A bunch of friends, a good forecast with wind and waves in Galicia. Great video courtesy of Siam Images.

GALICIA_SEPT_2019 from SIAM IMAGES on Vimeo.

The post GALICIA | SEPT 2019 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

2019 has witnessed an explosion of UK Windsurfing Association (UKWA) foil racing; Rod Davis of the UKWA gives us an insight into the competition series.

Words  Rod Davis // Photos  Dave White

Rod Davis – “Foil racing is offered at both our slalom and course racing events. In the slalom series, foiling races are held when the wind speed is between 7 and 11 knots, if it’s above that, then sailors switch to slalom boards. At present there are many more sailors who simply only race slalom, but the number of foilers is creeping up as it provides the alternative of actually racing rather than sitting on the beach waiting for the wind speed to reach 12 knots. At our course racing events, a separate foiling fleet has now been created in which sailors only use foiling boards and do not switch to conventional boards when the wind gets above 11 knots, unlike in the slalom series. Here foiling seems to have taken over from the Formula fleet, most of whose members have now taken up the new discipline, with the added spice and expertise from some of the young RS:X sailors who are currently making the running. There are no kit limits at the moment in either series, anything may be used with no restriction on how many sails or boards. To date, competitors are mostly using sail sizes of 7.0 to 10.0 and foil ready slalom boards or specialist foiling boards. 2019 boards and sails demonstrate a clear advantage over even 2018 models, so obviously kit is still developing at a fantastic rate.

Racers have to wear mandatory safety gear of a helmet and high-viz vest. There is a lower age limit of 17, but those under 17 may be admitted by applying to the UKWA where their experience will be assessed.

At the UKWA Cup Series course racing event at Christchurch over the weekend of 20/21 July, the wind blew for the whole weekend, producing what UKWA Chairman Bob Ingram claimed was one of the best events ever. Antonio Cozzolino from New Zealand, who had not raced a foil with the UKWA before, almost swept the board with seven first places, winning by an overall margin of 5 points from Henry Bloodworth with four wins. The remaining win went to Paul Sibley in race three when half the fleet retired due to having sailed the wrong course! Third overall was Norwegian sailor Jakob Ruud who finished one place above Guy Cribb.

At the end of the year there will be a winner from each foil series in slalom and course racing. So far Scotty Stallman leads the foil series in the slalom fleet after winning all three events, with James Dinsmore second and James Faley third in the rankings. After four events in the course racing Cup Series so far, Henry Bloodworth occupies the top slot followed by veteran racer, Dave Coles, and in third place is James Harvey.

The next course racing events for 2019 with a foil fleet are Aug 24/25 Pwllheli and October 5/6 Herne Bay; and for the slalom fleet the next events are September 21/22 Tenby, Oct 26/27 Christchurch and Nov 9/10 at the OTC in Weymouth. If you fancy taking the plunge, joining the UKWA brings with it inclusive third party insurance up to £5 million, plus discounts off comprehensive insurance rates. Annual membership is £45, family membership £60 and youth/student £30. This allows you to enter all our
slalom events and Cup Series events, with additional entry fees for each event.

If you want to find out more, check out ukwindsurfing.com/membership

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After an intense final day the 2019 Slalom PWA World Champions have been crowned.

Finals day at the 2019 Bureau Vallée Dream Cup proved to be a day to remember with New Caledonia producing another day of world class racing. Over the course of the day there were several dramatic twists and turns, which saw the Men’s title race go down to the final elimination of the event – such was the closeness between Pierre Mortefon (Fanatic / Duotone / Chopper Fins) & Matteo Iachino (Starboard / Severne) – while Delphine Cousin Questel (Starboard / S2Maui) gained the top 3 result she required!

Women’s
Delphine Cousin Questel (Starboard / S2Maui) saved her best performance of the week until last to deservedly clinch her 4th world title ahead of Marion Mortefon (Fanatic / Duotone). The 28-year-old started the day in third place, but after winning both of the opening eliminations Cousin Questel already had the world title wrapped up with a race to spare after Maëlle Guilbaud (Patrik / Loftsails) finished 8th in Elimination 10. Cousin Questel had a bit of a turbulent week by her usual standards, but still won 5 out of the 11 eliminations completed over the last 6 days to be crowned the 2019 Women’s PWA Slalom World Champion.

Marion Mortefon (Fanatic / Duotone) did everything she possibly could to deny Cousin Questel the title by winning the final event of the year, but even that wasn’t enough in the end. However, the 27-year-old can still be delighted with her performance this week which earns her her first victory on the world tour, while she also finishes the season as the vice-world champion, which is her best result to date!

Lena Erdil (Starboard / Point-7 / AL360 / Chopper Fins) completes the event podium, but finishes just 0.2 of a point behind Cousin Questel despite winning the final elimination of the week. With Erdil slipping to third in the event rankings that means that she just misses out of the overall podium as Maëlle Guilbaud finishes in the overall top 3 for the first time in her career – after finishing 4th for the event,

Meanwhile, Lilou Granier (Starboard / Phantom Sails) finishes 5th for both the event and in the overalls, which means the 19-year-old finishes the season as the 2019 Youth’s PWA Slalom World Champion.

Men’s
You couldn’t have written the script for how the Men’s world title race would unfold between Pierre Mortefon (Fanatic / Duotone / Chopper Fins) and Matteo Iachino (Starboard / Severne) as the battle took several dramatic twists and turns.

Iachino started the day with a 2.7 point advantage, but he soon saw that lead evaporate into a 5.7 point deficit after the completion of Elimination 9. The Italian looked to have made an excellent start to the first semifinal, but he soon lost speed on the opening reach and rapidly dropped back through the pack after unbelievably hitting a sea snake. Iachino tried to stage a come back but just missed out in 5th place.

On several occasions yesterday, Mortefon had failed to make Iachino pay for his mistakes, and while this was misfortune rather than a mistake on Iachino’s part, Mortefon rubbed salt into the world by clinching his second bullet of the week to take the world title lead!

With a little bit of breathing room at the top of the event rankings, it looked as though Mortefon may have the title race under control, but that soon all changed as the 30-year-old was eliminated from Elimination 10 in the semifinals, which gave Iachino a glimmer of hope to get his own title bid back on track having already qualified for the Winners’ Final. Iachino would go on to finish second behind – Ross Williams (Tabou / GA Sails) – who won his first race of the season – while Iachino closed to within just 2.7 points of Mortefon – to ensure that the race to be crowned the 2019 World Champion would go down to the wire.

With both men successfully negotiating their way into the final of Elimination 11 the stakes couldn’t have been higher. For Iachino to snatch the title he would need to finish at least 3 places ahead of Mortefon, while Mortefon knew finishing within two places or better would guarantee him a first world title. Heading down the opening reach it looked as though Iachino was better positioned, but Mortefon would come round the first buoy and cover Iachino. The Frenchman accelerated away much quicker, while Iachino went backwards, which was another defining moment in the title race. Mortefon kept his calm over the remainder of the course and crossed the finish line ahead of Iachino to leave the result in no doubt and after so many years of being second or third in the world, the 30-year-old finally has his hands on the most coveted prize!

This loss will hurt Iachino having come so close to his second world title, but you can guarantee he’ll be back even stronger next season and with a bit of time he can still be hugely proud of his efforts this year as he finishes the season as the vice-world champion.

Antoine Albeau (JP / NeilPryde) finished 3rd in the opening race of the day, but then lost his 100% Winners Final record as he missed out on the top 8 in the last two races. Albeau still completes the event and overall podium to cap another excellent year on the world tour.

Enrico Marotti (JP / NeilPryde) enjoyed a simply amazing final day with the Croat qualifying for all 3 Winners’ Finals today where he recorded a 5th, a 3rd and a 2nd to cap a fantastic week. The 28-year-old gains one place from the overnight rankings to finish in a 4th place – which is a personal best!

Marotti relegated Maciek Rutkowski (FMX Racing / Challenger Sails) to 5th place for the event, but the Pole signed off the week in the best possible fashion by winning his second race on the world tour, which sees him ranked 7th in the overalls.

The event top 10 is completed by Jordy Vonk (Fanatic / Duotone) – 6th – Ethan Westera (Tabou / GA Sails) – 7th – Ross Williams (Tabou / GA Sails) – 8th – Julien Quentel (Patrik / GUNSAILS) – 9th – and local boy Basile Jacquin (I-99 / Point-7), who also wins the Youth’s PWA Slalom World title for the second consecutive year.

We’ll take a full look at the overall rankings for the year in the event summary next week.

To stay up to date with all the latest developments from New Caledonia — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page.

Overall Ranking 2019 PWA World Tour – Women’s Slalom1st Delphine Cousin Questel (FRA | Starboard / S2Maui)
2nd Marion Mortefon (FRA | Fanatic / Duotone)
3rd Maëlle Guilbaud (FRA | Patrik / Loftsails)
4th Lena Erdil (TUR | Starboard / Point-7 / AL360 / Chopper Fins)
5th Lilou Granier (NC | Starboard / Phantom Sails)

Result 2019 Bureau Vallée Dream Cup – Women’s Slalom1st Marion Mortefon (FRA | Fanatic / Duotone)
2nd Delphine Cousin Questel (FRA | Starboard / S2Maui)
3rd Lena Erdil (TUR | Starboard / Point-7 / AL360 / Chopper Fins)
4th Maëlle Guilbaud (FRA | Patrik / Loftsails)
5th Lilou Granier (NC | Starboard / Phantom Sails)

Overall Ranking 2019 PWA World Tour – Men’s Slalom1st Pierre Mortefon (FRA | Fanatic / Duotone / Chopper Fins)
2nd Matteo Iachino (ITA | Starboard / Severne)
3rd Antoine Albeau (FRA | JP / NeilPryde)
4th Jordy Vonk (NED | Fanatic / Duotone)
5th Julien Quentel (SXM | Patrik / GUNSAILS)
6th Ross Williams (GBR | Tabou / GA Sails)
7th Maciek Rutkowski (POL | FMX Racing / Challenger Sails)
8th Tristan Algret (GPE | Starboard / Severne / Chopper Fins)
9th Enrico Marotti (CRO | JP / NeilPryde)
10th Marco Lang (AUT | Fanatic / Duotone)

Result 2019 Bureau Vallée Dream Cup – Men’s Slalom1st Pierre Mortefon (FRA | Fanatic / Duotone / Chopper Fins)
2nd Matteo Iachino (ITA | Starboard / Severne)
3rd Antoine Albeau (FRA | JP / NeilPryde)
4th Enrico Marotti (CRO | JP / NeilPryde)
5th Maciek Rutkowski (POL | FMX Racing / Challenger Sails)
6th Jordy Vonk (NED | Fanatic / Duotone)
7th Ethan Westera (ARU | Tabou / GA Sails)
8th Ross Williams (GBR | Tabou / GA Sails)
9th Julien Quentel (SXM | Patrik / GUNSAILS)
10th Basile Jacquin (FRA | I-99 / Point-7)

The post DAY 6: DELPHINE COUSINE QUESTEL & PIERRE MORTEFON CROWNED 2018 SLALOM PWA WORLD CHAMPIONS appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

The Défi Wind Gruissan is all about the challenge with the Tramontana counting as one of the most powerful winds in the world and a 40km long race course. Three jibes only and miles and miles of full speed reaching along the beach are waiting for over 1000 windsurfers. Pros and amateurs starts together on the same starting line. Imagine: over 1000 windsurfers starting together and blasting to the same buoy… 10 km further!!! Every windsurfers should experience this at least once in their life. Come on and join the 20th anniversary party in France from May 21st to 24th. Online registrations will open from February 20th on www.defiwind.com

The post DEFI WIND GRUISSAN 20TH ANNIVERSARY appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

FIRST TAKE
Water shots are a labour of love – a lot of swimming, wiping out and near misses for the low chance of nailing it. Paul Karaolides of Fish Bowl Diaries gets the pay off as he scores this killer shot of Levi Siver at Ho’okipa.

Photo Paul Karaolides / Fish Bowl Diaries.

TAKE TWO
It’s not often we get to see the land perspective of a water shot as well, but thanks to the skills of Sofie Louca of Fish Bowl Diaries we have the pleasure of seeing Levi Siver tweaked to the max with the land angle of the photo below.

Photo Sofie Louca / Fish Bowl Diaries.

The post LEVI SIVER | PERSPECTIVE TAKE TWO appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

When Starboard released what they called, “Our easiest foil ever”, the “SuperCruiser”, we heard that there was actually a top secret new design of foil board in the works too. Starboard’s head of brand and design, Tiesda You, gives us the lowdown on both their new 2020 Foil X board and SuperCruiser foil.

 Words Tiesda You // Photos John Carter, Eric Collard & Adrien Grelon

Tiesda You – “Long story short from Starboard side, the SuperCruiser foil is actually one of two parts, the second part being our brand new 2020 Foil X board. Combined, you have gear people can foil on and performance so cool that relatively advanced foilers like myself, Svein Rasmussen or Albert Pijoan, no longer use the Race foil! So everyone beside Gonzalo will be super stoked on the SuperCruiser foil + Foil X board. The board is very radical, measuring just 190 cm long! Combine it with the SuperCruiser foil that gives you lift before Formula boards get planing and the low aspect wing that keeps you flying at low speeds, you basically can foil in very light winds and do foil jibes all day long. However, get this, beginners can learn on this very same gear!

