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Here is a short videoclip produced by our friends hauft.at about the first day of the Freestyle Classix competition.

EFPT Freestyle Classix Podersdorf Day 1 from www.hauft.at on Vimeo.

A new format welcomes more than 40 competitors in Podersdorf / Austria

Today we saw the registration for the first "Freestyle Classix" in windsurfing. From 17.00 - 18.00 more than 40 riders registered for the contest here at Podersdorf. Most of the big names, like Tonky Frans, Andre Paskowski, Andy "Bubble" Chambers, Nicolas Akgazciyan, Kevin Mevissen, Tine Slabe or Josh Angulo arrived on time. Gerhard Polak Senior, Tom Hartmann and Harry Schaffrian gave a short introduction about the new format.
Tom Hartmann extra delayed his surgery on his crashed shoulder to be here in Podersdorf. Not as a rider, but as the race director and head judge. Great attitude indeed! Thanks.

The conclusion is: variety counts and more difficulty does not effect more points. A single trick can be done twice and if it´s done perfectly the rider will get 1 point. If a move is done ok the rider will get 0.5 points. 15 points are the maximum and 5 moves of each category will be taken into the result.
If two riders should have the same amount of points, the judges will check if the variety is different. The rider with moves out of all three categories will win against a sailor, who only did moves out of two categories.

Today the north-westerly wind was up and gave the riders the possibility for a nice warming up session on the water. Tonky impressed with incredible switch Konos, Airfunnels and clean Culos with incredible speed in the rotation. "I did not practise classic moves, because I have done them so many times in the past. If it is new school, oldschool......IT`S FREESTYLE and this I like."

Tonight there will be a riders presentation at midnight and Ruben Petrisie will perform on the stage. The skippersmeeting is scheduled for tomorrow morning 9.00 a.m.
We can expect great action. The wind will be up and a double elimination is planned.


- SLIDESHOW REGISTRATION DAY

Jevgenijs from the Burusports-Team sent us a video with freestyle action from Latvia. It looks pretty windy on the Kisezers lake, which is close to Riga, the capital. Air temperature +5, watertemperature +7.





Ķišezers 18.04.2009 from Jevgenijs Lat161 on Vimeo.

This is the official scoresheet for the upcoming EFPT freestyle Classix 2009 in Poderdorf. This format contains moves in 3 groups. Each rider can collect a maximum of 5 points out of each group. In addition of all three groups a maximum amount of 15 points are possible. If two sailors should have the same number of points, the rider with the better overall impression will win.
Registration for the event will start on the 30th of April around 17.00. The windforecast looks good. Wind from northern direction could kick in.
57 rider are on the starting list. Let´s see how many will appear at the inscription in three days.

For 2009 the Surftest in Podersdorf changed its location to the "Nordstrand" of Podersdorf. The Surftest was organized by Boards & More, Naish Windsurfing, F2 Windsurfing and Sport Schneider, who all presented their newest windsurfing products. For 25€ testing fee the visitors could test two whole days and got free drinks in the Podo Bar. If you tested 5 different boards or sails, you even got a goodie bag and 10€ back. More than 100 testers joined the testevent and gave the event a nice atmosphere.

Besides the test, 5 wildcards could be won for the upcoming PWA Slalom in Austria. On the first day were no fair conditions for races and the racedirector Markus Pöltenstein decided together with the sailors to focus on the second day. And as forecasted the second day delivered acceptable conditions and three races could be finished. Mathias Höller, Peter Wimmer, Mario Lang, Peter Hörler and Robert Angst were the lucky ones, to get a wildcard for the PWA Slalom, which will start on May 5.

Not too lucky was Austrian wave and freestyle sailor Tom Hartmann on his Slalom gear. In the gusty conditions he crashed on his shoulder and ruptured his ligaments in the right shoulder. We wish him a fast recovery!


- Pictures of the Surftest Podersdorf 2009

After three months of training and having a good time on Bonaire young freestyler Erik Håkman from Gothenburg, Sweden finished his movie featuring himself and his friends from Bonaire (Kiri, Payo, Björn, Taty, Youp, Jürgen & Ellen). Kiri Thode was the eponym of the title, who always shouts "Look! Look! Look!" approaching a videocamera...


Look! Look! Look! Part I from Erik on Vimeo.

Robby Swift once was on the top in the freestyle discipline. He could win the 2003 Fuerteventura event and was one of the first sailors planning through massive shoveit spocks and combining a ponch with a flaka. Then he hurt his ankle in the following super x debut. Two futher injuries at the ankle followed and Robby had problems when landing hard freestyle tricks. He took a break and stopped his freestyle career and switched into Slalom and focused on wavesailing.
It looked like we would see a little comeback: Robby is on the starting list of the this years EFPT Freestyle classix in Podersdorf. But will he really compete at this event?

C7: You are on the list of the first EFPT freestyle event of the season, the Freestyle classix event in Podersdorf? Why and when did you decide to go for it?
Robby Swift: I did register for the freestyle event in Podersdorf, but I just found out (I did not read the entry form properly) that the freestyle portion of the event is before the actual PWA event, so I will not arrive in time to compete in the freestyle.

C7: Did you prepare a good show or did you train already some old school again?
Robby Swift: I have actually been training some spocks and old school tricks.
I was going to get Martin Brandner to send me a 98L Freestyle board there and borrow Andy Chamber´s sails. To travel with extra equipment from Maui right now is impossible as the charges for excess baggage are so high.

C7: So, unfortunately you will not make it to the freestyle event. What do you expect for the upcoming Slalom season?
Robby Swift: I have been training a lot of slalom and going to the gym to try to get stronger. I seem to be going better compared to the other guys than I was this time last year, so let's hope that I can get into the top 10 of the PWA Slalom ranking this year!

Philip Koester (E-44) is back from Maui, on his island of Gran Canaria. It was a great month. After a broken wrist at the Starboard photoshoot in Australia in the beginning of February, Philip could recover very quick.

"We had a lot of wind and big waves while the one month on Maui. I worked on my cutbacks and aerials. And the turned out to be quite good while the Neilpryde and Starboard photoshootings. All in all I had the focus on the waveriding. But also the jumps on starboard tack worked out better than expected! Here are the first shots from Pozo Izquierdo. With the wind from the left all moves work really easy!
I got a new fin sponsor, Mauiultrafins and I wear fashion from Oxbow on land and at the water.
On the 1st of May a competition will be held here in Pozo and I will compete."

See you on the water,
Philip

- Philip Koester Slideshow


C7: How was it on Maui?
P: it was really great! Strong wind the whole time and big waves to ride....good friends, I did some testing for the Mauiultrafins, that was quite interesting for me. I never thought about what difference exists. And to be together with the Starboardkids was funny....

C7: Do you have any great story to tell?
P: Not really, but this time I felt very comfortable in the bigger waves, and tried to do some radical moves cut backs and high aerials. I think i ripped the highest waves I ever, and that is for me a great story.

Are you top fit again?
P: Yes, completly! The first days on Maui I had problems with some moves, like the Shaka. But after a while everything was ok , nothing hurts.

Could you improve your level with wind from the right hand side?
P: I think so, but it´s hard work, and still it is not the same like porttack. I wanted to do some training with John Skye in Maui, but we both didn´t find the time to do that. This year i will go in summertime to Fuerteventura, to practice. But i know from Victor and Kauli that it takes time to feel well in both tacks, so let´s see in the next years!

C7: Will you stay on GC till the PWA competition in Pozo?
P: Yes, now it is time for school. I was a long time absent , Australia and Maui! In the beginning of May is a competition in Pozo, just local. I liked to do Guincho, but it is not confirmed I think.

Irish Wavesailor Mikey Clancy on his 70 liter single fin board with a 3,7 m sail. "It was super windy and I was stacked on my 3,7!", Mikey stated.




Down By the Sea from Mikey Clancy on Vimeo.

Carlo Durzu from Sardinia sent us his videolink freestyling at his homespot Murta Maria (Olbia).

Girmantas Neniskis sent us a short movie about a trip to Chile of the Lithuanian Extreme-sports team last december. "We had great weather, nice conditions, good practice. Also included are a few cutbacks of Victor Fernandez."



Chile 2008 from Girmantas Neniskis on Vimeo.

Gustav Settervik, webmaster of the swedish internetplatform kulingvarning.nu sent us a nice videolink of the Swedish freestyle windsurfer Niklas Strahlen. The film is a result of a windsurfing session at Niklas homespot in Gothenburg a few days ago.




Shitbay freestyle from kulingvarning.nu on Vimeo.

The PWA Slalom Worldcup will be started in less than 3 weeks with the first event in Austria at Lake Neusiedler! Kevin Pritchard, Gaastra and Starboard toprider, feels good and hungry to win. He alreday placed in third position at the Cabo Verde PWA wave event. But the Slalom is the discipline he wants to score high. Read more

C7: How was your wintertraining?
Kev: Been going well. A couple of setbacks with some small injurys, but all good and ready to go.

C7: You started with a great result in the this years season, being placed on 3rd position at CV. What´s the goal for the first event at Lake Neusiedler?
Kev: I want to win!

C7: Do you know the conditions there in Austria well?
Kev: Not really, but I have been there before. It can be anything.

