PRESS RELEASE:

Australian Premier Windsurfing & Kitesurfing Event Calls for Athletes to Compete

• The event, famous for its 25km marathon from Ledge Point to Lancelin first held in 1986
• Windy Lancelin’s stunning coastline and water provides ideal conditions
• New sport: paddlers join the #LancelinClassic

REGISTRATION IS OPEN!
Registrations are now open to windsurfers, kitesurfers and paddlers to enter the 31st Lancelin Ocean Classic, taking place between January 14 and 17, 2016.

The headline 25km race from Ledge Point to Lancelin Marathon will for the first time have the windsurfers and kitesurfers racing together, utilising an improved starting line process. Following the same course and starting together at Ledge Point, the downwind marathon will take place on January 16 from noon and there will be entertainment at the Lancelin beach finish line throughout the afternoon for spectators.

For the first year, the race will also be open to ocean kayaks and stand up paddlers, who will race downwind along the coastline from Ledge Point to Lancelin.

The strong windsurfing history of the Lancelin Ocean Classic attracts athletes from across the country looking to take home the top prize for taking on this tough event. The winning time from last year was 28.17 minutes by Steve Allen with Swiss athlete Karin Jaggi the first woman to cross the finish line at 32.57 minutes.

Earlier this year, the State Government through Tourism WA’s Regional Events Program, which is funded by Royalties for Regions, announced a three year funding agreement to support the growth of the Lancelin Ocean Classic. Which has seen an increase in the number of athletes travelling to Western Australia to participate in the event.

As well as the challenging 25km race, additional competitions taking place include windsurfing waves, kitesurfing freestyle and kitesurfing waves.
To register to compete, head to the sports page of www.lancelinoceanclassic.com.au

LANCELIN LOBSTER BRUNCH
An exciting addition to the Lancelin Ocean Classic sports program is the Lancelin Lobster Brunch, featuring freshly caught local crayfish and regional produce used in a menu crafted by WA Food Ambassador and renown chef, Don Hancey. A limited number of tickets will be available for this exclusive Sunday morning brunch on the beautiful Lancelin Beach following Saturday’s marathon races and celebrations.

MORE FUN ON THE BEACH
Extending the program further, free yoga classes will take place on Lancelin’s white sandy beaches through the week leading up to the marathon races and a new location for the race village will serve up entertainment, drinks and food at the marathon finish line.

For further information, or to register, visit www.lancelinoceanclassic.com.au
<ENDS>

The post LANCELIN CLASSIC 2016 REGISTRATIONS OPEN appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

the latest clip from The Tiree Wave Classic – Day 3

The post TIREE WAVE CLASSIC DAY 3 VIDEO appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

ALL A QUIVER

Words Peter Hart  //  Photos Simon Basset, Hart Photography, JC, John Skye, Eric Bellande & Tim Wyers

How many? What’s the best gap between sizes? Cams or no cams? Should you mix the brands? These are just some of the questions facing you as you assess the rig market. Peter Hart helps you amass the bespoke quiver.

6 am at Heathrow terminal 1 and it wasn’t going entirely according to plan.  Those normally very helpful people at the Air Portugal check in desk had no record of my request to take two sports bags and were immune to all the familiar tactics (charm, threats, crying etc). Long story short, they limited me to one 20 kg board bag and I turned up for a 2 week jaunt in Jericoacoara Brazil with a 94 litre freestyle wave board and a 5.5 wave rig.

Every morning turned into a running joke.

“What are you using today Pete?” They’d ask.

“Oh I don’t know. I might try the old 94 with a 5.5.” I’d say. How we laughed.

I guess you had to be there. But for 2 weeks, despite winds ranging from 12 to 28 knots, that’s exactly what I’d use. A bit over-powered some days, a bit under others but most of the time about right. The experience reinforced a few notions.

Firstly a lack of choice can be very liberating. I am lucky enough to have access to a lot of kit but the happiest times tend to be winter when the van is packed just with the essential escape package of 2 wave boards and 3 sails.

Secondly, thanks to modern designs being so tune-able, the latest sails enjoy a huge wind range. Compared with ten years ago, a quiver of less can do more.

And I suppose thirdly, choice is easier when you target the conditions you’re most likely to sail in and the type of sailing you’re doing (not the ones you WANT to sail or the type of sailing you DREAM of doing). In Jeri it was pretty easy – wind always from the same direction, slightly side off to the waves; waves clean but slow and easy; big flat patches in between for manoeuvres. It was crying out for a fast manoeuvrable board – namely a just uphaul-able and ‘bog-and-ride-able’ 94 litre freestyle wave. Then for maximum efficiency, choose the rig that compliments the design and volume of that board – in this case a 5.5 wave sail. It’s by finding that perfect match that you can get them to perform in conditions way outside the recommended.

And talking about getting boards and rigs to perform – it’s only by sailing a certain combo incessantly that you get super-sensitive to its tuning and feel and can make it perform across that wide range.

However, this is not a feature designed to persuade you to empty the contents of your van/trailer/garage onto the scrap heap bar one board and rig. Even in the earliest days we soon discovered that one board and rig, although convenient, wasn’t enough, hence the immediate invention of the ‘storm sail.’

The aim in this feature, with the help of learned colleagues, is help clarify some of the elements that affect the decision making and help you rationalise your sail quiver.

And just for the record, please don’t expect a definitive quiver listing. A limitless mix of variable ingredients – sailor weight, competence, likely sailing venue(s), sailing disciplines and, not least, budget – ensure there is no one ‘perfect’ quiver. You are an individual, with individual needs and ambitions don’t let anyone persuade you otherwise.

BUILDING A QUIVER – THE REALITY
It’s like extending a home. You a buy a little two up two down and then extend it as and when you get a bit of loot; then you convert the loft, build above the kids bedroom; add a conservatory etc. What you end up with (a small block with lumps hanging off it) may work but it’s certainly not what you’d have chosen, if you’d been able to design it from scratch.

That’s how many quivers are accumulated. The first board and rig are a bit of a stab in the dark when you have no clear idea which direction the sport will take you or how far.

As you progress you add a sail here, a mast there, a smaller board etc. Budget constraints dictate that the earlier purchases may be second, third and tenth hand – but then a well-timed bonus/lottery win/bank-heist permits the purchase of a dreamy rig.

Within a few years you’ve amassed an impressive hardware mountain. However, within that multi-generational collection there are double-ups and crossovers and combos, which simply don’t work. Here are three examples spotted recently.

> One guy had a fairly ancient 4.2 and a 4.7 from different brands – when we laid them over each other they were exactly the same size.

> Rich found that his ten year old 6.5 got his old 275cm, 120 litre free-ride board planing earlier than his brand new 7.0.

> Tom, a bit of speedster at heart, was keen to amend his ‘straight-lining’ ways and picked up a second hand 87 litre Quad wave board. He loaded it up with a modern 5.5 cam-less free-ride sail and spent the whole session going sideways. The individual parts were fine – but not together. The 5.5 was producing the wrong sort of power.

So here we go …

THE MEASUREMENT QUESTION
This feature was prompted by a query from an experienced reader from the States who was struggling to get the right spread of sizes and asked some very pertinent questions. Having noted one brand’s 7.3 was a LOT bigger than another’s 7.2, his first query was: “do all the brands measure their sails the same way?” (Apparently not.)

In the pre CAD days I have to say that sail measurements were at best random and sometimes downright deceitful. There was one brand in particular who would mark their race and speed sails with a figure as much as 0.5 sq m less than the reality to make them seem incredibly powerful and efficient. “Look at Roddy. He just won that leg using a 5.0 and everyone else was on 5.5s!” No he didn’t. His sail just had smaller numbers.

However, now that all sails are at least recorded, if not 100% designed, on computer, the exact areas should be available at the press of a button.

On this matter, I pass the hot potato to Tushingham sail designer Ken Black.

“Tushingham sails are measured by calculating the actual area on the computer when the sail is being designed. If the sail is measured after being made it will measure slightly less (around 0.3%). As far as I know this is how most brands calculate area. There is definitely some variation between brands but in my experience it isn’t consistent, even through a particular sail range. However, size variation isn’t nearly as important as the sail’s characteristic. Small variations (0.1 or even 0.2 sq.m) are irrelevant compared to the foil shape (power), position of centre of effort & general handling.”

Obviously there is some variance. Apart from the risk of ending up with two sails the same size despite their markings, here are a few other points to consider as you consider mixing brands.

CHANGING POWER – NOT FEEL
If you stick to the same brand and, just as importantly, the same range of sails within that brand, the feeling as you change up or down is that you haven’t changed sails, but that someone has just turned the wind up or down. There is (should be) consistency within a range – same effort placement, same outline, same balance so that the power is delivered to the board in the same way. If the new sail is from another brand, it may be as good, but it will be different,
forcing you to readjust and trim the board differently.

HARDWARE
Manufacturers are genuinely trying to make life easier and cheaper these days by rationalizing the hardware within a given range. For example in the wave range I favour, all the sizes from 6.0 down to 4.7 can happily set on a 4m mast. However, to recoup a little of the profit loss, the sails are cut around their own branded 4m mast and the sails will work best on that mast. A sail of a different brand may also work on that mast but it’s a punt (there are differences between brand’s interpretations of a constant curve for example). As Ken mentioned, setting and tuning the sail properly is key and the mast has the most influence of all.

DIFFERENT BRAND AND DIFFERENT ERA
A particular issue when people are piecing together wave quivers, is that they not only mix brands of sail but also ages. They assume the sails will get trashed, so when it comes to the small ones especially, they go old and cheap. There was a classic case last week in Ireland. A guy had a beautiful new 5.2 setting on a 4m rdm ‘skinny’ mast. Sadly/happily the wind cranked up to 35 knots for 2 days so he rolled out the 15 year old 4.0. He used the same mast but the 4.0 was designed around an old SDM. It set like a bag of smelly stuff. Sails have become a lot shorter and fatter over the years. Designs from different eras and brands rarely set well on the same masts. People’s failure to get comfortable in strong winds is so often not down to the strength of the wind but to a disastrously trimmed small sail.

DIFFERENT POWER
The actual area of a sail is only a guide as to the sail’s power. Top Irish based big wave sailor Rob Jones (more from him later), who spends much of his day actually unpicking different designs (he’s a sail repairer), is especially mystified as to why people would have a mix of brands.

“Wave sails in particular are so different these days and you develop your style around a particular feel. Some like a powerful sail (I do for one), others like that super light on/off feel. This is not a criticism of either sail but for example, I reckon a 4.5 Ezzy creates as much power as 5.0 Gaastra Manic. So if you had both those sails in your quiver, you’d be deeply confused!”

So to sum up, try and be consistent within your sail ranges (if you are lucky to have more than one). For example the early planing/speedy sails can be one brand – and then the wave/manoeuvre oriented sails that are to be used on a different board and different mast, can be another brand – but perhaps avoid mixing the two.

THE SIZE SPREAD
This is a subject with no straight answer – so many elements to factor in. Excuse me if I talk around the subject but that’s only way I know how.

THE PERCENTAGE DROP
I’m not a Math’s whizz but I can state with some confidence that the difference between a 3.5 and 4.0 sail represents a much bigger percentage drop than between a 9.5 and 10.0.  It stands to reason that there can be bigger gaps between your big sails than your smaller sails – but how much? So much depends in which wind band you really want to plane. It might help at this stage to define marginal and strong winds.