A friend of mine in Thailand, who is starting to plane on a Rio with straps and harness, he’s learning to foil on this same Foil X + SuperCruiser combo. So yeah, learning on a 190 cm long board! The trick is that it’s very thick, packing in 140 litres. That’s why it’s called the Foil X. We can’t call it by length, as in the 90s, or by volume as in the 00s, or by width as in the 10s. None of them work for this concept of a board… so we called it Foil X. So what’s exciting, I feel, is that here we are for the first time in windsurfing, where you can purchase one gear to learn on, and keep the same gear as you get better and better and become an advanced foiler. There are actually few sports that I can think of where gear mattered as little relative to your level. It’s kinda like football: you buy the ball and the rest is for you to improve your skill. Most importantly, the gear you use is the same gear your friends can use if they want to try foiling. Coming back to the SuperCruiser foil, it started when Tris Best of the OTC in Weymouth told me last summer that he’s starting people out on Slingshot foils, not Starboard, because they were smoother with an earlier take off and worked nicely at low speeds (Tris, I was offended!). At the time, our easiest to use foil was the Freeride with its 1100 cm medium aspect front wing. It was in the right direction, but not enough. That was the first hint that was dropped my way. Then, I went to Hood River and spent a day foiling with the guys there including Tony Logosz of Slingshot. He was showing me the other side of foiling: small sails, low speeds and 100% fly time, while all I’ve been doing the last two years was performance foiling with foils like our GT, GTR and Race.

We compared his foils with our wave foils, and they had the same geometry. I quickly put our wave foil into a Starboard Foil 111 board, used a small 4.4 Severne wave sail and discovered that whole new side of foiling.

I tried our Wave Pro 1500 foil, which was nice and very manoeuvrable. It’s a thicker wing and has a deep concaved shape, but the Wave 1700 was better. Its flat shape makes it steady and more suitable for wind foiling. The wings are thin too, so you have more speed and glide. You want that efficiency feeling that a thicker wing doesn’t offer.

Back in Thailand, I CNC’d new fuselages to try different lengths, replacing the Wave foil’s 67 cm fuselage with 87 cm and then 92 cm options, with various front wing and tail wing positions. The 87 cm ended up being the nicest overall. We then replaced the 65 cm mast with an 85 cm mast; 65 cm is almost too short for wind foiling. Short masts are not scary because when you foil out, you come down from a lower height, and it’s nice and stable. The downside is that in anything but the flattest water, you foil out too often. We could have gone with 75 cm, but with 85 cm, it’s a mast you can keep as your level improves. All in all then, the finished SuperCruiser consists of the 85 cm mast that gives you lots of performance and tolerance in ‘wavey waters’, and the 87 cm fuselage that gives you stability to make foil jibes and manage pitch comfortably. The large surface area of the low-aspect front wing, 1700 cm2, allows you to take off quickly, but it’s still a thin and flat wing to give you speed and stability.

I’d recommend the SuperCruiser foil with the 2019 Foil 111, Foil 100 or 2020 Foil X board and paired with a small sail. The largest sail we use with the SuperCruiser is the 6.7 Starboard Flight. Shorter boards like the Foil X are recommended because they complete the whole experience by being light to manoeuvre and they’re easier to pop out of the water to take off, but classic freeride shapes work just fine too.

PRICES:
SuperCruiser foil – £949.
Foil X 145 – £1399 Starlite, £1875 Flax-Balsa.
Foil X 105 (Flax-Balsa only) £1849.

The post STARBOARD SUPERCRUISER FOIL & FOIL X BOARD appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Watch Andy Laufer going flat out at the Luderitz speed challenge 2019 filmed by Miriam Rasmussen Windsurfing! Andy Laufer says – “Some nice and different angles filmed by Paul. Speed is up to 100 km/h, chasing the world record in hurricane winds. The slingshot just after the start is one of the most important parts of the run. You have to accelerate to at least 95 km/h within the first 200m in order to get a decent run. This corner is sooo much fun, your board and your whole equipment tend to lift off all the time. You need to have at least 15 kgs of lead on your back to counteract this pressure. If you manage to convert all the pressure from the corner into speed, the rest of the 500 m run is quite simple. Just keep the speed in those wind holes and hope that you even get a stronger gust just before the finish line. At the end – don’t forget your braking parachute :)”

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Justyna Sniady has become one of the world’s best women wave sailors despite being born in Warsaw, Poland, working a full time job and breaking 15 bones over years of trying to make it to the top. Her journey is an unconventional one, but testament to her strength of character and passion for windsurfing. Finn Mullen and John Carter caught up with the talented Polish sailor to find our more about her success.

Words  Finn Mullen &  John Carter  //  Photos  John Carter

WS – How did you get into windsurfing and where did you learn to sail?
JS – Windsurfing came into my life when my Dad’s friend got a hold of a second hand windsurfer and tried it on a lake. We went with the whole family so my Dad could have a go. The gear was prehistoric, but my Dad got hooked there and then. After him my brother tried and that was the turning point! Even though I was scared and not really keen, I always had to do everything my older brother did to prove I could also, even if I’m a girl and smaller. I guess here you have an answer to where my motivation comes from! I was 7 and managed to go along a bit. It wasn’t until I was 12 that another opportunity to try came up. I semi-planed for the first time and was hooked for life. From then onwards all my notebooks were covered in windsurfing drawings and my walls in windsurfing. Every summer I would go to the Polish seaside to try and get as much water time as possible. I used to camp in a tent at Puck Bay on the Hel Peninsula. Yes, I learned to windsurf in Hel ha ha. When I got better I did my windsurfing instructor course and worked there every summer. At some point, probably because I watched “About Time” too many times, I decided to drag the gear through the forest to the open seas on the other of the peninsula to try windsurfing in the waves of the Baltic Sea. I was on my own and terrified, even though the waves were not even head high. I absolutely loved the feeling of being in the waves and from that moment on the obsession has never stopped.

WS – Tell us about your move from Poland to Western Australia?
JS – Since I was a little girl I dreamed of being able to windsurf on a regular basis and not just once a year. Even the Baltic sea was out of reach for me, as I lived 500 km away and didn’t own a car growing up. To sail I had to move from Warsaw. If you leave your family, friends and your entire life behind, I thought it would be best to go somewhere epic. Maui and Australia were the two windsurfing meccas in my eyes and I dreamed of going to university there. It was financially out of reach though, so I had to settle for studying in Warsaw, where the best universities were completely free. I knew I couldn’t rely on windsurfing to pay my bills, but the windsurfing life bug was still going strong.

After I finished my economics degree I wanted to do an MBA. I knew I’d have to pay for that degree wherever I chose to do it, so I looked into options worldwide. Maui didn’t offer it at all back then. Australia did and it also offered significantly cheaper living options and way better salaries than Poland, so I applied to university in Perth, Western Australia. Unfortunately just a few weeks after finally arriving in Australia I had a head-on car crash that almost killed me. My car was a complete right off. I was very lucky to survive and I couldn’t windsurf for a very long time. I went back to Poland to recover and my windsurfing dream was delayed further.

When I got back on my feet and returned to Australia, both studying and trying to make ends meet completely consumed me. I didn’t get to sail at all. Instead I was buried in books and busy doing various cash in hand jobs, as I didn’t have a full-time work permit.

Looking back I laugh at some of the random jobs I did. After working in HR in Poland, I now found myself installing kitchens in villas of rich Perth suburbs or doing vodka promotions in bottle shops wearing high heels and a Russian hat!!! I also used to disassemble old TVs and PCs for recycling. I had gloves and a facial mask on, a big hammer and I demolished things for 6 hours a day. I have never been so ripped in my life. My route to living in a windsurfing mecca was definitely a bumpy one and at times pretty extreme. I remember cutting down eating to a minimum to save all the cash I could and sleeping on a friend’s floor on an inflatable mattress. After a year in Australia I got my first set of gear and finally started sailing in Perth.

I had only been windsurfing a handful of times when I eventually finished my MBA degree and got an office job as a Business Development Manager. My boss put me on a sponsored visa and the rest is history. After 5 years and a few job upgrades, I was able to afford a place to rent and didn’t have to sleep on the floor, couch or in my van. I also met a lot of windsurfers and started to discover all the best spots WA has to offer. This year I will finally get my Australian passport and be free to come and go as I like; before I couldn’t leave the country for more than few weeks a year to keep my visa.

WS – How do you balance windsurfing and work?
JS – Short answer – I sleep fast! For several years now I have worked full time in Perth as a marketing manager then a chief communications officer (CCO). The best training spot for me is Coronation Beach in Geraldton, which is almost 500 km north of Perth. I would go every weekend and sometimes do a one day trip mid-week if I had leave and the forecast looked good. I have a van that I set up in a way to allow me to live in the complete outback, anywhere along the coast. I’ve installed a solar panel on the roof and a small fridge/freezer inside. I have a bed with a narrow sleeping space and underneath heaps of space for my windsurfing gear. I would leave work at 6 p.m. and arrive in Coronation around 11 p.m. I’d sleep in the van, sail all day and then make it back to Perth around midnight the next day. 1000 km, a few hours on the water, 8 a.m. red eye start in the office next morning. That’s what I’ve done for years.

It was always fun, but when you do 1000 – 2000 km a week for several months at a time with quite a stressful full time job, you can really run yourself down. Almost 3 years ago now I actually ended up in hospital blind in one eye from all the stress on my body. It was a bit scary, but luckily I recovered well. My most ‘relaxing’ time of year would weirdly be the competition season! I arranged it with work that I could work remotely from the Canary Islands for 6 weeks each summer. I would come to Pozo a week or so before the competition and work from 4 a.m. until 2 p.m. (to cater for the time difference with our Australian office), then go out sailing and training in the afternoon. I didn’t have to drive anywhere, I’d just walk out of the house 200 metres to the beach. For the competition I would use a week of holiday leave and not work at all. It was all quite hectic sometimes, but allowed me to afford to train and compete and keep my job for the rest of the year.

This year for the first time I decided to quit my job to give myself a chance to sail a bit more rested and more often, without all the work stress on my mind and all the driving. I must say that it has been life changing. Not just in terms of results, but in terms of ability to have time to try moves properly, digest and analyse them and try again straight away, instead of after a week in the office and another 1000 km drive. It made a huge difference to my learning. I would love to be able to continue to train and compete like that. If anyone is interested in sponsoring me, I’ve prepared promotion packages where you can choose anything from a sticker on the sail to high definition TV / online adverts I can produce for your company using windsurfing at their core. I’d love to put my marketing experience into promoting companies professionally, offering monthly subscriptions with social media posts, appearances in promotional events or product placement in my videos and posts. If your company would like to show their support for a female athlete and you are interested in cooperation then they can get in touch via my website www.justynasniady.com

WS – What is a typical windy forecast like for you in WA?
JS – Yeah like I said, my regular distance is a 1000 km round trip. I do that every weekend. Sometimes I would go for one day. If I have 3 days or more off work I do a 2400 km round trip to Gnaraloo – my all-time favourite spot, or a 1600 km round trip to Esperance. I’ve done over 100,000 km in the last two seasons! Van, fuel and tyre sponsors welcome!

WS – Do you like the camping lifestyle of the Western Australia windsurfing scene?
JS – I love it and wouldn’t change it for 5 star hotels. You get to drive into the wild and sail waves with only a handful of people. You are far away from civilization, often without phone range. Every trip is like an adventure and really brings you back to basics. You shower with water from a canister, cook outside, see wild animals and watch stars undisturbed by city lights every night. The night sky in Western Australia is stunning and when you go windsurfing it’s just you, desert, wind, waves and a few friends. Eat, sail, sleep, repeat. It’s absolutely amazing, especially after a long week in the office. I also always sleep best in the van. The only downside is the amount of driving and how remote some of the places are. I however love to drive so it really suits me.

WS – You have had a few nasty injuries in the past…how did you recover from these and how do they play on your mind when you are sailing?
JS – I think we could do a separate interview on my injuries alone! I have broken 15 bones to date, I’ve broke my nose 4 times, torn numerous ligaments, suffered concussion and had more whiplashes then a crash test dummy! In fact they used to call me Crashtina. The worse by far was my foot injury, that was supposed to take me out of windsurfing forever. I smashed 7 bones in my foot into tiny pieces from twisting my foot on a bad forward loop landing. I also broke the Lisfranc ligament and was not supposed to walk normally again. It still hurts every morning. I can’t bend my ankle and my toes stay straight at all times. My foot is so stiff that sometimes I start to lose the back footstrap mid forward loop as it just slides out. I found a way to adjust my riding and jumping to that though. Of course I was really scared to go back to jumping after my injury, but I was more scared of not being able to windsurf again and I missed airtime more then I was scared. It’s my passion and I can’t imagine not being able to do it. It took me many years to first start jumping again, then push myself to learn new moves and then to go higher and in strong winds again. To this day my heart starts racing if it’s really windy, but it is fun when you manage to embrace the fear and go for the moves anyway. The mental part of recovery is as difficult as the physical one, but I feel it is also the part that we have the power to control.

