Windsport Vol.29-2 No.124

INSIDE:

2010 WATER WEAR GUIDE : : JOSH ANGULO : : A HOT INTERN? : : TYSON POOR NORTH AMERICA’S WINDSURFING MAGAZINE

BOARD QUIVERS TESTED SAIL MORE WITH LESS GEAR

RIDE GUIDE:

PISTOL RIVER P.40

MEET THE ROEDIGERS BAJA’S LATEST PRANKSTERS

GREECE ON A BUDGET

PHIL SOLTYSIAK’S CHEAP TRIP

SPRING 2010

DISPLAY UNTIL JUNE 30, 2010

WINDSPORT.COM $5.99 US

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Forecast

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A Nor’easter’s wrath. Elkus photo

TRAPPED IN HATTERAS The Friday the 13th storm was the first major Nor’easter to strike Hatteras during last fall’s windsurfing season. The ocean’s energy, fueled by the storm, battered the islands causing major flooding and damage to Hwy 12 and closing off all road access to the popular windsurfing communities south of the Oregon Inlet.

Locals and visitors experienced dwindling food supplies at the local grocers, though the hardy residents weathered the aftermath with no problems or worries. A few visiting New York windsurfers did redirect south to Ocracoke by ferry for the trip home; however, for those who remained, windy weather filled in and soundside windsurfing was a blast!

Credit goes to NC DOT who had the highway repaired just four days after the storm hit.

—Bill Bell (obxbeachlife.blogspot.com)

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Features 52 Meet the Roedigers

An atypical father-son duo hit Punta San Carlos, Baja.

56 Japan

Flo Jung experiences culture shock and nuking conditions on this last-minute trip.

62 Greece on the Cheap

Phil Soltysiak travels through Greece while competing on the EFPT.

68 Exposure

Big-and-bright windsurfing action from around the world.

77 Water Wear GUIDE Not just another boring 2010 product showcase.

82 Board Quiver Test

The Windsport test crew evaluates 16 boards with the hope of helping you learn how to sail more while owning less gear.

On the Cover

Rider: Jason Polakow Photographer: Benjamin Thouard This shot of Jason was taken at Moorea, a sister island of Tahiti, during the Windsurf Challenge. The event was moved here from Teahupoo for better waves and stronger sideoff winds. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Benjamin Thouard

contents one

Volume 29, Issue 2, Number 124

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Wyatt Miller, hangs with the Roedigers in San Carlos. Merrit photo

52

Meet the roedigers

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contents TWo voluMe 29, issue 2, nuMBeR 124

uPFrONt 08 Forecast: Trapped on or off Cape Hatteras 14 Launch: My killer wetsuit 16 Balance Point: Some great e-mails from you 19 In the Wind: How to windsurf through life

DePartMeNts 34 radar

Future Olympic hopeful Solvig Sayre 36 Quiver

PWA photographer John Carter’s travel kit 38 In the Lab

Meet this Hot Sails Maui intern 40 ride Guide: Pistol river, Oregon

There’s a contest here this June, so get informed 42 Get Better here

Andy Brandt’s secrets to learning aerials 96 Getting real

When in the Gorge, eat at Sophie’s 98 Close Out

Do you agree with Mitch Gingrich?

Whit Poor, on his new gear. K. Pritchard photo

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launch DEATH BY WETSUIT I take a lot of pride in the fact that all the suits in my closet have features like air-infused neoprene, adjustable ankle closures and a reinforced crotch rather than being double breasted in some cotton/polyester blend. It means that I am striving to spend more time on the water than joining the rat race and behind a desk.

My most memorable wetsuit was a 2005 Neil Pryde NPX. It offered unmatched comfort for its day but this isn’t why I remember it. I will always remember it as the only wetsuit that ever tried to kill me.

During the summer of 2005, I was sailing with fellow ABK Boardsports instructor Matt Case at the Hood River Marina. This spot has always been awesome for flatwater freestyle, but back then the water was much deeper close to shore than it is now. I was sailing in towards the beach on a starboard tack deciding what trick to throw for the crowd lining the shore. Of course, as a wannabe freestyler, I assumed everyone was watching me (when in reality no one was).

I had just begun landing my first

new-school aerials but unfortunately they were all on port tack and I was absolutely useless on starboard. I may not have been so bad if I could have read an article like “The Demystification of New School Aerials” (p. 42) you’ll find later in this issue.

Since the beach was pretty packed, I decided to pull out my ultimate old-school crowd pleaser: the Andy Brandy. We named this trick after its inventor, instructional guru Andy Brandt, for the time he got a personalized quiver bag shipped to him from his sail sponsor, but with his last name misspelled in this rhyming fashion. Lucky they screen-printed it correctly on the actual sails inside the bag.

Basically, in an Andy Brandy, you step forward out of the footstraps on a full plane and turn your back to the sail ducking inside the boom. From this position you carve upwind through a tack so you gradually lose speed and start to get backwinded. Next you duck back out from under the boom to continue sailing back-to-back in the new direction. Finally the

sail is flipped around your body in front of you (cowboy style) and you claim victory. I know 0.01 per cent of readers actually followed that, so I’ll put a video of the Andy Brandy up on windsport.com/issue124_extras to enlighten anyone who actually gives a crap.

Whether you care or not what trick I was doing at the time of my near death experience, it plays an important part. At the stage of the trick where I was ducking back out from inside the boom with my back to the sail, the long strap meant for pulling on the zipper chose to bind itself to my boom’s harness line in a stronger and sturdier knot than I could ever tie myself (then again, I am knot retarded).

With my back securely secured to the harness line and my board pointed straight up into the wind, I more likely resembled a frantic animal being carried by its scruff rather than an awesome freestyle windsurfer. Immediately the clew of my sail knifed straight down into the deep water pulling me with it. I vividly remember seeing my good buddy Matt Case sailing in behind me. I waved frantically too him and yelled, but to my horror he simply laughed and threw down a sick Grubby just far

enough away from me downwind that he wouldn’t be any help. In hindsight, it’s actually pretty funny that this guy is now employed saving people as an EMT (read INSPIRATION p. 30).

Thankfully, someone on the beach heard my plea for help and swam out to my rescue. He stabilized the sail from sinking any further and worked the knot loose. But I guess I was so self-absorbed (trying to be a true freestyler) in my situation that I couldn’t even remember who saved me 10 minutes after it all went down. Thankfully, I believe in karma and know that he has or will be rewarded by someone saving his life in turn. But wait… does that mean I’m to blame for him almost dying as well? Karma is a bitch! Thanks anyway ,man.

Despite our differences, I forgave my wetsuit and kept on wearing it. I believe in the old saying “what doesn’t kill you will make you a stronger freestyler!”

Check out more tales of wetsuit mayhem at “2010 Water Wear Showcase” (p. 77).

—PeTe deKaY, ediToR

Nice suit. Fraser photo

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balance point VOLUME  | ISSUE  | NUMBER 

WRITE IN AND WIN

PUBLISHER EDITOR SENIOR EDITOR ART DIRECTOR

Tired of lugging that cumbersome old box cooler to the beach for keeping your brews cold? Thanks to Dakine you can win a stylish and more portable replacement.

For this issue and the next we are giving away a Dakine Coast Cooler Pack to our winning e-mail delivered in time to letters@windsport.com.

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR COPY EDITOR

windsport

Patrick Bergeron

PWA CORRESPONDENT

John Carter

INSTRUCTIONAL EDITOR

Andy Brandt

ADVERTISING TRAFFIC COORDINATOR

16

Stephanie Lake

Flora Bikich, Jock Bradley, John Carter, Bryan Elkus, Bjorn Gottschall, Richard Hallman, Jerome Houyvet, Jarrett McPeek, Clark Merritt, Kevin Pritchard, Axel Reese, Sebastian Schoffel, Laura Slater, Michael Sumereder, Benjamin Thouard

PRODUCTION MANAGER

SHOULD KIDS SAIL JAWS? I found your interview with Graham Ezzy, Kai Lenny, Connor Baxter and their dads interesting, but I still question the sense of allowing your kid to windsurf at Jaws.

Trusting in their ability and judgment is one thing, but from everything I’ve ever read about the place, the unpredictable can happen. I recently saw a video online of Jason Polakow’s life being threatened

Luke Fox

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGS

TEST EDITOR

EATING MY WORDS I just got a copy of the new mag in the mail yesterday. I see that you printed my letter on the BALANCE POINT page and I feel like somewhat eating my words of (what I hope was) constructive criticism.

There is a ton of great stuff in the issue.

I especially like the Jaws article and the one on the next Windsurfing Movie.

Thanks for listening.

Mike Fischer, Kingston, Ont. We will always take to heart any letters we receive and I encourage everyone to e-mail us (letters@windsport.com) suggestions on what you’d like to see. —ed.

Dan Parsons

Bill Bell, Matt Case, Graham Ezzy, Mitch Gingrich, Jerome Houyvet, Flo Jung, Dana Miller, Emma-Rose Rossoff, Phil Soltysiak, Zane Wewerka

DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION AND DESIGN

as he is held down for multiple waves. It would be a completely different story, and one that would attract massive mainstream media coverage, if this or worse happened to a kid at Jaws. As I don’t personally know these kids or their true big-wave riding ability, I don’t mean to pass judgment… I will assume that they were adequately trained and prepared. But I do think any who hope to follow in their footsteps should take the situation equally seriously.

William Noelin, Boston, Massachusetts With Connor Baxter now being the youngest ever to windsurf Jaws at age 15, I hope it doesn’t set a record that anyone ever sets out to break. The wave at Jaws is dangerous and everyone involved in this incredible story was definitely ready for it. —ed.

Pete DeKay // pdk@sbcmedia.com John Bryja

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

MAUI CORRESPONDENT

WINNING LETTER The Kai Lenny cover for the newest issue is awesome. I just got it in the mail a few weeks ago and I think the entire magazine is great. I particularly liked the interview where a few pros got to ask Andre Paskowski one question each and the gear section is great. Although I think it would be cool if you guys put in some more tutorials/instructional sections for people wanting to get into more advanced sailing. I’d love to see some info on basic freestyle (Spock, Flaka, Grubby, etc.) or maybe even some wave stuff, too. Anyways, I love the mag, so keep doing what you guys do best. I’ll basically read anything you guys put into it.

Tomasz Wojtkowiak, via e-mail You ask and we will deliver. Check out Andy Brandt’s new-school aerial theories in this issue’s “Get Better Here” (p.42) to get a better understanding of Vulcans, Spocks, etc. Next issue he’ll examine the Vulcan in incredible detail and you’ll be able to take his advice and apply it other flatwater sliding tricks. —ed.

Steve Jarrett

PRODUCTION DESIGN CIRCULATION AND PROMOTIONS MANAGER CIRCULATION AND PROMOTIONS COORDINATOR CIRCULATION ASSISTANT WEB ADMINISTRATOR ADVERTISING SALES AND PROMOTIONS ADVERTISING DIRECTOR ADVERTISING SALES EVENTS

Derek Rijff Evan Sue-Ping Michael Moore x243 Mariangela Tesoro Stevie Shipman, Stevie Visser, Mike Fraser Mike Hartman Christina Raymond x252 Ilissa Maiatico Kevin Davis Rick Bruner 509.493.4930 Matt Aiken x223 Jamie Reekie x230 Bill Jones, Peter Jones, Todd Elsley

CONTROLLER

Brian Jarrett

OFFICE MANAGER

Adam Jacobs

On occasion, our subscription list is made available to organizations whose product or service might interest you.

If you would prefer not to receive such information, please write to us at the address below.

Windsport magazine is an independent publication published four times a year —Buyers’ Guide, Spring , Summer and Fall—by SBC Media Inc., 2255B Queen St. E., Suite 3266, Toronto, ON, M4E 1G3 Phone: (416) 406-2400 • Fax: (416) 406-0656 E-mail: info@windsport.com • Website: www.windsport.com

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Reproduction of any materials published in Windsport is expressly forbidden without the written consent of the publisher.

Printed in Canada

ITw issUe 

GeAr, AdVICe & enTerTAInMenT

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PEER PRESSURE

Josh Angulo answers some tough questions

26

THE SKINNY

Graham Ezzy’s new sport: fallsurfing

30

INSPIRATION

Look who had to get a real job!

32 HERO

Colorado’s Zane Wewerka looks up to Tyson Poor

In THe wInd

GROM WELLNESS MACGYVER PRODUCTS WE LIKE

Launching in Guadeloupe. M.houyvet photo

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Peer Pressure

Photo by johN CArter/ PWA

eleVen ConTeMporaries QuiZ JosH angulo World champion wavesailor Josh Angulo retires from the PWA wave tour after a long and successful career. What’s up next for him? Who knows… even his friends want to ask him. sCott mCkerCher: Are you

going to miss competition wavesailing at all? i am 100 per cent enjoying sailing for sailing’s sake. it’s nice to ride a wave and just do a turn or care-free carve without thinking of maximizing the wave in order to train myself to get maximum points once contest time starts. Many of my sailing companions are tourists on holiday. they are friends that are professionals in other fields and just everyday intermediate windsurfers; so basically, i just go out and have fun —as much as it sounds like a cliché.

tIne slabe: Are you going to keep competing in slalom? yes, mate, looking forward to it. our new Angulo Magnums are extremely competitive as well as the new Maui sails tr-6s. i should have my best equipment advantage yet. laure trebouX: What are your

future plans? i am blessed to live in a great place with many projects going on. My immediate goals are to get trained up for the upcoming slalom season and continue to push Angulo boards worldwide. our operations here in Cabo verde are growing and my goals here are to continue to build a team and delegate responsibility to trustworthy people so i can spend more time on the water, especially with my wife and son.

matt prItChard: You should be winning PWA slalom races!

What’s going on, buddy? that’s Matt’s way of saying that i’ve been sucking ass in slalom. Although i haven’t been a complete failure on my two years back, i definitely haven’t lived up to my

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potential. i would say initially i was too emotionally involved.

