Foil Life Podcast

On this episode, we sit down with Sensi Graves and Brandon Scheid for a deep look at their recent family foiling trip to Alaska, the upcoming Foiling Magazine feature, and the Armstrong video that came out of it.
They break down how they planned the mission around visiting friends who run the Alaska Coastal Explorer boat, the push to score sessions at Aialik Glacier and Bear Glacier before slowing down with a new baby, and the reality of making it happen while Sensi was five months pregnant with a toddler (Flint) in tow. Sensi and Brandon walk through the hard-earned parts—videographer no-show, drone crash into a cliff, limited weather windows, and near-freezing water—and how catabatic wind off the glacier actually delivered a solid hour-plus session right in front of the ice. They cover the gear (Armstrong XPS 4.5, shared mid-length board, and bigger HA foils for low wind and pump foiling), wake/pump foiling through the iceberg maze at Bear Glacier, winging in Seward itself, and the bigger idea of keeping adventure alive as a family instead of letting kids become the reason everything stops.
Episode Highlights:
- Planning the Alaska trip around the Alaska Coastal Explorer boat and friends in Seward
- Gear choices for cold, light wind and pump foiling (Armstrong XPS 4.5, 55L mid-length, 1080 HA)
- Scoring a real wing session right in front of Aialik Glacier on catabatic wind
- Pump and wake foiling through the iceberg field at Bear Glacier
- Handling the chaos: pregnant, toddler, no videographer, and a drone crash
- Winging in Seward and the local wind that shows up when the interior is sunny
- Why they refused to pause adventure just because of kids
- The new baby (Steel Matthew) and Flint’s early words from the trip (“iceberg,” “glacier”)
Catch the full story in the next issue of Foiling Magazine and the upcoming Armstrong video dated to be released Nov 12.

On this episode, we sit down with Dane Gillet (Japan-based photographer, surfer, and content creator) for a wide-ranging conversation on social media, attention, and building a sustainable path as an athlete or business owner.
Dane explains the shift away from traditional “influencer” thinking toward pure attention, anyone can go viral overnight because demand for content far outstrips supply. He breaks down why consistency (often multiple posts a day) beats polished one-off content, how to read Meta’s analytics to spot when the algorithm is pushing you and then double down, and why spreading yourself across every platform usually stalls growth. He shares how he gets paid directly by Meta for views, why you should treat your presence as an individual rather than a company (so the algorithm doesn’t immediately demand ad spend), and how to create content that resonates without hard selling, showing real surfing, pain points, behind-the-scenes life, and curiosity hooks instead of product pitches.
They also cover the practical side for foiling athletes and small operators: chasing cash-rich non-gear sponsors (travel, insurance, phones, etc.) rather than only traditional product deals, focusing on one platform until you have real traction, and treating social media as a business that must eventually produce money or free time. Dane closes with straightforward business fundamentals—legally making that first dollar, understanding invoices and taxes, where funding actually comes from, and why the real goal is identifying the life you want so you stop working once you have enough to fund it.
Episode Highlights:
* Why attention (not follower count) is the real currency and how even small accounts can go viral
* Consistency as the foundation: posting daily (or more) and analyzing drop-off, spikes, and engagement
* Focusing on one platform until it works, then bringing that audience elsewhere
* Getting paid by Meta for views once you complete the business setup
* Creating content that attracts without selling: authentic riding, pain points, and curiosity
* For athletes: prioritizing cash sponsors over gear deals and refusing to be pigeonholed
* Doubling down the moment something starts to spike instead of taking a day off
* Basic business reality: making a legal dollar, invoices, taxes, and only two places to spend money (inventory or people)
* Identifying the life you actually want so you stop working the moment you can fund it
Follow Dane on Instagram for his Japan surfing and daily content: @japansurf
Follow Foil Life Podcast: @foillifepodcast

