Novelty: NeilPryde Glide Swift Carbon - Foil for windsurfers and windsurfers

The new Glide Swift Foil from manufacturer NeilPryde was developed by Nils Rodenblad, who works as an engineer in the America's Cup and previously developed the brand's windsurfing sails. The foil concept is intended to cover a very large target group, from beginners to foil experts, by combining early lift, a good glide and high speed potential.

This ambitious goal is to be achieved with a special wing shape that is modelled on that of a swallow: the middle section is quite wide and strongly profiled for maximum lift, while the wing becomes noticeably slim and thin towards the wingtips. "In this way," says Philip Mackenbrock from NeilPryde, "a large part of the lift is generated in the centre area. The slim wingtips in turn minimise drag, which ensures high top speed and good turning."

Depending on which front wing size you choose, the aspect ratio (ratio of wingspan to surface area) also changes. For example, the smallest front wing with an area of 600 cm2 is designed to be significantly more elongated (aspect ratio of 9.1) than the largest wing in the range, the 1450 with a ratio of 7.3.

Glide Swift Foil with modular system

All components are designed so that they can be combined and replaced individually at any time. This means that anyone who already owns NeilPryde Glide Foil components can continue to use them. This could be equally interesting for wingfoilers and windsurfing foilers, as the Glide concept has been on the market for many years and is therefore widely used.

Small, but lots of lift

Given the available front wing sizes of 600/800/1000/1200 and 1450 cm2, you might think that the new NeilPryde Glide Swift is a foil for experts only. Philip Mackenbrock explains: "You can choose a very small front wing, as the wings produce a lot of lift and also have a low stall speed, i.e. they continue to fly for a long time when the speed drops in manoeuvres. For example, if you come from a Glide 19 with a wing area of 1850 cm, you can easily switch to the Glide Swift 1450. This will allow you to take off just as early, but at a higher top speed. Another advantage is that the flow is always very stable. If you edge hard and a wingtip comes to the surface of the water, this is not immediately acknowledged with a stall, as the lift is mainly generated in the centre area of the wing."

The new Glide Swift wings are designed so that you can ride them much smaller

The new wings are currently only available as a set in combination with the high-priced carbon mast for 2199 to 2349 euros. A cheaper set with an aluminium mast is to follow. If you want to upgrade your foil at a lower price, you can - as described - also combine the new Glide Swift font and back wings with "old" components from your Glide foil.

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