A while back i learned to take a more precise and sharp approach to wavesailing competition, and i will need to carry that over into slalom. i had a whole heck of a lot going on the last few years and i’m really trying to trim down my responsibilities and activities in order to be fully concentrated on only a couple things. i am confident of my future in slalom. sarah-QuIta offrInga: Every

time I watch your slalom heats you have the best start. What’s your secret? to be honest, i do seem to get pretty great starts in the highwind areas, as when you are fully powered you can go from slow to fast very quickly. Also, historically i have started a lot at the pin, which allows you a really clear marker. i am forcing myself to learn to start in the middle as well as at the boat as conditions and courses change and often you need to be able to adapt to different positions on the course. there is no real science to starting except practice, but the best is if you can get so fast that even when you don’t have a perfect start you can still win a race.

rob WarWICk: Will windsurf

competitions ever be what they were in the’90s again? you never know, rob. it could be as good as ’90s or even surpass it. i’m sure if a substantial financial injection were to fall into the right people’s hands combined with all the technical advances in media, it would make the events far better than the ’90s. i imagine that live internet streaming with a decent television distribution would be the key factors.

kevIn prItChard: You have

lived in two of the world’s best windsurfing places, which one is the best? different strokes for different folks, k.P. hawaii has an infrastructure that far surpasses Cabo verde, but Cabo verde has a freedom that surpasses hawaii.

We miss hawaii and when we are in hawaii we miss Cv. the trade winds in hawaii are a bit stronger, but our wavesailing and surfing are 10 times better than Maui and 100 times less crowded, so i don’t know. Can i have both?

kaulI seadI: How hard is managing your own business while also being a pro on tour? i’m not sure many people can understand the extreme duress of trying to win a world title and run some different businesses at the same time, but if you come out the other end, you will be all the stronger for it. i know you have a few pokers in the fire there in brazil and are business-minded. one council i can give is to try and build the best team possible. surround yourself with honest people and delegate responsibility. Go for it, kauli, you will for sure succeed as you have in windsurfing. franCIsCo goya: How do you see Cabo Verde and windsurfing in the future. What can you tell average windsurfers about this place? first of all, Cabo verde has a lot of islands and sal is probably the user-friendliest for windsurfers as there are so many different conditions in a very close proximity as well as a variety of windsurf centres for rentals. one old wives’ tale that i’d like to put to sleep is that Cabo verde is only gnarly and for the pros. it is actually mainly a beginner and intermediate spot with nearby

access to advanced and tripleblack diamond sailing sites. patrICk bergeron: What do

you think of arguments over “riding styles” in judging the heats between you and Kauli? i say guys who like stirring the pot spur the majority of these “arguments” on. Whoever comes up with these types of arguments is seemingly trying to create a box to put us in. i’ve been very fortunate to compete with kauli as well as robby Naish and bjorn dunkerbeck. i went from being one of the young kai Lenny-style groms to the older, crustier Phil McGain-type veterans in what seems like a short amount of time. the epic battles that i’ve had with kauli are historic and our two unique yet equally top-end styles will be unmatched just as jason Polakow, Mark Angulo and Naish have their own unique styles. i couldn’t have had a more complimentary opponent in the Cabo verde years than kauli seadi, and i personally thank him for the level that he’s taken the sport to and his awesome sportsmanship.

levI sIver: Is it hard to be a

Christian on tour? for sure the Christian walk is full of trials, and traveling the world and being exposed to every kind of worldly “candy” is a constant test. As much as i fall short of the glory of God, jesus’ grace on me is the key to my success, happiness and well-being. i have daily battles in my personal life, financial life and marriage and could never imagine having to go through all that without the rock of jesus Christ to rely on.

AnGULO’s TOP  Career HIGHS 6. Retiring from

the PWA wave tour with a World Title in 2009. It’s perfect to go out on top.

5. Winning at Cabo

Verde in ’07 and ’09 was the craziest feeling ever. I am unbelievably blessed.

4. Doing well at any Maui event and especially winning five times has been a real highlight. They were exciting events.

3. Sailing the gnarli-

est open-ocean waves with Kai Katchadourian along the west coast of Sal, Cabo Verde in ‘06.

2. Winning the

world title in 2003.

It was a big weight off my shoulders to finally achieve that lifetime goal.

1. More or less get-

ting barreled on my windsurfer riding Jaws with Greg Aguera… my lifetime highlight wave.

Last wave session at Sylt.

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Grom

Words by MArk shAy | Photo by ty b. hestoN

Tyler HesTon

Age: 16 Home: st. Petersburg, florida Sponsors: sailworks, Chinook, Maui fin Co., rrd, isthmus sailboards, second Wind Maui Hero: My dad Preferred discipline: Waves Favourite launch: ho’okipa Windsurfing goal: Loop or bust!

Tyler is an incredible young man. from his aggressive wavesailing to his hard work on freestyle, he stands out on the water. i saw him land his first vulcan last summer just a short distance offshore at North beach in fort desoto Park. he is intelligent, polite and well mannered and displays a wonderful example for our sailing community here in central florida.

A self portrait at Kihei, Maui.

QUOTED: neVIn saYre

“it’s happening! We are starting to see kids coming out of sailing programs and into windsurfing. twenty-eight kids, aged 16 and under were in the techno 293 fleet at Calema Midwinters, where the adult formula class had just three more participants. there are now over 65 junior sailing programs that have techno 293s. it’s pretty cool that we are getting a new generation of one design windsurfing going.” —Nevin Sayre, bic sport UsA

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Wellness

by eMMA-rose rossoff Photos by joCk brAdLey

SUP YOGA: lesson Two

Did you know that beginner windsurfing boards and most large SUPs come with built-in yoga deck pads? Try these poses on your next no-wind day.

Hero Pose with variation (Easy): begin on all fours in the centre of the board. transition your hips toward your heels and draw your legs to touch. reach your spine tall as you pull your navel toward your spine, tuck in your ribs and breathe fully into the pit of your belly. rest your shoulders downward and turn your gaze toward the sky. smile as you reach the crown of your head up.

Thread the Needle with arm variation (Intermediate): begin in Child’s Pose (kneeling with hips down over heels and chest to knees) and transition hips slightly up and hands slightly forward. Place your right arm on the centreline of the board and inhale as you reach your left arm high to the sky, holding your balance. As you exhale, thread your raised arm underneath your right shoulder as you twist from the centre of your spine and reach your left fingertips away from your body. Gently rest your head to the centre of the board as your gaze turns toward your left fingertips. Work with the breath and as you inhale, raise your hips slightly. As you exhale, transition your hips more toward your heels. Continue for a few rounds and hold.

Emma-Rose Rossoff owns Annahata Yoga in Hood River, Oregon.

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The Skinny

Words by GrAhAM eZZy | iLLUstrAtioN by doN jACksoN

Falling For winDsurFing

Windsurfing is full of falling. i mean, most people fall 10 times before they even travel 10 feet, and learning to jibe means falling a thousand times. We could call the sport fallsurfing. And it is precisely this falling that makes windsurfing better than any other sport and windsurfers generally better than other people (yes, better), because not being afraid to fall is the key to success in any sport, art, or job.

When i set out to learn a move, i only have one plan—fall a lot. the quicker i want to learn a move, the more i have to fall. When i first started trying to figure out Wave 360s, i’d try one on every wave of my session so that i would literally come off the water and go home without having made a single move that day. but the next day i would complete more of the 360-degree rotation and project farther in front of the wave before messing everything up and crashing. Until one day, after millions of falls, i didn’t fall but landed my first Wave 360 (i was so happy that i started laughing on the water). i couldn’t have made it without falling.

Along the way, each crash gave me a little bit more information on how to do the manoeuvre properly, so every failed attempt was a part of my first successful Wave 360. Moves cannot exist

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without first being wipeouts. to most windsurfers, this probably seems obvious. they’re reading this and thinking, “Who expects to land a back Loop on the first try?” yet, most of our culture doesn’t allow for failure. one of my english professors confided in me that the hardest part of his job is getting kids to the point where they can write without expecting it to be perfect. trying to write a flawless story on the first attempt is impossible, and thus crippling. but writing a lot of stories regardless of whether they’re good or bad will inevitably lead to improvement, and improvement guides one towards perfection (even if it’s ultimately unattainable, everyone wants to get closer). My professor tries to teach “falling” to his students by assigning them nightly writing in a blog that no one will read. Windsurfers don’t need anything of the sort because they’ve already discovered how to fall and thus learned to learn. other sports like skateboarding also require falling in order to improve, but windsurfing seems to be the best. for one, water is a lot softer than cement. More of just a splash in the water, falling in windsurfing rarely means broken bones or deep cuts. thus falls are mainly only ego injuries and not physical ones. further, the sport of windsurfing has an infinitely

nOT BeInG aFraID TO FaLL IS THe keY TO SUCCeSS In anY SPOrT, arT, Or JOB.

large number of moves to learn, so the falling never stops. even the best wave and freestyle professional windsurfers in the world are still constantly trying (i.e. falling) on new moves. everyone, from the guy learning to jibe to ricardo Campello trying to land a triple forward, is falling. falling is the essence of life. science requires multiple failures and trials before reaching an accurate result, and evolution relies on genetic mutations that create a varied spectrum of non-prefect animals, and from this variety

only the ones with stronger genes survive. this pattern of falling in order to learn is seen everywhere. so even though no one wants to write a shitty story in the same way that nobody wants to get slammed onto the water mid forward Loop, in both cases the falling stage is necessary for improvement. so, in order to improve you must fall. And the best way to learn to fall is to windsurf. so, logically, everyone in the world who is trying to improve should learn how to windsurf.

I T w

MacGyver

Top Vent Plug Tips

Words by Derek Rijff | Photos by MIKE FRASER A vent plug is easy to use. Screw it in just before hitting the water and take it out or loosen it after your session is done. Why do this? It keeps your board from delaminating if it heats up too much or for other reasons. Here are some tips to help and find even more online at windsport.com/issue124_extras.

1. Remind yourself that the

2. Forgetting the rubber

3. If you use a Chinook twobolt plate, you can safely store the vent plug between sessions inside it with the “quick release” cotter pin closed.

4. If water gets in the vent,

vent plug is fully in by marking your board with a Sharpie so that a drawn line matches up with the screwdriver slot.

O-ring or using a damaged one will let water in. Don’t crank the vent plug tight with all your might as this will damage it. Just get it snug.

first turn the board upsidedown to drip water out. Next, wick water out by shoving a strip of paper towel in the vent and placing it in a warm area.

ask the board man Can I keep the vent plug in if my board’s been damaged?

If your board ever gets damaged and takes on a little water, it becomes imperative that you use the vent plug every day after it has been repaired. This water vapor trapped inside will expand more than just air making the potential for delamination much greater. —Derek Rijff, Delta Windsurf Company

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I T w

Inspiration

by MAtt CAse

a CHange in liFesTyle – parT 1

F

or most of you out there reading this, what i did this year is absolutely unthinkable. i turned down an offer to return for my third season as the lead instructor at Club ventos in jericoacoara, brazil, to get what my parents refer to as a “real job.” that’s right, i turned down six months of sailing a 4.5 m2 every day wearing only board shorts in the name of becoming a responsible citizen. of course i have been talking about making this transition for quite awhile but people don’t take you very seriously when your blonde hair is down past your ears and you’ve worn the same pair of board shorts for the better part of a year. then again, even i didn’t think the switch back to real life would be as hard as it has.

i begin my journey by writing down a list of skills that i have picked up from working in the windsurfing industry for the past 10 years. the list is fairly short, as tacking a 70-litre waveboard and throwing loops are not especially applicable in the real world despite being highly coveted skills for us windsurfers. My final list consisted of just two items. the first is that i am very proficient at driving large vans at high rates of speed through traffic. this is a skill that i perfected over years of rushing to sailing sites around the san francisco bay Area after work. the second is that i can live out of a car for long periods of time, thanks to working with Abk boardsports for several years. initially i am a bit bummed out by my list, but then i

realize that i am a perfect fit for driving an ambulance. i head back to school for training, and despite my friends constantly reminding me of how good the windsurfing has been around the world, i stick with it getting my eMt (emergency Medical technician) certificate. i may have cut my hair and haven’t sailed for over four months now, but i still feel like i’ve made the right decision. to all my windsurfing friends out there living the dream, i can promise the next time you see me i will be sailing worse than ever but you won’t be able to wipe the smile off my face. see you on the water.

Next issue you can read about the flipside to this story in the next INSPIRATION column.

prOdUCTs we LIKe HOW SMarT IS YOUr FIn?

A windsurfing sail rotates to provide optimum performance depending on whether you’re sailing on a starboard or port tack. so why are we happy with a solid constant foil when it comes to our fin? Welcome to the new fin technology of smartfins. the principle of smartfins is based on a self-adjusting asymmetrical profile, which automatically clicks to the best shape for your course of sail. Whether you are on a starboard or a port sailing course, the fin’s profile will adjust for optimal performance.

A smartfin’s self-adjustability gives you more power for earlier planing and better upwind ability without fear of spinout. Also, this extra power allows you to use a shorter fin as the 32 centimetre smartfin can replace a 37 centimetre regular foiled fin. A shorter fin will mean reduced drag, more comfort and allow you to sail in shallower water. smartfin riders did incredibly well in last season’s Caribbean slalom circuit. At the Aruba hi-Winds Nathaniel “Mac” Mcfarlane and Patun saragoza finished first and second in the Masters division and Nicole van der velden dominated the women’s fleet.

At the bonaire slalom Worlds, radoslaw “Gutek” kurczewski won the juniors using a smartfin. read more about them and order your own at smartfins.nl.

Go to windsport.com right now to find a complete test write-up for a SmartFin and many more 2010 gear releases.

“Ice Case” is now an E.M.T. DeSanti photo

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I T w

Hero

Interview by Zane Wewerka

Here’s why Zane Wewerka looks up to pro Tyson Poor We are letting aspiring freestyler Zane Wewerka from Colorado ask whatever questions he wants to his hero Tyson Poor.

Can you remember your first time windsurfing?

It was on Lake Merrit in Oakland, California. I already knew how to sail small boats, so that helped out a little bit. I didn’t really get stoked on it until about three days into the camp when the wind picked up and I planed for the first time. I haven’t looked back since.

Zane Wewerka on Lake Ogallala. DeKay photo

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Do you ever feel that you need to be better than your brother Whit?

Ha ha… I don’t think sibling rivalry ever dies. And who said I was better than him? I always look forward to sailing with Whit. We always push each other really hard, keeping the level of sailing really high and a lot more fun.

What’s your second favourite thing?

I could go fishing all day, every day.

Do you have any goals for 2010?

