FIVE OF THE BEST WAVE SPOTS | PLANET WINDSURFING HOLIDAYS
Planet Windsurf holidays tell us more about their five spots for mixing down-the-line with downtime..
Looking for the world’s best windsurfing wave spot for your next holiday? It can be a tough choice to make, with so many great waves around the world. To help you out, the team at Planet Windsurf Holidays have put together this list of five of the best wave windsurfing destinations. From volcanic islands to enigmatic desert landscapes, we think these waves are all pretty hard to beat. All you have to do is choose just one of them for your next windsurfing holiday.
Cape Verde Cape Verde is one of the world’s top windsurfing destinations. It’s a collection of ten Atlantic islands battered by brisk winds. These create ideal conditions for intermediate and advanced windsurfers, with both flat water and wave sailing easy to find. Peak season is from November to June, with near-perfect conditions and very few still days. Winds can be strong away from the shallow bays, so choose your spot carefully. Some spots are very challenging, with big waves and no shore protection, so you need to be able to handle the conditions, do some research before booking and you may even want to windsurf with a guide.
Le Morne Le Morne in Mauritius boasts a number of top wave spots. One the best is Manawa – really fun to ride and best in easterlies and at low tide. There’s a reef just a kilometre to the south across a large channel with very strong currents, so only go out in stable conditions. You can also check out the notorious One Eye, which lies at the western edge of the reef and is only suitable for advanced sailors.
Dakhla Dakhla is best known for its huge lagoon that is one of the best flat-water spots in the world. However, there is also a choice of wave spots within close proximity. Of these, Pointe de l’Or is the nearest, about 20 minutes away. A sandy beach with a rocky point creates a beautiful small clear water bay where you’ll find some great waves. Other top wave spots include La Sarga, a fishing village at the extreme south of the peninsula where you will also find some secluded luxury bungalows, and Arish.
Pacasmayo Pacasmayo in Peru might just be the best wave spot on the planet. It’s certainly up there. The wind is reliable, and you get set after set of waves rolling in along a stretch of beach for almost a kilometre. It’s also a great spot for beginners and intermediates to learn wave riding, as it’s not too powerful and ideal for building confidence. It might be a long journey to Peru but we think it is well worth the effort.
Cape Town With strong winds and fierce waves, Cape Town is ideal for intermediate and advanced windsurfers. Although there is a lagoon for beginners about an hour up the coast from the city, the main beaches of Cape Town all have a choice of waves. The main wave spot in Cape Town is around Big Bay. Here you’ll find rideable waves with flat blasting sections between the sets. Other top wave spots include Lagoon Beach and Sunset Beach.
Sarah Hauser has had the long lefts of Cloudbreak, Fiji on her bucket list for a while and on the eve of her 30th birthday decided to turn dreams into reality, pressing the button on a ticket to ride its fabled waves. She tells us more about her successful adventure to the South Pacific.
Words Sarah Hauser // PhotosJake Miller / Aerial Video Maui
For a couple of years I have been dreaming about windsurfing at Cloudbreak. This spring I had just started riding for S2 Maui and my teammate, Camille Juban, had decided to go ride the infamous wave in Fiji. The forecast looked too uncertain to me (not enough wind) to spend the money on a ticket so I passed on going with him.
Camille left and a couple of days later, by the end of his first day of windsurfing, he had practically broken all his equipment dealing with over-mast-high barrels and less than 10 knot winds! Art Szpunar, the owner and designer of S2 Maui, wanted to find a way to send him more masts and sails. As I learnt this news I realized that the forecast had changed for the better, so we decided it was me who would bring the gear to Camille. This was a dream come true: my sponsor agreeing to help me get to Fiji! I just had to pack my board bag and catch a plane taking off at 11:30 a.m. … which would be fine, except it was already 10 a.m. Fortunately Casey, my husband, was at home that morning. We rushed to pack my gear and Casey dropped me off at the airport. I begged people to let me get ahead of the lines, I ran to the boarding gate and prayed that my 2 board bags had been put on the plane in time before taking off.
First stop was Honolulu, then Brisbane and finally I arrived in Fiji in the morning. At the surf camp I was welcomed by a surfer girl with reef cuts on her legs, she had a toothbrush in her hand and was about to scratch her wounds to get out pieces of coral stuck under her skin. Just like in New Caledonia – where I grew up – the Fijian coral is very sharp, alive and sometimes poisonous. The humid tropical climate makes wounds easily infected. Even mosquito bites get infected! And to add to the risk, for this swell it turned out that we had a low tide in the middle of the day, meaning it would be pretty shallow over the reef!
As I prepared my equipment for the afternoon session I began to feel the fatigue from my 24 hour trip. My stomach was in full “fear mode” but I forced myself to eat a little bit. We loaded our stuff into the boat, and we headed out to sea. This brought back memories of my first wave sailing sessions in New Caledonia. There too the journey would start with a boat ride to the outer reefs. As physically demanding and time consuming as it sounds, I would always enjoy that part. You never knew what you were going to get, so it was always an adventure! That familiarity brought me peace and I started whispering to myself, “I can do this, I trained so hard for this, I am prepared for this, I am living my wildest dream right now!”
About twenty minutes later we were there: Cloudbreak! A smooth, translucent wave enveloped a surfer who lets himself get swallowed standing tall in the tube, his arms stretched over his head. The reef is dry and the wind is very, very, very light. I rig first and jump out of the boat. For a moment I take in the fact that 24 hours ago I was in Maui without any idea of what was going to happen. As I get closer to the peak a group of 20 surfers look at me as an intruder. I observe the wave, I let a few pass by to show my respect to the surfers and then I start to play. It’s definitely challenging dealing with the crowd and the super light wind, but little by little I start catching better waves. They’re so perfectly smooth and powerful and the colours of the reef through the clear water are beautiful. Some 3 hours later, the sun was almost down when I saw the biggest wave of the day on the outside so I tacked to catch it. The sun was now behind me and as the wave reached me I could see its own shadow covering me. Oops! I might have gone a little too late on this one! The water steepened under me as I air dropped and I tried to control my gear that was getting blown off because of the updraft of the wave. The idea of letting go up there seemed so scary that I held onto the gear with all my strength and finally managed to put the board down on the water but was now going down vertically! I watched the nose of my board hover on the verge of diving underwater … but it didn’t! In my head I thank Fabien Vollenweider, the Tabou shaper for my magical DaCurve. I thought I was out of the woods, but that half second spent stabilizing myself made it too late for me to pass the mast high section that was peeling in front of me. So I ejected from the footstraps and I prepared for the wipeout by covering my face with my arms in case the wave pushed me against the coral. I took 4 other waves on the head, but fortunately it was almost high tide so I was able to avoid the reef! There was a surfer next to me the whole time and we took the sets on the head together. Once out of the impact zone he paddled towards me, grabbed my hand to lift it to the sky and screamed “yeaaaaah”. I guess that’s what they call an adrenaline rush!
I slept really well at the end of all this! The next day was my birthday and was one I will not forget! In total we were treated to five days in a row of action. I could not have imagined a better gift to celebrate my 30th birthday! I am incredibly grateful for the support of my sponsors and relatives because such an adventure seemed unimaginable to me a few months ago. Thanks to my equipment, preparation and the people who believe in me, I rode waves at Cloudbreak! Next dream: Cabo Verde!
