- News Article

World Windsurfing Speed Record Falls... Again!

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 12:39:00 -0500

In 40-45 knots wind some more records were broken today and not the least: A new Windsurfing World Record has been beaten by Antoine Albeau with 52.05 kts, the first windsurfer to reach 52 knots and the only one so far who has reached this tremendous performance: 5 runs over 50 knots and 6 runs over 51 knots!

Anders Bringdal was following with his new Swedish Record which is also a new World Record on Production board : 51.45 knots !

Jurjen Van Der Noord the Dutch Record Holder went over 51 knots today, joining Anders Bringdal and Cédric Bordes, with 51.26 knots!

Alexander Goncharov has broken twice his Ukrainian Record ending with 40.94 kts, sailing only in moderate wind.

Boris Vujasinovic also is now the Holder of the Croatian Record with 42.27 kts

Nick Vardalachos smoked his own Greek Record being the 6th windsurfer over 50 knots with 50.56 knots

Mark Grinnell managed to reach the 49 knots which was his goal, with 49.66 knots, improving the South African Record in Windsurfing and is on the road to the 50!

Patrick Diethelm from Switzerland broke the same record than the last day race, doing the exact same speed: 50.49 knots

Bjorn Dunkerbeck the famous 41 times world titles holder has just joined the event today in the middle of the afternoon reaching 49.53 kts after only a couple of runs!

Well done to Martyn Ogier from UK with 48.21 knots (current British Record held by Farrell O Shea with 48.82 kts) and to Martin Van Meurs from Netherlands: 47.95 kts who improved their best speed...

Sneak Peek: Windsport 2013 Gear Guide

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:10:00 -0400

The brand new Windsport Magazine 2013 Gear Guide is on it's way to newsstands and mailboxes across the US and Canada. Here's a little look at what to expect...

On the Cover: Camille Juban

Photographer: Jerome Houyvet

Camille Juban get's the cover of the first issue of 2013 not just for tweaking out this aerial for photographer Jerome Houyvet but he also earned this cover by winning the 2012 overall AWT title. This makes two years in a row that the AWT's overall winner has scored the first cover of the following year. Let's see if we can make it a tradition.

Inside the Issue:

+ MUCH MORE including:

Antoine Albeau shattering speed records at Luderitz
Luderitz Speed Challenge Ride Guide
Jason Polakow and Robby Swift share giant waves with surfers in Chile
American Windsurfing Tour coverage from Maui, Peru and Hatteras
Windsurfing is back in the Olympics!
Interviews with Camille Juban, Fiona Wylde and Randy Naish
WIN the "Best Contest Ever" for a Nolimitz Mast with bag (and a tour of the Nolimitz factory if you can get yourself to the Gorge)...CLICK HERE TO ENTER ONLINE!

RIP Mikey Clancy

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 11:45:00 -0500

A statement from Mikey Clancy's father, Michael, in memory of a rising star who was taken far too young. Mikey Clancy a rising star in the PWA has passed away...

CLICK HERE to read the statement on the PWA website.

5 Reasons to Sign Up for the PSC Wyatt Miller Clinic

Thu, 02 May 2013 08:47:00 -0400

Spring is an amazingly windy time to visit Punta San Carlos, Baja, Mexico and this year already the swell has been pumping! Windsport strongly recommends signing up right away for Wyatt Miller and Tyson Poor's clinic running May 18-25 with SoloSports Adventure Holidays. Here are 5 simple reasons why we think you should sign up today:

5. Punta San Carlos is the undisputed champion of places to learn how to wavesail. Whether it's your first time in the waves or you are looking to learn aerials or Goiters Wyatt and Tyson will improve your skills by weeks end.

4. Baja Fogs are not only a tasty combination of beer, tequila and lime juice but recent scientific study from the Mayo Clinic* have proven that they actually increase your wave-charging ability when consumed in a group of at least 2...drinking a Fog alone is just sad! (Remember to toast: "Fog you, you fogging foggers!"). Unlimited Fogs are available at the SoloSports bar when you sign up!

3. Tyson and Wyatt will not only improve your windsurfing skills but will take you surfing, SUPing and mountain biking...the action is endless.

2. The food at SoloSports is amazing. You just don't know until you go!

1. At last fall I personally witnessed one of Wyatt and Tyson's students landing Forward Loops on his first day trying. I've never seen this before...so sign up and learn to Loop!

(*Mayonnaise clinic)

Red Bull Storm Chase: Perfect Storm in Ireland

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 08:48:00 -0500

Brandon Bay, Ireland, January 28, 2013 - 10 of the world’s best windsurfers from eight countries completed a demanding competition in Kerry, Ireland during the first mission of the Red Bull Storm Chase – the most-challenging windsurfing contest of all time. Despite recorded storm-force gusts of up to 74 knots (137kmh) and fierce 20-ft waves, the sailors completed three rounds of competition in two locations on the Maharees peninsular. After possibly the most radical day in windsurfing history, Marcilio Browne, Dany Bruch, Victor Fernandez, Robby Swift, Julien Taboulet and Thomas Traversa advance to the second Mission of Red Bull Storm Chase.

Kicking-off at first light, the Professional Windsurfers’ Association (PWA) World Tour Head Judge Duncan Coombs, Red Bull Storm Chase Sports Director Klaas Voget and local Guest Judge Timo Mullen decided on a 10-minute heat format, with each competitor’s best scores in both wave riding and jumping counting. Five two-man heats were drawn and the tension rose as the enormity of the task ahead of the sailors sank in at a Brandon Bay beach known to windsurfers as ‘Dumps’.

Barely able to walk their equipment down the beach even the most experienced windsurfers present questioned if even launching was possible. First to make an impression was 23-year old German Leon Jamaer who launched into a barrage of high, floaty jumps and wave rides among the endless walls of white water and open wave faces topping 20ft. Another European, Thomas Traversa managed to throw in a perfect wave 360 over the savage shore-dump to the judges’ delight. The French sailors proved to be on-fire as Julien Taboulet raised the bar with a barrage of sky-high combo jumps such as extreme, delayed table-top forward loops. Germany’s Dany Bruch also notched a table-top forward and scored the most hang-time with a stratospheric jump as lasting seven seconds. Moroccan aerial specialist Boujmaa Guilloul got in on the act too with the full gambit of forward and backward combination rotations. With only borrowed gear due to airline delays, it was a frustrating day for Danish talent Kenneth Danielsen who struggled to show his full potential without familiar equipment in the testing environment.

Although the entrants were throwing caution to the wind both on and above the water, they were all issued with padded ION impact protection clothing and were equipped with Weatherdock GPS devices delivering real-time tracking. Watching over them during heats were expert Sea-Doo Personal Watercraft safety drivers while a storm-proof Heimplanet tent provided shelter on the beach as raging gusts of cross-onshore wind and hail showers ripped through.

With several former World Champions in-the-mix, the standard of competition would be pushed even further. Robby Swift (GBR) made the benchmark move of the contest with a perfect, dry-landed, pushloop-forward combo. More adrenaline-fuelled moves followed and Brazilian Marcilio Browne wowed the judging panel with a technical and stylish Goiter rotation during a wave ride – especially impressive considering the difficulties involved in making genuine turns in such strong wind. After two rounds and a GoPro Expression Session free-sail, the judging crew then threw in another challenge by re-locating to the sideshore wind and bone-crunching reef known as Hell’s Gate.

Mast-and-a-half high waves exploded onto stone as the sailors coped with wind gusting from 40-74 knots. Now fenced in by treacherous rocky islands and cliff-edged shoreline a different test was on the table. As they dodged closing-out set waves in the third and final round, timing was critical to scoring a steep ramp with adequate speed in the run-up. This was no problem for Tenerife-based Dany Bruch who threw down an enormous, extremely delayed forward loop and calmly posted a backside 360 on a wave. Julien Taboulet showed little fear as he flew off thick slabs of water and carved the powerful surf to shreds, as did Thomas Traversa and Robby Swift who both landed combination moves. In terms of overall impression the pedigree of the two waveriding World Champions present - Victor Fernandez (ESP) and Josh Angulo (CPV) – shone through brightly. Both displayed superior wave selection with linked turns and aerials conjured out of nowhere. As the light faded the six highest scoring sailors to successfully qualify for Mission 2 – Dany Bruch, Marcilio Browne, Victor Fernandez, Robby Swift, Julien Taboulet and Thomas Traversa - were paraded as an unforgettable day came to an end.

Red Bull Storm Chase, Results First Mission, Brandon Bay, Ireland:
(The top six sailors from the first mission will compete in the second mission)

1. Thomas Traversa (France)
2. Dany Bruch (Germany)
3. Julien Taboulet (Spain)
4. Marcilio Browne (Brazil)
5. Victor Fernandez (Spain)
6. Robby Swift (United Kingdom)
7. Boujmaa Guilloul (Morocco)
8. Josh Angulo (Cape Verde)
9. Leon Jamaer (Germany)
10. Kenneth Danielsen (Denmark)

Remaining Red Bull Storm Chase competition grounds (2 will be surfed):
Brittany, France
Cape Hatteras/US-East Coast, USA
South West Coast, Iceland
Omaezaki/South East Coast, Japan
Galicia, Spain
North West Coast, Tasmania

Contest Period I: January 10 – March 22, 2013 (2 missions)
Contest Period II: July 22 – September 10, 2013 (1 final mission)

Windsurfing is Back in the Olympics for Rio 2016

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 08:13:00 -0500

It sounds like it was a stressful weekend for the pro-windsurfing contingent at the ISAF meetings in Ireland. On Friday a vote resulted in upholding the decision to keep kiteboarding in for the 2016 Olympics... but on Saturday a vote of the ISAF's general assembly overturned this decision putting windsurfing back in for the 2016 Games at the expense of kiteboarding. I hope in the future that windsurfing will not be pitted against kiteboarding and that maybe the two very different classes can work together to be an exciting beach lifestyle class at the Olympics!

According to Rory Ramsden (the chief operating officer for Olympic Windsurfing) on rsxclass.com:

Never have so many fought for so long and so successfully to get a class re-instated on the Olympic sailing programme. This team effort involved people all over the world on many different levels and in many different ways. The fact that the ISAF General Assembly voted strongly in support of windsurfing and the RS:X for Rio 2016, is testament to the passion and determination of all these people. You helped to keep the story alive during the long six month fight.

This morning the dreams of thousands of young windsurfers are reinvigorated. Their chance to race in the Olympic sailing regatta is restored.

Thanks for your support and your constant belief that we could do what no other part of the sailing community has achieved in the past.