I got some slalom gear last year and only had one week to train on it before Nationals. This year, I will have more gear and will train with my brother to win at Nationals.

I also want to keep up with the freestyle windsurfing.

Have you ever windsurfed in the Great Plains region, where I’m from?

Yeah, I went to the Toucan Open in Nebraska a while back. I did my first race ever finishing second in the Bic Techno class and fifth in the fleet. It was a good time.

Where is the craziest place windsurfing has taken you?

For sure it’s Sylt, Germany. Just to see so many people supporting windsurfing even though it is freezing cold and raining. Also, when it’s really windy at Sylt the conditions are crazy!

What tricks do you like doing most right now?

Right now it’s the Kono. I just like the way the rotation feels. In the Gorge I like to do Doubles and big Back Loops. The more power in the move, the more I like it. It gives me a bigger adrenaline rush!

Outline a perfect day be from start to finish?

I would get up and go fishing or an early morning surf session.

Next, I’d come in and make a big lunch, taking about an hour relaxing break. Then I’d windsurf till the sun goes down. Finally, enjoying a nice big steak dinner with my buddies before going to sleep hoping that tomorrow will be exactly the same!

Inspired Zane Wewerka Home: Fort Collins, Colorado Occupation: High school student (but I’ve lined up a summer job at Windance in the Gorge) Favourite gear setup: Goya One 95 litre and Severne Blade 4.5m2 On-water goals: To eventually make up my own freestyle move or to just have fun—and that’s already taken care of.

Message about Tyson Poor: While visiting the Gorge I saw a rider on a new Neil Pryde sail landing perfect Double Flakas and full-planing Loops just off the beach at the Event Site. I recognized him from a Windsport Exposure photo and approached him after the session. He was super-nice and gave me some great pointers. It’s the coolest thing to meet a pro that you’ve seen in mags, someone you look up to, and also get help and encouragement from them. Thanks, Tyson!

Tyson Poor starts a Back Loop. Bradley photo

windsport

33

radar

Solvig racing Techno 293 at U.S. Nationals.

SOLVIG SAYRE WORDS AND PHOTO BY PETE DEKAY Making the jump from junior racing into the big leagues of competing against the world’s top racers is never easy, but Solvig Sayre is off to a great start. At the Miami Rolex OCRs she placed second out of the Americans, gaining herself a spot on the U.S. Sailing Team AlphaGraphics. When asked about competing at both the OCRs she says, “I learned a lot and saw how much I had improved, though the results don’t show it. This year for the most part the women’s fleet wasn’t very spread out, especially compared to last year’s OCRs.” Look for steadily improving results out of this talented and determined racer.

Sail Number: USA-009

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windsport

Age: 18

Home: Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts

Favourite spots: The Gorge and Cape Hatteras

www.wavebash.weebly.com

5SBEFXJOE &WFOUT 1SFTFOUT

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quiver

JOHN CARTER

GEAR ESSENTIALS PHOTO BY JOHN CARTER Do you want to become professional windsurfing photographer? Here is PWA photographer John Carter’s complete camera gear quiver he travels with.

CAMERA BODIES AND LENS I bring four Canon bodies (EOS 1D Mark 3, 40D, EOS Rebel and 5D Mark 2) and five lens (600mm F4L, fisheye, 17-35mm F2.8, 24-105mm F4, 70200mm F2.8 and a 300mm F2.8.

TRIPOD AND GEAR BAGS My Gitzo carbon fibre tripod helps keep my Dakine photo pack light for travel. The Pelican case keeps all the delicate stuff safe in transit.

WATER HOUSING This red Aquatech D35 housing keeps my Canon 40D dry and allows me to use two different lenses.

PERSONAL ITEMS AND FLASH CARDS I can’t leave home without my passport, wallet, iPod and mobile phone. Doc Martin’s Sunblock is the best sunscreen. I bring a ton of the best and fastest memory cards.

JC’s tools of the trade.

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windsport

Cape Hatteras, North Carolina

TAKING YOU TO NEW HEIGHTS. • • • • • •

Great Service Top-notch School Huge 2010 Demo Fleet On-water Location Extensive Selection Locally Owned and Operated

Rider: Rob Warwick Photo: Jock Bradley

in the lab Hot has interns? Nicholasfoto photo

HOT SAILS MAUI INTERN

LOIC VIANDIER How did you become an intern with Hot Sails Maui?

I applied really early, something like nine months before my internship began. At the time, I didn’t know that Hot Sails was open to interns until a friend on Maui told me that Jeff Henderson might accept me. I applied, telling them a bit about myself, and it worked.

What do you do for Hot? I’m helping with marketing. First, I listed all the Hot Sails Maui riders all over the world, as it’s important for us to keep in touch with

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them. I’m also working on direct marketing, like newsletter e-mailings, online catalogues and social networks, as well as production of articles for blogs, magazines, and translating the website into French. I’m thinking a lot about how to improve the message of the brand’s strengths. There is a lot to market at Hot Sails Maui!

Basically, during this first three month I’ve set up everything to create efficient communication, and now I will see if I did a good job over the next three months.

INTERVIEW BY PETE DEKAY Who knew that a windsurfing brand offered internships for hard-working students? Well, Hot Sails Maui does and Loic Viandier, a student from the south of France, takes full advantage to work in the industry, sail on Maui and get school credit, all at the same time.

What do you hope to do as a career in life?

I really want to find a job that will allow me to windsurf every day.

Usually people that graduate business school just go to a big city and work 50 to 60 hours per week. They make good money but it’s really not the life I want.

I think it’s easy to forget about what you like the most, like all these guys that were into windsurfing in the late ’80s and quit their passion because of job opportunities. I’d like to be my own boss and to run a company

on the Internet. Even if it’s a lot of work you choose your working hours and you can work from any where there is wireless access.

How do you like Maui?

Maui is really great! I’ve met nice people here and had the best windsurfing sessions of my life.

By the way, Maui is really calm compared to other hot windsurfing place like the Canaries Islands, Tarifa or even Guincho. I’m very motivated to train for the next freestyle PWA tour.

ride guide The Pistol River sailing spot know as “the Rock” offers some challenges to boardheads touring up or down the Pacific coastline.

And it’s not just the level of sailing you’ll want to bring to get you off the beach when the swell is cracking, but finding it might be a challenge. Unless you’re lucky enough

to roll up on board-mobiles parked in the pullout and sails off the beach, you could drive right by without even knowing it. The only real hint is a little yellow sign saying “Pistol River Road” with an arrow pointing up the hill.

The Rock sees most its sailing during the summer months on

northwest, north and northeast winds and it catches everything from northwest to southwest swells. It really doesn’t get sailed much on the prevalent south winds from late fall through early spring.

This is because the same rocks just north of the launch, that block the longshore current from that

direction, make the spot feel kind of awkward or even dangerous.

The prime months for the northerly winds are June and July, and unfortunately these are not the best for dependable swell.

But at least the typical smaller summer waves are good for the tourist. Even when there’s

WORDS BY DANA MILLER | PHOTO BY JARRETT MCPEEK

PISTOL RIVER, OREGON WALK BACK BEACH: IT’S EASIER TO WALK BACK TO THE ROCK AND RELAUNCH

BOSS LAND: BIGGER WAVES FOR LONGER RIDES AND BETTER JUMPS BUT MORE CURRENT CURRENT’S EDGE: HERE THE CURRENT KICKS IN THE ROCK: DOUBLES AS A GREAT WIND BLOCK AND VIEWING PLATFORM

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ride guide no groundswell there’s usually a decent windswell running by the late afternoon. The months before and after the high summer season aren’t as consistently windy, but generally there’s better swell to be had and plenty of wind to ride them with.

In the summer, fog early in the

day is not a bad thing as long as you see clear skies by late morning. But beware those upper-level horsetail clouds as they portend the dreaded heat low moving up from California, meaning you might want to drive north to get an extra day of sailing before it shuts down on the coast until the

next high pressure sets in.

On days when it’s already white-capping early in the morning, it’s probably going to be stupid windy later, so unless you’re a fan of 3.5 m2 wavesailing, you might consider going out for an early session before taking a break for “happy hour” around

mid-afternoon when it’s really smoking, and then going back out for an evening clean-up session.

Finally, remember to grab all your supplies and water up in Brookings or Gold Beach because the Pistol River General Store is long gone.

THE PISTOL RIVER WAVE BASH IS BACK! JUNE 17-20, 2010 DETAILS AT WINDSPORT.COM/ WAVEBASH

RE WIND

CROSS ONSHO

NORTH ROCKS: NICELY BLOCKS THE LONGSHORE CURRENT

SAFETY ZONE: LESS CURRENT, SHOREBREAK AND SMALLER WAVES

windsport

41

get better here

Fraser photo

42

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get better here

DEMYSTIFYING NEW-SCHOOL AERIALS

WORDS BY ANDY BRANDT

Unless you were born with mad skill and the ability to just watch-and-do, learning new-school moves can be difficult and often frustrating. For us mortals, practice, repetition and understanding can be the key to eventual success. Grasping one or more of the forces involved may provide this understanding to help you figure out the aerial move you’re working on. Let’s break down the basic theories involved in new-school aerials.

Understanding board control.

A common misconception is that a board is solely rotated or spun through flatwater aerials, like Vulcans or Flakas, using only our feet.

Exclusively kicking the spin creates a centre of rotation around the mast base giving the rider only control of the board’s tail. It’s possible to make a move this way but very few can as god-like jumping and foot control skill is needed.

Instead, the board rotation in these aerials can be made easier with the addition of sail handling and mast base control.

Let me introduce the theory of controlling both the tail and nose of the board. Picture that the centre of rotation is between the mast base and front footstrap, rather than the mast base directly.

This gives you control of the nose through your sail handling’s affect on the mast base, and simultaneously control of the tail using your body rotation and feet. Controlling both the nose and tail of the board at the same time is key to landing new-school tricks.

Pushing a quarter. Imagine the mast base on your board as a quarter and the mast is your finger. To slide the coin across a table you simply place your finger directly on top of it and push. Leverage is gained as your finger angles lower, making it easier to push the quarter.

Likewise, when your mast gets more angled to the mast base, it has an easier time pushing it.

Divide the area above your board into four quadrants: forward windward, back windward, forward leeward and back leeward. The mast needs to be in one of these four quadrants to push and slide the board’s nose in the opposite direction.

It all depends on the move for which quadrant you want to place the mast. Let me explain.

The easiest example of this theory, and something you should already be able to do, is the Beachstart. Before you get up on the board you are steering it with mast base control. You should be able to push the nose downwind

or pull it upwind by just pushing or pulling the mast. If you stood in each of the four quadrants you will get different results.

Once the board leaves the water in an aerial the same mast base controls apply, but are also combined with your body’s rotation and foot control. Placing the mast in the forward windward corner and pushing down on the front hand will drive the nose downwind and backwards in a Forward Loop. Pulling the mast back and to leeward will also spin the nose downwind and back for a Vulcan. A forward leeward mast position will drive the nose upwind and back on a Flaka or Shaka.

Take a look at pictures or videos of all the different new moves and check out what quadrant or angle the mast is in, even if it’s only for a brief moment as a board doesn’t require much force to rotate it in the air if the momentum and leverage are correct.

windsport

43

get better here IMAGINE THE MAST BASE ON YOUR BOARD AS A QUARTER AND THE MAST IS YOUR FINGER.

The angled rig drives the nose for Taty Frans. Sumereder photo

Using your clew. The sail’s clew can be used to increase the mast’s leverage over the mast base to direct the nose. Lifting the clew hand combined with the opposite force (pushing down) with the mast hand, even for just a split second, can give you the extra torque to drive the mast base into the desired position. When watching manoeuvres, just after the board’s tail releases from the water, check to see if the clew goes up or down.

Notice the quick backhand snap upwards on a Grubby, Willy Skipper and Vulcan, while there is a slower clew-lift in a Loop or E-slider.

The effect of board angle. Another way to gain leverage when pushing that quarter is to tilt the table. As the table slopes away the angle of your finger to the coin is greater. Tilting your board in the air helps the mast gain leverage on the mast base. In most downwind rotating aerials, like Vulcans and Loops, the board tilts to leeward right after takeoff. The greater the angle the more the mast can drive the nose downwind. Watch a board’s angle upon takeoff in a

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flatwater Forward Loop. It almost looks like the rider is Rail Riding, as this maximum amount of angle at the “right time” will give the most spin. For upwind aerials, like Flakas, the windward rail is tilted down to assist the mast in pushing the nose upwind.

Fighting power to move the mast. Another important piece of aerial puzzle solving is figuring out how to get the sail/mast in the right position after the pop or jump. Usually on takeoff the mast is over top of the board and in a bad place to spin the nose in any direction. This means we must move the rig into position after takeoff. A powered-up sail is hard and slow to move.

Once again thinking back to a beachstart, it’s easier to move the nose by pushing or pulling with a hand on the mast and the sail luffed than with both hands on the boom and the sail powered.

The ability to move the sail is hindered by the forward pull when powered, and it becomes a battle between the sail pulling the mast in one direction and

you trying to move it in another.

In the air the same problem exists. If the sail is powered up, it’s difficult to position it properly to drive the mast base. A common Looping misconception is that the sail is sheeted-in aggressively after jumping, but this will constantly throw the sailor at the nose.

Sheeting-in is important on many tricks, but at the right time only.

During the Loop, you sheet-in on the pop, sheet-out while moving the sail to the forward windward quadrant to steer the nose downwind, and sheet-in again once your body is up and rotating. Although all of that happens in a nano second you will learn the timing.

In most flatwater sliding aerials, the sail is depowered for at least the initial part where the board is off the water. The sailor controls the spin with a pull or push on the boom after the mast is in position. A powered-up sail creates problems keeping the board from spinning properly. Watch a video of a Shaka online and you’ll notice that the rider tries to keep the sail depowered right through the finish of the move.

Balance without power. Understanding mast base control is one thing but applying it is another. If you want to stand on the board without any power in the sail, you better be balanced on and over your feet. During aerials a rider tries to minimize power in order to facilitate moving and tilting the rig into position for turning the nose. This means that it’s critical for his or her body to be balanced over the board. However, in “off-axis” tricks, where the body is part of the rotation, like a Loop or Ponch, the rider will be leaning while still controlling the mast base until the end.