Just released is the next episode of True Lines, it’s got a catch up with Duotone Brand Manager Raoul Joa for 10 questions, see a day in the life of the Duotone Slalom Team at the TWS pro slalom stages and an exclusive peek into the secret Duotone prototype loft in Tenerife.
Sarah Hauser wasn’t the only sailor with Fiji on their bucket list. Florian Jung scratched the itch on his desire to make a trip to the South Pacific and tells us how he found perfect waves but left with a changed perspective.
Words Florian Jung // PhotosMarie Christen
Iwrite this with a ripped ligament in my knee that I picked up in a competition. These are the hardest moments in every athlete’s life, when your most important asset – your body, is not working. It takes weeks to learn how to walk and get back into shape, but I hope to come back stronger.
These down days give you the time to reflect, to appreciate and see things from a different perspective. Life is a constant flow of waves that goes up and down. With each wave we ride we have experiences – good and bad. In the end it only matters that we take challenges as a reason to evolve. These are probably the most precious lessons, or at least it’s the best way to tell myself that everything happens for a good reason.
Due to this injury I had some time to go through pictures from recent trips and came across a photo of a beautiful boat anchored next to a tropical island. For me that picture tells a personal story of why it’s so important to go out there and really go for your dreams and be the captain of your life. Looking back I am really grateful for each of these experiences.
MAKING A CHOICE A trip to the South Pacific, especially Fiji, was on my bucket list for years. I read various interviews of people that had circumnavigated the world. French Polynesia and the islands of Fiji always seemed to be the highlight of their journey – there had to be something special about it. That’s why I wanted to see it first hand.
When you look at ticket prices to get to Fiji from Europe you need to budget at least €1800 per person. Once you make it there you need a boat in order to get to the spots and discover this unique paradise. To cut a long story short, I simply didn’t have the money. I tried to find sponsors and ask the tourism office for support. But to be honest, I failed. Maybe that was due to the fact that I wanted to take my family with me as well! My son was just under two years at the time and his ticket would have been for free. The clock was ticking, as I knew that 3 flights where completely out of my budget.
I contacted a lot of people that had been there or had connections to boat owners in Fiji. Still nothing seemed to work. After sending emails back and forth I was about to give up. One day an email from a friend of Kauli Seadi popped up and told me about a family with an old boat that was looking for crewmembers. I wrote to them straight away and it seemed like the perfect match. A young family that loved to windsurf and kitesurf with a 30 metre sailing boat with lots of space for gear. They offered a really fair price and I could even take my family. The only down side was that they were leaving Fiji in a couple of weeks heading to Asia. I basically had to make a choice to leave the next day or it wouldn’t happen.
If I’ve learned one thing over the last decade, it’s that travelling is a good investment. I have never regretted any of my previous decisions, so I made my choice, even if that meant that I had to sell my car afterwards to afford it! I bought the tickets and the next day we were sitting in a plane that brought us all the way to the other side of the world, albeit with 2 x 10 hours flights in a row with a child that just wants to move all the time! Fortunately the stewardesses seemed to love him and kept him busy!
WELCOME TO PARADISE After a never-ending journey we finally arrived in Nadi, one of the biggest cities of the main island named Suva. Our captain Marco and his son Mathies picked us up and gave us a ride to the boat. We were fully jet-lagged with a time difference of 10 hours and on board I fell asleep straight away with the sound of splashing water banging against the hull of the “Silverland”.
The next morning I looked out of the window with an unbelievable view of a tiny island.
We had anchored in front ofNamotu, a private island resort with a famous reef break where once a PWA wave world cup event took place. Right away I rigged a 5.0 sail and jumped into the blue ocean to catch a few “nuggets”.A few surfers around me didn’t seem to mind. The waves were small and the wind was quite light. It was a perfect warm up session with unreal water colours under my board, though it seemed like I was floating over dry reef with coral heads coming extremely close to my fins! I had some really fun turns on fairly long forgiving waves that were running all the way to a channel. I went back to the boat after a few hours, full of pure excitement that I really had made it to paradise.
CRUISE MODE In the following days we had quite good forecasts but somehow they never came to much; it was the waiting game that we as windsurfers know only too well. I tried to avoid having any expectations and took each day as it came. We went surfing a few times a day, discovered the amazing underwater world by scuba diving and snorkelling and did hikes on some remote islands and connected with locals. In Fijian the words ‘Bula Bula’ mean hello, goodbye, buy me a drink, I’m bored, I’m hungry or I’ve run out of conversation! They are also the perfect icebreaker to get in touch with these warm hearted people. We bought fruits in little villages, baked fresh bread and lived on what the ocean or the rich island culture had to provide. We probably visited the nicest places you can imagine. Palm trees, empty white sand beaches and beautiful water colours. There was just a small detail that really distracted.
PLASTIC PROBLEM Basically everywhere we went, except places that got regularly visited by tourists and therefore cleaned up every morning, we saw piles of plastic waste on the beaches. Some of it was partly from the local communities that don’t have a working waste management system, others perhaps from ships that throw waste overboard or little plastic particles that have got swept up on ocean currents. We found out that the islands of Fiji are also one of the most threatened nations from the effects of climate change. Sea levels rising, coral bleaching, increased intensity of storm surges and coastal erosion are just some of the problems that the 322 islands of Fiji are facing. I wonder how this place is going to look when my son is my age? Will he walk on plastic pieces instead of sand?
CLOUDBREAK Finally after a week with no windsurf action a little swell arrived and I had the chance to score “Cloudbreak” for the first time. Some people call it the “ultimate wave” – fast, hollow and runs up to 500 metres on a good day. Just avoid the razor sharp dry reef on the inside! The spot, or let’s say the reef, is so far away from any other islands that it is a bit tricky to navigate your way in the lineup without any landmarks. I was the only windsurfer out and I tried to respect the handful of surfers that were catching the inside peak. I started to take the big set waves that were already breaking far out. It was an incredible feeling to ride these perfect blue walls and hit the thick lip that launches you up into the sky like a rocket – pure perfection! After a few hours on the water the wind turned onshore and the place changed within minutes to a chaotic mess, but I had finally got what I came for.
FINAL ANALYSIS With just two windsurf sessions, it was more a family adventure than a pure windsurf trip. The weather conditions are hard to predict and that’s the beauty of our sport. We always have to adapt to the natural elements, not the other way around. Besides perfect waves to surf and a place of pure beauty, Fiji also shows the fragility of our ecosystem.
I was grateful to be able to see it with my own eyes and together with my family. These are moments that last for a lifetime, but also make me rethink my own lifestyle. I do my best to be carbon neutral at the end of each year by planting trees for every trip and to live plastic free as best as I can. I have to admit, plastic free is not easy, but manageable if you are well prepared in your daily routine. I really hope that we will be able to end plastic pollution in the long run and better balance our economies with the need to protect our planet.
“Fiji also shows the fragility of our ecosystem.”
FACT BOX Flights from Europe mostly have with stopovers in Seoul, Brisbane or Los Angeles.
Best season is from May to October. Best swell – S-SW direction and 3-20 feet in size.
Best wind – SE trade winds.
To find out more about the Silverland yacht and her schedule – see www.sailing-silverland.nl/en Check out an innovative conservation initiative to protect sharks in Fiji: www.MyFijiShark.com
The Tiree Wave Classic’s 34th year started calm but ended with a bang! Event photographer Richard Whitson gives us the scoop on a highlight of the UK wave competition scene.
