We talk to designer Ken Winner about the SLICK, the latest Foil Wing in the Duotone range.
We talk to designer Ken Winner about the SLICK, the latest Foil Wing in the Duotone range.
Two years ago it was almost just you and sky out there wing foiling and we take a look at today and the sport seems to be exploding in size, how is it to see the growth and interest?
It’s really great to see, I saw a video of Flash Austin with a homemade delta wing kite, not something that would float, not something that would be easy to assemble, but I saw a video of him riding this set up on a video from a local spot Kanaha and immediately thought to myself, what if we could do that with an inflatable? The inflatable has the advantage of being able to float. I went home and immediately began to design one and got the first prototype a week later. I took it out to the beach, stepped on my board, popped right up on the foil and sailed out to the reef, and then fell and turned around!
Seeing the numbers of wing foilers in spots such as here in Maui and spots like Tarifa, do you see people switching sports or it being an added toy to the quiver?
I see a lot of people fully converting, there are many people looking for a new challenge. Many people have been windsurfing for 30 or 40 years and they are keen for a new challenge and this is a good one for them. It’s incredible the range of appeal with the Foil Wing, especially viable for older people who have wind skills but don’t perhaps have the strength and resilience they once did. It’s much easier on the body, it’s great for kids, it’s not dangerous, it’s great for parents who have kids and want to do an activity as a family, and great for young athletic types that want to do tricks. It’s great for less athletic people who would enjoy cruising, down winding, or riding in the waves, or just getting out and flying over the water.
What Wing foiler would be best suited to the Slick?
The best customer for the Slick is the rider who thinks they want to give every aspect of winging a try but isn’t really sure that will focus on just one area of wing foiling. It’s a really versatile wing and anyone who orders it won’t have any fear of missing out. 90% of the wing foilers out there will be happy with the Slick.
So it’s great for freestyle and waves also?
Right, it works really well in the waves and for freestyle. For Freestyle it’s clearly a better choice than any wing with handles, if you are not perfect on your hand placement, with the Slick you’ll be fine, you’ll get your hand back on the boom without looking.
How did the development go and were there any difficult points to navigate?
Developing the Mini Boom and the Slick was a really straightforward process, the difficulty was the pandemic which slowed everything down. There was one question, and that was overcoming tip twist. One of the goals with the Slick was to minimize the wingspan so the tips don’t drag or catch on the water as they might with other wings and that meant squaring off the tips quite a bit. Wide square tips are sensitive to twisting, if the tip doesn’t have enough twist then the wing stalls lulls and feels underpowered and if it has too much twist then it also feels underpowered, so getting the correct amount of twist at the wingtips was something I spent a lot of time on.
Do you often have days with multiple sessions?
Yes, some days I might test kites from 11 am-1 pm and then wings from 2-3 pm.
What kind of riding on the wing foil do you most enjoy?
I like everything, I like wave riding, racing. I don’t do much freestyle because learning the moves take a lot of time. Julie (Ken’s wife) likes to downwind and so part of my job as a good husband is to do downwinders with her!
I thought that was your favourite part too!
Two years ago I was way into it and it’s still a lot of fun but I like the other aspects too.
Where do you see wing development going in the next several years?
With regards to wing development, we have some really great new wing designs coming along, not just materials but some fundamental changes in the geometry of the wing that I think will be a big improvement. But of course, it takes time to develop all of these things.
And the sport of wing foiling?
In terms of sport participation, I think it’s going to be really popular. I think there is so much going for it as it’s fun to do in light medium and strong winds and there are people who can get out with their families on a lake and enjoy it as well as people who can go out in mast high surf and enjoy it.
Are you surprised to see it grow as quickly as it has?
I’m not, I had suspicions a year or two ago it would be popular; I can remember being out in the ocean on a downwinder and thinking that my wife (Julie) would like this, as it turns out she told me it’s the most fun thing she’s ever done, she related it to being like snowboarding in powder, only you don’t have to be cold, at least in Maui!
It took a bit of convincing within the company to get people on board with the wings.
Yes, it took a little bit to get the interest going, Sky took the first wing out to Tarifa but no one was interested, I took a wing to the Gorge for the AWSI and no one was interested and nobody paid attention, finally when Till was here in 2018 I taught him how to ride the setup and then he paid attention.
Let’s talk about tuning, talk to us about the importance of inflation to the correct pressures?
Inflating your wing to the correct pressure is a really good idea. One thing about inflating fabric tubes is, that larger diameter tubes need less pressure to get the desired stiffness and smaller ones can tolerate a lot more pressure without breaking. So you could pump a 2.5-meter wing unto 9 psi whereas a 7 meter you should only pump unto 7 psi. We have the instructions on each wing with recommended pressures for the best performance. There is one extra thing to consider, a heavier rider will want to pump to higher. When the wing is pumped up to high pressure it is very lively and powerful and that is fine for a heavier person but I lighter person might prefer it with a pound less air pressure.