SPOTLIGHT 95
French finesse
Alpinefoil A1 carbon/alloy mast windfoil
Info: https://www.alpinefoil.com/kitefoil-windfoil-shop/windfoil/ Price: Carbon mast A1: €1879; Alloy mast A1: €1299
WORDS: WINDSURFING UK PICS: JAMES JAGGER
ALPINEFOIL ARE YET ANOTHER FRENCH WINDFOILING BRAND WHO
PRICKED OUR INTEREST WHEN THEY STARTED PUTTING OUT
CONTENT EARLIER IN 2018 RELATING TO THEIR B RAND NEW A1
OFFERING. COMING WITH BOTH A CARBON AND ALLOY MAST THE
BRAND OFFER AN INTERCHANGEABLE DESIGN THAT MELDS THE BEST
OF ALLOY AND CARBON WORLDS. WE MANAGED TO GET HOLD OF
BOTH TO PUT THEM HEAD TO HEAD.
Things that don’t change are the
impressively manufactured burnt
orange coloured 92cm fuselage,
ULW900 RTeam front wing and RTeam
carbon stabilizer. Also, unique to
Alpinefoil is the integrated sacrificial
anode that helps with corrosion and
stops saltwater attacking the foil. We
then had the option of swapping from
AF’s A1 carbon 92cm mast to the
brand’s 90cm alloy version.
Carbon
Attaching to the board via deep tuttle
it’s a snug fit that locks securely in
place – this is the same with all
components and gives confidence
when entering the water.
As soon as a gust hits you can feel the
power generated from the wings. It
doesn’t take a huge amount of puff to
rise up but what surprised us the most
with such a big front wing is the
Alpinefoil’s manners. It’s a very stable
ride with an efficient glide and smooth
feeling through the water. Whilst not
the fastest we’ve tried it still holds an
impressive top speed, but more
importantly is super easy to use. The
92cm mast gives extra leeway which is
especially welcome in rougher water. It
also showed no sign of torsional flex (or
twitch), instead staying rock steady
rigid on the straight and round corners.
Alloy
Switching to the alloy mast was
interesting. In almost every scenario we
tested the foil we couldn’t detect too
much difference other than a slight (and
only very small) lack of upwind
performance when compared to its
carbon sibling. Everything else feels
much the same with the A1 losing none
of its manner displayed with the carbon
mast fixed in place. And even though the
alloy is a few centimetres shorter there
was also hardly any difference in terms
of the rapid onset of over foil.
Conclusion
All in Alpinefoil have properly nailed
the A1 foil’s design. With its anti-
corrosive fuselage and carbon wings
the version we used is perfectly
suited to light air flying in the most
efficient manner possible. Whilst not
a manoeuvre orientated foil per se,
other than gybes, it’s a great freeride
model that many will find favour with.
For those racing we’d suggest
probably going with the carbon mast
whereas everyday sailors would find
enough performance with the brand’s
alloy mast. And if you really want to
get progressive then don’t forget you
can swap out the foil’s wings and
gain additional range. For us
Alpinefoil’s A1 windfoil represents
exactly what a decent foil is all
about.
uk
WIND
SURFING