Words& PhotosRichard Whitson
Great winds and windsurfing sessions in the preceding two weeks of the 2019 Tiree Wave Classic meant that expectations for the event were as high as ever for the 75 pre-registered competitors spread over five fleets: Pro Men, Pro Ladies, Amateurs, Masters and “Future Pros” / Youths.As in the previous 4 years, Wild Diamond, headed by William Maclean, were the event organisers with Visit Scotland, Argyll Estates, Caledonian MacBrayne, The Scottish Salmon Company – Native Hebridean, Tiree Community Development Trust, The Mailing Room, Windswept Breweries and S2Maui being the key event sponsors.
A quiet start to the week with light winds actually worked in favour of the “Future Pros” camp where immediately after registration at the Tiree Lodge Hotel, this year’s event HQ, Sam Ross of the RYA and his team of Torin Prescott, Sami Poole and Calum Nicol were able to get the youths out on Gott Bay for an initial assessment and then split into three training groups. Sam and his team were great motivators and kept the youths enthused over four mornings of sailing under progressively more challenging conditions. The “morning” format was a change to previous years and was well received since it allowed the youths to spectate at the main fleet events or go free-sailing afterwards. Three youths in particular shone through: Ross Mauritzen in 1st, Rory Dunlop 2nd and Euan Lindsay 3rd, with Ross being offered a sponsorship deal with S2Maui Sails; Ross is definitely a name to watch out for in the future.
Catriona Spink, local “Community Leader” for Surfers Against Sewage and Parley for the Oceans “Cold Water Island Project”, made the best use of a quiet Monday to muster the support of the combined fleets for a clean up of Hough beach. More than 40 of the fleet helped out to amass 6 tons of fishing and plastic debris, a superb effort.
On Tuesday, forecasts were variable with the only solid wind with swell day set for Thursday but event organiser Willy Maclean made the prudent choice to make the most of Tuesday’s wind and press ahead with a single elimination round at Crossapol beach for the Ams, Masters and Pro Ladies. Being at latitude 57˚ North, Tiree sees less than 11 hours of daylight at this time of year, so to have a double elimination in four fleets means two competition days are required. So it was better to have a single elimination in the bag rather than wait on conditions that might never transpire …. a very wise decision as it turned out!
The Ams, Masters and Pro Ladies fleets all managed to complete their single elimination under challenging conditions with only a 1.5m swell and almost bolt onshore winds, with only a small port tack cross-shore component – meaning some reasonable ramps for jumping, but poor wave riding.Tom Taylor, Jim Brooks-Dowsett, and Sara Kellet came out on top in their respective fleets in the tricky conditions. Sara was pulling off some tidy forwards and with Sarah Hilder, last year’s TWC Ladies champion, not competing due to injury, the stage seemed set for Sara adding Tiree to her 2018 UK Ladies Wave title. The Pro Men opted for an “Expression Session” rather than a single elimination round, with all pulling off impressive jumps, loops and crashes in equal measure. Ben Proffitt took 1st with a high and controlled fully tweaked push loop.
BIG THURSDAY After a light wind rest day, the Thursday forecast held for 20+ knot port tack, cross-shore winds and a 3m swell, meaning it was an all-day battle at the Maze. Due to the daylight shortage a trailer was loaded the evening before with around 60 of the Pro Men’s pre-rigged sail choices and transported round to the Maze at night so they could start soon after first light.
The 16 strong Pro-Men’s fleet neatly fell into a four man 10 minute heat format with 2 minute transitions. By mid morning the single elimination had been completed with Phil Horrocks in 1st, Finn Mellon .s. I had to give up shooting since I could hardly see ..… so we all had to wait until the evening prize giving to find out who had won the Ams crown and the Pro Ladies title. In the end it was Miguel Ogando who won the day in the Ams with Tom Taylor 2nd, Nick Welsh 3rd and Pavel Hort in 4th. This was Miguel’s and Tom’s first Tiree event, so both were delighted with their podium positions. Despite sailing well and catching some impressive off-the-lip air, young Ruaraidh Somerville, in only his second year in the Ams fleet after progressing up through the Future Pros, couldn’t match the skill, strength and experience of local waterman Gavin Dunlop who finished 5th.
Keeping the packed audience in suspense, Wild Diamond kept the Pro Ladies result to the last.Although Sara’s main counting wave was high scoring and radical, she could not find a second high quality wave before the heat ended and so Liath’s combined score won out and she seized the Ladies TWC 2019 crown. With a keen eye for picking the waves, she is definitely another name to watch out for in the future. As Liath sportingly said “… if the conditions had favoured jumps, she might not have been on the podium”, so that was some consolation to Sara. Debbie Kennedy finished 3rd and Jenna Pettit 4th.
Last, but by no means least, a special mention needs to go to Tris Levie who, as well as sailing well in the Pro fleet, ably provided safety cover and showed true ‘aquaman’ skills with an uncanny ability to swim out to and wiggle his way, seal like, onto surf pounded rocks to keep a watchful eye on those who looked in peril in the shorebreak …. hats off to you Tris!
So, there we have it for another year …. smooth organisation and hosting by the Wild Diamond team, a fabulous photogenic setting, bubbling talent in the Future Pros, world-class athletes in both the Pro Men and Pro Ladies fleets, double eliminations in all four main fleets, dawn to dusk competition, sun & squalls & rainbows, and ‘super final’ battles providing drama and upset ….. all in all, another classic Tiree Wave Classic!
Duotone have dropped their latest video – and it’s a cracker – sit back and enjoy windsurfing entertainment at its finest!
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In the tenth episode of #WINDSURFLIFE Maciek Rutkowski gives us a warts and all look at the thick of a PWA World Cup podium fight, where he has a chance to become the first ever Polish racer to get into the top 3.
Maciek – “The back end of last year was amazing for me. After a few years of competing full time on the PWA tour I’ve come really close many times to get some great results.
But, there was always a “but”. A little detail here a big meltdown there, a piece of trash in Korea, whatever it was there was always something in the way, even if at times I felt like I had the skill to compete with the best. That didn’t change but I managed to work out the “buts” and finally get some strong results in the bag in 2019. The cherry on top of that cake? PWA Denmark. But as you will see in my new video, it was still a hell of a rollercoaster with a ton of stress and big emotions. But i guess that’s what I live for, that thrill of competing and no matter the result it always feels good to battle the best in the world. Hope you enjoy the video and hope everybody stays safe in this uncertain time!”
Graham Ezzy gives you tips to properly store your windsurfing sail.
1) Keep the battens parallel while rolling.
2) Tighten the sail once rolled.
3) A tight roll protects the sail from creasing damage.
4) Store sails horizontally or with the luff down.
The British Wavesailing Association 2019 titles came down to the final event in Cornwall and it didn’t disappoint! Mark Dowson rounds up the action and John Carter speaks to men’s pro champion Phil Horrocks.
Words Mark Dowson, John Carter//PhotosAndy Corner, Mike Spencer
Day 1 of the 2019 Cornwall Wave Classic saw the Pros on standby and despite the conditions to compete never materializing, the excitement and anticipation of Saturday’s forecast was rising. Lucas Meldrum recalls, “I was actually very nervous during Friday as the forecast was meant to be huge and I’m not so great in big waves. After speaking with the judges, I came up with a game plan which I could adapt to different conditions, so I didn’t have to worry about it on the day. I was super determined after spending time in the Canaries, but more down to the fact that I didn’t do well in Tiree and I wanted to prove myself. I’ve done a fair amount of competing this year, with not much success. I think I’ve learnt a lot about the mental side of things, I kind of worked out the best way to mentally prepare for heats. Ideally, you want to be in a state of mind where you’rejust focussed on sailing and ‘being in the zone’!”
