eFoil SC can have you zipping over the water within an hour, no waves required
I’m teetering at the front edge of a surfboard, pressing a remote control that is powering me across Lake Jocassee. Mountains and clouds zip by in my periphery—my speed was set to beginner levels by my instructor, but it feels surprisingly swift as I crouch unsteadily at the front of the board, water spraying into my face.
I’m in “the tripod”: squatting on my right leg, which is bent beneath me alongside my right hand, with my left leg extended out behind. The left hand is still propelling me across the water with the remote control. If I let up on the remote, the board will come to a quick halt and send me tumbling headfirst into the lake.
It’s now or never. It’s time to stand up. I got this far last time and toppled into the chilly water, and now I’m back for another showdown with my own strength and balance and self-doubt.
“Just do it!” I tell myself, trained by decades of Nike ads. And I do.
And then I’m flying. I’m literally flying across the lake’s smooth surface, and I’m in awe. My surfer girl dreams have finally come true, and I didn’t even need a wave. I just needed an eFoil board, a half-hour lesson with eFoil South Carolina, and a stubborn streak.
Electric surfing
eFoil was invented by Nick Leason, an engineer and avid surfer who co-founded Puerto Rico-based Lift Foils in 2010. For five years, the company made hydrofoils—surfboards with an underwater structure that lifts the boards out of water when pushed forward by a boat or a wave.
In 2015, Leason applied technology from electric vehicles, mobile phones, and drones to a board that could offer the excitement of surfing without the need for wind or waves.
Dubbed eFoil, the new addition to the hydrofoil world made a splash, going viral online. One early devotee was Upstate resident Nathan Pinner, a lifelong outdoor enthusiast who was president of Friends of Jocassee and always looking for a new adventure. With wife Katelyn Pinner on board, he snapped up Lift eFoil affiliate rights for all of inland South Carolina in 2020.
When they got their boards that summer, the first step was learning to ride them with no training, a process that Katelyn says sent them careening into the water countless times. But they developed a technique, and the couple started sharing their newfound hobby with others.
With so many people fascinated by the new sport and eager to try it, Nathan needed additional staffing. Katelyn, as co-owner, pitched in often, but was busy running her floral and event design business, Katelyn Pinner Studio. So Nathan called on his close friend of 20 years, Jay Albright, who now manages the business when he isn’t doing creative production work.
Nathan taught Jay to eFoil in August of 2021, and he took to it immediately. Now, he and fellow manager Brandon Cruz teach one-on-one and in small group settings. They have taught kids as young as 10 and adults 75-plus, and everyone has a blast, since participants can learn at their own pace. Even balance-challenged people can learn to stand (case in point: me), but reaching the standing position isn’t necessary to enjoy the sport; Jay recently sold a board to a customer who prefers staying seated or kneeling.
The joy of the activity is difficult to put into words, Jay says. “I’ve done wakeboarding, waterskiing, snowboarding, surfing, but this is unlike anything I’ve ever done. You feel weightless, like you’re flying, but also focused. It’s comforting, peaceful, but also extreme and exciting.”
This blend of thrills and serenity is in part due to the whisper-quiet electric motor. With minimal sound and environmental impact and no wake, the boards don’t create waves among lake residents, visitors, or environmental groups. eFoils can zip riders to waterfalls and secret spots boats can’t reach, and, unlike jet skis, they require no fuel or winterizing—just 45 minutes of charging time for more than 2 hours of riding, depending on conditions.
Following two summers of steady growth, the team is prepared for a full slate of lessons this summer and brisk sales of the expanding Lift product line. After Nathan unexpectedly passed away this spring, Katelyn, Jay, and Brandon agreed to continue growing the business as Nathan would have wanted.
It’s a labor of love for the three of them—love for the products, for the outdoors, and for the business Nathan started.
“It’s exciting,” Katelyn says. “It’s just opening up a whole new way to enjoy the lake.”
Get on the eFoil Board
What IS that? How does it work? How can I try it?
The unique boards, with their notable foil extending below, cause a stir, and in the 10 minutes it takes to set up and carry the boards down to the lake’s edge, I see a family on a golf cart, an older couple, and a young boy come up to inquire.
The eFoilSC team even created splash-proof laminated business cards they can hand out when people approach with questions.
Here are a few features that make the eFoil so different:
- Fiberglass board
- Lithium ion battery
- Aluminum mast
- Carbon fiber front and back wings
- Brushless motor
- Fiber-reinforced polymer propeller
- Wireless Bluetooth hand controller
eFoil South Carolina, 864.361.9655, efoilsc.com
