Words Peter Hart  //  Photos Brett Kenny, John Carter, Richard Whitson,
Elaine White & Jem Hall

Originally published within the April ’18 edition.

Freestyle, at one end of the achievable spectrum, is beyond the horizon for the majority of the windy populace – but at the other end … isn’t. For those looking to take their windsurfing beyond dry cornering, Harty gives you a rundown of tricks ancient and modern, describes just what they take and where to start.

Of all the answers I heard recently to the perennial New Year’s resolution question, the most original has been:  ‘My goal in 2018 is to work on my low self esteem, but I’ve never been very good at that sort of thing.’ And the saddest has been: ‘Oh I’ll probably do everything I did in 2017, but just a bit worse and with slightly less enthusiasm.’

The gradual slide into dreary incompetency … can there be a more miserable prospect? I sincerely hope you don’t feel like that about your windsurfing. You may be 2 kg heavier and marginally less mobile thanks to having embarked on a heavy breeding program, which has ‘hoovered up’ precious water hours – but that’s not a reason to give up on progress.

And progress in our sport is happily not about shaving 10th off personal bests – but in skill acquisition and in embracing new experiences. I’m not suggesting that a steady upward improvement graph is the only way to sustain interest … but a sense of achievement sure brings a spark to the marriage.

Freestyle, of the right type, can be that spark.

You’ve got this far so I guess you’re interested but perhaps remain confused by the various ‘skools’ – old, new, old new, new new etc, and don’t know what’s possible on what kit with what skill level and a limited level of  ‘go-for-it-ness.’ And then there’s the language …

“ A sports scientist once told me that I shouldn’t assume that everyone wants to reach for the sky – some just need nurturing within their comfortable bubble. Really? He obviously hadn’t heard the dopamine-driven 3 minute scream from a Windy who’s just completed their first Vulcan/360/loop/heli-tack! ” 

NEW ‘NEW SKOOL’
Freestyle reinvents itself by the hour and at the top end is of the same relevance to the recreational trickster as being 30ft inverted above the half pipe has to the holiday snowboarder. But you can always take lessons from the best. Firstly they choose and tune their kit minutely to make a trick easier … or possible – and everyone should do that. In the shot below, the supremely able Sarah-Quita Offringa captures every aspect of new freestyle. She is balanced and at the same time hyper-contorted. Her big board, small rig combo gives her speed and therefore height – and at the same time control during the transition. And look at the board – it’s a slalom slab with a tiny fin and yet incredibly fit for that purpose.

Sarah-Quita – absolutely everything is the wrong way round! Photo JC

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FREERIDE
A slick freeride board, as long it’s not a heavy old barge, is fast and able to take you through a number of classic planing tricks such as the duck gybe below – which is also made easier by selecting a manoeuvre oriented sail with just one batten below the boom. The limiting fact will be the outboard straps that will prevent you using the front foot to trim the board through the more complicated spins

A 110 freeride proving to be a suitable platform for duck gybes across Tobago’s lagoon – shame about the outboard strap. Photo Elaine White

Language Barriers
The names of the tricks at one time conveniently described what was going on – eg ‘sail and body 360,’ ‘body drag,’ ‘one handed 360’ etc. The new ones are utterly random (mostly foreign swear words). Don’t worry about them – you’ll learn them when you need to. However, what are important, are a few idioms we rely on to describe key elements within a move, which if you don’t understand, will leave you struggling to fathom what the hell I’m talking about. There aren’t that many – and some you will certainly know. So here goes.

Clew first. It’s sailing with the rig the wrong way round, that is to say with the clew end of the boom facing forward. For extra points, some tricks are completed entirely with the sail clew first.

Switch foot. If you were to carve a gybe and didn’t move the feet as you powered up on the new tack, you’d be sailing away switch foot. Many of the ‘new skool’ planing tricks start with sailing the board from the wrong set of straps ‘switch foot’.

Carving tricks. It’s any planing move where you change direction by banking the board and turning around the edge, e.g. carving 360.

Sailing backwinded. It’s when you’re on the ‘wrong’ side of the sail facing the wind and pushing (rather than leaning back …) against the rig to control the power. Many tricks, old and new, have a backwinded moment.

Ducking the rig. It’s the act of getting to the new side of the sail by ‘ducking’ under the  foot of the sail,  as in classic tricks like the duck tack and the duck gybe. In a more modern context, freestylers duck the sail while fully planing on a reach to end up sailing backwinded – and then boost the board out of the water by pushing on the boom.

Back to sail. It’s what it says on the can – sailing with your back to the sail either on the leeward or windward side of the rig.

Pop. The majority of the new skool (more about the ‘skools’ soon) planing tricks start with a ‘pop’ where the sailor, often on flat water, bounces the board out of the water before performing some kind of aerial spin. So it’s a jump then? Well sort of, except a ‘pop’ is done chiefly by banging down on the back foot and corking the tail out of the water – after which you pivot round on the nose (nose down tail up). Hence freestyle boards have super thick tails. By contrast in a jump (also the platform for many tricks) the idea is to get the nose up first and then pull the tail up to meet it. It’s a subtle difference.

SKOOLS of THOUGHT – a little history.
Understanding where all the tricks and styles have come is historically interesting and may inform your choice of kit and pathway.

Part One – Longboard (aka ‘light wind’) freestyle
Freestyle has always reflected the kit and sailing style popular in that era. In the earliest days, that meant sailing up and down mostly off the plane on a longboard with a daggerboard. It became a massive competitive discipline and the breadth and complexity of the tricks was astonishing.

At the easier end of the scale you had head dips, sailing sitting, lying down, inside the boom or back to sail. There were tail and nose sinks, pirouettes (where you release the sail and spin through 360°) and even somersaults through the boom. I could go on forever.

The classic trick of the era was the railride, tipping the board on its side and standing on the edge, (or even on the underneath of the board, aka the “Everoll”). In  the 1986 Mistral Worlds, Swiss sailor Fritz Schon famously completed his whole 3 minute routine, including tacks and gybes, on the rail, in one section with the sail upside down.

Light wind freestyle is a ballet. It’s about agility and movement, wind awareness and controlling the rig from the most eccentric positions – all essential skills in every branch of windsurfing. It was called ‘longboard’ freestyle but today is performed on any board that floats high off the plane.

Part 2 – the carving era
Short board fever took hold in the early 80s and naturally spawned a new, faster form of trickery. The first moves were permutations of the gybe such as the ‘slam’ and ‘slide’ gybe where the board was slashed or skidded around with a bucket of spray. There were multiple variations of the carve gybe including hand drags and no-hand rig changes and changes with a sailor pirouette. The first real head-turner of the day was the duck gybe – the double loop of its era, which was then superseded at the top by the carving 360, made especially famous by the epic video ‘Trade Winds.’ It featured early superstars Mike Waltze and Fred Heywood (speed king) staging a contest to be the first to complete it – the loser being made to sail a door as a forfeit. As skill and imagination developed, the pioneers took many of the classic longboard tricks onto their short boards and into planing winds – tricks like the helicopter-tack, the duck tack (wildly difficult), the nose sink tack, and slightly later on, the ‘monkey’ gybe, which depending where you’re from, involves a gybe with a full sail and body 360  somewhere in the transition. These ‘tricks’ are seen as relatively straight forward today. However, back then they absolutely weren’t thanks to very small, narrow unforgiving boards and rigs, which with their long booms and dodgy profiles, were unstable, unwieldy and slow to manoeuvre – there’ll be a lesson there.