C7: Some riders stated in interviews that they increased their acceleration or their topspeed while the wintertraining. At which part of your slalom sailing did you keep an eye?
Kev: Top speed and acceleration.. for me it seems like I have good speed just need to get on the starts and will be all good.

C7: Who were your sparring partners while the preparation period?
Kev: Jimmy Diaz.. it has been working out great to have someone here who is motivated.

C7: Is it an advantage for you, that many of your hardest opponents had gearchanges at the end of 2008? Bjorn switched boards and sails. Antoine boards and Cyril boards.
Kev: I just sailed with Bjorn yesterday and he is going very fast. I am sure that AA will be fast, that is for sure. It all comes down to the start and if we all get a good start then we will really see.

C7: Do you see yourself as the toprider of Gaastra and Starboard in the discipline Slalom?
Kev: I want to be on top of Slalom.

C7: Who will be the hardest opponents out of your view?
Kev: Bjorn, Antoine, Ross, Micah, everyone is fast.

C7: Did you find out, which boards and sails you are going to register?
Kev: Oh man that is a tough one.. all the Isonics are so fast this year.. it is hard to pick.

C7: What´s your favourite tourstop and which set (board, sail, fin) is your personal favourite?
Kev: I like being on Maui, just training the best. I guess if I had to choose for on the water favorite in slalom would be Gran Canaria. With the 5.5 Gaastra Vapor and the 86 Isonic.

Gerhard Polak, well known eventorganizer from the event in Podersdorf/Austria, founder of the EFPT and owner of the marketing agency DMG, in an interview about the new "Freestyle Classix" format and his view on event organisation in general.
Continentseven.com met Gerhard Polak to speak not only about the new freestyle format, but also about the structures of windsurfing nowadays and how some changes could help the sport of windsurfing to grow again.


C7: Are there any changes for the EFPT tour for 2009?
G. Polak: Yes, we will start with a new freestyle concept in Podersdorf. It will be called "Freestyle Classix". Each rider has the chance to present moves out of 3 categories. The moves are limited in difficulty, which gives many riders a chance to fight for the title.

C7: Which groups of moves will you consider?
G. Polak: "Planning moves", like Jibes & Tacks, "Airmoves" like Loops and Tabletops and "Rotation moves" like Airjibes, Aerial Jibes or Willy Skippers. Here is a link to the Classic freestyle categories.

C7: It looks like you will keep it simple?
G. Polak: Yes, indeed. The 2009 event will be dedicated to this kind of more classic orientated freestyle, which starts with a Duck Tack or a Carving 360° and ends with a Spock or Wymaroo. The PWA and the EFPT freestyle events went to the limit. New school freestyle windsurfing gets performed by a very small group of people. That´s great and exciting!
But I really want to see some EFPT events on a lower level and also will work on creating national events and events in regions. A certain percentage of all EFPT events should slip down a bit in difficulty and should be closer to the national events.

C7: How could a basis look like?
G. Polak: 30 regional events, 10 national events, 3-5 Classic freestyle events, 6 EFPT new school events, 3-4 PWA events. A pyramidal structure. The higher an event is placed in the pyramide, the more pricemoney, media and professionalism exists. As well the level in difficulty should increase.

C7: Why did you decide to create events with Classic freestyle elements?
G. Polak: Im my opinion windsurfing needs changes all the time. And a change can create development, which helps to grow. Newschool Freestyle windsurfing is too specialized out of my view. A complete Freestyle windsurfer has to be able to do all kind of moves well.
I want to push the top sailors also a bit back in the average of tricks. And the sailors on the lower level we can "woo with carrots". Additionally older sailors get a new chance to compete again and can keep the level for a longer period of time! I really do not want to loose the basis with the EFPT. My dream would be to have many event at the base.
And keep in mind: each development can help! We will present it very well.

C7: How could the pyramidal system look like out of your view?
G. Polak: 50 points for the winner of the event at the bottom and 2500 € pricemoney. 100 points for the winner of a 5000 € event, 200 points for the title in a 10.000 € event. And so on...here the graphic.

C7: Will we see any big names at the 2009 contest in Podersdorf?
G. Polak: I hope so. All well known freestylers from the past should come and celebrate: Stone, Talma, Krupitz, Humpel, the Pritchard brothers, all these names will not be in Podersdorf this year.. But following names are on the list: Josh Angulo (I am very proud to have him here and I am very excited already how he will finish, Beat Steffan Beat, Michi Schweiger, Tine Slabe, Raimondo Gasperini, Andrea Rosati, Roberto Hofmann, Tonky Frans, Kevin Mevissen... We have a long list. Definitely this kind of freestyle should be a format for everybody. The pricemoney of 10.000 € perhaps will not attract the top sailors of the PWA, but I guess the format will fit Tonky Frans for instance very well.
Link: Pre-registered riders

C7: Do you have special rules?
G. Polak: 5 Points for each category = 15 Points in total. The judges will judge the overall impression and we will start at 4 beaufort. We need a result for the media and the sponsors. Spots like Podersdorf can offer great freestyle conditions. But the wind can be very light, too. We have to be prepared for that light wind, too. Freestyle will happen in the future in cities or urban areas, at spots, which are located close to cities. There you can attract many people with the sport and it does not matter if the wind fits for the riders. The riders must fit for the wind, what means they have to be prepared in terms of equipment and moves in lightwind.

C7: So you will start a competition in non planning conditions?
G. Polak: No, planning is a must! But a heat could contain only riding moves, no rotations in the air or airs.

C7: A heat with moves out of only one category can beat a heat of a sailor with moves from more than one category?
G. Polak: No, normally not. Just if the guy with higher variety crashes all the time. The maximum of points you can get in one category are 5. If one rider will only show moves from one category and will only get 5 points, he just will beat his opponent, if his points are less than 5 points. If the points are the same the better overall impression will count.

C7: In which direction will the EFPT work in the near future?
G. Polak: We will work on the basis. Additionally we have to work on a better network inside the EFPT, in between the organiser, the industry and the rider. Mike Piechuera could take care of the riders, Harry Schaffrian could collaborate with the industry and Dominik Peck, who is a new coworker, would be the contact person for the organisers. With well organised management units the EFPT could take care of Freestyle windsurfing.

C7: Would this scheme work in other disciplines as well?
G. Polak: Yes, without a doubt. Like in every production. There is a product and for this product a product manager, who is in charge of this product. Additionally there are central areas like marketing, sponsoring, media and more. Windsurfing is the best sport in the whole world, but having a businesslike view, you will realize that windsurfing is just a product or a brand like Mercedes or a Mobile phone company. Each company has different product lines (diversification). Exactly like their ranges the professional windsurfing sport should be organised.

C7: Which discipline should grow out of your view?
G. Polak: The waveriding discipline!

G. Polak: Is there missing anything in the windsurfing world?
Yes. There is missing a professional company, who takes care about the windsurfing sport in competition. The owner of this company should be the windsurf industry, because the sport in competition should be organised in a close connection towards the industry and should not be used wrongly in the own interests of the riders. The best example is the Formula 1. It´s also not controlled by a riders union, but by a professional management. A windsurfing tour, which gets controlled by a riders union (PWA), is not up to date nowadays and will be not successful in the future as well. This unit would contain a central press unit as well.

C7: You organise events and the EFPT for many years. Are there many problems?
G. Polak: No, so long you help the organisers that they get their infrastructure done well. We, the EFPT helps the guys, who run events. Our goal is that they run financially profitable events in the end! The Podersdorf event is profitable for about 10 years. Provision of work I can create with an easier project as well! The best is to be financially profitable in the end of the day, like Rene Egli or Matthias Neumann.

C7: Why do you not run a female competition as well at your events?
G. Polak: I did it sometimes, in Kitesurfing and PWA Freestyle. But the market is not demanding female windsurfing events.

C7: What would you change in the structures?
G. Polak: Take a look at surfing. At the beginning the ASP tour was successfully until they started to follow the money. Big cities had the money and so the run the events in Mickey Mouse conditions – because big cities normally are not the best places for the sport. The TV Action was very poor and so TV Stations did not want to broadcast this lousy pictures. In this periode, the PWA Tour was stronger than the ASP tour in prize money and TV coverage. But than the ASP made the right decision. They went back to the best surfing places – made a superb TV production and the surfing tour is now better than ever. They have 340.000 Euro prize money in average at each event – the PWA only 55.000 Euro!!!
Besides I would work on a stratgic tourplan. The events should be placed with a good chronology. If there are three events within one month, it´s hard to attract three times the magazines or the media. The PWA freestyle tour starts in the end of June. That´s very late.
Besides I would suggest to produce simple products and less products. The people and media must understand what´s going on in that sport. For me, as an eventorganiser, it´s hard to translate to potential sponsors and the media, what competitive windsurfing is about.

C7: And how do you translate it?
G. Polak: The windsurf world needs a strong Wave Tour. Without a strong wave tour we can not succed in windsurfing. The wave champion hast to be the king! To be the wave Champion must be the goal of every young windsurfer.
Based on a strong wave tour we have to go for the speed record. The goal is, to be the fastest vehicle on the water without using engines. This is a message everybody understands.
Based on this two main disciplines – which can be held only at the best places – we should run events which are close to cities or places, where a lot of windsurfing business is done. Therefore Slalom and Freestyle is perfect.
So we would have a super hero in Wave, a super hero in Speed and two “normal” heros in Freestyle and Slalom.