Now that you’ve read this article once through, go to windsport. com/issue124_extras and click on the link for bonus videos and pictures to help apply these theories. Next issue we’ll apply these concepts and more in a detailed look at “How to Vulcan.”

Andy Brandt is sponsored by Fanatic, Maui Sails, Dakine, Jibe City and Ozone Online.

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expanded 2010 board tests Find even more photos and info on all the gear we’ve tested so far this year. We post expanded results from the gear in this issue plus complete tests of any gear we get our hands on.

extra online content for this issue Check out all our bonus coverage presented together in one easy-to-find place.

C Just click on the text under the current issue’s cover to find all its cool extras.

Current Issue

Click here ... for extra online content

exclusive blogs by top pros Start your week off with Matt Pritchard's “Matt’s Monday” column and follow it up with reports from Wyatt Miller, Whit Poor, the Windsurfing Gypsy and more soon to be announced.

the complete 2010 gear guide Click through the Perfect Gear Match questionnaire and find the ideal board and sail to match your own personal ability level and style.

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control balance

Don’t even ask how we test for durability.

ezzy.com

no hand 5 windsport.indd 1

1/27/2010 9:59:29 AM

Words by Pete DeKay | Photos by Clark Merritt

Meet the Roedigers Like Father, Like Son What is normal in a relationship between a father and a young teenage son? The reason I pose this question is that everyone staying at SoloSports for the week of the Naish sponsored Wyatt Miller Windsurfing Clinic seemed to agree that the interactions between the 13-yearold Bernd Roediger and his dad was anything but. Does this matter?

Yes, I think it may, as I learned from them that a windsurfing family is a good family. Let me introduce you to Norm and his ripping windsurfing son Bernd. Meet the Roedigers.

“You just don’t know until you go!”

Bernd exclaims, finishing his father’s sentence after I ask whether Punta San Carlos is anything what they expected. Norm had started saying, “Levi Siver told us about this place, but it’s just one of those things that…” These two may be on vacation, Bernd’s first time away from the U.S. in fact, but I’ve figured out from a week of hanging with them that their constant singing, joking and finishing of each other’s sentences comes from a bond that couldn’t be any tighter.

Any trip down through Baja is bound to be an adventure and this for the Roedigers is one they will remember. What would go through your mind seeing Wyatt

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“Miller Time” Miller and Tyson Poor picking you up at the San Diego airport and loading you into a plain rental box truck (we’ll keep the rental company’s name out of it for reasons you’ll soon find out) for the trip. Once at the border Wyatt manages to convince the Mexican officials that he should be allowed, when most others are not, to bring a rented moving truck into Mexico by smiling and saying, “I’ll bring it back… I promise.”

“The drive in on the dirt road with Wyatt was rough. We shared the front passenger seat and Tyson sat behind in the little cutout on something like a sleeping bag, I think,” Norm says describing the ride.

Bernd adds with a smirk, “There were a couple of bumps where we had to stop and look to see if we still had all four wheels on!” The reward for covering the washboard road in a little over an hour and a quarter is getting a couple of hours of epic wavesailing on the same day you leave San Diego, an achievement I’ve never personally experience in my three trips down.

For a pair totally dialed into the conditions on Maui ,I’m interested to hear their thoughts about getting on the water here at San Carlos.

Bernd immediately chirps in,

Norm and Bernd.

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“The coolest thing is there’s nobody here! The wave is super-long and you can ride it from the first peak all the way down to the last, hitting sections in between.” Norm adds, “starting all the way up from the Bombora and flying down-theline is just uber cool.” Comparing it to the hallowed wave at Ho’okipa, Bernd says, “The wave here is a lot mellower. You’ll get up to a wave and see the lip and think that you’re totally going to get eaten.

But even if you fall you only get worked by the whitewater for like two seconds and come up thinking, Was that it?”

Early in the week, before I’d really been formally introduced to the Roedigers, I see Norm coming

A classic Roediger wave.

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in off the water with an unforgettably stoked look on his face. He sees me, a virtual stranger at that point, and shouts that his son has just landed his first proper Goiter back onto the face of the wave.

I can see the immense pride he feels for his son’s success. Later I feel fortunate to have witnessed this highlight on-water moment of both their trips.

Through a week of getting to know this duo it’s amazing to watch them rip apart the waves whether windsurfing or stand-up paddling. Bernd stands out especially with such an aggressive style coming from such a small body.

I ask Norm if he’s ever scared

One evening, as Wyatt and Tyson are glued to the SoloSports’ bar, Bernd craftily places as many as 20 good-sized rocks under their mattresses. when Bernd goes out when the conditions are big. “Hell, yeah,” he exclaims. “I still get scared. It’s not as bad now as it was even just a year ago. I was pretty freaked out on big days at Ho’okipa. The more experience he gets, the better decisions that he makes. You still have to remember that he’s 13, and he’s still a kid and kids do dumb things.” Bernd, who is sitting next

to his father smiles shyly as Norm continues, “They don’t always think things through. Whether he’s making right decisions worries me sometimes. As far as the wave knowledge and the things he does on the water, he’s better than me at this point. So it’s difficult for me to say he can’t go out on a certain day, even though my gut may be saying that this is way too

crazy. But you have to look at him and trust his judgment that he knows what he’s doing. Like the wave he caught out here where I thought he might get eaten, but he made it and it was cool.”

As you’ve probably heard, life at the SoloSports is as luxurious as camping outside can possibly get. “Taco night at home will be impossible after this,” Norm jokes when I ask about their off-water experience. “We’ll look at that little shell and just say, no, this isn’t right.” Bernd adds, “Yeah, it’s not the real thing.” They’ve come here to be part of Wyatt Miller’s windsurfing clinic and are enjoying the camaraderie shared by all the guests staying at Solosports.

Bernd says, “You come in after sailing thinking the day is over and then you start hanging out and talking to the other guests from all over the world, and it’s almost as fun as sailing.”

For 13 years of age, Bernd is comfortable when stuck in an adult world. But don’t worry about him growing up too fast as the kid in him surfaces through constant pranks. First, one evening as Wyatt and Tyson are glued to the SoloSports’ bar, Bernd craftily places as many as 20 good -sized rocks under both of their mattresses. Next up, he puts clear packing tape on Tyson’s fin and covers his Neil Pryde sail with Naish stickers requiring a razor blade to remove. Finally, he completely de-rigs Wyatt’s sail one morning as he is changing into his wetsuits in eager anticipation of being the first on the water.

A week after the trip I asked Wyatt if they ever managed to get even with Bernd? “After so many pranks we finally decided he needed to be locked in the stinky San Carlos bathrooms for a good hour or so,” Wyatt recalls. “We tried for like three days to get him, but I swear the kid never poops!

Finally, as we’re packing up on the last day, I see him going to drop the kids off at the pool. I quickly ride over on a bike to throw the outside bolt and stick him in their while his dad isn’t watching. But unfortunately he has latched the door’s inner bolt through the outside clasp making it impossible to lock him in. So basically he had a pranking heyday and was able to get away unscathed. But there’s always next time!”

Finally, at weeks end, I ask Norm about the relationship he has with Bernd, and he replies, “We have a different father–son relationship from what’s normal.

He’s my best friend. But, I’m still dad. There are times when I’ve got to be dad. But he’s an easy kid; I couldn’t have it any easier.

He’s so mature for his age. He’s not like the average 13-year-old and he doesn’t need a lot. If you give him water and some wind, then he’s good… [laughs] and feed him every once and a while.”

So what does it all come down to? Are kids who windsurf just good people or do the challenges within the sport make them this way? I think Norm sums it up best

SoloSports rules!

Bernd rips another wave.

saying, “Any kids that are active in a sport, or anything extracurricular, seem to be a little bit more focused than the kids that are left to their own devices. Kids have a lot of energy and if that energy doesn’t get focused somewhere, like in Bernd’s case it’s windsurfing and stand-up, then it sometimes

comes out in not the best ways.

For Bernd, it’s a busy day. He does his home schooling first and then windsurfs or stand-up paddles, and by the end of the day we’re pretty tired out. Not that he doesn’t ever get into trouble… he’s still a normal kid.”

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N A P A J t s e t h g i r b e h t f s o y d a n w a b u s d The l e d w o r c d n ung a J o e l r F tu by

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Words n Gottschall รถr j B y b otos

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City lights.

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S

ometimes you face a decision that requires quick action. This is exactly what happens to me three days before the end of the year when my best friend calls me from Tokyo, where he’s working, asking if I can join him and his friends at their New Year’s Eve party. I had just returned from an extended trip to Chile, and was actually planning to spend the holidays relaxing in the mountains with my family. On the other hand, a discounted flight to Tokyo along with a promising swell and wind forecast is very appealing.

Sailing in front of Mount Fujiyama.

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I decide to flip a coin. Heads: mountains, tails: Japan. As the coin flips through the air above me I realize I’ll have to quickly follow through with all the necessary plans. I look down to where the coin has fallen and see “tails!” So, I book the flight, contact my friends and some local Japanese windsurfers, and pack my luggage taking minimal equipment consisting of one board and three sails.

To be honest, I do like lastminute trips, where not everything is thoroughly planned out before hand. I am tempted by such

a leap into darkness—the feeling of diving into a new world where every moment can bring a brandnew experience. I don’t know anything about Japanese culture and not much more about their language. My active vocabulary in Japanese includes only three words: konnichi wa: hello, kampai: cheers, and arigatou: thank you, which don’t really help me much when I arrive in Tokyo.

Straight off the plane, I take a bus from the airport to the city centre looking for my friend’s house. Never have I visited a place comparable to this city. Tokyo

is the largest metropolis in the world. Almost 34 million people live in this very confined space, and most of them don’t speak a word of English (or any other European language for that matter).

I have quite a hard time orienting myself with the Japanese street signs. And my German cell phone is of no help due to lack of service. Luckily I packed my luggage with only the absolute necessities. To make the trip easier, I have tied my small board bag to my wheelie bag, so I can pull it nicely behind me. People looked confused when they see me with

An uncrowded subway.

I can’t believe my eyes as I watch the white-gloved employees pushing even elderly women into the subway car. my long board bag making my way through the crowded streets and past busy metro stations.

Exhausted from the long voyage, I finally find my friend’s apartment.

I am so tired from the journey that I fall asleep right away in an armchair in his tiny hut.

The next day I discover that Japan is pretty much the most expensive place I have ever been.

An ordinary cup of coffee is about $5.50 and a normal compact rental car costs about $100 a day and is only available with an international

driving license translated into Japanese. Stupidly, I didn’t look into getting such a license before the trip, and besides, the rental agencies are all closed for the holidays. I definitely have to find another way to get to the coast… so I decide to try the subway.

I should mention in advance, the subway in Japan sometimes is so overcrowded the city employs so-called “pushers” whose job it is to literally “push” the crowds onto the trains. I can’t believe my eyes as I watch the white-gloved

Cheapest mode of transportation.

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employees pushing even elderly women into the subway car. But to my surprise even my board bag (I call it oversized “hand luggage”) is accepted without any problems, and I soon find myself in an overcrowded train heading towards the coast.

After an hour, Björn Gottschall, my photographer, and I arrive at the little surf town of Kamakura, where Toshi, a local windsurfer, is already awaiting us in his car.

With a grin on his face Toshi approaches me and says, “Did you bring a 3.7 m2?” On the water, I find out why he asked! Powered to the fullest by typhoon-like winds and sometimes mast-high sets, we are sailing our asses off. The cool scenery at the foot of Fujiyama, Japan’s highest mountain, does the rest for creating an unbelievable atmosphere for the session.

Wimps could never handle these conditions. Due to the strong current you have to swim extremely hard and quickly to get back to your board after each crash and washing. In the

end, after one giant wipe-out, my rig gets hit so badly that the sail’s top is locked in the reef and the vast amounts of water is literally violating my only mast —but after all, it has to give in at some point. This means the end of the session for me.

Looking out from shore to the sight of the incredible waves makes me realize that Japan is severely underestimated as a surf nation. The causes might be its remote location from other windsurfing countries, the fact that everything is super expensive, or simply that people don’t know about the potential here. However, it is definitely not caused by wind statistics, for they predict more than 50 per cent of the days that bring hardcore conditions during winter. The level of sailor you have to be on the water to ride these waves is extremely high, and among the locals are some that resemble kamikaze pilots who happily keep on sailing even after collisions.

A parking lot session.

Powered to the fullest by typhoon winds and sometimes mast-high sets, we are sailing our asses off.

The most famous spot, named Omeazaki, is our next destination.

The little town located 180 miles south of Tokyo is the most reliable spot in Japan for wind. Hisa Ishii, one of the best local riders, offers to guide us around and we gladly accept. Just as we should have expected his first guiding words are, “We have nuclear winds here, hope you have your 3.7 m2 with you!”

We really have some good days in this region and, according to Japanese tradition, the people showed us great hospitality. They always try their best to give us an understanding of Japanese culture. We visit temples, eat raw fish and get some insight into the Onsen culture (bathing in hot springs). Onsen plays an important role in the Japanese lifestyle, in particular when it comes to relaxing after work. You have to wash yourself thoroughly with a small towel and sit in the hot basin for several minutes. Afterwards you feel refreshed and reborn.

My stay in Japan broadens my mind in many regards. When

the Japanese do something they do it with full ambition and enthusiasm. They are extremely polite, cooperative and open-minded, as long as you respect their traditions and rules. I realize this one last time as I am leaving when the staff at the airport very politely explained to me that I have to pay a fee for my over-weight windsurfing gear.

When I confusedly ask for the price, they tell me with a friendly smile that it’s $700 for one single board! After a civilized discussion, I accept paying the fee in its entirety because I can see that there is nothing that I can say or do that will change it.

In conclusion, my voyage to Japan has reinforced what I have steadily learned through all my travels: it always pays off to explore the world, braving all ordeals encountered to discover new facets of life.

This is a principle windsurfers should follow—always.

One of many temples.

Resting on the beach.

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Flo hits a little lip.

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Greece on the

cheap Budget flights,

Friendly accommodations and the wind is

always free

It’s the morning after my birthday and I reluctantly awake to noises of people milling about around me. I can’t recall where I am, or how I got here. Through my shut eyelids I can tell it’s light outside, but my mind focuses on how uncomfortable my body is. As I adjust my sleeping position, I notice I’m not alone. I jolt awake with eyes wide open only to find an elderly lady stirring in her sleep next to me. The dots immediately connect and I quickly reach into my pocket to double check my boarding gate for my flight from London to Preveza, Greece.