There is a very interesting barrier around the 15-18 knot mark (force 5).

I have mentioned this before in last year’s feature about power but an increase in wind speed is not proportional to the extra pressure it produces. The pressure gets exponentially greater with every knot of wind to the extent where force 5, although only 6 knots greater than a force 4, actually creates twice as much pressure. So it is that around the top end of a force 5, pretty much everything planes. Although slalom sailors may still be hanging onto an 8.5, you would see freestylers strutting their impressive stuff with a 4.7.

For most people, to plane under 15 knots, they need a big sail (7.0 plus) – but how big depends on many things – sailor weight, brilliance, board size and design, but primarily how far down the wind scale you want to plane. Now the worms crawl from the can…

MINIMUM WIND PLANING
The way wind pressure works, you can spend a HUGE amount of money tooling up to plane in that narrow 9-13 knot wind band. It may be necessary. If, thanks to geographical chance, marginal winds are your specialty (in Pattaya where Starboard do a lot of their big board testing, a blowy day is when you change down to an 8.5) then your quiver may well be 9.5, 8.5 and 7.5 (for those crazy days!)

If you enjoy a wider range of conditions and like a bit of big sail blasting but are not bothered about pumping your botty off in zephyrs, then your biggest sail could be an 8.0. That would cover the 14-18 knot seabreeze range; then as you hit the magic force 5, you could be straight onto a 6.5 or even a 6.0. (I’m assuming an 80kg pilot here.)

Bjorn Dunkerbeck’s retirement from slalom is down partly to the lowering of the PWA wind minimums to 8 knots which he says makes it impossible for a man of his size (95 kg) to be competitive. Now if he, with his massive experience, strength, skill as well as the best kit money can buy (including a 9.8 rig), can’t perform in that wind, what chance have the rest of us? Be realistic about the wind you want to plane in.

TESTING TIMES – MARGINAL WIND QUIVERS
I did some experiments with regular sailors recently to test a few early planing myths.

On the beach lay a range of sails from 10.0 down to 7.5. The wind was 10-14 knots – a classic puffy seabreeze. The boards used were 125-135 racy
free-ride boards.

And here’s what we found.

> above 9.0, the extra area didn’t seem to have any bearing on early planing. But when planing the sails above that performed better on the extremes of up and down wind (where course races are won and lost).

>  in the bigger gusts (by big I mean 14 knots) most sailors planed earliest on the 7.8 twin cam because they found it easier to handle and pump.

> On the 125 board, the 7.8 planed earlier than the 8.5 – proof of the importance of matching board to rig. The 8.5 over-powered it.

>  in some hands, the 7.5 no cam sail seemed to plane earlier than the multi-cammed all dancing slalom sail. What?

CAMBERED AND CAM-LESS – IN THE SAME QUIVER
I draw your attention to the short interviews with Ken Black of Tushingham Sails and Monty Spindler of Loft Sails elsewhere in the piece, who distill eruditely the differences between multi, twin and no cam sails.

The amount of cams, how solid the foil is, how much the sail ‘bags out’ has a massive bearing on the low end power (acceleration) and top end (speed). Hence, if you’re amassing a big sail quiver, it’s unwise to mix up those designs.

Furthermore, whether a specific design makes you plane earlier and what size you need depends also what type of sailor you are.

A good while back before the PC police kicked in, I was present while Robby Naish was extolling the qualities of two slalom style ranges to a collection of dealers.

“This,” he said pointing to a full bellied 3 cam design, “is for brain dead sailors. But this,” he said pointing to a soft cam-less design, “is for active sailors”

By ‘brain dead’ he implicated those who like to hook in in the car park, get on, sit down, feel power and go. The inference was that they were not going to work the sail – it had to do all the work. And because of that you needed to go big.

With the cam-less sail, he said, you have to work.

You need to sheet in hard to make the sail form its foil. It bags out more, creating potentially more power at the expense of stability. But it’s lighter in the hands, easier to depower and you can potentially get away with a smaller sail.

If you class yourself as a brain dead sailor (or modern equivalent), you benefit from cams because you need to be powered up. But I assert right now that not everyone who uses cammed sails is brain dead. That would mean all racers are stupid. The other factor is board size and that bigger boards react better to the grunt offered by cams.

The warning though is that the really specialist slalom sails which are designed to be used ‘fully fully fully powered’, may not have great bottom end – and that a smaller cam-less, or twin cam sail may actually get a recreational sailor planing earlier.

Our pro slalom sailors should be applauded for their extraordinary physicality, skill and daring – as well as for bringing such incredible kit onto the open market. But they’re using their sails so completely on the edge of control that copying their quiver choice can be something of a distraction for the recreational sailor.

AND AT THE SMALLER END
With sails under 6.5, you can’t go wrong if you drop down in 0.5 increments. If that’s beyond budget, just make sure you’re shored around the sizes you most want to use. An 80 kg bloke joined me last year on a wave clinic and his sizes went 6.5, 5.7, 4.7, 3.5.

Really not good – 5.7 to 4.7 is a massive gap. In waves and sea sailing in the most desirable force 5-6 winds, 5.0 or 5.2 is your most crucial size. The 3.5, for him, was an irrelevance since he had neither the board nor the hardware to make it work.

FINDING THE FAVOURITE
As a slalom racer I always seemed to have my best results on a 6.0. I can’t explain it. When it comes to wave sailing these days, I love 4.7 weather. It means I’m on my smallest board; and it’s windy but not crazy. Of course all your sails should have a place in your heart but amongst them it’s not wrong to have a favourite. If you feel that a certain size and design suits your size and style, then you’re going to have special days. When you’re on your favourite sail, mentally you switch up a gear. Because you crave its company, you use it more and make it work in a wider range of conditions. And in so doing, you develop cute technique.

On a Kerry beach last week the NW wind was blowing over Brandon mountain and gusting wildly from 18 to 30 knots. The group looked to me for sail size advice in the knowledge that whatever I said would be wrong (but they’d have someone to blame). I couldn’t speculate. I had to lead from the front. I reached for the trusty 4.7 and loaded it onto the beloved 82 and tested the waters.  I did about 5 reaches in and out through the waves and on each run estimated the perfect sail for that moment. The first run out was definitely 3.5 – wild; the next one 5.2; the next one perfect 4.7. Storms over the open ocean often bring massive variances between the mean speed and the spikes. So the advice I gave was that any sail between 3.7 and 5.2 would work at different moments so choose your favourite sail, the one you instinctively reach for. Then at least you’ll sail with confidence.

CHANGING THE ORDER – BOARDS FIRST?
Back to our extending the house analogy, if all your kit magically disappeared (and you got magically paid for it) how would you go about replacing it? Surely the best way is to choose the boards you most want to sail and then select the sail sizes that best suit those boards. If you’re wondering what that sail is, it’s usually the middle sail out of the manufacturer’s recommended range.

We’re back to the beginning but I stress once more that matching board and rig is more important than anything. If you do, you’ll find yourself operating with an ever smaller quiver.

http://peter-hart.com/

The post PETER HART – ALL A QUIVER appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

TIREE WAVE CLASSIC 2015 DAY 4 VIDEO

Light winds and some words from the pros !

The post TIREE WAVE CLASSIC 2015 DAY 4 VIDEO appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

BUYER’S GUIDE 2015

Photo  Jeremias Marinovic

Investment in a good waist harness can be one of the most important bits of kit you buy if you want to enjoy and progress your sailing and save money on visits to the physiotherapist! We take a look at the latest offerings from the brands and Robby Swift gives us his expert advice.

ROBBY SWIFT…
There are so many waist harnesses out there and so many different lengths of harness lines etc. that it can get a bit confusing. To be honest, a lot of it is down to personal preference and what you are used to. Here is a list of sailors and the harness line lengths they use:

Jason Polakow: 26cm

Robby Swift: 28cm

Ricardo Campello: 30cm

Marcilio Browne: 34-36cm

Kauli Seadi: 34-36cm

So as you can see, there are 5 sailors ranging from 5’8” tall to 6’2” tall, all with 5 extremely different harness line lengths which do not correlate at all to their height or arm length and they all make it work for them.

Some people say that you should have your lines spread far apart and some say you should have them close together. I personally find that in high winds I like to put the lines a little farther apart for more control and in lighter, gustier winds I like to put them closer together so I can pump the sail a little without unhooking.

As far as harnesses go, there is also a huge range you can choose from and, once again, a lot of it is down to personal preference. I personally tend to go for a harness that has the following features:

• Wide enough to offer good support when landing high jumps on your back, yet not so wide that it restricts your movement from side to side and makes you feel stiff.

• I also like the spreader bar to be nice and stable in front of you, not flopping up and down with your movement so you can really concentrate on your sailing rather than looking down to check what’s going on with your spreader bar when lining up for a jump or dropping into a wave.

• I definitely like good back support since I like to sail for many hours a day and many days a week, so you need gear that protects you from the strains that windsurfing can put on your back.

• Luckily for me, I spend most of the year in warm climates, so a nice soft, comfy top and bottom of the harness are very important so that you don’t get a rash when sailing without a top on.

Other than that of course, the colour and look of the harness is important. It’s the most visible part of your attire, so choose one that you like to look at, so when you are Go-Pro’ing yourself or getting your wife to film you (good luck with that!), you will like the way the shots come out!

Happy sailing!

Robby Swift

Robby is sponsored by neilpryde.com, jp-australia.com, mysticboarding.com, clhei.com, surazo.cl and chile40.com
You can follow Robby on robbyswift.com or facebook.com/robbyswift89

FLYING OBJECTS CROSSFIRE

The Cross Fire blends affordable pricing with proven design. This delivers a harness with thermo-form padding, a medium flex character and finished in a soft neoprene wrap. All these attributes lend to a functional design that provides maximum support in the lower back and minimises point loading. Other features include an Internal Neo Belt and thermo-form Lumbar Support.

RRP £109.99 

www.flyingobjects.com.au

ION RADIUM SELECT

ION´s RADIUM SELECT is the most comfortable harness on the planet, thanks to the visco elastic Memory Foam which adapts perfectly to your body. The newly developed leverbuckle system, ‘Quick_Fit’, allows super fast and effort-saving tightening of the harness. In addition the new Pro_Pad and thermo moulded EVA construction protects your belly and back.

RRP £169.95 

www.ion-products.com

MYSTIC WARRIOR

From the very beginning of the brand the iconic Warrior harness has been core to everything the brand is about, providing a product born on the water! Features include the anatomical back plate which gives Mystic’s trademark feature of never riding up, as well as super soft edges and a low torque spreader bar. Available in sizes XS, S, M, L, XL and XXL.

RRP £159.00 

www.mysticboarding.com

NAISH MAFIA

Built around a new load-distributing moulded shell, the Mafia is designed for riders who want the most mobility, superior fit and support. The click-in spreader bar is built into the streamlined bar pad with memory foam for increased ribcage protection and a stabilizer strap to keep it in place. The Mafia also features a tricot neoprene lining for superior comfort.

RRP £219.00 

www.naishsails.com/product/mafia/

NP SURF PULSE

NP have aimed for comfort and support with the Pulse, a 3D-shaped harness with forged aluminium spreader bar and EVA foam inners to prevent riding-up and prevent water absorption. The unique embossed pattern is designed to perfectly fit the core while preventing the harness riding up or twisting. A 360° strap made from highly elasticised fabric provides additional core support.

