Learn pumping a figure eight: link left and right turns in the pump rhythm, hold height and speed and leave room for obstacles. Honest about the sources.
The honest answer: the figure eight is the art of flying left and right in the pump rhythm without speed and height collapsing. It demands a secure turn and a calm rhythm, not more strength. It is the core of the technical race format: at the first German PumpFoil competition in Berlin in 2022, the winner rode a slalom around three buoys in 16.3 seconds, the runner-up in 18.6 [1]. That shows how tightly turns are ridden in the pump rhythm.
On the basics: an instructor describes the pump rhythm like this: first use the glide, then pump faster; the rhythm depends on wing size, foil design and body weight and takes time [2]. That applies even more in a turn. A model of pumping hydrofoils also shows that the rear wing is essential for pitch stability because of its long lever arm [4]; in turns you must load it cleanly. These are models, not measurements on humans.
In the figure eight you do not fly turns, you fly a rhythm that happens to be round.
Important: I found no readable, reliable source on the technique of the figure eight itself (forum posts were deliberately not used). The build-up below is therefore practice, backed by the secured principles of pumping. Realistically you need months after a secure turn (experience value).
A word on expectation: the figure eight is rarely the goal but a test. It shows you whether your rhythm also carries when direction and load change. Whoever flies it has the basis for slalom and long routes with turning points (practice assessment). Also plan the exercise in short blocks of five to ten minutes so that fatigue does not destroy the rhythm. At the same time it is a good test of honesty with yourself: if the figure eight only works with haste, your rhythm does not yet carry.
Pump straight until your rhythm is even. Glide as much as possible before pumping faster [2].
Milestone (practice): 2 minutes of pumping straight without touchdown.
Begin with a wide radius and initiate the turn in the unloading phase when the foil is light. Imagine simply bending the pump rhythm (practice).
Keep the pump movement through the turn. If you lose speed, switch briefly to gliding instead of pumping hectically [2].
Milestone (practice): one full circle without touchdown.
As soon as you have finished the first turn, initiate the counter turn. The direction changes, the rhythm does not. A calm line saves height: near the surface the foil loses lift [3].
Connect both circles into an eight. Ride it slowly, faster only once the rhythm is secure. If you fly several eights without touching down, you have the skill.
Milestone (practice): 3 eights in a row without touchdown.
Turns in the pump rhythm quickly put you next to the board. The sharp foil stays nearby. There is no injury study for pump foiling itself. In wingfoiling, which shares the foil hazard, the rate was 5.7 injuries per 1000 hours, 77.5 percent came from riding errors when fatigued [5] (TRANSFER). For you that means: stop when you get tired and wear vest and helmet.
Practise only over deep water and with distance to others. This guide explains and motivates, it does not replace supervised training.
Fly the figure eight first in the large format and shrink it only when the rhythm carries. Mark two points in the water, for example two buoys, and fly around them like the competition slalom does [1]. Whoever flies wide first learns that a figure eight is a question of calm and space, not strength.
You fly an eight, i.e. a turn to the left and one to the right, without touching down. The definition is scene practice; there is no study on it.
It counts as advanced because it requires a secure turn in the pump rhythm. There is no time frame; as an experience value you need months. Competition slaloms show how tightly it is ridden: 16.3 seconds around three buoys [1].
A high-aspect wing glides longer [2] but turns less willingly. For turns take one with which you pump securely. This is a practice assessment.
Pump foiling has no injury study of its own. In wingfoiling the rate was 5.7 per 1000 hours [5]. With vest, helmet and distance you lower the risk.
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