Riding Frontside

Powered up - with both hands on the boom

There are two ways to ride waves frontside while wing foiling - with the wing flagged or powered up. Here you can see the powered-up version with both hands on the boom.

In this video, Mads Michel demonstrates how to ride a wave down the line. The front of your body faces the wave (hence the term “frontside”). A bottom turn (in front of the wave) and a cutback (top turn in the steep part of the wave) are strung together - you foil an S-shaped line along the wave.

You can hold the wing in a neutral position with your back hand on the leading edge’s handle (flagged), or - as shown here - with both hands (powered up) on the boom. This is similar to riding a wave while windsurfing.

By holding the boom with both hands, you can use the wing’s forward momentum and aren’t solely reliant on the wave’s thrust. This allows you, for example, to maintain speed on a flatter section of the wave, jump using the wing’s lift when needed (an “aerial” is the term for a jump while riding a wave), or - as Mads demonstrates here during a top turn - let the foil slide.

You have to guide the powered-up wing as Mads demonstrates here: During the bottom turn in front of the wave, the wing is pushed backward to maintain a clear view of the breaking wave.

Between the bottom turn and the cutback, you’re backwinded (with the wing to windward of your body) - this works because you’re moving away from the wind, which reduces the pressure on the backwinded wing. During the cutback, the wing swings back into its normal riding position.

Practice Tip:
The S-shaped line you ride on a wave can also be practiced on flat water. You can find videos on this in our riding technique section.