RRP £154.90 

www.npsurf.com

PAT LOVE VIBE

The Vibe is a thermo formed high-end windsurf waist harness with deep lateral neoprene padding and marine grade metal buckles. On the inside you will find thermoformed, super soft and anatomical padding. The low back anatomic shape is particularly compact and allows extreme movement and freedom. Also featuring an elastic power belt and new spreader bar system with bar pad.

RRP £139.00 

www.pat-love.com

POINT–7 WAIST WAVE 

An all-rounder by sail brand Point-7 that is ergonomically shaped, combining optimal freedom with maximal support. Ideal for any kind of discipline, whether your sport of choice is wavesailing, freestyle or just flat-water cruising. The harness is built using only the best materials; ensuring the perfect mix of durability, comfort and tailor made quality.

RRP £80.00 

www.point-7.com

PROLIMIT HYBRID

The Hybrid harness is light, strong and versatile. Our new laminated PU material and internal Nylon waist belt absorbs no water, making this the lightest harness out there while still giving the great back support of a Prolimit harness. Other features include pre-curved and 3D shaped, low absorption internal waist belt, patented pin release bar system and EZ belt system.

RRP £99.00 

www.prolimit.com

RRD EQ–3

RRD have developed a new harness collection shaped around the most diverse body shapes and purposes, analysing both the anatomy of each target group and best materials and technology process available today to build the new collection. The EQ-3 is a high end waist harness designed for power and comfort, features include pre-shaped moulded EVA and fibre glass battens inside.

RRP £150.00 

www.robertoriccidesigns.com

The post WAIST HARNESS BUYERS GUIDE appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

EFPT BROUWERSDAM FREESTYLE VIDEO DAY 1 2015

Sick video and the latest from Dam-X – ‘We had some wind yesterday so we could sail a couple of heats. In the meantime there was tow-in action for the crowd.”!

The post EFPT BROUWERSDAM FREESTYLE VIDEO DAY 1 2015 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

SCOTTY STALLMAN RETAINS YOUTH TITLE AT WEYMOUTH SPEED WEEK 2015

Every October the worlds longest running speed event is held in Portland Harbour, England. The event in its 43rd Year still attracts the top windsurfers, kitesurfers and sailors from around the world all competing to be the fastest over a 500m course set inside the Harbour.

The annual event is firmly fixed in local windsurfer Scotty Stallman’s calendar, not only because it involves his love of windsurfing and is held in his local waters it also involves speed sailing, one of Scotty’s passions alongside slalom and wavesailing.

The post STALLMAN RETAINS SPEED WEEK TITLE appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

COAST – BIGBURY ON SEA

Home to the largest sandy beach in South Devon, Bigbury has an even bigger reputation in UK windsurfing. Bigbury Massacre, South Coast’s Jaws, Bigbury Takes no Prisoners, whatever the sensational headline this South Coast hot spot has always had a fearful and deserved reputation as being a scary place to sail and many International sailors have scurried down the deep Devon lanes to be surprised how brutal Bigbury can be, usually dragged along by ex-local sailor Timo Mullen or popping down to visit local lens-man Alex Williams. Its bite lies in a rivermouth in the centre of the bay. Here any sniff of swell is maxed into a mast macerating break that challenges the hardiest of windsurfing heros.

Words  DAVE EWER // Photos  JOHN CARTER 

Home to the largest sandy beach in South Devon, Bigbury has an even bigger reputation in UK windsurfing. Bigbury Massacre, South Coast’s Jaws, Bigbury Takes no Prisoners, whatever the sensational headline this South Coast hot spot has always had a fearful and deserved reputation as being a scary place to sail and many International sailors have scurried down the deep Devon lanes to be surprised how brutal Bigbury can be, usually dragged along by ex-local sailor Timo Mullen or popping down to visit local lens-man Alex Williams. Its bite lies in a rivermouth in the centre of the bay. Here any sniff of swell is maxed into a mast macerating break that challenges the hardiest of windsurfing heroes. Bigbury also has a calmer easier side too it’s not always mast high and life threatening. This south coast wave magnet often kicks up fun free ride conditions too, just be warned it can soon turn challenging as you drift down the beach towards the river mouth and over to Bantham, where you’ll be surrounded by surfers too.

Long gone are the days of calling the local windsurfing shop for a “Do you know if anyone’s out at the beach sailing?”question. Bigbury has some reliable info. readily available online. Magicseaweed.com, the surf forecast website headquartered nearby, has 3 HD cams on the beach (but not generally in the sailing area) and there’s an active Facebook group ‘Windsurf Plymouth’, where a lot of the local sailors will post their sailing intentions so you’ll never need to sail alone. Reactive Watersports also put up a Facebook weekend forecast so you know the best spots to sail and the optimum tides. Of course Windguru and Big Salty cover Bigbury too, but all that said you can’t beat a bit of local knowledge and who better to turn to than Reactive Watersports owner, Dave Ewer. Read on for Dave’s account of a classic day at his local and a guru’s guide to mastering the waves at one of England’s finest windsurfing beaches.

“ Any sniff of swell is maxed into a mast macerating break that challenges the hardiest of windsurfing heros  ’’ ^JC 

SURPRISE CALL
I’m a pretty keen wave sailor, I’ve been sailing Bigbury for longer than I care to remember, my early days sailing were with Timo and Finn Mullen when they were (barely) at Uni in Plymouth. We’ve had some epic days sailing at this classic spot; massive NE days, life threatening days on a big SW where I’ve almost drowned, as well as awesome Summer days blasting down to Hope Cove and along the coast on slalom kit. I get out on most good days at the beach but running my own business and employing windsurfers means I miss a few too!

Timo has called me the last couple of times when he was due to be down with JC, but I’ve been tied down and unable to make it to the beach. Sure enough I get a call from Timo’s broad Northern Irish accent, “We’re coming down to shoot Bigbury with JC, are you up for a sail, we’ll be down in an hour”, err, “I’ll give you a call back”. My shop guy James was in Cornwall sailing , Gwen my shop girl was fresh back from Bali and without her phone, my only option was to phone the wife and see if she can cover me last minute? Fortunately I’ve got a fantastic wife who after cancelling a long standing social engagement last minute for me held the fort in Reactive base camp. With cover in place, I was now in transit, beach bound. I’d sailed a couple of days previously but the temp had plummeted significantly to around 6-7c, a bit cool for me unless it’s really firing, (I’m a bit fussy in my old age these days). Upon arrival at the beach I’m greeted by JC who’s wrapped up like he’s going snowboarding and Timo’s half rigged and scurrying around to get out on the water like usual. The wind was howling cross shore and it was sunny too. The waves were looking pretty smooth, around shoulder high, but it was looking a bit more promising and punchy downwind in the river mouth. There were already a handful of local sailors out: Ed, Allen, Tim C and a couple of others, (they’d been chatting on Facebook all morning and I knew Bigbury would be the venue of choice today).

WINTER WARMER
As usual I was in between boards and only had a fairly skinny quad in the back of my van, needless to say Timo had a full armoury of Starboard carbon in the back of his van, hum, a bigger size would have been better. After a quick chat on the beach the word was solid 4.2m weather. Before long I was skipping down the beach with a 4.5m and my skinny quad. I knew a warm up sail was out of the question today, (I’d only get colder anyway!), so I wasted no time and headed straight downwind to the river mouth where the waves were head high to logo. The tide was dropping which made the waves a bit bumpy but they were steep and had a bit of punch to them, chunky enough to make sailing interesting and take my mind of my freezing cold hands. Pretty much as soon as I got downwind the wind picked up and I was stacked. Timo was firing and nailing some solid back loops on the outside bigger lumps during the squalls. I managed to score a few solid turns and also stuck a few loops and hoped JC captured the evidence! Before long my hands had gone and the wind turned a tad gusty; my time was up and the school run was fast approaching. I strolled back upwind just in time for a quick chat with JC, before long I was doubled up, flapping my arms about whilst chatting, there’s nothing like the pain barrier to stutter the flow of conversation. When I left Timo was still sailing, the wind had picked up a little, hum I think next time I will chuck the palmless mitts in the back of the van when I sail during January!

“ Make a trip down to this beautiful part of the country if you can, trust me, you won’t want to leave if it’s going off ! ’’ ^{Dave Ewer}

LOCAL INFO
Parking in beach carpark – £2.60 for 2 hrs, make sure you have some change, (thanks JC!).
Beach cafe on site, toilet, cold outside shower and a dodgy phone signal. Camping available at Folly farm at top of field overlooking beach. Nearest Windsurf shop is 20 minutes away in Plymouth – Reactive Watersports, 01752 403300.
www.reactivewatersports.co.uk

THE SCENE
Plymouth has got some great home grown sailors, super keen to sail as many spots locally as they can, from speed to freestyle and of course the waves at Bigbury. The standard of sailor at the beach is pretty high generally. Top UK female sailors Sara Kellet and Sarah Bibby regularly sail here as well as some pretty hard-core locals like Dougal, Mark W, Tim C, Piere , James and plenty of part timers who will drop most things to be at the beach; Ed, Sam, Dave and Steve you know who you are!

Windsurf Plymouth, was a RYA funded pilot for Project windsurf, set up by local sailor and RYA ambassador Tim Cross. This has been a fantastic tool for windsurfers to communicate with everyone else locally and also has taught loads of new windsurfers in the area with their club sessions run by Allen Adams and team. Quite simply using Facebook to contact other windsurfers in the area means more time sailing with your mates at the beach rather than sailing alone or not going out as the conditions may be on the edge of your comfort zone. It’s really worth checking out your local Facebook group / club through Project windsurf RYA if you want to maximise windsurfing in your local area. Try and make a trip down to this beautiful part of the country if you can, trust me, you won’t want to leave if it’s going off !

“ Timo was firing and nailing some solid back loops on the outside bigger lumps during the squalls  ’’  ^{Dave Ewer}  

FACT BOX

WIND DIRECTIONS

Southerly, onshore:
Still sailable but pretty much bang onshore, not too much fun when it’s big as you’ll be spending most of your time running away from white water. Most of the locals will be sailing at nearby Mothecombe which is easier, or you can sail from Bantham side at high tide which gives flat water between the waves but can be busy with kites if not too windy.

South West, cross on:
Starboard tack jumping, big friendly rollers on the outside and an easy sneak out from the inside. If it is head high on the way out, you’ll be gybing on a mast high swell on the outside. The key to sailing on a SW is not to be too close to the island (wind shadow) but not be too far downwind that you get battered and washed up in the river mouth and the more powerful waves, they’re always bigger when you get out there! A good starting point is gybing in front of the lifeguard hut (as long as there’s not a swimming area there).

Westerly, cross shore:
Great jumping and riding at high tide on a westerly, generally a bit smaller than a SW day and better mid to high tide but still OK on low, the further you go down wind the better it is, (bigger waves).

North West, cross off:
It needs to be fairly windy for NW to work at Bigbury, but it offers free ride sailing upwind on the other side of the island and nice wave riding in the main break but can be a little gusty. High tide can be great fun in between the island buzzing the sea tractor that crosses the causeway.

Northerly, dead offshore:
The worst direction!

North East/East, offshore/cross off:
Generally flat water and baby waves, usually a lot windier than just down the coast due to funnelling effect. Great coastal blasting down to Bolt tail / Hope Cove. Don’t tell anyone but a few times a year we get epic waves in this direction, this creates amazing down the line rides of around 500m when it’s big enough, it’s usually busy, though still great fun when it’s waist high too.