DAY 2 Day 2 of the 2019 Cornwall Wave Classic saw the first action of the event and the Pros did not disappoint, putting on a show in the challenging, stormy conditions at Marazion. Phil Horrocks was one of the first to hit the water to warm up; Jamie Howard, James Cox and Andy King were pulling huge, floaty airs and crazy, stalled forwards and back loops in the hefty squalls. The local weather station from the Culdrose airbase showed the wind gusting over 60 mph for most of the morning!
Jamie Hancock made an impressive return to the BWA taking first place in the single elimination, whilst Phil Horrocks battled into a well-deserved 2nd. James Cox showed his mastery of starboard tack jumping and riding to clinch 3rd, whilst Lucas Meldrum got ‘in the zone’ and put in a career best of 4th place. On the other side of the draw Timo Mullen was only stopped by Jamie Hancock and Phil Horrocks. In the women’s fleet, Sara Kellet beat Debbie Kennedy and Claire Elliott made third. Tom Taylor took the single elimination win in the amateurs and I was delighted to do the same in the masters fleet in moderating conditions. Special mention to Finn Hawkins who came fourth in the amateur single elimination, as he is actually a youth! As only 2 youths entered, there was not enough competitors to run a junior fleet, so both Finn and Will Roland competed in the amateurs.
DAY 3 Day 3 saw the competition move to a chunky port tack ‘Bluff’, Steve Thorp charged his way back through the double, taking down Andy Chambers, Andy King and Timo Mullen!
It was clear to everyone that Lucas Meldrum had clearly raised his game since last year and he was able to halt Thorpy’s impressive comeback through the ladder to secure third place on the podium. Phil Horrocks battled it out with Jamie Hancock in the final and claimed the top spot to simultaneously become both the Cornish Wave Classic and British pro mens champion. In the ladies Jenna Pettit beat Debbie Kennedy to take 2nd place whilst Sara Kellet again claimed the ladies top spot.
As it transpired there was not enough time to run a double for the amateurs or masters. This meant the single elimination results stood and Tom Taylor would be the amateur 2019 Cornish Wave Classic champion and I would take the Cornish Wave Classic masters title.
Those in the masters fleet who were keen to extend their sailing time opted to compete in an ‘Expression Session’. Tim Lawes came out on top with impressive high forwards, I squeezed into 2nd and Steve Laddiman was 3rd. Justin Goodwin also deserves a mention as he broke his mast in a meaty Bluff closeout, but still came up smiling in the true spirit of the master’s fleet!
Ian Ross of RB Sails and the Cornwall Wave Classic event host was relieved that everything came together, “I’m stoked with how the Cornwall Wave Classic has worked the last few years. Having a rollover has proven to work and with a strong BWA team and exceptional competitors it has been a great weekend. It was probably the windiest I have seen it on Saturday morning and everyone got stuck in! I’m excited for next year!”
PHIL HORROCKS JC asked freshly crowned British champion Phil Horrocks for his thoughts on the event and how his year has been – “Cornwall was a great event. The Saturday was unbelievably windy. I was on a 3.7 Black Tip hanging on, totally overpowered on my 85 litre Flywave. That is a nice board for when it is wild conditions, it is narrow with a lot of grip. In the morning it was crazy out there, a proper storm. Your smallest gear was all you needed.
When it dropped off a little I switched to my 84 litre Cortex, the more all-round board. I was still on the 3.7 and that felt magic. All the boys were shredding – Timo, Jamie and Coxy. When the competition started the tide backed off and the waves were better. The wind at first was so strong you could barely ride a wave. I kind of followed Timo and Jamie’s lead by sailing more upwind where the waves were cleaner. My mission was just to fill the scorecard, which was two waves and two jumps. You had to try and get your scores in as early as possible. I was kind of learning push loop tabletops as I was doing the heats, as well as trying tabletop forwards, which are usually high scorers. The standard of Jamie, Timo, Coxy, Bubble, Hibdige and Howard is pretty decent on starboard so I was made up to be amongst them. The Sunday was a bit more enjoyable as the wind moderated but the waves got bigger and had some heaving sections, which made it more fun. I managed a mini fight back in the double and took it to a ‘super final’, and then scored some good waves to take the win.
TRAINING I went with my family for four weeks to South Africa in January to kick off my year. With the family I am having to cut down the amount of sailing and length of trip to accommodate family time. It is not a boys windsurfing trip anymore. I have three kids 6, 4 and 18 months! Taking them to the beach every day gets quite tricky. I am a bit more limited in my sailing and just doing an hour or two here and there. At the moment I am self-employed and do building work at home and I fit that in around the times that it is not windy. I have a portfolio of property that I rent out so I am also a landlord with that. That gives me flexibility. There are certain times of the year I can’t leave, but the rest of the year I can do what I want as long as everything is in good order before I go. I am fairly flexible and can work around the weather forecast, so that works out for me!
In July I went to Galicia which was mostly camping. I took my windsurf gear and had the odd decent session in side-off. I did a lot of surfing, which has helped me stay fit. We have had a windy autumn so there has also been loads of sailing at home. We have the occasional starboard tack day up in Wales and I do make a point of getting in the odd day of starboard practice when I can. It is needed and I like learning something new.
In October Tiree delivered and now the BWA season has finished I am off to Chile for a month on a boys windsurfing trip. I will be in debt for brownie points with my wife after that!
HIGHLIGHTS My standout moment of the season was the day at the Maze in Tiree. In the single elimination it was head to logo high, 5.0 sails, side-offshore and sunny. Probably some of the best waves I have ever seen on Tiree, I wish we could have more days like that. I think that was my third or fourth Tiree Wave Classic sword, I think I am also four times British champion too. That brings me level with Ben Proffitt I think, but I still have a way to go to catch up with John Skye. There is a little bit of motivation to keep me going there!.
2019 BWA Championship Results
Pros
1 Phil Horrocks 2 James Cox 3 Timo Mullen 3 Andy Chambers
Italian all-round ripper Francesco Cappuzzo shows off his many skills in this banging video from his winter training in South Africa together with Amado Vrieswijk.
2019’s Weymouth Speed Week was hailed by organisers as one of the windiest ever! Pete Davis tells us how it all went down!
WordsPete Davis //PhotosAndy Stallman & Pete Davis.
Weymouth Speed Week is the longest running speed event on the planet. Started in 1972 by Sir Timothy Colman (yes he of Colman’s Mustard) it soon got a reputation for fast speeds, innovation and pushing the boundaries of what could be achieved with sail power. That heritage lives on, it may not be as big as its Johnny Walker sponsorship heyday and in speed terms has been overtaken by purpose-built speed strips in France and Namibia. But it still draws the best speedsailors from all over Europe and beyond. Guaranteeing wind is hard in the UK. So the event is always held in October to try and tap into the high winds generated by low-pressure systems that come through that time of year. The forecast for the 2019 opening day looked light but the rest of the week looked good. The big question however was would the event harbour record of 38.44 knots, set by Anders Bringdal in 2008 go? The first prize giving was for the youth fleet,who only race on the weekend, and was sponsored by Boardwise. The battle for the top spot from last year between Tyler Baker and James Faley started all over again. This year the skill level of all the riders went up through the roof. The result could not have been closer with Tyler taking the top spot at 30.85 knots and James only 0.3 of a knot behind. From Sunday the lead for fastest speed of the week changed hands every day and it was fantastic to see the new generation of windsurfers showing how good they have become. Ahead of a very experienced fleet was young 19 year old Scotty Stallman with a very impressive 34.43 knots set on very choppy water on a course in the harbour due to the southerly wind direction. Then on Monday 22-year-old James Battye took it up to just under 35 knots in knee high chop. Wednesday onwards the wind changed direction to southwest, which allowed for a flat beach course to be set along the causeway.