WS – How competitive are you as a person and with your windsurfing?
JS – I love competitions because they push me to do better in training and often in a heat to go even bigger then I can make myself go on a regular basis. That ‘cowabunga’ attitude is something I can rarely recreate free-sailing. Off the water I am not really competitive. I spend a lot of time giving other girls tips on moves and advice on competing. Some of them even send me clips and we do some Skype coaching sessions in the winter. I help others with their gear up the beach and caddy during their heats. Sportsmanship is super important to me. Without it I don’t think you can enjoy competing or winning anyway. I am for sure competitive in a way that I do try hard to be the best I can. Pushing myself drives me in windsurfing and in life.

“Sportsmanship is super important to me.”

WS – How did you get into windsurfing and where did you learn to sail?  

JS – Windsurfing came into my life when my Dad’s friend got a hold of a second hand windsurfer and tried it on a lake. We went with the whole family so my Dad could have a go. The gear was prehistoric, but my Dad got hooked there and then. After him my brother tried and that was the turning point! Even though I was scared and not really keen, I always had to do everything my older brother did to prove I could also, even if I’m a girl and smaller. I guess here you have an answer to where my motivation comes from! I was 7 and managed to go along a bit. It wasn’t until I was 12 that another opportunity to try came up. I semi-planed for the first time and was hooked for life. From then onwards all my notebooks were covered in windsurfing drawings and my walls in windsurfing. Every summer I would go to the Polish seaside to try and get as much water time as possible. I used to camp in a tent at Puck Bay on the Hel Peninsula. Yes, I learned to windsurf in Hel ha ha. When I got better I did my windsurfing instructor course and worked there every summer. At some point, probably because I watched “About Time” too many times, I decided to drag the gear through the forest to the open seas on the other of the peninsula to try windsurfing in the waves of the Baltic Sea. I was on my own and terrified, even though the waves were not even head high. I absolutely loved the feeling of being in the waves and from that moment on the obsession has never stopped.

WS – Tell us about your move from Poland to Western Australia?
JS – Since I was a little girl I dreamed of being able to windsurf on a regular basis and not just once a year. Even the Baltic sea was out of reach for me, as I lived 500 km away and didn’t own a car growing up. To sail I had to move from Warsaw. If you leave your family, friends and your entire life behind, I thought it would be best to go somewhere epic. Maui and Australia were the two windsurfing meccas in my eyes and I dreamed of going to university there. It was financially out of reach though, so I had to settle for studying in Warsaw, where the best universities were completely free. I knew I couldn’t rely on windsurfing to pay my bills, but the windsurfing life bug was still going strong.

After I finished my economics degree I wanted to do an MBA. I knew I’d have to pay for that degree wherever I chose to do it, so I looked into options worldwide. Maui didn’t offer it at all back then. Australia did and it also offered significantly cheaper living options and way better salaries than Poland, so I applied to university in Perth, Western Australia. Unfortunately just a few weeks after finally arriving in Australia I had a head-on car crash that almost killed me. My car was a complete right off. I was very lucky to survive and I couldn’t windsurf for a very long time. I went back to Poland to recover and my windsurfing dream was delayed further.

When I got back on my feet and returned to Australia, both studying and trying to make ends meet completely consumed me. I didn’t get to sail at all. Instead I was buried in books and busy doing various cash in hand jobs, as I didn’t have a full-time work permit. Looking back I laugh at some of the random jobs I did. After working in HR in Poland, I now found myself installing kitchens in villas of rich Perth suburbs or doing vodka promotions in bottle shops wearing high heels and a Russian hat!!! I also used to disassemble old TVs and PCs for recycling. I had gloves and a facial mask on, a big hammer and I demolished things for 6 hours a day. I have never been so ripped in my life.

My route to living in a windsurfing mecca was definitely a bumpy one and at times pretty extreme. I remember cutting down eating to a minimum to save all the cash I could and sleeping on a friend’s floor on an inflatable mattress. After a year in Australia I got my first set of gear and finally started sailing in Perth. I had only been windsurfing a handful of times when I eventually finished my MBA degree and got an office job as a Business Development Manager. My boss put me on a sponsored visa and the rest is history. After 5 years and a few job upgrades, I was able to afford a place to rent and didn’t have to sleep on the floor, couch or in my van. I also met a lot of windsurfers and started to discover all the best spots WA has to offer.

This year I will finally get my Australian passport and be free to come and go as I like; before I couldn’t leave the country for more than few weeks a year to keep my visa.

WS – How do you balance windsurfing and work?
JS – Short answer – I sleep fast! For several years now I have worked full time in Perth as a marketing manager then a chief communications officer (CCO). The best training spot for me is Coronation Beach in Geraldton, which is almost 500 km north of Perth. I would go every weekend and sometimes do a one day trip mid-week if I had leave and the forecast looked good. I have a van that I set up in a way to allow me to live in the complete outback, anywhere along the coast. I’ve installed a solar panel on the roof and a small fridge/freezer inside. I have a bed with a narrow sleeping space and underneath heaps of space for my windsurfing gear. I would leave work at 6 p.m. and arrive in Coronation around 11 p.m. I’d sleep in the van, sail all day and then make it back to Perth around midnight the next day. 1000 km, a few hours on the water, 8 a.m. red eye start in the office next morning. That’s what I’ve done for years.

It was always fun, but when you do 1000 – 2000 km a week for several months at a time with quite a stressful full time job, you can really run yourself down. Almost 3 years ago now I actually ended up in hospital blind in one eye from all the stress on my body. It was a bit scary, but luckily I recovered well.

My most ‘relaxing’ time of year would weirdly be the competition season! I arranged it with work that I could work remotely from the Canary Islands for 6 weeks each summer. I would come to Pozo a week or so before the competition and work from 4 a.m. until 2 p.m. (to cater for the time difference with our Australian office), then go out sailing and training in the afternoon. I didn’t have to drive anywhere, I’d just walk out of the house 200 metres to the beach. For the competition I would use a week of holiday leave and not work at all. It was all quite hectic sometimes, but allowed me to afford to train and compete and keep my job for the rest of the year.

This year for the first time I decided to quit my job to give myself a chance to sail a bit more rested and more often, without all the work stress on my mind and all the driving. I must say that it has been life changing. Not just in terms of results, but in terms of ability to have time to try moves properly, digest and analyse them and try again straight away, instead of after a week in the office and another 1000 km drive. It made a huge difference to my learning. I would love to be able to continue to train and compete like that. If anyone is interested in sponsoring me, I’ve prepared promotion packages where you can choose anything from a sticker on the sail to high definition TV / online adverts I can produce for your company using windsurfing at their core. I’d love to put my marketing experience into promoting companies professionally, offering monthly subscriptions with social media posts, appearances in promotional events or product placement in my videos and posts. If your company would like to show their support for a female athlete and you are interested in cooperation then they can get in touch via my website www.justynasniady.com

WS – What is a typical windy forecast like for you in WA?
JS – Yeah like I said, my regular distance is a 1000 km round trip. I do that every weekend. Sometimes I would go for one day. If I have 3 days or more off work I do a 2400 km round trip to Gnaraloo – my all-time favourite spot, or a 1600 km round trip to Esperance. I’ve done over 100,000 km in the last two seasons! Van, fuel and tyre sponsors welcome!

WS – Do you like the camping lifestyle of the Western Australia windsurfing scene?
JS – I love it and wouldn’t change it for 5 star hotels. You get to drive into the wild and sail waves with only a handful of people. You are far away from civilization, often without phone range. Every trip is like an adventure and really brings you back to basics. You shower with water from a canister, cook outside, see wild animals and watch stars undisturbed by city lights every night. The night sky in Western Australia is stunning and when you go windsurfing it’s just you, desert, wind, waves and a few friends. Eat, sail, sleep, repeat. It’s absolutely amazing, especially after a long week in the office. I also always sleep best in the van. The only downside is the amount of driving and how remote some of the places are. I however love to drive so it really suits me.

WS – You have had a few nasty injuries in the past…how did you recover from these and how do they play on your mind when you are sailing?
JS – I think we could do a separate interview on my injuries alone! I have broken 15 bones to date, I’ve broke my nose 4 times, torn numerous ligaments, suffered concussion and had more whiplashes then a crash test dummy! In fact they used to call me Crashtina. The worse by far was my foot injury, that was supposed to take me out of windsurfing forever. I smashed 7 bones in my foot into tiny pieces from twisting my foot on a bad forward loop landing. I also broke the Lisfranc ligament and was not supposed to walk normally again. It still hurts every morning. I can’t bend my ankle and my toes stay straight at all times. My foot is so stiff that sometimes I start to lose the back footstrap mid forward loop as it just slides out. I found a way to adjust my riding and jumping to that though. Of course I was really scared to go back to jumping after my injury, but I was more scared of not being able to windsurf again and I missed airtime more then I was scared. It’s my passion and I can’t imagine not being able to do it. It took me many years to first start jumping again, then push myself to learn new moves and then to go higher and in strong winds again. To this day my heart starts racing if it’s really windy, but it is fun when you manage to embrace the fear and go for the moves anyway. The mental part of recovery is as difficult as the physical one, but I feel it is also the part that we have the power to control.

WS – How competitive are you as a person and with your windsurfing?
JS – I love competitions because they push me to do better in training and often in a heat to go even bigger then I can make myself go on a regular basis. That ‘cowabunga’ attitude is something I can rarely recreate free-sailing. Off the water I am not really competitive. I spend a lot of time giving other girls tips on moves and advice on competing. Some of them even send me clips and we do some Skype coaching sessions in the winter. I help others with their gear up the beach and caddy during their heats. Sportsmanship is super important to me. Without it I don’t think you can enjoy competing or winning anyway. I am for sure competitive in a way that I do try hard to be the best I can. Pushing myself drives me in windsurfing and in life.

“Sportsmanship is super important to me.”

WS – You use social media a lot, do you find it helps connect with fans and attract sponsors?
Social media definitely opens things up for everyone to tell their story, even if it’s not one of being a multiple world champion. I have had sponsors approach me via social media, and often competition results are not what they are after. They are interested in my followers and the connection I have with them. I don’t think it’s more important to post as a female vs a male windsurfer. However, there is something to be said for brands supporting people more for their online presence these days than the competition side of things alone, especially non-windsurfing brands who wish to promote a certain lifestyle. With less event opportunities for women, social media creates a chance to level up the marketing field for them. Female riders get a chance to offer promotion outside of the competitions and reach audiences in different ways to still create the same amount of exposure (value) for sponsors. Personally though, I really like to focus on windsurfing in my posts and in showing great locations and the best moves I can do. Rather than putting an emphasis on being a woman, I put it on being a female windsurfer.

In my Instagram stories I also share my everyday struggles, flat tyres, challenges of living in the outback, road trips and travels. Getting stuck at airports with 6 board bags and all the behind the scenes stuff to give people the idea of how it really is to train and do the tour. You will see anything from posts at the office, to tips on cooking in the outback. My Instagram is about windsurfing and motivation and sharing my ‘underdog on tour’ story. I compete on the world tour but work full time and chase conditions in my free time. I think lots of regular windsurfers can relate to that. I find I have a lot of followers write to me about their injuries as well, even non-windsurfers who have stumbled across my injury stories. I became a “come back” ambassador in some ways and I feel like my profile is there to give hope to those who are trying to get back on their feet.

I try to post daily or every few days to make sure my sponsors get enough exposure. A lot of my time on social media goes into replying to people asking about gear, tips for moves or travel recommendations. Creating content for social media is also time consuming. I try to film as much as I can. It is hard to do in places as remote as Australian spots, when often I am on my own. My GoPro is super useful for capturing everything easily. I film lots, name all the clips and also edit all the content myself, so it takes a bit of time.  As of today, I have almost 16,000 followers on Instagram, which is my main focus on social media. I don’t have an athlete page on Facebook. I find I get a really good connection by just having a regular but public Facebook profile that allows people to reach out.

WS – What are your ambitions with windsurfing?
JS – My big dream was to make a World Cup podium, as it would be the first PWA wave podium in history for Poland. This dream came true this year in Pozo. But long before I even thought about competing and long before I could even gybe properly, let alone do forwards, I always dreamed of landing double loops. I am close to making this dream happen. In all honesty I think it’s an easier goal than competition goals, because it’s entirely in my control. It’s a matter of when and not if and doesn’t lie in the hands of anyone else but me. I really like to push myself and try different moves, even if they are not a safe choice for competitions. For example, this year I landed one hand one foot back loops and I was delighted! Every move I do I also want to be able to land on every sail size from 3.0 to 5.0 and in all conditions. Once I can do that and land it more than once in one run I consider it to be a move “I can do”. One hand one foot back loops are not there yet. I did land 2 in a row once, but I didn’t get a chance to land them on every sail size yet. So far it’s 3.7 – 4.7, so I am getting there.

As we say in Poland, “appetite increases while eating”, which means that with every new move I want to learn more, I want to go higher and cleaner and with every competition success I want to do better. In summary my ambitions are to land every windsurfing move ever invented and to sail the best possible heats!