Part 3 – ‘new skool’
The ‘new skool’ movement took hold towards the end of the 90s following a decade that had been all about speed, dedicated slalom boards (very technical to sail) and camber induced rigs (hard to rig and even harder to throw around) – and during which windsurfing was sliding gradually up its own over-technical backside. The spirit of ‘new skool’ was drawn from freeride snowboarding and sought to inject our sport with some youthful exuberance and attitude. Within a couple of years it had become a professional discipline. The hallmark of the style is that most of the tricks are performed on the plane in the straps. The first wave of stunts were ‘pop and slide’ tricks. The Vulcan, an aerial gybe where you spin the board through 180º, flip the rig in mid air and land sliding backwards on the nose, was the building block for many variations. The king of stunts was, and arguably still is amongst amateurs, the speed (aka flat water ‘spin’) loop – which also has the massive advantage of being both wildly spectacular and relatively easy.

Part 4 –  New ‘new skool’
The focus more recently has gone from sliding tricks to full speed aerial power moves. At the top end the level is otherworldly – and getting more so with every passing hour. Thanks to the power of the rig, windsurfing is the only freeride discipline where riders can complete forward and backward rotations within the same move. And one trick, in competition at least, just doesn’t cut it. The best are stringing 2 and 3 together, the landing of one being the springboard for the next. Not surprisingly, this style has developed alongside very specialized equipment. Read on.

All those styles are still out there. So where are you going to go?
Choice of kit will be the limiting and enabling factor.
Lets us confront the key questions.

What tricks are possible/advisable with a standard 120-130 freeride board?
A freeride board is primarily about speed. It’s therefore a good platform for gybing variations  – ducks, monkey gybes, one handers, pirouette gybes etc – also for the classic straight line tricks such as the body drag.

Variations on tacks – the helicopter, push tack and duck tack – are all possible with the right sail (i.e. small – read on). Depending on sailor size it might just be big enough for light wind practice. As you move up the scale however, the limiting factors are the long fin and the outboard straps.

The long fin restricts how tightly you can carve and makes it especially hard to bounce the board out of the water. It’s NOT a pop and slide machine. Yes you can reduce fin size to a certain extent but go too small and it won’t plane. The outboard strap positions also limit your options. The inboard straps of the freestyle board allow you to trim the board with toes and heels as you spin and pivot. That’s virtually impossible with the feet out on the rail.

“It’s the same in all avenues of windsurfing, the better you get the more you appreciate and benefit from the specialised tool.”

You’re keen to take it quite far and have half an eye on certain new skool tricks, should you go for the dedicated freestyle board or the more
versatile freestyle wave?
Jason Polakow’s routine at the ‘King of the Lake’ contest in Lake Garda in 1998 – the coming out party for New Skool freestyle as a competitive discipline – included a carving 360, a pirouette gybe and a Spock. It’s a proper mix of the new and the classic, which he did on a wave board. That would be a great routine for today’s emerging freestyler and one for which the modern freestyle wave board is ideal. It has enough volume in the tail to pop and yet has enough curve and rocker to carve a proper turn in and out of waves. The latest freestyle boards are highly focussed. With their straight, slalom rocker, they are very quick to plane and super fast; but having such thick sharp parallel rails, they do not carve a sweet turn. It’s all about speed and then boosting out of the water. The top tip when buying a fsw for all-round freestyle is to go big. Look for at least 20 litres of reserve volume – that means 100 litres for an 80 kg sailor. Extra volume allows you to plane with smaller rigs and lends that vital extra support in moves where you finish off the plane in the straps – upwind and downwind 360s, sliding around the last few degrees of a Spock for example.

THE GLORIOUSLY VERSATILE FREESTYLE WAVE
When someone asks what board they should get to pursue some freestyle, the very fact they’re unsure makes me scream ‘freestyle wave!’ The boards used to pioneer the first ‘New Skool’ tricks back in the late 90s were effectively fsws. So the new ones, vastly better now, have the pedigree to take you a long way up the ladder. More importantly they’re fun and easy to sail which can’t be said of all freestyle boards. Where they win over a freeride board is the inboard straps and smaller fin options. The inboard strap settings allow you to use the front foot as a platform, which is key in so many new and old tricks.

The inboard strap settings of the fsw allow you to project forward and balance on the toes of the front foot – which is key in so many moves old and new, including this one handed lay-down gybe. Photo Richard Whitson

Do sails make a big difference?
Oh yes! Start by being aware of what doesn’t work.

Too big! The harder it pulls, the less you can move, the more it upsets the trim when you release it and the harder it is to chuck away and hide.
It’s rare to see a pro freestyler using bigger than a 5.3. Most of the time even the big guys are on 4.7s or less, even in 18 knots – because it makes the rig transitions so much easier. Such a small rig is out of the question for the majority because it takes a dollop of strength, skill and fitness to get the board planing with so little cloth. But understand that for every half metre you hoist above 6.0, the tricks, especially the upwind ones involving a duck, or backwinding or driving the clew through the wind, get exponentially harder.

Wrong shape. Bigger sails are cut for speed with a lower foot and recessed boom. That increased area below the boom makes every trick harder, especially the ducking ones.

Too full. Freeride and racey sails with a fixed camber never stop pulling – even when you sheet out (which is desirable when you’re racing). But in freestyle you want the sail to flatten off and play dead as you depower, so you can release it, duck it, or lay it down in the knowledge it will play dead and lie there inert until you call it back again.

Would a freestyle sail be too specialist for learning the basics?
The latest designs, like the boards, are built for a very specific function. It’s all power on to get planing and then power off for the trick – its twitchy feel is not beloved by the more ‘allround’ freestyler, who  prefers the power to come on more gradually  to help him set the rail and stabilise the manoeuvre. Many of the design features of the freestyle sail, such as the high aspect, the forward effort and very tight leech, are all there to make for an easier duck – a key aspect of a large percentage of the latest tricks. A wave sail or even a crossover sail is a more secure bet for most.

Can I set the freestyle wave board and rig up differently for freestyle?
You can certainly tune your wave or crossover rig for freestyle.

Be gentle with the downhaul – you’re not after top speed but want the leech to be tight and reactive. Loose cloth, whether it be a floppy leech or loose cloth between the boom arms at the clew end, will make the sail unstable in the transitions. As for the board, you must get used to the inboard strap settings and open them up wide so both feet are across the centre-line. In carving moves and new skool spins, you spend a lot of time trimming the board with the front foot. As for the fin, if you’re targeting carving tricks, you can stay with the given wave or crossover fin. If you’re going for your first pop and slide tricks (Vulcans etc)then the small freestyle fin will really help the tail release. The issue is you’ll have to totally change your sailing style. Get off the back foot, lean forward, sail off the heel of the front foot and use the windward edge for grip. Time to get out there.

LIGHT WIND PRACTICE –  you’re mad not to!
Many regard it as a waste of a session but by so doing consign themselves to a skill desert. The big floaty board, small rig combo teaches you so much about posture and not relying on a grunty counterbalance. You improve rig mobility and realize that in certain circumstances, it’s OK to let go. You also relate rig tuning to ease of handling in the transitions. Check the skin tension of the sail in the light wind pic, which means it depowers and plays dead – essential  when ducking.