South East, cross on:
Port tack jumping, fairly on shore but good fun sailing over to Bantham and back. Can be tricky getting off the beach at high tide though.

The post COAST – BIGBURY ON SEA appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

Congratulations to Ross Williams on his win at the 2015 Tiree Wave Classic. Phil Horrocks was second and Andy Chambers came in third. Check out the day 5 video for what went down…

The post ROSS WILLIAMS WINS TIREE appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

POINTS OF VIEW

The art of the selfie is a modern must have skill for a pro windsurfer but the technology they use is far from the preserve of the elite with the market for POV cameras encompassing and catering for amateurs to PWA legends. So if you’re struggling with your selfie or are keen to hear just how the pros nail their trick instagram shots, read on as we quiz some of the finest windsurfing selfie shooters on the planet for their tips, tales and tricks of the trade!

(This feature originally appeared in the July 2015 issue of Windsurf Magazine. To read more features like this first, Print and Digital subscriptions are available. Prices include delivery globally for 10 x issues a year!)

John Carter
The advent of the Go Pro and similar point of view cameras has dramatically changed the way photographers and videographers are able to approach mast mounted and boom mounted photography. Gone are the days of punching holes through a sail with a screwdriver to attach a 3 kilo homemade contraption containing an expensive DLSR camera. I remember watching some of the most talented sailors on the planet look almost like beginners, crashing every single jump with this huge, heavy box totally compromising their sailing style. Yes, the Go Pro pretty much made the traditional mast mounted camera obsolete in a matter of years. Not only have they stepped up the quality but as each model is released the cameras are becoming smaller, lighter and easier to use. Nowadays Go Pro’s are pretty much everywhere you look and being used for every radical sport. I recently read founder Nick Woodman floated shares in the company and is now worth over 2.5 billion dollars, yep no typo mistake here that is billion not million! Now that is what I call a result!

I have had my fair share of trials and tribulations with Go Pro’s and have lost a few after heavy crashes and bail outs, which all could have been averted if I had simply tied the flymount to the top of the mast with spectra or fishing line. That is simply me being lazy, even now I rarely tie them on so only have myself to blame if I lose another one!

What I will recommend though is making sure you have the camera set up at home before you head to the beach. There is nothing worse than being on the edge of the water scrolling through all the menus trying to find the multi shot mode or whatever while your rider is itching to get out on the water. I tend to use the time lapse continuous shooting mode for pictures which I believe fires of a frame every half a second. As for keeping water off the lens I have tried all sorts but never found a magic formula to keep every single drip off of the tiny port in front of the lens. I like to tell the rider to make sure they go big on the first jump when I am pretty sure the lens will have no drops on it and then come in at regular intervals so I can check everything is ok. For flat water, spots on the lens are not so much of an issue but I usually advise the rider not to dip the mast into the water before they head out. Wave riding and jumping shots can both look awesome from the Go Pro and although the quality of the shots might not quite be up to that of a full blown DSLR camera, the ease of use and portability of the Go Pro makes it a no brainer! My advice is to keep experimenting, with different angles, from the mast I tend to point the camera towards the harness lines, but if you want to see more of the board in the shot, it sometimes work to have the camera pointing more angled around the mast.

Yep the Go Pro sure is a wonderful device and all I can say is I wish I had thought of it, I could do a hell of a lot with 2.5 billion dollars!

“ I find the most consistent best shots happen all the time when just holding the camera ” – Kai Lenny

Kai Lenny
The mounts I use for shooting windsurfing are some very basic ones but they tend to get the best shots. It goes back to the old saying, “less is more”. My quiver consists of:

• GoPro Roll Bar mount: Prime spots to put the mount are the end of the boom as well as the front of the boom. As for the mast, I like this mount for the tip top of the mast. Another prime area is on the mast sleeve cut out just above the boom. This mount is low key; it does not affect my riding. But I like the fact that I can add the pole extension to get the camera some distance from me.

• Flymount: I like this one for about mid way up my mast. It’s nice to not have to cut a hole in the mast sleeve in order to get the shot.

• ProMount Mouth Piece: This one is awesome because you can get a great POV but you can always spit it out and hold it in your hand for a selfie. I find the most consistent best shots happen all the time when just holding the camera.

“ Use it during the midday sun as it’s usually overhead so you don’t get the shadows on your face or body ” – Sean O’Brien

Sean O’Brien
My top 5 tips for POV cameras are:

1. Don’t get them wet! The best photos you can get off your GoPro are when you do your first couple of runs before the camera gets wet. The batteries inside them heat up after use and against the cool water of the ocean they fog up quickly or might have a lot of water droplets on the photo. I always find the best photos are from the first run while it’s still dry. 

2. You can get some good angles from them by attaching your GoPro to a spare mast and having someone hold the mast upright out in the water and sailing underneath it. With the fisheye lens of the GoPro you get a very cool wide shot of the beach and the sailor underneath it. 

3. After you’ve done a few runs, go back to the beach and open the case and wipe it with a dry cloth inside and out. This lets the warm air out and stops them fogging up (and also removes water droplets). 

4. For the best shots, use them in the midday sun (11am-2pm) when it’s REALLY sunny as the GoPro’s get nice colours.

5. Make sure when you set it up as a mast cam to take a photo of something first, about the same distance as your subject is away; the GoPro will set the focus and aperture automatically to that point. I see a lot of people stick their face in front of the GoPro to check the settings are right and the camera sets itself up to take a photo of something only 30cm away instead of you sailing which might be 2.5m away and makes the focus wrong. 

For attachments I only use the FlyMount which attaches to the mast and the boom. When I setup my GoPro, for photos I use the highest resolution available and for video I mostly shoot on 60fps at 1080p. I don’t use any solutions to keep the lens clean because whatever I’ve tried it still fogs up, so I still think the best strategy is to get your photos on the first run when it’s still dry, then come in and open the case and wipe it inside and out with a dry cloth and go again. Opening the case for a few seconds will stop the fogging. If you’re using the GoPro as a mast cam, the best is to use it during the midday sun as it’s usually overhead so you don’t get the shadows on your face or body as much as when it’s the afternoon sun. I find I end up taking 700 photos to only get one I like – a pretty bad strike rate!

Ricardo Campello
Normally I use my Go Pro on the mast with the Flymount mast mount when I’m sailing and sometimes on the boom as well, but lately I have lost a few on my drone and last month in Maui I landed so hard from a table top that the cover of the GoPro broke and I lost the GoPro underwater on my first jump out, Antoine Albeau saw everything and was laughing so hard hahahha, but the guys from GoPro gave me a new one! Last year in Pozo I put the little mount for the nose of the board on a brand new GoPro and landed a small backloop on the nose and I didn’t know I had to put a little lock on it and lost it on the bunker and couldn’t find it!, I was so pissed, I swam for like 3 days to find it and couldn’t!! Between this and the drone I’ve lost a few but I normally don’t tie it, haha, too lazy.

Bjorn Dunkerbeck
I like using the mounts on the boom and also on the board. To keep the lens clean, I try not to fall ha ha and there are some different lens repelling fluids. I also use sun screen or just put the camera under water before using it, you need to do this every few minutes I’ve found.

Jason Polakow
My tips for POV cameras are always cool down the housing and camera body otherwise there is a good chance of condensation building up especially in warm water areas. I always use the air conditioning in the car. If I don’t have that luxury I use alcohol wipes. I ALWAYS travel with the battery out of the camera. I don’t know how many times they have accidentally turned on from moving in my bag. Always take your time!!! Check you have the right settings and check the memory card. Recently I worked with the 360 GoPro cube attached to my harness and I got some sick shots.

One of the funniest POV shots I captured would be at Cloudbreak recently where I had the GoPro attached to my gear and I was sitting on the back of the ski as there was not much wind and the current was super strong. We were close to the lineup and a huge 20 foot close out set came through, the guy on the ski panicked and took off and I just barrel rolled with my gear and the Go Pro caught all the carnage! It’s the closing scene on my latest Cloudbreak JP Chronicles video!

“ ALWAYS travel with the battery out of the camera ” – Jason Polakow

Ben Proffitt
My best tip for POV cameras is mix it up so when you’re making a video use all the angles. I use a K4 harness mount for jumping shots, a head cam for filming others, a nose cam for wave riding and big back loop shots, a boom cam for facial expression shots and finally a mast cam for a really good all round angle and telling how bald you’re getting!

For me the best POV camera angle is the K4 mount (harness mount) especially for jumping. You really do get a unique view, kind of like a little drone following you around very closely. As it’s not that easy sometimes to get someone to film you…this angle is the best for learning and working out what you’re doing right or wrong. Plus you get some pretty cool jumping screen grabs. I have a couple of great landing shots from back loops where it looks like I’m totally submerged!! I really didn’t know I went that deep! My worst POV camera moment was when I taped it to the nose and first run out busted out a big backie and after the landing looked down to see no camera!!!  Dived in straight away..  but it was Australia..  sun going down and I couldn’t see anything!!! Spent 1 hour swimming but nothing… also on the early K4 mount I had the stick break and had to swim for my life to get it in massive waves!!

Justyna Sniady
My tip for POV cameras is just put the camera on! I know sometimes we are in a rush to get on the water, but it really is worth it to put the cam on a mast or boom or just grab a harness mount. You can get some all-time crashes or even get a first time landed move! So my tip is use them as often as possible! It’s the best way to get footage without having to take time from anyone! And this footage comes in handy when learning new things so you can never get too much:)

My favourite POV would be the K4 harness mount. It is like having someone following you with the camera at all times.. all the way through each move. You don’t feel it at all so you can fully go for it, but at the same time you get a great angle that helps when analysing moves and also the best alternative to the footage taken from land. My funniest POV moment must be when I captured a bird sh@tting on me when I was sailing a reef quite far off-shore in Australia haha.. right on my shoulder – what are the odds? Apparently it’s good luck!

Jem Hall
I strongly recommend POV cameras for self-coaching. They are very effective for a few reasons. The first is because you focus on sailing better, as you are aware that Big-Bro GoPro is watching you, and so you will inevitably raise your game. As you can imagine, the footage shows exactly where your hands are, and where you are looking all the time and with no excuses, the camera tells no lies.

It is important to understand that first you must know what you are looking to see on the screen. So I suggest you brush up on the suggested basic head, hands and hip position (the 3 vital H’s in many moves) for all your windsurfing antics. This is a big benefit as you begin to research and already glean important tips on how to sail better!

Next you can begin to view and post positive pics of yourself and this success helps breed confidence and in turn progression.

Lastly, if you edit the footage and document it, then you get a comparison of your sailing over time and it helps you assess how your targets are being met, or not, and furthermore gets you to identify what to do to actually move forward. This edited footage can also be seen by a nice friendly coach like me, and can advise on the positives to take from it, and your opportunities to improve.