C7: Do you have any ideas for new eventorganisers, how to make their event better?
G. Polak: It is difficult to make existing events better. If you start a event with not enough money, this is the biggest mistake. Nobody says: “Thank you for your effort, for the engagement”. You will be always compared with other events. And if you do not have money, you can not run a good event. So it is better to organise enough money, that the first event will be a good one. Than the sponsors are happy and support you also in the future. If the event is poor in the first year, you will loose sponsors and your credibility as an organiser.
To get 300.000 Euro from a sponsor is the same effort than getting only 10.000 Euro. So be creative and concentrate on the big ones instead of the small ones.

C7: Which image transports the sport windsurfing for you?
G. Polak: Freedom, summer, sunnyboys – always having the best chicks on the beach, crystal water, party. In Podersdorf the party and the music are very important!

C7: And your quick ideas, how professional windsurfing could become a winner out of the business view?
G. Polak: The whole system has to be changed, not only some parts. Let us put together a new structure for professional windsurfing. We would know how it would work – we just would need the chance to go for it.

Thanks for the interview!

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14th of April 2009, we received following message from F2 shaper and production board speed record holder Patrick Diethelm concerning his end with F2:

"Please find the following information to avoid further rumours.
Unfortunately F2 is taking a new road and ended my work contract by the 12. April 2009. With the first buy of a F2 Sunset Slalom in the 80’s, the first sponsorship in the 90’s and working for F2 since 2000 as Shaper/Tester, I am now forced to leave F2 after almost a lifetime.

When I started to shape and test for F2 the company was not in the greatest position. With a dream team of management and work power we brought F2 back to the top within only 2 years. The next couple years we enjoyed the great time and scored over 30 World-Champion titles, 8 World-Records and endless national successes.

After the separation from B&M (Boards & More) two years ago times got more difficult. I always tried to see the positive side and I never let down the brand I was living for. After loosing many business partners, team riders and friends and almost a yearly salary I still had the trust and the motivation to go with the brand and relaunch to get back on the top.
The 2009 range was just the beginning of the relaunch and I was looking forward for 2010 where I would have had more time to plan things better. Many ideas, new shapes, graphics, strategies, etc, spinned in my mind and I was ready to bring the new range of the decade."

Let´s see, if Patrick Diethelm will show up at the first PWA Slalom event in Austria in the beginning of May to proof his strength in Slalom sailing in the 2009 season as well. In 2008 he finished in the endranking on the 18th position overall, but out of our view he can make it in the top 10 easily.

The end of Karin Jaggi´s era with F2!!!

Since June last year Karin Jaggi took care of the marketing departement of F2. Now, 10 months later we received the following words of Karin:

I would like to inform you that my F2 working contract was terminated on the 12. April 2009.
It’s with great sadness that I have to leave the brand that means so much to me but the last happenings leave me no choice. The last year was difficult for everybody involved. At any moment I always tried to be an optimist and keep seeing the positive side. Even after great personal financial losses in the insolvency case I never even considered leaving F2.

I have been with F2 for nearly the last two decades and have won 27 world titles on that brand. Sadly I have to accept now that I won’t be given the chance to show my determination and endurance to pursue a goal on the business side as well.

For me F2 has always been about the people involved in the brand. Unfortunately lately the F2 family feeling started to fade away… And today I am forced to depart. I would like to thank my long-term F2 friends for all the good times, the hard work and for sharing my life for such a long time."

Let´s see how Karin Jaggi will continue. For sure, she now has more time to concentrate on her personal windsurfing career again OR will she maybe start an own windsurfing company together with her boyfriend and shaper Patrik Diethelm? Time will tell...

One Day in January
Andrew Radley sent us this videolink. Shot at Rush Co Dublin, Ireland on January 17th 2008.
Wind was around 45 knots and upwards and the temperature not above 6°C.
Windsurfers: Oisin Van Gelderen, Mikey Clancy & Rob Creane


One Day In January from Andrew Radley on Vimeo.

Friday morning 9 o´clock at El Cabezo beach in El Medano on Tenerife. All pre-registered riders showed up and were ready for the Spanish Windsurfing Championship 2009. Actually, everything on the Canary Islands is very slow and a bit too late. But because the forecast promised perfect conditions, the competition got started at 10:45 on the first day.


30 windsurfers (5 Masters) arrived from Gran Canaria and from the mainland Spain. The first surprise was caused by local hero and last year's winner Dany Bruch, who unfortunately had to cancel his participation due to an injury. "I have a ligamental strain in the foot, which actually incurred shortly before the World Cup in Cape Verde. Now my physiotherapist has discouraged me from the participation to be fit for the next events. But I will be 100% fit for the next World Cups!" So, the titleholder was out of the race.

The first heats were sailed with 4.5 to 5.3 m2 sailsizes. Within 8 minutes the riders had to show 3 jumps and 2 waverides. It was tricky to find good waves within such a short period of time. Unfortunately the waves were not too high, but the organization moved quickly through the heats. Some of the Cabezo locals fell victim to the relatively small waves. They had to give priority to the Pozo guys. Ludo Jossin, a French from Tarifa was the bearer of hope of the mainland Spaniards. He scored high with clean backloops and tweaked Tabletopforwards and he made it into the semifinals. But in the semis Marcos Perez and Eleazar Alonso showed the better performances and went to the final. Cabezo local, Canarian champion and one of the best wavesailors from Italy, Valter Scotto won the losersfinal against Ludo Jossin and this secured him the 3rd place of the single elimination.

In the final Marcos Perez showed his competition experience against the young sailor Eleazar Alonso. Marcos won clearly. With this victory in his pocket, Marcos went for a longer nap in his bus waiting for his turn in the double elimination.

In the Mastersclass Valter Scotto got first in front of local sailor Sandro dAlessio and local Imaele da Nuzzo.

Everybody had a short break for lunch and then the double elimination got started.


To the surprise of all the only 14 year old Alessio Stillrich outclassed three Cabezo locals with his moves. Only PWA worldcup rider Dario Ojeda could stop him. And then it was Dario, who chased the podium. He won one heat after the other until the finals. Although there were several controversial decisions during Darios heats against Local Luca Orsi, Ludo Jossin or Eleazar Alonso, but the judges decided always for Dario. It was already 19.30, only the final left, Dario Ojeda against Marcos Perez. But it was not only the sun who said good-by, as well the wind dropped.



On Saturday morning it blew even better than on Friday, the first competition day. The final of the double in between the Gran Canaria locals Marcos Perez and Dario Ojeda, got started. Dario Ojeda could win the first heat against the winner of the single elimination and they had to sail a second final. Dario could win for a second time and crowned himself with the Spanish wave title 2009. In second position came Marcos Perez and in third Eleazar Alonso, who is from Gran Canaria as well.

In the mastersclass Cabezo Local Sandro d´Alessio won ahead of Teneriffa local Valter Scotto. In third position finished Per Schmitz.

The wind kept on blowing and a supersession got started: Local Ivan Hernadez won the "highest jump" category. Local Bart David could convince the judges by landing a backloop without footstraps and he won the "best trick" category.

Finally it can be said, that the contest had a high level and ended with a nice dinner, live music and a party...

Result Spanish Championship 2009:
1. Dario Ojeda
2. Marcos Perez
3. Eleazar Alonso

Result Masters Spanish Championship 2009:
1. Valter Scotto
2. Sandro dAlessio
3. Per Schmitz

Text: ©Jochen Stolz, www.windsurfingtenerife.com & Continentseven.com

With Ponta Preta still receiving a healthy dose of ground swell, day two of competition wasted no time in capitalizing on the situation. Breaking smaller than the previous day, sets were anything from shoulder to logo high, making wave selection absolutely crucial.

>>> Slideshow Double Elimination

Hitting the water to christen the double elimination were John Skye (RRD / Naish), Alex Mussolini (Tabou), Francisco Porcella (Simmer / Dakine / MFC) and Ricardo Campello (JP / NeilPryde / MFC). From the outset Porcella and Campello took charge of the heat, selecting the best-set waves and stringing together the most technical rides.
Mussolini and Skye both looked uncharacteristically off the boil, producing only sparse glimpses of form within a somewhat disappointing heat. To the contrary, Campello excelled, delivering consistent quality in a comprehensive heat that saw him almost effortlessly advance. Joining him was Porcella, who looked to have stepped his sailing up several notches to happily outclass his rivals.

Moving onto heat 35, Thomas Traversa (Tabou / Gaastra) emerged as the man to beat. The risk taking Frenchman settled on a happy compromise between his usual balls-to-the-wall approach, and solid, secure riding. Having dominated the heat from the green flag, the remaining sailor to advance came down to a challenge between Phil Horrocks (JP / NeilPryde) and Camille Juban (Gun / MFC), with the heat’s remaining sailor, Graham Ezzy (Dakine) looking largely unthreatening.
Ultimately it was Juban that won the judges over, having produced a fluent display of wave riding that edged Horrocks out the game thanks to better wave selection, and consequently higher scoring rides.