This battle was fought using all the levers available. 31,254 people signed the online petition. 20,000 joined the "Appeal" page on Facebook (Thanks Adam). 14,342 followed the 'Vote Windsurfing' Facebook page. And countless others worked tirelessly in the background to lobby MNAs and turn the groundswell of opinion into a tsunami of voters at the General Assembly.

This was a truly Olympic effort and just like as in any boat race only one can win. We know how the world of kite board racing must feel for it is how we felt on May 5th. The disappointment must be palpable. They are gracious in a defeat and that will only strengthen their determination to bid again for Olympic selection.

We will do our best to help them in that endeavour right up to where the line is drawn. The line that may never be crossed under any circumstances. Windsurfing will fight and fight hard to stay in the Olympic sailing programme when threatened.

In our heart of hearts, we both know that this was a fight neither of us wanted. A compromise would have weakened the appeal of both sports to small and emerging nations round the world. Now is the time for both windsurfing and kite to take stock.

Windsurfing as a global sport slept walked into this nightmare. No one really believed that the men and women's windsurfing events would be dropped. The fact that it was woke a lot of people up. We can never again be caught napping.

Kiteboarding ran a skilful campaign. They focused on their strengths and made a strong presentation but were ultimately found wanting because the discipline of kite board racing is still new and their equipment is not fully developed. Four more years will see big changes.

As for me, it was always my intention to step down after the RS:X was selected for Rio 2016. I never expected that to be so difficult so now is the time, after almost 30 years since I ran my first IMCO European Championships in Guernsey, Channel islands to stand back and let a new generation take the sport forward to Rio and on to who knows where in 2020 and beyond.

Good luck and keep the dream that we have all share alive,

Rory

Surf Expo Gallery

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 08:27:00 -0400

Surf Expo just finished in Orlando, Florida and here are you can CLICK HERE to check out our Facebook gallery of some of the cool stuff.

Kauli Seadi Joins Hot Sails Maui

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 11:39:00 -0500

Hot Sails Maui has announced that former World Wave Champion Kauli Seadi BRA 253 has joined their team with immediate effect. According to Hot Sails Maui:

Kauli joins the innovative Hawaiian brand at a time when development is at its fastest pace in years and he will immediately be working closely with our renowned and talented designers Jeffrey Henderson & Tom Hammerton in Maui. Together Kauli and the team aim to further develop the wave range in the coming months and subsequent seasons. Kauli is well known as an innovator himself and working with Hot Sails Maui will be a perfect fit. The addition of Kauli to this closely knit team, will generate fresh ideas and give a new energy to all in the Hot Sails Maui Ohana worldwide.

Hot Sails Maui has been gaining a lot of attention recently with products including the Firelight, the SuperFreak Maui Edition and most recently the QU4D, which all stand out from the crowd on the water for their innovative designs and exceptional performance.

Kauli is stoked to have Hot Sails Maui support his new project ‘My Dream Tour’ with the aim of inspiring others to travel, dream, and share our wonderful sport with new friends and in new places. The first project on his agenda is his Gostoso adventure, which you will be hearing far more about in the coming weeks and subsequent interviews. With this new move Kauli plans to scale back his PWA appearances in 2013 only competing in waves events with surfing style conditions.

In the months ahead Kauli, Jeff, Tom and the team at Hot Sails Maui will be focused on developing new and exciting products which will push your sailing further than ever before.

Children of the Wind wins Three X-Dance Awards

Sat, 17 Nov 2012 09:47:00 -0500

“Children of the Wind”, the documentary that has been three years in the making on the remarkable story of the Bonaire windsurfers Tonky and Taty Frans, their cousin Kiri Thode, and mentors Elvis Martinus and Patun Saragoza, took home three awards last weekend at the X-Dance Film Festival. X-Dance--a play on the word Sun”dance” after the renowned film festival, and “X” for “extreme sports”-- is the largest sports action film festival in the world. For 12 years X-Dance had run concurrently with the Sundance film festival in Park City, Utah, but grew so big in its own right, that this year festival organizers decided to change the dates to November, and X-Dance is now a stand-alone major film festival. X-Dance receives hundreds of the best sports-themed films from around the world, including big-budget films backed by companies like Red Bull, and just getting accepted is a significant honor. However, to be recognized as the “best of the best” is a huge achievement for “Children of the Wind” as the film won awards as “Best Documentary”; “Best Emerging Filmmaker—Daphne Schmon; and “Best Original Score” Phillip Lober. No other feature at the festival won more than one award. “Children of the Wind” was also nominated for “Best Film.” Of further note, in a film genre that is dominated by men on the production side, Daphne Schmon, the director and main editor of COTW was the only female recognized in any of the awards or nominations.

Two weeks earlier, at the Mt. Hood Independent Film Festival, and competing against 60 films from around the world being played in 4 separate venues for three days, “Children of the Wind” won the award as “Most Inspiring Documentary” and was the only film chosen by the jury and audience for an encore screening on the closing night after the award ceremony, repeating the extraordinary success the film had at its World Premiere in Aruba in June, where it won the “People’s Choice” Award, and three sold-out encore screenings.

“Children of the Wind” has now played 3 film festivals—all emphasizing completely different film genres, and has won top awards at each of them, and 5 in total. This is a rare achievement for an independent film in a highly competitive field, and everyone involved with the film is thrilled with this start.

By playing “Children of the Wind” on the festival circuit prior to general release, the team of COTW is following a widely accepted strategy of using film festivals as a springboard to the widest possible market, by building buzz, spreading the word, and finding buyers for the film. Of course, you have to have a good film for this strategy to work—but that is proving to be exactly the case to the thrill of everyone involved!

The next festival for “Children of the Wind” is the International Film Festival of Antigua and Barbuda that takes place between Nov. 18^th and Nov. 25^th. IFFAB is a big one-week Caribbean film festival that will culminate in a big red-carpet gala awards ceremony and after-awards party on Nov. 25^th.

“Children of the Wind” is scheduled for general release in early 2013.

Quotes from Advancing Red Bull Storm Chasers

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 09:10:00 -0500

Quotes directly from the lips of the top riders at the Red Bull Storm Chase...

Klaas Voget, Red Bull Storm Chase Sports Director:
"We couldn‘t have picked a more perfect storm, especially after waiting so long. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much wind or these kind of conditions in my life. The action was insane!"

Victor Fernandez, Storm Chaser (ESP):
"This is an amazing, once in-a-lifetime chance to compete with the elite of the windsurfing world in unbelievably wild storm conditions. My 3rd round heat at Hell’s Gate saved me from being knocked-out and I’m so stoked to advance. Making it to Mission 2 means I’ll hopefully get to visit more spots around the world and continue this amazing adventure."

Robby Swift, Storm Chaser (GBR):
"It was way windier than all of us expected and it was definitely the strongest wind i’ve ever sailed in. This was a great experience and I was over-the-moon to score the highest-scored jump of the event, even though I broke a board. The contest format was cool, with great variety and a nice change from the stress of a regular week-long contest, but it was all over so fast. I can’t describe how happy I am to make it through to the next Mission."

Dany Bruch, Storm Chaser (GER)
"It was definitely windier than we could’ve been imagined and the windiest conditions I’ve ever experienced – it was stormy for sure! The contest itself was a cool format with all of us being good friends and able to push and motivate each other. It was super-hard to score well - if you could land one good jump and compete a wave ride you had done well. We all had fun and appreciate having been a part of it."

Marcilio Browne, Storm Chaser (BRA):
"Considering what we were looking for it couldn’t have gone any better – it was definitely the windiest day I’ve ever sailed and definitely different to other strong wind locations we regularly sail in like Pozo in Gran Canaria, for example. For me it was a challenge as I’m used to warm water, so the cold was very different to the kind of conditions I train in daily. Now I know what to expect I can prepare for Mission 2 and can’t wait to score another storm like this somewhere on the planet."

Julien Taboulet, Storm Chaser (FRA)
"I was so happy to be selected for this first storm, plus it was important to be in Ireland in honour of Mikey Clancy. It was my first time in such strong wind – it was impossible to even waterstart sometimes. For sure we scored it big-time! I’m happy to make the cut for Mission 2 especially as it’s been such a long time since I competed, so it’s a great feeling to advance.

Thomas Traversa, Storm Chaser (FRA):
It’s hard to describe how windy it was – there was way more than I ever anticipated. I saw that everyone was about as out-of-control as me, but we all tried our best, nobody complained and the most important thing is that everyone is safe. I like the contest format a lot and I think that for Mission 2 we’ll all be more prepared, relaxed and will know what to expect. I don‘t think it could really be any windier and still possible to sail - but I have a 2.5 that I’ll take on the next one for sure!

Join Pritchard and Cropas for a 2013 Aloha Clinic

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 13:27:00 -0500

The 2013 Aloha Windsurfing Clinic dates are set with professional instructor Shawna Cropas and Matt Pritchard. No matter what level of sailor you are, get ready to step up your game with this dynamic duo who will guide you through the process in a safe and fun environment. Come join them on the sandy, windy shores of Maui, where the wind blows and the sun shines!

March 23rd-30th
May 25th-June 1st
June 22nd-29th

See you on the water!—Matt Prichard

Caption Contest from Hot Sails Maui

Sat, 16 Feb 2013 09:09:00 -0500

All too often we see perfect images of riders pulling off great moves around the world! Hot Sails Maui wants to do something a little different and hence this fun competition. Write your caption for this image of Chris Freeman (Sales & Marketing Manager, Hot Sails Maui) messing up yesterday at Ho’okipa, who as a reward for his poor timing was slammed onto the infamous rocks at the point. The best caption will win a Hot Sails Maui t-shirt! Please feel free to enter more than once and please share on your Facebook wall and with friends.

To post your caption and enter the contest please visit the Hot Sails Maui Facebook page (CLICK HERE)... while you are there be sure to 'LIKE' our page.

The winners will be announced next week.

PWA 2012 Fantasy Pool - And the Winner is...

Tue, 06 Nov 2012 11:06:00 -0500

It came down to the wire with only 11 points separating the first two places in this year's pool (not to mention only 49 points for 3rd place back of 2nd). Congrats to the World Riders and team manager Tom Wojkowiak of Canada for taking the win and claiming his choice of fin from Makani Fins!