Ducking the sail is a key part of many new moves. It’s not impossible to learn in planing winds – but it could take a decade. Get to grips with it in a light, steady breeze.Photo Brett Kenny

Oda Johanne and Maike Huvermann performing some synchronized ducking at the World Cup in Fuerte. Photo JC

THE IMPOSSIBLE – can your combo do it?
It’s a shame to pour cold water on any ambition but it is important to discover whether the trick you’ve targeted is actually possible given your chosen kit and the conditions. Here’s an example. The planing duck tack is a move that has confounded sailors for generations. From a reach, you turn switch foot so your back is to the sail, head upwind and then duck the rig to end up backwinded. You then use it to steer through the wind and bear away. It’s not particularly spectacular but strangely difficult with a tiny room for error.

James arrived on a clinic having been trying them for years. In a force 2-3 and using a 5.7 on his 100 ltr fsw he went out (for the 1000th time) confident it was pointless trying them in planing conditions until he’d got the process worked out in light winds. I had to point out that what he was attempting was, if not impossible, then incredibly difficult on that choice of board and rig size. When he ducked the sail, he released mastfoot pressure, the nose rose up and shot downwind. Every time it turned into an involuntary gybe. It was almost impossible to stop that happening. The board was too short and the rig too big for light wind practice. With his combo it would be easier to try them on the plane where the board would be effectively more buoyant and where its carving momentum would keep carrying it upwind while the sail was being ducked. However, the immediate remedy was to rig down to a 4.7 and lend him a SUP. The 4.7 was easier to duck and the SUP holds its line and trim as you head up. He cracked a few immediately – off the plane admittedly – but he was on his way.

The biggest sail he uses for sail tricks now on his 100 fsw is a 5.3.

Most failures I witness are not down to sailor ‘rubbishness’, but from trying the wrong moves with the wrong kit in the wrong conditions.

THE IMPOSSIBLE part 2 – sail tricks and speedsters.
Hark at this salutary tale. Bill asks Ben which would be the best trick to start with. Bill suggests a helicopter tack because that’s easy and you can practice in light winds. It’s easy for little Ben who spent his formative years on a pond chucking a rig around. But Bill is a devoted, weighty (105 kgs) high speed blaster who went from beginner to planing in the space of a few months and who had never purposefully slowed down and certainly never contemplated standing on the wrong side of the sail.

Bill attempts these ‘helis’ in a force 4 on his 120 litre freeride board and favourite twin cam 7.5 and has a humiliating and ultimately fruitless time failing at something that didn’t even look that exciting to him in the first place. When it was pointed out that he had no chance on that kit and that he needed a big board, a small sail and some light wind, he replied he didn’t have a big board; furthermore he had neither the time, build, balance nor the inclination to pratt about in light winds. Speed was his thing. He actually admitted that his interest in freestyle had been piqued by Dave White’s light footed wizardry. For those unacquainted, Whitey, 115 kg at last count, is the big windsurfer’s Svengali and confounds the freestyling public by performing fully planing Monkey gybes at 40 knots on a tiny board (a speed needle at times) and often using a huge, fully cambered race sail. His shtick is speed. With speed his little board is buoyant and his rig is light. By his admission, his freestyling routine is limited to very rapid gybe variations. He is all too aware that if he does any trick that involves slowing down – he sinks.

That is the approach Ben should take. Stick with what he’s got; use speed as his weapon to lighten the rig and bin the idea of tricky tacks.

IMPOSSIBLE part 3  – short on a tool.
Having ended up on the right kit combo, nicely powered on a beautiful flat water day, you start to run out of excuses. Failure from now on points squarely at pilot error. It may not be total rubbish-ness but often it’s the critical shortage of one key skill. When you eye up a trick, first pick it apart and see if you’re fully equipped technically. Take the carving 360. It’s a wondrous, achievable move and is a natural successor to the carve gybe. What’s it about? You carve in, tighten up the arc earlier; lay the rig into the turn much further than in a normal gybe. Then as you pass onto the new tack, the sail backwinds … that’s new … then what? The fact is that if you have never controlled a sail backwinded … well it’s a skill you’ll not suddenly pick up whirling around in a force 5. It’s all a blur and will excite the wrong reflexes.

If you get tripped up by a certain 3 note phrase in a long music piece, you don’t go and repeat the whole thing, you isolate that phrase and play it slowly 100 times. It’s the same with a freestyle trick. You have to retreat to the pond and discover the secrets of backwind sailing –  like sweeping the rig back and lifting the back hand to depower – yes, everything is the wrong way round.  You discover that backwinded, you can get the board to turn upwind by dropping the clew into the water behind you and pushing on the back hand so the board pivots around the end of the boom. Through the wind, if you bring the rig upright sheet in and bear away, that’s the end of the 360. Now get back to the planing version. Success may not be immediate but at least that backwinded moment at the end will be vaguely familiar.

BIG MAN FREESTYLE and the WHITE FACTOR
‘Big men don’t freestyle.’ Well apparently they do! Due to having to use big racy sails in the medium winds good for learning tricks, they struggle with the intricate, clew first back-winded, inside out sail tricks. So they need to tap into their one weapon – speed and momentum. Dave White has made speedy carving tricks something of an art form. People gasp in disbelief at how he dances his 115 kg frame around the mast with rig in hand fully planing. But it’s by going fast that he keeps the board buoyant and stable and the rig light. But it’s still very impressive.

Whitey as usual, on the wrong side of the sail, in mid Monkey (aka backwind gybe) fully planing at 35 knots. Photo Jem Hall

THE BLOODY LIGHT WIND MANTRA
I saved it until last. But the fact that so many of the classic moves and tricky transitions –  duck gybe, duck tack, push tack, slam gybe, monkey gybe, nose sink tack, switch foot and back wind sailing – have non planing versions, should give you a massive clue as to the best training regime.

Speedy Bill was a lost cause but most aren’t – even the big fellas. In light winds with a big board and small sail, you don’t just learn the mechanics of various rig moves at an easy pace, you also become sensitive to how sail tuning effects the rig during the transitions. And big blokes especially should learn to sail with a small rig to stop relying on a load of grunt to hold them upright.

Dreams of the summit
Most of the skills so far have related to the classic old skool tricks. But what about the dynamic new stuff as performed by the elite? Is it a style the recreational sailor can aspire to? Here’s one more true tale to finish. Scottish Craig, 22, worked as an instructor for a centre in Vassiliki. I met him while I was doing a clinic there last June. One afternoon he came in looking particularly chipper because he’d just landed his first ‘flaka’ – a sort of aerial upwind 360 – very advanced stuff and amazing surely since he’d only been sailing for 2 years. And yet his story is not so uncommon amongst the ambitious youth of Vass – because all the right ingredients are in place. It’s freestyling HQ  – knowledge, inspiration and training partners abound – as well as flat water. During the light wind mornings he would coach intermediates and so spend many hours doing ‘Old skool’ freestyle, gathering all the key rig handling skills that would serve him in his ultimate quest.