Dropping wind and swell forced competition to be placed on standby for much of the afternoon, before the heavyweight heat 36 could commence late into the day. Pitching Jason Polakow (JP / NeilPryde), Dany Bruch (Exocet / Severne / MFC), Marcilio Browne (Fanatic / North) and local Titik Lopes against each other, this was always going to be a touch-and-go battle.
Excelling in the super-fluky conditions, Polakow rose up to deliver some stunning sailing that clearly separated him from his three rivals. In contrast, local sailor Lopes had some promising looking waves, but never delivered any rides that made any real impact on his score sheet.
This left Bruch and Browne in a stand-off. Looking solid, Bruch sailed well but couldn’t match the Brazilian’s fluid and technical sailing, which included two goitas. Browne and Polakow advanced.

Wrapping up the day’s sailing was heat 37, which saw local hotshot Djo Silva (Angulo) give his rival PWA regulars a wake-up call. Fending off Silva’s persistent attacks were Ross Williams (Tabou / Gaastra) and Dario Ojeda (Simmer / MFC / Mormaii), who had to dig deep to surpass the on form Cabo Verde local and secure their positions in the next round. The double elimination will resume with the second round tomorrow morning, with a first possible start to competition scheduled for 10.30 am.

© PWA / Andrew Buchanan


>Double Elimination
>Single Elimination
>PWA Cabo Verde - Day 1
>PWA Cabo Verde - Preview




>RESULT after the Single Elimination

He is for sure one of the most successful sailors in the presence. On the one hand he is a hardcore competition machine, who works 100%, when the green flag is up and on the other hand a creative personality inside the sport of windsurfing, who created hi sown style over many years of hard training. Born in 1982 in the south of Brazil Kauli Seadi (BRA-253), who could win his third PWA title in the discipline waveriding in 2008, dedicates most of his time to windsurfing and surfing. We asked Kauli, a real winner, what are his goals for 2009, his plans in the near future and how he estimates the next steps in the development of twin fin boards.

>>> Pictures Kauli Seadi

C7: Congratulations to your third title, how does it feel? Is it your biggest success so far?
KAULI: I CONSIDER THAT A BIG CONQUER AND I DEDICATE ALL MY LIFE ON THE PAST YEARS FOR THAT, SO I'M GLAD THAT RESULTS SHOW ON COMPETITION.


C7: Are you more and more famous in your country after winning several world champion titles?
KAULI: THEY HEAR MORE ABOUT WINDSURFING NOW ON THE MEDIA, BUT THAT IS STILL VERY SMALL.

C7: Does the title count more for you, because you changed sponsors before the season and there were only 3 events?
KAULI: IT WAS A IMPORTANT YEAR TO ME, AND SO MANY CHANGES HAPPEN TO ME THESE YEAR ON A SHORT PERIOD THAT WINNING EVEN UNDER THOSE VARIABLES WAS COOL.

C7: In which age did you know that you will work hard on your windsurfing career to become world champion once? There were some other ambitions in other sports in the beginning!!
KAULI: IN 2000 I DECIDED I WAS GOING TO REALLY FOLLOW WINDSURF AS A PROFESSION. I USE TO REALLY LIKE TENNIS AND PARAGLYDE BEFORE WINDSURF.

C7: You sailed all disciplines from the beginning on. Looked like you had some focus on the freestyle. You could win single PWA events in freestyle, but you missed the title. Was it a big disappointment for you these days (2001) not to win the title?
KAULI: I GUESS IN 2001 I WAS SUPER HAPPY ALREADY TO WIN MY FIRST PWA FREESTYLE EVENT IN FUERTE, BUT I REALLY LIKED THE FREESTYLE TIMES I HAD, AND EVEN THAT I WAS ALWAYS CLOSE WITH RICARDO. FREESTYLE WAS NEVER MY GOAL FOR 100%. I DID IT AS A COMPLEMENT. THE WAVE DISCIPLIN WAS ALWAYS MY BIGGEST GOAL, AND IN 2001 I ACTUALLY WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED IN IRLAND ON A VERY CLOSE HEAT WITH BJORN WHERE MOST OF THE SAILORS TOUGHT I WON, BUT I LOST .....SO THAT WAS DISAPPOINTMENT FOR ME .....BECAUSE WAVE WAS EVER MY GOAL!

C7: Why did you quit freestyle?
KAULI: BECAUSE MY ANCLES WORE GETTING HURT AND I WAS NOT LEARNING MUCH MORE FROM IT, FELT LIKE IT WAS GETTING STUCK AT THE SAME MOVES FROM THE PAST 4 YEARS. BUT I REALLY APRECIATE THESE DICIPLINE , AND I FELL LIKE GOING OUT AND TRYING SOME MOVES FOR FUN WHEN IS FLAT.

C7: Would you sail in super-x again, if there would be a comeback of the discipline?
KAULI: NO. I QUIT BEFORE IT EVEN ENDED. I TOUGHT THEY MISTED THE WHOLE IDEA OF THE DISCIPLINE, BECAUSE EVEN IF YOU LAND ALL MANOUVERS GUYS WITH SLALOM GEAR COULD CRASH AND STILL WIN, BECAUSE THE LEGS WERE TOO LONG.

C7: What are your personal goals now? You have won three titles in waveriding, on ein super-x, two second in freestyle? WIll you focus on your new club or will you try to get as many titles as Kelly Slater got in surfing?
KAULI: I WILL KEEP MY FOCUS FOR MANY YEARS I BELIEVE ON WINDSURF PWA, I LOVE IT, AND I BELIEVE MY CLUBE IS COOL PROJECT THAT I ALWAYS WANTED TO DO AT MY SPOT SO PEOPLE COULD COME VISIT AND ENJOY THE GREAT CONDICTION FROM MY SPOT , BUT FOR NOW I'M 100% SURE THAT BEEN A PROFESSIONAL WINDSURFER IS THE BEST COMBINATION FOR WORK : FUN WITH MONEY.

C7: You opened your Club Kauli Seadi some weeks ago. Congratulation!! You are not the only pro windsurfer doing this. Josh Angulo for instance runs a center, too. Is it something for the future, a second job, or is something, you want to do, because you feel that you´ve to do it?
KAULI: I FELT LIKE IN BRASIL WINDSURFING NEEDED MORE ATTENTION - AS THIS SPORT IS SO GREAT. IN A COUNTRY WITH SO MUCH COAST WE SHOULD HAVE MORE BASES TO PROMOTE THE SPORT AND I DID MY PART IN IBIRAQUERA. AS WELL NOW AT MY CENTER WE RUN THE SOCIAL PROJECT FROM MY INSTITUTION , THAT WE RUN WITH KIDS FROM THE COMMUNITY AND WE REALLY THANK NEILPRYDE AND JP, THAT THEY ARE OUR SUPPORTERS OF EQUIPMENT FOR THAT.

C7: I guess you try to bring windsurfing closer to the surfing style. How close are you?
KAULI: I THINK WE STILL HAVE A LOT TO GO ....BUT WHAT I LIKE IS THAT MORE AND MORE PEOPLE ARE STARTING TO UNDERSTAND WHERE WE CAN STILL GO.....IN QUESTIONS OF WAVE CONNECTION AND SPEED.

C7: Which opponents will be the hardest for the near future? Are there any old guys, who can catch you?
KAULI: I BELIEVE THERE ARE A LOT OF GUYS WHO ARE SUPER GOOD, AND IT IS ALWAYS A BATTLE TO GET A GOOD RESULT IN AN EVENT.

C7: Where will you train for the next season? At which spots?
KAULI: I PLAN A TRIP AROUD THE WORLD WITH MY BEST FRIENDS ON THE MORMAII BOAT, AND I WILL MEET THEN ANYWHERE WHERE WE HAVE GOOD WAVES. AND IBIRAQUERA AND MAUI AS MY TWO BASES.

C7: Will you come up with a new move? Or do have some in your head. In surfing for instance the guys came up with sick moves like Sushi Roll or Rodeos, crazy off the lip tricks?
KAULI: COMBINATION MOVES ARE THE FUTURE, LIKE THE LATEST MOVE FROM BOUJMAA.

C7: How much are you integrated in the board and sail development of the brands you are sponsored by? Is your gear better than the gear you had from your old sponsors?
KAULI: I BELIEVE MY GEAR IS DEFINITELY GETTING BETTER, I GUESS WE ALWAYS USE THE THINGS WE LEARNS ON PAST AND MAKE THEM BETTER FOR THE FUTURE. SO MY SAILS AND BOARDS ARE MORE AND MORE GETTING WHERE I WANT, THE DESIGNS ARE EASY TO BECAME BETTER WITH THE TECHNOLOGY.
NEIL PRYDE HAS TO MAKE PROTOTYPES IN MAUI. THE SAME WHAT CHINA PRODUCES AND EVERY NEXT DAY WE CAN HAVE A NEW PROTOTYPE TO TRY.
ALSO JP HAS A GREAT SHAPER, WHO HAS A LOT OF EXPERIENCE AND DESIGNS EXACTLY WHAT I ASK FOR.

C7: For how long will the twinser fin system stay alive? Or will the triple fin system enter the market soon?
KAULI: I DON'T SEE A FUTURE ON THE 3 FINS, BUT I REALLY SEE POTENTIAL IN TWIN FINS FOR WAVE RIDING!!!

C7: Do you have any projects for the wintertime in the tube?
KAULI: IN JANUARY, IN THE CARRIBEAN WITH THE MORMAII BOAT!

A link to his personal website and more news on his latest boattrip you find here.

