Interesting history pity they misspelled 'exciting' and wrote 'exiting', maybe that's why it didn't take off

hilly said..

broVan said..tell me again why we need inflatable wings?

So they float

Why do they need to float.

Seriously, yep in waves for sure floating makes sense but for experienced wingers for flat or down winding 99% of the time they are in the air and if you do drop them they should be attached to you with a leash so should be able to get them out of the water.

If they were made with sealed carbon tubing they would float the same as a sup paddle does, or a windsurfer sail/rig.
Surely they would have advantages especially for racing, upwind etc with less wind resistance from a more streamlined leading edge.

You could keep the inflatable centre strut and reduce the leading edge radius with the carbon tubes, but the big plus for me currently is actually the inflation part as everything fits in a small car.

The weight would also have to be really light for floating the wing on the wind.

I left windsurfing and kiting due to the complexity. Love pumping up the wing and going. Threading carbon tubes etc would be a PITA.