Words by Phil Soltysiak Photos by Laura Slater 62

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Philâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s one-handed Flaka.

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IT

wasn’t more than a week ago that I wrote my final exam and was on a Greyhound bus on my way home from school.

Like any windsurfer, my main concern was whether or not it had an Internet connection.

I hit the jackpot, and before I knew it I was chatting on Skype with my good friend Max Rowe, whom I spent a couple months in Venezuela with over the winter.

He is working at Club Vassiliki in Greece, and convinces me it’s the place to be right now. Wind, parties and chicks, combined with a free place to stay, some European Freestyle Pro Tour (EFPT) competitions and a $125 flight from London Gatwick. Sounds good Max, but I live in Toronto, Canada, a mere 3,500 miles away.

Out of curiosity I do a quick check to see how much a flight to London would set me back. A few clicks and $49 later I receive a confirmation e-mail for my booking from Toronto to London.

Upon arrival, Max picks me up from the airport in Preveza and we do the quick drive down to Vassiliki (or Vass for short) on the island of Lefkada. It’s late evening and in true Vass style our first stop is the Zeus Bar. Blue Juice, the customary drink, starts flowing. Over the evening I get to catch up with how nearly every single English windsurfer I ever met is doing, including Colin Dixon, who taught me a couple moves my first trip to Venezuela, Ollie Scott, from the three months I spent in Brazil over last fall, and Andy Chambers, whom I travel and compete with on the PWA tour. The small bar is packed and the scene is wild with people dancing on top of the bar, ordering more drinks and knocking over bottles.

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Beautiful Vassiliki.

I wake up the following morning feeling tired and suffering the effect of a late night out, but I quickly associate it with the time difference and blame it on jet lag.

I walk down to the beach to check out the view and see what’s up with the wind. My friends are busy teaching their groups of clients, carrying sails and fixing boards at the Club Vass windsurfing centre.

Nobody is sure exactly how the wind in Vass works. Studies have been done on it but there are too many variables. The general idea is when the prevailing northwest wind hits the nearby mountain named Eric, it’s sucked down and accelerated to the water. This is why a cloud that is blown down the mountain called “Eric’s Beard” accompanies the wind and only

blows in during the afternoon and on particularly windy days.

With a routine of strong afternoon winds, eating, and then heading to Zeus Bar, my few days in Vass pass quickly. Before I know it, it’s time to head up to Milos Beach, on the north side of Lefkada for my first competition on the EFPT. Even though it’s a European tour all nationalities are allowed to compete.

Milos Beach is situated near the town of Lefkada and is a long picturesque beach with a small windsurfing centre that relies on the consistent afternoon onshore sea breeze. This is the third year in a row they are hosting the EFPT and have got the organization figured out. Though the wind is not at its best this weekend, we

still manage a single elimination on our biggest freestyle equipment in which I finish ninth.

A live band playing on Saturday night with dancing Corona girls and a bus load of young windsurfers from Vassiliki eager to party highlights the event.

I can feel my time on Lefkada coming to a close as Ollie Scott and I plan our trip to the next EFPT tour stop on the island of Crete. We rent the smallest car possible with no roof racks and manage to cave in its roof by strapping on nearly 450 pounds of equipment. We depart early in morning and drive the winding Lefkada roads, cautiously keeping a nervous eye on our flimsy-looking roof. We cross the bridge off the island and continue six hours

Hanging around. Messerli photo

I do a quick check to see how much a flight to London would set me back.

A few clicks and $49 later, I receive a confirmation e-mail for my booking from Toronto to London.

Morning lessons.

Maarten van Ochten.

Bikich photo

towards Athens. From Athens we take a ferry and arrive in Heraklion on the island of Crete at 10 p.m.

Another couple hours of driving later and we arrive in Palekaestro, where the event will be held and check immediately into the hotel.

I wake up and take a look at the view off the balcony. Our room is up on a hill overlooking Kouremenos Bay, and I spot a few sailors blasting around already. To my right is a wind energy farm with hundreds of mills, a sure sign of good things to come this weekend.

After a delicious buffet breakfast we drive down towards the Freak Surf Station, host of the tour stop. The wind is stirring up the warm brilliant-blue water as we rig up for our first taste of Cretin windsurfing.

Over the next three days of competition the wind only lets off for one afternoon, so we take advantage by walking around nearby Palekaestro. The streets resemble my idea of what a Greek Island village would look like; stone-tiled streets along with white houses matched with colourful doors and windows.

Friendly locals are out on the streets and we chat with a family walking by. They seem excited to meet our small contingent of competitors and are proud to be hosting us in their village. The father explains that most of the tourism on Crete is concentrated in the big cities on the island. He hopes the competition here will bring awareness to the great windsurfing potential and the beauty Kouremenos Beach and this end of the island has to offer.

We rent the smallest car possible with no roof racks and manage to cave in its roof by strapping on nearly 450 pounds of equipment.

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Phil in competition mode. Bikich photo

Exhausted but excited by the end of a great contest, our group heads off to nearby Sitia for a night out. Everybody is in a good mood, which leads to a night of convincing the bouncers not to kick us out of the club, and a swim across the local harbour at four in the morning.

The next day, Ollie heads back to work at Vass and I continue on

my travels to Alacati, Turkey, with Slovenian sailor Zan Sude and Swede Niklas Strahlen. Traveling through Greece has left me with many great memories of friendly people, fascinating architecture, endless scenic views and warm winds. However, the most unforgettable thing is easily the amazing turquoise water. It’s forever inviting you to go out for a sail.

Milos beach scene.

Something smells fishy.

Touring Athens.

A Greek luggage cart.

How To: Score a cheap flight

get cheaper the closer you get to your

Elevated fuel costs, stiff competition and a stack of hefty taxes and surcharges have made finding a cheap

intended departure date, which is

flight nowadays an extremely frustrating experience. This grows exponentially if you find out mid-flight that

the opposite of a ticket with a normal

your neighbour paid half of what you did. Excuse me, another mini-bottle, please. Airline pricing is a complex,

scheduled airline.

unpredictable beast driven by three ugly words: competition, demand, and inventory. Here are a few tips for

Switch airlines. Most airlines nowa-

finding a flight your credit card can cope with. —DEAN SEGUIN

days deal in one-way fares, so don’t feel you need to stay loyal to the jet

Know your price. Airline prices

Be flexible. If you’re rigid with your

you when is a good time to buy.)

that brought you out. Shop around

bounce up and down yet in our quest

dates, you won’t be able to capture any

Hit the shoulder seasons. Traveling

and use a different airline in either

to hold out just a little longer, most

of the pricing variations airlines use.

in high season means paying top price

direction if it means a better price.

of the time we miss the lowest price.

It’s usually always cheaper to fly mid

for everything. Time your trip right

Use secondary airports. Discount

Therefore it’s important to know

week than on a weekend. That week

and you can still enjoy decent wind

airlines grow their businesses around

what you want to pay not what you

after Christmas? No one ever flies

with non-existent crowds and still

using smaller airports to keep costs

hope to pay. That way, you will never

and prices drop. (Tip: bing.com/travel/

pay considerably less.

down. The drive might be a bit longer

have buyer’s remorse.

can help you monitor prices and tell

Check charter flights. They often

but the savings could be worth it.

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FaBian WeBer. Lake ammersee, germany.

SchoďŹ&#x20AC;el photo

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Casey Hauser, Lincoln City, Oregon.

Hallman photo

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Graham Ezzy, Hoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;okipa, Maui.

J. Houyvet photo

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Antxon Otaegui, icaraizinho, Brazil.

Reese photo

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HOST OF THE CANADIAN MASTER’S WINDSURFING CHAMPIONSHIPS

oody

a. W st a.k. o H , h t odwor

o

Brad W

PERFORMANCE CLINIC Thursday, AUGUST 5th Instruction provided by Andree Gauthier

PRO-SHOP

RENTALS

LESSONS

CASH & PRIZES We’ll see you at the ‘Goon @ Sandy Be ach P a rk

REGISTER @ www.windsurfwoody.ca

2010 WATER WEAR SHOWCASE Not only do wetsuits, Lycra shirts and all the various types of water wear important for keeping us warm in the early spring and sun-protected during the summer, but they provide countless entertaining stories for shops who sell them. Here are some of those stories followed by a showcase of some of the hottest new models for 2010.

WORDS BY DEREK RIJFF ILLUSTRATIONS BY DAN BRANDON windsport

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2010 WATER WEAR

SHOWCASE

We asked windsurfing shops from around the country to send their favourite customer stories, and we were surprised at how many involved either wetsuits or some form of on-water fashion statement. Here are a few to spice up this 2010 Water Wear Product Guide.

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YOU’D BE AMAZED at how many customers come in asking if we have any used wetsuits for sale.

I want to respond, “Do you know how many people have peed in those things?” or “Would you buy a used pair of underwear?”

But instead we try to ignore the questions, feigning deafness. If they are persistent then we point to the discount section, but this type of guy is the most persistent of customers. He’ll say, “You rent wetsuits, so you must have some used ones for sale?” After numerous polite rejections to his request (and these customers are invariably a “he”) they storm off threatening us with our favourite one-liner, “Well, I guess I’m just going to have to take my business elsewhere!” We wish him the best of luck, and then call up our buddies at the other shops to warn them in advance, who always thank us later as we laugh over a couple of cold ones at the end of the day. —Stuart Proctor, Ocean Air Sports A DROP DEAD gorgeous woman walks into my shop with two guys.

I couldn’t believe how beautiful she was and fully accessorized, if you know what I mean. It was apparent that windsurfing was about to go through another boom. She wanted to try on harnesses. “OK,” I tried not to stutter or stare and proceeded to show her and explain the difference in a few harnesses. She said, “I’d like to try on the pink one.” I told her she could hang off the rope by the door to see if it’s comfortable. She replied, “I don’t have a wetsuit with me. Isn’t it better if I try it on without clothes?”

With that comment she took off her clothes (except her Victoria Secrets). She paid for the harness, really, I should have paid her, but instead I told her it was guaranteed for 20 years. —Joe Dihl Ray, Davenport Surf & Sail AN OLDER gentleman was trying on a dry suit, but ran into trouble when it was time to get it off. He emerged from the dressing room in a panic with the suit’s neck stuck around the crown of his obviously huge head. We pulled, tugged, and slathered his bald head with lotion without success.

He suggested scissors (would that be covered under warranty?) and we redoubled our efforts. As a group of staff pulled I feared his head would come detached from his body before the dry suit would come off! After an hour of sweating and cursing the suit slipped from his head. He wisely decided to spend his dry suit dollars on a plane ticket for a trip to a warmer windsurfing location. —Karen Marriott, Larson’s Ski and Sport IT WAS THE EARLY ’90s, and the shop was branching into clothing, so we had this custom wood counter built, that we called our “Bikini Bar,” to display bikinis.

It was advertised in the Yellow Pages as the Bikini Bar and even had custom bar stools for customers. One morning we get a call asking if the Bikini Bar was open and 15 minutes later this drunk old woman strolls in, sits down on a stool and demands a drink. We fell over ourselves laughing, as we couldn’t get her out of the shop for the rest of the day. —Ralf Sifford, Second Wind Maui

A FEW YEARS back, a guy walks into the shop decked out in khaki western cut slacks, khaki longsleeve button down shirt, white socks and black dress shoes and announces, “Hey, I’m JD and I want to rent one of those things,” pointing out at the windsurfers on the water. This comment, along with his West Texas casual attire, made us ask, “Have you ever windsurfed before?” After convincing us he had we pointed him to the change room. He hesitated a second and replied, “I am ready… just need to take off my belt!” Out he went fully dressed, minus the belt, and proceeded to rip around the Laguna to our amazement. —Don Jackson, World Winds Windsurfing I WAS LEAVING my job of five years at a big-city windsurfing shop. Due to my lengthy time of service the boss arranged a sendoff party a week after my last day.

I showed up just before close to await the rest of the staff and was enjoying a beer or two in the back.

The shop was slammed with customers and my boss asked me if I could help a customer with some

wetsuits so that we could close up faster and move on to the party.

With a beer in hand I proceeded to help this nice-looking woman pick a few suits from the rack to try on.

She disappeared into the store’s change room, while I waited by the door enjoying my beer. After a few minutes she called out claiming to need help with a stuck zipper.

Upon looking in, not only did I see that it was stuck, but she had put the suit on backwards with the zip in the front. I told her what was wrong in a friendly manner and we both laughed as I grabbed the zipper cord, pulling with all my might to release the problem.

Guess what? It wasn’t stuck and it might even have been lubricated as it flew all the way down. To my shock she had absolutely nothing on under the now fully open suit… and the show was just beginning.

Random customer or shop prank?

We’ll never know. —Un-named employee and shop

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2010 WATER WEAR

SHOWCASE FRESH TRENDS AIR INFUSED:

Better suits are now built with neoprene that is filled with tiny air pockets.

These suits are warmer, as air is a great insulator, and lighter, since air weighs less than neoprene.

LESS STINK:

Bamboo charcoal is a natural product that bacteria won’t grow on. If your suit has this stuff on its inner lining, it will help keep you smelling fresh and might help avoid a nasty NOT THE infection.

SAME OLD LYCRA: You

now have options for protection from the sun and wind chill. Water shirts range from stylish poly-mesh jerseys to varying thicknesses of neoprene Lycras.

TECHNOLOGY TRICKLEDOWN: You

used to have to pay a ton to get a suit with any bells and whistles. Today many of the less-expensive models benefit from materials and designs from previous year’s elite models.