“ I strongly recommend POV cameras for self-coaching ” – Jem Hall

The post POINTS OF VIEW appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

The post UKWA 2015 COURSE RACING CHAMPIONS CROWNED appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

TIREE WAVE CLASSIC DAY 6 VIDEO, FINAL RESULTS AND GALLERY

TIREE WAVE CLASSIC 2015 FINAL RESULTS

Pros
1st Ross Williams (Gaastra, Tabou)
2nd Phil Horrocks (Gaastra, Tabou)
3rd Andy ‘Bubble’ Chambers (Pryde, JP Australia, AgentEight)

Womens
1st Sara Kellet (Tushingham
2nd Sara Bibby (Simmer, Simmer, O’shea)
3rd Jenna Pettit

Ams
1st Scott McDowell
2nd Ben Page
3rd Stewart Cowling

Masters
1st Daniel Melbourne
2nd Graham Pettit
3rd Jon Alstead

Pictures from day 5 courtesy of https://www.facebook.com/tireewaveclassic

The post TIREE WAVE CLASSIC DAY 6 VIDEO, FINAL RESULTS AND GALLERY appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

WINDSURF MAGAZINE #351 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER ISSUE ON SALE

The November/December 2015 Issue of the world’s only monthly English-language windsurfing magazine is out now!

Subscribe or grab your copy now in either 

Digital or 

Print  versions!

The Cool winds issue. High wind kit test – 80L wave boards and 4.7 wave sails. Kauli’s South Pacific exploration, Cranking Cornwall, Tobago travel, Isle of Wight circumnavigation, Danish Sizzler – the battle for Cold Hawaii, Harty’s wave directory part 2 – wave selection and wave types, Jem’s gybe exit tips, Sebastian Wenzel, Fanatic’s shaper interviewed, How to make a sail – the Point 7 production process, Xmas gift guide.

BIG JUICY READS

SAILING THE SOUTH PACIFIC
Ever searching for the prefect wave and breeze, we join Captain Kauli Seadi as he tells us more about his South Pacific odyssey to the Society Islands, Cook Islands and Tonga.

MEXICAN WAVE
A classic southerly forecast lit up St Ives bay last spring and duly rewarded the Motley Crew. JC reports from the dunes of Mexico’s, a small sandbar with a big punch!

DANISH SIZZLER
The 2015 PWA Cold Hawaii delivered red hot action in the North Sea; John Carter reports on an epic event and quizzes the top 4 on their North Sea secrets.

SEBASTIAN WENZEL
John Carter catches up with Fanatic’s head shaper, Sebastian Wenzel, to find out more about the life of a shaper, twenty years at the top of his trade.

MAKING A SAIL
Andrea Cucchi gives us an exclusive behind the scenes look at the production facilities used by Point 7 in Sri Lanka and an insight into the manufacture of a sail.

TOBAGO TIME
Ripe with tropical vibes and great windsurfing, Tobago offers the authentic Caribbean experience. Nick Jones and Jem Hall explain why you should let its trade winds lure you there.

ROUND THE ISLE OF WIGHT
Ross Williams and John Carter go all the way round their home island. Armed with a decent safety boat and an experienced driver, JC tells how their circumnavigation went down!

GEAR SHED

80 LITRE WAVE BOARDS
The test team examine the latest boards for strong wind conditions.

FANATIC Quad TE 82
RRD Wave Cult V6 LTD 80
STARBOARD Quad 84
TABOU Da Curve 86
QUATRO Cube 85
SEVERNE Nuevo 86
JP Thruster Quad 84

4.7 WAVE SAILS
4.7, the magic sail number, the team test the latest designs for 2016.

NORTH Hero 4.7m
SEVERNE S1 4.7m
RRD Vogue 4.7m
EZZY Taka 2 4.7m
SIMMER Icon 4.7m
NEIL PRYDE Combat 4.7m
POINT-7 Salt 4.7m
GA SAILS IQ 4.7m
ATTITUDE Allstar 4.7m
VANDAL Riot 4.7m
GOYA Banzai 4.7m

TEKKERS

PETER HART TECHNIQUE – WAVE CONDITIONS DIRECTORY PART II
Peter Hart explores how the wave sailor’s approach and expectations are affected by the various types of waves and how to decode them.

MOVE ON UP WITH JEM HALL – END GAME.
Jem Hall assists you to fire out of your gybe exits.

BOARDSHORTS

LATEST & GREATEST
Freshly baked, carefully crafted and brand spanking new – we list the latest to be called the greatest.

CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE
Oh Santa please give us wind for Christmas and I don’t mean from Nan’s brussel sprouts. All we want is a nice present of a force 5/6, but anything else in this guide would be good too!

SITTIN’ ON THE DUNNY

EDITORIAL – COOL WINDS.
The editor looks forward to winter and wonders in the light of recent reports on ocean temperatures, what weather it will bring?

AFFAIRS OF THE HART
Harty ponders on why Autumns in Ireland and Scotland are like Forest Gump’s box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get  – but they’re always ‘chocolatey.’

Get your 

Print

The post NOV DEC 2015 ISSUE ON SALE appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

EXMOUTH, DEVON, UK

AT A GLANCE
Located on the south east Devon coast at the mouth of the river Exe offering great conditions in all wind directions.

SEASON
All year round.

WHO IS IT GOOD FOR?
Beginners: 5/5
Intermediates: 5/5
Advanced: 4/5
Freestyle: 4/5
Wave: 3/5

LOCAL CENTRES
Exmouth Watersports & Adventure Camps.
info@exmouthwatersports.com
01395 276 599

About the centre
Exmouth Watersports operate from four locations so will be able to find the best place for your lesson depending on the conditions. They also have a fully stocked shop, campsite and bunkhouse.

How to get there
Come off the M5 at junction 30 and follow signs to Exmouth. Regular trains to Exmouth from Exeter St. David’s. Closest airport is Exeter.

Where to stay
Prattshayes campsite and bunkhouse (run by Exmouth Watersports) has camping facilities for tents, caravans and motorhomes and also a bunkhouse and private rooms. www.prattshayes.co.uk 01395 276 626.
There are also many hotel and B&B options nearby, try “The Swallows B&B” www.swallowsguesthouse.co.uk 01395 263 937.

Riding on offer
On the estuary the location known as “the duckpond” by the locals is an ideal flatwater area and at high tide is about waist deep all over, therefore offering perfect conditions for beginners, intermediates and freestylers. Round onto the seafront the various sand bars offer good wave riding when it blows hard, and low tide speed trials.

The post MICRO GUIDE : EXMOUTH, DEVON, UK appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

BEN PROFFITT – THE FIRST TIME

There comes a time in every windsurfer’s life when you really know you’re hooked; it’s that first plane, first lie to your boss when it’s windy, first smile at the hint of a windy weekend – even if it’s bucketing down. Fellow addicts fear not, you are in good company as here at Windsurf we know the joys and the pain and are ready to hear confessions. So please pull up a pew and listen to one of the greatest windsurf sinners we know, the man with more than a few British titles to his name – multiple UK wave champion, the greatest gift of the gab on tour and maestro of the mic. – Ben Proffitt. Read on as JC breaks down the Rhosneigr ripper’s inner demons in the pound store psychology of ‘The first time….’

Words & Photos JOHN CARTER

(This feature originally appeared in the July 2015 issue of Windsurf Magazine. To read more features like this first, Print and Digital subscriptions are available. Prices include delivery globally for 10 x issues a year!)

First board you ever owned?
BP: Vinta twist, in a lovely Yellow, tipping the scales at around 20kg I reckon!

First time you nailed a forward loop?
BP: I think it was the year 2000, I was a late starter!

First board you ever loved?
BP: A Newaves 245 custom, bought second hand (it was Mr Newave son’s board), which had an extra mast track further back in it as it was for short asses! I was ahead of the times! Haha!

First time you got ripped off?
BP: I bought a Volkswagen mark 1 golf when I was about twenty.  It looked mint and I was super happy with it but the bloody thing just kept cutting out. I had to drive it with my hand on the handbrake because if I took my foot off the accelerator it would cut out. So I had to use the handbrake and clutch and keep revving it! It was a bloody nightmare but funny. I finally thought I’d fixed it and sold it to my sister; she blew the engine up two weeks later!

First time you had a hangover?
BP: To be honest I never used to get them but I do remember a racing event in Bridlington where I was dying after a big Saturday night! There was meant to be no wind so when I peered out the van on the Sunday morning to see 8 – 10 knots and the ‘go afloat’ flag was up I was crying inside. I remember a few of the boys not making it but I some how managed to make the start and race. I really wasn’t in a good way. I was throwing up round the top mark, down the reaches and over the finish. I really was bad. But the crazy thing was I actually won! Ha ha!

“ He was a hero then and still is today. His name is Farrell O’ Shea and I’m proud to have him as a sponsor ’’

First time you won a competition?
BP: I think I won a dance competition when I was like 6 years old at a holiday camp in France! I am not sure what happened to my moves since then.

First time you did the PWA commentary?
BP: I think it was Vietnam, Mui ne beach.

First time you messed up live on camera?
BP: It was probably Vietnam! It all came down to the last day so it was super exciting. I think a few swear words might have popped out. Sometimes I get a bit carried away on the mic. but windsurfing is my passion !

First time you went on a windsurfing road trip?
BP: Probably when I was nine years old.  Dad gave this famous windsurfing bloke and his mate a lift to West Kirby in our van. I tagged along in the back on a plastic garden chair. I was amazed as this famous bloke had just come back from Hawaii and had like 13 boards!  I just had my Vinta Twist. I was asking him loads of questions and trying to find out about what he did, how Hawaii was so I think he couldn’t wait to get on the water for some peace and quiet. When he did, he was the talk of the beach as he did a flat water loop! The funny thing is I still remember that day sitting in the back of the van with all those boards. He was a hero then and still is today. His name is Farrell O’ Shea and I’m proud to have him as a sponsor. Pretty funny how things that happen when you are young have such a big effect on your life!

First time you were in trouble with the law?
BP: Probably in Lowestoft when I was about 17-18. We were on our way back from a night out and decided to take the short cut. Problem was the short cut was over water so we had to borrow a ‘pedalo’. We had intentions on giving it back but we kind of over slept and the Police man was round to wake us up!  Oops!

First time you were in big trouble with your parents?
BP: There was this UKBSA end of year do where things got a bit out of hand. To cut a very long story short, I was around 18, I’d had a few drinks and as I was getting my prize I some how managed to fall off the stage! I leant against the curtain but there was no wall behind it so I just disappeared backwards! I was pretty embarrassed so didn’t want to come out from behind the curtain. It is hard to explain but all the walls had a curtain in front of them! So I found myself in this space between the wall and the curtain. I made my way round the building to the other side and realised everyone was looking for me, so when I turned up at the other side they all thought I was taking the piss.

Anyway we moved on from that and sat down for a three course dinner at the table. Then some guy started throwing food. I wasn’t into it so told him he should stop. To cut another long story short; he didn’t . So I picked up the trifle in front of me walked over to the table where he was and emptied it on his head and new suit. Then told him let’s take it outside. Before anything happened everyone rushed out and broke it up. Everyone was kind of pissed with me so I went for a walk and being a frustrated young man I punched a window. Problem being the window wasn’t very strong and it broke! Sometimes things just spiral out of control. My parents weren’t too happy as you can imagine but to be fair I can’t blame them.

First time you crashed on a windsurfer?
BP: I’m not sure about crash but the first time I nearly drowned was the first time I was on the sea. I think I was about ten years old and we were on holiday in Cornwall. I decided I was going to have a go on the sea at Marazion. So I was waiting to beach start at the waters edge and this little wave came through and broke on top of me. It wasn’t a big wave but it pinned me to the beach! I was trapped, there was no battens in the sail so it felt like someone had ‘cling wrapped’ me to it. I couldn’t move; and as soon as the wave had sucked back out and the pressure had gone, the next wave would land on top of me! I really thought I was going to die. I can still see all the little stones washing around me as I struggled to free myself. After about four waves and what seemed an eternity I managed to get myself free, coughing and spluttering and crying, I see my dad  laughing his head off! I wasn’t a happy fella as I don’t think he realised how bad it was. It took me years before I went back on the sea! Now I spend my life chasing wind and waves on every ocean of the world !

