• Any water sport that employs a foil needs to be respected by the rider as most foil gear – especially the tips of wings and the back of the mast – are very sharp!
• If crashing while wind foiling the golden rule is to ‘Never let go of the boom!’ This way you land in the water well away from the foil at the back of your board
• Wearing a helmet and an impact vest/low profile life-vest when foiling is a very smart decision. When up and foiling, there is a very short time (compared to fin boards) for the rider to make critical changes in trim to prevent a crash. Thus reactions times have to be much quicker. Added head and torso protection reduces the chances of getting injured
• Wearing a stinger suit (or leggings of similar material) is a good idea as it helps prevent minor cuts from the foil when you inevitably brush or bump against it while in the water. A wetsuit provides even better protection
• Some Darwin sailing spots have plenty of rocks to negotiate, so wearing some neoprene boots while foiling can prevent lost time on the water when your feet inevitably get cut up

• When learning to wind foil, nose-diving the board at speed and getting catapulted forward is par for the course. This also happens to pro riders and all skill levels in between, just not as often
• Unfortunately getting catapulted forward can result in significant (and costly to repair) damage to the nose of the board due to mast strikes
• Some board makers have aftermarket nose protectors made of carbon that can give added protection to the nose. Also available are adhesive-backed compressed foam pieces that can be stuck around the nose of the board to lessen impact damage
• An alternative to nose protectors is to use devices attached to the mast base (e.g. a ‘Chinook Deviator’ or a ‘Surf Bent’) that deflect the path of the falling mast away from the board’s nose. With an added ‘ION’ mast protector the chances of damaging your board during a catapult is greatly reduced