Video Transcript

TJ: Hey everyone, I have the pleasure to have Walker Hendricks here at Big Winds. And I remember Walker waking up at 6:30 at the Event Site, paddle in hand, eyes barely open to go to JET Team, right?
Walker: Yep. Yep.
TJ: That was awhile back.
Walker: A long time and that was actually crucial to my SUP foil development.
TJ: He’d wake up early, show up and do some paddling with Steve Gates and the JET Team. And was part of that whole crew back then. Just awesome to now see Walker, a full grown man, now shredding in the Gorge on a foil is just absolutely amazing. And not many people know him as Walker Hendricks. I gotta say he’s kinda taken on this alter ego of “McFlowi” – everybody knows him as McFlowi here in the Gorge. It’s because this kid shreds. He’s got some style. I personally really love to watch your Instagram feed. It is so fun and inspiring – to say the least.
Walker: Thank you. Thank you.
TJ: Walker, you just learned to foil not too long ago, right?
Walker: Yeah just over a year and a half ago, actually. I started. I started SUP foiling right when I started working at Big Winds.
TJ: Yeah, I remember we were going to Arlington, and we dropped you off at Rufus. Pumped up a wing, and said, I hope you can figure this thing out. And I think Chris Anderson …
Walker: Yeah, Chris Anderson gave me some tips on one of my first days out there. It was epic.
TJ: And four or five hours later we go back to Rufus to pick up Walker and, low and behold, he’s learned how to wing in like a day. And then, a few weeks thereafter that you started to pickup the SUP foiling.
Walker: It started to come together.
TJ: And then we started to realize that this kid’s got something going when the Gorge Paddle Challenge came around that summer. You did really well.
Walker: That was a crazy experience. My first ever race. No expectations. I end up going pretty well. I was chasing down Kane de Wilde the whole race and ended up coming in 11th . That was huge. It was so fun.
TJ: Awesome. So started with winging. Downwind SUP foiling.
Walker: It actually started with downwind SUPfoiling.
TJ : It did? Nice.
Walker: Yeah, my dad just threw me straight into downwind SUP foiling. I had no foil skill. I didn’t know how to do it all. And he was like, “Here’s a paddle. Here’s a board. Go figure it out.”
TJ: Oh my gosh. I love it.
Walker: Yeah, threw me into the deep end.
TJ: That sounds like something Magneto (Tre Hendricks) would do.
Walker: A classic Tre thing. And I kept asking him, “Let’s go wing. Let’s go wing. I want to go learn how to wing so I can get the foil skill.” And he was like, “Nah, just figure out the paddle.” So I spent quite a bit of time figuring out how to paddle and learn the pop up and eventually transition to the wing to learn to actually foil.
TJ: That summer went by pretty quick. You were working about Big Winds.
Walker: Yeah.
TJ: You had access to gear. You tried pretty much everything.
Walker: That was huge for my progression – just having access to everything and figuring out what the best gear was for me. So crucial.
TJ: Then you landed with … Armstrong.
Walker: Yeah. Around AWSI show last year I ended up with an 880 High Aspect and a 1080 High Aspect prototype foil. I pretty much rode those for a solid six months before I had any other gear. They were my only two foils and the 1080 was amazing at the time. That was mind blowing foil. The low-end was crazy. It just opened up so many sessions.
TJ: Then Armstrong came out with the new HA lineup. And that became one of our best sellers at Big Winds.
Walker: Absolutely.
TJ: And one of my personal favorites as well. You absolutely shred on these guys. Think about back to the summer – and I’m not talking about race day – just fun sessions downwind, you’re running shuttles and doing laps. What was your “go to” setup? Walker: I’d say my “go to” when I first started was the 1080 HA just because I was a good foiler, but I was still relatively new and the 1080’s low-end was amazing. Just the ease of pop up. And light-wind sessions were amazing on it. And then this year I’ve mostly been riding the Armstrong 880 HA. That’s pretty much all I ride. It’s so versatile. The range is so good. It turns so well. That’s been my bread and butter for sure.
TJ: What about mast length?
Walker: I rode the 80 for the longest time. The 80 is super fun. It kinda gives you that surfy feeling. It’s like more direct rail to rail, it’s easier to do transitions. And then this summer I’ve been on the Armstrong Performance 865 mast a lot. It just opens up more opportunities. You can get higher turning angles, which is super fun. You’re kinda limited on the 80 on how much you can lean it over because your foil just ends up – your whole foil just ends up going out of the water if you have too much angle.