First time you did a massive jump?
BP: I was a bit of a late starter so it was probably when I started doing big stalled forwards in Cape Town. I’ve had some pretty massive jumps at Whitsands over the years and to be honest on its day Sunset can be pretty decent for rocket airs!

“ Now I spend my life chasing wind and waves on every ocean of the world ! ”

First time you rode a massive wave?
BP: Probably Elands Bay 2003/4, the beach break was mast high and out back was huge, well over mast, maybe even double; well that’s what I remember but I bet if I went back it wouldn’t feel as big now!

First time you were really angry?
BP: Really not sure about the first time but I remember this one time when I was about 17 and we had been at the Surfers Against Sewage Ball in Cornwall. I borrowed my dad’s car and there was a pretty crazy party in a field somewhere. I was sleeping in the back of the car on a board bag or something with the boot slightly open as my feet were in the way. Anyway I was passed out when I woke up to a bang. Then three seconds later another ‘bang’ and then the car was moving, half asleep I looked out the window to see another car reverse into my dad’s car again! So I jump out of bed just as the car is trying to drive off. Luckily the field was super muddy and they couldn’t get much traction. I was so angry as they were trying to drive off with out saying anything. There was no fighting as it was a girl driver and she was still drunk. But I said a few choice words before getting insurance details!

First time you had a real travel disaster?
BP: Not mine but a funny one I remember was checking in with the British youth team and some how Nick Dempsey managed to check in and then put his passport into his checked luggage! It was a total nightmare as he didn’t realise for a while and the bag was long gone!

First time you had a punch up?
BP: Benidorm, 1998, it was more a beat down! I was trying to help a mate out who was getting the sh!t kicked out of him. I took the bloke down (Big Bouncer ) but the glory didn’t last long as about five dudes kicked the hell out of me!
It’s a long story but most people who know me have heard it. My nose hasn’t been the same since!

First time you broke a bone?
BP: Err..see above! Touch wood the only bone I’ve broke has been my nose but I’ve done it enough times to make up for the ones I haven’t.

First time you were conned?
BP: After the mistral Europeans one year; me and my mate (Dom Tidey) were told we should go to Mikonos as there would be loads of women there. To cut a long story short again; it turned out to be the gay capital of Europe!  After just one night we raced back to the ferry and waited for it to leave. The problem was they didn’t know when it was going to leave as the weather was too rough, 12hrs later we finally managed to escape!

First time you gambled?
BP: Grand National, 1990, Mr Frisk, 18 /1, 50p each way, £9.50!!! Booooooooom! Ha ha and that’s when it started!

First time you won some money?
BP: See above

“ Sometimes I get a bit carried away on the mic. but windsurfing is my passion ! ”

First time you hit a massive lip and landed in the flats?
BP: I remember a scary aerial in Elands on the beach break, it must have been 2003/4 I rode the point all the way in and as it hit the beach it just jacked up and I was caught in no man’s land. If I had tried to pull out it would have just eaten me from the side so I had to hit it. I caught it so well it just launched me towards the beach.  I landed so far out in front and so flat I thought both my legs had snapped… and as I landed the board kind of jumped back out of the water and kicked me off. I then got mauled by the wave and broke my mast into 3 pieces and destroyed my sail! Bugger!

First time you nailed a double loop?
BP: Cape Town 2005. I was trying to persuade Laure Treboux to go for forwards, so I told her if I go for a double you have to try a single. She agreed, so first run nicely powered on my 4.5 I go off this big bit of swell out the back, spin round twice and landed perfect! I couldn’t believe it, it was so easy! Of course I came straight in and lo and behold, no one saw anything! Typical! I nailed a few more that day but none as good as the first.

First time you went so high you were shit scared?
BP:  I remember doing this jump at Bala when I was like 11-12, I was on a 2.8 and I just launched into orbit; well that’s what it felt like! I had visions of me looking like that guy ‘Dale’ from the Hood River who goes massive. In reality it was probably about 3 ft!

First time you bought a record?
BP: Happy Mondays, ‘Halleluiah’, it was 1989 and I was 11 years old.

First time you bought an album:
BP: Guns and Roses, ‘Appetite for destruction’. Listening to it in the car on the way home didn’t go down well with Mum when ‘It’s so easy’ came on! Great album though, I still love it!

First time you were romantic?
BP: I am still working on that one!

First time you owned a car?
BP: I was 16 years old; it was a Champagne (not beige or brown!) 950cc ford Fiesta! Plus I saved up for some Alloys. Yep I was living the dream! I lived in the sticks so I worked part time taking moulds off concrete pigs (ha ha, don’t even ask, I was making £4 an hour cash! Which was not bad back then) to save up to buy it!.

First time you owned a new car?
BP: Actually I’ve never owned a new car but I’ve just been given the New Ford Transit custom to use and I have to say it’s awesome! It has all the toys and is so comfortable to drive! I definitely could get used to it!

First time you were jealous?
BP: There was this bloke at Bala lake when I was nine way back in 1988 that used to do the most amazing planning carve gybes on his F2 sunset slalom!  The gybe was a big thing back then, I was so jealous!

First time you were stuck for words
Editor – Ben, never, until now ! – if you want to hear more from Ben, that’s never a problem, check him out on the PWA live stream, he really does a great job or catch him on www.facebook.com/k800ben

The post BEN PROFFITT – THE FIRST TIME appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

MARCILIO BROWNE , HOOKIPA 2015

Action from Marcilio Browne at Hookipa 2015.

The post MARCILIO BROWNE , HOOKIPA 2015 appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

POSTCARDS FROM THE PROS

One of the benefits of working here at Windsurf towers is receiving, on a daily basis, updates from Pros from around the world. Even if it’s cold, raining and the footpath is covered in doggie doo, we can still rely on our thoughtful windsurf pros to send us postcards from their sun drenched training hideouts just to let us know what a great time they have been having; even when we tell them to ‘shut up, go away, we hate you, hope you get sunburnt’ they still keep sending them. Anyways, we don’t hold a grudge here at Windsurf, so before we put them in a large bonfire, cremate and bury them in a hole 10 feet underground we thought you might like a look at them too…sorry office emergency, got to go here readers, ‘’Nooo, JC wait a minute, we can probably get 10 quid for that Dunkerbeck one on ebay !’’

Words & Photos JOHN CARTER

(This feature originally appeared in the May 2015 issue of Windsurf Magazine. To read more features like this first, Print and Digital subscriptions are available. Prices include delivery globally for 10 x issues a year!)

Kevin Pritchard
What’s up Windsurf ? I just wanted to send you a postcard from Cabo Verde so you can see what you have been missing! I heard the water in the UK is extra brown right now and you been scoring some cold gusty winds and mushy south coast waves. Well never mind that, I finally scored Punta Preta really going off. Punta Preta is still the best wave in the world that I have ever been to and I nailed a couple of airs like one of my favourite ever shots that JC took of me back in 2007. I have been waiting a long time for an air like this! I don’t want to make JC jealous or anything but maybe it was even better this time. The conditions were epic; I was on a 5.0 Ezzy Elite and my 90 litre Starboard Proto, still curing the Thailand resin. It was amazing and I am not sure if it was as high as the 2007 air but definitely made my knees quiver. I haven’t been going out to any bars but with this air, I had to celebrate! Hope you guys are doing well in the freezing cold UK. All the best from Cabo Verde!  The Pritch 

Sarah Quita Offringa
I’m having a sabbatical now and I decided it was time for a proper windsurfing adventure, destination: Australia! Together with my friend Julian, we bought a badass 4×4 and drove up and down the Westcoast chasing the best conditions. I heard JC was there just before I arrived but when he went to Geraldton it was the one cloudy day of the season and the pubs all closed early!  I managed to sail my new NeilPryde gear in some of the most famous wave spots in the world, Gnaraloo, Margaret River and Geraldton. It was a crash course in camping and living outdoors. Although I do prefer to have showers daily and a bed to sleep in, I have to admit it was amazing sleeping under such a starry sky and waking up to breathtaking sunrises! Geraldton is a freestyle playground. Freestyling with the likes of Tilo Eber, Dieter van Der Eyken and Marco Lufen is really motivating! I finally landed some of my first pasko’s and got some backloops down. One day I attended the freestyle contest at Woodman’s point. I had a blast with the local freestylers, absolutely loved the spot and finished 2nd with the boys. Gnaraloo was a great spot for waves, but one day we ended up having to endure 46 degrees heat before driving back to civilization at the end of the day. Of course I was cranky, and then right before sunset we decided to go on a dirt road for a film shoot. Just our luck, it had been raining and we bogged ourselves into a metre of mud. As the sun was setting we were frantically trying to dig ourselves out. Two hours later, one car finally drove past and stopped and the two guys inside helped us out. Thank the lord! Didn’t feel like spending the night there! We slept under the stars, couchsurfed, saw bushfires, kangaroos, drove hours and hours along the coast, got pulled over by the cops, windsurfed remote beaches and ate scrambled eggs every single morning for 30 days. All in all, the perfect adventure! Now I’m back home in Aruba to work on a new film project. I was looking forward to some proper freestyling, but instead I scored some amazing wavesailing days. Can you believe it ? , this Island has it all ! After Aruba I’m headed to Maui for some more wave training. I’m not sure this sabbatical is long enough for me. There are so many more places I want to go to. Maybe I should take a second year off! Anyway, I’m gonna go sticker up my smaller sails. It’s windier than I expected it to be!
Wish you were here! Sarah Quita

Victor Fernandez
I heard there have been some good conditions in the UK but I can assure you Chile has been really good too ! It has been a windy season down here in South America. I have been training hard here since the middle of January. This is the land of the lefts and I have been scoring port tack conditions nearly every day, side onshore in Pupuya, side off shore in Topocalma and side shore in Matanzas with waves from 1.5m up to over mast high. I have been sailing a lot, surfing in between and visiting the city of Santiago with my girlfriend and my parents at the end of the trip. My best session was my last windy day at Topocalma in the morning and also the evening session at Matanzas the same day was epic. So many turns, perfect blue sky and all to myself! I have been riding anything from 4.2 up to 5.6 Hero´s and 81 up to 89 Quads. There are not many bars around Matanzas area but there is an amazing restaurant and some other local places to eat healthy food. Last night we had Corvina (local fish) with quinoa salad on the side plus a Coulant de Chocolate for dessert, it was amazing. Apart from sailing, my dad and I had some fun sessions at the house cutting some trees with the chainsaw to prepare the wood for the hot tub! If you fancy a trip out to Chile, best season is October through until April. October and November are a safer bet to score wind. I usually pack sails from 4.2 up to 5.6, 81 and 89 Quad and don’t forget a surf board.
Adios Victor Fernandez!

