into flight mode, without losing balance or causing catapults.
In the standing area the deck shape is even flatter now, improving the rider’s leverage over the foil and creating more power.
The concave recess at the tail now has a more radical shape to reduce turbulence and control airflow and forces along the board.
The cut-outs on the bottom are even deeper this year to reduce volume so that it is easier to sink the tail when pumping and loading the foil for instant take-off.
The competitive HydroFoil Slalom 80 and 88 –newly developed for 2024– remain in the range to cover all foil slalom conditions for lighter or heavier riders, too. This way every rider can find the perfect board depending on their weight and the conditions they will use it in.
Here are the essential shape details of all three boards:
• Aerodynamic Nose Area Efficiency
The boards are designed to fly through the air, so minimizing air resistance results in improved control and speed. The main target was to achieve maximum efficiency with the following refined shape details:
The nose scoop is flat and the front rails are thin. To optimize the airflow, we introduced a slightly domed deck in that area, creating laminar airflow around the hull and balancing lift and downforce to stabilize the board in the air. All HydroFoil Slalom boards are very short, minimizing swing weight and improving top end control.
• Mast Base Area
The rails in this area are fuller with a hard, sharp edges – the most efficient shape to create lift to get into flight mode and to drastically reduce drag on touch downs for instant re-bounce.
• Deck Shape: Recess for the Deck Box
This deep recess lowers the pivot point of the mast base which helps closing the gap between the board and sail foot. It also provides efficiency and additional control when pushing the limits and during the jibe.
• Deck Shape: Stance and Power
The deck shape in the standing area received the most radical change: It is flatter now and the pads extend out a little further than the maximum width of the rail. Now, the riders can move their feet into the ideal position without changing the angle of leverage towards the foil which may happen on rounded rails. This also allows us to have two strap plugs for the rear foot – the inboard one for high wind runs and reaching, the outboard one for tighter reaches and light wind.
• Deck Shape: Tail Aerodynamics
The tail now comes with a concave recess, almost like a cut-out, channelling the air flow along the deck and supporting the rider with additional control since the smoother and more directional airflow stabilizes the board in the air.
• Large Tail Cut-Outs
When foiling, the cut-outs have two main functions: To reduce the volume in the tail and to reduce drag.
The reduced tail volume allows the rider to sink the tail when pumping to load up the foil for instant take-off.
All boards feature cut-outs, individually shaped for the intended range of use of each board. On occasional touchdowns, the deep cut-outs significantly reduce the wetted area resulting in less drag – which is imperative and vital as riders sail and touch-down at much higher speeds.
• Wide Tail
The tail provides lots of leverage over the foil which is a key factor for going fast and still remaining in control despite the enormous forces. It is essential when trying to find the best compromise between a comfortable stance and efficient power distribution towards the foil.
TECH FEATURES
* Full Biax-Carbon deck
* High-density PVC in complete deck and bottom
* Biax-Carbon reinforcements in the foot strap area
* Glass reinforcements in the centre standing and foot strap area
* Full Parabolic rails due to overlapping Carbon and glass layers, additionally reinforced along the foot strap area
* Deck cut-out
* Recess at the mast track to ‘close the gap’
* Large cut-outs
* Footstrap with scale
* Foil-Tuttle box
All these boards are super-efficient and incredibly fast. They remain in control in a wider wind range and the whole line covers a vast range, so that every rider can find the right size/s and performance needed for their weight and conditions.
Super-fast foil machines: Performance, power and control for slalom competition. The stage is set to improve your foil speed! Now featuring updated technology.
HF-SL 85: exceptionally sharp V-shape along the underside of the nose.
Concave recess at the tail reduces turbulence and control airflow along the deck.
Parabolic Rail Reinforcement
Approved for Foiling
Footstrap Scale
Foil-Tuttlebox
Deep Tuttle adapter for Glide Surf and Glide Wind Foils. Foil approved fin boxes – specially reinforced for foils with Deep Tuttlebox bases.
Flight SLR
PURE RACE PERFORMANCE FOIL
for JP Foil-Tuttlebox (DT)
Front Wing sizes
Large: 90 cm
Medium: 80 cm
Small: 70 cm
Most competitive Slalom & Speed Foil on the market. Ultra streamlined connections. Unique front wing connection with a four – bolt system. Best water flow on the market. Minimized amount of drag. Tapered recess in fuselage guarantees tightest mast-fuselage connection. Stiffest carbon mast
Ideal mast length of 95cm
Flight FR
Freerace / Freeride
Interchangeable head
(Deep Tuttle Box / Powerbox / Surf Plate)
Mast: 85 cm
The FLIGHT FR is the latest evolution of NEILPRYDE’s accessible high-performance freeride foil range for real world sailors. It is less intimidating than full carbon foils and still delivers exceptional speed in a wide wind range.
Compatible with high performance freeride, and purely specialized foil boards, the FLIGHT FR not only offers great lift, stability and control but is even faster than many other full-carbon foils in the market.
The riders have expressed that this is the most fun windsurfing foil in the range and freestylers have even been choosing this over any other foil for freestyle foiling. Truly an all-round foil for everyone!
