Slingshot One-Lock Glide 825

Slingshot made quite a splash with their new One-Lock system in the last year, but with their initial launch, they had a limited range of foils to accompany the system. Now that we are well into the screw-less future, it’s great to see Slingshot introducing some more specific foils that fit in between the general size ranges of “beginner” and “advanced”. Slingshot’s Glide range of foils, in my opinion, is built to be your daily driver. Not hyper specialized in any one thing, but works in a multitude of different conditions, from ocean, to wind, to boat. From the design side of things, I would say the Glide range of foils is equal parts carve, pump, and speed, whereas something like their Flow line is built more for efficiency at high speeds, while sacrificing some turning. With the Glide, you get a good range of all these things, with minimal sacrifice on either end.

When they launched with the Glide series of front wings, they had some larger wings targeted at beginners, as well as some smaller, more advanced Glide wings, but left out some of those in-between sizes that allowed for a more everyday wing in the lineup. Enter the Glide 825. The 825 sits nicely in between their beginner and advanced sizes, and you could consider it something of a one-wing quiver for most conditions.

For our testing, we tested this wing behind the Arch Sport electric boat. I rode the Puddle Pumper board, an 82cm One-Lock mast, the 825 front wing, the short 145 stabilizer, and then the medium 175 stabilizer. The two tails provided two very different riding experiences, but more on that later. I’m about 190lb so this wing is about as small as I would go for boating because I like to pump around the lake and get back to the fourth and fifth wave to ride those smooth, quiet lake waves. I started my sets carving around the first wave, and I found the 825 to be a nice first wave carver. I was able to get the tips out nicely and get some long bottom turns going. I started to make my way back to the second and third wave and started pumping around a little. I would put the Glide series of wings in the mid-aspect category. They have a good pumping range, but I would not say they are hyper-efficient like an HA. Carving is definitely meant to be considered with these wings. Regardless, I had no issues getting back to the waves with the 825. It was really fun turning the wing back there and provided all the lift I needed to make the turns I like doing.

What I will say made a very big difference in the ride was the tail selection. I would consider the 825 the largest size in a performance wing range, so what tail you ride dramatically changes the ride experience. I started out with the medium Fuse 175 tail, as I thought it would provide a little more lift than the short 145. With a tail that big though, I feel like it’s most likely meant for wind sports, versus boat sports, as it slowed the whole ride down enough that I noticed it. With boat riding everything happens in a very small area, so you need more precise tools to be in the right places at the right time. So with the 175 tail, I was struggling to move the board fast enough to hit the right spots. The cool thing with One-Lock is you can switch setups mid-ride very quickly, so I hopped on the back of the boat and popped on the 145 tail, and got right back in the water, maybe taking one minute, max. I immediately felt the difference with the 145 tail, the whole experience sped up. Turns felt way snappier, and I had no issues pumping the board, I just had to change my cadence a little bit. It definitely felt like I expected it to feel with the 145. It’s always so interesting to me how my general instincts with foil set ups are wrong a lot. Everyone has their own secret sauce, and sometimes you just gotta try it all out until it makes sense.

All in all, I’m really happy with this 825 Glide form Slingshot. 800-900cm2 is generally where I have the most fun front wing-wise, and this wing is no exception. If you’re looking for a daily driver or a one-wing quiver from Slingshot, the 825 Glide is it.