Taty Frans
Spending my winter time at my home, ‘Bonaire’, has been amazing! The season for wind has begun and it is blowing everyday.Can you imagine sailing for weeks almost every day with 20 plus knots wind, warm sunny weather in your board shorts in shallow crystal clear water! I reckon even JC could improve out here although we heard he is scared when he puts his feet in the straps! The best thing about sailing here is when I watch my favourite animal; the ‘turtle’, stick its head out of that warm blue water and quickly dive back down. Man I love it! I have been busy combining my training in fitness and at the same time slalom and freestyle on the water, so pretty busy but life is treating me good. I enjoy each session, either slalom or freestyle, but till now I had some of my best sessions with Amado Vrieswijk in the waves out at Lac Cai training the pasko, push loops and backies. The double loop is still something Amado and I are deliberating about but the one who does is first will get a present from the other so the race is on! Freestyle gear I have used has been the Flare 91 and Pure 5.0 while on slalom I have been mostly on 7.9 and 120l Isonic. I have been eating a lot of rice and my main dish is Fish with rice with baked banana. The best moment of the winter so far was to win the St Barth fun cup and luckily I have avoided any disasters. If you are planning a vacation and you choose to come to Bonaire it’s best to come from November to December when the wind blows around 15-20 knots and then when it steps up from January until August when the wind can be average 18-25 knots. Renting gear is a piece of cake as there are two windsurfing centres; Jibe City, stocking JP, Fanatic and F2 Boards and Severne, NeilPryde and MauiSails and Bonaire Windsurf Place which has RRD, Starboard, Naish boards and Hotsails Maui. Hope to see you all here soon. The water is blue, wind is blowing and life is good here in Bonaire!
Taty Frans NB-9

Bjorn Dunkerbeck
Hola Windsurf, I have spent a lot of time on the water here on Gran Canaria between Slalom, Speed, SUP, wave sailing and also some long boarding. Yep it has been nice and warm unlike the UK! We have had strong winds and some pretty good waves as well, stay tuned on my Facebook www.facebook.com/Bjoern.Dunkerbeck and
www.dunkerbeck.com. The biggest sail I have used since I can remember has to be a 7.8m and smallest 4.2m. I did do one mission to St Bart in the Caribbean and used my 8.6m; I almost forgot I was at the St Bart fun cup as there has been so many sessions at home. Since my father turned 70 in December I have taken over the Dunkerbeck windsurfing school, making it part of my surf and sup school and I promised him I would keep the windsurfing centre going forever! Aside from all the sailing I have been biking, spending lots of time with my family and even scored a few sessions in Siam Park. I also have the Dunkerbeck speed challenge coming up at the end of June, check it out at www.facebook.com/DunkerbeckGPSspeedchallenge. I had some amazing speed sessions at Arinaga, a few decent wave days down the coast and every time I freeride with my Son Liam and my Father in front of Side Shore is a pleasure. I have mostly been on my 7.0 reflex Severne and 54 cm Starboard speed board or my blades with Kodes in the waves. I have had a few drinks in the Drop in Bar and Restaurant at Side Shore, right next to our Bungalows and windsurf, sup centre here on Gran Canaria, check it out
www.sideshore-es.com. You should send Carter down here sometime, he would love the Drop in bar and I could thrash him on my favourite mountain bike route. Last night we had a great Barbecue at Drop inn and I can tell you there has never been a dull moment over here taking care of our four kids with my wife Maria. The only real bad news has been Alberto Meneggati; RIP, I still can’t believe what has happened to him! We are very sorry for him and his family and friends! If you fancy coming here then summer on Gran Canaria is the time. The wind blows from 20 to 40 knots depending where you go. Pozo, Vargas, Castillo, Side Shore and Burrero are the spots. Winter winds from10 to 25 are normal whenever there is a High Pressure over the Azores we have great wind here! Hope it’s not too icy back in the UK!
Saluda’s Bjorn!

Dieter Van Der Eyken
It’s been a really windy season in Western-Australia this year with plenty of waves which was really great to practice my wave sailing for next year on the tour. I’ve been sailing mostly on my Nuevo 73 and S-1 PRO 4.4 this season for waves and my Freek 4.8 with my Flare 91 for Freestyle. Best session this trip was for sure in Gnaraloo, so good. Imagine yourself on a 2 – 3 metre wave, 22 knots side to side-off wind and around 8 turns a wave from 10.00 in the morning till sunset at 20.00 at night ! Besides epic waves up north, Coronation has been great as well with plenty of chances to improve my jumping, the goal was to land a double before I left for Christmas but feeling ready for it I saw Jaeger make such a horrible crash I decided to put that thought on hold for a bit. The crash looked so bad that I was almost sure he broke something, after his first forward he was still at least 6 metres high and with the second one going more like a cheese roll. You could see he had no control. In the end it wasn’t too bad as he just slammed his chin on the boom and didn’t break anything; I do have to say it took another month before I saw him try another double. For my part I made my goal and managed to land my first double just 2 days before I would go home but there is still a lot of work to do on making them look nice! We had an epic night out in Esperance, this bar offered the biggest burger you can imagine for 10 $ and tricked everyone in to singing karaoke. How? Well imagine a beer costs you at least 8 $ and you get a free one for every song you sing. Throw in a few extra friends who write your name up without you knowing and before you know it you’re singing in a bar on the other side of the world !. The most scary/exciting moment of the trip was seeing a 4 meter shark pass in front of my board! Yep we will get JC down there for water shots next time! Best time to come to W.A. is for sure December and January for some reason you have almost wind every single day in this period! See you next year?
G’Day mate! Dieter Van Der Eyken!

Robby Swift
We have had one of the best winters I can ever remember on Maui. We haven’t had the usual steady stream of trade winds and nice weather, but rather stormy unsettled weather coming over from the south of the Hawaiian islands, known to the locals here as “Kona Storms”. The North Shore of Maui transforms into a surfer’s paradise when the winds switch Kona. SW winds are cross offshore from the left, rather than the usual E-NE trade winds which are side shore from the right. Waves which usually kind of close out and don’t offer any good riding potential become long, peeling, heavy left handers which offer some amazingly clean, steep and hollow rides. Lanes is the best spot on the North Shore when the winds switch to Kona and the bigger it gets, the better. Until the waves reach well over double mast high, the Kona winds hold the waves up so that they don’t close out and when they hit the reef, they clean up and, depending on the state of the tide, sometimes offer some incredible barrelling pits. That’s not to mention the epic Jaws swell we had in January, it has been quite a few years since I have scored a good Jaws swell, for whatever reason the wind, waves and my presence have not coincided since 2012 for a decent Jaws day but this January 20th made up for it. The weather forecasters were calling for one of the biggest swells of all time. The waves were hitting the NW buoy at 27feet and 21 seconds which is almost the biggest I have ever seen on the buoy readings. I showed up with Jason just for the peak of the swell and had some of the most memorable rides of my life up there, and then came back the next morning to surf on my paddle-in board for the first time ever. I caught 6 waves before getting pounded by a massive set and breaking my board, leaving me to have to swim in over the rocks to rescue the other half of my destroyed board and climb up the cliff to call my wife Heidy to ask her to come and pick me up. They were truly two of the most memorable days of my life and the steady stream of Kona winds timed perfectly with massive swells over the next few weeks gave me some of the best windsurfing conditions I have ever had. I have been riding my 83L 2015 JP Radical Quad the whole time, coupled with either the Fly 5.1 or Combat 4.7 or 4.5. Maui is pretty good like that. You can generally get away with 1 or 2 sails and 1 board. The best season in Maui is September – November or March-May. That will give you the most solid chance of wind and waves. All summer there is good wind here but it goes pretty flat in June-August. There really isn’t really much to do on Maui in the way of nightlife, Maui is just a surfers/windsurfer’s paradise where you go to bed by 9pm and are up by 6am to enjoy all the fun activities that the day can offer you Aloha, Robby Swift!

Adam Lewis
I’ve been travelling all over the place this winter but probably the windiest place I visited has been Tenerife, it’s not normally as consistent in the winter but the waves are better. This winter however I’ve had two months in total here and I don’t think I’ve even used my 5.0 or my 88ltr. It has been 4.0 or less almost the whole time, I am a broken man! Weirdly it’s been all about the dawn patrol sessions, it’s really rare but the wind is a lot more side shore so you can get a really good belt on the Cabezo bowl! JC would have loved the early morning light here in Tenerife, amazing for photos! This has had its negative points as we’ve all been total party poopers, Manfred’s is the place to be but I haven’t even been yet! I think the best restaurant and the one I probably go to the most is Danny Bruch’s terrace! He’s always up for a rad BBQ, there is a really good butcher nearby so it is all about ribs, steak, salad and obviously the local Tenerife beer Dorada, yep that is Carters favourite tipple! It’s been so windy I don’t think I’ve even got any good gossip although the launch and landing in Cabezo is covered in pretty gnarly seaweed at the moment and recently Alex Mussolini, Danny Bruch and I were all trying to come in and all fell over and all broke our boards with the full peanut gallery watching on the beach, pretty embarrassing, we all got a lot of grief about that, but you’ve got to pay your reef tax at some point right! I remember during the world cup last summer Carter falling on his arse in front of the whole crowd, it was hilarious. All in all a pretty epic winter season here! All the best.
Adam

Oda Johanne Stokstad Brødholt
It has been a windy season here on Bonaire in the Caribbean! I decided to book a three month trip to Bonaire for some serious freestyle training. It’s my 3rd time on Bonaire and for the first time, I arrived to no wind! I had to wait a whole week before Bonaire showed me how good it can be. A week of being desperate for windsurfing made me really motivated as soon as the wind picked up. And the wind just never stopped! The first month I sailed a lot on my Severne Freek 5.2 and my 91 Starboard Flare. Later in February the wind increased and I sailed a lot on my 4.8 overpowered. These sessions on 4.8 were so amazing. The new moves I had been practicing in the lighter winds with 5.2 are just so much cooler when I am powered up. For me the first weeks were all about spinloops, air funnels and learning my port tack sliding moves on my dark side – starboard tack. For progression, Bonaire is the best. Stable conditions and you can choose between a lot of different conditions of flat water, chop and monster chop. For shaka’s it is a paradise coming out of the mangrove with flat water – a lot of speed and then hit a steep chop and fly away. When it comes to windsurfing gear and travel plans with flights, it can be quite frustrating bringing a lot of different gear. But traveling to Bonaire you only need one freestyle board and two sails; 5.2 and 4.8. Doesn’t get easier than that! Bonaire has a long wind season. The best months the last three years have been from mid January till August. Last year it blew nonstop here, so fingers crossed that the same will happen this year! Forecast right now looks epic! On the days of no wind I have been going to the gym, doing some running and just being a tourist on this island, driving around filming and taking some photos. The sunsets here on Bonaire are magical; your guy Carter would be scoring some amazing shots! After a session I like to hang out with friends at Sorobon Beach Resort. They have a beach bar with nice drinks and good food. It is located right at the spot, so no need to go far to fill up the energy for your next session! Last night we had delicious Ribs at Bobbe Jans, a local restaurant in Kralendijk on Bonaire! A few days ago we had a great evening session with my boyfriend. The wind was so strong and we had such a crazy session. Everything was perfect, until he crashed really hard trying a ponch and broke his rib! It was bad, but at the same time a bit funny when he was walking around trying not to laugh as that is the most painful thing ever with a broken rib. Two times my big laugh ended up making him laugh and then in tears with pain ! I just can’t help it – when I am laughing, I can’t stop it! Cheers from Bonaire!
Oda 