>>> PICTURES Lancelin Ocean Classic 2009

Once again, the Lancelin Ocean Classic was the event of the year and definitely not one to miss out on with eventscorp and www.westernaustralia.com now supporting the event. It was expected to be bigger and better than before and did not disappoint. Thanks to the great organization this event had all the good things: windsurfing, wind, waves, happy people, parties...
The Ocean Classic is a big windsurfing festival including a wave event, the longest downwind race in the world (represented in the Guinness book of records) and a slalom event, all of it in a unique atmosphere: music playing all the time, live bands, loads of people coming to watch, free windsurfing lessons for the kids. Lancelin which is usually a quiet little fishing town turns into a really busy party ground.

Once again this year the event attracted some of the best windsurfers in the world including names such as Peter Volwater, Scott McKercher, Karin Jaggi, Laure Treboux, Patrik Diethelm, Chris Lockwood, Jesper Orth and Boujmaa Guilloul.

The wave event started on Thursday with conditions offering a nice 20 knots of wind and head high waves. The girls were sent out first for a 25 minute heat which was fantastic as explained by Laure Treboux. “We all loved it out there, catching waves, smiling and having fun. I landed a few loops, shove its and so on, got some nice riding, and won!!!”

Then the open division where sent where the waves were getting better and better. This is always a very competitive division with the final results being William Kolbrink in 1st place, 2nd Blair Gavin and 3rd Jamie Cobill.

Then it was time for the Elite division which was represented by a lot of big names: Boujmaa, Jaeger Stone, Scotty Mckercher, Ben Severne, Luke Walmsley, etc. With a $1200 cash prize up for grabs for first place the guys where definitely not holding back. The top 4 from the first round included Jaegar Stone, Scott Mckercher, Ben Severne and Jamie Cobill. With the first round finished it was time to head to the pub for a couple of beers and wait for the double elimination the next day.

The following day (Friday), the double elimination was started. The wind was a bit lighter and the swell had also dropped slightly but the conditions were still excellent to run the double. This is where things became very interesting. Everyone thought Boujmaa wouldn’t go far on the second day after being knocked out in the first heat on the previous day… how wrong they were. The Moroccan was amazing, he had worked out the wave perfectly and kept knocking people out of the competition round after round until he met the previous day’s winner Jaeger Stone in the final. He had to beat him twice to be crowned the winner of the 2009 Lancelin Ocean Classic Wave event. He managed to win the first final which kept everyone on the edge of their seats however with no energy left after sailing so many heats, Jaeger Stone was crowned the 2009 champ with Boujmaa claiming 2nd place and Ben Severne 3rd.

It was now Saturday and time for the blue ribbon event, the Ledge to Lancelin Marathon. 26kms down wind with 170 starters! With names such as Peter Volwater (Holland), Patrik Diethelm (Switzerland), Scott Mckercher (Australia), Karin Jaggi (Switzerland), Chris Lockwood (Australia) and Jesper Orth (Australia) it was going to be a very close race.
With thousands of spectators at the start line as well as at the finish and music pumping out of the speakers, the sailors were all pumped up and ready to go. The media Helicopters where hovering just off the edge of the beach waiting for the start gun. With one minute to go the sailors picked up their equipment ready for the running start to the water. Then they were off and the 2009 Lancelin Ocean Classic had begun in around 23 knots of wind. An amazing site 170 Sailors, thousands of spectators, helicopters following the leaders and a prize pool of $10,000 cash. No wonder this is Australia’s biggest windsurfing race.
It was a hard fought race all the way to the end as explained by Chris Lockwood who claimed second place: “It was a great race. Thanks to all the guys and gals involved in organizing it, and a big thanks to all the competitors. Peter was right there for most of the race, and he passed me on the 4th leg after I did a slow gybe. I caught him again at the end of the leg. He gybed early, and I thought he was not going to make the marker boat in one go. He went upwind of the boat, found a nice steep swell, surfed it clew first for a considerable distance and hooked in alongside me for the last run out to the last mark. I got there first, but was struggling to find a ramp to gybe on and stay planing- there was very little wind. I shot wide in desperation, and peter hooked a nice ramp to cruise past on the inside. I was left floundering and pumping to try to get planing again... he was long gone. But I put the pedal down in a last ditch attempt to catch him. His landing wasn’t too flash but was good enough to hold me off on the beach. It was one of the best races I've done in terms of being pushed all the way to the end. Feeling a bit sore still! Congrats Peter. NEXT YEAR...”

The final results where Peter Volwater 1st, Chris Lockwood 2nd and Patrik Diethelm 3rd and Karin Jaggi winning the ladies division.

It was now party time and with thousands of people expected it was going to be one of the biggest in the 24 year history of the event and it did not disappoint. With ½ an hour of amazing fireworks and a great band the town of Lancelin partied well into the night. This party is one that everyone must attend at least once in your life.

On Sunday the wind was light which was perfect for the ‘kids to have a go at windsurfing’ morning. With a huge turnout of 70 youngsters it proved to be a great success and fantastic for the sport of windsurfing to have that many kids giving it a try. The light conditions also allowed the big kids to recover in the adjoining park with the big Aussie recovery breakfast.

Plans have already begun for the 25th anniversary event next year and you will be able to see all details and full results on Lancelinoceanclassic.com.au . Thanks to eventscorp and Tourism WA for supporting the sport of windsurfing and regional towns such as Lancelin. Also big thanks to Col Leonhardt for the pictures: birdseyeviewphotography.com.au

© Left Pic: Stefan Csasky

Craig Gertenbach is one of the main figures in the funboard market nowadays and his slogan is "addicted to ride". Born in South Africa Craig sailed on the PWA Tour since 1992 in all disciplines and could place himself in the slalom discipline in the top 10. In 1995 the South African windsurfing Pro started to test boards for Fanatic. And still he tests all the prototypes all around the world. In 1999 he met Karin Haberstumpf on Maui, who already worked in the marketing of Fanatic in Germany. They both fell in love and Craig started to work as well not only on the water for Fanatic but also behind the offie table in Germany. He became one important part of the Fanatic management, which was restructured in this time.
Together with his wife Karin and the shaper Sebastian Wenzel he seems to find the right balance to grow with Fanatic year by year. In 2008 Fanatic almost could take the PWA constructeurs title with its very strong windsurfing team. Craig gave us the chance to get a bit of an inside view on his work and his thoughts.

>>> SLIDESHOW Craig Gertenbach

Link:
www.fanatic.com

C7: When did you start to work on the brand Fanatic?
Craig: I started working for Fanatic as a Racer/tester in March 1995. Full time tester responsible for all products Fanatic/ART from 97-2000. Then marketing/product from 2000-2003 in the office. In spring 2004 I took over as brand Manager, in charge of sales, product, marketing and brand management.

C7: Did you work for other board companies before you started with Fanatic?
Craig: Yes, I started in 1987 to test for F2, learnt a lot from Klaus Walther and Werner Gnigler. Later for Neil Pryde testing on Maui. I worked with a lot of sail/board designers over the years.

C7: Where is the Fanatic headquarter located and how many people are working there?
Craig: Our operating office is in Munich. Our HQ in Molln, Austria. Here in Munich specifically for Fanatic is myself and my wife Karin, plus some support staff who work for all brands. Then our product engineer Juergen May, the guy with the most experience and years at Fanatic is working between Munich, Cobra and his home close to Frankfurt. Our graphic agency who are in Wiesbaden, Sebastian Wenzel our shaper in Portugal. Our Headquarter in Austria which handles all logistics, sales, distribution, finance, it, etc…. Quite a few people in the background support a relatively small “brand core” of myself and Karin.

C7: Which image do you want to produce with Fanatic?
Craig: For Sebastian and myself, the key has always been to focus on offering an easy to understand range with as little overlap as possible. Plus we want to inject as much performance into every shape, whether beginner board or 72L twinser. For us it has always been much more about producing the best shapes possible. Being market leader would be nice, but we´d prefer to have a smaller range with the best shapes…if we lead the market with that approach then great, if not, we are also happy and confidant that the right people appreciate out products. I think the image should be, that windsurfing never has to be boring, no matter what your level is, plus not being arrogant or fake in the marketing, that´s not our style.

C7: Do you see Fanatic growing since you and your wife Karin started to work on the project?
Craig: Well, in terms of image and high end product sales yes, we are really happy with the progress over the last 8 years, of course this is a team work not just from Karin and myself, but also our team as mentioned before, plus our riders like Klaas Voget, Victor Fernandez, Pieter Bijl etcetc…everyone is contributing to the brand and it´s success.

C7: I guess Fanatic is the most successful boardbrand in the Boards & More Pool. F2 went on their own road and Mistral is not as big as Fanatic. What are the secrets of Craig Gertenbach marketing the products?
Craig: I wish I was better in marketing to be honest! We just talk about the basics, like that our riders are fully involved and therefore helping us to improve the products. Plus I guess we have a more careful approach to bringing new products to the market, we always want to be 110% sure that they are really needed. I think our marketing approach is very long term oriented, since it is so product-linked, it takes a while for people to see past all the other fancy marketing that other brands do. Plus our team which has grown in strength from year to year, is showing itself to be the best long term investment we ever made.

C7: Do you find enough time for your family while working on the brand?
Craig: I try to but of course with all the traveling it is not so easy. Whenever possible we try to combine some testing trips with family holidays, since I anyway have so little time available. This usually works out quite well and to be honest, I don´t know any other way of working since 20 years, there is no clear “holiday/work” definition when you are working up to 20 weekends a year and traveling inbetween. Finding the balance is the tricky part, but I´m learning.