He only used the same 100 litre freestyle board and never a sail bigger than 5.3. That meant his whole sailing style was developed around the freestyle combo – notably the essential skill of getting planing by bearing right away to unload the fin and pumping from the straps. Sailing all day meant he was strong and sailing fit – another crucial ingredient in the new skool casserole. And one more thing – Craig was also a former rugby player and therefore used to getting kicked and trampled and then having to dust himself down and carry on. That’s new skool freestyle in a nutshell. The story has one last chapter. Two months later I returned to Vass on a family holiday and caught up with Craig. Once again he was chipper, this time having just completed his first …  wait for it … carve gybe! He said it had been crazily difficult – far harder than the Vulcan. What?!

You get good at the things you practice!

The technique journey continues with Harty in the next issue. Check out www.peter-hart.com for news on remaining clinic places for 2018.

The post PETER HART – THE FREESTYLE DIRECTORY WHERE DO YOU START? appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Driven and passionate about developing the best products, this year we take another step forward! We proudly present our Y24 Freestyle-Wave Collection.

Via RRD International

The post RRD FREESTYLE – WAVE COLLECTION! appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

WINDSURF MAGAZINE #378 AUGUST ON SALE NOW

The August 2018 Issue of the world’s only monthly English language windsurfing magazine is out now!

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Subscribe and receive your copy in either 

Print or 

Digital format.
(Prices include delivery anywhere globally 10 times a year.)

The Long Glide – Marquesas Islands windSUP Expedition, Jono Dunnett’s Atlantic to Med Adventure, Rough Stuff PWA Slalom, Cotillo Waves, Peter Hart’s Kit Tips, Lake Silvaplana, Graham Ezzy, Foil Gybes Technique, 2018 Windsup Board Test, Robby Swift’s Ho’okipa Guide, Aruba Travel.

BIG JUICY READS

THE MARQUESAS EXPEDITION
Bart de Zwart travels between the Marquesas Islands by sail and paddle on his windSUP and takes us onboard as he recounts a memorable expedition.

BOSS BEACH
When it comes to Canarian beach breaks, Cotillo in Fuerteventura is the boss. John Carter and Timo Mullen take on the challenge with Iballa Moreno.

THE ROUGH STUFF
When the going gets rough, what do you do with slalom stuff? A selection of the world’s best PWA racers share their knowledge and experiences.

REDISCOVERING ARUBA
Canadian pro, Philip Soltysiak, rediscovers the windsurfing paradise of Aruba, finding there is much more to the island than just the flat water of Fisherman’s Huts.

JOURNEY TO THE MED
Jono Dunnett updates us on the latest leg of his epic round Europe expedition – the Atlantic coast of Spain and Portugal to the Mediterranean.

HO’OKIPA BREAKDOWN
Robby Swift gives a guide to the iconic wave of Ho’okipa and a breakdown on the ins and outs of sailing his adopted home break.

HIGH WINDS
If you fancy windsurfing in the Swiss Alps, 1800 metres above sea level, then Lake Silvaplana is the spot. Christian Mueller and Riccardo Marca tell us more.

FATHER TIME
A newborn baby inspires Graham Ezzy to reflect on his life as a father and son, as the Ezzy windsurfing dynasty continues to grow.

GEAR SHED

WINDSUP TEST 
The test team review a selection of 2018’s windSUP boards in UK waters. Boards tested are:

AHD SEALION XL
FANATIC VIPER AIR PURE 11’0”
GA IQ FREE 10’7” WS
JP ALLROUNDAIR WS SE 10’6”
O’SHEA WIND 100
RED PADDLE CO WINDSURF MSL 10’7”
RRD AIRTOURER CONVERTIBLE V4 12’ X 32”
STARBOARD SUP WINDSURFING INFLATABLE BLEND ZEN 11’2”
UNIFIBER EVOLUTION 10’7”

TEKKERS

PETER HART – THE KIT FACTOR
However good and versatile kit is these days, bad choices are still the number one barrier to progress. Peter Hart offers some prime examples.

SAM ROSS – FOIL GYBES

  

 

Sam Ross gives us the tricks and tips for nailing gybes on a foil.

BOARDSHORTS

LATEST & GREATEST

RYA KNOWLEDGE – YOUTH WAVESAILING PATHWAYS
The RYA take a look at the history of the Tiree Wave Classic and its role as the catalyst for the BWA ‘Future Pros’ Youth Wave Camps.

SITTIN’ ON THE DUNNY

EDITORIAL 

 – THE LONG GLIDE

AFFAIRS OF THE HART 

– THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT

Get your 

Print

The post AUGUST 2018 ISSUE ON SALE NOW appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

South Swell Patrol – wave windsurfing in Gran Canaria

An unexpected south swell hit the Canaries and Kerstin Reiger produced a video about the south swell on the east coast of Gran Canaria. “On July 11th and 12th a big south swell hit the Canary islands. Some of the best wave windsurfers, who are already in Gran Canaria to prepare for the 2018 PWA Gran Canaria Wind & Waves Festival, had the chance to ride a rare south swell. The locals said, this this swell was the best for the last 5 years. Swell direction and wind direction just matched perfectly.”

Riders: Leon Jamaer, Marc Pare, Moritz Mauch, John Skye, Victor Fernandez, Jake Schettewi, Marino Gil, Josep Pons, Adam Warchol

The post GRAN CANARIA DOWN THE LINE STORM WINDSURFING appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Ricardo Campello – “We are About to start the Gran Canaria Wind & Waves Festival and for 2 weeks We had amazing conditions for training . Here some of my best footage ! After the event I will Release the 2nd Episode of My Campellovision Series ! Stay Tuned !”
Filmed By : Rafael España

The post GRAN CANARIA 2018 PRE CONTEST RICARDO CAMPELLO appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

“Some action from the winter sailing in Pozo and Capetown with Moritz Mauch.

Via Moritz Mauch

The post MORITZ MAUCH WINTER 2018 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

“It was howling on day 1 of the 2018 PWA Gran Canaria Wind & Festival. Watch some of the best crashes from the first day filmed during the competition and the free session.” – Continentseven.

The post WINDSURFING CRASHES IN 40 KNOTS appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Cancelled flights, closed roads, landslides and snow, are not normally events you associate with the Canary Islands, but the havoc of Storm Emma extended well into the southern flank of Europe. While Lanzarote, Tenerife and Gran Canaria battled the storm’s effects, windsurfers on Fuerteventura saw the unusual weather pattern bring strong winds and one of the best swells in years. A crew of locals and visiting pros tell us more about the epic conditions that lit up the island’s infamous North Shore.

Words  Leon Jamaer, Iballa Moreno, Thomas Traversa, Julien Taboulet, Yannick Anton  //  Photos  Gwen Marche / Fuerteluz Project, Sophia Regerbis, Moncho Gil, Alfredo Vera Perez, Lucas Ruggirello, Tof & JB.

This feature originally appeared in the May 2018 issue of Windsurf Magazine

THOMAS TRAVERSA
I stayed in France all winter but we had a plan to go on a family trip at some point. A good forecast for the Canary Islands came at the right time and I knew it was going to be epic in Fuerteventura, so it was an easy call. I have spent a lot of time on that island in the past and there are different spots that can deliver amazing conditions with westerly winds and a decent swell.

I did not expect the wind to be that strong, I had never used a smaller sail than 4.0 in Fuerteventura prior to this trip, so I only brought sails from 4.0 up to 4.7. I was on my medium / big board, 220 x 55 cms and 70 litres, with my normal fin setup, 15 and 10 cm thrusters, just my normal equipment. I like to feel good with my board when conditions are big so I prefer to use a board I know, with the settings I am used to.

