TEAM NEWS: INSIDE LOOK AT THE PUMP FOILING COMPETITION WITH LOU THOUIN
After landing on the podium of this groundbreaking pump foiling event, our team rider Lou Thouin shares his take on two intense days of competition.
After a standout showing at the latest Mondial du Vent in Leucate—where he made it to the Surf-Freestyle wing foil quarter-finals—Lou Thouin also impressed in pump foiling, snagging podium finishes in two brand-new competition formats.
Pumpfoiler: Lou, GONG team rider, with a Kluber 80 HDCC, HM77 mast, Veloce L, Veloce HDW M, Fluid S stab. Photo: SFT tour.
Day 1: Dock start / pump foiling
"The comp ran over two days. On day one, we got lucky with great no-wind conditions. The format kicked off with a first round where each rider did a solo timed run—out and back to a buoy.
This run made it possible to create a bracket with seeded riders starting in the quarter-finals, with 4 heats of 4 athletes; only the top 2 from each heat moved on to the next round until the final.
In the first bracket, I crashed right at the start of the semis, so I ended up 5th... Then we jumped into a second bracket, same format but with a new course and extra buoys to weave through. I managed to take the win in that one and climbed back up to 3rd overall. Then the wind picked up, so we called it for the day. Bit of a shame about that fall—I had great speed and really liked the format. I was riding the Kluber 80, which makes every move super efficient, paired with the HM77 mast that gives me all the range I need, even though I tend to fly pretty high on the foil. I had a Fluid S stab underneath for tighter, faster turns, and switched up front wings—starting with the Veloce HDW M before moving to a Veloce L to lock in solid starts." – Lou Thouin.
Day 2: Tow-in Downwind Racing
"Day two brought totally different conditions—onshore wind and building waves throughout the day. So the organizers switched things up with some fun races that didn’t count in the final standings since they were too far off from proper pump foil. The format was a downwind race: a jet ski towed us offshore and dropped us just before the start line, and the finish was on the beach. We had to pump in as close to shore as possible, then sprint to the line. Each rider had two tries to lay down their best time. I ended up winning that one! For this setup, I stuck with the same gear but swapped in a Veloce S since we had a tow-in start. I could keep up great speed, especially with the wind at our backs."
Pumpfoiler: Lou, GONG team rider, with a Kluber 80 HDCC, HM77 mast, Veloce L, Veloce HDW M, Fluid S stab. Photo: SFT tour.
Pump Foil Board Kluber HDCC
Foil Front Wing Veloce H V3
Foil Front Wing Veloce HDW V3
