Top turn with a surf foil

As for a top turn on a conventional surfboard, to nail a good top turn on surf foiling gear you need a perfect coordination of the rotation of your upper body, your weight transfer and your gaze, along with a perfect timing on this moving skate ramp called a wave 🙂

  

Add to it a peculiarity specific to the foiling which is a small acceleration to cope with when turning. This acceleration is the sum of your own downforce and the energy of the wave.

Surf foiler: Malo, GONG team rider, in Matata FSP Pro.   In surf foiling, two situations arise before going for a top turn:

• you’re either already surfing
• Or, you are pumping towards the line-up to connect a wave.

If you are already on the wave, you have the advantage of already benefiting from its energy. It is then essentially a question of guiding the board where you want it to go. This is mainly done with your gaze which instinctively projects your body in the desired direction. The movements of your body to attack your top turn are done in the same manner as the bottom / top turn sequence in surfing. However, your movements should be way more gentle. Especially because a bottom turn in surf foiling will make you accelerate while a bottom turn in surfing tends to slow you down. A simple look and a good orientation of the upper body are therefore sufficient in your first attempts. A bit like your first snowboard turns. The upper body does enough job to initiate your turn. In surf foiling you have to anticipate these movements more than in classic surfing.

Balance yourself with your arms. Spreading them wide will help you. The acceleration in the descent after the top turn can be significant. Transfer your weight from your back foot to your front foot and move your pelvis forward so that the foil stays under the surface.

To radicalize your top turn, the recipes of classic surfing come into play : regrouping the body for the bottom turn, a stronger push on the back foot and a faster rotation of your upper body. However, we do not draw the same lines as in surfing, especially the bottom turn which will be more down the line with a surf foiling board.

If you attack your top turn following a pumping phase, the wave is no longer just a skate ramp that rises in front of you but also a conveyor belt that will allow you to recover 😉

Unless you have enough inertia, do not release your effort before completing the top turn. Only after turning around will the wave help you fly effortlessly.

Have fun!