Rank	Team Name	Name	Country	Team Point Total
1	World Riders	Tomasz Wojkowiak	Canada	123763
2	Silversand Surf Team	Pentti Toivonen	Finland	123752
3	Team Windsport	Pete DeKay	USA/Canada	123703
4	The Lithuanians	Rytis Jasiunas	Lithuania	123020
5	Aerial	Tomas Bakker	Netherlands	122943
6	Dutch Gun Sails	Daan Meily	Netherlands	122790
7	Hang Loozers	Jeroen Nolden	Netherlands	122427
8	GoGo	Go Ishikawa	Japan	122300
9	Aeolus Dream Team	Alfie Hart	Wales	121729
10	East Coast	Peter Roesch	USA	120728
11	Underpaid Athletes	Mike Burns	USA	120573
12	The Supporters	Dirk Van der Eyken	Belguim	120299
13	Boom Bulls	Harri Siirtola	Finland	119382
14	SC Purje	Petteri Toivonen	Finland	119255
15	KaiKu	Kai Kuoppa	Finland	119184
16	Wind Addict	Kevin Backus	Canada	119014
17	ABK	Andy Brandt	USA	119002
18	Beach Club Ruissalo	Marko Rantanen	Finland	118931
19	Silent Sports	Simon Johnston	Canada	118866
20	J MacRae Wylde	MacRae Wylde	USA	118864
21	In Theory	Mats Nilsson Hahne	Sweden	118854
22	Go Getters	Vincent Fallourd	USA	118628
23	MV	Tobias Boese	Germany	118447
24	Speed & Fun	Arnoldas Jasiunas	Lithuania	118265
25	Pjotr675	Pjotr de Boer	Netherlands	118172
26	Awesome Sauce	Adam Wojtkowiak	Canada	118116
27	Winners	Jay Watermeyer	USA	117896
28	O rei do río	Miguel Moledo García	Spain	117866
29	Power	Jurrien Perdok	Netherlands	117671
30	Makani	Jean-Robert Wilhelmy	Canada	117644
31	Flying Fish	Becky Ellis	UK	117436
32	Sabbies	Bas Karreman	Netherlands	117122
33	TZH	Paul van der Kaaden	Netherlands	117055
34	Levee Breaks	Kolin Wisner	USA	117033
35	Board Kings	Peter van Griethuijsen	Netherlands	116908
36	The Inside View	Dieter Van der Eyken	Belgium	116863
37	South Bay	Ross Whitlock	USA	116771
38	Rig it Right	Eric Raven	USA	116686
39	3t	Thewes de Boer	Netherlands	116571
40	Duncan's Donuts	Duncan Slater	UK	116556
41	Rudeboys!	Rudie van der Weij	Netherlands	116463
42	Team Canada	Thomas Soltysiak	Canada	116243
43	The Winning Team	Rolf van Nassau	Netherlands	116060
44	COF	Casper Folkerts	Netherlands	115804
45	NED-118	Robert de Leeuw	Netherlands	115730
46	Windsurfing in the mountains	Eric Whittle	Canada	115632
47	Team Fanø	Jens Wohlert	Germany	115598
48	Rautio C-Team Supports	Antti Peltola	Finland	115439
49	Dailybits Team	Herman Maes	Belgium	115401
50	Babyglisse	Guillaume Sibois	Belguim	115333
51	SC Purje	Petteri Toivonen	Finland	115154
52	Bures.it	Gediminas Gresevicius	Lithuania	115121
53	Van der Velde	Joram van der Velde	Netherlands	115076
54	Team Triple Loop	Brian Haig	Australia	115021
55	Team Rectum	Mike Fischer	Canada	114900
56	Fast-Free-N-Crazy	Lawrence Stewart	Canada	114846
57	The Killers	Bart van den Boogaart	Netherlands	114840
58	On a Plane	Jake Martell	Canada	114834
59	Triple Forward	Pim van der Borgt	Netherlands	114710
60	Surfing the Life	Troels Bech Hansen	Denmark	114691
61	Team HRV	Marc Hure	USA	114428
62	BEAR	Christian Olesen	Denmark	114417
63	Surfsup	Huub Langendonk	Netherlands	114278
64	Windsurf Team	Dennis Littel	Netherlands	114021
65	Team Jurf	Jeroen van Gessel	Netherlands	113720
66	Inland Lake Leapers	Peter Badra	USA	113653
67	Canigo5.0	Derek Rijff	USA	113548
68	Gangaro	ivan juran	Croatia	113521
69	Chillsters	Rokas Adomaitis	Lithuania	113416
70	Local Bastard	Romain SIBOIS	Finland	113377
71	Grondjes Dream Team	Marcel Grondman	Netherlands	113268
72	WBL	Eric Steffen	USA	112959
73	irishtralian	Adam Hatfield	Australia	112701
74	Dream Team	Max Rowe	UK	112306
75	Bewater	Mikel Alvarez	Spain	112141
76	Da Invincible Windsurfing Gods	Sjoerd	Netherlands	111909
77	Just for Fun	Mike Bergstrom	USA	111876
78	Gringo	Siim Reinvald	Estonia	111721
79	Zilian	Fernando Bocciarelli	Brazil	111645
80	Team Aeolus	Koen v Jaarsveld	Netherlands	111485
81	Brouwersdam	Rick Jendrusch	Netherlands	111306
82	Three Stars	Bas van der Sterren	Netherlands	111250
83	Team Chachi	Jon Sassone	USA	111220
84	Antoszka Team	Bart Kornas	USA	111201
85	Team Flapie	Menno	Netherlands	110998
86	Sailworks	Alex Nielsen	USA	110674
87	Opsterlawn	Andy Bjilsma	Canada	110442
88	Corm	Claude Cormier	Canada	110177
89	Bikkels	Jeroen Lenes	Netherlands	110167
90	Over Early	Fiona Wylde	USA	110101
91	Hit Them Hard	Jeroen van Leeuwen	Netherlands	109998
92	No Wind No Waves No Worries	Brian McDowell	Ireland	109843
93	Romeinen	Fer van der Plas	Netherlands	109727
94	Oufriders	SIBOIS Francis	France	109627
95	Winning	Matthijs van 't Hoff	Netherlands	109557
96	Porrrr	Niels van der Kaaij	Netherlands	109392
97	GEOF	Fernando Liguori	Argentina	109281
98	Team RG	Rene Glasz	Netherlands	109238
99	Wellington	Ken Tildesley	New Zealand	109051
100	What is windsurfing? NC	Niels-Chr. Outzen	Denmark	108958
101	Ventis Secundis	Marc Wuyts	Belgium	108792
102	Team Watto	Peter Watson	Australia	108598
103	Team Windsurf	Joe Tildesley	New Zealand	108082
104	Welle	Mick Well	Netherlands	107913
105	Flying Dutchmen	Tom Kettler	Netherlands	107815
106	Flying Fish	Chris Grover	Canada	107490
107	Rip it Up	Bjorn Drogtrop	Netherlands	107445
108	BvE	Bart van Es	Netherlands	107354
109	Jippie	Meindert Schuitema	Netherlands	106967
110	Team Vegas	Jeff Ward	USA	106869
111	Cabrillo Blasters	Bruce Allen	USA	106840
112	Surfdudes	T. Dijkstra	Netherlands	106588
113	Prancing Ponies	Peggy Giesenschlag	USA	106566
114	The Dutchies Rule	Arnout den Boer	Netherlands	106283
115	Double Dutch	Stefan van Harn	Netherlands	106216
116	Totally Mixed Up	A.J. Geesink	Netherlands	105147
117	The Triangulare Sails	Rene Pedersen	Denmark	105057
118	Carve Jiber	Jari Lahdenperä	Finland	105020
119	PWA	Jacques van der Hout	Netherlands	104989
120	Team #1	Jan van Dieren	Netherlands	104493
121	Windsurf TV NL Team	Mark van Osch	Netherlands	104460
122	Rautio Sports	Jarno Rautio	Finland	104278
123	WndSrfn	Eric Doremus	USA	104059
124	Surfers United	Jens Maandag	Netherlands	104000
125	DaNews	Clyde Giesenschlag	USA	103156
126	Team Norh-East	Eric Boisvert	Canada	102661
127	PWA back in Holland	Michel Kuipers	Netherlands	102085

Josh Angulo joins Point-7 Sails

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 00:05:00 -0400

The big new for Monday morning is that Josh Angulo has signed with Point-7 sails! "What the heck are Point-7 sails," you ask? They are those all black rigs you may have noticed in various PWA photos and videos posted online. To give you the full story we checked with Josh Angulo from his home in Boston and with Point-7 owner Andrea Cucchi...

Windsport: Josh... how did you hook up with Point-7?

Josh Angulo: I've known Andrea Cucchi for quite some time both as a friend , competitor and fellow industry member. We've always gotten along great and had some fun times on tour. When he started Point 7 some years back, I watched from the sidelines without much expectations. I continued my own path with my own preoccupations and life challenges, but always saw more advancment and heard more noise about these Point 7 guys and their black sails. Last year on tour it was clear that those guys had some of the fastest sails on the water and I believe that was a real wake up call for a lot of people, myself included. This year in February, Andrea and I started talking and getting mutually excited about working together and so I started to take a real close look at their website (http://www.point-7.com/) and I started really becoming a believer in that these guys really are about being leading edge, fresh and completely customer service oriented. If you get a chance to really scour the site, you will find so many tidbits and educational tools that I think are cool. Andrea has an amazing "team" vision and for somebody in my shoes, I couldn't be more blessed and excited to walk into such a motivating atmosphere.

Windsport: Andrea... how does it feel to have Josh Angulo joining the Point-7 team?

Andrea Cucchi (pictured right - PWA/Carter photo): Our whole team is very excited. It's first time we are signing a big name on our brand, and we were all waiting for this moment. We wanted to ensure to have the structure ready so that we could give the best support to this signing. Josh was not a choice between other riders. We wanted Josh. We were waiting for this chance. His way of surfing and being with people really fits to our brand. He is not only a professional rider, but he has much more in his portfolio. Josh has two important world titles and we both want to work for a third one. This time it will be the slalom title. We will tune in, and go for it. There is a new atmosphere in Point-7. Most of us in the company are competing in windsurfing and it's a same way that we are pushing our business. This gives us now even more motivation and energy to bring Point-7 to the next step.

Windsport: Are you going to help bring Point-7 sails into the North American market?

Josh Angulo: I believe Point 7 already has a plan in pace that will facilitate availability and pricing to North American customers. I personally won't right off the bat jump 100% into an import/distribution set-up as our main focus is product development and working closely to win another World Title, this time in racing.

Windsport: Have you been able to ride and get comfortable on the sails yet?