WS – A lot of people would describe you as energetic – any comments?
JS – I am aware I have, let’s call it, above average energy levels, I always have had. It’s not just on the beach, where I’m usually excited because I’m probably about to go windsurfing or have just sailed. I get these comments even in the office on Monday mornings – “How can you have so much energy?” I have a huge FOMO (fear of missing out) about life in general and like to squeeze a lot into my days, months and years. I love to try different things and learn new stuff. I love meeting people, I love to talk.. a lot! I do have an overactive mind and hard time sleeping too. I often wake up very early – around 5 a.m. I do F45 HIIT training or go for a run before I get to the office, so maybe that’s why I seem more “awake”. I am bubbly when I’m happy and I think my natural state is happy. There has been many tough times in my life, from injuries, losing close people to near death experiences. I think it can work two ways, either it makes you bitter, or it makes you really happy and appreciative of life, people and times when nothing is going terribly wrong! I’m the latter kind. When I am not in the hospital, heartbroken or struggling, and when all my family and friends are healthy, that really makes me super happy and I feel a lot of inner power to make things happen. I think that’s what it is. I kind of look around and everything is exciting to me. And usually when we feel excited we feel full of energy I guess.

“I love to try different things and learn new stuff.”

WS – You use social media a lot, do you find it helps connect with fans and attract sponsors?
Social media definitely opens things up for everyone to tell their story, even if it’s not one of being a multiple world champion. I have had sponsors approach me via social media, and often competition results are not what they are after. They are interested in my followers and the connection I have with them. I don’t think it’s more important to post as a female vs a male windsurfer. However, there is something to be said for brands supporting people more for their online presence these days than the competition side of things alone, especially non-windsurfing brands who wish to promote a certain lifestyle. With less event opportunities for women, social media creates a chance to level up the marketing field for them. Female riders get a chance to offer promotion outside of the competitions and reach audiences in different ways to still create the same amount of exposure (value) for sponsors. Personally though, I really like to focus on windsurfing in my posts and in showing great locations and the best moves I can do. Rather than putting an emphasis on being a woman, I put it on being a female windsurfer.

In my Instagram stories I also share my everyday struggles, flat tyres, challenges of living in the outback, road trips and travels. Getting stuck at airports with 6 board bags and all the behind the scenes stuff to give people the idea of how it really is to train and do the tour. You will see anything from posts at the office, to tips on cooking in the outback. My Instagram is about windsurfing and motivation and sharing my ‘underdog on tour’ story. I compete on the world tour but work full time and chase conditions in my free time. I think lots of regular windsurfers can relate to that. I find I have a lot of followers write to me about their injuries as well, even non-windsurfers who have stumbled across my injury stories. I became a “come back” ambassador in some ways and I feel like my profile is there to give hope to those who are trying to get back on their feet.

I try to post daily or every few days to make sure my sponsors get enough exposure. A lot of my time on social media goes into replying to people asking about gear, tips for moves or travel recommendations.

Creating content for social media is also time consuming. I try to film as much as I can. It is hard to do in places as remote as Australian spots, when often I am on my own. My GoPro is super useful for capturing everything easily. I film lots, name all the clips and also edit all the content myself, so it takes a bit of time.  As of today, I have almost 16,000 followers on Instagram, which is my main focus on social media. I don’t have an athlete page on Facebook. I find I get a really good connection by just having a regular but public Facebook profile that allows people to reach out.

WS – What are your ambitions with windsurfing?
JS – My big dream was to make a World Cup podium, as it would be the first PWA wave podium in history for Poland. This dream came true this year in Pozo. But long before I even thought about competing and long before I could even gybe properly, let alone do forwards, I always dreamed of landing double loops. I am close to making this dream happen. In all honesty I think it’s an easier goal than competition goals, because it’s entirely in my control. It’s a matter of when and not if and doesn’t lie in the hands of anyone else but me. I really like to push myself and try different moves, even if they are not a safe choice for competitions. For example, this year I landed one hand one foot back loops and I was delighted!

Every move I do I also want to be able to land on every sail size from 3.0 to 5.0 and in all conditions. Once I can do that and land it more than once in one run I consider it to be a move “I can do”. One hand one foot back loops are not there yet. I did land 2 in a row once, but I didn’t get a chance to land them on every sail size yet. So far it’s 3.7 – 4.7, so I am getting there. As we say in Poland, “appetite increases while eating”, which means that with every new move I want to learn more, I want to go higher and cleaner and with every competition success I want to do better. In summary my ambitions are to land every windsurfing move ever invented and to sail the best possible heats!

WS – A lot of people would describe you as energetic – any comments?
JS – I am aware I have, let’s call it, above average energy levels, I always have had. It’s not just on the beach, where I’m usually excited because I’m probably about to go windsurfing or have just sailed. I get these comments even in the office on Monday mornings – “How can you have so much energy?” I have a huge FOMO (fear of missing out) about life in general and like to squeeze a lot into my days, months and years. I love to try different things and learn new stuff. I love meeting people, I love to talk.. a lot! I do have an overactive mind and hard time sleeping too. I often wake up very early – around 5 a.m. I do F45 HIIT training or go for a run before I get to the office, so maybe that’s why I seem more “awake”. I am bubbly when I’m happy and I think my natural state is happy. There has been many tough times in my life, from injuries, losing close people to near death experiences. I think it can work two ways, either it makes you bitter, or it makes you really happy and appreciative of life, people and times when nothing is going terribly wrong! I’m the latter kind. When I am not in the hospital, heartbroken or struggling, and when all my family and friends are healthy, that really makes me super happy and I feel a lot of inner power to make things happen. I think that’s what it is. I kind of look around and everything is exciting to me. And usually when we feel excited we feel full of energy I guess.

“I love to try different things and learn new stuff.”

WS – You have forged quite an independent path both in your windsurfing and your career – where does the motivation and strength to do that come from?
JS – I think it’s a mixture of things. For sure my life circumstances forced me to create a path that probably not many other PWA wave sailors had to. I was born in Warsaw, Poland, miles away from the sea. I grew up in a tower block in a 2 room flat on the 3rd floor where I shared a room with my older brother. Luxuries like windsurfing were just not on the cards at the time and the ocean was not “my playground”. My playground was in the housing estate where we hung out with the local kids playing football. If you start like this, you are deemed too forge a path different to most pro wave sailors I guess.

I think when I look back it feels like a huge journey, but I always took it a day at a time. I always knew I absolutely loved windsurfing. I wanted to do what Jason Polakow did in the About Time video. I dreamed about sailing waves and even seeing waves like this, and jumping high and doing double loops, long before I could do a forward. I think my entire path was fuelled by that dream. My parents definitely put tenacity into me. My Dad always said if you’re doing something you might as well finish it and do it as good as you can. I’ve tried to apply that to many aspects of life. Mom’s biggest influence on me was her incredible positivity and ability to lift up from anything and always find joy in things whatever the situation. Whenever I felt low or worried, she’d say, “you can do it” or “one step at a time, you’ll get there”. Her unconditional belief in me gave me power. She always said it’s not over till you give up and made me feel it’s ok to fail many times as long as you shake it off and try again.

Having an older brother also shaped how I am I think. I always hung out with him and all the boys who were bigger and stronger than me. It was like a personal goal to be accepted into the tribe and prove to be good enough. As a 10 year old I once spent all summer learning to dribble so that I didn’t have to be a goalie every time we played football. I was a bit of a tomboy and I think parts of that have stayed with me till today.

I must say that working this year with Jorge Vera Garcia, a.k.a. Dr Windsurf (who is Philip Koster’s caddy, friend and sparring partner), helped me a lot, especially with the mental side of competition. He taught me to be a bit easier on myself and reminded me that it doesn’t matter what anyone thinks I am capable of. That even if I am perceived as an underdog, it has zero importance and I shouldn’t let it get to me. I should just sail as good as he knows I can. He highlighted to me how much I had improved both my sailing and competing in the last few years and how much bad luck I actually have had. He put things in perspective and taught me not to let doubt get into my mind, even for a moment. He made me realize that with a bit of luck I am in a position to do really good. That it does all start in your mind and if you think you can do it, you can do it! If someone who knows what they are talking about believes in you, it does fill you up with confidence and that is super important in competition. If anyone needs some coaching for competition or moves I highly recommend getting in touch with Jorge at www.drwindsurf.com

I often wondered if windsurfing is a blessing or a curse. I have dedicated my life to it, and it influenced most of my decisions, it has brought me to hospital multiple times and sent me alone to the other side of the world and into the outback. It caused some of the biggest upsets in my life, but has also brought the most euphoric moments. It took me around the world and back and it gives me this driving force to push through anything. Sometimes I look at people who have chosen a more traditional path and ask myself whether it was all worth it? I always get to the same answer though. I wouldn’t want to live without windsurfing! Many thanks to my sponsors – Mystic Boarding, Simmer Style, Al360, GoPro, Max Active Squad and F45 Training – for letting me live my dream!

“I wouldn’t want to live without windsurfing!”

The post JUSTYNA SNIADY | POL-111 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

THE WINDSURFER’S CHRISTMAS LIST 2019.

There comes that time every year when we must truly think of what stuff we really need as presents for Christmas, think of it as a reward for having slacked off to go windsurfing any time it’s windy. Fear not though, your need for thinking is over, as we have compiled a handy list so you can get back to slacking off and going windsurfing a.s.a.p. 

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SURFBENT

Surfbent say, “If you want to stop your beloved board being damaged and avoid annoying repairs, then the new Surfbent windsurf board protector (wbp) can help. The Surfbent wbp consists of a tough plastic material that mounts directly onto your mastfoot and reduces the energy of the impact via the powerjoint or tendon (energy reduction through deformation), so that damage to the nose is reduced or avoided. The Surfbent wbp is available in four colours, weighs approx. 250 g and can be mounted on any board with a mastfoot up to 110 mm in diameter. The price is €59 – cheaper than most board repairs.“

www.surfbent.de

TRICKTIONARY 3

The Tricktionary crew tell us, “The perfect present, ideal for every windsurfer, is our very popular coffee table instructional windsurfing book, the new Tricktionary 3. With 480 pages (188 pages more than Tricktionary 2) in 7 main categories, it never gets boring! Includes light wind freestyle as well as focus moves such as the fast tack, power jibe, 360 and chop hop, as well as wave basics, latest power moves and a slalom chapter. Yes, you need the book even if you have TR1 and/or TR2 already – and it works perfectly hand in hand with the constantly updated Windsurfing Tricktionary app, which you can even buy in a TRICKPACK package deal together with the book (get a free month premium access with code ‘WSUK2019’)! Tricktionary 3 book R.R.P. €49.90.”

www.tricktionary.com

ION NEO SHELTER JACKET

Pardon the pun, but the Ion team have you covered for Christmas, telling us – “Ion Neo Jackets & Hoodies are essential companions for cold and windy days on or off the water. Serving as an additional wind stopping outer layer and for extra warmth, these tops can be worn whilst using a harness due to the harness hole opening. Designed with a relaxed fit, you’ll be loving these for action packed sessions! R.R.P. £159.95.”

www.ion-products.com

LiP SUNGLASSES

The LiP team say, “With over 18 years of design experience, the design team at LiP know what it takes to build a perfect water-shade that is guaranteed to protect your eyes and enhance your performance on the water. Packing all the functional features of our flagship TYPHOON model into a stylish and affordable package, the SURGE represents the essence of what a quality water-shade needs to be – to really work in everyday to extreme conditions. 

Model shown: Matt Black Surge with Vivide (high contrast) Ice Blue lenses. R.R.P. £95.”

www.lip-sunglasses.com

FLYMOUNT 

The Flymount crew have a new offering – “This coming season we’re releasing our new replacement back door for GoPro 5, 6 & 7, with a large built-in leash point. This tough little product makes an ideal addition to your GoPro, ensuring it stays attached whatever happens. Combine it with a Flymount Original for the ultimate windsurf (or any other action sport) GoPro setup.
Available in November / December.
Flymount Original R.R.P. £54.99.
Safety System R.R.P. £19.99.”

www.flymount.com 

THE SALTY BELT  

 “ALL-IN” tell us, “The SALTY BELT is an innovative product made by ALL-IN, that helps you keep your electronic keys or your mobile phone dry! You can now take your electronic car keys (or/and mobile phone) with you when you go into the water to enjoy your favourite sport peacefully. The positioning of the belt at the hips allows you to have an absolute easiness in your movements, without having any trouble doing your water sport, and giving you a feeling of absolute freedom. 

The SALTY BELT is made in France (Hossegor) and it is made of natural rubber, Yulex™.” 

www.all-in-company.com 

SUBSCRIBE TO WINDSURF

The search for the greatest, in our opinion, windsurfing present is over – a subscription to ‘Windsurf’ magazine! I know as journos we are meant to be impartial and yes it’s not ethical and we are just trying to protect our jobs and well there are other magazines out there like pencil sharpeners monthly, but if you do fancy the world’s number one windsurf magazine with the best features, test reports and technique articles all delivered to your door ten times a year then why not ask for a ‘Windsurf’ subscription for Christmas! Available in premium print or a multi format digital app, it’s also great value at £47 for UK postage, Europe £67 and rest of world £77 and £29.25 for digital.

www.windsurf.co.uk/subscriptions/

The post CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE 2019 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Sweet colours, stunning views and watery action of huge variety for Peter Hart’s windsurfing Masterclass in Mauritius.

