Steffi Wahl
Obviously you love wing foiling, tell us a bit more about how you started.
Last summer I had the whole afternoon to play with the foil and wing and had one of the best days on the water with loads of laughter and happiness, because the feeling of getting the board on the foil and flying over the sea is just magic. And then there are the crashes… I think I had muscle aching in my abs after the session that afternoon because of all the laughter while crashing. So much fun to learn something new on the water.
What would you tell the water enthusiasts considering to start wing foiling?
Don´t let yourself confuse too much with the foil. Before I first hopped on the board, I was a bit concerned to hurt myself. I turned the board on my first try and when I started to feel the amazing technology under my feet, all my concerns were gone. The handling of the equipment will be easy after a couple of times and the best thing about wing foiling is that you can do it on your own, basically everywhere. The most important thing is that somebody equips you with learning material. As always it makes no sense to start with the wrong gear.
What Role Women play in this new sport? Where are opportunities?
As there are so many girls surfing, because it is so easy to just grab a board and go I hope they may see a fun potential in wing foiling. The wing is super light and the only step is to get used to the foil. Once that is done, the feeling is amazing, because everything is so light and easy. It’s almost calm while flying and there is nothing that restricts the feeling. It doesn’t need loads of power, it needs feeling and a sense for your surroundings and women have a lot of that!