28 May 20215:47897 views on YouTubeWatch on YouTube
Most people who struggle on their first eFoil session are trying to do too many things at once: balance, throttle, foot position and the foil coming up under them, all in the first minute. The fix is to separate them. This episode follows a complete first timer through a six step progression, and he is flying inside a quarter of an hour.
The six steps in order
The sequence is deliberately boring at the start. Step one is riding lying down, getting used to the throttle and the way the board tracks with your weight low. Step two is riding on your knees. Step three is getting the board to foil while still kneeling, so you feel the lift arrive before you have to stand for it. Step four is planting your feet on the deck without standing up. Step five is standing. Only at step six do you transition into flying properly over the water. Each step only adds one new thing, which is why the whole progression can be worked through in one short session.
What the coaching actually corrects
Watching the first attempts is where the useful detail is. The early runs are quick skips along on the belly, then touch and goes from the knees, feeling the foil come up and settle again. Hand position gets confirmed as correct before the feet matter. The two corrections that come up are foot position too far back on the board, and standing up too fast, which is the most common way a promising attempt turns into a dismount. There is also a point where a rider is ready to shift weight back sooner than expected, so the progression is not rigid: you move on when the previous step feels settled.
Why this order works
None of this is about strength. It is about not asking your body to solve balance and speed and foil lift simultaneously while you are still learning what the throttle does. By the time you stand, you already know how the board feels on foil, because you felt it from your knees first. Once you have the standing part sorted, the next thing to learn is deep carving turns, which is where the sport actually opens up.
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