TJ: Which for you is pretty much every turn you make your foil is out of the water.
Walker: Yeah. The 865 is just way easier. It’s more 3 dimensional feeling. It’s like 3 dimensional surfing. It’s kinda a crazy feeling. You’re able to slalom through the bumps and pick super unique lines. I’ve been really liking the 865.
TJ: So paddle ups with the Armstrong Performance 865 – are they a bit more difficult than the 795?
Walker: It’s slightly more difficult, but to be honest, at my level it’s no issue. It’s no problem. And I’ve been pocket winging so much lately anyway – with the pocket wing the pop up doesn’t matter. You just hold that thing in the air and you get pulled right up on the foil. So …
TJ: Oh my gosh. If you guys haven’t seen Walker with the pocket wing yet – this guy, granted he shreds on anything with the foil underfoot, but with the pocket wing he just lit it up this summer.
TJ: Now with the pocket wing let’s talk a little bit there because we are starting to see a lot of people joining the “trash bag” crew, as it has been dubbed.
Walker: Right. It’s been super popular in the Gorge.
TJ: It allows you to ride a smaller board. Like what are you riding for a board?
Walker: I’ve been riding the Armstrong Midlength 65 liter, and a few runs on the Armstrong FG 48 liter wing board, actually. It opens up a bunch of possibilities as far as board size, which is super fun. Being able to rip a small board downwind is a game changer. It’s crazy.
TJ: And just so our audience knows for reference, how tall are you and how much do you weigh?
Walker: I’m 6’2″ and 190 pounds.
TJ: A 190 pounds and a Midlength 65 and 55 …
Walker: Yeah, and the 55 liter, and the FG 48. So the 65 Midlength, even for me at my weight, it’s super easy to get up on the pocket wing. I can go out in 18-20 mph winds, and get up no problem.
TJ: That’s pretty impressive. How you see the future of pocket winging here in the Gorge? It’s coming, right?
Walker: Yeah, especially as more brands start to release pocket wings, and it’s starts to get easier and more accessible, I think almost everyone is going to be doing it, to be honest.
TJ: Like a lot of the wingers who look at SUP foiling and see it as – maybe a little bit as accessible, you gotta buy a new board, a bigger foil …
Walker: Yeah, and an expensive paddle … I think the transition from riding a small wing board and a small foil to riding a big SUP board and a big foil is hard for a lot of wingers. So pocket wingers being able to just transfer with the same setup will be so much easier for them to learn to downwind.
TJ: There you go. Pocket winging. You’ll probably see more of these in the near future.
Walker: Yes, we’re going to see a lot of them in the near future. It’s starting to get popular, and there’s lots of brands coming out with all types of wings. It’s super exciting.
TJ: Yeah, that is exciting. It’s always what’s next … Here we go. So Midlength, Armstrong High Aspect wings – let’s talk a little more about the gear here. How about tail, what do you typically use?
Walker: I use both the 140 Dart, and the 180 Speed. The 140 is great. It’s super fast and efficient. It turns super fast rail to rail. It is a bit harder to ride when compared to the 180 Speed. The 180 is insanely pitch stable and super forgiving, which I’ve really been liking actually. I’ve been on the 180 a lot.
TJ: Speed 180; Dart 140 for reference. I do believe there’s even a smaller Dart coming out, the 120.
Walker: Yeah, it’s coming soon. There’s stuff in the works. Yeah, those tails are amazing when paired with the HAs, obviously, they’re so pitch stable and easy to ride. It’s honestly mind blowing how easy to ride they are.
TJ: And then I’m guessing, TC 60 fuselage?
Walker: Yeah, 60 fuse – all the way around. The 50 turns a bit too fast. And the 70 is a bit too long. So the 60 is perfect for me.
TJ: What about these things behind you?
Walker: Oh yeah, baseplate shims. I’ve been running baseplate shims – especially in bigger conditions. What the baseplate shim does is keep the nose of your board up when you’re going fast. So foils have a tendency to pitch down a little bit when you’re going fast. The baseplate shim just keeps your nose up, and keeps the board level, which is super nice for turning. It allows you to have even front and back foot pressure, which is super nice, yeah.