C7: What are the 2009 highlights in the Fanatic range?
Craig: Definitely our Twinser waveboard line, getting great feedback on that, the results of Victor with 2/3 contests won this year on the same twinser board in onshore conditions don´t hurt! Plus our Freerace line the Ray, excellent reports and feedback, with people just enjoying to go fast, easily. Lots of other highlights, like our Falcon slalom, which have been dramatically improved in terms of ease of use and handling. Plenty of new technologies in the shapes which we did not change, with our Team Editions and LTD Edition Freeride lines.

C7: Fanatic boards get shaped by a computer. Is that the future in board production?
Craig: Yes, it´s for sure the future in R&D, to make the smallest possible changes, being able to isolate features, with big effects on the water. Plus the database of older shapes is essential, especially when making new styles of boards. Like our Ray Freerace board, was super “easy” to start from scratch, since we already have all the data from our Freeride and Slalom collections, we could easily blend features from both types of boards into one shape. We are playing with mm sometimes on rail shapes and rocker lines, but the results on the water are still amazingly big sometimes. But then you also need the right test team to figure this out and give the right feedback. Right now for example I was just skyping with Klaas about our 2010 wave testing he is doing in Chile…in 2 weeks we go to the next round of testing in South Africa…non stop R&D…

C7: You have 16 teamriders in your international team right now. Can we expect any chances for 2009. Will you invest in any new riders?
Craig: We have slightly reduced our team for 2009, due to the current economic situation we have no choice but to reduce the overall budget. Our highest ranked riders are however all remaining for 2009. There is a chance we would maybe add one new rider for 2009, nothing fixed yet. We are really happy with the team we have, not just the results, but also the team spirit, no big egos, just a good bunch of young motivated and also very successful riders. No doubt in Wave/Freestyle, we have by far the best results, slalom with Pieter being unavailable to race was a bit of a bummer for us, otherwise we probably would have got the PWA Constructors title, we only missed it by one point….

C7: Where do you see Fanatic in 2010?
Craig: Again, our approach is long term. We realize the market is tough, there is going to be a recession (already there) in Europe, so we will adapt our cost structure and sales to match this. We want to remain one of the top 3 brands, but will not over-produce just to claim to be a big brand. I would rather produce/sell a little less and not be forced to close products out, this just kills the market. We are confident to continue to be a leader and hope the industry is ready to work together on a few issues to clean up the market.

C7: Will we see a comeback of a Fanatic Formula- or a raceboard in the next years?
Craig: Formula I don´t think so, the market there is too small to support 3 or 4 brands, plus I think we are seeing more and more people keeping their boards for 2 or 3 seasons. So for sure I am more than happy to let the brands who are active there have at least some chance to pay their heavy R&D and team costs, by selling a reasonable amount. Raceboard pretty much the same, although I would say there is probably more chance of that than a FW board.

C7: You are a passionate Windsurfer and a former PWA sailor. You are still involved in board testing and we often see crazy shots of yourself ripping big waves in SA or blasting on Slalom gear. What do you think, could you still keep up with the top sailors in a PWA Slalom or Wave event?
Craig: Hehe, I think in waves, no chance at all, I still enjoy myself in good waves in Cape Town, but the level is so high now, I visit plenty of world cups and watch my team ripping next to me on the water…..the sport has advanced so much these last 5 years, it makes me feel a bit old sometimes, but on the other hand is very inspiring and exactly what the sport needs. Old guys like me should stay in the office and in the background, let the new generation show the way! The Slalom is a little different, as you need so much experience, I still have pretty good board speed, but for sure there also the level is a lot higher in terms of finding the perfect fins, masts etc, I´m sure I could make the odd semi-final or so, but to be consistent over 9-15 rounds is very, very hard. No, I´m quite comfy going testing, enjoying my sailing and watching the PWA live ticker from the safety of my desk!

C7: What´s your favourite location to have a ride and which board model would you prefer to take out of your boardbag?
Craig: Good question – for sure I get the most excited to go wavesailing at home in Cape Town, at a good day with my friends in Big Bay, Melkbos or Cape Point, then with the smallest possible waveboard, probably a 69L NewWave. But I have to say, since I´m so used to testing everything from beginner boards to Freestyle, wave, slalom etc, I get almost as stoked by sailing at Lake Garda on a beginner board with my kids on the nose, shouting for more speed…. I think windsurfing as a sport has so many sensations to offer, we just need to make more people aware of it, but I´m confident of a long future for the sport and also Fanatic.

Thanks for the interview!

OXBOW BIG BAY CLASSIC 2009

Event: 2008 IFCA SLALOM WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS and 2009 WSA OPEN WAVE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Where: Big Bay, Bloubergstrand, Cape Town, South Africa
Date: 5 – 10 January 2009

Make sure not to miss the regular updates about the event on the Continentseven.com weblog!

© pic: Darrel Wong Photography

Josh Angulo, one of the top names on the PWA tour and well known as a hero at Ponta Preta, found some time to keep us updated about his family business Angulo, his ambitions on the tour and thoughts about several topics in windsurfing. Josh is 34 years old, could win a lot of single events and a PWA worldchampion title in the wavesailing discipline back in 2003. He believes in Jesus Christ, grew up on the North Shore of Oahu. By the mid-80s the family decided to pack it up and head to Maui where Josh got hooked on windsurfing at the age of 10. By 15 Josh signed his first professional contracts and had his first professional win under his belt at the age of 17. Nowadays he is focused on his competition carreer, on his own business - he runs a board company and a windsurfing center - and on his family life.

>>> SLIDESHOW Josh Angulo

Links:
Anguloboards.com
Angulocaboverde.com
AnguloonSUP



C7: When did you start to work on the brand Angulo?
Josh: I have actually been involved in the family business as long as I can remember... when we were really young we would it at my dad's shop on Oahu while he shaped and he would give me and my brothers a small piece of foam and a piece of sandpaper an we would try and shape miniature surfboards.... Mark was always the best with that.. As I got older, sweeping and cleaning the store and factory as well as packing boards with my brothers was all part of our responsibilities. It was always a family business.

C7: Do you work together with your father ED or are you responsible yourself marketing the Angulo windsurfing products?
Josh: When we started making production boards a few years back, my dad and I worked hand in hand and had a lot of fun doing it. In the last 4 months however, my family has given me full control over the windsurfing products, branding and company. It has been an exciting last few months and we will be coming out soon with some really new and exciting products.

C7: How many people are working on the Angulo products?
Josh: We are 7 people, with a core group of 3 people on the day to day basis.

C7: Did you sail all your career on Angulo boards?
Josh: I have a great relationship with many reknown shapers and have rode boards shaped by Roberto Ricci, Peter Thommen, Jean Bouldoires, Carlos Sosa, Keith Teboul, Fabien Vollenweider, Mark Nelson and Mark Angulo...... but in all honesty, the best boards I've ever had were always from my dad. He really is master craftsmen and I'm sure the best boards he ever shaped were for his sons.

C7: Is it hard not to sail on Angulo shapes in Slalom and would you prefer, if custom boards would be allowed? Or is your plan to enter the Slalom board market very soon?
Josh: We will be on the slalom market for 2009. The production boards will be ready soon in time for PWA approval. I look forward to kicking some butt on Angulo shapes next year and any slalom rippers interested can contact us.

C7: Which image do you want to produce with the brand Angulo?
Josh: I honestly don't think we will try to hard to produce an image beyond just being ourselves. We love windsurfing and the people involved with it. We like making products that we enjoy and therefore our stoke relates directly to the public and the products we make. I'm getting more into it as I get older and I am confident that the great feeling I have about our brand and it's possibilities will relate directly to our products.

C7: How many windsurfing boardlines do you offer at the market in the moment and are you satisfied with your range?
Josh: At the moment we have 3 lines, but we will very soon be releasing a whole new board range consiting of 6 lines.... I am quite satisfied with the shapes of our current line, but it doesn't cover enough of the public's needs. I am, however, very excited and satisfied with our new line that we will release in the new year.

C7: Do you feel a negative influence on your business resulting out of the worldwide crisis in economy?
Josh: I honestly feel like we are just starting off. Since taking over the family business a few months back, we have a new excitment and energy in the brand and although sales may slow down on a global scale, I am quite confident that with our new board line, sales will increase, but most importantly, Angulo style and Angulo stoke will once again become an important part of daily windsurf life.

C7: In which countries are your main markets and is it hard to find new distributers?
Josh: All of our countries and dealers, riders and clients are equally important to us. Finding solid distributors is a challenge for me but if it wasn't challenging would it really be fun?

C7: What´s your opinion of boardtests in magazines?
Josh: I believe they are important to give the public a good overall view of the many products.

C7: Do you use production boards or are you sailing on protos shaped by your dad?
Josh: I mostly ride Production boards, but I have prototypes by my dad, my brother and Jean Bouldoires.

C7: What are the 2009 highlights in your range and which product was the best you designed since you started with Angulo
Josh: Our 2009 range is really a 2008/ 2009 and we are soon presenting a 2009/2010 line..... all the years and release dates are still a bit confusing to me, because most brands release a board in 2008 and say it's a 2009... I still don't understand the logic behind it... don't the brands use calendars? I guess people would consider that naive by me, but that's okay.... In 2008/2009, my favorite was the Chango 88. I won 2 Maui events and Cabo Verde on that board as well as an expression session in Sylt... I also got 2nd last year in CV on the same production board.