With the flat water the more experienced speed sailor Jim Crossley pushed the speed up again to 35.67 knots. Beaten only by James Longmuir on his speed kite with an incredible 37.18 knot run. With only a few days to go and an excellent forecast the long-standing harbour record looked in danger. But was it going to be a windsurfer or a kite? We didn’t have to wait long to find out. On Thursday morning kiter and previous UK speed record holder David Williams broke Anders overall record with an amazing run of 39.14 knots. The Swede’s speed had finally been beaten. With one day to go the windsurfing fleet were still confident and felt they could get it back, but time was running out. Who could pull it out of the bag?
Friday morning came and so did the perfect storm. The wind was southwest and very strong, which allowed all the competitors to blast along the beach towards Weymouth in super flat water. Expectations were high that 40 knots, which has never been achieved in speed week competition before, could be achieved. It was a brilliant day of competition, the best the organisers could remember, with wind gusts of over 42 knots and every rider giving it their all. Spills and crashes galore and one windsurfer trying to get the perfect angle hit the start line so close he pulled out the flag from the buoy and sailed with it for the first 100 yards wrapped over his head! After a very hard week and 8 hours on the water in super strong winds on the last day, the event was over and all that was left was the prize giving.
Usually the fastest speed of the week is known at prize giving as it is set earlier in the week. Not this year however, nobody knew who had done what as it all came down to the last day. The atmosphere was electric. Unfortunately for the windsurfers, it was the kite surfers who came out on top overall. The end result was so close they were only separated by 0.1 of a knot. Fastest was James Longmuir with 41.21 knots and sooo close behind in second was David Williams with 41.12 knots. The windsurfers tried everything and left it all out on the water. The burning question was who came out ahead? Would it be one of the young guns like Scotty or James or the old guard like Jim Crossley, or previous winners like Belgian speed record holder Patrick Van Hoof? They say, “Speed sailors don’t get older, they just go faster”. This year’s fastest windsurfer proves that saying. Local speed legend Pete Young was not featuring at all during the week due to fitting windsurfing in around his job as a local builder and was a complete dark horse. He used his years of experience though in sailing in the harbour to great effect and achieved an amazing 38.01 knots just off the long-standing record of Anders Bringdal.
The other harbour record to tumble was that of speed queen Zara Davis, winner of Weymouth speed week 14 times, who unfortunately was not competing this year due to injury. The mantel was picked up by 22-year-old PWA sailor Jenna Gibson to achieve 34.15 knots, beating Zara’s long-standing record of 32.89 knots. Other winners were Olly Wood 33.03 knots in the first timers, Neven Juretic 33.39 knots in the amateurs and Garry Connell 35.89 knots in the gold fleet.
Under the umbrella of speed week the Hey Dude Shoes UKWA Speed Championships are also decided. The results are based on the two fastest runs from rounds where a percentage of riders exceed 28 knots. Some years they only have one or two counting rounds, not this year! There was 12 four-hour rounds, 3 discards and 6 days of hard competition to decide the most consistent speed riders over the whole event. It was a daily war of attrition, as the results were so close and every run could make a difference. In the end the top four were only separated by less than 8 points and 2nd, 3rd and 4th separated by less than 2 points! The qualifying rounds started on the Sunday. The early leader was Simon Pettifer and he held it for two days, but going into day three the youngsters were after him. Scotty Stallman was only 0.1 of a point behind him and 22 year old Yorkshireman James Battye was 2 points behind Scotty.
By Wednesday, Scotty had taken the lead and James was hunting down Simon. Strong winds from the southwest gave Scott with his local experience an advantage and allowed him to dominate the event with multiple first places to take the overall win and James’s fitness and winter slalom racing experience allowed him to overtake a battle weary Simon and pushed him into 3rd place. Jenna Gibson led the women’s fleet ahead of Katherine Skinner. What an amazing week. Next event is October 2020, so get your name down! Thanks to the sponsors Hey Dude Shoes , Simmer Style, O’Shea, Boardwise, Flymount, Sonntag-Fins, F-Hot Fins, Natural Design, Old Guys Rule, Reitveld, ION, Fanatic, Duotone, The OTC and of course the organisations that assist us – the UKWA, AYRS and the staff at the National sailing Academy.
Watch Maciek Rutkowski ripping El Medano with a sweet bonus surf slalom section at the end.
# WindsurfLife Episode11 – “This week we are in Tenerife, where before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, Maciek was training for the racing season. Can’t go racing every single day though, so on an off-day he heaads out to Cabezo to see if he remembers how to ride waves. Plus a little bonus section at the end 😄”
The German leg of the 2019 PWA wave world tour once again showed Sylt’s reputation as a formidable contest arena. It is a maker or breaker of dreams; a cruel sea. JC gets the thoughts of some of the top pros on the challenges of the North Sea.
WordsThomas Traversa, Graham Ezzy, Antoine Martin, Marcilio Browne, Robby Swift, Alex Mussolini, Jaeger Stone, Ricardo Campello, Justyna Sniady, Iballa Moreno. //PhotosJohn Carter
THOMAS TRAVERSA I am 1.78 m and 62 kg. The board I used is my 70 litre, 220 x 55 cm. We originally designed that board for Maui, but it works everywhere for me, it’s one of those magic boards! That is the board I was using in Tenerife for the PWA and also the Aloha Classic. It is pretty wide in the centre, but the tail is very narrow, so there’s a lot of curve on the outline. It is floating a lot because of the 55 cm in the middle, but once you get on the rail it feels like a tiny board. Rocker is the same as I use on all my boards, 20 mm, that’s more than on a production board (around 15 mm on the small Da Curve from Tabou), but that’s not too extreme. For example I used to have 24 mm on my boards when I won the PWA title, but the last three years we added channels so I can have a quicker rocker line.
For the sail on Sylt I like to have a good downhaul tension to deal with the gusty wind and to keep a light feeling. Then when it gets really light I just use less outhaul tension, that helps lift the board out of the water and make the sail more reactive. Boom maybe a touch higher to lift the board up. I have no special tactics, just going for it and try to use the wave more than the wind. I just try to focus on the waves because they are very powerful and hard to read so I always try to attack them as hard as I can.
“Sylt is a big dune pretending to be an island.”
GRAHAM EZZY Sylt is a big dune pretending to be an island; every storm threatens to wash it all away. As windsurfers, we see the island as any other beach town with mediocre surf. But for Germans, Sylt is ritz and glitz. We, the world cuppers, hole up in the city of Westerland and never go the 10 minutes north to the towns like Kampen, home to the second homes of Germany’s economic elites. On Sylt, life is transient. You struggle to find much in the way of roots. Sylt is a place for summer homes and dune grass, champagne and summer birds.