On this episode of the Foil Life Podcast, we sit down with Noé Cantaloube, North team rider and big-wave foil charger, to talk about taking a foil into the legendary waves of Nazaré.'
Noé explains why Nazaré is one of the best places in Europe to train for serious big-wave foiling (consistent big conditions, not just chasing the single biggest wave), and how he approaches it differently from traditional tow surfing—using the foil’s speed and flow for big cutbacks and different lines. He walks through the evolution of his gear over multiple seasons: starting with mid-aspect foils that had too much lift, then ultra-low-aspect 400s that were almost too fast, and now settling on North low-aspect 600–700 front wings with an 85 cm mast and his regular strapless Surfle board (4.2 / 25 L). Everything is stock gear you can buy.
They cover the realities of the ride itself—averaging around 35 knots, the controlled but intense feeling of banking turns on a bomb, the limited margin for error with chop on an 85 cm mast, and why the biggest danger is actually the jet-ski safety recovery (flipping a foiled board onto the sled and getting back out), not the wave itself. Noé also shares his take on foil assist / Foil Drive in bigger conditions, the difference North’s trench boards and mini pods make for drag and travel, and the value of knowing one setup deeply instead of constantly switching.
Plus a look at growing up between Réunion and Bora Bora, life in Tarifa, winter prep (apnea, gym work, and training with the team), and heading back to Nazaré for the season.
Episode Highlights:
Why Nazaré is the ideal big-wave foiling training ground in Europe
Gear progression: from mid-aspect to low-aspect 600–700 North foils + 85 cm mast
Riding strapless on stock Surfle board (4.2 / 25 L) in serious waves
Speeds averaging ~35 knots and the feeling of banking turns on a bomb
The real danger: jet-ski safety recovery with a foil, not the wave itself
Chop, mast length trade-offs, and why shorter masts can make more sense in big waves
Foil Drive / foil assist place in medium-to-big waves (and why you still need jet skis)
North trench boards, mini pods, and integrated masts for reduced drag and travel
Growing up between Réunion and Bora Bora + life in Tarifa
Physical prep and team training before the Nazaré season
Advice: stick with one setup and learn it deeply
Follow Noé: @noe.cantaloube
Follow Foil Life Podcast: @foillifepodcast
Gear: @northfoils

On this episode of the Foil Life Podcast we sit down with Dane Gillett, the British expat who has spent more than 30 years in Japan and is widely known as the English-language voice of surfing in the country. From his base at Hebara Beach in Katsuura, Chiba, Dane has spent decades documenting breaks, building SurfingInJapan.com as a side project, and turning that knowledge into a full lifestyle around the water.
In this episode we talk about:
- Arriving in Japan on a short trip more than 30 years ago for the snow, then realizing he never wanted to leave
- Falling in love with Japanese powder (and the value), spending years in the mountains, then eventually shifting fully to the coast
- Meeting his Japanese wife, settling in Tokyo, and needing an escape, which became weekends chasing surf with almost zero English-language info available at the time
- Building SurfingInJapan.com from notebooks and word-of-mouth in the only foreigner pub in Tokyo, then driving the country for 25+ years to map breaks, beaches, and places to stay
- Turning a pure hobby into the thing that now supports his lifestyle after three decades of consistent work
- The reality of “living the dream”: staying humble for years, then realizing people benefit when he talks openly about the long road and the possibility
- Lessons from growing up in a family of 13 kids, work is life, don’t put all your eggs in one basket, and chase what you’re deeply passionate about so you never feel like you’re working a day in your life
- Why Japanese snow still stands out globally, and why the ocean life on the Chiba coast ended up being the better long-term fit
SurfingInJapan.com: https://www.surfinginjapan.com/ 
Splash Guest House: https://www.splashguesthouse.com/

On this episode of the Foil Life Podcast, we sit down with Clay Selby, Kai Lenny, and Whitney Johnson - the team behind Venturi, to talk about building the water-sports app they always wanted. What started as a foil-forecasting side project in the Philippines has grown into one place for wind, swell, tides, session tracking, gear, and community across wing, parawing, windsurf, kite, SUP, e-foil, and surf.
In this episode we talk about:
- The origin story: a side project about three years ago off Siargao, then Maui, and Kai pushing it from foil-only to every watersport
- The Today screen in wind or surf mode, and spot pages that read like a forecast article
- Live friend tracking from the Darwin soft launch and Maui downwinders, including Maliko runs
- Sport-specific session metrics: wave counts, parawing stash tracking, crash impact, and gear tagged to each session
- Auto-built downwind runs with instant leaderboards, plus the games and session replays
- Kai AI gear recommendations and the gear garage, what to pack for a trip like Mauritius
- Events and groups as a cleaner alternative to closed WhatsApp chats, including a look at Corzon Foil Festival
- Private pins and friend-only sharing for secret spots
- The safety beacon: Apple Watch, SOS, driver check-ins, and pings to nearby Venturi users
- The name that almost became Coconuts, the parawing giveaway, and the features they will not spoil yet
Venturi website: https://venturisports.com/
Apple App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/venturi-sports/id6450483725