On the first day the wind was howling, 30 to 40 knots I think, so I was really overpowered on a 4.2, but the waves were so clean that it was still very fun to sail. I had 2 sessions that first day but ended up having a bad crash and tweaked my ankle so I missed the biggest waves on the second day. On that first day I had a couple of airs, even though I was more trying to link solid turns together on most of my waves. This spot only has 2 different sections to hit, the outside bigger section and the inside bowl. Because the wind was so strong, the outside section was hard to play with, so I was only trying to hit the inside bowl, which is very hollow and runs really quickly down the line. The wind was very offshore and on one of my attempts a strong gust lifted me after hitting the lip with a lot of speed. I knew from the beginning that the wind was going to blow me out the back of the wave, but the feeling of going up in the air so quickly was truly amazing! Technically it wasn’t anything special, but was still a very fun moment!

We were fortunate enough to get more wind later in the week, and with the swell staying solid I could sail 2 more times with over mast high waves.

The vibe is really nice in Fuerteventura when there are good conditions; it is heavy and mellow at the same time. Sunny, warm and picture perfect, it is kind of unreal. Because the waves are so clean when it’s on, it makes it very fun to sail, even though the waves can be massive and have a lot of power. Back in 2004 or 2005 I had a memorable session at the same spot with similar conditions, big swell and strong wind, so I really enjoyed coming back more than 10 years later and scoring several days in a row with a few friends on the water.

^{“ I was really overpowered on a 4.2, but the waves were so clean that it was still very fun to sail. ”}

YANNICK ANTON
I live in Fuerteventura and winter is the time of year to enjoy windsurfing with the best swells on the island. The locals and I could sail many days every week, but as we all have jobs (for me it is with the windsurfing school Sailsense), we normally only sail on the best days and work the others. Like other windsurfers I check windguru once a day, which gives us a good idea of what’s coming. The forecast was very nice for a week of waveriding on the north shore. One day especially stood out with big swell like we can have a few times during winter. The nice thing of being in Fuerteventura is that every day of windsurfing is special, because it changes a lot. We all know where to go depending on the conditions, and on the type of wave we want to sail. There are many possibilities, so we go to the coast, check one or two spots and go where we like the most.

The Witchcraft Haka 74 is my go-to board for most conditions together with a set of Witchcraft Slayer sails, which are powerful with a lot of drive and not twitchy, so they don’t do weird things. When the swell gets heavier on the island, all I change is put a bigger centre fin in to hold more pressure on the top turn, but other than that the stock fins work really well on the Haka. During this week I took time off for 3 sessions, 3 good sessions, exceptional sessions I would say if I were not living here! The first day I went to Caleta, it was mast high, side-offshore wind grooming the waves and turquoise water – perfect. Guys in the water were going fast down the line, carving on some sweet sections. I had to coach two guys there before going for it myself. When I was free, I went to the big wave spot because the orientation of the swell meant it was getting in there a bit better with some sections a bit punchier then Caleta. I got some very nice waves there, trying to surf clean lines and attack just when a good opportunity set up.

The second day had heavy waves and strong winds forecast. So I went directly to the big wave spot to meet some friends that were about to launch from there. There was a lot of whitewater, strong currents and outside there were some very heavy sets with good wind but not too strong. These sort of days I like to check from the land before going in because I really need to understand how it works, even though I know the place well because I’ve spent lots of time windsurfing and surfing there. But it’s important to check it to have plans in case of issues. After seeing what my friends were doing in the water, I decided to launch further down where there is a channel with no waves to go out, so very easy. It was 15 minutes to get upwind, but during that time the wind conditions got stronger and more offshore. I was overpowered with a 3.7. I tried two waves, completely out of control, too much wind, too choppy; I could not even get down the wave. When conditions  get so difficult like that for me I prefer to leave it for another day, there are plenty of other nice sessions to enjoy here. And in fact, next day was for sure a lot smaller, but still some nice sets, and within one hour I got so many nice waves with extra clean bottom turns that I forgot about the previous day where I couldn’t enjoy any!

^{“During this week I took time off for 3 sessions, 3 good sessions, exceptional sessions I would say if I were not living here!”}

IBALLA MORENO
With this forecast there was only a few options. I sailed a spot next to this one before the big session. The wind was gusty and difficult, so then I drove to this spot and Stephane Etienne went in the water, so I didn’t think twice about it! I rigged and jumped in. It’s a difficult spot to launch from, but I managed to make it out safely by waiting for a lull in the sets. Thomas Traversa got injured this day but he was ripping! I went in the water just after him. I used a 3.7 sail and I was totally overpowered! It was hard to do a bottom turn even….but it was fun to experience a new challenge! We normally don’t see such strong winds in the north shore of Fuerteventura.

I will always remember this day as I went in the water and shared some waves with Stephane and a local friend Bob Remarks…who is always happy to join in some sessions!  This winter has been good in Fuerteventura. I was travelling between islands a lot and searching always for the best waves. November and December were difficult months as our Dad passed away, but In January we got back on track and started training and getting our lives back together.

^{“We normally don’t see such strong winds in the north shore of Fuerteventura”}

LEON JAMAER
I was in Fuerte’ with just a surfboard some years ago and surfed this wave on the north shore. It wasn’t big, but on the sets I could see the potential of this left-hander and set a goal to come back one day to windsurf it. From Google earth I knew which wind direction is side-off, so I basically just had to wait for the right forecast. It got really cold at home in Germany towards the end of February and we were playing ice hockey on the frozen lakes and I knew this big high pressure system would stir low pressures further south. I monitored this particular low pressure for some time and eventually saw the wind would be just perfect for three to five days in a row with plenty of swell. Thomas Traversa and I were in contact and he gave me the final nod that it should be really good, so we both booked our flights. I arrived a day before the big swell. From the airport I drove straight to the spot, met Thomas and had a good warm up session in over mast high waves. Unfortunately Thomas tweaked his ankle on a bad crash and couldn’t join me the next day. I went to the same spot and watched for more than an hour, not sure to go out or not because it looked huge, stormy and the channel was small. Finally, I decided to give it a try with a local photographer on the rocks watching me in case something would go wrong. Being by myself between mountains of water was unreal and it reminded me of those huge and fast open ocean swells in Hawaii. I was fully powered up on a 4.2 and my 88 litre board felt good, especially with a really forgiving and  control oriented K4 fins quad setup. I used a 10cm asymmetric prototype with 2 degree angle and 70/30 (outside/inside) foil. For rear fins I used 15cm Scorchers on the big days and a 15cm Leon when it was around mast high and smaller.

I had lots of waves, but at the same time tried to not crash and destroy my only small rig on the rocks. When I came back to shore, happy and already completely exhausted, Julien Taboulet and Stephane Etienne were just getting ready. After a quick break I couldn’t resist to join them for a second session. This time I wanted to risk more and really hit the lip. Eventually, I found a wave that looked good for an air. Everything went as anticipated until the wind took me so far up into the air I completely lost orientation and let go. The waves behind cleaned me up and sent me straight back to shore. That evening we had a big dinner with Thomas and his family, Julien and the rest of the French gang and relived the day. There wasn’t much time for rest because the following days were still windy. Thomas’s foot felt better again and we had a lot more sessions, often having the waves to ourselves or, once in a while, being accompanied by one of the locals. After four days we were completely surfed out and our bodies aching for rest. We weren’t sad when the wind stopped as we then had some great days surfing. Fuerte’s north shore has a different spot every few hundred metres for all possible wind directions. I definitely want to come back as I think I have a good feeling for the wave now and can start pushing things a bit more, especially when it’s big. Sailing with Thomas and seeing his fearless yet safe and experienced approach in big waves is really inspiring and motivates me to sail more critically in big waves!

