Martigues: the wingfoil flies over the beaches

This weekend, a show is dedicated to this amazing sliding sport on the beach of Carro

By Raphaele Minconé

The very first wingfoil festival has taken up residence in Carro, one of the most famous windsurfing spots on the Blue Coast, if not in the south of France.added to the long list of board sports, after surfing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, stand-up paddle boarding ...But the quèsaco wingfoil?

"It's between kitesurfing and windsurfing", indicates the local figure of the rider, Raphaël Filippi.Yes ...But still? "The wingfoil is practiced standing on a rather short but wide and thick board.This board is equipped with 'a foil (a mast with a load-bearing plane allowing you to fly nearly a meter above the water), with an inflatable wing, completely disconnected which is held directly with two hands."

The first exhibition dedicated to wingfoil in France

This new practice has been a real success for less than two years.Windsurfer Raphaël Filippi started doing it last year."I'm lucky to have sponsors who have equipped me", says the rider of Carro., who has never let go of his wing or his foil since then, and has become a real fan, which is why he has decided to organize, in partnership with the Martigues sailing circle, a show entirely dedicated to wingfoil (also called "wing surf"), the very first in France.

"There have already been competitions with wingfoil in the middle of kites or windsurfing boards, but this weekend it will be a 100% wingfoil event", makes a point of specifying the organizer who did not choose Carro at the Chance.Located on a rocky point that receives all the conditions and wind directions, this spot is a little paradise for windsurfers, but also surfers, in short board sports enthusiasts."We often have a swell coming from the Var , explains Marc, a surfer from Marseille who is used to the spot.Here, you can have fun in exceptional conditions, and sometimes without the slightest breath of wind."Thanks to these weather characteristics, the small port of Carro has become known recently , notably with the "Carro Wave Classic", national championship of waves in windsurfing (windsurfing).This year, the "Carro Wingfoil classic" is therefore added.

Posted Date: 2020-11-17