Is a Foil Assist Right for You?

If you already foil and want a little help getting up or catching waves, a foil assist could be a good option. If you’re new to foiling, we’d usually suggest starting with an eFoil lesson.

We’ve been riding the Waydoo FoilBoost here in Miami, and your setup makes a big difference. The motor helps you get going, but your board, wing, weight and experience still affect how easily you get up on foil and what happens once you’re there.

Already have a board and foil? Tell us what you’re riding and what you’d like to do with it. We can help you figure out whether adding a foil assist makes sense.

What does a foil assist help you do?

A foil assist adds a motor to a compatible board and foil setup. You control the power with a handheld remote, building speed until you get up on foil.

It helps with takeoff. You might already enjoy foiling but want some help getting into a wave or reaching enough speed to lift off. Once you’re riding, you can ease off the throttle or come off the power when there’s enough energy in the water to keep you going.

That’s how we’ve been using the Waydoo FoilBoost. We use the motor to get up, then release the throttle when there’s a wave or wake to ride.

You may also be able to keep using a board and foil you already like. We’d need to check that everything fits together, and the extra gear will change how it feels, but you don’t necessarily have to start again with a different board.

With a complete eFoil, the board, motor and foil are designed to work together. A foil assist adds power to another setup, so the gear you put it on matters. Some setups also let you cruise under power for longer, but adding a motor to a small foilboard won’t make it feel like a larger beginner eFoil.

Want to see how it all goes together? Watch our FoilBoost setup and on-water review. We walk through mounting it, connecting the batteries and remote, and what we’ve found while riding it here in Miami.

What happens when you let go of the throttle?

When you release the throttle, you’re off the power. You’ll keep gliding for a while, but you need enough speed to stay up on foil.

On a wave or wake, the water can give you the energy to keep riding. You still have to find the right part of the wave and stay with it. The motor can help you catch it, but staying on the wave and controlling the foil take practice.

On flat water, there’s no wave helping you along. You’ll lose speed unless you pump the foil or use the motor again.

Pumping takes more than bouncing up and down on the board. You have to time your movements to keep the foil moving forward and stay up. If you haven’t learned that yet, don’t expect to release the throttle on flat water and glide for a long distance.

While you’re getting used to it, you might use power, let go for a few seconds, then squeeze the trigger again as you slow down. As you get more comfortable, and when there’s enough energy in the water, you may be able to stay on foil longer without power.

Getting up on foil and staying there without the motor are different skills. The motor helps with takeoff. After that, you’re working with your speed, the water and your foil control.

What foiling experience helps before trying foil assist?

It helps to be comfortable controlling how high you ride above the water. You want to feel when you’re climbing or dropping and know how shifting your weight changes what the foil does.

Those adjustments are often small. If you’re already used to making them, you’ll have less to think about when you add the throttle.

It also helps to know what to do when you touch down—when the board comes back onto the water. You need to keep your balance as it slows, then build speed and get back up on foil. That can happen plenty of times while you’re learning.

With the FoilBoost setup we’ve been riding, there’s a fairly small sweet spot. Ride too low and you touch down. Ride too high and the motor can come out of the water. Staying between those points takes practice, especially in chop.

If you’ve ridden an eFoil, you’ll already know something about throttle control, balance and riding height. But a smaller board, a different front wing or a motor sitting higher on the mast can make the ride feel quite different. You may have less room to make a mistake before you touch down or the motor loses its push.

Riding waves gives you something else to learn. You need to read the water and find the part of the wave that keeps you moving. Being comfortable cruising on an eFoil helps, but you’ll still need to learn how to stay with a wave once you come off the power.

If you haven’t tried foiling yet, come out for an eFoil lesson with us in Miami. You can get a feel for riding above the water before deciding what equipment you want.

Does foil assist make sense when Miami’s waves are small?

Foil assist can help you get up when there isn’t much wave energy. But you still need something to keep you going once you come off the power.

During our summer FoilBoost testing in Miami, we didn’t have many waves to work with. We spent time riding boat wakes, using power to get going and releasing it when the wake gave us enough energy to continue.

If there isn’t much to ride where you normally go out, you may use the motor more often. You can still practice getting up, making turns and seeing how long you can glide. Just don’t expect the same session as someone catching waves and riding them with the power off.