Josh Angulo: The sails are on their way to Boston right now. I've experienced last years sails and going on the upgrades that Andrea's filled me in on, I'm 100% confident that I'm making the right move. But beyond the immediate rigs, I will immediatley become one of the members of their development which will bring additional experience to the table in the short and long term.

Windsport: Andrea... what have been the most popular sails in the Point-7 sail range?

Andrea Cucchi: There is no real winner in our range in terms of sales. Each sail range has a very nice history and it's own continuos development also following clients needs. The first sail which became noted was the pure slalom no cam sail(AC-X). It was, I believe, the first real slalom no cam sail with no compromise performance on the market. In Italy we were winning races against cambered sails. We then developed the first AC-1, which straight away won a speed world cup event in Karphatos with Josè Bahadour infront of top PWA riders and speed sailors. Josh Angulo has a lot of experience in development. Also his latest business in having a surf centre in CapeVerde gave him a lot of special feedback from the end consumer. We have already started talking about this subject.

Windsport: Andrea... why all the black sails?

Andrea Cucchi: There are a lot of reasons. When we started with Point-7 it had just started to be in fashion to have colors on monofilms. That year there was the Americas Cup and we liked the black sails they were using. So we ordered samples of black laminates to test it out from the US. We changed it to be more shining, more anthracite...and after the first real sail in that color, we realized that black is beautiful. Our US supplier also gave us a great feedback on the material being the best against UV-rays. Even under the most tropical sun the film was not cooking like the transparent and was long lasting. It took some time to have people agree on this, as at first glance it's natural to think the opposite! Once people tried it out for themselves, they never went back.

Windsport: How do you feel about joining Team Black?

Josh Angulo: Excited, pumped and more motivated than I can remember. The whole posse there is so fresh, encouraging and moving forward in a dynamic working fashion that it can only rub off on me. I just thank God for this new and exciting time in my life and a very cool thing is these guys fully support and understand my Boston living situation and have an open mind that a professional windsurfer can live in New England and still perform at the world's elite level.

Windsport: Andrea... whenever I have seen anything about Point-7 it seems to be about a "team" approach, which is very cool. Can you tell us a little about the Black Team?

Andrea Cucchi: We believe in team strategy for winning. With a team it's much more fun for everyone. Motivation and competition is higher and limits are easier to break. Although, this is not only the real reason for wanting to work as a team. I'm still personally racing, and I see the difference and fun that it can be out on the water. Each rider can improve faster by having feedback from his team mates. Brainstorming on new projects, new ideas, new products is continuous. We see also a lot of young riders being lost. Talents are wasting time as they are not followed as they should be. There is no such thing in our sport as a coach and team support from the national sailing federations. So it has to be us brands that set up this for our riders, to give them the best support possible to concentrate on winning. We need to find them team sponsors and keep pushing their motivation to spending hours on the water working hard to achieve their goals. Then we take care of them for their media and visibility. We have created a lot of inside activity for our team to get them more involved. It's all pretty new, and it is still not all shown to public, but it exists. I'm sure Josh will fit perfectly to help us build this next dream we are working on. It exists in many other sports... it was existing in windsurfing, so we don’t see why it should not work again.

Thank-you Josh and Andrea for answering our questions and good luck on the tour this year!

Hot Sails Maui wants your help... CONTEST!

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 15:09:00 -0500

Hot Sails Maui has decided to add a new Firelight color to their range and need your help! The options have been narrowed down these two and they want to know what you think. They want to know what Hot Sails Maui fans this is best!

CLICK HERE to go to the page where you can comment on the choices and they'll announce the winner soon. To make it interesting, by leaving your comment you will be put into a draw to win a Hot Sails Maui t-shirt of your choice.

Red Bull Storm Chase Mission One to Ireland

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 09:06:00 -0500

Ireland green-lighted! After 6 months of waiting the official GO for the first Mission of The Red Bull Storm Chase has finally been given. Ten of the world’s best windsurfers and the crew are now en-route to catch the tracking storm in time. The first round of the most-challenging windsurfing contest of all time is expected to start on Monday, January 28.

The spot: Brandon Bay, Ireland
Ireland is known for heavy storm surf and howling winds. Brandon Bay is a former PWA wave spot, where Red Bull Storm Chase can find the right break for almost any wind direction within a couple of kilometers. The bay allows perfect camera angles with stunning backgrounds. The sailors will have to fight with the fact that wind develops more power in colder temperatures. For the participants used to the warmer temperatures at home, this might become tricky...

The Athletes:
10 windsurfers will compete in Mission number one: Josh Angulo (CPV), Marcilio Browne (BRA), Daniel Bruch (GER), Kenneth Danielsen (DNK), Victor Fernandez Lopez (ESP), Boujmaa Guilloul (MAR), Leon Jamaer (GER), Robby Swift (GBR), Julien Taboulet (FRA), and Thomas Traversa (FRA). Only six of them advance to Mission number two.

The Contest:
Red Bull Storm Chase is the most-challenging windsurfing contest of all time. By hunting down 3 massive storms anywhere in the world, the 10 best sailors will battle for the crown of ultimate storm windsurfer. The contest format is simple: The top 10 sailors from the online voting compete in the first Mission. Six advance to the second and the four best riders to the final Mission. To guarantee raging conditions, Red Bull Storm Chase will be mobile to the max, with a 10-month holding period and just 48 hours to mobilise riders and global contest crew on-site before the storm strikes.

Live-Rporting:
Real-time mission reportings from the athletes and crew members, latest information and stunning images from the mission at www.redbullstormchase.com

Day 2 at the Dakhla Festival in Morroco

Thu, 24 Feb 2011 16:03:00 -0500

After a morning of speculation to whether the wind would come up, 10 windsurfers loaded a bus and rigged 7.0s to 9.0s to compete in the 40 km long distance race. Turned out nobody had told the bus driver where to drop us off and after about a 30 minute drive and frantic discussions in French and Arabic the bus arrived at Club Mistral where the gear was waiting.

Unlike the wave events, the long distance race was held on the inside of the lagoon on flat water (but with lots of chop in the middle). The lagoon is quite wide; from the shore you can just barely make out the other side, and with the afternoon haze it can be near impossible. The athletes traveled halfway across the lagoon before spotting the flags on the other side, and then hoped to be on the right line. Diony from Argentina was in the lead for the first two buoys, but he ended up too far downwind of the third buoy and had to tack his way back. The first men crossed in about 55 minutes, followed closely by Sarah Herbert who led the way for the women.

In cultural news, if anyone ever invites you to a hammam, here’s the scoop:

All I knew going in is that it’s a local spa. The sign in the camp said to bring your bikini, so of course I brought and put on the top and bottom. Then a very large and old woman came over and said “no no no” to the top, and proceeds to take it off me as I look at her with side eyes saying “Lady, watch your fingers!” Then she ushered me into the back room where women sat around and bathed themselves with buckets of water. Which was slightly awkward, but that’s not the end of it- we went into full exfoliation mode, where a large woman came to each of us and put our body into odd positions so she could exfoliate us (all over!) with a very rough loofah. The loofah was so rough it made my eyes water, and I felt quite uncomfortable throughout the experience.

For a culture where the women are so modest, the atmosphere inside the hammam was surprisingly social and comfortable walking around mostly nude. The women here have no preconceived notions of how their bodies should look, and despite the awkwardness of the experience it was liberating to see a culture that was so at ease with their bodies.

Now that it’s all said and done, my skin is smoother than a baby’s bum! Hmm, an entrepreneurial businessperson may want to start one in San Carlos…

They are hoping to run the windsurf wave finals tomorrow, and with a good wind and wave forecast, looks like good action is on the way!

Nevin Sayre Responds to US Sailing's Statement

Thu, 24 May 2012 21:37:00 -0400

Dear U.S. Sailing,

It seems US Sailing didn’t have all the information before casting three votes for kitesurf course racing at the expense of windsurf racing for the 2016 Olympics. A more careful evaluation questions Dean Brenner’s explanation for the U.S. votes at the ISAF Council.

1. No argument, kiteboarding is an exciting and rapidly growing area of the sport. However, US Sailing and ISAF voted for what is currently practiced by a very small percentage of kiteboarders - kiteboard course racing. That’s like noticing all these skiers at the mountain and then choosing telemark racing as the Olympic discipline. Kite board racing uses very different equipment and skills than what you see at the beach. No doubt kiteboard racing is cutting edge and could one day evolve into an Olympic sport, but we’re just not there yet. That’s the point. There are estimates that at most 200-300 persons world-wide have been on a kite course board. This includes but a handful of juniors.

But let’s look at the facts: 80 women from 37 countries competed in the RS:X World Championships. 12 women from 10 countries competed in the Kite Course Racing World Championships. Only two women were able to complete all the races at the Kite Course Worlds. Does this qualify as Olympic-ready for 2016?

There is currently no known active Youth Kite Course Racing. Compare that to 400 kids (age 16 and younger) who are expected at the Techno Windsurfing World Championships this summer.

2. According to Dean/US Sailing’s justification, 'The infrastructure required will be minimal.' Agreed, infrastructure required for staging events is an important consideration. I wonder if US Sailing is aware that kitesurfing, due to safety concerns, is prohibited from many premier ISAF sailing venues:

In Sydney Harbour, site of the 2000 Olympics, kitesurfing is banned.
In Singapore, site of the 2010 Youth Olympic Games, kitesurfing in banned.
In Cyprus, site of the 2013 ISAF Youth Worlds, kitesurfing is banned.
In Lake Garda, Italy, site of the EUROSAF Olympic Regatta, kitesurfing is banned.

But even if kitesurfing is allowed at a specific venue, other significant logistics are involved. While race management on the water may be similar to other classes, to safely launch a kite you need very specific conditions. A minimum of 100 ft of open space is required, free of any obstacles that could impale the kiteboarder, or put bystanders at risk. There is no way you can launch and tack out of many yacht harbors (Kiel?).

On top of that, kitesurfers require the ability to change kite sizes if wind conditions change between races. The ISAF Kite Equipment Report glosses over basic logistics and says huge floating platforms could be built to launch from, or competitors can launch from support boats, or be shuttled to launch from outside beaches. That’s minimal infrastructure????? There are very few venues without surrounding hazards where you can safely launch 140 kites to make a 9:00 AM start time in gusty, stormy conditions.

3. Dean’s third reason, 'The potential exists to bring new countries to the sport of Olympic Sailing' is valid. And windsurfing has done exactly that with 54 countries competing in the Olympic Qualifying events, and more MNAs competing in Men’s RS:X at the ISAF World Championships than any other class, including Laser. Does US Sailing/ISAF want to trade this success for a class that is not yet developed?