PROLIMIT PURE GIRL

PROLIMIT GLOBAL

Designed specifically for women, the Pure Girl uses curved seam shaping and ultra-light and stretchy Airflex2 neoprene to keep you warm and comfy on the water. prolimit.com MODELS: 5/3, 4/3, 3/2, SHORTY

These suits are available in windsurfing-specific or multisport models, and use super-light and stretch Airflex2 neoprene to maximize warmth and comfort. prolimit.com MODELS: 5/3, 4/3, 3/2, SHORTY

NEIL PRYDE MARINE COAT

DAKINE OFF SHORE

DAKINE TIDAL CAP SLEEVE

DAKINE NEO INSULATOR

This trenchcoat-style all-weather jacket will keep you warm while rigging and is equipped with 100% Apex Smoothskin neoprene, two zip pockets, a drawstring hood and a removable face protector. neilpryde.com

Tired of a tight-fitting Lycra? Try a stylish Off Shore quick-drying water shirt. The loose fit lets it double as a T-shirt as well and the light poly-mesh material is SPF 50+ rated. dakine.com MODELS: LONG AND SHORT SLEEVE

This is just one of the many women’s and men’s six-or eightounce Lycra tops that come in different styles and help prevent wind chill and sun burn in warm climates.dakine.com MODELS: LONG AND SHORT SLEEVE

Made of 1.5 mm neoprene and eight-ounce Lycra ,this water shirt is perfect for preventing windchill in warmer sailing conditions while providing SPF 50+ sun protection. dakine.com MODELS: LONG AND SHORT SLEEVE

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Hunter photo

BEST WETSUIT TYSON POOR FAVOURITE SUIT: PROLIMIT C3

NEIL PRYDE 3000

NEIL PRYDE 5000

Tri-core neoprene with closed air chambers makes this suit extra light, warm and comfortable. This suit showcases the latest in shaping and technology. prolimit.com MODELS: 5/3, 4/3, 4/3 SHORTLEG

These ladies’ and mens’ lines are entirely glued and blind stitched and made with 100 per cent of the stretchy Apex Mesh neoprene with a bamboo charcoal liner. neilpryde.com MODELS: 5/4/3, 4/3, 3/3, SHORTY

A combination of Air Mesh with the new “S5” neoprene and proprietary “Heatlock” chest insulation makes this top-of-the-line suit warm, comfy and as stretchy as possible. neilpryde.com MODELS: MEN’S AND LADIES 5/4/3

NPX Assassin 3/3 HIGHLIGHTS: I love the fact that the suit keeps you warm, but still has a lot of stretch to it.

The past suits I have owned kept me warm, but when it came to going surfing or doing a lot of the new freestyle windsurfing tricks, they really lacked in good stretch and mobility.

The Assassin has it all!

I MISSED MY SUIT WHEN… I arrived at

CAMARO ZERO

PROMOTION STORM WIND

ION QUANTUM

This multi-sport zipperless suit provides ultimate freedom of movement using Softskin neoprene, seam shaping and flexible four-way stretch zones. A bamboo inner lining helps fight odor. camaro.at MODELS: 5/3

Promotion’s latest ADV WindSkin is a new neoprene with improved warmth, stretch, and durability. The Storm Wind is a 5/3 for windsurfing but other convertible models are also available. wetsuit.com MODELS: 5/3

This super-stretchy and warm suit is now available in a 4/3 semi-dry model. The Quantum has everything a windsurfer needs to be comfortable on the water. ion-essentials.com MODELS: 5/3, 4/3, OVERKNEE SHORTY

one of my favourite San Francisco Bay spots and was getting ready to go out for a killer session on my Firefly 4.5 and small JP-Australia Freestyle board when I realized I forgot my wetsuit. I ran around asking everyone if they had one I might be able to use. Finally someone hooked me up with a 4/3 full suit. After only about 30 minutes on the water I was already done.

Even though the suit was keeping me warm it had no stretch making the simplest things, like even just waterstarting, very exhausting. I haven’t forgotten my NPX suit since!

QUIVER: I also have the Assassin 3/2 shorty and Assassin 5/4/3 full suit. I love all of them!

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BOARD TESTS

BUILD THE PERFECT QUIVER HOW TO OWN LESS GEAR AND SAIL JUST AS MUCH A common questions asked by people taking up the sport of windsurfing is, “How much is all this going to cost?” In the past, the answer was not what a new rider wanted to hear. A proper, and complete setup to cover a wide range of conditions could easily consist of four boards and twice as many sails. Thankfully, times have changed and now it’s possible to get away with literally half the amount of gear.

TEST EDITOR: DEREK RIJFF TEST TEAM: ANDY BRANDT, PETE DEKAY, TOM LEPAK, BRENDON QUINN, DEREK RIJFF, JON SASSONE

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Today, boards work in greater ranges of wind and water conditions. So, the first thing you’ll want to do is figure out what size boards you need. Make sure that the gap in spacing between the boards is as large as possible but still covers your common wind conditions.

Next, make sure the boards perfectly suit your sailing style and ability.

For this test we asked each brand to give us two boards to cover the needs of a typical North American sailor. We trucked each brand’s quiver around to four different testing locations across the U.S., subjecting them to every different condition. Along with testing each board individually, we also look at how well each boardpairing works together as a quiver.

Over the next eight pages you will find the individual test write-ups for each board along with our evaluation of how each quiver does. Four critical aspects of each quiver are evaluated: wind range, water range, sailor style and dialing it in.

WIND RANGE

Over the course of our three-month test period we encountered every possible sailing condition, from marginal days of pumping on a 7.5 m2 to sessions holding on for dear life on a 4.0 m2. All brands but one provided a quiver of two boards that covered this entire range consisting of a moderately large freeride board (120-130 litre) and a medium freestyle wave shape (90-104 litre).

We found that the widest freeride boards planed the earliest in light air, but tended to trade-in some control during higher wind. If the jump down to its smaller freestyle wave mate was too large then it created a problematic gap in the quiver. All of the freeride boards worked with 7.5m2 sails while a couple could handle sails a metre bigger. For sure the 100-litre boards were a handful on the 4.0 m2 days, but not so much to keep us off the water. This group started

performing best with sails around 6.0 m2 and a few of the smallest boards didn’t really start to perform until winds became enough for a 5.3 m2.

WATER RANGE

To test the boards in all types of water conditions, we started with classic bump-and-jump conditions in the Gorge and then in Rio Vista, California.

Next, we hauled the “wave-capable” models across the border into Mexico for perfect down-the-line waveriding in Punta San Carlos, Baja. Finally, we finished with three weeks of flatwater blasting and freestyle at Bird Island near Corpus Christi, Texas.

All the bigger boards were sailable in chop, but it was here that boards really differentiated themselves.

Some of the boards wanted to be driven at full speed to skip across the chop, while others would allow you to take the edge off by slowing down and mowing through it.

Advanced riders prefer a board that rewards pushing for full speed while intermediates and recreational sailors benefit from easier riding boards that do the work for them.

Naturally all of the smaller boards were a blast to ride in chop providing you have the ability to take advantage of the terrain. However, a few of the wavier small boards felt out of place on flatter water as they prefer to be turned on a swell over riding in a straight line.

SAILOR STYLE

One of the goals of this test is to show how all your board purchases can be tailored to your individual sailing style. By maintaining some similarity of feel between both your big and small boards you get to spend every moment during every session letting loose instead of trying to corral some unfamiliar feeling. For example, you immediately feel at home if both boards have a rider position with the same bias to either your front or back foot

and if they react similarly to trim work.

Out of these eight pairings, some do a better job than others of maintaining similarity. Dissimilarity can arise when boards have dramatically different uses or are intended for unlike ability levels. Advanced riders will have the ability to adapt and may even benefit from each board’s specialization; however, intermediates will find it confusing that the boards react so differently and days will be wasted learning the subtleties required for each board.

DIALING IT IN

More often than not you see people positioning the footstraps and mast base in the precise middle settings.

These sailors are usually going with the rational that this setting is “close enough” to what feels best. Well, this is like adjusting your car seat half way to the steering wheel and leaving it there because it’s “close enough.”

These two variables adjust your contact points with the board and rig and make a huge difference in finding efficiency and comfort.

The problem is that most people are not sure what’s going to happen when they change something. So first you have to be willing to experiment. Once you start to play with the settings you’ll find it helps if all your boards can be ridden with a similar stance setup. This usually guarantees that when you learn how an adjustment affects one board the other will react the same.

A similar stance width and footstrap sizing will go a long way in creating a familiar feeling. If you can do it with the same footstrap, deck pad, and deck shape, you’ll gain an even greater feeling of connection to your board. Most of the brands use similar pads and straps from model to model, so that part is easy. The big question is whether or not the stance is similar enough to make things comparable.

ONLINE TESTS: GO TO WINDSPORT.COM FOR EXPANDED COVERAGE ON THESE BOARDS AND MORE.

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EXOCET EXOCET STING 124

V: 124 L: 247 W: 73

THE RIDE: The Sting is smooth

and stable and provides enough speed to keep things interesting for all riders. With the mast base well forward in the track the wide nose and tail gets it planing with little fuss and allows it to carry bigger sails than 124 litres normally will. Credit Exocet’s DDSA recessed heel pads for some of the smoothness as they dampen the ride and give you confidence to keep sheeting in across steep chop. The Sting also makes the most of its high-quality stock fin, as it gives the board better

reaction to subtle trim work that maximizes its speed. The footstraps are well positioned to make trimming feel natural and this board only gets faster the more familiar you get with it. This strap position is a little wide for those learning to get into them, and the technique of trimming the board, which brings it life, is not something a first-time footstrapper will pick up on right away.

THE JIBE: The Sting is the easiest freeride board to turn off the tail without loosing speed. This makes it the least technical to jibe and can

immediately increase your completion percentage. The board doesn’t react well to getting your weight forward, so after a few turns you find yourself enjoying its more laid-back style of easy jibe. The downside to this ease and comfort is that you are at the mercy of the board when it comes to tightening the radius of your turn.

THE FORTE: The Sting is a hasslefree ride for any level of recreational windsurfer and offers a reasonable amount of speed and easy jibing.

Exocet has a done a great job of integrating a similar feel into these two models.

EXOCET CROSS 104

V: 104 L: 245 W: 63

THE RIDE: This newly shaped

Cross is more manoeuvrable and easier to ride than previous models. Stepping aboard the Cross after riding its bigger sibling the Sting, you immediately feel right at home. The wide nose planes up with little effort and makes for a stable platform. The DDSA footpads do an amazing job of making the ride chatter-free even in steep chop. Speed wise, we found this year’s Cross a touch slower than last year’s rather zippy version, but it’s still on the faster side of things for a freestyle wave shape. Part of the reason for

THE QUIVER

WIND RANGE: This

combo is a little too close in volume for an ideal two-board quiver. Instead, depending on where you sail, pick a model that is either 10 litres smaller (Cross 94) or larger (Sting 134) and you’ll be set.

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this is that it likes a slightly more upright body position. This upright position makes the Cross more efficient to get planing and also lets you react quicker to ramps popping up at the last moment for better jumps. At first we had trouble keeping our feet in the wide footstraps and it took some finagling to get the tighter fit we’re accustomed to.

THE JIBE: Again, there is some similarity to the Sting with how these two models jibe. With a pivoty turn off the tail, the Cross jibes smoothly requiring little commitment. As a freestyle wave

WATER RANGE: In flatwater this combo is perfect for both intermediate and advanced sailors alike. The DDSA deck pads and highriding nose provide plenty of control through chop, but we recommend adding a smaller fin to keep the Cross in control on even

board, Exocet has massaged the jibe of the Cross so that it responds to work by more advanced riders by being capable of cranking both tight and wide turns. This is the type of board that makes one feel like a hero in the corners; while on other boards the same sailor’s success rate is less than impressive.

THE FORTE: The Cross is designed to cross over from freeriding into other types of sailing. While its ease can come in handy for newbies in the waves, it has even better potential for hucking freestyle moves.

stronger wind days.

Sailor style: With the straps in the outboard setting on the Cross, these two boards feel remarkably similar, and cater to recreational riders looking to go fast. Moving the straps inboard on the Cross requires a small

change in stance, but it opens up another dimension in the board’s control during freestyle moves.

DIALING IT IN: Exocet has a done a great job of integrating a similar feel into these two models.

It makes for a matching sailing stance that allows

for the same sensations to dial-in both the footstrap setup and mast track placement. The brilliant DDSA pads offer a noticeably good feel and the deck shapes also have a similar contour for ultimate foot comfort.

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FANATIC FANATIC HAWK 120

V: 120 L: 249 W: 68

THE RIDE: The Hawk is the choice

for riders wanting a really fast board that can still rip through jibes. We were pleasantly surprised to find the ride to be much closer to that of a true slalom board than we were expecting.

Powered up on flatwater, it was the fastest “big” board in the test.

It’s perfectly shaped deck makes for a very comfortable stance in the outboard straps and it encourages you to trim the board for every ounce of speed. No matter how hard you push this board the nose stays put, and like a true

race board, it remains steady the harder you push across chop.

The inboard footstrap position is not as comfortable and can be out-accelerated leaving you unbalanced and finding it difficult to head upwind. An aftermarket fin is a must for those looking to push it to its slalom limits, and a bigger fin would help the narrower Hawk hold a 7.5-m2 sail.

THE JIBE: In the corners, the slalom board feel is also present.

This means that a serious amount of commitment is required to engage the rail with a modern

over-sheeted jibe. When done correctly, by using a hips-in posture to drive the water line forward, it makes for a tighter than expected jibe and a huge smile on your face.

When done incorrectly, by sitting back over the tail and sheeting out, you’ll quickly find yourself bouncing out of the turn.

THE FORTE: As a freeride board the Hawk is as fast as they get and we would strongly recommend it to anyone new to racing. Its hint of user-friendliness will allow you to focus on the race without crashing and losing valuable time.

The contrasting styles of these two boards cover a huge range of use.

FANATIC SKATE 100 THE RIDE: Since this board

V: 100 L: 235 W: 63.5

is used by the world’s top pro freestyler, one might overlook it as a specialized board just for hucking crazing tricks. This would be a shame as the Skate is a great all-round board as well. It reacts to the smallest gusts planing up early and coasting through lulls with incredible efficiency. Your feet easily find the centred footstraps, even if you’re just progressing into smaller boards for the first time. Its straight-line speed can easily match the freestyle wave boards so long as you ride with a modern upright hips-in stance

AS A QUIVER

WIND RANGE: As a quiver

these two boards are too close in volume and width to help someone minimize their gear. Luckily, Fanatic makes both these models in different sizes, so increasing the volume gap between them would

and do a bit of trim work. It’s smoother through chop than most other freestyle boards but not as smooth as the freestyle waves.

If you choose to use the chop for catching some air, the Skate will gladly soar. Fanatic supplies the board with a smallish freestyle fin that gives plenty of lift for the inboard freestyle strap placement.

THE JIBE: Part of the reason this is a great freestyle board is because it’s well balanced when on its rail.

