VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

I had an embarrassing attempt at launching in an onshore wind and shore break in Comox over the holidays. Wing canopy tear, face cut from foil (yes, I was wearing a helmet), and HA1125 foil damage when I bailed on trying to get out for a session (only thing I didn't damage was the board). One morning I just could not get passed the breaking waves (super frustrating). I would probably give it a go again in similar conditions but maybe try better to time my entry. Problem once out, is coming back, especially if the shore break builds.

I took about half a cm off one tip of the foil. I sanded it down with some 600 wet sand paper, but it is somewhat 'opened up'/cracked. Might stick a pin in to remove debris. Is there any point in filling the crack in the photo with epoxy or having it repaired? Or do I just keep sanding that thing down? I rode it a day after my 'incident' to try and somewhat save face. Seemed to work ok, but hard to tell if that tip was having an effect (felt I was smacking my board into the water a bunch, unintentionally).

Maybe it's a good time to chop that 1125 down. People seem to have great results by taking at least 2cm of each side and shaping it more squared off instead of pointy. I find the 1125 a bit stiff rail to rail and this would loosen it up. Give it a go and let me know how it works so I can try mine

Otherwise I would take a file to that tip and shape the leading edge to match the undamaged section, then sand and final wet sand. I'd also trim the other side to match. I'm quite sure you can go 2 or 3cm in before you hit foam. Wear a mask.

That wingtip looks pretty draggy to me. If a tiny blade of grass can pull the nose down then it's possible. I'd guess you're also a little timid after the accident and riding low or slower than normal. Both of which will pull the nose down.

Chopping it down is probably the easiest option to get a symmetrical smooth finish. Though, I would always attempt a proper repair. If you're not good with composites, suncure epoxy ding repair works well to reshape small wingtip dings. If it doesn't work out, you can always chop it later.

I also sewed some wingtip covers attached with a bungee for really sketchy shorebreaks. Half to protect the foil, but also useful for protecting your wing/self when walking around or leaving board on beach. I keep a mesh pull string bag from the gath visors on my waistbelt to store them while on the water. 90% of the time I remove them when entering in knee deep water. A bit tricky to put them back on, but if you're going to get washed in by waves anyway, I like to have my board on it's side, underhand grip on the front lower jibe strap (I guess this doesn't work strapless), other hand on the luff handle. And just let the waves push you in. Been winging since 2019 and have never punctured a canopy. Friday looking good for putting that to the test though.