^{“Being by myself between mountains of water was unreal and it reminded me of those huge and fast open ocean swells in Hawaii”}

JULIEN TABOULET
I had been busy with my family at my watersports business, the Wesh Center crew, preparing for the new season as we are opening on the 1st of April. On Saturday, as I was knee deep between screws and pieces of wood, my friends Jean-Baptiste Caste and Thomas Traversa called and motivated me to come for a big swell arriving in Fuerteventura! I was rushing to get all my work done, look after my kids (3 ha ha ha), the business and organization of the Mondial du Vent… but Caroline and my friends in Leucate just told me: “Wesh just go, it’s your job, big waves, you love that!!!!” I was on the plane Tuesday afternoon, and in a good restaurant Tuesday night in Corralejo! I have known this place for a long time; I broke my first mast in Cotillo beach in 1990 when I was 10 years old!

Crazy story, crazy session! When I arrived on the spot, another friend (Christophe, I didn’t know that he was here) from the south of France was there, and he told me: “Wesh, the wind is too strong and the waves are way too big, I don’t want to die, take your board and give me your camera!” Yes, one year before I sold him my Goya 79 litre and I was just here with my new 85 litre, so it was perfect timing, just unbelievable!

4.0 sail and my small custom quad from Keith Teboul, I was ready to start the fight with this ocean on fire! The launch was just crazy, Stephane Etienne, the chief of the spot, showed Leon Jaemer and I the way out, but I still nearly wiped out on big rocks just 5 metres away. This is the kind of wave where the only way to ride is to go at it 150%! If you stay on the shoulder, the wind just blows you out the side. So you need to go deep if you really want to ride the beast. So scary but so intense, big adrenaline, just awesome! I got one big crash, I made a barrel with all my stuff, that was mad, big washing machine I can tell you!!!! These kind of days you are reminded how nature can be so powerful and how windsurfing can be one of the most radical sports in the world. These are the sort of waves I like riding! This session was for sure one of the best of my life, and the beer was two times better that night, I slept like a baby!

^{“This is the kind of wave where the only way to ride is to go at it 150%!”}

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The 2019 Blacktip. Simmer best selling wave sail of all times and one of the best selling sail models world wide. Wave sailing at its best! resented by big wave pioneer, Kai Katchadourian and the hot shot on the tour, Marc Paré E-334.

Video by Si Crowther and Amanda Beenen. Edit by Amanda Beenen

Via Simmer Style

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SLICK STICKS
115L SLALOM BOARD TEST 2018

Test Editor Tris Best // Second Testers Maurin Rottenwalter & Joe North

Photos

Test location Portland Harbour

In days past slalom boards used to be precocious beasts, demanding constant attention and input from the rider, and if they caught you off guard for a moment, they would buck and spit until you relented.

This test was originally published in the June 2018 issue.

The more recent past has seen the trend to make slalom boards much more manageable, user-friendly even, to ensure control remains in place as the conditions turn on. It has, in turn, broadened the slalom boards user range and made them more accessible than ever before. They have easily been within reach of the weekend sailor for years now, which has improved their residual value and meant that slalom sailing on a local level can prosper. Plugging a powerful cambered sail into any of these highly refined thoroughbred boards on test this month cannot fail to get the pulse racing. Is it all good news then? We sent the test team in to find out and see what’s new for 2018.

FINDINGS
And the answer to that question is simple too – very little really! There isn’t a massive leap in advancements here in the mid-size slalom board group. Of the six boards on test here, only two are completely new, and a third sees a subtle refinement to its cutout shaping. So, as a result it would be false to make any sweeping statement about a new direction in the market. What we can say however is that the craftsmanship in these boards is always impressive.
Firstly, their outlines are quite complex – short and rounded by previous standards, yet with parallel rails under closer inspection and in comparison to a contemporary outline. Rider stance and location is meticulously considered, along with the position of the track and fin box, volume distribution and rocker-line. Secondly, they are always incredibly light. Developments in technologies are always first aired in the slalom discipline and it never ceases to amaze us just how feather light these boards are. 

If there is any trend worth mentioning here, it seems that bottom shapes are becoming simpler and cutaways in the tail more refined, with some correlations in shapes between the brands. All bar the Tabou now have profiled tails (most rounded, the JP adopting a diamond outline) when looking at the deck from above. And underneath it seems that complex deep-stepped cutouts are being replaced with single tiered tapered designs, aimed to provide more control without increasing extra tension with the water’s surface or reducing speed. It is a fine art and we’re guessing is only really achieved through long hours of iterative design, but any increase in top end control can only be a good thing for everyone, from pro rider to recreational blaster. 

The other point, (which we have made time and again, but deserves to be repeated in this test) is that the board only makes up one part of the overall picture. Daniel Aeberli alluded to as much in Fanatic’s promo video for their Falcon – if you want to sail fast on any of these boards, you have to consider which sail and fin you partner them with. Any of these boards can
become part of a killer combination that is greater than the sum of their parts.
Adversely, a flighty highly spirited board will feel unsailable if used with an unsuitable fin. Consider your existing setup and then choose accordingly.

SUMMARY
So let’s go through the boards on test this year, starting with the cream in lighter airs. The Fanatic Falcon Slalom is simply stunning in marginal to comfortably powered conditions. That is not to say that it is wildly out of reach when the wind increases, but it has its moments and certainly requires a committed riding style to keep it in line. The new JP Slalom is also a light wind maestro and surprised us with the drive and poise it had when partnered with a large sail. Directionally balanced and committed, it isn’t a handful per-se, but like the Fanatic it takes more rider input when the conditions increase (particularly round the corners), responding best to being dominated rather than sailed half-hearted. The Goya and Tabou are the real all-rounders of the group but for very different reasons. The Proton’s forte is its ease of use, offering a massive range and being almost freerace in nature when you compare it to the others. The Manta from Tabou is an all-rounder should you wish to spend time understanding its tuning potential. Its character can be altered massively by using different fins and sail balances – a real gem for those analytical sailors out there. The RRD X-Fire simply loves to be loaded. Don’t sail it half-baked, just load it up, lock in and let it do the work for you. That leaves the Starboard iSonic 107. In essence, Starboard describe it as the sweetheart of their mammoth fourteen-board iSonic range … and all we kept saying during testing was, “We can see exactly why!” If you are racing on any of these boards this season you will have a memorable year! In the right hands and with a tuned setup, they are all capable of winning races on the biggest stage. If you’re not racing and simply want to show a clean pair of heels to your mates, these six boards were all A LOT of fun to sail on. Slalom is undoubtedly for the masses – jump on any of these and be inspired to ignite the scene at your local venue.

uk.otc-windsurf.com

THE LINE UP

• FANATIC FALCON TE 114

• GOYA PROTON PRO 116

• JP SLALOM PRO 71

• RRD X FIRE V10 LTD 114

• STARBOARD ISONIC REFLEX CARBON 107

• TABOU MANTA TEAM 71

TEST OVERVIEW PAGE

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What’s new for 2019? – New rounded-pin tail shape – Now available in Flax Balsa, innovative technology.