Via Peter Hart

The post PETER HART | MAURITIUS MASTERCLASS 2019 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

If you’re looking for a windsurf holiday destination, somewhere with warm, windy turquoise waters and no-stress vibes is a pretty good place to start, and that’s exactly what the Caribbean specialises in.

From the butter smooth waters of Bonaire to idyllic Tobago, find out more about some of the best destinations in the region with our Caribbean travel guide.

CHOICE PICKS…

JANE FAUGHNAN
SPORTIF WINDSURF HOLIDAYS WORLDWIDE
www.sportif.travel | 01273 844 919

TOBAGO 

Best for Flat water | Clinics | Value

The season starts in December with cross-shore trade winds averaging 15-25 knots. The sailing spot at Pidgeon Point is idyllic with a huge, shallow, flat water, turquoise lagoon and centre offering JP, Fanatic, Neil Pryde and Duotone equipment. Ideal for beginners to advanced freeride, freestyle and now wind foiling. Sportif have the widest range of accommodation from budget to luxury hotels with options for golf, scuba diving, kayaking, sailing, kitesurfing and SUP. We recommend exploring the pristine, protected rainforest in the north or head to Scarborough’s local markets.

SPORTIF PRO COACHING CLINICS with Peter Hart and Jem Hall are Jan-Feb-Mar 2020.

BARBADOS 

Best for Waves | Beach Hotels | Luxury

Barbados offers great waves, stand up paddle boarding, surfing and other activities such as scuba diving. The most easterly of the Caribbean islands, the British colonial past of Barbados is visible in the historic plantation houses around the island. Barbados has some of the very best beaches, fine dining, luxury hotels and a vibrant nightlife. There are no limits to your wave sailing here with conditions for both classic wave riding and for new moves. A 1-2.5 metres depth over the Silver Sands reef, 250 metres from the shore, creates outside waves of 1-3 metres making Barbados the ideal choice to improve your wave sailing.

BONAIRE & ARUBA 

Best for Twin Centre | Eco Adventure  | Nightlife

Lac Bay on the windward side of Bonaire is one of the world’s top flat water, slalom and freestyle venues. Cross/Onshore winds average 17 knots + with an extended sailing season from December to August. The youngest windsurfers can learn in the shallows, whilst many of the world’s best pros head here to compete and train. Part of the Dutch Antilles, Bonaire is less developed than nearby Aruba and you can enjoy a relaxed beach holiday, stunning scuba diving, eco and cycling tours. Aruba’s luxury beach hotels are set on the magnificent, white sand Palm beach with many nearby restaurants, beach clubs, shops and downtown casinos with a more developed, resort feel.

Sportif Travel offer 60+ windsurfing destinations worldwide, ATOL protected holidays –  flights, accommodation, transfers + discounted rental and instruction packages, clinics and camps. Latest spot reviews, conditions and videos online.

Tel: +44 (0)1273 844919 | www.sportif.travel

MARCUS BULL
PLANET WINDSURF HOLIDAYS
www.planetwindsurefholidays.com | 01273 921 001

BONAIRE 

The best windsurfing holiday spot in the Caribbean has to be Bonaire – part of the Dutch Antilles. With a huge beautiful flat water lagoon exclusively for windsurfers, a well stocked friendly centre and very good hotel right on the water’s edge – it just doesn’t get any better than Bonaire. Here you can virtually roll out of your bed and onto the water! Already offering great value for money when compared with many of its Caribbean neighbours, Bonaire is also perfect for those travelling with non-windsurfing partners and families with the island also offering fantastic shore diving experiences. 

CABARETE 

Cabarete in the Dominican Republic offers a great fun ‘Latin’ vibe and is perfect for friends or single travellers looking a great time both on and off the water. With reliable wind for most of the year and a variety of conditions to suit all skill levels, Cabarete is one of the most versatile windsurf destinations in the Caribbean. With direct flights from Gatwick or Manchester, getting to Cabarete is a breeze and Planet works with a range of luxury hand-picked accommodation options for the perfect Caribbean holiday!

TOBAGO 

Tobago offers a typical Caribbean setting with turquoise water and white sandy beaches and an easy freestyle location with consistent wind that never really gets too strong. Acting as a breakwater, a reef protects the lagoon from the turbulence of the open Caribbean Sea. The flat shallow waters found here are also perfect for beginners or for blasting intermediates. Tobago is one of the Caribbean’s unspoiled islands; its fantastic beauty and natural charm slowly hypnotise the visitor into daydreams of staying long past their original return dates.

Speak to a windsurf holiday expert on +44 (0) 1273 921001 or get a real time instant quote via Planet’s innovative website: www.planetwindsurfholidays.com.

Planet Windsurf Holidays offers full ATOL & TTA protection.

FEATURED MICRO GUIDES

The Reef – Vieux Fort, St. Lucia
Ion Club – Cabarete, Dominican Republic

Dunkerbeck Pro Center – Sorobon, Bonaire

Radical Sports – Tobago

The post CARIBBEAN TRAVEL GUIDE 2019 – 2020 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

WINDSURF MAGAZINE #392 JANUARY FEBRUARY 2020

The Great Escape: Sylt’s cruel seas, Tested – 2020 5.0 Wave Sails & 95 litre Crossover Boards, Yentel Caers & Pierre Mortefon interviews, UK Comp. Reports, How-to body drag & layback jump, Sarah Hauser at Cloudbreak, 2020 World Travel Guide, Lough Neagh.

Subscribe and receive your copy in either premium 

Print or 

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

Cover: Tahiti based French windsurfer, Charles ‘Charliboy’ Vandemeulebroucke in deep at his adopted home break of Teahupo’o.

Photo: Ben Thouard.

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BIG JUICY READS

THE CRUEL SEA
The PWA wave world tour stop at Sylt has a reputation for cruel seas, a maker or breaker of dreams; the pros give their thoughts.

YENTEL CAERS B-16
Belgium breeds PWA freestyle world champions – most recently Yentel Caers, who just won the 2019 title. JC finds out the secrets behind his success.

DREAM IT, DO IT
Sarah Hauser realised her dream to ride the fabled waves of Cloudbreak, Fiji. She tells us more about her successful adventure to the South Pacific.

CHAMPION DU MONDE
Pierre Mortefon tells us how he took the 2019 PWA slalom title and his sponsors let us know what makes him one of the world’s best.

TIREE #34
The Tiree Wave Classic’s 34th year started calm but ended with a bang! Event photographer Richard Whitson gives us the scoop on another banging Tiree comp.

THE FINAL!
Mark Dowson rounds up the action from the British Wavesailing Association’s final event of 2019 and John Carter speaks to men’s pro champion Phil Horrocks.

A WINDY ONE!
Weymouth Speed Week was hailed by organisers as one of the windiest ever! Pete Davis tells us how it all went down!

THE INLAND SEA
Lough Neagh in Northern Ireland is the UK and Ireland’s largest freshwater lake; Finn Mullen tells more about its history and windsurfing.

WAVES OF CHANGE
Florian Jung had a desire to make a trip to the South Pacific and tells us how he found perfect waves but left with a changed perspective.

GEAR SHED

ON TEST: 2020 95 LITRE CROSSOVER BOARDS
The test team put a range of fresh crossover designs under review in UK waters. These include:

FANATIC FREEWAVE LTD 95,
GOYA ONE 3 PRO 95,
QUATRO POWER PRO 94,
RRD FREESTYLE WAVE LTD 96,
SEVERNE DYNO 95,
SIMMER QUANTUM 95,
STARBOARD KODE 95,
TABOU 3S+ CIF 96.

TEST: 5.0 ALL-ROUND WAVE SAILS
The latest sails to power round a variety of sea states are put to test by the team in UK waves. These include;

DUOTONE SUPER HERO 5.0,
EZZY WAVE 5.0,
GA SAILS MANIC 5.0,
GOYA BANZAI PRO 5.0,
GUNSAILS SEAL 5.0,
LOFTSAILS WAVESCAPE 5.0,
NEIL PRYDE ZONE PRO HD 4.7,
POINT-7 SALT PRO 5.0,
RRD COMPACT VOGUE 4.6,
SEVERNE BLADE 5.0,
SIMMER ICON 5.0.

TEKKERS

PETER HART MASTERCLASS – THE BODY DRAG

MOVE ON UP WITH JEM HALL – THE LAYBACK JUMP
Jem tells us how to throw our heads back in the air for the layback jump.

BOARDSHORTS

2020 WORLD TRAVEL GUIDE
Looking for some warmer weather? We give a guide to some of the best windsurfing destinations overseas.

LATEST & GREATEST
Imagine a world where there are no secrets or lies, just a utopia of 100% press releases; good news – it exists and it’s right here.

RYA KNOWLEDGE – DO WHAT YOU LOVE
The RYA tell us how you could turn your favourite hobby into a career.

SITTIN’ ON THE DUNNY

EDITORIAL – THE GREAT ESCAPE

AFFAIRS OF THE HART – IN DEFENCE OF A SMALL INDUSTRY
Harty poses the question of how, in a modern world, does windsurfing stack up against other industries?

Get your 

Print

The post #392 JAN FEB 2020 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Corralejo offers something for everyone, with great nightlife, good shopping, and overall value for money. It is the cultural centre of the windsurfing community on Fuerteventura’s legendary north shore and a must visit for any windsurfer or non-windsurfer! 

Year-round conditions of warm water windsurfing. The best conditions are from the months of March to November. The spring/summer months bring great weather and the famed trade winds with good cross-shore (from the left) conditions. In the winter the winds are less consistent but the waves increase, picking up all the great Atlantic swells at this time of year.

Spot 1:  Flag Beach is an intermediate to advanced location – flat water/chop.
Spot 2:  A lagoon 20 minutes’ drive away is an ideal beginner’s teaching lagoon. All the beginner / renewal / improver courses run here in shallow (1 m), protected water with a sandy bottom.

The Flag Beach centre has a team of excellent multilingual, fully VDWS-qualified watersport instructors that offer a wide range of tuition, from beginner to advanced.  Although Flag Beach suits intermediates/advanced visitors, just 20 minutes’ drive away there’s an ideal lagoon for beginners. Equipment is from Fanatic Boards and Duotone Sails.

A wide variety of options are available; hostels, apartments, luxury villas and resorts. Self-catering, B&B, half board, and all-inclusive – plenty of choice.

CONTACT
Flag Beach
www.flagbeach.com
info@flagbeach.com
+34 928 866389

Back to World Travel Map

The post MICRO GUIDE : FLAG BEACH, CORRALEJO, FUERTEVENTURA appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Bridgestone UK – “We loved being a part of The Windsurf Project’s journey to discover the best windsurfing spots around the Globe. This time, they travelled to the notorious big wave spot of Nazaré in Portugal equipped with our Bridgestone tyres to help them get there.”

Via Bridgestone UK

The post THE WINDSURF PROJECT | PROJECT 2: PORTUGAL appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

JP Australia tell us about the 2020 UltimateWave;

“The winner of the ALOHA CLASSIC – this year again the JP crew proved the true wave virtues of this dedicated wave shape. It performs in all kind of wave conditions from onshore to side-offshore and is a worthy amendment to the quiver of every true wave sailor”

Riders: the winner of the Aloha “Titoun” Antoine Martin F-193, Jason Polakow KA-1111, Morgan Noireaux HI-101, Robby Swift K-89, Leon Jamaer G-208, Jake Schettewi US-25, Zachary Schettewi US-225.

ULTIMATEWAVE 2020 | JP AUSTRALIA

More details: jp-australia.com

Via jpaustraliacom

The post ULTIMATEWAVE 2020 | JP AUSTRALIA appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

John Carter and 2016 PWA slalom Champion, Matteo Iachino, head out to explore the windsurfing paradise of Guadeloupe in the French Caribbean. Hosted by fellow Severne and Starboard world tour racer, Tristan Algret, and avid local sailor Bruno Kancel, the planned itinerary was to windsurf as many of the island’s best locations in a mere six days. John Carter reports!

Words & Photos  John Cater

GUADELOUPE

GETTING THERE
I jetted out with Air France via Paris, leaving Heathrow bright and breezy at 6:20 a.m., which meant leaving my home on the Isle of Wight the night before. Coincidently the evening I left home was the same night the annual Isle of Wight music festival was finishing, so it turned out to be a hectic scramble to squeeze on the ferry along with the thousands of muddy and tired festival goers that were on their way home; I certainly saw some sights! Half asleep, I arrived at Heathrow two hours before check in opened at 4:00 a.m., so that meant trying to get some kip on the floor next to my bags. By the time I woke up there was a huge line at Air France, but I eventually managed to check in and was ready for my first flight to Paris! So far I would not call this luxury travel, but I was sure it would be worth it by the time I reached the Caribbean!