In pro windsurfing, there are two kinds of windsurfers – those who like Sylt and those who hate it. Morgan Noireaux hates Sylt so much, he didn’t even show up this year. I like Sylt, and I dream about doing well there. Sylt is a true test of the fundamentals; you don’t win in Sylt because you can do the best tricks. You win heats in Sylt when you manage to not get destroyed by the shorebreak or when you actually manage to catch a wave and time your bottom turn correctly. Too early, and you go off the back of the wave, defeated. Too late, and the lip, throwing itself with the power of thousand punches, smacks you down. Sylt makes novices of us all. The best thing about being a beginner again is that there is so much to learn.
I showed up late to Sylt, only arriving on the morning of the registration because a board had flown off the roof racks of my car while going 100 miles per hour on the autobahn while driving up from Hamburg. No one was injured except the board, thankfully, but it meant I missed the last car-train to Sylt.
In the old days, all the top pros had caddies to help them rig and to change equipment mid-competition or even to sail a spare rig out in the case of a broken mast. But now, only Philip Koester has a caddy, Jorge is his name, and the rest of us rely on a buddy system. “Is your heat coming up? No? Can you caddy me? I’m up next!” And whoever is able stands watch on the beach, ready to assist.
Before my own heat, I was frazzled. I had gotten married the weekend before, and I nervously fiddled with my wedding ring. I also suddenly noticed which men wore wedding rings and which men did not. My wife, my mother, my brother, and a girl my brother met at the wedding had all decided to come up to Sylt and were staying with me in a small 2-bedroom apartment. My brother and the girl slept on the couch. I ate breakfast quietly that morning so as not to wake them. As my heat approached, I ran my rigs upwind on the beach. I was in need of a caddy. Marcilio Browne stood in the sand, braving the chilling winds, staring at the horizon. My wife suggested that she could ask him to caddy for my next heat. But I could feel his nerves working on overdrive, the radiation spilling out. I saw Ross Williams to my left, and he took the caddy job without hesitation.
Browne went on to fight his way through the double elimination, ending up 2nd. The North Sea beat me on my own journey through the event, and I ended up 13th.
Losing is a hell of a hangover. All the spent endorphins and expired hope swirl together, and you wake up the next day lacking the brain chemicals that make you happy and motivated to function as a normal adult. The irony is that out of the whole 32 people in the Sylt World Cup, only one is the winner, and the rest of us lose. And winning does not feel nearly as good as losing feels bad. After the event, Jaeger Stone, Adam Lewis, and I had a moment together sharing our souls. Stone said, “Losing does not mean you’re a bad windsurfer,” and he paused, a thought came into his eyes, and he added, “or even a bad person.”
“Sylt is a big dune pretending to be an island.”
ANTOINE MARTIN Iam 1.76 m and 74 kg. I was happy to make 5th place in Sylt as they are conditions I am not used to at all. We had a great day there which was side-shore with some glassy waves and nice peaks. Suddenly I felt at home and could do tweaked airs and was feeling confident. As soon as it went onshore you could see the difference on my face. I have to work hard on those conditions to be one of the top guys. It is a challenging event and it feels better to do there when it was so tough. I did not realize at the time if I had beaten Koester in Sylt I could have been world champion. I was on my Combat 5.0 and Ultimate Wave 88 litre which is the biggest gear that I use during the year. I did not use 5.0 all year before the final in Sylt. I wanted to make sure I could get out. Sylt is Sylt and you must be lucky and have big gear. Everyone told me Brawzinho was heavier than me and made it out but he was on a really, really massive board which was over 100 litres and a 5.7 I think. I wasn’t ready for this. I wasn’t supposed to do the PWA this year so I had not prepared my gear for Sylt I just had a more normal quiver. If I had known maybe I would have had something bigger; 5.0 is already big for me. I am kind of light at 74 kg, so if I go over 5.0 then the conditions are very crap or very light wind. I was disappointed we ran in those conditions, but that is part of the game!
“If I had beaten Koester in Sylt I could have been world champion.”
MARCILIO BROWNE Iam 1.88 m and weigh 85 kg. I had two sets of production boards on the beach plus a 100 litre prototype. My production boards were 84, 89, and 94 litres. I feel like it was key having those extra set of identical boards as well as a caddy, none other than Francisco Goya himself. In pretty much all my heats, I ended up at some point stuck down the beach with the current and having another set of the correct size up the beach saved me a lot of time and energy. I could just run up and keep sailing while my caddy would recover the gear that was stuck downwind. On my 84 I rode MFC KS 14 and 9, on my 89 I rode MFC QS 250 centre with KS 9 sides and on the 94 I rode MFC QS 300 centre with KS 9 sides.
Before the event I was training a lot, to improve my fitness back on Maui. I have been working with Sarah Hauser for nearly a year and during this event in Sylt I really saw the benefits. I got a really bad flu right before the event in Sylt, it was hard to even get out of bed. After the competition started I didn’t have much expectations as I felt so crap. I also thought I would be cramping really soon. But things kept working out for me and I kept passing through my heats. I was really surprised that the first cramp I had was against Thomas in our second heat after the first one had been cancelled. During all my previous heats I was going out 8 minutes before to make sure I would make it through the shorebreak and also doing one or two sprints up the beach before each heat.So that day I think all the physical training really saved me and paid off, so big thanks to Sarah and also to Francisco and Matheus Isaac for all their help at the beach. My production boards are very similar to my customs, same bottoms, similar outlines, they are just a little shorter and a little straighter, which helps for small wave European conditions. I had been riding them all year so I really know them well. They fit really nice in Sylt as they are so fast and controlled, so it was easy to make it out past the shorebreak and to keep control on the chop to jump out the back. My sails are just the Banzais, and I rigged them with a bit less downhaul than I would at Ho’okipa, but all the rest of the settings were pretty much the same.
“I had two sets of production boards on the beach.”
ROBBY SWIFT Iam 1.75 m and 79 kg. I took a bit of everything to Sylt. I had the 83, 88 and 94 Ultimate Waves, which are pretty much my 3 go-to boards everywhere. They are 56.5, 58 and 59.5 wide respectively, all 227 cm long. And then for my new quiver this year, I have some prototypes of some amazing new boards which we are developing for next year. They are slightly shorter and wider, still 83, 88 and 94, but they are all 2 cm wider and about 5 cm shorter and have wider tails and noses and straighter rockers which makes them feel really amazing to get planing and to turn in the more onshore conditions. They keep the speed way more in the bottom turns where you have to go switch stance and clew first and they just pop up onto the plane in no time.
For the sails, I tend to use roughly one size bigger than normal when it’s onshore because it’s hard to get out and I put a tiny bit less downhaul on the sail and the boom up about 5 cm or so, to give more lift to get up and onto the plane as quickly as possible.
I spend quite a bit of time on Maui beforehand practicing with this setup because it feels quite different to land jumps and takes a bit of getting used to. The higher boom is the hardest thing for me to get used to, but it is worth it for the extra planing ability. To get out I just tried using bigger gear really and trying to go as far upwind as possible between the rock groynes before starting to head out. It’s amazing how quickly the current takes you up or down the beach and makes it feel like there is no wind.
A caddy would have been great. I didn’t have one this year and it meant it was hard to change gear in the middle of the heat. I definitely try to be as fit as possible before I get to Sylt. The energy it takes out of you to just do one heat is huge. You are pumping and fighting with the sail so much and using so much energy just to get out, and then you can’t really go too far out as there are no waves to jump or ride as soon as you get past the shorebreak, so you have to stay inside where the waves are breaking the whole time. It is definitely a very tough environment to windsurf and one that not many are totally prepared for.