C7: Where do you see Angulo in 2010?
Josh: In 2010, I see us working hard, having fun, praising Jesus and enjoying the fruits of a blessed family.

C7: Is Angulo a growing brand right now?
Josh: Absolutely!

C7: You are a passionate Windsurfer and you like to rip waves. What´s your favourite location to have a ride and which Angulo board will you take out of your bag?
Josh: Ponta Preta, Ho'okipa and Little Ho'okipa .. Chango 88 all the way.

C7: For how long will you keep on going on the PWA tour?
Josh: I'm not sure, but with the CV event on tour and the slalom going on, I'm sure I'll keep going a little longer.


Thanks for the interview!

Ben Severne is the head of Severne Sails, a well known brand which is growing and which delivers sails for all target groups, from the beginner, wavesailor, freerider, freestyler to the racer in speed, slalom and formula. Ben lives in Western Australia and has a windsurfing background. Besides the sailbrand he also runs the company Flying Objects, which offers wetsuits, bags and important accessories. Both brands take a lot of time and less room for sailing. But still Ben is a guy, who is a passionate windsurfer. In December Severne just announced two new teamriders: Bjoern Dunkerbeck and Dany Bruch.

>>> SLIDESHOW SEVERNE SAILS

C7: When did you start to work on the brand Severne?
Ben: We built the first sails in Geraldton about the end of 2002. But didn’t do any real production until 2004.

C7: Did you work with other sail companies before you founded the Australian brand?
Ben: Yes, and it was the frustration of working for brands that were more concerned with making money than making sails. That pushed me to start my own brand.

C7: Where is the Severne headquarter located?
Ben: We’re based in Perth, Western Australia. It’s a pretty good location for testing as we’ve got access to a really broad range of conditions. We test flat water stuff on the Swan River, and then good wavesailing conditions are just a matter of driving south to Margaret River or north to Lancelin, Geraldton, etc.

C7: Which image do you want to produce with Severne?
Ben: Umm…. Not sure if I really want to produce an image. But I suppose I’d like to be seen as the alternative brand, with a technical advantage. Our goal has always been to build sails that perform better than anything else, and I’ve found that one of the best ways to increase performance is through material development. We use a lot of high tech fibers like Technora, Kevlar and Spectra to build sails that will be lighter than the more corporate brands, but also stronger.

C7: Do you see your brand as a core brand?
Ben: Well, if by ‘core’ you mean a brand that is run by windsurfers for windsurfers then yes, we’re a core brand. All the people involved in the brand are VERY passionate about windsurfing with pretty much all of us having competed at an international level.

C7: How many saildesigners are working on the Severne products and how many people contains the whole stuff?
Ben: I design all the sails. There’s about 5 of us that work on the brand.

C7: What are the 2009 highlights in your range and which product was the best you designed since you started with Severne?
Ben: I’m pretty close to every sail that I design – they’re pretty much my babies! So kinda hard to pick favourites… I was out sailing last night on the NCX 7.5, and was stoked with that one. Especially when I went past a few guys on full slalom setups!
The Gator concept is really starting to take hold. I think a manoeuvre oriented, full x-ply freeride sail with less of a boring old man image was something that the market needed for quite some time. And Boujmaa’s been doing a great job of showing that the Gator definitely isn’t boring. Our new Synergy rig is also something I’m pretty happy with.
It’s our first step towards making windsurfing much less complicated for people wanting to get into our sport or people who windsurf recreationally. It’s colour coded system makes rigging a sail correctly easy for anyone.
Then my favourite sail to use is always the S-1, as I get to make it exactly the way I like. But I think the best SEVERNE product was actually one that I didn’t design – it’s the batten tensioner key that doubles as a bottle opener! Clinton, our brand manager, designed that when he first started and it’s been put to a lot of good use. The only downside to that product is that people keep stealing them…

C7: Is it true, that you also make the graphics for your whole line?
Ben: Yeah, at the moment… but hopefully we’ll find a graphics guru soon so I can spend less time in front of the computer and more time sailing.

C7: Where do you see Severne in 2010?
Ben: At the beach!

C7: Is Severne a growing brand right now?
Ben: Definitely. Every year the amount of work I need to do grows about 50%!

C7: You are a passionate Windsurfer and you like to rip waves. What´s your favourite location to have a ride and which sail /rigg will you take out of your bag?
Ben: Favourite spot could be pretty much whichever spot is going off on the West Australian coast at that particular time. Favorite sail is usually the latest S-1 prototype that I’m working on.

Thanks for the interview!

FREESTYLE Classix 2009 - a comeback of the classic freestyle

A short explanation of a new concept in Freestyle windsurfing - the rebirth of the classic freestyle in an event called Freestyle Classix. Continentseven met Gerhard Polak, the owner of the event agency DMG to get the latest updates concerning a new Freestyle format, which will be integrated in the upcoming EFPT tour 2009.

The development of professional Freestyle

The freestyle moves (now called "classic moves") were at the beginning, when Josh Stone, Ian Boyd, Kevin Pritchard, Robby Naish, Bjoern Dunkerbeck and many other Pros introduced a new discipline of windsurfing "Freestyle", predominantly on lakes. The fleets were filled up by local heros, who fought as well for the titles. Alex Humpel, Michi Schweiger, Ossi Krupitz and many more were defenitely big names these days.
Big events got established, like the KOTL (King of the lake), or the Windsurfworlcup at Lake Neusiedler in Podersdorf, Austria. New moves came up. The Airjibe or the Spock were born. Well known moves like the Duck Jibe, the Bodydrag, the Cheese Roll, the Spinloop or the Carving 360° got developed to another level. Freestyle windsurfing saw a revolution. Printmedia, videoproductions and websites integrateded this part of the windsurfing sport by a high percentage inside the products.

Young kids came into the sport. Diony Guadagnino, Ricardo Campello, the Frans Brothers Tonky and Taty, Cheo Diaz and Alexis Zabala from El Yaque. Nowadays Kiri Thode, Antxon Oetagui or Gollito Estredo dominate the sport. The well known heros left the stage. Josh Stone got replaced by Ricardo Campello. Antoine Albeau and Matt Pritchard were the last PWA worldchampions, who could win titles in front of the newschool armada. In the meantime Freestylewindsurfing got very popular at the lakes and flat water spots. Freestyle windsurfing camps for the public were started.
But after 5 - 7 years of training and revolution the Freestyle windsurfing developed into a very extreme sport. Many moves only get sailed in switch stance positions. The public and even judges had problems to realize what´s´going on out there on the water.
Colin Sifferlen, a real young blood, introduced this era by winning the last King of the Lake in 2002. Even 17 years old he opened the door into newschool freestyle, a very young windsurfing culture, which exploded while the years. Nowadays more than 100 moves and combinations are existing.

In 2003 the EFPT (European Freestyle Protour) has been established. Gerhard Polak created a tour based on ideas of Alex Humpel and some other riders. With his eventagency DMG and his swiss partner Christian Müller from the agency Positive Lines he created the EFPT. Each of them were 50% of the EFPT. In the first season the tour saw 4 eventstops in Podersdorf (Austria), at Lake Silvaplana (Switzerland), in Weiden (Austria) and in Premantura (Croatia). Parallel to the Worldtour Events of the PWA the Europeans saw high level events, which gave many riders the chance to present themselve.
The PWA, founded back in 1982 called PBA, renewed their name to PWA in 1995. In 1997 a Freestyle promo event took place on the island of Fuerteventura. In Austria we saw the first PWA freestyleevent in May 1998, which has been won by Matt Pritchard. All these contest formats got initiated by Alex Humpel and Flo Grähl back in August 1996, when the first King of the Lake event happened at Lake Garda. 48 riders sailed for 10000 German Mark, around 5000 €, of pricemoney. It was a relaxed competition with "a lot of spirit, soul, friendship and hot action". And it was the right moment to create this kind of contest. The Willy Sipper has been invented 3 years ago already by Dave Kalama on Maui, back in 1993. And remember: Robby Naish already performed in 1981 with a super short freestyler at Lake Garda, Torbole. With a 2,07 m long and 60 cm wide board, which had only 7kg, he already performed WDonkey Kicks", the 18 years old hero from Maui explained. Also we should not forget about events on the River Gorge, which nowadays can be seen as forerunners of the freestyle events.
The new Freestyle windsurfing discipline, most of the moves are initiated with drive in planning conditions, exists for about 12 years now and saw already a lot of excellent competitions.

The positive regulations of the PWA - the best move format

The level in skills arised a lot, especially within the last 4 to 5 years. Newschool freestyle has been developed by a bunch of great sailors: Ricardo Campello, Kauli Seadi, the Bonaire Gang with Kiri Thode in front, Marcilio Browne, Gollito Estredo and Cheo Diaz. But the public had problems to understand the moves or see a lot of differences. Too many moves looked very similar!
Just the top freestylers and freestyle experts are able to follow the developments nowadays. The PWA decided to enter a new competition format in the beginning of 2008. The best move format regulated the enormous amount of moves while a single heat down to a certain number of tricks on each tack. But that´s great to see how far a sport can be developed. Freestyle windsurfing went on the tracks of snowboarding, freestyle skiing, skateboarding, bmx or surfing. Young, radical and new school oriented. Most of the tricks get sticked very save with excellent landings and high technical quality.