My connection in Paris meant a change of airport from Charles De Gaulle over to Orly, which was about a one hour transfer via free buses, before boarding for the final leg of the journey, destination Pointe-a-Pitre in the heart of Guadeloupe. If you ever travel this route, make sure you leave plenty of time for the transfer as it was Monday morning traffic when I crossed Paris and I only just made my connection by the skin of my teeth. Finally after the 8 hour flight from Paris to Guadeloupe, I touched down into the balmy Caribbean heat, ready for a six day whirlwind tour of the island. Everything for Matteo and I had all been organized by Tristan Algret and his friend Bruno Kancel, who both share the dream one day to host a PWA event on the island. With the travel side of the equation completed, now it was time to explore this windsurfing paradise and let the fun begin!

GUADELOUPE
Guadeloupe is an archipelago of over a dozen islands that offer a wide variety of coastline, consistent winds and a perfect playground for all types of windsurfing from freeriding to down-the-line wave riding. The two main islands Basse-Terre and Grand-Terre resemble the wings of a butterfly and are separated by the Salée River. The left wing of the ‘butterfly’, Basse-Terre, boasts more mountainous terrain with stunning rainforests and a majestic volcano. The right wing of the butterfly, Grand-Terre, is the eastern island and is known for its reef protected waters, pristine beaches and the infamous Pointe des Châteaux rocks at the very end of the island. As well as PWA slalom sailor Tristan Algret, the likes of Camille Juban and Antoine Martin also reside here in Grand-Terre while not on tour. The island’s official currency is the Euro, being a French overseas region and as such there is no immigration for European citizens to pass once you land at Pointe-à-Pitre, the island’s historic capital.

DAY 1 – SETTLING IN AND THE TI’ PUNCH KNOCKOUT!
After stepping out into a beautiful warm breezy afternoon, Tristan and Matteo, who had arrived the day before, were at the airport to meet me and once Tristan’s Volkswagen was loaded we drove about 30 minutes straight to the BWA Chik Hotel in St François on Grand-Terre, our headquarters for the next three days. Located right next to a stunning 18 hole international golf course, the accommodation was awesome and we were given a bit of time to relax before a dinner which had been arranged at the nearby Colombo restaurant. As I scrutinized the packed itinerary Tristan had planned for us, any temptation of playing this luxury golf course appeared pretty slim, but on the bright side it looked like we had all sorts of fun and interesting activities planned both on and off the water. Tristan was keen to show us the best sailing and foiling spots on the island, but also some of  the most scenic locations the island had to offer.

Before dinner Matteo was keen to have a quick drive around to help shake off the jet lag, so we headed up to the stunning Pointe des Châteaux, also known as ‘Castle Point’, at the easternmost tip off the island. As soon as I set eyes on this stunning bay and dramatic rock formations in the sea, I knew we had to try and windsurf here, even though it was not part of Tristan’s hectic schedule.

Back at the hotel Tristan was in the reception, waiting to take us to dinner. It seemed rude not to accept a welcome drink, so instead of my normal ice cold beer, Matteo and I agreed to try a “Ti’ Punch”, a local rum drink made up of white rum, lime and sugar cane syrup. Upon the first sip I almost choked after this 50% alcoholic concoction definitely lived up to its name! We mentioned the idea of sailing Pointe des Châteaux to Tristan, but he was adamant it had never been attempted before and it was too wild. After a few more Ti’ Punches, Tristan mysteriously started warming to the idea and agreed to give it a try; I was determined to hold him to his promise at the earliest possible convenience! The day was capped off with a gorgeous meal at the local Colombo restaurant where we were treated to a feast of fresh lobster and a few more icy beers. Not a bad way to kick things off, I was already liking this place and the flow of the trip!

Consistent winds and a perfect playground for all types of windsurfing from freeriding to down-the-line wave riding.

DAY 2 – LAGOON SESSION AND POINTE DES CHÂTEAUX ADVENTURE
After breakfast we headed to Saint Francis lagoon close to the hotel where it was already blowing around 15 knots. This is one of Tristan’s local windsurfing spots, boasting perfect turquoise, flat water before several reef passes lead out to the choppier more challenging sailing in the deep blue open ocean. Matteo and Tristan spent a few hours well powered on slalom gear, blasting around with a crew of locals who were all excited at the prospect of sailing with their PWA heroes. Out in the lagoon were some pretty cool house boats which we shot from, and can be rented for around €300 a night if you ever fancy a bit of luxury.   

After a delicious local style lunch of Caribbean fish and chicken on the beach, Tristan had organized a trip over to the islands know as Petite Terre. We were picked up in an exclusive luxury power boat and blasted through the choppy 6 mile crossing in about 30 minutes before hitting these two uninhabited islands. The islands are a protected area with the lagoon brimming with turtles, stingrays and small sharks. Climbing on the shore you feel like an explorer, on the pristine white sand beach with swaying palm trees and wild iguanas running around. We spent a few hours exploring and swimming before heading back to St Francois ready for the last mission of the day, sailing at Pointe des Châteaux, which Tristan had reckoned was too wild and impossible. Nothing like a challenge!

By the time we had packed and driven up to the easternmost point of the island, we had about two hours of daylight left to complete our quest. Matteo and Tristan tentatively rigged, while myself and Bruno prepared cameras and checked the location. Bruno is the best drone pilot on the island and runs a business called ‘Aeroworx’, so was going to capture the mission from the air while I covered the bases on land. Although the sea is rough at Pointe des Châteaux, after a few tacks and a bit of scrambling through the dumping shore break it does mellow out. Matteo was first to make his way out into open water and was soon cruising on his 8.6m slalom setup. Tristan was not far behind on this ground-breaking mission and despite tricky conditions we managed to score an hour of beautiful light as the two sails blasted in front of this amazing backdrop. After the boys were back on dry land I headed to the car and somehow managed to knock the keys from their hiding place on the front suspension into a cavity beneath the engine and the skid plate. The next hour or so was quite entertaining as we battled to retrieve the keys with Matteo and Tristan having to take over the hard work after my failings. Needless to say I was not so popular after this mission to recover the keys, but after a lot of sweat and crawling around underneath the front of the car, Tristan triumphantly managed to retrieve the key from its awkward location!

Matteo and Tristan spent a few hours well powered on slalom gear.

MATTEO IACHINO

“I loved sailing Pointe des Châteaux. It’s a wild place and you feel in the middle of the Atlantic. This is the first point of the island you would encounter if you sailed from Europe or Africa. It wasn’t too bad in the end launching, which is what Tristan was worried about, and once through the shore dump we were fine. Bruno was flying his drone so close to the water I was sure he would crash it on a wave, but he certainly knew what he was doing as he didn’t make any mistakes. JC was very happy to shoot us here as he fell in love with the spot the moment he saw it! We had some great speed runs, jumps and gybes close to the rocks before heading back just before sunset. We didn’t know we had another challenge ahead after Carter lost the keys, which was almost a disaster!”

Back at the hotel Matteo and I polished off a few ice cold “Carib” beers before heading to the local market to sample some delicious local food. It had been a long but very satisfying day and in my books an ice cold beer was a necessity. When we hit the market, delicious spicy Caribbean chicken from a local vendor was the order of the day. One thing I was already learning about Matteo is that he likes to eat…a lot! So when it comes to meal times, he can easily chow down twice as much as most of us mere mortals. So after I was content at a decent portion of chicken and rice, I was not surprised to see him going back for a second portion! I guess that is what it takes to fuel a world champion!      

DAY 3 – PICTURE POSTCARD ISLAND AND CULTURAL VISIT
Looking at the itinerary for day three, I had a feeling we were going to be busy again, and I was not wrong! Our first port of call was the Gosier Mariana where Bruno had rented a boat as a shooting platform so we could head to “Îlet du Gosier”, which put into simple terms was a picture postcard tropical island, with white sand beaches, crystal clear water, palm trees and an old lighthouse. It was windier today, around 18 knots and perfect for slalom blasting. The boys reached the island before our boat had arrived and by the time we were close Matteo and Tristan had already discovered some small waves on the reef and were launching some huge jumps on their slalom gear. We managed to park the boat pretty close by and caught them flying over the lighthouse a few times, with Tristan almost sailing into Matteo on one occasion. Back in the bay the boys were blasting from the mainland towards the island and throwing gybes in front of the palm trees. This was how you imagine windsurfing in paradise, azure flat water, a tropical island fringed with palm trees and perfect 18 knot trades. Bruno had packed a cool box on the boat laden with beers and water. I was starting to feel I could get used to this lifestyle rather than working 15 hours a day at PWA events!

Back on dry land we de-rigged and then moved onto the next part of the plan and cruised with the boat up the coast to Pointe-à-Pitre, the island’s capital. After meeting at the tourism office we headed for a delicious local lunch in a boat building yard where of course we had to sample some more Ti’ Punches!

Next on the agenda was a stop at the Memorial Acte museum of slavery, opened in 2015 to preserve the memory of those that suffered during slavery. The building alone is stunning, the structure is around 240 metres long and is covered in a silvery mesh containing a black box. The museum gives a full history about the perils and heart-breaking story of the slave trade which was finally abolished in the French colonies in 1848.

After a very informative interactive guided tour we headed back to our boat and pressed on up the river through the mangroves to the end of the runway at the airport where we watched an Air France flight land right over our heads. After dropping the boats off, our final port of call was for an evening meal at the stunning La Toubana Hotel, situated on the cliffs overlooking Sainte Anne Bay. The breath-taking views from this hotel are amazing and to the right we were looking down at a perfect point break setup which is one of the spots regularly sailed by local wave sailing legend Antoine Martin. Both Antoine and fellow wave sailor Camille Juban live in Guadeloupe and Tristan told us that there are plenty of sick wave sailing and surfing spots scattered around the islands at the right time of the year. We finally arrived home around 11:30 p.m. after a long but very successful day sailing and touring around the island. Tomorrow we had new plans which meant we would finally leave the BWA Chik Hotel and head over to Basse-Tere for some new discoveries.

This was how you imagine windsurfing in paradise.

DAY 4 – RUM TASTING AND ISLAND HOPPING
We opened the day with a tour of the Reimonenq rum distillery and museum where we learned all about the process of cutting the freshly cut sugar cane and eventually fermenting the juice into rum. I was handed a glass in the factory and took a sip which was apparently 60-80 % alcohol, that was strong! Some of the juice is eventually put into barrels and aged for at least three years for a rum to earn the title ‘old’. Upon leaving we were all presented with two bottles of rum each as gifts from the distillery, which was a very generous touch! After lunch at Clara’s in the bay of Sainte Rose we moved onto the windsurfing schedule for the afternoon. Located on the north coast of Basse-Terre we were about to explore the Grand Cul-de-Sac Marin nature reserve and venture out to îlet à Fajou, the island inside the huge lagoon. Today the boys decided to use their foil boards as their tool to explore this vast flat water lagoon.

Myself and Bruno packed the cameras and of course a couple of icy colds into a small boat and headed out into the mangroves to meet Matteo and Tristan and a few friends who had come along to sail with the boys. Inside the lagoon there are many tiny mangrove islands. These plants manage to adapt to this highly saline environment and are able to grow because of their waterproof roots which filter as much as 97% of the salt away. Starboard of course have their important mangrove planting operation in process in Myanmar as part of their aim to improve their environmental impact. Out on the water we spent the afternoon exploring this amazing flat water paradise and Matteo and Tristan both clocked up over 60 km on the foil boards in a few hours. A few miles offshore there were some tiny mangrove islands rising out of the sea and it was cool to watch the guys foiling around these surreal islets. Our final port of call was îlet à Fajou surrounded by what they call the blue lagoon, an incredible strip of turquoise water. Unfortunately today was slightly overcast, weirdly due to Sahara dust blowing right across the Atlantic, also known as the Calima in the Canary Islands, so we did not see the blueness of the lagoon to its full effect. Even so, it was still a fantastic afternoon and the boys were flying high after exploring this vast lagoon by foil.

MATTEO IACHINO
“The 4^th day started with a real punch for me as heading into the rum factory we got two shots of rum back to back at 10:30 a.m. in the morning. The temperature was quite high around 32° and sunny and the rum went straight to my head, making the tour of the Reimonenq distillery quite a blur! Just when I thought the rum shots were done, we then had the strongest one of the trip, almost raw alcohol! As we were watching the incredible column through which they distil and clean up the rum, creating one of the best flavours in the world, the engineer on this operation offered me a shot of the rum straight out of the column, nearly 80% alcohol, which was quite an interesting experience!

After lunch we went sailing in the lagoon and it was an amazing foil session. This turquoise part of the ocean inside the reef is a natural playground to blast around in with the foil, discovering endless islands and mangrove bushes. I loved it and I enjoyed the adrenaline rushes when Tristan was telling me to stay high as we were flying over some shallows on the reef with the sun in our eyes and only 30 cm of water below our foils!”

After this incredible session was over we moved into the awesome Langley Resort Fort Royal Hotel for the final two nights of my stay. This part of the island has a stunning stretch of coastline and is home for the TV series, “Death in Paradise”, which is filmed in the next bay up from the Fort Royal. I made it up to my room quite tired from a packed day and was greeted by a welcome pack from the hotel containing two more huge bottles of rum. Blimey, I was now up to four gifted bottles of rum in one day, at least my wife would be happy with all this contraband to bring home!    

