What a great essay. Thanks for this, Bowen! It reminds me a little of my relationship to intense yoga. I don’t want to do it any more because it hurts my body. This morning in a gentle yoga class I thought “maybe I should push myself harder” but this essay reminds me why I don’t, and that it’s a wiser choice for me at age 44 to move more intentionally, do what I can to avoid injury, and focus on the rewards beyond flexible hamstrings.
So glad you found and enjoyed this, Minda! Totally, yes, it's about paying attention to the subtle signals and adjusting consciously. It can be good to push as well, but, well, both, in the right measure. I used to do a lot of yoga. More recently I've been loving all sorts of bodyweight workouts, discussed here →
“I could feel every ethereal thread of a crisp northwest wind lashing down over the Marin headlands, its muscular sway and thrust compressed by the rocky gap spanned by the bridge to meet me there and press itself against the wing-like sail. Racing across the water I was aware of my tiny form set against the massive scale of the bridge, my hands miraculously able to tap into the mighty force of the wind, itself of an infinite scale even larger than any human construction.”
Even though I’ve never been to San Francisco, I felt like I was foiling out there while reading this description.
Extreme sports have always played a significant role in my life. A way to get a rush without getting into trouble (usually). I recently got into foil surfing and downwinding (well, attempting to downwind foil).
It’s falling in love with surfing all over again, but without the frustration of not having sufficient waves where I live. I’ve often chosen travel dentitions based on the surf, and then returned home wondering why I’m not living near some world-class surf beach. Now, with the foil, I can get out there every day, in conditions many people stay away from. The only thing that bothers me about the sport, is the price. Unlike surfing, it’s only for those with some disposable income. I don’t know if the culture around foiling will ever feel as diverse as surfing and trigger as many life-changing stories.
Hey Nolan, thanks so much for writing in -- and that I managed to capture enough of the feeling for you to get it. I added a video clip to the post -- check that out for a bit more direct transmission :)
A lot of people here are prone foil surfing and downwind foiling now too, although not me at this point. Not enough time for something else new. I hear you, foils are expensive. Surfing isn't free either, but yeah, foils are a level up in terms of cost, although they do last a long time—longer than a surfboard for sure, so I would argue that the investment plays out in a similar way over time. I suppose a foil requires a bigger up front investment, but I'd put it more in terms of commitment than "disposable" income, to be fair. There are a couple of guys who turn up at my local spot (Crissy Field) with wing foil rigs strapped to their bicycles and mopeds. They're making it work without a lot of spare cash. What either sport (surfing included) does require is free time—and that is something that might require even more discipline than making money.
Your point about the culture is interesting though, and if I zoom out to the worldwide culture of surfing, I think you're probably right about the diversity of stories, in comparison to foiling. Surfing is just more elemental. You can use a log, a boat, a scrap of wood if you have to whereas a foil is made of carbon and epoxy, or milled aluminum. Higher tech. Not something you can really cook up on an island all by yourself... (although I bet now that we know what foils look like, you could carve one out of good hard wood, and it would work).
On the other hand, the culture of surfing always put me off, for another and very well known reason. Surfing is a culture of competition for scarce resources. Good surfable waves are precious, whereas when the wind blows, it blows for everyone. It is what it is, and some things are like that, but surfing is always a bit of a fight, and often crowded—unless you can afford to go to remote places for clean surf, and then we're back to disposable income. There's a spot here under the Golden Gate bridge that now attracts a lot of wingfoil riders because there's often a semi-breaking wave there, and for the most part I go elsewhere, because the patterns of behavior start to feel just like... surfing. People fighting for waves, and it feels like a crowd. I had a collision there actually, just the other day. I'll go in, grab a few, and then peel back out to the channel — check out this GPS track ⬇️
Finally -- as far as the power of these sports, I'd say that many or perhaps all outdoor adventure sports can be equally and powerfully life-changing. Foiling is blowing many many minds, just as running—the oldest and most elemental human sport—still is. And if you really want you mind opened up, you have to learn to fly!
Cheers for the conversation here Nolan -- let's revisit the idea of talking some more!
I didn’t think about the commitment aspect, but you’re right. I also have the same feeling with the competitiveness of the surfing culture. I’m happier away from the crowd, and lucky, I don’t need a car to do it. I’m on of those guys with a foil and bike.
Damn this is good! I will reread it many times. The nuanced shifting throughout your life and now the ability to recognize what may no longer be serving you in the same way. The maturity (from decades of hard growth I'm sure) to question what it brought you and where you are now...well done.
What seems to happen to me most often is I get the premonition but rarely clarity. I am going to pause and question it as you did. Rather than a fleeting thought that disperses into the ethers I am going to intentionally discern in hopes of gaining information.
Donna, so glad to see you here! Thank you for reading and sharing your reflections!
We have to think of these premonitions like dreams -- they are messages from the unconscious, so they are by nature subtle, symbolic, indirect, and perhaps also incomplete. Techniques like Active Imagination (from the book "Inner Work") and even just turning towards the message and asking "What are you trying to tell me?" can be really helpful.