Yulex Footstraps – The world’s first footstraps made with natural rubber compared to the previous generations. The UltraKode has less tail kick and less nose scoop for higher top-speeds, quick planning and more control. More details soon on the Starboard website (coming soon). Stay tuned.

Via Starboard Windsurfing

The post 2019 STARBOARD ULTRAKODE appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

 Winners Final Single | PWA Gran Canaria Wind & Waves Festival 2018

The post POZO 2018 SINGLE ELIMINATION MENS FINAL appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Windsurfing at the Olympics is under threat again. To find out what the current state of play is and get the lowdown on the British Sailing Team’s RS:X racers, Finn Mullen spoke to Ian Walker, the RYA’s Director of Racing.

Words  Finn Mullen, Ian Walker  //  Photos Rya, Richard Langdon / Sailing Energy / World Sailing, Jesus Renedo / Sailing Energy / World Sailing

This feature originally appeared in the May 2018 issue of Windsurf Magazine

FM: Windsurfing is under threat for the 2024 Olympics – can you explain what has led to this and where we are at presently with appeals and the procedure process and the RYA’s part in it.

IW: Olympic disciplines are reviewed every four years by World Sailing. There are two review processes currently being carried out. In January the World Sailing Board placed four of the current ten Olympic sailing disciplines – RS:X men and women, Laser and Laser Radial – under anti-trust review due to the threat of legal action under EU Monopoly laws. The purpose of an anti-trust review is to ensure that World Sailing reviews those disciplines for which equipment has been in place for a long period of time and where there is a risk of a legal challenge. In selecting disciplines for anti-trust review World Sailing is not making any statement concerning the current equipment. World Sailing will make the decision to retain, evolve or select new equipment in November 2018.

Separate to this is the process by which World Sailing will select the disciplines for the 2024 Olympics at their mid-year meeting in May 2018 (likely to still be ten classes). The fact that there will need to be gender equity in the medals in 2024 means that at least one class will have to change. As of March 2018 there are five disciplines under review including men’s and women’s windsurfing – these were decided by the World Sailing Events Committee and approved by Council in February 2018. At the World Sailing mid-year meeting a ‘slate’ of five disciplines will need to be approved by the World Sailing Council. Britain has one of the 39 votes on Council.

The RYA recognises the pressure being put on World Sailing by the IOC agenda to modernise its sports, but has always supported the idea of windsurfing being part of the Olympics. Windsurfing is one of the most affordable and universal disciplines and as such should be well placed to remain in the Olympics, but it is all subject to the normal politics. Remember that whatever is agreed in May needs to be ratified at the AGM in November (which is how the kiteboarding / windsurfing decision was reversed last time).

FM: How has it affected the current Olympic windsurfing program of team GB.

IW: The British Sailing Team’s windsurfing program is currently enjoying some good results in both men’s and women’s divisions and the program is not affected in any way by any of World Sailing’s discussions. The RS:X class is seeing strong growth and our youth pathway remains strong.

FM: Do you think there will be any changes to Olympic windsurfing equipment?

IW: Despite recent manufacturing changes to masts and fins, and some changes to sails, the RS:X board remains pretty much the same as when it was adopted in 2008. There is no change to the equipment being used at Tokyo 2020 from Rio 2016. The only recent change in format has been the advent of reaching starts for medal races. If selected for 2024 the class will need to find ways to ‘modernise’. This could include foiling, but is more likely to mean an evolution in race format. 

FM: What is the British Sailing Team’s current schedule in preparation for the games and how have we been doing?

 IW: The focus is currently the 2018 Sailing World Championship in Aarhus, Denmark, this summer. This is the first opportunity for countries to qualify for Tokyo 2020. Outside of this there is the normal monthly international event schedule coupled with trying to find time to train in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic venue of Enoshima. Nick Dempsey’s retirement following Rio 2016 presents a great opportunity in the men’s class for other Brits to step out of his shadow. Both Kieran Martin and Tom Squires have notched up impressive results in the last 12 months. Kieran missed a lot of the regattas in 2017 to concentrate on university studies but still managed to finish 5th at the 2017 RS:X World Championship. Tom came fourth in the World Cup Series in Miami in January this year and also won the recent Andalusian Olympic Week.

In the women’s division we have seen the return of Beijing 2008 bronze medallist Bryony Shaw following the birth of her first child in 2017, and also the emergence of rising star Emma Wilson, who at 18 years old is the reigning youth world champion and is holding her own on the senior circuit. Saskia Sills, a former youth world and European champion, will be joining Bryony and Emma on the campaign trail full time now her studies are nearing completion. In addition to this group in the senior British Sailing Programme we have another layer of aspiring RS:X sailors, supported through the RYA Pathway, who, while realistically will be targeting 2024, will have an eye on the 2020 process also.  

FM: Finally, if someone wants to be selected for Olympic windsurfing what is the route into Team GB?

IW: The RYA has an established pathway programme from junior level right the way through to senior level to identify and develop the best racing sailors in the world. The best way onto the programme is to attend an Olympic Classes National Ranker regatta. Results from these regattas form part of the qualification process for funding and places at selected international regattas.

With regards to Olympic selection, the trials process is open for anyone eligible to compete for Great Britain, and the first selection regattas (yet to be confirmed) will be in the spring of 2019. Success at the Olympic trials would result in selection to represent Team GB at the pre-Olympics. The pre-Olympics is the Olympic test event that takes place a year before the event proper in the same venue as the Olympics. Performance at the pre-Olympics determines whether a sailor is then selected for the Olympics.

Editor’s note – Team GB is the name of the country’s Olympic team only when the Olympics is on, and even then is only the sailing arm of Team GB. For all times outside of the Olympic Games it is the British Sailing Team.

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All the video action from the first three days of the Gran Canaria 2018 Wind & Waves PWA World Cup in Pozo.

The post POZO PWA 2018 VIDEOS | DAYS 1, 2, 3 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Ideal for smaller to medium sized waves where you need extra versatility from the board. The A.I.R is about making a wave/freewave board fast and plane up quick, then making it turn on a hyper compact outline and its forward vee instead of its rocker. Sizes available: 79 – 83 – 93 – 103 More details about the board coming soon here http://www.star-board.com

The post STARBOARD A.I.R 2019 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Naish windsurf 2019 web promo video.

Via Naish International

The post NAISH 2019 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Few escaped the wrath of the so-called ‘Beast from the East’ in the UK; the blizzard conditions dumped inches of snow even on the Isle of Wight! A hardy few sailors braved the big freeze though and amongst them were Ross Williams and Ben Page who ventured out at one of the Isle of Wight’s best spots, Ventnor.

John Carter reports on their sub zero session.

 Words  Ross Williams, Ben Page and John Carter   //   Photos  John Carter

This feature originally appeared in the May 2018 issue of Windsurf Magazine

JC: My plan for the latter part of winter was to be on hold for the Red Bull Storm Chase and hopefully hunting down the mother of Atlantic storms. By late February though, the only significant system was the so-called ‘Beast from the East’, with bitter cold winds from Siberia causing havoc across the country. The Met Office had issued a red warning, its most severe alert, as temperatures plunged and up to 50cm of snow fell while biting easterly winds caused snow drifts and made it all feel even colder! Yep, it was miserable and with no sight of the Red Bull Storm chase on the horizon all the UK had to offer was a snow chase! At least my children were happy with the threat of school and college shutdowns!