“Boom up about 5 cm or so, to give more lift.”
ALEX MUSSOLINI Iam 1.79 m and I weigh around 70-72 kg. I am light but not Traversa light. I used a 82 litre board which is a side-onshore model John Skye has been working on for the last year. It is quite floaty and keeps planing really fast. I used a bigger thruster fin setup, 16 cm in the middle and 10 cm on the side, to help me go upwind. You can’t learn how to go through a shorebreak. You just have to come to Sylt and take it. After so many years of experience we kind of know where to spot the little gaps to break out. If you are lucky enough to be planing then you might get out. Top guys like Philip Koester and Antoine Martin were having big troubles. It can happen to anybody. Big sail and big board and that is it. Just get planing as soon as possible. You have to go downwind, but if you keep heading downwind you will end up in Hamburg! It was very tiring. I was out of breath many times. It was not just physical, time is ticking away, you are against the clock. There was a lot of fitness involved. We all saw Brawzinho, he is an athlete. Big respect for him. He is not only an amazing windsurfer, for me the best, but he is also fit and prepared. He is a true windsurfer. After nine heats he was finally destroyed, so Thomas managed to take the victory. Thomas is a beast also. It was all incredible to watch. It was all about experience. You had to make sure your jumps were in the bag before taking the waves. The older more experienced guys prevailed.
“The older more experienced guys prevailed.”
JAEGER STONE Iam 1.77 m and 73 kg. The equipment for Sylt is make or break. Selection is one of the most important things when sailing in Germany. Some guys are more prepared than others and know what to expect when you get one of those gnarly bolt onshore days. Also having your backup gear readily available is critical so you can swap quickly if you get washed. You have to take into account the current, the sweep along the beach, the shorebreak and the wind angle. It is tough, but all part of the game. The guys that are switched on like Brawzinho come out on top. He is very prepared for every scenario. I took my big board but not my biggest board. I felt that let me down slightly. I was on my 76 litre UltraKode and my 4.4 S1. I needed to be
on my biggest onshore board my 80 litre. That is the biggest I would use anywhere. I was powered up on 4.4 and didn’t think I would need it but I could hardly get off the beach. I learned the hard way. I don’t think many average sailors would even be able to get out in those conditions. It is easy to watch at home but incredibly tough. Even Koester could not make it out. It is so physical. It does not matter who you are or how good you are. It is the most physical competition on tour and fitness comes into it. I sailed way down the beach past where I get a crepe in the morning and there was still no gap. I thought about turning around but could not see a way out unless I kept going. I wasted a lot of time but the other option was to run back. Tactics come into play. If you catch a wave at the start of the heat you may not make it out again. You have to weigh up the risks versus the rewards. It is very tough. I just try to learn from my mistakes!
“The equipment for Sylt is make or break.”
RICARDO CAMPELLO Iam 1.78 m and 79 kg. In Sylt anything can happen. Every heat I had there was a big rain squall right before which totally killed the wind. I did not know whether to take small equipment or my big gear. During the rain squalls it was getting pretty windy and afterwards there could easily be next to nothing. You always have to go bigger than normal. In all the heats on the first day I was on a 94 litre board, which was ok with a 5.3. I just had no power to do anything. It was not a matter of the gear. How big can you go for a wave event? On the bolt onshore day it was windier so I took 4.7 and 5.0. I think my fins were 13 in the back and 9 in the front with a quad setup. The wind was so onshore and the inside is just whitewater foam. The wind hits the tent and bounces back to create a total no wind zone. Every time a sailor goes downwind, their wind is blocked. If you are lucky you make it out. Sometimes you have to go to the beach and walk or run back up. If you don’t clock up a high scoring wave and mess it up you can be done as you might not make it out. I did not feel it was fair, it was a matter of luck. Brawzinho had a great comeback to make it into second. I lost to Brawzino and just could not find the ramp to nail a double. He had a better advantage to me on the jumps, but I had better waves. It is what it is and there is nothing I can do.I was bummed I dropped some places on the overall rankings.
“In Sylt anything can happen.”
JUSTYNA SNIADY Iam 1.70 m and 62 kg. I took the gear I could uphaul on. The 78 litre Simmer Cortex and my 4.7. That was the biggest gear I own. I was running up and down frantically trying to get out and swapping to my 78 litre Flywave and 4.5 which was my backup gear so I didn’t have to run up the beach with the gear every time. Sylt is always tough, but with a bit more wind it is doable to make it out through the shorebreak. In my heat the wind died to nothing on the inside and I had to physically hold the sail up when trying to beach start. I had a gust at one point but it wasn’t enough to get over the dumpy shorebreak; you had to be lucky and get a gust together with a break in the oncoming waves. I wasn’t lucky this time and ended up getting washed very far down which drained my energy. I tried to make it out 15 minutes before my heat, but every attempt went wrong and I was running up and down the beach getting really anxious. What you try to do is get planing before you start hitting the waves but the problem is that the waves can double up and the wind drop to nothing and there is no chance to get through sometimes. The tent plays with the wind also, making it extra light just in front of it. I felt helpless, it was terrible not to even make it out during my double elimination heat and lose a tour leader position this way, but that’s competition.
“I took the gear I could uphaul on.”
IBALLA MORENO I am 1.73 m tall and 61 kg. Sylt was straight onshore with a tonne of current and pretty much the hardest competition I have ever done in my life during 22 years of competing. I did so much swimming and running trying to get out, my body was totally aching the next morning. I felt like I had done a triathlon. I had a 4.7 and an 80 litre board, on the inside it was impossible to get out while on the outside I was totally overpowered. Not only because of the wind but also the current. It was not just the girls, even the men could not punch out. With two jumps counting it was almost impossible. It was a lottery and you can’t train enough for this. I tried my best but it didn’t work. Mentally it was very tough. I was getting washed so hard I was dizzy and I could not really run. I was trying not to get emotional and just do my job but it did not work. It is hard to wave sail in a straight onshore wind. I am glad the girls have a discard this year. It was not equipment it was a matter of luck if you had a gap. The tactics were to try and do two jumps, it didn’t matter which tack and then ride waves in bolt onshore. Basically on any normal day you would never sail in that, you would look down the coast for a better angle. It was good for the winners but a lot of people were pretty upset.
John Skye drops a highlight video of his 2018/19 season and it’s a cracker! – “Footage from 2018 and 19. Taken me so long to get it put together, but hope you like it. Tried to mix it up a bit rather than all the Cape Town stuff like normal. Enjoy!”
Coronavirus (COVID-19) has brought changes to all our lives and different approaches in various countries; we asked a selection of the world’s top windsurfers for their experiences of the COVID-19 public health measures in their respective homes and their thoughts on the pandemic. Please note that as the situation is so fluid across the world, some of the guidelines by which people are abiding may have since changed from the time of writing.
(Photos by John Carter except where stated otherwise.)