Think about the water you usually have, rather than the conditions you hope to find. If you mainly want to cruise around Miami under power without needing waves, we’d also look at a complete eFoil. Our Waydoo eFoil guide explains those options.

Why do your board, wing and rider weight matter?

Your board supports you before takeoff. Your front wing creates lift as you gain speed. The motor helps you reach that speed, but it can’t make every board and foil combination equally easy to ride.

A bigger board can give you more support before takeoff. For the same rider, a board with more volume floats better. That can help while you get into position and start using the throttle.

The shape matters too. A board might have enough volume to float you and still feel tricky to balance on. Its width and shape affect how stable it feels and how it moves through the water.

Your front wing affects how easily you get up on foil. A larger wing can often help you take off at a lower speed, but size isn’t the only thing to look at. The wing’s shape also changes how it lifts, turns and feels as you go faster.

Going bigger may help with takeoff, but it can change the rest of the ride too. We’d look at what you’re struggling with and how you like to ride before suggesting a different wing.

Your weight changes what you need from the setup. We’ve had riders around 220 pounds find it harder to get up on smaller boards with the FoilBoost. A bigger board and wing can help those riders. That doesn’t mean 220 pounds is the system’s weight limit. It’s what we saw with those particular setups.

It’s also why copying someone else’s gear doesn’t always give you the same experience. A lighter rider who knows their small board well may get up easily. Someone heavier, or still learning, may find the same setup much harder.

If takeoff is difficult, we’d look at the board and wing as well as the motor.

We’d also check that the FoilBoost fits your mast. We’ve used it with several mast brands, but we’d still want to check yours before telling you it’ll work. The mast’s shape and dimensions matter, along with the mounting pads and bolts you use. Waydoo’s compatibility claim comes from its own testing, so we wouldn’t take that as a guarantee for every foil.

Once we know it fits, we can talk about whether your board and wing will work well for your weight and experience. Getting the motor onto the mast is one thing. Getting up comfortably on that setup is another.

What else should you know before riding?

What does it take to get ready?

The first job is mounting the FoilBoost onto your mast. We used the supplied Allen key for that. Once the mount is in place, you don’t have to repeat that whole job each time you go out.

The two batteries lock into place on the unit. Then you’ve got the remote and antenna to get ready before riding. We found the setup straightforward, but give yourself time to get familiar with it before your first session.

You can also set it up with the propeller at the front or the back, which Waydoo calls front-pull and rear-push. That gives you another setup option, but we wouldn’t choose one expecting it to fix a board or wing that’s making takeoff difficult.

How long can you ride under power?

In our FoilBoost testing, Chris got about 30 minutes of powered riding on his setup. He could stay out longer because he released the throttle while riding wakes.

That’s one rider’s experience, not a promise that everyone will get 30 minutes. Your board, wing, weight and how much power you use can change how long the battery lasts.

When someone tells you how long they rode, ask how much of that time they were on the throttle. Someone using short bursts to catch waves can have a different session from someone riding under power most of the time.

For charging, the hub takes both batteries at once. Waydoo lists around 150 minutes for a full charge—about two and a half hours. That’s useful to know if you’re hoping to ride again later that day. Plan around the charging time rather than expecting a quick break to give you another full session.

Will the extra gear change the feel?

Yes, you’re adding weight to the board and foil you already ride. Waydoo lists the FoilBoost at 5.7 kg with both batteries, or about 12.6 lb. That’s extra weight to carry down to the water as well as ride with.

Think about how you normally get to your launch. If you’ve got a walk with your board and foil, the extra weight is worth considering.

On the water, where that weight sits matters too. We’ve liked the direct feel of the FoilBoost, with the board sitting close to the mast. In our riding, we haven’t noticed much extra drag once up on foil. That’s how it felt to us, rather than something we measured, and your own setup may feel different.

You have to decide whether the help from the motor is worth carrying the extra gear. For the riding we’ve been doing here in Miami, we’ve enjoyed having that help.

Should you use the antenna?

We had connection interruptions when the board plunged into choppy water. Using the supplied antenna worked better.

We’d recommend using the antenna, even on a smaller board. When you squeeze the trigger to get moving again, you want the connection to work.

Not sure where to start? Give us a call. Tell us what you’re riding now, how comfortable you are on foil and where you’d like to ride. We can talk through whether a foil assist or an eFoil makes more sense for you.