4. 'Kites can be sailed close to shore, increasing spectator possibilities.' Yes, just as easily as windsurfing. The only difference is, if the wind is on shore, all those ISAF spectators would have to be pushed back from the shoreline to avoid decapitation.

5. Dean goes on to rely on the ISAF Equipment Evaluation Report which barely addresses the critical concerns of safety. While it’s true that kites have improved in safety, and expert kiters will take their own risks, what about the safety of juniors pursing the Olympic dream? You can’t just hook a hot shot Opti sailor up to a kite and push him/her off the dock. There is zero pathway for kiting currently within US Sailing.

In his position as Olympic Sailing Chairman, Dean Brenner may not be concerned with further down the pyramid, but safety in the Olympic pipeline should be of paramount importance to US Sailing. Again I ask, what is US Sailing’s plan to safely incorporate kitesurfing into Junior Sailing Programs, the Olympic Youth Development Team, Youth Worlds Team, the Junior Olympic events, and all the pathways that leads to the Olympics? What is US Sailing’s plan to bring kitesurfing under its umbrella when insurance companies have deemed kitesurfing unsafe?

ISAF’s own specialists in the Events Committee voted 17-2 in favor of trialing kitesurfing at ISAF events until it is proven Olympic-ready, and keeping RS:X as the Olympic Class for Men’s and Women’s in 2016. We call on U.S. Sailing and ISAF to evaluate the readiness of kitesurf racing for 2016 and the Olympic pipeline, question dubious claims in the ISAF Kite Evaluation Report, balance judgement against the world-wide success of windsurfing as an Olympic discipline, and perform a complete fair analysis before their vote in the November ISAF meeting.

Sincerely,
Nevin Sayre - US Sailing Member

Matt Pritchard interviews Eleazar Alonso

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 12:26:00 -0500

Gaastra & Tabou are proud to announce the newest team member: Eleazar Alonso (E-41). Matt Pritchard (Gaastra / Tabou Team Manager) had the chance to catch a small interview with him:

Matt Pritchard: Welcome to Gaastra/Tabou for 2013, what are your plans for this upcoming season?

Eleazar Alonso: My plans for the this season are PWA, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Denmark and Germany. Sailing every day and make more photos and videos and be always in internet and magazines.

MP: Tell us about the new gear- what are your thoughts of the new boards and sails?

EA: There are the best boards and sails i have used ever. The sail it´s perfect for jumping and the board is fun in the waves.

MP: You have been a pro since 2005, what do you think it takes to become World Champion?

EA: More faith in myself and improve the surfing.

MP: What are you favorite conditions?

EA: My favorite conditions are 3,7 sail and logo high waves.

MP: What is one place that you have always wanted to windsurf but have not yet been to?

EA: I have always wanted to windsurf in South Africa, in Cape Down.

MP: Good luck out there- anything you want to say to your fans?

EA: I just want to have my own style jumping and surfing and also that the people get enjoy with my videos and photos.

Kai Lenny joins MFC team

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 06:54:00 -0500

2012 is here and MFC is celebrating 26 years in the fin business. We are very excited about our newest collaboration with Hawaiian Waterman and 2 time Stand Up Paddle World Champion, Kai Lenny.

We’ve known Kai since he was a little kid and we have been supporting him since the early days. A very motivated athlete with a great personality, Kai fits perfectly into the MFC family; his spirit of Aloha and his amazing qualities will definitely make us proud to have him on our team. He is one of the new Hawaiian Water Ambassadors. In the last years he has achieved many titles and awards, and the time has arrived to develop new fins together, especially for SUP.

We will support him in his SUP, windsurfing, surfing career; we will be working with him on his new “Hydro-Foil Board” for a top-secret project he has in the works.

These are some of Kai’s achievement in the last couple of years.
2009 PWA Rookie of the Year-Windsurfing
2010 SUPWT Sunset Beach Pro Winner
2010 SUPWT Hawaii Island Pro Winner
2010 SUPWT World Champion
2011 SUPWT Sunset Beach Pro Winner
2011 SUPWT La Torche, France Pro Winner
2011 SUPWT World Champion

MFC HAWAII welcomes Kai with open arms and hopes to continue their long- standing relationship. We also thank him for his trust in our brand and philosophy.

Aloha,
Pio Marasco
MFC HAWAII
www.mauifin.com

Like MFC on Facebook

Windsurfing/SUP Clinic with Pritchard and Cropas

Thu, 16 May 2013 08:06:00 -0400

Aloha Windsurfing/SUP Clinic for Beginners and Novice Water Enthusiasts:
Attention non-windsurfers... Friends, family and partners of water sport enthusiast. Matt Pritchard and Shawna Cropas are running a unique luxury water sports clinic for absolute beginners and novices of windsurfing and SUP. This clinic runs from November 10th to the15th and is part of the Four Seasons Unforgettable Event Series on Maui. This unique opportunity is for anyone who has ever wanted a safe and fun introduction to water sports while staying at a five star hotel in Hawaii. For more details email shawnacropas@gmail.com.

Or check out our last March Four Seasons Aloha Clinic event: http://www.shawnacropas.com/four-seasons-unforgettable-event-series/.

For booking please check out: http://www.shawnacropas.com/alohawindsurfingclinics/fourseasons/

Midwest Speed Quest... IT"S ON!

Tue, 20 Apr 2010 10:33:00 -0400

Hello Fellow Windsurfers,
it is time to announce the 2010 Midwest Speed Quest. We would like to thank everyone who has participated in past years, and invite everyone back again in 2010. We have been working hard all winter long to make this year's event even better.

The speeds recorded in this event can be compared with speeds recorded anywhere in the world. We work closely with the team at GPS Speed Surfing in Holland (http://www.gps-speedsurfing.com/). These guys support all forms of Speed Sailing.

Thanks to the Support of our Sponsors, we have over $4,000 in Cash and Prizes to award to the racers. We will pay $1000 CASH to the fastest windsurfer on Lake Okabena in 2010. Speed shall be measured by the "The Best Ten Second Run." The 2010 Midwest Speed Quest follows the rules and methods set out by GPS Speed Surfing (http://www.gps-speedsurfing.com).

The "Economic Stimulus Package" was a success in 2009, and shall be repeated again in 2010. Stay Tuned for more information!

The event shall run from April 15th to October 15th, 2010 on an open schedule. Pick a windy day that fits your schedule, and come on down. Let us help you with discounted lodging and great food.

We have the best demo gear in the world for use by the visiting racers.

Please visit our Web Site (http://www.midwestspeedquest.com) for complete information.

This is the 6th year of the Midwest Speed Quest. Every year we try to something new and different. This event is designed for sailors of all skill levels, from beginners to the top racers. This event is about participation. We want racers from ages 6 to 96!!! No matter your skill level, we will be there to get you started Speed Sailing... right?!!

As always, this event is FREE!!! There are no fees or charges. You may enter as many times as you like all season long. We want you to participate as often as you can.

We will provide the GPS unit . The official GPS unit of the Midwest Speed Quest is the GT-31 by LOCOSYS Technology (http://www.midwestspeedquest.com/page31/page31.html). This is the finest handheld GPS available. With over $1,000 on the line, our racers will want to use the most precise GPS device available.

New for 2010, there will a 500 Meter Alpha Racing Category. This is an event where your best average speed is measured through a jibe. This sounds complicated, but is really quite simple, and is easily calculated by the GPS Speed Software. We want to reward those racers who have excellent technical skills on the Race Course. This is a unique way to rank the Racers on their jibing ability.

For 2009, the Top Alpha Speed was recorded by Ed Melechson of Omaha (http://www.gps-speedsurfing.com/default.aspx?mnu=user&val=45739&uid=1288) with a speed of 19.06 knots.

This Midwest Speed Quest runs on a completely flexible schedule over a 6 month period. You decide when you want to race. The National Weather Service Forecasts (click here for link) are extremely accurate up to 5 days in advance. Find a windy day that fits your schedule, let us know you are coming down. We will meet you on the Beach with a GPS ready to go. See the "NOTICE OF RACE" Page for more information.

There will also be a number of Scheduled race Days as well. On these days, we will provide free refreshments and snacks on the beach, and a hot meal at the end of the day.

Spectators are always welcome. This is a great opportunity to meet the Windsurfers and find out more about this Sport.

Again in 2010, the Midwest Speed Quest has collaborated with Jeff Hegwer and the Therapeutic Winds Windsurfing School (http://www.wgtn.net/therapeutic/index.htm) to provide free windsurfing lessons to interested youth. It is important to support and encourage new windsurfers. If you know of a young person who would appreciate a free lesson or perhaps cannot afford one, please contact Craig Bergh at cbergh@iw.net.

Sponsors are the ones who make this all possible. Please visit our "Sponsors Links" Page. As you buy your gear in 2010, please support the people and companies who make this all possible.

Thanks to the generosity of our Sponsors, we have the highest Speed Sailing Prize Money in the USA. We also have lots of demo gear and prizes for visiting sailors from such fine companies as:
Carbon Art International (http://carbonartwindsurf.com/)
Windsurf Deal (http://www.windsurfdeal.com/)
Select Hydrofoils, (http://www.windsurfdeal.com/)
KA Sail Australia (http://www.kasail.com/http://www.kasail.com/windsurfing/index.html)
Vector Fins Maui, (http://vectorfins.com/new/index.php)
Murrays Wind and Water (http://www.select-hydrofoils.com/en/fins/)
Dakine (http://www.dakine.com/)
Chinook Sailing (http://www.chinooksailing.com/products/)
Aquapac International (http://www.aquapac.net/)
Gath Helmets Australia (http://www.gathsports.com/productsingle.php?id=4)
Gusts.us (http://gusts.us/)
LOCOSYS Technology. (http://www.locosystech.com/)
Red Bull Energy Drink (http://www.redbull.com/)
Enxco Wnd Energy Services (http://www.enxco.com/)
Onit Pro Xtreme Cream (http://onitpro.com/)
Windsport Magazine (http://www.windsport.com/)
Deb's Healing Massage and Day Spa (http://www.midwestspeedquest.com/page4/page49/page49.html)

We also welcome our newest Sponsor The Windsurfing Movie II (http://www.thewindsurfingmovie.com/WMIIStage/index.html). This new movie is due out in June 2010. We will be giving away DVDs all season long. Thank you Jace Panebianco

We have a number of discounted Motel Rooms at the AmercInn of Worthington (http://www.americinn.com/hotels/MN/Worthington) available to visiting racers, as well as discounted meals at La Azteca Mexican Restaurant of Worthington (http://www.midwestspeedquest.com/page4/page84/page84.html), the finest Mexican Food and the best Margaritas anywhere.