Danny Bruch
We have been having an awesome winter at home in Tenerife in terms of wind and waves, non-stop! Especially at the end of February, I had two days sailing on a 3.2! I can’t even remember when I have used a sail that small! Waves were pumping too! I have been training lots on and off the water. The best session has been on the 25th of February, my birthday! What a present! 50 knots and insane waves! I sailed for more than 5 hours! I have mostly sailed on my 4.5, 4.2, 3.7 DB 3G 3 batten sail from Challenger sails and my Kode 77L from Starboard. I don’t really go out much anymore; bars don’t really fit together with the training. Last night I ate some insane Spanish ham and a massive T-bone steak, I heard JC has been on a diet but he would have loved this meal! I have not had meat for a while so needed to catch up!  Those windy days are full of funny moments; 360 degree catapults are heaps of fun to do! One guy lost all his gear in the rocks at the entrance though, his gear was stuck in there for ages and he could not get it until the tide dropped. He then picked up the little pieces, we call that reef taxes! Best season is normally Summer, but every year we have got some good storms during winter. Tenerife is good from 5.0 down to 3.2, so depending on forecast I would pack as much as possible to have the choice, 3.7/4.2/4.7/5.3 is normally a good quiver. Lighter guys could even leave the 5.3 behind; boards, one small one big one would be best.  All the best Danny

Scott Mckercher
It has been a cracking season over in WA with many sessions reminiscent of a week of mast high cross off ground-hog days Windsurf’s editor had the pleasure to experience far too long ago now. Summer days are always a premium commodity and even more treasured when I’m not in the vicinity of my happy hunting ground. Any other time of the year I’m not too worried about being away from home, but in summer it almost drives me insane and I can’t stand missing days that are on. One particular time I shouldn’t have checked the web cam while working in the Starboard office in Thailand. I saw a few red sails out at Boaties, a break near to Margaret River and could just tell it was an all-time epic day. This was torture. Later speaking to Ben Severne he said ah, you were looking at me sailing which made it even worse. Sickening in fact! But not long after that I was on a flight home to another good looking pattern. There was a series of events lining up that were looking particularly cherry. One was the Annual Margies comp which I was forced to miss last year and the second was the cleanest groundswell of the season according to some. Twenty minutes of gold with only four guys out was bullshit good as the point gets quite busy these days, so it was the hugest pleasure ever just to be out there. Perfect wind for me, 5.0 Blade on the Quad 79, it was super clean allowing auto pilot to go on and just start whacking it. Carter would have loved it, the wind was in early and the light was awesome, unlike that messy day he came over here in February! Not much bar action for me in the old Margaret river town especially after Carter was here and drunk me dry of beer and wine! Quite a fair bit of home brewed beer has been consumed however; I have been literally knee deep in the stuff, with the occasional stop off every now and again to the ever growing boutique brewing companies around the region. Next time Carter is here I am saving a barrel of slops, he won’t notice the difference! The meal of the summer was some food that goes ‘Baaaa’ in the slow cooker with some Moroccan Seasoning. Truly unbelievable! Back in Thailand again now though however where we fine dined at the Longtable with some particularly fiery drinks. So now feeling a little under the weather with more windguru stars and ground hog days underway back at home. But not looking at that webcam anymore.
Laters Snotty! 

Cyril Moussilmani
Bonjour. I have had an awesome winter so far! In between two training sessions in Vietnam and my home town Marseille, I went to St Barts in the Caribbean for a promotional event.  It was not the windiest conditions, but I did score three beautiful days of slalom sailing. I could have sailed one extra day in waves but I didn’t bring my wave gear. I didn’t know waves could even happen in the Caribbean. On this small but stunning island the food was amazing, French cuisine of course, just like home. Côté Port on the sleepy side of the harbour was divine!, it had a very nice spirit and atmosphere. I mostly rode my 130 Starboard Isonic Carbon with either 9.5m or 8.6m. I should have brought my big wave gear, a 5.7 blade with 100 litre Kode which would have been perfect. St Barts usually has trade winds blowing anything from 10 to 25 knots all winter time until the beginning of spring and the water is crystal clear too and pretty flat on the inside. You should bring a surfboard as well for when the wind isn’t blowing and definitely no need for a wetsuit!
Au Revoir Cyril!!! 

John Skye
Hi Windsurf, how is the UK, you really should have been in Cape Town. I was only there for three whole weeks but scored some of the best waves ever. We dialled into at least five big and heavy swells which came through and we sailed epic spots that I didn’t even think could be so sick. The wind was a bit strange so we ended up driving thousands of miles, but the journeys were all worth it. I have been busy testing the new Wave Cults and they are feeling awesome in all conditions while the new sails are looking and working amazing too. We spent most evenings eating Morituri pizza’s at Colcacchio’s and drinking thirst quenching Peroni from iced glasses. I have to admit that has been it for night life, as I have been too punished from all the sailing. Whitey messed up the trip a bit by snapping his Achilles, but that just meant I didn’t have to listen to all his stories again.  I am back in Gran Canaria now where it’s even better! I have only sailed on 3.7m for the last two weeks, with at least five days of mast high and sailing in a summer suit. Hope it warms up for you a bit over there in Blighty !
Skyeboy!

Timo Mullen
I really wish I was sending you a postcard from somewhere warm and tropical but the only postage mark you are going to find on my postcard is from right here in the U.K.  Not that I’m complaining as it has been a pretty good winter season, not the windiest but plenty of memorable moments!  I’m now working in Cornwall and building a house 100m from the beach at Gwithian so hopefully that means I won’t have to spend half my life driving around the UK in search of waves!  Cornwall hasn’t been mega for wind but the days that have been good have been pretty special. I scored some mega days at Praa Sands, Porthleven and Marazion, but only really a handful of Gwithian sessions.  The story of the winter has to be the non stop swell. KBay has seen some great surfing days but back home in Ireland it has been huge!!  This has meant quite a few Easyjet missions to the West of Ireland; those sessions are probably the highlight of my winter, glassy mast high waves with just my brothers and my dad for company.  I keep a set of gear in Ireland to try and keep the excess baggage charges down, I’m pretty much always on my Starboard 94 Quad and my set of Severne Blades. The good days in Ireland are when the wind is light not the usual 50 knots! No nightlife to speak of, I’ve been off the beer for quite a while now, hangovers equate to lost time in the water and as I’m constantly balancing on the family/windsurfing tightrope. I value my time with both my passions in life way more than a few beers. Hope you like the pic, I thought it was relevant as it depicts the family/windsurf balance I’m striving for, me out sailing while my wife takes photos!
Wish you were here, Timo

The post POSTCARDS FROM THE PROS appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

{PRESS RELEASE} 2016 STARBOARD COLLECTION ONLINE

After our 2016 Wave & Freestyle launch, we are happy to finally introduce our complete 2016 collection of boards, from beginner to slalom, from inflatable to freeride.

Each year, a new Starboard collection typically brings it with one or two key innovations. Take the GO in 1998, the Start in 1999 or the Evo in 2000 and more recently, the Atom concept in 2010, the Bat Wings in 2012 and the WindSUPs Inflatables in 2013. For the single year of 2016, we’re proud to introduce two entirely new innovative board ranges in the Reactor and the AirPlane, a new construction technology breakthrough that is the lightest in the world and the revolutionary Rail Edge technology for WindSUPs Inflatables.

Racing

As tradition demands, our 

2016 iSonics have been upgraded across the range with all-new shapes, with Starboard’s largest test and development program verifying performance in the different conditions of Vietnam, Maui, Thailand, New Caledonia and Marseille. The new shape evolutions aim to transfer mechanically more power from the sailor to the board in the light-medium wind models, gain efficiency with new rail shapes and new wetted-surface area designs on key models.

The new Formula cycle is here too. Introducing the successor to the 2015 Formula World Champion, the Formula 177. Designed specifically for modern course racing, the Formula 177 is our most powerful board with the widest wind range and the earliest planing performance. The new Formula generates more power, more leverage and more lift for more performance in light winds. Smaller aspects have also been improved, like the new chicken straps or the camel bump shape.

Introducing the new Starboard AirPlane with Rail Edge technology. Fully-planing inflatable freeride boards, available with fully retractable rubber-sealed daggerboards, centre-fin versions and kid’s size. They’re the lightest, toughest and most compact windsurf boards, and thanks to this hard release Rail Edge technology, they accelerate and offer the most exciting planing sensation possible on no other inflatable board.

Slim, fast and with the wind range of two classic freeriders, our new AtomIQ 104, 114 and 124 come along our Atom IQ 130, 140 and 160 to take the complication out of windsurfing. On top of all the shape evolutions, the AtomIQs now come in Carbon UltraCore, the world’s lightest windsurfing board construction using a new Starboard proprietary sandwich core material with up to 50% higher mechanical properties.

Also available in Carbon UltraCore are Starboard’s iconic plug and play freeriders, the Carves: fast, high performance shapes built on a chassis that requires little technique and tuning to get to peak performance. With added length and a more rigid fin, the Carves get planing more smoothly, more easily and maintain rolling stability in the choppiest waters. They are also available in Wood Reflex, using a true Australian pine wood sandwich bottom with a full PVC biaxial glass sandwich deck for a light, crisp and stiff feeling non-sandwich boards can’t match.

For beginners and progressing sailors, the Rios are Starboard’s most advanced shapes in their segment, including two brand-new Long Tail editions, the Rio Long Tail M and the Rio Long Tail L. The added Long Tail offers even more glide and allows the rider to get planing incredibly smoothly, so seamlessly, like magic. It’s an amazing experience to get planing without first having to learn how.

Starboard also introduces the world’s first 

WindSUP Inflatable boards with drop-stitch technology and Rail Edge technology. The drop-stitch connects the top and bottom panels, making the boards really stiff. They’re still soft on impact, making them safe, comfortable and tough: they’re the lightest, strongest and most compact WindSUP boards in the world and they new feature the Rail Edge technology that create a release edge that is hard and effective at releasing water and allows you to accelerate and enjoy the most exciting planing sensation.

See more at: http://www.star-board-windsurfing.com

The post 2016 STARBOARD COLLECTION ONLINE appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

JAMIE HANCOCK – OUTER HEBS (PART 2)

“The 2nd part to our time spent up in Scotland from last winter. We are pretty lucky to have such amazing places to travel to so close to home for windsurfing.
Thanks to everyone who supports these trips”

Artist: Pink Floyd

Track: Breathe (in the air)
itunes.apple.com/gb/album/dark-side-moon-remastered/id700016575

Filmed: Jamie Hancock / Rebecca Ashton

Edit: Jamie Hancock

The post JAMIE HANCOCK – OUTER HEBS (PART 2) appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

UNIFIBER WINDSURFING ROOFRACK QUIVERBAG

Tie-down points UNDER the bag – NO more CRUSHED sails! Fits 3/4 complete rigs and masts up to 490.

An optimised, aerodynamic roofrack-quiverbag shape that’s ideal for car-travel. Featuring multiple tie-down-strap anchor points for rock-solid tightening without crushing your precious sails. Made out of strong 600D WRP (Water-Resistant Polyester) fabric with Dotted PVC reinforced edges. Able to fit 3/4 complete rigs – masts, booms and sails – and two-piece masts up to 490. Dimensions at the widest points: 280 x 70 x 35 cm.

More info at: http://www.unifiber.net/2015/gear/bag…

The post UNIFIBER WINDSURFING ROOFRACK QUIVERBAG appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.