INBOUND: Naish DW Boards

Downwinding got comprehensively covered by Naish recently, with a solid range of DW boards released, several of which happily hold their own in other disciplines too. We went looking for the full lowdown on what does what…

You recently dropped a bunch of new Hover DW boards, including the Nvision, Crossover, and the Inflatable. Can you please give us a brief overview of each?

We have created a well-balanced range of dedicated downwind foilboards as well as boards that cover a certain crossover aspect between pure downwinding and lightwind winging and in some cases also standup foiling in waves. Our new Hover DW Nvision is a dedicated SUP downwind foilboard, while the Hover DW Crossover range can be used for downwind paddle foiling, SUP foiling in surf as well as a great lightwind wing board. With our Hover Inflatable range we essentially cover the same target range but in an easy-to-store and easy-to-travel package.

The Nvision is your super lightweight downwind option. Tell us how you’ve optimized this…

The Hover DW Nvision range ticks off all the boxes when it comes to downwind foiling. The lightweight carbon sandwich wood construction minimized weight in general and swing weight in particular. Board weight in combination with the right shape can make a massive difference when it comes to getting up on the foil. Our rockerline gives additional support in that aspect as it makes it easy and smooth to paddle the board up onto the foil. The beveled double concave nose design with V allows the board to track straight during the initial strokes that are so important to get up on the foil. Once the board starts releasing the bottom shape allows the rider to redirect if needed to carry the momentum forward. The bottom shape and rocker maximize the board’s effective length which is crucial for an early get-go. Once up in the air the board is well balanced and its sleek side profile with the rail bevel helps to reduce wind impact from the side even in the most daring turns.

Tell us about the “Hard Edge” on the Hover DW Inflatable…

Inflatables for foiling usually have issues releasing to get onto the foil. The Hard Edge feature that we implement on the Hover DW Inflatables helps that issue by allowing the water to release at takeoff speed. This makes the Inflatable downwind boards quite an interesting product as they offer the paddle performance of longer boards in an easy-to-pack compact setup. Their light weight plays a big part in the great paddle-up performance.

The regular Hover Downwind also forms part of this collection and was released a little earlier. How’s the new version of this board been received?

The new Hover DW Crossovers took some of the features from last year’s line while pushing the performance level and accessibility a bit further. While being great boards for downwind and even SUP foiling they also shine as “mid-length” light air wing boards making it possible to get up on the foil even in the lightest conditions. For those boards we kept the rail bevel mostly in the nose area while maximizing the surface area and release in the tail by fading out the bevel a bit earlier.

So who fed into the design of this range?

The shapes of the Hover DW boards as well as Hover DW Crossover models can be credited to Michi Schweiger who works closely together with foil department product manager and designer Noah Hoffman as well as a variety of riders like Austin, Koa and Mona. 

Has the DW revolution influenced design in your wing specific boards at all?

I would say that the growth of the specific downwind foiling scene has helped the birth of the mid-length boards for example. And in return some of the shape features even flow into much shorter boards that might be used for surf and wingfoiling. All aspects of foiling influence each other and help drive the sport forward quite rapidly.

With four distinct downwind boards, you’re clearly all in with this discipline. Do you see this discipline continuing to grow and grow in popularity?

When we started with downwind foiling we were still on pretty short boards like 5’6’’ at 95 liters for example and it looked like this would stay a niche phenomenon that would not make it past windy places like Maui for example. But with the introduction of longer downwind boards everything changed and it opened the possibilities for riders who previously had a hard to impossible time logging consistent runs. At today’s pace the scene keeps growing and the condition threshold does not really exist anymore. It still requires some commitment to learn but is nowadays possible for a wide range of people with different skills and fitness levels.

Is most of your DW testing taking place on Maui? Which runs are the best for getting good results product testing, and has Robby been getting involved?

A lot of our downwind testing is happening on Maui as we probably have one of the best and most accessible runs in the world. The Gorge is of course another pillar but we have also done some development during trips in Europe, even on lakes, which has taught us that the wind limit is creeping further and further down in combination with the increasing efficiency of the gear. When on Maui we switch a lot between shorter and longer runs. With the sideshore winds and a relatively accessible beach line from Maliko all the way down to Kahului harbor there are plenty places to come in, switch gear and go again. Robby has joined us in the past but has not quite caught the downwind bug yet. Nevertheless his extensive knowledge and experience has always helped us to move the product development for downwind foiling forward.