We want to thank local Worthington Businesses for their support of the MSQ. These include the Worthington Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau (http://www.worthingtonmnchamber.com/), the Avera Specialty Clinics (http://www.averamckennan.org/amck/regionalfacilities/worthingtonspecialtyclinic/index.aspx) Guidepoint Pharmacy, and (http://guidepointpharmacy.com/index.cfm/preset/home) United Prairie Bank (http://www.unitedprairiebank.com/). It is great to have your local support!!!

Stay tuned for even more announcements in the near future.
We look forward to seeing you on Lake Okabena in 2010!

Sincerely,
Craig Bergh
The Midwest Speed Quest
133 Lake Avenue
Worthington, Minnesota 56187
www.midwestspeedquest.com

email: cbergh@iw.net

National Geographic Extreme Photo of the Week

Tue, 21 Aug 2012 13:12:00 -0400

Gorge windsurfing photographer Richard Hallman just got back from Peru where one of his big wave surfing shots was just picked for National Geographics Extreme Photo of the Week (click to see and read about it). Congratulations Richard!

PWA Fantasy Pool Update... after Denmark

Tue, 02 Oct 2012 13:01:00 -0400

Below are the updated standing following the Denmark wave event. It's coming down to the wire with plenty of action going on in Sylt right now. Hope you're enjoying the LIVE FEED as much as I am.

Rank	Team Name	Name	Country	Team Point Total
1	The Lithuanians	Rytis Jasiunas	Lithuania	100074
2	World Riders	Tomasz Wojkowiak	Canada	99184
3	Silversand Surf Team	Pentti Toivonen	Finland	99052
4	Dutch Gun Sails	Daan Meily	Netherlands	98722
5	Hang Loozers	Jeroen Nolden	Netherlands	98607
6	Aerial	Tomas Bakker	Netherlands	98595
7	GoGo	Go Ishikawa	Japan	97919
8	The Supporters	Dirk Van der Eyken	Belguim	97913
9	In Theory	Mats Nilsson Hahne	Sweden	97200
10	Pjotr675	Pjotr de Boer	Netherlands	96903
11	Team Windsport	Pete DeKay	USA/Canada	96627
12	Aeolus Dream Team	Alfie Hart	Wales	96419
13	Speed & Fun	Arnoldas Jasiunas	Lithuania	96028
14	ABK	Andy Brandt	USA	95974
15	Underpaid Athletes	Mike Burns	USA	95928
16	SC Purje	Petteri Toivonen	Finland	95847
17	MV	Tobias Boese	Germany	95237
18	Go Getters	Vincent Fallourd	USA	94939
19	Beach Club Ruissalo	Marko Rantanen	Finland	94912
20	Awesome Sauce	Adam Wojtkowiak	Canada	94907
21	KaiKu	Kai Kuoppa	Finland	94670
22	East Coast	Peter Roesch	USA	94527
23	J MacRae Wylde	MacRae Wylde	USA	94329
24	Boom Bulls	Harri Siirtola	Finland	94324
25	Wind Addict	Kevin Backus	Canada	94281
26	Silent Sports	Simon Johnston	Canada	94232
27	Sabbies	Bas Karreman	Netherlands	94060
28	O rei do río	Miguel Moledo García	Spain	93864
29	Rudeboys!	Rudie van der Weij	Netherlands	93730
30	Board Kings	Peter van Griethuijsen	Netherlands	93649
31	3t	Thewes de Boer	Netherlands	93526
32	The Winning Team	Rolf van Nassau	Netherlands	93477
33	Van der Velde	Joram van der Velde	Netherlands	93422
34	Rig it Right	Eric Raven	USA	93421
35	Windsurfing in the mountains	Eric Whittle	Canada	93400
36	Team Canada	Thomas Soltysiak	Canada	93346
37	Makani	Jean-Robert Wilhelmy	Canada	93274
38	Surfsup	Huub Langendonk	Netherlands	93268
39	Levee Breaks	Kolin Wisner	USA	93246
40	The Inside View	Dieter Van der Eyken	Belgium	92921
41	Surfing the Life	Troels Bech Hansen	Denmark	92723
42	Windsurf Team	Dennis Littel	Netherlands	92681
43	Duncan's Donuts	Duncan Slater	UK	92636
44	Gangaro	ivan juran	Croatia	92609
45	Power	Jurrien Perdok	Netherlands	92591
46	Rautio C-Team Supports	Antti Peltola	Finland	92575
47	Babyglisse	Guillaume Sibois	Belguim	92552
48	Team Jurf	Jeroen van Gessel	Netherlands	92445
49	Flying Fish	Becky Ellis	UK	92390
50	Local Bastard	Romain SIBOIS	Finland	92366
51	Team Triple Loop	Brian Haig	Australia	92339
52	TZH	Paul van der Kaaden	Netherlands	92322
53	Grondjes Dream Team	Marcel Grondman	Netherlands	92108
54	NED-118	Robert de Leeuw	Netherlands	92075
55	COF	Casper Folkerts	Netherlands	92000
56	Winners	Jay Watermeyer	USA	91992
57	Triple Forward	Pim van der Borgt	Netherlands	91945
58	The Killers	Bart van den Boogaart	Netherlands	91927
59	Fast-Free-N-Crazy	Lawrence Stewart	Canada	91817
60	Dailybits Team	Herman Maes	Belgium	91811
61	SC Purje	Petteri Toivonen	Finland	91746
62	Three Stars	Bas van der Sterren	Netherlands	91730
63	Team Fanø	Jens Wohlert	Germany	91656
64	Inland Lake Leapers	Peter Badra	USA	91614
65	On a Plane	Jake Martell	Canada	91575
66	Romeinen	Fer van der Plas	Netherlands	91465
67	Team Flapie	Menno	Netherlands	91147
68	Bewater	Mikel Alvarez	Spain	91113
69	Team Rectum	Mike Fischer	Canada	90992
70	Canigo5.0	Derek Rijff	USA	90932
71	Hit Them Hard	Jeroen van Leeuwen	Netherlands	90922
72	Chillsters	Rokas Adomaitis	Lithuania	90904
73	Winning	Matthijs van 't Hoff	Netherlands	90899
74	Antoszka Team	Bart Kornas	USA	90822
75	Team Aeolus	Koen v Jaarsveld	Netherlands	90590
76	Bures.it	Gediminas Gresevicius	Lithuania	90520
77	Oufriders	SIBOIS Francis	France	90519
78	BEAR	Christian Olesen	Denmark	90426
79	South Bay	Ross Whitlock	USA	90290
80	Da Invincible Windsurfing Gods	Sjoerd	Netherlands	90206
81	Team HRV	Marc Hure	USA	90140
82	Just for Fun	Mike Bergstrom	USA	90123
83	Zilian	Fernando Bocciarelli	Brazil	90073
84	Corm	Claude Cormier	Canada	89645
85	Porrrr	Niels van der Kaaij	Netherlands	89602
86	WBL	Eric Steffen	USA	89370
87	irishtralian	Adam Hatfield	Australia	89260
88	Ventis Secundis	Marc Wuyts	Belgium	89205
89	Gringo	Siim Reinvald	Estonia	89122
90	Bikkels	Jeroen Lenes	Netherlands	89106
91	Opsterlawn	Andy Bjilsma	Canada	89101
92	Rip it Up	Bjorn Drogtrop	Netherlands	88886
93	Welle	Mick Well	Netherlands	88694
94	Wellington	Ken Tildesley	New Zealand	88667
95	Cabrillo Blasters	Bruce Allen	USA	88259
96	Dream Team	Max Rowe	UK	88238
97	Team Windsurf	Joe Tildesley	New Zealand	88226
98	Flying Dutchmen	Tom Kettler	Netherlands	88194
99	Team RG	Rene Glasz	Netherlands	88045
99	What is windsurfing? NC	Niels-Chr. Outzen	Denmark	88045
101	No Wind No Waves No Worries	Brian McDowell	Ireland	88007
102	GEOF	Fernando Liguori	Argentina	87792
103	BvE	Bart van Es	Netherlands	87783
104	Flying Fish	Chris Grover	Canada	87771
105	Team Watto	Peter Watson	Australia	87559
106	Over Early	Fiona Wylde	USA	87502
107	Windsurf TV NL Team	Mark van Osch	Netherlands	87237
108	Team Chachi	Jon Sassone	USA	87131
109	Brouwersdam	Rick Jendrusch	Netherlands	87018
110	Sailworks	Alex Nielsen	USA	86887
111	Surfdudes	T. Dijkstra	Netherlands	86886
112	Totally Mixed Up	A.J. Geesink	Netherlands	86621
113	Team Vegas	Jeff Ward	USA	86551
114	Prancing Ponies	Peggy Giesenschlag	USA	86088
115	Double Dutch	Stefan van Harn	Netherlands	85452
116	The Dutchies Rule	Arnout den Boer	Netherlands	85338
117	Jippie	Meindert Schuitema	Netherlands	85329
118	PWA back in Holland	Michel Kuipers	Netherlands	85242
119	Rautio Sports	Jarno Rautio	Finland	85142
120	WndSrfn	Eric Doremus	USA	84950
121	DaNews	Clyde Giesenschlag	USA	84740
122	Carve Jiber	Jari Lahdenperä	Finland	84339
123	Team Norh-East	Eric Boisvert	Canada	83933
124	The Triangulare Sails	Rene Pedersen	Denmark	83913
125	PWA	Jacques van der Hout	Netherlands	83796
126	Team #1	Jan van Dieren	Netherlands	83438
127	Surfers United	Jens Maandag	Netherlands	82279

US Windsurfing Nationals - Day 1 - Freestyle

Tue, 24 Jul 2012 12:43:00 -0400

Freestyle at the US Windsurfing Nationals presented by the AWT
Day one at the 2012 US Windsurfing Nationals presented by the American Windsurfing Tour was blessed with great wind, flat water and some intense freestyle action. An entire double elimination featuring head-to-head heats was held for the pro men along with four single elimination final heats for the women. Competitors came from all over, including California, Canada and even Aruba! Let's look at all the action in a little more detail...

Women's Action:
When the women hit the water the judges were suddenly thrown into a state of confusion. These heats pitted two new school freestylers, Ingrid Larouche and Tanya Ferguson, against the incredible longboarding style of Jacquie Barone. Which move should score higher: a Spock or doing the splits while Railriding? It was like watching two completely different sports, so it was decided to crown both a new and old school freestyler in the women's division... Ingrid Larouche and Jacquie Barone respectively!

