Downwind
The Quest has been one of the longest-running development projects in UniFoil history.
Not because we couldn't build a fast downwind foil. We could.
The challenge was building a foil that delivered the efficiency, glide, and speed demanded by modern downwind foiling while preserving the surfing feel that has always defined UniFoil.
The challenge with modern downwind foil design is no longer achieving efficiency. Today's best downwind wings glide remarkably well, carry speed effortlessly, and make long-distance runs more accessible than ever. The harder question is what happens after you've achieved that efficiency. Can a foil still turn naturally? Can it redirect, surf, and connect energy intuitively, or does it start to feel like a tool built primarily for covering distance?
The Quest was designed around that question.
At 13:1 aspect ratio, the Quest delivers the glide and speed expected from a modern high-performance downwind foil. It accelerates easily, carries through dead sections, and maintains speed with very little effort. But what surprised us throughout testing wasn't the efficiency. It was how much of the surfing feel remained.
The ability to bank a turn. Chase energy. Redirect across bumps. Ride in a narrow stance. Push through a carve and feel the foil respond rather than simply track forward.
That became the defining characteristic of the Quest.
Getting there wasn't straightforward. One of the final prototypes delivered incredible glide and low-end performance, but it was simply too flexible. For straight-line downwind runs, that might have been acceptable. But once you start pushing rail-to-rail transitions and surfing aggressively, stiffness becomes critical.
Rather than compromise, Cliffy went back to the drawing board and developed an entirely new section. The revised profile allowed additional thickness and significantly improved stiffness while actually increasing efficiency. The final result was everything we wanted the original prototype to be—faster, more composed, and dramatically more confidence-inspiring under load.
Team rider Adam Ayers recently put the Quest 135 through its paces during a Maui-to-Molokai channel crossing. His feedback echoed what we had been feeling throughout development. The foil carries speed effortlessly, remains remarkably pitch stable, and still encourages turning even in open-ocean conditions. Adam was particularly impressed by how naturally the Quest paddles onto foil, lifting in a smooth and predictable manner that makes the foil feel much larger than its surface area suggests.
The Quest also benefits from everything we've learned about ventilation and breach recovery over the last several years. Whether surfing bumps, banking hard turns, or riding high on the mast, the foil remains forgiving and composed when tips leave the water.
Available in 110, 135, and 160 sizes, the Quest is designed for riders looking for maximum downwind performance without sacrificing maneuverability or feel.
Downwind glide is easy to chase.
Keeping the soul in it is the hard part.
That's what the Quest was built for.