ROBBY NAISH: MAUI
Things tend to change on a daily basis here, and we are now officially under “lockdown”. I am trying to focus on keeping the business running and not having to lay off any of my employees or team riders. So far so good, but very choppy water ahead. Up until today we were not mandated to self-isolate, but just recommended. So, I have been on the water just about every day doing our photo shoot for next year juggling the different sports. Conditions have been very good, and we have been lucky to have shot most of our next year’s equipment much earlier than most others. Today is the start of an official lockdown on Maui that is supposed to stay in place until April 30. Fortunately, there are a couple of loopholes which still allow those that are creative to get into the water in certain spots. Beach parks are all shut down. But yesterday and today for example we shot at La Perouse in some of the best south swell conditions that we have had in a long time. Some very, very windy but fun windsurfing. But I am forced to close the Naish offices and shop, as well as my US operation in Washington. But I have not let anyone go or reduced any pay at this stage. The coming weeks and or months will be challenging for many small businesses, mine included. But I am trying to stay optimistic, and I know that I am very lucky to be experiencing these times here on Maui rather than just about anywhere else in the world. Hopefully this will soon be a distant memory and the world can get back to business, back to socialising and back on the water!
IBALLA MORENO: FUERTEVENTURA
The situation here in the Canary Islands is not good. We are living a nightmare like the rest of Spain, Italy and probably rest of Europe! Not only the virus, but also the economic impact that this will have worldwide, but right now this is secondary. The most important is to follow the rules, the quarantine and fingers crossed we can get back to almost normal in a short period of time (3 more weeks we have of isolating time in Spain after one week has passed) We must follow the isolating time rules to avoid chaos in the hospitals. I am in Fuerteventura at the moment, away from Daida and my family, but I thought it would be the best, so we avoid airplanes and transport. We don’t have “many” cases in Canary Islands comparatively. Around 350 positive, in Covid 19 in total while I write this but going up. The problem is a lot of people may have it and they don’t know as they don’t do the test to everyone. So it is important to stay home and avoid spreading the virus everywhere (we all know how contagious this virus is). From now on our lives will be different! I cannot count the hours to be back in the ocean, meanwhile we all need to stay strong and follow the instructions and protect the older people and the most vulnerable. I stay at home with a routine. Breakfast, computer, studies. I am doing a life-saving course and sailing degree! So I have the online exams and of course training! I am finishing this little project, it was something I wanted to do and never had the time. Also I am working on a new website – more MORENOTWINS and an online store. with different products we have been working on the last years!I just opened a new account on Instagram, Morenotwins store, and soon we will be posting all the products. I also read books and the most important: I follow my training routine at home. It is important to keep your body filled up with energy and motivation.
Action photo by Eduardo Vidarte.
DAIDA MORENO: GRAN CANARIA
We live in a paradise to do outdoor sports, and it’s super difficult to look through the window and not being able to go out. Let us all be responsible for the vulnerable people!
ROSS WILLIAMS: UK
It is a pretty scary the situation right now! I feel it especially as I became a dad only about a month ago. I don’t remember ever feeling so protective over anyone or anything like I do now for the well-being of my daughter Sienna. It is sad to think that there will be so many families that are going to lose loved ones. A lot has changed for me in the past few months and I feel much more connected and concerned about other people. I think this can be a world changing view and we are able to find some good when we reach the other side of this pandemic. I feel mother earth has just flexed her muscles a little and hopefully this can lead to a better understanding and compassion for everyone in the world to be treated equally and fairly. The lockdown itself I haven’t minded it!If it is going to save lives it is the right thing to do. I think I am fortunate to live on an island where there are not some many people living on top of one and other. If we were in a big city, it would feel worse. So far not much has changed for me, there is plenty of work to be done, I had been in the water a lot lately so there are plenty of video edits I could release. But also, there is lots of work and daily updates to make sure I have my family financially and physically taken care of. I have not just my windsurfing career to look after, but also the UK agency and our Cafe too, so it is a lot to juggle and keep on top of. The great things about this, is the time I get to spend with my wife and daughter, we are quite into preparing healthy foods and stuff, so for me I have been getting more practice in the kitchen as well as hanging out with them and connecting with each other. My overall thought is that we have to be positive that things will return to normal. I think here in the UK we will pull ourselves together as a nation and we will come out the other side of this terrible situation more united and hopefully learn to respect the earth and try better to live in a balance with everyone and with the planet too.
PHILIP KOSTER: GRAN CANARIA
Looks like we are halfway through the quarantine so far (unless they want to do it longer) Two weeks at home are over and it is a lot harder than expected. Here in Spain you are not allowed to go out of your house apart from getting groceries or go to the pharmacy. In the first week we had amazing conditions and watching it from the window was one of the hardest and most depressing experiences. Of course, being together with my girlfriend and baby made it way better, but still the water part was missing. My day looks kind of relaxed! I don’t think I have ever had that long breakfasts, lunches and dinners in my life! In between I try to do some exercises and a lot of bike training. Otherwise I am worried about what is going to happen with the tour.I am super excited to compete but also really worried about the whole virus situation. There are a lot of questions about if the events are going to happen or if it will be safe to travel. Also, I am not sure if the event organisers are going to get the funds for the events when the whole economy is down! I guess we will find out more in the upcoming weeks.
(Action photo by Two Goat Media)
PIERRE MORTEFON: FRANCE
From my side everything is ok for now and all my family are safe. I am staying at home as it’s now not allowed to go out except for food shopping or for mandatory work. I am just a little bit afraid as my wife is still working and she’s coming home every evening. The situation is strange and a bit scary. I decided to relax a little bit in terms of work out and windsurfing focus at the moment. First of all, I needed a little bit of rest and now I think sport in general is not the important subject right now. I think it’s going to be really complicated to start the season before the summer, but we will see. Now I just want to stay safe, enjoy the time with my boy and learn how to be a good father. First week of lockdown we had a good project with Leon. He wanted his own windsurfing sail, so we created a little prototype. Yesterday I was able to finish it and he really enjoys it! I was so happy to share this with him and I can see on his smile that he really like his new toys, it was even hard to call him back from the garden yesterday evening!
JAEGER STONE: AUSTRALIA
Yeah, it’s such a crazy time. I was due to fly to Maui on the 9th of March, but the forecast was better at home, so I delayed it a week. Everything escalated so quickly so I decided to put my flights on hold again for a little while to see what happened. The day I was due to leave the Australian Government announced that any Australians who were overseas should return home as soon as possible and now the borders are closed with a travel ban in place. You have these moments when you get distracted or forget and it just feels completely surreal that something like this is happening. At the moment I’m just trying to be patient and keep my distance as best as I can. We’re not on complete lock down in Australia but everything that’s non-essential is closed and it feels like people are only just starting to take it seriously now. I have been spending a lot of time at home, exercising in the back yard, enjoying the outdoors and beaches a little bit while we can, but just keeping distance. There’s quite a bit of uncertainty to everything at the moment, so we will have to see how it plays out.
Paris based ripper Marine Hunter shows off her skills in this sweet video of her winter sessions in Cotentin (Normandy) from light winds to storms – “Here a little video from winter sessions in Normandy, which was called Unelli or Venelli in Roman times.”
Maui Ultra Fins have a new foil the “WINDFOIL 4:ALL” and tell us –
“We would like to introduce our high-end Maui Ultra Fins windsurf foil 4:ALL of our new 4:foil series.
The 4:ALL is developed as an overall windsurf foil for freeriding, free-racing and even basic freestyling.
The foil is completely produced in the European Union. Due to the high-end construction, the foil is very light and sturdy to offer a perfect foil experience.
The foil consists of:
95 cm Carbon Mast for perfect balance (1.5 kg)
Carbon front and rear wings
Extremely sturdy aluminium fuselage, which offers an excellent match of stability and agility
Padded carry bag for transportation
