Wingboarding in St. Petersburg is getting some traction. More advanced technologies have made wingboarding easier to get into. Other wind sports like windsurfing, kiteboarding and sailing have fundamental principles that apply to wingboarding. Here is our second time wingboarding in St. Petersburg.
Location to Wingboard
The video above is at the west side of the Skyway Bridge on a southerly wind. No matter what direction the wind is blowing, St. Petersburg has a location to wingboard. There should always be a side-shore, cross-onshore or onshore wind. The reason for this is to prevent getting blown off shore. If inexperienced, a southerly wind at the west side of Skyway can be a difficult location. The deep spot to foil is already downwind of the launch area. With a southerly wind, the wind and current blows the rider towards the bridge downwind, which could create a dangerous situation. When learning any new wind sport, it is important to be mindful of the location. Wingboarding in St Petersburg can be done on any wind direction!
Learn to Wingboard
There are tips and tricks to make learning how to wingboard easier. There are multiple different skillsets involved in wingboarding. For example, there’s the foil aspect, wind sport aspect and the wing. Together, these elements make it possible to wingboard.
We do offer wingboarding lessons. We customize these lessons to the individual’s previous experience in board-sports or sail-sports. Leave us a message about your background sports and that you’re interested in learning to wingboard. Fill out the form below to begin wingboarding:
Do you have to foil?
A wingboarder doesn’t have to foil but the foil is far more efficient. What this means is that the foil will get the rider upwind better than a board without one. A daggerboard like on a traditional windsurfer is possible and does work. We recommend a larger board with more volume and a daggerboard.
Will a kiteboard work?
A kiteboard could work if it’s blowing a consistent 25 kts. There are a lot more 15 kt days than 25 kt days. A kiteboard does not have the same surface area that a large windsurfing board has. The daggerboard also acts as a rudder to more efficiently plane the board upwind.
Will an SUP work?
A standup paddleboard will somewhat work. If it has a lot of volume then a rider can stand on the board regardless of the wing. The difficult part will be going upwind. The rider has to know how to position their feet and angle the board to appropriately ride at an angle into the wind.
Equipment to Wingboard
There are a similar number of pieces to wingboard as to kiteboard or windsurf. Below is a list of the equipment involved with wingboarding:
- Board
- Hydrofoil
- Wing
- Pump
- Board Leash / Wing Leash
How Fun Is Wingboarding
Wingboarding in the right conditions is a lot of fun. The conditions we prefer to wingboard in are when the winds are above 15 kts. Wingboarding does require more wind than kiteboarding. Another important variable to consider is the tide. On a high tide and in strong winds, the water is often choppy. Freestyle kiteboarding in choppy water is not always fun. A wingboard, as long as it’s on foil, is very smooth in choppy waters. It’s a lot of fun to do speed runs with a wingboard when the winds are up and the waters are choppy.
Another area where wingboarding in St Petersburg would be fun is in the waves. The wing helps the rider travel upwind or out to catch a wave. Once on a wave, hold the wing in the neutral position to not create pull and enjoy surfing the wave!