Jibes are easy to initiate and the thick tail supports even the heaviest amount of back foot pressure.

Of the small boards, this was the

make far more sense.

WATER RANGE: Despite

performing differently, the Hawk and Skate both excel most in relatively flatwater. Advanced riders can have a blast on these boards in chop as well, but the combo is not going to be your smoothest option.

easiest to plane out of jibes on.

Steep chop makes carving trickier but its balanced feel allows you to learn the art of driving the rail deeper into your turns to smooth things out. Letting the board carve on its own makes for a wider arc that progressing sailors can easily adapt too, while advanced riders can tighten the turn when needed.

THE FORTE: This is a board that helps you learn your first aerial move, the Vulcan, just as easily as the latest and most difficult switchstance trick. None of the other boards in the test even come close for this facet of the sport.

SAILOR STYLE: The

contrasting styles of these boards cover a huge range of use. Grab the Hawk one day and drag race your buddies; then rip up the water like it’s a terrain park on the Skate the next. Since these two boards are aimed at more

advanced riders, one could appreciate these contrasting styles, while an intermediate will love one board and hate the other.

GETTING DIALED-IN: The riding stance on each of these boards is so different that the intermediate sailor will be miserable

owning both. The Hawk needs heel pressure to hold down the rail and tight footstraps to drive the board , while the Skate requires you to stay off your heels and use wider straps to make the most of its manoeuvrability.

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GOYA GOYA FXRS 130

V: 130 L: 246 W: 74

THE RIDE: Goya introduces the

FXRS line this year. These boards are much wider for their volume compared to Goya’s FXR line. This makes them feel big for their volume as there is plenty of float below the rider and very little in the nose. It handles big sails better than any other board in the test and is also one of the first to get planing. There is a slight pause in the acceleration that seems to be the board working itself onto the narrower section just behind the large tail-wings, which are placed a full 18” from the tail. Once past

this pause, the board continues to accelerate and reach impressive speed considering how easy it is to ride. The width makes for a very stable ride, which along with a true inboard straps placement makes the FXRS one of the easiest to get into the straps. Putting the straps into the aggressive outboard strap setting increases the speed and lets you push the large MFC Liquid fin to its limit.

THE JIBE: The ease-of-use continues into the corners on the FXRS. The tail-wings make it easy to rail the board without the need

of a huge step. The rail engages well and the FXRS carves a much tighter turn than you’d expect.

Inexperienced jibers, who lose speed through the turn, will enjoy the wide, stable platform to help keep the jibe dry. To progress to a full planing jibe requires full power from the sails so that you can take speed deeper into the turn.

THE FORTE: The FXRS is easy to learn on with the straps inboard, and fast with the straps outboard.

Thanks to a unique shape, the jibe is similar to the thrilling manoeuvre you’ll experience on smaller boards.

From a minimum gear perspective, you’ve got the biggest range you can get from only two boards.

GOYA ONE 95

V: 95 L: 241 W: 61.5

THE RIDE: With the least amount

of flat and some of the softest rails of our mid-90-litre test boards, the One has a little different feel. The nose rides high and the board is sensitive, reacting quickly to subtle foot pressure— much more like a wave board.

However, what makes it excel as a freestyle wave shape is that it planes up quicker than a wave board and tracks well across chop.

To find the best performance you’ll want to have a hips-in stance and be able to ride comfortably with weight more on your front foot. In this rider position, the One

AS A QUIVER

WIND RANGE: The two

Goyas cover the largest wind range of any two boards in the test. Part of this is the fact that the FXRS rides big and lowers the wind minimum to get planing. The other part is that the jump is as big as

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feels at home when sailing with speed over chop. Intermediates will find this rider position, and its sensitivity makes it challenging for those not yet comfortable in the straps. The new MFC footstraps are a welcome upgrade that make for a more secure connection to the board and gives you the confidence to pop off any ramp you come across.

THE JIBE: In the corners is where the One really shines. It will gladly carve through any arc you choose and keep speed even when you go tight. Chaotic chop disappears as you can either drive right through

you can go without needing a third board. The One will just start to perform when the FXRS reaches its control limit.

WATER RANGE: By themselves these two prefer distinct conditions, but together you can cover everything from

it or adjust your carve mid-arc to find a flatter line. This reactivity is something for more advanced jibers to take advantage of while it may be a little too much for those learning to jibe.

THE FORTE: The One was the first test board grabbed for our annual trip to San Carlos. We changed out the fin for a smaller, more swept wave shape that helped loosen up the ride a little more. Going rail to rail on this “big” board was no problem, and we were able to go for lip without any hesitation.

completely flatwater to logo-high breaking waves.

From a minimum gear perspective you’ve got the biggest range you can get from only two boards.

SAILOR STYLE: As a two-board quiver you may find a problem depending on the sailors level.

Intermediates who love the FXRS’s ease will find the One much too difficult.

However, advanced riders who love the One’s jibeability should find enough freeride performance in the FXRS with the footstraps positioned all the way outboard.

GET DIALED-IN: No matter where the straps are set, these boards have a different feel. Each will need to be dialed-in on its own regarding one’s preferred footstrap placement, fin choice and mast track setting.

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JP-AUSTRALIA JP X-CITE 120

V: 120 L: 250 W: 67.5

THE RIDE: One of the most im-

pressive things about JP’s X-Cite Ride is that it has performance for any level rider. It’s not very wide for its volume, so be sure to choose the appropriate size for your needs, possibly adding a few litres compared to wider shapes.

Its smallish feel makes it smoother across chop and allows it to be ridden with smaller sails than the other 120-litre boards. For sailors learning the footstraps, this means that you can control and carry extra volume, even in windier conditions to help ease the ride. Part

of the reason the X-Cite line works well for any level rider is that there are numerous well-placed footstrap inserts. The inboard inserts promote a proper hips-in stance with your feet finding the straps instinctively. Progress to the outboard setting and the X-Cite Ride transforms into a much quicker board. It’s responsive to trim work and breaks free to an impressive top speed that also feels very efficient. To maximize the wind range, we’d add a longer fin for a 7.5 m2 and a smaller fin if you need to ride it with a 5.0 m2.

THE JIBE: First-time jibers will

find it easy to set the rail and have the board slice through chop.

Advanced jibers can find both an exhilarating high speed turn off the nose with an oversheeted entry or a relatively tight turn if aggressively pivoted off the tail.

THE FORTE: The X-Cite Ride is a jack-of-all-trades with unmatched performance in chop. Anyone from a first-time short boarder to an advanced rider will find years of carefree fun from the X-Cite, especially if your local spot is anything but flat.

A more capable two-board quiver cannot be found.

JP FREESTYLE WAVE 93 THE RIDE: Over the last few

years, JP has been putting more “wave” into its Freestyle Wave (FSW). This year the trend continues with it finally becoming the all-around board we have been waiting for. It’s a perfect blend of speed and control. Sizable chop can be mowed over without fear, and when jumping off a ramp the FSW’s speed and pop sends you soaring. The smooth ride makes it a decent board for riders to grow into. Less experienced highwind sailors will have modest success at first and will gradually become more comfortable after a few

AS A QUIVER

WIND RANGE: This is the

perfect jump in size for two boards. With the addition of a couple extra fins, these two JPs will cover everything from 8.0 to 4.0 m2. Since JP also makes these models in a number of different sizes, you can

V: 93 L: 234 W: 60.5 windy days. Its speed can be a bit unnerving for novice sailors riding tiny sails, but it tolerates you backing off the power if you need to. In the Pro construction the FSW is very responsive to gusts and rockets onto a plane with incredible efficiency. Changing to a smaller fin makes a noticeable difference for gaining highwind control since the stock fin has a lot of surface area.

THE JIBE: All the wave shaping added to the FSW has certainly paid off in the jibe. You can take copious amounts of speed into a turn and still rail the board over

easily move up or down in sizing with both boards to match your given local wind conditions.

WATER RANGE: Both boards are great in flatwater and choppier conditions, so you can be rest assured you’d be covered whether you’re sailing

with ease. The thinned-out rails hold beautifully through both wide and tight arcs slicing cleanly through chop. There is not a lot of volume in the tail so you do need to be able to move your weight forward to plane out of jibes.

THE FORTE: JP was kind enough to send us the FSW in the Pro construction. The lightness underfoot is noticeable and it seems to add another foot or two to jumps. It is capable of landing Spocks and Flakas, but the tail sticks more than a true freestyle board, but for straight airs and loops the FSW was amazing.

flatwater, bump-and-jump or open water. A more capable two-board quiver cannot be found.

SAILOR STYLE: This quiver will perfectly suit a recreational windsurfer at any level. The X-Cite ride does have a little more user-friendliness, but with

the straps in the outboard setting it becomes a comparable match to the FSW and an exciting ride. More importantly, a similar skillset will get the most out of both boards.

GETTING DIALED-IN:

For those who do not get to sail every day,

having your gear work the same will help you enjoy every moment on the water. These two have a similar enough ride that there are no quirks to reacquaint yourself with if you switch boards.

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NAISH NAISH FREEWIDE 130

V: 130 L: 253 W: 73

THE RIDE: The Freewide surprised

us with performance for both intermediate and advanced riders.

It provides a wide, stable platform that accelerates onto a plane in a very controlled manner. This is the perfect board to introduce people to the sensation of planing. It has inserts for a single inboard back strap but lacks an ideal match in the front, making learning a little harder. The placement of the outboard strap inserts are a little on the aggressive side forcing intermediates to be a little more patient before getting dialed in

them. Advanced riders will find the straps perfectly placed to trim the board up to an impressive top speed. The Freewide is a little heavier than some more expensive board constructions; except for possibly making it plane up a little slower, the extra weight is completely irrelevant once planing.

Also, your feet will love the comfy deck pads and straps.

THE JIBE: Once up to top speed, the Freewide does a rewarding weight forward jibe. For those not ready to commit to this acquired technique of oversheeting, it’s

stability will get you around dry and allowing you to build your skills without frustration. Regardless of technique, you’ll find it easy to keep up speed through the large radius turn. It prefers flatwater, but as your weight starts to move farther forward things get smoother and eventually you’ll find yourself charging regardless of the water texture.

THE FORTE: This is a stableand-easy planing board that will provide plenty of performance rewards as you continue to get your windsurfing dialed.

This combo covers one of the most extensive ranges of water conditions.

NAISH GLOBAL 100

V: 100 L: 240 W: 62

THE RIDE: Building on the success

of the Global Freeride and the old Global Wave, Naish introduces the all-new Global line of boards. The 100-litre version is designed to be a true do-everything shape while the smaller sizes are more waveoriented. From the first moment we sailed this board in the Gorge and through our trips to San Carlos and Texas, there was never a moment the Global felt out of place. Its narrowness makes it feel smaller than its volume.

Matched with sails below 6.0 metres, it responds well to gusts and gets up to speed with an efficient

AS A QUIVER

WIND RANGE: With the

Freewide 130 riding larger than its volume and the Global 100 feeling slightly smaller, the gap is at the maximum. This Freewide can handle sails as large as 9.0 m2 but there will be no overlap in wind range

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feel. At speed the ride is smooth and balanced regardless of an old or new school riding stance.

It is plenty quick for a freestyle wave and was still fun to ride on flatter water. We found more pop in some of the other boards but the control from a balanced rider position will get you max height from every jump. On landing you’ll be thankful of Naish’s thick deck pads as they do an amazing job of cushioning your re-entry.

THE JIBE: The Global succeeds in being able to do any type of jibe with style. It never hesitates whether being turned off the

for these two boards.

WATER RANGE: While the Freewide prefers flatter water, the Global is at home in anything. Since most places don’t have much chop until the winds get stronger, this combo covers one of the most extensive ranges of water

tail for a tight turn or more off the nose with aggressive sail oversheeting. With smoothness in chop and power to keep planing, the Global is one of those boards that everyone raves about, regardless of ability or style.

THE FORTE: This is the one board that is so well rounded it doesn’t have a true strong suit. We spun it through freestyle moves, took it wave sailing and then passed it onto a rider who was still getting comfortable in the straps, and it performed admirably for each different user.

conditions due to the Global’s diversity.

SAILOR STYLE: Any progressional sailors or speedsters that love the Freewide will find the Global just as much fun.

If you don’t fall into the speedster category then the more manoeuvrable

Naish Global Freeride 125 is a better match to the Global 100.

GETTING DIALED-IN:

Recreational freeriders can ride both of these boards with a similar stance and setup. The Global comes with two fins and you’ll stick with

the larger fin until your hanging onto sails below 5.0 m2. Those who choose to use the Freewide for their speed fix and switch to the Global in a more playful manner, will move the footstraps and mast track forward while using the small fin up to 5.5 m2.

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QUATRO QUATRO FREESTYLE WAVE 95 THE RIDE: Quatro’s Freestyle

Wave works great as an easysailing freeride board for progressional sailors with a modern hips-in stance, but in the hands of an advanced rider it has no limits.

On the freestyle side, it planes up quickly with an efficiency that lets you ride smaller sails than other boards of the same volume.

Tricks are easiest with sails in the low 5 m2 range while using the smaller fin. Changing to the larger fin allows it to hold up to a 6.0 m2, but there is a loss of some efficiency. It has the natural pop

V: 95 L: 240 W: 61

of a freestyle board that gets you in the air off the smallest of ramps. The only thing that makes you realize you are not on a true freestyle board is that the ride is far more smooth and stable through chop. Along with the two MFC fins, Quatro completes the package with new and improved MFC footstraps.

THE JIBE: The wave part of this board becomes evident in the jibes, as it’s willing to carve any type of turn. It rails over effortlessly and flows through a tighter arc than we thought it should.

It maintains its speed and cuts through chop as well as any other board in the test. Whether you know how to jibe or are still learning, the FSW will treat you right.

THE FORTE: If you look at the amazing things pro sailors are doing and say to yourself, “I want to do that,” even though you’re just getting going in the straps, then the Quatro FSW is for you. It’s a board that is easy and fun for recreational riders, yet works well for the more intense aspects of the sport.

Quatro came at the two-board quiver concept with a mind-set of the hardcore rider.

QUATRO TEMPO 84

V: 84 L: 234 W: 58.5

THE RIDE: It’s easy to pick the

Quatro Tempo as the best highwind board due to its smaller size and twin-fins. This new model complements Quatro’s more hardcore wave lines as a twin-fin board for onshore and smaller wave conditions. This means the Tempo planes quicker and rides smoother than other wave shapes.

