Key points to mastering the Heel Side Tack | Wing Foiling

The Heel Side tack is a tough one for a lot of riders! Its an awkward exit and puts your back to most of the move, but with a little instruction it is a fun one to master.
Sam takes us through the steps and techniques to learning the Heel Side Tack. Breaking it down into two to sections with action footage!
The first thing that is gone over is wing control and position through the tack. Including set up, entry, and exit. The wing handling through the tack is where most people get held up. This will be the focus of the video! However, its not to disregard board and foil control. This part seems to be more natural to the rider, after all if you take the wing out of the equation is just a heel side turn! Non the less still important to the mastering the tack!
The Heel Side tack is a very fun move in wing foiling and one that makes it easier to lap a fun section of swell or race around faster! You can gain a ton of up wind ground through it and hold tons of speed on the exit. It opens up a whole bunch of different combo moves. We hope this video helps you to take your riding to the next level. Enjoy!

[@joemiller8029]

Thanks for posting this video. You did a great job. I consider myself to be expert regarding tacking and offer the following: Watched this to be open to new tips and tricks. A couple things - one, I too am goofy foot. Because of terrible problems w/my right elbow and shoulder from windsurfing days, I first grab the front handle of the wing with my left hand, not right. I found you can drive the wing thru the wind in combination with forcing your body to twist and turn much more aggressively. It really helped with mega speed in the tack. The trick too I found is that with your front hand (my left but may be your right) the trick is to learn to "feel" the wing quickly thru the wind as if you are only holding it with a couple fingers. A trick to help with this concept is to drop the wing entirely and only hold the wing leash. It illustrates how when there is no drag on the wing you fly thru the tack. Plus it is another trick when you are bored. It is very subtle, and not a power maneuver. Sneak the wing thru the wind. The last tip/trick is to learn to time it perfectly on the incoming swell. The better you get, and the faster, you find you don't need the wing on the other side because the combination of your board speed and power from swell will let you pump and play for awhile before you need the wing. Just some random thoughts. Thanks again for making the video!

[@AkSeapilot]

I went out yesterday and used your video (it is different than others because its more agressive and using the wing much more than just coasting through and catching it on the other side.).. I am pretty darn close.. Heading out again in the cold alaskan wind and rain to give it another go.. Thanks for taking the time to do this vid. Cheers.

[@dickeybirdcreates6157]

great video. Awesome seeing they sailing aspect coming through your tutorial. Some key tips that others havent brought up.

[@emmettlazich]

Excellent video. Best tacking video I've found after watching about 50. Thanks. I like that full custom pink board.

[@bigwinds]

Thanks for the feedback - Glad it helped. The custom pink board is the cheapest on the market at the moment.

[@robadair]

Best one I’ve seen, thanks

[@andylitespeed]

Thanks, well put together video!

[@huckthat]

I've been getting these about 50% of the time, but now, seeing Sam's technique and hearing his explanation of the move, I'm going to get out there and really try to aggressively carve the turn and keep the wing powered longer through the tack before I thrust the hips! Cheers, great lesson!

[@bigwinds]

Thanks Matt!

[@garymccorry8843]

Awesome tips, especially the one about hanging on to the wing for longer, I have been getting stuck halfway through the carve, looking forward to trying these tweaks next time out!

[@bigwinds]

Thanks, hope they help!

[@matttcoburn]

good job