First Turns: Hydrocraft Helix 665

Intro

I don't try to test every new foil. I'm at a point in my foiling where I'm very specifically looking for certain experiences on the water and have honed in on that pretty well. However, with the Hydrocraft team being Gorge locals I kept an eye on their company and offerings as they launched into the market.

Dims from Hydrocraft

I didn't measure any of the dims on the setup I used. Everything was pre-production equipment so I didn't want to get too specific and I didn't take hardly any pictures. Here's the basics:

Front Wing: Helix 665 (monoblock)

Tail Wing: Pivot 120 (monoblock)

Mast: 80cm long 12mm thick (monoblock)

Rider Dims and Experience

www.wouzel.com

Rider Data: Living Document

Location: Columbia River Gorge. Experience: 12,000+ miles on foil as of Spring 2026Weight: 86-91kg depending on dry vs wet weight, sometimes even more in full winter gear. Wing Style: I'm winging and riding on swell while specifically looking for down the line, wave like setups. I prefer top to bottom turns with fast rail to rail action. I am equally at home in small to large swell. I use the wing to help me park and play, working the same section of swell for up to 3 hours a session. I commonly

Testing Data

I ripped on this foil for a few hours, here's the wind and ride data from that time:

Distance on foil: 25 Miles.

River Flow: 225,000 cubic feet per second.

Wind Range: Quite a huge span from start to finish.

This gauge tends to show the gust as a more accurate representation of the average.

Boards: Custom Carver: 5'11"x20"x77l

Wing: Ocean Rodeo Glide AA 2.5m

Soggy Rider Weight: 210lbs, 95kg (I was so impressed by the 665 performance that I weighed all my wet gear afterwards to get a total weight).

My Foils: AFS Silk and Enduro.

First Impressions

Assembly is easy, and beautifully designed. A single m6 bolt snugs the fuse down to the mast and dual m6 bolts on the sides lock it in to inspire confidence. When you are done at the end of the day you can leave the front and tail assembled. This means you only take 1 bolt completely out at the end of your session.

Nearly everything about this kit surprised me. The stall speed, the average speed, the glide, the pitch control, the pump, it was all incredibly easy to use and manage.

The 12mm Mast

One of the top reasons why I wanted to try the Hydrocraft gear was because of their mast. I've stated in past articles that I think 13mm is going to become the general standard on the market. Now, we are seeing 12mm masts popping up more frequently as they become the new target for peak performance by many brands. As someone who is a huge believer in the mast I keep a close ear to the market to suss out whose 12mm masts are actually stiff enough for all-around use. The pre-production 12mm mast had no stiffness issues and will be stiffer when it is ready for purchase.

Low End and Stall

Low end takeoff was good. It didn't feel life altering but it's significantly better than the foils I ride. More valuable to me was how friendly the stall speed was. I had no issues dropping down to 10mph from time to time without coming off foil. Zero issues in gybes, tacks, 360s on the water.

Ride Characteristics

Tip breaching: Immaculate. I could hear the tips out but felt no instability.

Pitch Control: Best I've experienced. Many foils have a mild resistance to changing their pitch. This can create a slight burble in high performance turns that I never felt on the 665. I wonder how much of this may be related to the 12mm mast avoiding impact on pitch while foiling.

Roll: Very accessible. You don't have to chase the 665 through the carve. It has to be pushed, but offers near zero resistance (not a locked in feeling) rail to rail which inspires confidence.

Pump: Very easy; a nice, light, high-cadence pump was super intuitive for me and worked great.

Glide and Speed:

This was eye opening for me. I didn't expect a whole lot from a 665 foil in terms of glide but I was curious about a 12mm mast being matched with a monoblock front/tail that only had 3 exposed m6 bolt heads. The difference was apparent immediately. I popped onto foil and flagged out my 2.5m sail for a 5 mile DW run. The Helix captured far more glide from the small bumps than expected and I played with bad decisions frequently on my DW/UW laps since I had the wing in hand. I was very impressed.

The only thing that in the moment didn't quite feel right was the speed. I expected more of a "going fast!!!" feeling from this foil but it didn't feel that way while I was on the water. Looking back at the data showed that the Helix operated at a more stable average speed throughout the session. This is nice in its own way because the behavior of the foil is incredibly predictable when it avoids unexpected acceleration. I appreciated how I was able to set up any turn I wanted and never worried about the foil getting away from me. When I was done, the predictability of the foil gave me one of my fastest average speed readouts this year.

*Important to note that the dam flow was high, at 225,000 cubic feet per second just up river from where I was riding. This has a direct impact on how speed feels above the water vs how fast the foil is moving below the water.

Wing vs Parawing?

Since I'm without parawings for a brief moment (horrible) I winged for this session. This gave me a good chance to try some long downwind upwind runs without fussing with the parawing and allowed me to push this foil into places that I normally wouldn't try to go. The 665 would be a winging quiver killer for me and would also do well for me as a parawing foil in good conditions. The Hydrocraft team was adamant that I try the 775 with 140 tail when my parawings come in since it's pretty much their favorite setup.

How to Demo

Hydrocraft has set the tone from day one on how they will be interacting with the public. They offer a 30 minute online gear consultation to make sure you are going to land on the right kit. After you've done your consult (not required), FREE demos are available 7 days a week. You don't have to pay to take a kit out or have it back before the shop closes. You pick it up, have 24 hours to shred, and then can conveniently drop it off the next day. In my opinion, this is the experience everyone should have when buying new foils and is a major reason why I expect this brand will succeed.

Demos and consults are easy to schedule online at:

www.hydrocraftsystems.com

Hydrocraft

Hydrocraft designs premium hydrofoils and boards for forward-thinking riders. Gear built for versatility, performance, and exploring the unknown.

Constructive Feedback

After a one day demo on pre-production gear it's pretty hard to fault anything. If I was really trying to scrape the bottom of the barrel here I would say that this didn't feel like a kit that was going to force me to become a better rider. If your mindset is that you want to ride something that is uncomfortable, and going to punish you until you get better, this might not be the right foil for you.

Final Thoughts

I don't think I've ever liked a new foil brand on the first ride. Heck, I rarely like new foils from my brand on the first go. I usually have to fuss with the tails, fuses, and different front wings to figure out what specific combo works best for me. This was not the case with the Helix kit. It is incredibly accessible without tossing performance out the window. That is something I've never seen from another foil brand. This means you can spend a huge amount of time on the same kit, learning, progressing, having tons of fun, without feeling limited. I had an absolute blast in wild conditions and went home buzzing after dropping the foil off.

Congrats to the whole Hydrocraft team. They are designing the gear that they want, as riders who shred swell every day themselves. The new Helix 665 is excellent and their hard work has produced something special for us all to enjoy. I'll be back to demo their boards and the 775 with a parawing ASAP. I'm also looking forward to their 75cm skinny mast and MA release when it comes.

Questions? Drop them in the comments and I’ll get back to you.

See you at the river,

Bryan Lee, M.S. Experiential Education.

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Disclaimer: Hydrocraft has this pre-production gear available to demo. This is the same gear that is currently available to all riders. No financial compensation was exchanged for this review, no review was requested, and all opinions are entirely my own.