Men's Action:
The single elimination started with a bang as the World Under-17 Freestyle champion Steven Max landed a clean Culo right near the beach. This set the standard and everyone knew they'd need to bring their A-game to beat this incredibly talented kid. The closest heat of the first round saw Casey Hause narrowly edging out Canadian Dan Thomson. Hauser ended the heat strongly after a rough start to just overtake Thomson who was sailing very well. The final of the single elimination came down to a showdown between San Francisco Bay area sailors Wyatt Miller and Jordan Reid. It was an impressive show with Miller taking it after landing his signature Gozada—a switched stance back-to-sail Spock variation.
The double elimination started off impressively for two brothers who came all the way across country from Ontario, Canada: Adam and Tom Wojtkowiak. Not only are these two young freestylers competing but they are also producing the videos and many of the photos for this event. Unfortunately for them they each had to deal with sailors who were definitely on fire, Steven Max and Casey Hauser. With Max and Hauser taking out the Ontario brothers they now had to battle each other to keep advancing. Hauser sailed and great heat hitting tricks like a Funnel and double Flaka, but it was not enough to defeat the junior champ from Aruba. Up next for Max was Jordan Reid... a true contest of talented new-schoolers. The cold-ish water (compared to Aruba) and long days of travel prior to the event seemed to hit Max at the wrong time as he missed his Culo despite nailing almost everything else, and was not enough to take down Reid's double Spock, Kono and Shaka Flaka. So the final was set: Jordan Reid vs. Wyatt Miller.

Men's Final:
The wind was getting a little fluky so Miller pulled out new 6.0-meter sail that he'd never really freestyled on before. It looked like it was working well for him in the lulls, but there were enough gusts that he definitely didn't look like the "Miller-time" who dominated the single elimination earlier. With the door wide open Reid took full advantage sailing a strong heat and taking the final over Miller. But, with this being the double elimination it meant that they'd have to sail again... and Miller re-evaluated his gear choice opting for his smaller freestyle sail. The choice definitely paid off for Miller, as he was back to form ripping through every move. Reid seemed a little off his game in the final allowing Miller to take the victory.

Congrats and thanks to all the sponsors, competitors, organizers and volunteers for making this an amazing event! Sponsors of the 2012 US Windsurfing Nationals include: American Windsurfing Tour, AWSI, US Windsurfing, CGWA, Dakine, Sailworks, Chinook, Vela, Oregon Sports Authority, Big Winds, G-42 IT, Nolimitz, Vector Fins, Makani Fins, Black Project Fins, Mistral, Northwave, Starboard, Vela, 101 Surf Sports, Windsport Magazine.

Day One - Freestyle Results:
Pro Men:
1. Wyatt Miller
2. Jordan Reid
3. Steven Max
4. Casey Hauser
5. Adam Wojtkowiak
5. Tom Wojtkowiak
7. Dan Thomson
7. Jay Watermeyer

Pro Women (shortboard):
1. Ingrid Larouche
2. Tanya Ferguson

Pro Women (longboard):
1. Jacquie Barone

The 2012 AWSI Windsurfer of the Year is...

Sat, 08 Sep 2012 10:22:00 -0400

And the winner is...

Fuerteventura Wave Classic Starts Today: Interview with Mike Clancy

Mon, 07 Feb 2011 08:45:00 -0500

Mikey Clancy (IR-253), a passionate Irish wavesailor, is back on track after a heavy injury. He will compete at the Fuerteventura Wave Classic, which will be starting on Tuesday. A FWC event rep caught up with Clancy for a few works...

Hi Mikey, how are you doing? Could you fully recover from your foot injury?
I am doing well had a nice christmas at home in Ireland with family and a few cold windsurfing sessions. My ankle injury is fully recovered now. I have no pain when windsurfing with it and have sailed in some big swells this winter with it so I am pretty confident about competing in fureteventura.

Since when are you back in the waves again and how many percent are still missing, or are you 100% recovered again?
Well since a couple of weeks after I got the cage off I was back on the water already, but back then I was still doing intensive rehab on my ankle to strengthen it up so I was only sailing back and forth.By the end of summer my ankle was already feeling stronger and almost better but I decided not to push myself and take the autumn winter season in Ireland to get back into wave sailing and jumping. I would say Im 100% recovered but I have lost a lot of flexibility in the ankle itself as it is now fused but what the good thing is that my ankle just feels like my ankle as if its always been that way.

You will compete at the Fuerteventura Wave Classic 2011, which will start in the second week of February. Are you excited about this comeback in the competition after almost a 15 months long break without any competitions and less windsurfing?
I am so excited to be back and doing what I love best, Its been a long journey but one that I feel has thought me some great lessons about life and how amazing it is to be doing what were doing. I can remember tuning into last years event watching every day the live updates whilst learning how to walk with the cage on my foot. So I am so pleased to be able to make it to this one this year.

What do you expect from the event? You did some Wave Classics already, perhaps the hardest one on La Reunion!
Since the first Fuerte Wave Classic was on I wanted to do it. The event organization looks really great along with the amazingly talented bunch of riders which will be on the Fuerte Wave Classic. The Wave Classic in reunion was probably one of the standout trips of my life with sick conditions, loads of sailing, loads of fun, and some of the biggest stunts going down in the competition. I hope we get some nice swells and have another sick event and show to the world how good Europe can be and how great windsurfing is.

Do you know the North Shore of Fuerteventura?
Well I have only been sailing on the south of the Island as a kid a the young guns camp in Sotavento, so the spots up north are all completely new too me.

What gear will you bring on the island?
I will take my S1s between 4.0 and 5.0 and few masts boom etc
74 Quad IQ and 86 Evo IQ for the light days.

What else will you bring for sure?
My surfboard.

How did you prepare for the event?
I'm training now doing some running, cycling gym work and windsurfing when I can. After my exams I took a flight out to Fuerteventura early around the 22nd of January and was lucky. I scored big at some really nice days. At the moment the wind is down.

Would you wish to get really big conditions like on the video event teaser?
If we were to get a swell like that would be awesome. It will sort the men out from the boys for sure anyway.

Website: www.mikeyclancy.com

Win Robby Naish's Sail - Naish Chopper

Tue, 03 Apr 2012 08:05:00 -0400

CLICK HERE to enter a contest with Naish Sails to win Robby Naish's Chopper. This is a brand new sail line that rigs on incredibly short masts! Watch the video below to see more about the sail.

To win you just need to provide some simple info and you'll be entered into their drawing. Good Luck!

Bic Techno 293 One Design Class Moving Forward

Mon, 04 Jun 2012 07:42:00 -0400

For more information on the T293 OD class visit www.techno293.org, and on BIC Sport visit www.bicsport.com.

Gallery: Antoine Albeau rides 2012 RRD X-Fire

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:52:00 -0500

Antoine Albeau's first session since signing his new contract to ride RRD boards!

Next week is... WORLD WINDSURFING WEEK!

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 14:01:00 -0400

World Windsurfing Week starts in a few days on May 1st!

During this event, windsurfers all around the world will organise events for non-surfers to promote the sport. Please help us by organising your own World Windsurfing Week (WWW) event and by spreading the word about WWW and our website www.worldwindsurfingweek.org. On this site's blog, all participants of WWW-Events can post their videos and photos and win windsurfing amazing windsurfing prizes!

Kevin Pritchard Destroys Kites... Wins $3,500

Sun, 16 Jan 2011 08:20:00 -0500

We win!

Well technically Kevin Pritchard won but he did it for all of windsurfing at the Lord of the Wind Showdown in Los Barriles, Baja, Mexico.

The signature race at the event is a long distance course race straight upwind 3-miles and then back downwind to the finish. No one was giving windsurfers a chance to win! Even at the skippers meeting just before the race when Kevin suggest dividing the prize up so that each sport's winner could walk away with some money... the kiters would have nothing to do with it. They wanted all the money to themselves! It would remain a winner-take-all race!

Pritchard was racing on a Starboard iSonic slalom board and an Ezzy Infinity 8.5 sail (a 2-cam freeride sail...not even a true race sail). Top kiteboard racers couldn't touch him with Pritchard finishing 30-seconds before the first kite. Here are some video clips of word on the beach:

Event Organizer Chris Rogers interviews KP:

We gotta know what Wyatt Miller thinks...

Neil from Vela tells us what happened:

Rob Warwick and Casey Hauser are pretty excited:

Two Must-have iPhone Apps for Windsurfers

Tue, 22 Feb 2011 17:13:00 -0500

TRICKTIONARY iPHONE APP:

Here's some big news from Team Tricktionary...

Yeah it's ON, we're stoked, hope you're too! We've finally got our iPhone app out in public! The first bugfix is also up, so now it should also work smoothly on your iPad!!

After the book and the DVD, this first mobile instructional windsurfing app is the logical next step, it is the bridge between the static images and text of the book and the audio visual impressions of the DVD, it gives you the possibility to carry instructional technique for your favorite sport with you all the time!

The initial app is free to download and contains the full beginner course. So if you plan to start windsurfing, go get it NOW! Advanced moves are purchaseable inside the app and are split up into 3 packages:

Non-jumping moves: All the pre-exercises, basic moves, jibes, tacks, 360s as you know them from the Tricktionary book
Jumping moves: You plan to learn the speed loop, Air Jibe and all those cool freestyle tricks, you should consider the jumping pack (also consider the non-jumping pack at the same time as it contains many pre-exercises for this package!)
Wave moves: Everything wave - sweet riding, aerials, goiters, loops, air chachoos... go radical!

(Jumping and Wave packages are going to be updated with more moves until they are complete... once you purchased a package, downloading updates will of course be for free!)

As all our Tricktionary instructional windsurfing tools, the app was build with quality in mind. Photo sequences in high resolution, single pictures with zoom functionality, tips, problems and according solutions... everything you are used to from the book or the DVD is there.

If you like our app, we'd be super happy if you'd post a review for it... Please also keep in mind, that we are still working on the app, not all features are there yet and we are glad to hear any constructive feedback about how to improve the user experience! Also there are more moves going to be added within the next weeks!!

Any question or suggestion, please feel free to post in our Forum, or use the contact form on our website or in the app itself to let us know what you wish to be worked on more, bugs or just how you feel about it all! We need your input to make it perfect.

The Windsurfing TrickApp is the most important app any windsurfer can have on his iPhone!!! (right next to Windguru, Windfinder, Windalert and that stuff) ;)

Hope you like it!
Good Winds
Your Tricktionary Team

WIND GEO iPHONE APP:

Wind Geo enables you to easily find accurate, real time temperature and wind data for any location in the world.