In fact, it planes so quickly it felt a lot like the bigger freestyle waves in the test. The twin-fins surprisingly didn’t limit its performance in flat or choppy water. Here you’ll find plenty of lift from the fins and completely forget about them.

AS A QUIVER

WIND RANGE: Quatro

came at the two-board quiver concept with a mind-set of a more hardcore rider. This combo raises the high wind range dramatically, but seriously limits the low end.

We found ourselves riding with as much, or more, weight on the rear foot than on the freestyle waves and the speed was comparable as well. There is a hint of looseness in a straight line, but if you keep some power in the sail the Tempo will ride across steep chop without the nose getting thrown off course. Kudos to Quatro for supplying it with superb MFC fins and footstraps.

THE JIBE: As a wave board, it’s no surprise that we loved the way the Tempo carved through tight turns.

The planing performance with sails below 5.0 m2 is impressive,

WATER RANGE: The

Quatro FSW is wellrounded and covers a wide range of conditions.

Add a capable wave board and there isn’t a single high-wind day that will go by because you don’t have a board for the conditions.

The FSW works so well as

and you’ll find yourself exiting jibes with speed and control. The two fins inspire confidence to push as hard as you can in your turns without any fear of the board losing traction.

THE FORTE: Here you find a board with two fins, lots of rocker and the least volume in the test.

We’ll go out on a limb and call this the best wave board in the test. It also works brilliantly as a high-wind board, but it is first and foremost a board that carves cleanly in big swell or breaking waves up to logo high.

an onshore wave board that the Quatro Rhythm twin wave might match better to take advantage of epic wave days.

SAILOR STYLE: Partly due to the close sizing, there is more similarity in these two boards than any other combo. The

rider position is almost identical. The deck shape feels the same. The drive from the fins feels the same. Even the way they move across water and chop feels the same. This is the type of thing that an advanced rider loves.

GETTING DIALED-IN:

Since the two boards have a nearly identical rider position, it’s intuitive how to dial-in each board.

Any adjustment in either technique or components has the boards reacting the same way.

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10

RRD RRD FIRERIDE 125

V: 125 L: 246 W: 69

THE RIDE: The Fireride is RRD’s

new line of freeride boards. RRD maintains the responsive smooth ride of the line it’s replacing (the Z-ride), and adds some width making it plane up much quicker than before. The X-Tech construction is cheaper than the lighter LTD version, yet still provides a very crisp and efficient feel. The Fireride is not the most stable board while it accelerates, but the inboard footstrap setting is one of the easiest for progressional riders to get into once up and planing. The top speed is considerably faster

in the outboard straps, but they aren’t placed out and back enough to match the fastest boards in the test. True recreational speedsters should look at the RRD Firerace models to meet their slalom needs. If you’re looking to cruise around then the straps’ position is great and keeps your feet well balanced. One other important part of the Fireride’s easygoing performance is the high-quality MFC Liquid Pro fin it arrives with.

THE JIBE: To plane fully through a jibe the Fireride prefers to be carved with full speed in a modern

hips-in style that commits your weight forward over the board.

When turned off the nose in this manner it will plane through a tight jibe without hesitation.

Conversely, if you lean your weight back during the entry then the board will bounce through a huge arc, causing you to fight it the entire way.

THE FORTE: This is a great freeride board for recreational riders who are aggressive in their desire to learn. It rewards hard work with style and is a board that they’ll be able to grow into for years.

This quiver allows a smooth transition from flatwater to bump-and-jump conditions.

RRD FREESTYLE WAVE 91 THE RIDE: RRD has been a leader

in defining this class of boards ever since the term “freestyle wave” was created many years ago. Still to form, this year’s line is shaped to handle a variety of conditions and perform for almost any ability level. The FSW 91 is one of the smoothest and most well-balanced rides you’ll find, giving you the confidence to push yourself to the next level. The next level can be anything from planing for the first time on a small board to waveriding and landing your first Vulcan. It feels a little on the small side for 91 litres due to its

AS A QUIVER

WIND RANGE: With

RRD’s FSW 91 being the smallest-riding freestyle wave in the test, these two boards maximize their use by extending the high wind range. If your local conditions or weight won’t take advantage of

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V: 91 L: 239 W: 59 narrowness, and this skewers its wind range so that sails around 5.0 m2 are the biggest that accelerate it efficiently. The trade off is that on the higher wind end the board rides so smoothly that with a swap to a smaller fin you can ride down to 3.7 m2. The thick deck pads give you a slight raised sensation at first, but after a couple runs this feeling disappears and you notice them cushioning your feet across chop.

THE JIBE: The rider position in a straight line leads you into a jibe as you roll into a well-balanced position that drives the rail

this range, look to the FSW 96 as a board that will see more use and give a little more overlap with the Fireride 125.

WATER RANGE: This quiver allows a smooth transition from flatwater to bump-and-jump conditions. The Fireride handles

through chop. With the right size sail there is plenty of planing power, and it responds well to changes to rail pressure giving you the option to get aggressive and tighten up the arc.

THE FORTE: The RRD FSW is a great board for any type of sailor ready for its size on any type of water. What it does best is make that water feel smoother and less chaotic giving tons of confidence to get better.

flatwater down to 5.5 m2, and the FSW 91 starts at 5.0 m2 when the chop has grown beyond the Fireride’s comfort zone.

SAILOR STYLE: The Fireride is a board that a progressing rider can manage and grow into, but uses a little more traditional

riding technique than the FSW. An advanced rider will know exactly how to adjust to make the Fireride fly across the water and the FSW fly through the air. Progressing riders will have to adjust to the switch with a bit of patience.

GETTING DIALED-IN:

Getting comfy on the FSW is simple. Its rider position is so well balanced that it’s rare to feel awkward. The Fireride will require more effort as you change footstrap placement, mast track position and fin size.

10

STARBOARD STARBOARD FUTURA 122 THE RIDE: More so than other

boards, the Futura has the ability to morph from a progressional first-timer’s shortboard into a surprising speedster that’s comparable to Starboard’s iSonic slalom range. We were given the less expensive and slightly heavier Technora version and were still blown away by its performance. The Futura provides a wide platform that is very stable as it accelerates. It speeds up at a controlled pace allowing progressing sailors to easily find the footstraps in the inboard position.

V: 122 L: 245 W: 72 The outboard position is aggressive and much more difficult to get into, but it’s here that you’ll be able to do the trim work to reach full speed. Testers marvelled at how this board rides smoothly at slow speeds, yet in the outboard straps has the race like trait of riding smoother the harder you push it. Unlike most of the other boards in the test, the Futura uses a Tuttle fin box, which is great for speed-seekers who will put in a pure slalom fin but makes for finding recreational shape fins slightly harder.

THE JIBE: Most boards with as much speed potential as this prefer an aggressive weight forward jibe. But we found the Futura to turn very well off the tail and with technique that takes a lot less commitment to perfect. So long as you keep on the rail it will move across chop smoothly and have power to plane out at speed.

THE FORTE: Here you’re getting two boards in one. Buy this board as your learning to get into the straps and then once comfortable move the straps outboard and go pass all your buddies.

This is the perfect combo to cover North America’s most common wind conditions.

STARBOARD KODE 94

V: 94 L: 237 W: 62.5

THE RIDE: Introduced last year,

the Kode is the freestyle wave board that Starboard fans have been waiting for. It can be used for cruising flatwater, skying off chop or swell and even dabbling into freestyle aerials and waves if need be. It’s wider than most for its volume giving it stability while it accelerates, but in the wood carbon construction it accelerates so quickly an inexperienced rider may have trouble keeping up (progressional riders may benefit from the less expensive Technora or wood constructions). More advanced riders find that its quick

AS A QUIVER

WIND RANGE: These

two boards are perfectly spaced because the wide Kode 94 feels a little bigger than its volume.

This is the perfect combo to cover North America’s most common wind conditions. The Futura will easily

acceleration gets you up and planing in the smallest gust and keeps you planing through huge holes.

This is one of the few small boards tested whose controlled ride lets you keep putting the sails power to the board through choppy water. This much speed turns chop into launch ramps where its lightness underfoot inspires you to try new things. The Starboard footstraps have improved but the large amount of spacing between each insert makes strap-width customization difficult.

THE JIBE: It takes commitment to come into a jibe with all the speed

take an 8.0-m2 sail and the Kode rides well enough on an occasional 4.0 m2 day to not warrant the need for a smaller board.

WATER RANGE: There is a good transition from the Futura to Kode in how they deal with chop. The Futura handles the small chop

the Kode has and in choppy waters… but have faith as the Kode treats you right. It slices through chop and holds its rail better than we expected. Once you realize what it’s capable of you’ll start bringing your weight more forward and rip through jibes at a speed that will shock you.

THE FORTE: The Kode will add a bit of speed and excitement to your day of sailing. We would define this as an ideal board for bump-andjump sailors who want to accentuate the “jump” part of their sailing and then rail through the “bumps” with smooth tight turns.

found in lighter wind and then pull out the Kode as the wind and chop builds.

SAILOR STYLE: A similar style and feel, responds to tweaks in rider position and trim making for the perfect match. A wide range of ability levels can find comfort on this

combo, plus both boards will increase in speed and performance as you get better. Purchase the Futura first and by the time you’re ready to move its straps outboard the Kode will offer quick progression into smaller boards and higher winds.

GETTING DIALED-IN:

Starboard provides tuning tips along with a similar feel underfoot to immediately feel at home on either board. The only critique is that both boards use less prominent fin boxes (Tuttle on Futura and A-base on Kode).

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getting real

JOHN HELLEBERG Years of working in fast-paced kitchens taught me a golden rule: timing is everything. As a wind junky, restaurant owner and new dad, I find this rule also applies outside the kitchen. Timing keeps things cranking at my Sophieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Restaurant, which is located in Hood River, Oregon. It gets me out on the water, usually at Cheap Beach, when the wind is up and it leaves me hours to spend with the first Sophie, my one-year-old daughter for whom the restaurant is named (and, of course, her mother Marcie, a key player in the lives of both Sophies).

Marcie, Sophie and John. Hallman photo

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Isthmus owner Gary Stone at Rock Creek photo: Ali Stone

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What does Sarah-Quita think?

WOMEN WILL HATE ME

WORDS BY MITCH GINGRICH PHOTO BY PAUL VAN DRIEL

Separate but equal; a disgusting idea, terrible policy and horrendous injustice. Segregation represented the last stage in an era of disrespect for human life in its most essential form. Unfortunately, the cultural sentiment lingers ignorantly under the guise of social correction and promotes itself as a liberator. Neither in means nor measure can this norm compare to the institution of slavery, but it operates under the same logic of perceived fundamental difference between members of humanity. The division of man and woman in our cultural reward schema not only repre-

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sents a distinct harm to women (at this point in time, at least), but also denies our culture the full potential for the realization of excellence by denying it the fruits driven in the fire of competition.

Take the example of windsurfing. In nearly every windsurfing competition, at least two classes exist: one class for women and another for men. These classes institute a division in the competitors, splitting, and modifying them along the lines of something other than skill (the quality a competition is designed to measure).

Along these lines a competitor can gauge the competition and

estimate what kind of training winning requires. A woman knows she must beat the other women.

A man knows he must beat men.

In most competitions the rewards correlate to the sex. Prizes for the men’s class usually rank higher than prizes for the women’s class. It’s plausible to justify the inequality by arguing that the skill level in the men’s class is much higher than that in the women’s class. Regardless of position, the general inequality manifests too loudly to deny.

A few well-doers tried to compensate for the inequality by adjusting the reward schema and eliminating the difference in reward. They heralded the age of equality as they saw it arriving.

While their hearts were in the right place, and their intentions were honourable, this act crushes any chance women have for a true equality. It sets the women’s class up for mockery and pretends it’s special and deserving of treatment disproportionate in reward.

The culture of competition doesn’t reward sex. It rewards skill. Equal prizes for unequal performances further segregate the classes of competitors by reinforcing a prejudice way of thinking: women can’t compete with men. So, far from promoting and encouraging just and fair competition, the false equality places women in a pair of pretty little concrete boots and hampers their chance of beating male peers.

Many argue that women simply cannot beat men in windsurfing.

They say women aren’t strong enough. General physical differences between men and women exist. But there are enormous physical differences even among the men. Bigger and stronger isn’t always better. The constant among winners is the culture of desire. A boy aspiring to be a professional windsurfer (a.k.a. sucker) knows he must build more skill to beat his peers than a girl. Thus, from the beginning he sets out to reach a higher level. He trains more, maybe harder. His body may not be optimal, but he can find a way to win if his desire’s strong enough.

That’s the logic of competition.

I first ran across the notion of competitive logic in Kenneth Waltz’ seminal book Theory of

International Politics. In explaining the proliferation of democracy, Waltz’ argued that competition creates homogeneity. If one state achieved a higher level of power, another state would examine and adopt whatever policies, tactics, traits elevated the leading state.

Eventually, states arrive at a level of similarity in capability and design due to their pursuit of power/security. Ingenuity often meant more than resources (take a look at what the Dutch did). The logic of competition applies far beyond the realm of international relations.

If the goal for women and men is the same and separate classes exist, women simply won’t compete against men. It removes any incentive a woman has to build the skill required to move beyond her class. Young girls aspiring to be professional windsurfers (a.k.a. suckers) won’t develop equally with the boys. They don’t have the same competitive environment and so will linger in a lower-skilled class. Unequal prizes and separate classes couldn’t be considered ideal but at least it leaves a higher prize to be sought, an incentive to acquire more skill than the class average.

The solution is to absolve the classes. Let women learn to compete against men. My coarse and cynical mind has no doubt that eventually a woman would sit atop the world’s best. The culture must promote her, set the bar high from the beginning to give her the best opportunity to acquire skill, which doesn’t happen overnight.

She’ll need time to develop. That simply won’t happen under an equal pay, separate class schema.

That’s the injustice sewn by the well intentional.

Unfortunately for women, our general experience with social-institutional manipulation isn’t extensive. The wellintention few that attempt such things rarely have the expertise to promote an enduring justice and the patience to watch it grow. For change to happen, it’s going to take an exceptionally skilled woman. She simply needs to beat the snot out of men on tour. When that happens, others will follow. That ceiling can and should be smashed from below.

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