TJ: That makes total sense. I think if I understand correctly, when you’re moving really fast you get a lot of drag from the foil down here. That creates a little bit of pull forward on the mast. The job of the tail is to keep that stable. But if you’ve got a baseplate shim then all of a sudden you’re creating a little bit more front foot pressure if you’re riding the shim with the thick end forward, correct?
Walker: Yeah, correct.
TJ: Does that allow more control in the turn as well at speed?
Walker: Yeah, I’d say more control in the turn for sure. If you’re running no baseplate shim and it’s a really big day and you’re going really fast, you can have excessive back foot pressure, which makes it hard to turn when you’re just slamming on your back foot. There’s only like so much pressure you can put on your back foot while turning. At some point you just won’t be able to leverage your back foot enough, and your nose will drop and that’s when you start touching the board down and falling in. So the baseplate shim just levels everything out and makes turns super easy – for me, at least. Some people may not like it. It’s completely personal preference. And actually I’ve seen a lot of guys run the baseplate shim reverse (thick end back) as well, which just gives you a lot more efficiency at slow speeds – especially.
TJ: So for like pump up, or pump foiling in flat water.
Walker: Yeah, so whenever I’m flat water foiling or dock starting, I always have the baseplate shim reversed and that just gives you more pump and glide.
TJ: Tips from Walker Hendricks.
Walker: Pro tips. Try the baseplate shims. They’re super fun and it’s fun to mess with setup. Switch things around.
TJ: What about racing? You’ve raced M2M, M2O this summer. You gonna go for it again next year?
Walker: Oh yeah. For sure. That’s the goal right now. I’m training hard in Hood River. The wind has kinda stopped. We typically get a good day once a week. So I’ve been putting a lot of time in the gym, and a lot of time on the bike. Just trying to build fitness. So, yeah, that’s the next goal.
TJ: Fitness, cardio, strength training …
Walker: Yep, exactly.
TJ: Right on. Are you going back to Maui this winter?
Walker: Absolutely. Maybe in January or February. Once I get more fitness built up.
TJ: Yeah because part of that training regimen for sure is open ocean.
Walker: Yeah for sure. If I were to go to Maui right now I’d be too tempted to foil every single day because it’s windy there every day, and you have waves. It’s hard to get any training in because you’re just foiling every damn day. So …
TJ: Yeah, that’s a tough lifestyle …
Walker: Yeah [laughs], it’s a tough lifestyle being a professional foiler. So I’m making some compromises here. Kinda slowing down the foiling a bit and heading more into endurance and training.
TJ: Right on. Well, not only are we getting a really good background on McFlowi here but we’re getting some pro tips, his favorite foils, his board of choice for pocket winging – do you use the Midlength for traditional winging as well?
Walker: Yeah, the 65 liter ML is great for winging – especially this time of the year in the Gorge it’s super gusty, and you don’t know when the wind is going to die. It’s pretty inconsistent. So it’s nice having something you can get up at pretty much anytime.
TJ: That’s so awesome. Yeah, these things have been our best sellers …
Walker: They’ve been killer. People have been loving them. You guys [Big Winds] struggle to keep them in stock they’re so popular.
TJ: So popular … Originally we thought these were just for like winging –
Walker: Yeah, even for people just winging on the daily in windy conditions I’ve seen a lot of people riding the 55 L model out at the Hatchery. They’re super popular.
TJ: Right on. Well Walker, thanks for coming over to Big Winds.
Walker: Yeah, dude.
TJ: And giving us advice with how to get going with the foil and I know it’s probably not in everybody’s wheelhouse to figure this out in a year and start charging M2O races, but with the proper gear and the proper conditions …
Walker: As the gear keeps getting better, foiling just keeps getting easier. These HA wings are so easy to ride. A lot of beginners have been using them, and loving them – especially the SUP foilers. Every time I hand out one of these HA wings peoples’ minds are blown. It’s crazy. Pretty much every time. I’ve never given someone an HA and had them come back disappointed. Every single time they come back and they’re just stoked out of their mind on ’em.
TJ: That’s so true. They get their first one, then they come back for a smaller or bigger one.
Walker: Yeah, and they get the whole quiver, then a few tails – starting with the Speed 180 or the Glide 220. And then they go down to the Dart 140. It’s super cool seeing the progression.
TJ: Thanks to Armstrong for providing the incredible gear and thank you McFlowi for being here.
Walker: Thank you.
TJ: Glad you had a good summer and best wishes to you going into 2025.
Walker: Thank you.
TJ: Thanks for joining us you guys!