Just open the app and Wind Geo will start by using the phones GPS to show actual wind direction and speed from NOAA and the GFS. Regardless of where you are or which way you are facing, Wind Geo will show you which direction the wind is coming from and at what strength. All in relation to which way you are currently facing. Curious what the winds and temperature are at the beach or overseas? This is simple with Wind Geo. Just hit the green button to enter search mode. Now you can zoom and pan to anywhere in the world. When you are ready, hit the 'Get Wind' button to find the winds and temp.

Wind Geo will auto-refresh every 5 minutes keeping you informed of the conditions as the day goes on or as you change locations. Also, Wind Geo can display the temperature in Fahrenheit or Celsius and winds in miles per hour, knots, or kilometers per hour.

This application will work on an iPhone 3GS and later as it requires a compass. Internet connectivity is needed to display the wind.

AWT Pacasmayo Classic - Final

Tue, 28 Aug 2012 09:53:00 -0400

The expected southwest swell arrived, pushing solid conditions for the contest. With the finals of the kite, SUP, and Long board completed in the morning and early afternoon, we decided to try and finish the remaining heats of the men’s pro division double elimination. We again ran in front of the hotel providing the best venue for judging and also the best possible wind and waves, as further up toward the point the wind was looking super light and too sketchy for the riders.

Athletes who started waves near the point definitely had an advantage, and those who were familiar with the spot were well aware of this. Some of the longer waves saw 15 or 20 turns. Aerials and solid turns were bringing in high scores with the riders using a mix of skills to rake in the points. Wave selection was key as the wind was light. Catching the wrong wave meant the sailors would be well down wind, and have a long slow slog back upwind to the point. Riders gaining the most points were those who chose their waves wisely, and stayed in the critical section of the wave. It’s very easy here to outrun the main breaking section in search of a bigger chunkier section downwind where you can boost an aerial. That strategy didn’t always work well, as the waves sometimes just faded out, and the sailors were left having missed the opportunity of milking the wave further upwind.

Heat 25: Saw young Alex Vargas from Chile and local Peruvian Ricardo Gugliemino progress through.

Heat 26: Venezuelan Diony Guadagino (below) and Tato Molina from Uruguay overtook Vinicius Martins to take 1^st and 2^nd respectively.

Heat 27: Riders were looking to be as consistent as possible. Eduardo Hermann pulled ahead with a long ride and some solid aerials. Diony also sailed a sloid heat, using the wave with fluid and stylish riding.

Heat 29: Alex Vargas from Chile pulls through with more aerials and longer waves than the other riders, placing 1^st in the heat. There was a tie for second place between Chilean Eduardo Hermann and Maui boy Kevin Pritchard. Both sailed a really solid heat with Kevin boosting 2 big aerials on one wave. Unfortunately for him, his 2^nd wave wasn’t as high scoring. The tie was broken by taking the highest scoring wave from the heat and here is where Eduardo just edged ahead and took 2^nd place from Kevin.

At this stage (photo above) it was nearing sunset and we only had minutes of daylight remaining.

Heat 30: Heat length changed to 15 minutes with one wave to count so we could try our best to squeeze the last from the day light and finish the bracket. Tom Juban joined the winners from the previous heat to defend his 3^rd place ranking from the single elimination. Tom, the younger brother of Camille Juban and only 15 years old had impressed everyone during the week of contest. In the single elimination final he gave Camille and Fabrice a serious run for their money and was proving that he is a force to be reckoned with. The heat was very close with all 3 riders waiting to catch the longest set wave they could find. Alex Vargas was on fire and pulled off the best wave moving him ahead into the next heat, passing Eduardo into 4^th overall and a disappointing 5^th for young Tom . He then joined Fabrice Beaux in the final heat of the contest in the battle for 2^nd place. The sun was setting and in the end it was Fabrice with the best wave, defending his 2^nd place ranking. With the sun down and insufficient light for judging we were unable to run the final and results stayed with Camille Juban in first.

The closing party was hosted by Jaime Rojas of the El Faro Resort. Pacasmayo girls joined in on the fun and we had traditional Peruvian fried doughnuts, ceviche, and Pisco Sour drinks. Smiles all around as the awards were presented. The AWT has been invited to come back again next year and we are all looking forward to the Pacasmayo 2013!

Robby Naish talks about Harold Iggy's Passing

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 21:05:00 -0500

Our world was rocked this week with the news that Harold Iggy, my dear friend and shaper for over thirty years had passed away from a heart attack while standup paddling in Kailua Bay. His sudden death came as a shock to us all. Harold was one of the purest, most humble, fittest, and seemingly healthiest men of any age that I have ever known.

For those lucky enough to have known him, Harold Iggy was a very unique and inspiring man. He loved shaping boards with all of his heart. Harold had been making and riding boards of every shape and size basically his entire life, and did so with total commitment and passion. He shaped with curiosity, an open mind, and a constant desire to improve and discover. He shaped because he loved it. Whether a shortboard, longboard, windsurfing wave or race board, paddleboard, standup short board or eighteen footer, Harold crafted and rode them all. Harold Iggy was THE master shaper in every sense of the word, and a true waterman. His eye, his hands, his feeling for curves and what they ultimately came together to do...and his magical ability to turn a block of foam into a functional work of art was legendary.

His skills and dedication aside, he was simply one of the nicest human beings that ever lived. He had so much to teach, so much to share, and so many amazing stories. He was soft spoken with a wealth of knowledge, and he never had a bad word to say about anyone or anything. If there is a heaven, you can be sure that Harold was welcomed like few men before him.

Harold’s passing will leave a void in many hearts and many lives. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his beautiful wife, Susan, his two daughters, and his grandson. I feel blessed to have been able to call him a friend, and I’ll cherish my memories and all that he taught me forever. Harold passed away doing what he loved. He was in the ocean, riding a wave on his latest masterpiece. May he RIP for eternity, and may his legacy live on through the people whose lives he touched and through the tens of thousands of boards around the world that came from his hands.

I will miss you Harold.

Love always,
Robby and the entire Naish Ohana

(JDphotofairy photo)

Matt's Monday #15: Get your lines right

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 10:06:00 -0500

Where do I position my harness lines????

You just got your new set of adjustable Da Kine lines and now you need to know where to put them. Well I learned a pretty cool trick that gets you REALLY CLOSE for all sail sizes! Ideally you would do this in a no-wind area. This tip helps you find the sweet spot on modern days sails that are no more than 5 or 6 years old.

With the sail fully rigged, reach over the top of the boom and grab it with two fingers. Pick the sail up from different locations until the rig balances out evenly (see photos below). If the clew of the sail dips down, move your fingers back towards the clew. If the mast is dipping down, move your fingers closer to the mast. Once you establish that perfectly balanced position, spread your lines approximately 3 inches apart from each side of your balance point. This being said, I believe that your harness line attachment points should never be spread wider than 6” apart. If you find that your lines are spread more than that, chances are you do not have them balanced properly or you are using an older sail that may have a more “draft back” set up.

The next little test you can do is hold the sail up on the beach and hook-in to the harness lines (DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK AS I HAVE SEEN PEOPLE CATAPULTED ONTO CONCRETE WHILE ATTEMPTING THIS) and get a feel for how the balance of the rig feels. Ideally there should be a very light breeze blowing and you can stand there comfortably without the sail pulling you around too much. If the mast comes back to you, then slide the forward attachment/line further back until you can stand there with no hands. You may also have to move the back attachment/line point back as well. The longer the lines you have, the easier this is to do on the beach, so that should tell you something good about longer lines right there!

Many people have a different sailing style, so these tips are just guidelines to get you started. A general rule is that if one arm is getting tired move the lines towards the pain. Meaning if your front arm is getting really worked, perhaps your line is too far back, and you are doing too much work. Slide the front harness line attachment point forward so it will take some of the load off your arm. Same goes for the back hand, if you are overworking then move the line further back or check your rig settings. If you are overpowered, the power in the sail tends to go back so you might need to pull on some more outhaul.

My advice is to move one thing around at a time. If you change 13 different things all at once, you will never really learn what made the difference! I know that is easier said than done, but with a little time and proper understanding of what works and why, you will be a lot better off for your next session.

Three-Time World Champion, Matt Pritchard is sponsored by Gaastra Sails, Tabou Boards, Da Kine, Kaenon Polarized and Camaro Wetsuits. Matt Does Private Lessons on Maui as well as several clinics throughout the year in different locations. If you have any comments or suggestions, you can contact Matt by email: matt@pritchardwindsurfing.com

Levi Siver wins with 52'7" Back Loop!

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 02:49:00 -0400

The ShadowBox/Windsport Magazine/EpicSessions.tv Ho'okipa Jump-off was won by Levi Siver with an enormous Back Loop measuring in at 52 feet and 7 inches!

How do we know? Thanks to the incredible GPS technology of the ShadowBox unit each rider had onboard, all of the jumps were recorded for analysis. These amazing little units can measure height as well as standard GPS data like distance and speed! Click here to find out more from ShadowBoxLive.com. Thanks to Casey Hauser (ShadowBox) and Jake Miller (SnakeBite Films) for running such an epic contest!

The riders were: Kauli Seadi, Levi Siver, Camile Juban, Kai Lenny, Whit Poor, Russ Faurot and Kai Katchadourian. Thanks to all for going big for us... and just to let you know, it was amazing how close the results were.

Stay tuned to windsport.com for more detailed results and measurements from each rider and a complete video produced by Jake Miller from this awesome event!

(Photo by Carter/PWA)

In Memory of Jim Drake

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 21:42:00 -0400

"Jim Drake changed the lives of millions of people and will continue to do so.

Windsurfing has made people experience the wind, waves and water in new ways. The sport has made converts travel and even settle on the opposite side of our planet.

His spirit was always to include everyone and especially women and kids into windsurfing. Jim and his wife Sam spent years with us in Thailand developing designs and strategies to increase the popularity of windsurfing. He was always optimistic and especially happy to challenge the status quo. His view on “one design” versus free choice of windsurfing gear for the Olympics was well known. His designs, like the Formula 175, the worlds most winning race board ever took competitive windsurfing to a new level.

Jim was an early adaptor of paddle boarding and he has helped design a number of winning designs like the K15. Some of his later designs are still being tested and his ideas on the future of paddle board designs may soon be shared.

He had so much more to give and reminded us on how precious each hour of life is."

—Svein Rasmussen and the Starboard family