Gong Plus 7m Wing Review
I recently bought a used 7m gong plus v1 direct from gong in the ‘gong deals’ section of the site. It was heavily discounted ~ £400 including shipping.
The wing arrived 3 days later with bag and repair kit.
The wing has a thick leading edge and takes a lot of air to inflate, like pumping up a 10m+ kite. Once inflated it’s very rigid with a large span. I was a little concerned looking at the diagrams on the gong website as its span was significantly larger than the equivalent gong superpower (their leading light wind wing) which has a much lower aspect/deeper profile where a 7.5m2 fits the span of a normal 5m2 wing. However the plus was half the price and I wasn’t expecting to use this wing very often, so I thought it was worth a punt.
This wing is the v1, it looks the same as the v2 just with chunkier handles. But only 3 handles so the weight is reduced significantly from the earlier models.
On the water the additional power from this big wing is immediately noticeable, as soon as the wing filled with air it generated pull. The forward pull from pumping is significantly more than my 5m2 wing. I need to think a little more about the wing position to make sure I don’t run over the tips, but after the first few runs I didn’t really think about it and just enjoyed the extra power ‘on tap’. I’m 6’2” and with the wing close to vertical the tips were just about clear of the water when off the foil, this might be an issue for a shorter rider but then again they’re unlikely to need to compromise with a bigger wing on light wind days.
I’ve used the 7m over a number of sessions and found it ideal for gustier inland conditions, with 3 pumps on a gust I’m up and flying on the foil. The only downside is that once up, there’s often too much power so you need to sheet right out and move forward one handle on the back hand. I can imagine these larger wings being much more fun with a boom where you’d be able to shuffle the backhand forwards to trim the wing and spill the extra power when on the foil. You notice the extra weight, it is heavier on the arms in lulls but not unmanageable. I’d recommend a longer leash, the shorter leashes for 5m2 wings can restrict your ability to flip the wing over.
A large wing is a great tool for light winds, the gong plus works well and was significantly cheaper than f-one cwc and other go-to big wings. It’s definitely been a session saver for me.
Thanks for reading
Martyn