The sun in our eyes and only 30 cm of water below our foils!      

DAY 5 – PLEASURE AND PAIN! WINDSURFING AND WATERFALLS
We stored the windsurfing equipment at the hotels watersports centre, “Surf and Sail” and were rigged up early as it was already blowing 15-20 knots straight after breakfast. This part of the island is not protected by the any outside reef, but the water today was relatively flat, although there are said to be some quality waves here at the right times of year. With the wind funnelling through the channel between the hotel and l’îlet Kawan, the water out in the middle was pretty choppy. I could tell Matteo was enjoying the more challenging sailing and Tristan was also having a blast on freeride gear, throwing huge jumps off of every available ramp. The boys sailed full power back and forth across the channel for about an hour and a half and returned back to the beach pretty exhausted from the hardcore session.

After a very pleasant lunch at the hotel beach bar, the plan was to head inland to hike to a waterfall in the rainforest. Not sure which camera gear to take, I decided to take a backpack with a spare lens and my lighter camera body for the hike, all in all about 5 kg worth. We parked the car and headed to the trail which turned out to be a 3 km descent down a steep winding path through the rainforest. By the time I was at the bottom I was definitely feeling it and Matteo and Tristan had to wait for me several times while I caught them up puffing and panting. After a quick swim below the waterfalls for some shots, we headed back up, but this time I was determined not to be outdone by the youngsters. I headed up the hill full speed with my extra 5 kg, no matter the consequences and must have been close to a heart attack by the time I reached the top. I had also made the big mistake not to take any water on the hike, so spent much of the rest of the afternoon in a state of recovery from dehydration, but at least I had held my own up the hill!

We finished the day at the Karacoli Bar on Grand Anse Beach where I had just about recovered enough to manage an ice cold “Carib” beer, as well as plenty of water. My final evening dinner of the trip was back at the excellent restaurant in the Fort Royal Hotel, which could possibly be the venue to host the PWA if a racing event goes ahead.    

DAY SIX – HOMEWARD BOUND
On my final day the dust from the Sahara had lifted and we were left with amazing blue skies and puffy white clouds, the typical day you dream about in the Caribbean. The weather was so lush we decided to abandon a plan to visit the Les Saintes Islands and stay put to shoot one last session of windsurfing outside the hotel. The boys were having a blast once again, especially Tristan who was jumping as close to our boat as possible and finished the session by almost going straight over us and landing just a few feet clear. After my final lunch at the beach bar it was time for me to pack and head to the airport for a 5:15 p.m. Air France flight back to Paris and then onto London.

SUMMARY
There was never a dull moment on my whirlwind trip to Guadeloupe thanks to the excellent organization from Tristan and Bruno. Not only had we seen many of the best windsurfing spots on the island, but we had also immersed ourselves in the culture, tasted the local cuisine and of course sampled the local rum and icy cold beers! Now that is my kind of trip, thanks Tristan and Bruno!

TRISTAN ALGRET
“This trip was totally amazing! Myself and Bruno are pushing to promote Guadeloupe around the world. We had this idea to invite John Carter and another rider for three years and finally the chance to be supported by the Tourism Office of Guadeloupe and plenty of local sponsors came to us.

After many trips with Matteo, he was naturally the man I felt was best for this Guadeloupe trip. Plus I had the chance to come to his home place a few days before the Asian PWA World Cup events, so it was clearly my turn to show him my playground. Matteo has become a good friend over the past years and having him on the island was a great honour. During the trip I also discovered new places on my own island, sailing a new spot (Pointe des Châteaux) and met lots of new people, an opportunity not possible without the generous support of all our partners.”

There was never a dull moment on my whirlwind trip to Guadeloupe.

FACT BOX:

TOURISM OFFICE OF GUADELOUPE ISLANDS
www.lesilesdeguadeloupe.com/tourism/en-FR

FLIGHTS TO GUADELOUPE
Air France fly to Guadeloupe daily from Orly airport in Paris.
Air Caraïbes (Orly) / XL Airways (Charles de Gaulle) / Corsair (Orly) / Level (Orly) all also fly!
Air Canada fly several times a week from Montreal.
American Airlines fly from Miami every Saturday.
Air France / Air Caraïbes and Corsair are easy with board bags, but for excess baggage charges you need some luck! Best advice is to book and pay for the board bags when booking your ticket, rather than at the airport.

HOTELS WE STAYED AT:
BWA CHIK HOTEL – bwachik.com/hotel-guadeloupe
LANGLEY RESORT FORT ROYAL – www.langleyhotels.eu/en/our-hotels/resort-fort-royal

RECOMMENDED RESTAURANTS
Colombo – St François.
La Toubana Hotel – St Anne.
Clara – St Rose.
Ti Bo Doudou – Les Saintes Islands.
Chez Forbin – Pointe a Pitre.

WEATHER
The best season for wind & waves in Guadeloupe is during the winter in Europe, between December to March. June and July are really good as well for wind but with less waves. For wind forecasts, Tristan Algret uses windguru.com and www.windy.com
Typical conditions are wind 10 to 25 knots and waves in winter time are 1 to 3 metres, and in summer 0.8 to 1.5 metres.
No wetsuits needed, board shorts all year round.

GEAR
Typical gear used is:
Slalom – 8.6 / 7.8 / 7.0 + big and medium board.
Freeride – 7.5 to 6.5 + 120 litre board.
Wave – 5.7 to 4.5 + big wave board.
There is a few local windsurf schools where you can rent beginner’s equipment, but for freeride and slalom equipment rental contact tristan.algret@gmail.com by email.

SPOTS
The main windsurfing spots are:
Flat water & waves – The Lagoon of St François is a popular spot and works in east / southeast and south winds.
Open sea – Lighthouse of Vieux Fort, works in almost all wind directions.
Open sea – Langley Resort Fort Royal, works in north / northeast winds.
Flat water / open sea – Îlet du Gosier, works in east / southeast / south winds.

The post GUADELOUPE | WINTER TRAVEL appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Black Friday passed you by? Can’t wait till January to start planning your next getaway? Then fear not – Planet Windsurf Holidays have some epic festive season holiday specials to get you in the spirit! Surprise your loved ones with a 2020 windsurfing getaway or treat yourself with one of these amazing offers:

45% off PLUS free upgrades in Mauritius

Planet is proud to offer exclusive super savings at the Heritage Le Telfair in Bel Ombre, Mauritius in 2019. Get 45% off your stay, a free upgrade from half board to fill board and a 1-hour free spa treatment per adult per stay. In addition 2 kids under 12 years sharing their parent’s room stay free! Bel Ombre features a fantastic spacious lagoon with flat water as well as waves further out at the reef. The windsurf centre is possibly the best on the island for families with a prime location right at the hotel and direct access to the restaurants and pool. It has also been recently renovated and offers a whole new range of equipment.Find out more: https://www.planetwindsurfholidays.com/hotels/mauritius/bel-ombre/heritage-le-telfair-1656

Stay 7, pay 5 in Bonaire

Stay 7 days and pay for 5 or stay 14 days and only pay for 10 at the Sorobon in Bonaire. The Sorobon apartments boast panoramic views of the stunning bay and you can literally roll out of your bed and be on the water in seconds. Bonaire is easily the best windsurf location in the Caribbean, with a huge beautiful flat water lagoon. The island is also one of the least tourist-developed and visited of the Caribbean, yet offers some of the best scenery. Apart from being an amazing windsurf location Bonaire also offer world class diving and so makes for an ideal windsurf / dive combination holiday.
Find out more: https://www.planetwindsurfholidays.com/hotels/dutch-antilles/bonaire/sorobon-boutique-hotel-2068

FREE night in Sal, Cape Verde

Stay at Hotel Morabeza in Sal and only pay for six nights when you stay seven. The Morabeza Hotel is located directly on a stretch of beautiful beach but also only a few minutes walk into town. Offering a homely cultural feeling that is authentic in nature, the hotel also features amazing restaurants and bars on site and a great atmosphere for families. Between November and April, Sal has clean consistent and reliable winds blowing everyday and there are some small easy waves at the far end of the main Santa Maria beach for those that want to gibe and windsurf in a safe spot. More experienced windsurfers can also get their kicks here with phenomenal full-on wave spot nearby.
Find out more: https://www.planetwindsurfholidays.com/hotels/cape-verde/sal/morabeza-hotel-507

Pay 6, get 7 nights in Dakhla, Morocco

Travel to Dakhla and get a 7 night stay for the price of 6 at the new PK25 hotel. Dakhla’s Pk25 Boutique Hotel offers perfect views of Dakhla lagoon from the bungalows and a fantastic on-site sports centre. Dakhla is a unique, yet perfect, multi-level spot with 70-80 year round wind reliability, access to a vast flat water lagoon from your accommodation as well as four wave spots with 30 minutes.
Find out more: https://www.planetwindsurfholidays.com/hotels/morocco/dakhla/dakhla-pk25-boutique-hotel-2079

20% off in St Martin

Book your holiday to La Playa Orient Bay in St Martin more than 60 days in advance and receive 20% off your accommodation. La Playa Orient Bay has recently been renovated with all new rooms. The hotel has an amazing beachfront setting with a fantastic restaurant and bar on site. The Caribbean island of St Martin has reliable trade winds for most of the year and is a great wave destination thanks to the outer reef. There is also a wide choice of other activities to enjoy both on and off the water.Find out more: https://www.planetwindsurfholidays.com/hotels/dutch-antilles/st-martin/la-playa-orient-bay-2139

The post FESTIVE HOLIDAY SPECIALS FROM PLANET appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

The advent of foiling on the PWA tour has brought a new group of men and women racers to the fore, John Carter takes a look at the Olympic windsurfers upsetting the rankings and asks the PWA elite for their opinion of the new contenders.

Words  Kiran Badloe, Jordy Vonk, Sebastian Koerdel, Thomas Goyard, Marina Alabau, Blanca Alabau, Gonzalo Costa Hoevel, Julien Bontemps, Matteo Iachino & Ross Williams //  Photos  John Carter

KIRAN BADLOE
Japan was my first ever PWA event, we were training on RS:X in Japan so we were already in the area. The Olympic RS:X venue is actually very close to the PWA event, just a 45 minute drive away. I have been getting well into foiling in the last year. I really enjoy it, so it was a great opportunity to come and race with the best PWA sailors, show my face and see if I am competitive with these guys; I would love to win the foil world title!

Foiling is fun; the courses are different to what we normally do. It’s a much shorter more exciting course and the level is definitely tough. All these PWA racers are very fast and know how to tune their gear. They are pushing the likes of myself and Thomas Goyard; we definitely have to use our very best racing skills. The Olympic fitness and knowledge of course racing helps, but the short courses are also new to us. We can’t apply all of our tactics. We have some situations though which we might recognise a bit earlier because we do this type of racing more often than the PWA guys. I have been pumping a lot on the upwind legs, I don’t think they like that! Everybody is friendly and I feel at home already. Myself and Thomas are definitely lighter and have the right physique for foiling. If it picks up a few knots I think that can change. The big slalom guys are probably going to show us how it is done. Overall it will be a pretty fair battle. Everybody has conditions that play to their strengths.

I was attracted to foiling because it looked like something new. It looked exciting and it was fast when every other windsurfing class was slow. Racing on the foil is definitely fun, but I am into the long distance destination side too with my foil setup. It’s like you see something on the other side of a bay and you just can just take the foil in pretty much any conditions and go places. I am very attracted by that. At the moment the equipment side is quite critical. We are still in the early days of the developing phase so all the newest things that come out tend to be better than the existing gear. A foil from last year or older seems to be dated pretty quick. I think in a few years it will settle and there won’t be so many changes. I am still hoping to make the Olympic team for the Netherlands. I was a training partner for the last Olympics with Dorian van Rijsselberghe. This year it is Dorian or me for the next Olympics in Japan. We are in the middle of our qualification process, so it’s pretty tough going and very close. He has won the last two Olympics, so is a formidable teammate.

JORDY VONK
I guess it’s a good thing having them here. It is pushing the level and pushing us to pump more. They are bringing us to another level as well. They are quite dominant in the light winds but we see PWA guys in there too. I don’t think they put us in the second row that easily. I think we are still fighting and have a solid chance.

SEBASTIAN KOERDEL
I like the Olympic guys joining us because they are smart racers and I always enjoy racing against guys like this. You see they are very fast so they belong here. This is the PWA, we are the best in the world. So the best in the world should be here. It gives our races a new dimension. When they are here I just hope for lots of wind. That is all I pray for. So we are not doing the upwind races and pumping!

THOMAS GOYARD
I am an RS:X sailor trying to qualify for France for the Olympics. I have to battle with Pierre Le Coq and Louis Giard from France for the one place at the Japan Olympics. Foiling is the new exciting discipline and I love it. I stopped slalom racing and started foiling three years ago. I am from New Caledonia and have been mostly training over there. I am sponsored by Phantom sails and FMX racing, which is Finian Maynard’s new brand. I like to do many different things, I think it is in my genes. I am also an engineer (I just got my degree last September), so the technical side of foiling appeals to me. As foiling is so new there is a lot of innovation and development. So far myself and Kiran have been stirring up the PWA rankings in light winds. We both have good cardio fitness and can pump a lot. It makes a big difference. We also both race well tactically as we are used to this type of racing. We were both unlucky in Japan and could easily have been first and second.