I've written a lot more about this sort of thing here
What a great essay. Thanks for this, Bowen! It reminds me a little of my relationship to intense yoga. I don’t want to do it any more because it hurts my body. This morning in a gentle yoga class I thought “maybe I should push myself harder” but this essay reminds me why I don’t, and that it’s a wiser choice for me at age 44 to move more intentionally, do what I can to avoid injury, and focus on the rewards beyond flexible hamstrings.
So glad you found and enjoyed this, Minda! Totally, yes, it's about paying attention to the subtle signals and adjusting consciously. It can be good to push as well, but, well, both, in the right measure. I used to do a lot of yoga. More recently I've been loving all sorts of bodyweight workouts, discussed here →
https://bowendwelle.substack.com/p/getting-stronger
“I could feel every ethereal thread of a crisp northwest wind lashing down over the Marin headlands, its muscular sway and thrust compressed by the rocky gap spanned by the bridge to meet me there and press itself against the wing-like sail. Racing across the water I was aware of my tiny form set against the massive scale of the bridge, my hands miraculously able to tap into the mighty force of the wind, itself of an infinite scale even larger than any human construction.”
Even though I’ve never been to San Francisco, I felt like I was foiling out there while reading this description.
Extreme sports have always played a significant role in my life. A way to get a rush without getting into trouble (usually). I recently got into foil surfing and downwinding (well, attempting to downwind foil).
It’s falling in love with surfing all over again, but without the frustration of not having sufficient waves where I live. I’ve often chosen travel dentitions based on the surf, and then returned home wondering why I’m not living near some world-class surf beach. Now, with the foil, I can get out there every day, in conditions many people stay away from. The only thing that bothers me about the sport, is the price. Unlike surfing, it’s only for those with some disposable income. I don’t know if the culture around foiling will ever feel as diverse as surfing and trigger as many life-changing stories.
What do you think?
Hey Nolan, thanks so much for writing in -- and that I managed to capture enough of the feeling for you to get it. I added a video clip to the post -- check that out for a bit more direct transmission :)
A lot of people here are prone foil surfing and downwind foiling now too, although not me at this point. Not enough time for something else new. I hear you, foils are expensive. Surfing isn't free either, but yeah, foils are a level up in terms of cost, although they do last a long time—longer than a surfboard for sure, so I would argue that the investment plays out in a similar way over time. I suppose a foil requires a bigger up front investment, but I'd put it more in terms of commitment than "disposable" income, to be fair. There are a couple of guys who turn up at my local spot (Crissy Field) with wing foil rigs strapped to their bicycles and mopeds. They're making it work without a lot of spare cash. What either sport (surfing included) does require is free time—and that is something that might require even more discipline than making money.
Your point about the culture is interesting though, and if I zoom out to the worldwide culture of surfing, I think you're probably right about the diversity of stories, in comparison to foiling. Surfing is just more elemental. You can use a log, a boat, a scrap of wood if you have to whereas a foil is made of carbon and epoxy, or milled aluminum. Higher tech. Not something you can really cook up on an island all by yourself... (although I bet now that we know what foils look like, you could carve one out of good hard wood, and it would work).
On the other hand, the culture of surfing always put me off, for another and very well known reason. Surfing is a culture of competition for scarce resources. Good surfable waves are precious, whereas when the wind blows, it blows for everyone. It is what it is, and some things are like that, but surfing is always a bit of a fight, and often crowded—unless you can afford to go to remote places for clean surf, and then we're back to disposable income. There's a spot here under the Golden Gate bridge that now attracts a lot of wingfoil riders because there's often a semi-breaking wave there, and for the most part I go elsewhere, because the patterns of behavior start to feel just like... surfing. People fighting for waves, and it feels like a crowd. I had a collision there actually, just the other day. I'll go in, grab a few, and then peel back out to the channel — check out this GPS track ⬇️
https://www.strava.com/activities/9103139112
Finally -- as far as the power of these sports, I'd say that many or perhaps all outdoor adventure sports can be equally and powerfully life-changing. Foiling is blowing many many minds, just as running—the oldest and most elemental human sport—still is. And if you really want you mind opened up, you have to learn to fly!
Cheers for the conversation here Nolan -- let's revisit the idea of talking some more!
I didn’t think about the commitment aspect, but you’re right. I also have the same feeling with the competitiveness of the surfing culture. I’m happier away from the crowd, and lucky, I don’t need a car to do it. I’m on of those guys with a foil and bike.
Damn this is good! I will reread it many times. The nuanced shifting throughout your life and now the ability to recognize what may no longer be serving you in the same way. The maturity (from decades of hard growth I'm sure) to question what it brought you and where you are now...well done.
What seems to happen to me most often is I get the premonition but rarely clarity. I am going to pause and question it as you did. Rather than a fleeting thought that disperses into the ethers I am going to intentionally discern in hopes of gaining information.
Donna, so glad to see you here! Thank you for reading and sharing your reflections!
We have to think of these premonitions like dreams -- they are messages from the unconscious, so they are by nature subtle, symbolic, indirect, and perhaps also incomplete. Techniques like Active Imagination (from the book "Inner Work") and even just turning towards the message and asking "What are you trying to tell me?" can be really helpful.
I've written a lot more about this sort of thing here
https://open.substack.com/pub/bowendwelle/p/what-is-intuition-a-whole-and-open
and here
https://open.substack.com/pub/bowendwelle/p/how-to-keep-from-fucking-up-your