It was so cold that the Motley Crew red phone was barely able to flicker into action, but showing some true British spirit, Ross Williams and Ben Page had independently sent out messages to see if anyone was up for taking on the beast! After a few days of east winds, Ross’s home break of Ventnor can fire up nicely with wind swell and cross off conditions and I knew he would be keen to sail no matter what. The problem though was the town is an English version of San Francisco and so the only access to the beach is on steep winding roads and with black ice on the forecast, driving was looking tricky. A plan was hatched to try and go for it and head to Ventnor before the worst of the weather set in.

Even before the snow, it was absolutely freezing conditions with the wind chill plunging the temperatures to around minus 10 degrees Celsius. My fingers were already burning with the cold just setting up my camera gear outside and that was even with gloves on. Ross and Ben were rigged, suited and booted, both bravely smiling before heading into the icy water and the inevitable pain set in. I managed to find a spot in the shelter of the breakwater to set up and breathed enough hot air onto my hands to finally stop the burning; I can only imagine how cold it was actually windsurfing! I remember seeing a wetsuit advert about a system called ‘Ianovated’ that blows your own breath onto your hands with tubes and for weather like this I think it would have actually saved the day! The session lasted less than an hour even though the conditions were staring to really turn on. Come the next morning and I was completely snowed in, unable to make it out of my road let alone drive across the hills to Ventnor. A second session was off the cards therefore, although I did hear Andy Chambers windsurfed in the snow at Sandbanks but had to abandon his van on the way home due to the black ice on the roads!”

“ Our focus out on the water was on sailing, surviving, and blocking out the pain. ”

ROSS WILLIAMS
“Sailing Ventnor in an easterly is in my opinion one of the best conditions you can get on the Isle of Wight. Unfortunately it is not a very regular occurrence, but it can be a thing of beauty, with high performance riding to be had. Ideally you would prefer to get these types of days during the summer when the winds do not carry so much of a bite, but if the east winds come in the dead of winter and I am around I will be on it for sure!

I think this day was the coldest UK sailing I have ever experienced, the wind chill was really bitter. Standing on the seafront and rigging up wasn’t too bad as it was slightly protected, but once I was in the water and my body and hands and head were wet, I knew it was going to be a challenge just to stay out there. I felt my heart pumping trying to keep me warm, it was like I was running hard and could not catch my breath. I did try to wear gloves, but they were the surfing type and they blew my forearms up straight away so I had to come in and give them to JC. I do have palm-less mitts but I had lent them to my brother a few weeks ago, what a mistake! I was hating it. Every run out the back I had to jump in and hold my hands under the water to warm them up enough to make it back and ride a wave. I feel out of all the water sports, windsurfing is by far the most challenging for the body to put up with that level of coldness. In hindsight keeping my hands warm before entering the water and even rigging would have been key. Once they are cold and burning it is almost impossible to reverse the situation without getting back to some proper warmth.

My hands were like ice blocks. The only feeling I hard was one of painful stinging. My face and nose were burning from the wind blowing and salt water lashing against it. After about an hour of getting punished by the elements I could no longer put up with the burns and the putting my hands under the water trick wasn’t working anymore! The cold was constant and there was no escaping. My body was warm, my head was fine with the hood, and the 7mm boots kept my feet toasty, but my hands were exposed and suffering. The thick wetsuit was not a problem, my suits are warm and flexible but my hands and face were the big problem.

It was nice to have Ben out with me, finally someone who will come sailing whatever the weather is. Our focus out on the water was on sailing, surviving, and blocking out the pain from our hands. I should have kept my van down next to the beach, as it was impossible to drive to the seafront the following day. When Ventnor gets snow, it pretty much shuts down and you have to get around by foot, which can be very slippery. I went surfing the next day and it was very good, but I had to slide on my ass down the hills all the way to the beach. Walking back up was frustratingly slow and my feet were numb, even with my 7mm boots. All in all it was a pretty extreme couple of days, but as they say ‘No pain no gain!’ ”

BEN PAGE
“I was dispatched to the Isle of Wight two months ago for the latest element of my medical training. In between revising for finals I have been doing my best to get in the water as much as possible. Sailing companions are hard to find on the island, and I was keen to have some company on the water for the first time. Despite some decent days on the water, I hadn’t yet managed to catch the Isle of Wight really pumping. With Ross confident Ventnor would deliver, this finally looked like my chance to score some proper conditions albeit on the coldest day of the winter so far! I was more than a little hesitant about going ahead after discovering that the boats in Bembridge harbour were frozen solid at their moorings. I have sailed in snow before, but the sea freezing over was a serious step up! The sea was a scene of utter brutality. As soon as I hit the wind line it felt like my face was being sandblasted, a searing sensation quite unlike anything I’ve experienced before. I was wearing palm-less mitts, which saved my hands from the initial onslaught. But it was mere minutes before the relentless numbness engulfed my fingers. The all-consuming agony in my hands left little brainpower for windsurfing. Which was a shame, because it was firing. There were some great bowling sections breaking off the rocks, peeling left away from the harbour wall.

Ross was really laying into it. Meanwhile, I was struggling to muster the concentration to stay on the board, let alone find the good waves. I did manage to salvage a few fun waves between the prevailing pattern of cold induced incompetence and survival sailing. It was not a long session and I finally threw in the towel after mistiming a wave and being left swimming for shore. By the time I had removed myself from the rocks, my hands were so numb it was as if the fingers in my gloves belonged to someone else. With ice forming on my sail as it sat on the beach there seemed to be the potential to do real damage by going back out and keeping my hands cold. Usually I can recall specific waves from a session, but I can remember almost nothing about the actual windsurfing that day. All that remains is the memory of the cold. Even after I’d warmed up, my hands continued to weirdly tingle for two days afterwards. It was really fun to sail with Ross, had I been alone I’m not sure I would have even made it out of the house that day. It was savage, but great fun to sail such a rare set of conditions. And I can now claim to have been windsurfing on the day the sea froze.

“ The all-consuming agony in my hands left little brainpower for windsurfing. ”

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Footage from Day 4 Gran Canaria 2018 Wind & Waves PWA World Cup.

Via PWAWORLDTOUR

The post DAY 4 GRAN CANARIA 2018 WIND & WAVES PWA WORLD CUP appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Our dedicated freestyle board for powerful pop and radical maneuvers. Designed by an all-star team: Sarah-Quita Offringa, Taty Frans, Dieter Van Der Eyken and Remi Vila.

“Freestyle means freedom to me and the Flare enhances that feeling. Whether I feel like going for old school sliding moves or improving my new school power moves – The Flare allows me to get creative and express myself freely on the water.”

Sarah Quita Offriga, on the new 2019 Flare

Sizes available: 87 – 93 – 103 – 113

More details about the board coming soon with the new website.
Via Starboard Windsurfing

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Action from Windsurfer World Trophy – Final Day

Via Circolo Surf Torbole

The post WINDSURFER WORLD TROPHY – FINAL DAY appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.