May 222 min read

First lesson with the BBtalkin headsets

Wow, it is amazing to be able to talk to my student out on the water. After my great morning session which included some jumps, my wife wanted to get out on the water to continue learning wing foiling.

Jen also wanted to try the Fanatic 142 litre Sky WS Foilboard I found for her. That board had been recommended by Andy Brandt and she liked it so it is the newest addition to the Launch Pad beginner fleet.

A jump from my morning session, then I foiled the gear upwind and met Jen on the boat for her lesson

The advantage of the BBtalkin headset is that we were in constant communication while I foiled the board upwind for her. Since it was a south wind - and we are on the north shore, it is too challenging for a beginner to start from our shore. I gladly got a few more foil runs in while sharing with her details on my foot positioning, wind angles and other information to help her get going.

I got fully upwind and she met me with the boat. We swapped the leashes onto her hand and ankle. She got up on the board right away and started sailing. The 142l SKY SUP WS foilboard is definitely a great beginner board.

Jen was using my our Duotone 6m Unit wing. It is a great wing with two separate handles that I enjoyed even well overpowered all morning. She would have preferred one of my Duotone Slick wings with the mini boom. It seemed whenever she got her back hand to the back handle, it was too far back and she would steer downwind. A boom would have let her scootch her hand back gradually without a big disruptive reach. Other than that, her wing handling was great.

Since we were in constant contact, Jen was vocalizing what she was doing which was great for me to hear. I could also remind her occasionally to look upwind, adjust her feet or get ready for a gust. The headsets worked perfectly! I got a bit of video.

While there wasn't enough wind anymore to actually get foiling, it was a great session for her getting to try a new wetsuit, board and wing. She jibed back and forth and eventually stepped off the dock without having fallen in. Way to go Jen!

A few days later we also had great communication when Jen went out again. I sailed the gear upwind as it was windier I took the 5m Slick for her. She was getting even more comfortable doing great sail flips and leash management. But she still found the 5m wing a bit small for the wind while she was out. Next time we try her on the 7m wing. And we’ll be using the headsets again for sure!