I think we will also be competitive in stronger winds, but we will have to wait and see for that. I have raced with tactics all my life so I am used to this style of racing. I know what to look out for at the starts, laylines, tacking and how the fleet is developing during a race. I think the foil is much more fun that the RS:X and that is why I want to do it. The sensations are amazing when you are up on the foil. I think there will be a lot more RS:X guys coming to the PWA foil racing. RS:X guys are super focussed though and some of them will just stick to the Olympics. Kiran and myself are much more open to try new things like foil racing. I hope the Olympics will change to foiling. Personally I would love it. Right now I think they are planning to keep the RS:X for the French Olympics but we are still fighting to change this.

“I hope the Olympics will change to foiling.”

ANTOINE ALBEAU
They open our minds a little bit. They can push the limits in lighter winds. They are lighter than us and have given us some new ideas about tactics. They make us push the limit more. I think it is great to have them here. We see on the slalom downwind course they are a little less competitive.

MACIEK RUTKOWSKI
They have an advantage in light winds with their body size. They are great sailors and we can learn a lot from them in terms of tactics, pumping and fitness. In the foil slalom courses we regained the initiative. Everybody has something to work on and we will meet again in
the middle.

MARINA AND BLANCA ALABAU

Blanca  We both always thought the PWA run very cool and professional events. The best windsurfers in the world compete at the PWA. This year was the first year that they have introduced foil for women, so it was the perfect time for us to enter the PWA. We both started to foil two years ago. We both come from an RS:X background. My sister stopped RS:X four years ago and had stopped competing, so this was also a great chance for me to come and compete with my sister and travel together.

Marina  I did three Olympics with the RS:X and won the gold in London for Spain. By the end I was not really enjoying RS:X any more. Trying the foil and entering foil competition is an exciting opportunity for me. It is a whole new challenge with a different group of sailors. The level with the PWA girls is very high but we already expected that.

Blanca  We are pretty close to their level. In both events so far, Marina was fighting with Delphine Cousin Questel for first place while I was very close with Marion Mortefon for third. It is super exciting racing. So far they have beaten us!

Marina  I was surprised how good Delphine is with the course. For us it was more about the speed than the angle. The faster you go the less you need to think about the angle. Marion and Delphine are both very skilled sailors and great competitors. It is great to have someone better to push your level and make us train even more.

Blanca  There is still a lot of work to do. RS:X really helps because you know how the wind works especially when it is light and gusty. The tactics come into play especially for the upwind legs.

Marina  RS:X racing was very hard mentally and physically, so for me foiling is like holidays. I just go to the water to enjoy it and it is fun racing. I just focus on my technique and use my experience. In RS:X we have a different technique in every wind condition. That is a real challenge and the level of fitness is very high. The foil is less physical effort and something different and more fun. It is faster and less pumping so I really enjoy it. It makes it more exciting racing for me. I love foil racing. In 3 knots of wind we can make 15 knots of speed; this is amazing.

Blanca  Yes we are going really fast in virtually zero wind. With every wind strength we are flying. It is not like RS:X at all. We have been lucky with equipment. We are in the Starboard / Severne team. We live in Tarifa so Gonzalo Costa Hoevel has helped us a lot. He also lives there. He has helped us with our gear and he has developed all the new boards and sails. He has done a lot of the hard work and we just try the gear and choose what we like. He has been very helpful and having that support has been amazing.

Marina  We would like to be number one and two in the world!

Blanca  That is the goal! That is what our mother said when we left Tarifa. ‘I hope you get first and second!’ We still need to work on that for now!

“We would like to be number one and two in the world!”

 

GONZALO COSTA HOEVEL
I think it is great we have this new group of sailors joining us. It shows how versatile foiling is. Now we have the Olympic guys joining us and they have sailed in all winds and all the different courses. It gathers a lot of riders with racing history that can come and challenge each other. It doesn’t matter if you are 100 kg like Antoine or 70 kg like Thomas Goyard, you go in the water and anybody can win. That is pretty cool and it’s open for everybody. On RS:X if you are over 70 kilos, you are already too heavy. In slalom if you are under 90 kg then you are probably too light. Foiling has a very big weight range so it is great.

JULIEN BONTEMPS
I did the Olympics three times. All of us Olympic guys are attracted to foil racing. We hope that there will be foiling in the Olympics one day. With PWA and Olympic racers, we are all sharing the same sport and all the guys from RS:X love foiling. I think the PWA guys love foiling as well, so it’s the perfect place to meet in the middle.

“All the guys from RS:X love foiling.”

MATTEO IACHINO
It is really cool to have Dorian, Kiran and some of the Olympic guys coming to the PWA events. The windsurfing world is not so big and we should be together all the time. This is matching my idea and it’s cool and fun for us to be racing together. This is the first time in the history of the sport we have done this. It is for sure good for the sport. They are better on the light wind side I would say. We are more on the high wind side and we all kind of meet in the middle. Having windsurfing unified under one roof is our goal. For the kids coming up, I think it would be best to have one association and one class. We should all be together from Techno to RS:X to slalom and foiling. This is the first time we have come together under the PWA and I feel it is a great moment in windsurfing!

ROSS WILLIAMS
I think the PWA was getting a bit stale and set in their ways. These guys have come along and shaken it up a bit, which was needed. The PWA should be the highest echelon of professional windsurfing and to have those guys come along from the fitness side of things shows how diverse the foiling fleet can be. It enables guys that are 70 kg and guys that are 100 kg to compete against each other. It levels the playing field. In the light winds they have the advantage, but they are just more used to sailing in that. For sure they have had more practice. Guys like myself and Antoine need to go and find out what will give us the edge to fight back. A lot of territory is vastly unexplored. For me it just inspires me to go out there and spend more time getting myself dialled in so I can be more competitive.

The post PWA FOIL RACING | NEW FOIL ARMY appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

When Cloudbreak, one of the world’s heaviest waves, looks set to rock with wind and waves, you can be sure one man has his eye on sailing it – Jason Polakow. Teaming up with the Brazilian powerhouse, Marcilio Browne, the duo packed their bags for an ‘all in’ strike mission to the legendary Fijian break; this is their story.

Words  Jason Polakow, Marcilio Browne  //   Photos  Stu Johnson & Stu Gibson

Jason Polakow
Last year I missed out on one of the biggest swells ever in Fiji and I did not want to miss another swell heading that way. Looking at the WAM chart, it was easy to see that Fiji was going to get hit hard with a good size swell and plenty of wind on the peak of the swell. I was already in Australia visiting my parents, from where it’s only a 4 hour flight to Fiji. Since my trip to Indonesia 2 seasons ago I have not scored so many great waves, so I was craving that adrenaline rush you get when dropping into a bomb.

 I put out a few emails to the boys to see if anyone was keen. The next day I got a call from Marcilio Browne, a.k.a. ‘Braw’, asking if he could join me. A trip chasing good waves with ‘Braw’ was always on my to-do list, so I was more than happy to take him with me. ‘Braw’ is one of the top down-the-line wave sailors in the world, if not the best, so I was really looking forward to watching him sail down there.

 We both knew it was only going to be one epic day of good waves and wind, so we were up at 5 a.m. and in the boat heading up to Cloudbreak by 5:45 a.m. It can be surprisingly windy first light at Cloudbreak and this day did not disappoint. We arrived with 15 to 18 knots of wind side-offshore and solid 8 foot surf. As always when I see amazing waves, I totally went nuts and we both started scrambling for our gear.

One of my favourite moments that day was watching ‘Braw’ drop into his first ride at Cloudbreak. We were on the outside when the first bomb set came through and I told him to go. He gybed, taking the last wave of the set. I watched from the outside as he dropped into the wave and his mast tip disappeared from my view, then reappeared as he cut back off the lip. It was quite a cool memory watching him ride that wave at sunrise, with the sun just above the ocean line. Spray was pouring off the back of the wave with every turn he did, until he went so far down the line and disappeared from my view. I stalled my board and sail into the wind and waited for another set wave. A few minutes later I heard him screaming as he made his way back out. He was just tripping out on how glassy the wave was. He told me you could ride any kind of board out here and you would be ripping. He was so happy. I’m sure he will always remember that first set wave he scored at Cloudbreak.

It only takes one epic ride to satisfy any fanatical windsurfer and ‘Braw’ had the best move of the trip. He hit the lip super late and super deep on a set wave. I’m sure that one wave he got was worth all the time and cost involved to get him down there. The conditions were epic, but due to the swell direction being quite south, there was none of the normal vertical walls at the end of the reef where the wave usually bends inwards. A lot of rides, as epic as they looked at the top of the lineup, ended up kind of fat, making it difficult to really set the rail. Don’t get me wrong, the day was epic, but this wave does offer even more perfect conditions and that’s what I and other top wave sailors strive to find. As for myself I had so much fun catching sets and sharing the experience with ‘Braw’. I could not really hit the lip or do aerials due to a nagging knee injury and I was forced to wear a knee brace to help stabilise my knee during our session, but I still had so much fun just surfing the wave.

We both sailed for six hours straight, ‘Braw’ having to stop due to muscle cramps in his legs and forearms and myself from wearing holes in my hands from not having enough calluses. The palms of my hands were bleeding badly. ‘Braw’ said it’s the worst he has ever seen, so you can imagine how bad they were! We were both dead from a full day on the water and celebrated the day with a nice cold Fiji beer back at our hotel. An amazing trip that is now logged in my memory forever!

“An amazing trip that is now logged in my memory forever!”

MARCILLIO BROWNE
Since that Namotu PWA event video came out, Fiji has always been on my bucket list as one of the locations I wanted to windsurf the most. I was in New York hanging out with my wife and son, when I heard JP was considering heading that way. I called him up and asked him if I could come. At first I was not sure about the forecast and I texted him asking what he thought, his response was – ‘Mate once you get one good one it will all be worth it!’ After that comment I bought my ticket. It was so cool to finally go on a trip with Jason, he has been one of my heroes since I was a child and his KA1111 movie was one of the reasons why I chose this career path!

So from that moment on it was full on, I got my flight back from NY to Maui so I could grab my windsurf gear and only a few hours later I was starting the last part of the journey towards Fiji. I was pretty beat by the time I arrived. Once we arrived everything was easy! Jason had it all covered – transport, hotel, boats, photo crew, video crew and rescue! It was awesome, nothing else to worry about, just relax and get ready for the swell.

The first day we were on the boat around 5:40 a.m., so that we could be ready to do some sailing as early as possible. It was quite a long boat ride and there was no way we could check the conditions before, we just had to trust the forecast and bet on it. On the way there we were both apprehensive, as we knew we would only have that one day to score it. By the time we arrived at the break, it didn’t disappoint, it was just firing. For me it seemed kind of surreal that it was so good and there was not anyone around! It felt like we were discovering a new place or something, but it was Cloudbreak.

“Fiji has always been on my bucket list.”

It was so helpful getting some tips from Jason, he had been there a lot and I could tell he really knows the spot well. He showed me which waves turned out to be the good ones, and which ones didn’t hit the reef on the right angle. Also when to kick out, which was important as by the end of the wave it was pretty much dry on low tide. 

It was funny watching JP get excited about the waves, his shoes flew one way, his sunglasses the other, his phones were all over the place, he was like an excited child! I am really surprised nothing got lost. And then he finally jumped in the water, without his harness! 

Once we were out on the water it was sick! We were alone, the sun was coming up and we had perfect conditions. JP started ripping as usual, dropping really late into the biggest sets of the day. I love watching his sailing, super committed bottom turns, coming up to the lip with more speed than down the face with some really sick top turns. I learned a lot from watching his approach, he really knows which waves he wants and he takes his time picking them. Every time he came in on a wave it was a bomb. At some point I remember sailing out and thinking to myself how we had scored big time!. It was sunny, perfect 5.0 m weather, big clean perfect waves and we pretty much had it to ourselves for most of the day! I could not believe it. Moments like that make it all worth it, the travelling, layovers, the money, jetlag, none of it matters when the waves are that good; the trip was worth every penny! We both sailed for about six hours! I only came in when I could not physically go any more as I had muscle cramps everywhere. By that time Jason’s hands were completely open and bleeding so he was happy to call it a day too. Those blisters were gnarly! So after that we came back to the hotel and had a beer, ate a steak and relaxed. No doubt one of the best trips of my life!

“I only came in when I could not physically go any more.”

The post CLOUDBREAK | ALL IN appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

JP Australia tell us about the 2020 SuperRide…

“Super comfortable to ride, super easy to control, super for all kinds of gybes (intermediate, advanced, race), super fast. These freeride boards sits right between the Magic Ride and Super Sport.

Right in the core of the freeride range. Planing early, seriously fast and at the same time super comfortable and easy to ride. Never ever out of control. It‘s amazing how easy it is to sail fast. A “must have” for every ambitious freerider.”

For more: jp-australia.com

Via jpaustraliacom

The post JP AUSTRALIA | SUPERRIDE 2020 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.