These Insane Surfboards Let You Glide Above Water, No Muscle Required
Betsy Pfeiffer/Courtesy of Kai Concepts
If you've ever wanted to feel like you're walking on water, Kai Concepts' Jetfoiler is the surfboard of your dreams. The motorized machine uses hydrofoil to hover over the water's surface and travel at speeds you wouldn't normally reach on a board without ample effort.
Designed by former Bay Area sail and kite surfer Don Montague and a team of engineers, inflatable designers, windsurfers, and kitesurfers, the board is made with the same type of composite material that's used in high-end race boats. The board and foil — the foil being the underwater fin responsible for its lift — together create a strong craft that's still light enough to carry.
Stephen Whitesell/Courtesy of Kai Concepts
Betsy Pfeiffer/Courtesy of Kai Concepts
Hydrofoil technology makes you feel like you're flying on a magic carpet over the water. Once the board starts to move, the foil gives it a lift to decrease the drag, according to the company's project manager, Betsy Pfeiffer. The "Airfoiler," the Jetfoiler's predecessor, was able to reach 34 knots (about 39 mph) during initial testing.
The Jetfoiler has remained in the prototype stage since 2016, but when it finally hits the market, it will allow its passenger to kitesurf without high winds. The motorized board will be a helpful learning tool for those interested in trying the sport at a beginner level, Montague hopes. It's also a great kitesurfing alternative suitable for all ages and abilities.
The board is being tested with both a wireless and wired remote control that could be used to propel the motor's speed while the passenger's feet steer its direction.
Before he created the Jetfoiler, Montague cofounded the San Francisco Bay Area wind power company Makani Power, which founded airborne wind turbine technology (in which rotors are suspended in the air without towers) and was later acquired by Google. This venture into wind power is what inspired Montague to start experimenting with hydrofoils, leading to several other innovative products the company has created — like its kiteboat, "a foiling trimaran pulled by a kite that can sail three times the wind speed."
Betsy Pfeiffer/Courtesy of Kai Concepts
Even though it hasn't yet reached the market, the Jetfoiler has traveled far beyond the Bay Area, where it was founded. Montague has even used it to travel the famous canals of Amsterdam, according to the project's Instagram.
Pricing and time of sale will be determined at a later point, Pfeiffer said.