But still there are a lot of sailors, who see freestyle as a classic discipline, less new school oriented. Moves like Airjibes, Carving 360ties, Duck Jibes or Spinloops are still radical.

Freestyle Classix -a new format for 2009

Gerhard Polak, Austrian eventorganizer, head of the eventagency DMG and co-founder of the EFPT came up with a new idea in the foggy days of November 2008: "It´s time for a rebirth of the classic elements, a little revolution and a comeback of the "Classic moves" into freestyle. It could look like an aggressive freeriding, but contain certain classic moves mixed up with the basics of freestyle. I will call it "Freestyle Classix".
Seperated into 3 groups - riding, airs & rotation - the moves get defined and a complete show out of all three groups makes the winner. The overall impression and equal distribution of the moves out of each category will count.

Definitely this should not be a "NO" to the high level newschool freestyle, which gets shown at the highest level events of the PWA or EFPT or even at national championships. The sick moves must stay alive and kept in the repertoire of each top freestyler. But integrating Classic events in the whole system could restate the chance to attract more people for this sport again.
Austrian Gerhard Polak explained: "I am going to create with "Freestyle Classix" a second product. The eventorganisers can choose, which product he wants. They have two opportunities: on the one hand they can decide for a "New School" contest, on the other hand they can go for the "Freestyle classix" format. Results and points in both eventformats will be counted for the final EFPT title in 2009."
This will become a format, which gets realized at the spring EFPT event on Lake Neusiedler, 29th April till 3rd May 2009. Big names alreday have confirmed their participation. Freestyle Classix could become a big freestyle show with the best windsurfers of the past 10 years competing versus the new school pro riders of 2009 with even odds.
  Gerhard Polak, the event organiser of the Austrian EFPT tourstop and supporting manager for many other events, plans to run a double elimination with a 48 fleet. The 24 top ranked riders of the 2008 EFPT overall result are qualified. 24 wildcards will be given to other sailors, predominantly to big names from former times.
Polak explains his decision: "Freestyle Classix should become a big freestyle show with personalities of the windsurf sport inside the starting fleet and perhaps in the end on the podium. The target is to bring the best windsurfers of the past into an event format, which transports “fun, surf style and beach life” to the spectators.
It´s not a masters tour! We just freeze the level in freestyle -so that the masters and the youngsters can achieve the necessary level within a short time. Style will be more important than just doing tricks."

Here is a link: Continentsevenblog

Here is a list of the moves, which will be on the list for the competition in Podersdorf 2009. The Classic Movelist 2009

Karin Jaggi started windsurfing in 1988 on a lake close to her home in the Swiss Alps and she immediately felt in love with the sport. Her dream was to make once a living out of it. She made her way up from working in windsurfing centers, winning national titles to the highest level of winning worldtitles.
And she could win 25 titles until now and always followed her life-motto: “Follow your dreams – nothing is impossible - just do it!
In July 2008, after F2 had become bankrupt in April, she decided to start a new period of life and became the new marketing head of F2 (Karin has an university degree in economics).
Together with Patrick Diethelm, Daniel Aeberli and Philipp Schnerr she decides the future of F2 Windsurfing.

>>> SLIDESHOW F2

C7: When did you start to work on the brand F2 out of a marketing view?
Karin: I started working as team manager in August 2007 – but really just looking after the team. Since Juli 2008 I am now responsible for the whole marketing – always together with my colleagues Patrik and Danny.

C7: Which year F2 was founded?
Karin: In 1981.

C7: Where is the F2 headquarter located?
Karin: F2 is integrated into the MAG AG. Business address is: Deutschlandsberg (near Graz), Austria.

C7: Which image do you want to produce with F2?
Karin: The original meaning of F2 “Fun&Function” is still our ultimate goal. We want to deliver high quality boards for everybody and for all windsurfing conditions / disciplines (from the beginner to the formula board).

C7: When will you launch the F2 2009 website?
Karin: When the new 2009 products arrive in the shops. Unfortunately it looks like all brands still have a lot of 2008 boards left – therefore I believe it’s nonsense to launch new products too early. We show our products around – but we will only enter the market when the situation is better.

C7: The F2 team obviously shrinked during the past months. Will you stay with a small core team or will you find new teamriders for the 2009 season? Will you focus on certain disciplines with your teamriders?
Karin: The last few months were hard for everybody within F2. But there were also some great moments. It’s in the bad times that you learn to see who is really loyal. We offered new contracts to all “big” teamriders we had – but some preferred to leave. I can completely understand that. By today we signed contracts with our most important teamriders already for the next season. It’s a much smaller team but I believe still a very effective one: all disciplines and all important markets covered. Now by the end of 2008 we start talking with a few more. There is space for some “smaller” team riders for 2009.

C7: How many people are working on the F2 products (marketing, design, test, development)?
Karin: Patrik, Danny and me. That’s the new F2 windsurf workforce. For sales we have one more person we share with the snowboarding and fashion department. The back office (processing of orders, stock, book keeping, etc) is done by MAG AG.

C7: How many boardlines are in production for 2009?
Karin: 12 boardlines in total. Only one we offer with two different constructions.

C7: What are the 2009 highlights in your range?
Karin: Our down-the-line waveboards called “Rave” (twinsers), a new Bump&Jump board called "Vibe", a completely new slalom range (7 boards) and naturally the new FX Z – the only new formula board on the market in 2009.

C7: Where do you see F2 in 2010?
Karin: First of all: still there and getting stronger again. And I hope we can find new ways. Everybody today is trying to make “volume” - sell as many boards as possible for whatever price. This will definitely not be our strategy.

C7: Will F2 come back to where the brand was in the glory days or is that not the aim at all?
Karin: The image of F2 was great and actually still is. To get market leader just by the amount of boards sold will not be the goal. To return to the glorious days in competition might be a goal: Patrik and me are both very competitive persons. So we definitely always will see the team as an important part of marketing. But the real goal is to offer quality products that will bring as many people as possible on the water again.

C7: You are a passionate Windsurfer, many times Worldchampion and you sail at many different spots all over the year. What´s your favourite location to have a ride and which board of the 2009 range would you take out of your bag?
Karin: I never had a favourite discipline – for me it’s all fun and all is windsurfing. From cruising on beautiful lake Garda, to speed record crazy conditions or over mast high waves on some tropical island – I really can’t decide...


Thanks for the interview!

Mikey Clancy, 18, Irelands Pro windsurfer has put together a video of a magical session he had at Brandon Bay.
The west coast of Ireland was hit with huge swells and a northerly wind producing 25 foot waves at Mossies reefbreak Brandon Bay. Mikey told us, it has been one of the best wave riding sessions of his life.



Mossies from Mikey Clancy on Vimeo.

Continentseven Wave News about the Jaegermeister Wave Riderz Event in Holland and about the Italian Wave National Event on Sardinia.

- JAEGERMEISTER WAVE RIDERZ 2008

The third edition of the Jägermeister Wave Riderz event had again a result. On the 5th of November the windsurfers and the crew gathered in the harbour of Harlingen/Holland to head to Vlieland with a big historical ship. This ship was also the basecamp and hotel during this trip. On board were some famous names of the dutch wave scene, like Kevin Mevissen, Martin ten Hoeve, Ben van der Steen and Nikaj Droop. Later, during the event even Peter Volwater and former worldcup windsurfer Ramses Landman showed up at Vlieland.

In the beginning the wind blew from the wrong direction and made only a freestyle session possible. At night dinner was served in a pancake restaurant of local surfer Dirk. The skipper liked the Jägermeister a little bit too much what created some hilarious moments. As there was not too much wind predicted for the next day some guys explored their limits and found themselves somewhere on the island on the next morning.
On the next days the wind was as well not enough for a competition. The sailors ended up in the bars or singing: On the boat Kevin Mevissen entertained his crowds with a nice play back performance and showed his entertainer qualities. Another highlight for sure was the skipper: With maybe a little too much party he fell in the water while trying to get on board. Luckily he did not get injured and his mate Niels could get him on board again.

Saturday there was finally wind. The wind was a little gusty at Vliehors and the waves where not that impressive. Former worldcup windsurfer Ramses Landman also arrived to join the club and also later in the evening Peter Volwater arrived.

Finally on Sunday PWA judge Thijs van der Meer decided to go for a 20 minute supersession. In the end it was Peter Volwater who won with the most solid overall performance. On second place we found Martin ten Hoeve aka The Lamp. In the first 10 minutes he was leading, so it was a close decision. Dutch wave champ Nikaj Droop ended up on 3rd position. But Martin ten Hoeve did get his moment of fame as he won the Best Trick award with a super tweaked pushloop and Mike Bossaert the rescue award because of his rescue of Kevin Mevissen who lost his equipment and had a hard time to reach the beach. Overall winner of this year is Martin ten Hoeve. He won the best trick and with not all the partying in his long legs against a fresh arriving Peter Volwater he might have won the supersession also.

Peter: "I realize it's not completely fair to these guys who have been rocking this island for 4 days already. Most of them where still hung over while on the water, but they asked me to compete and it’s a great challenge to measure myself with Holland’s finest like Martin ten Hoeve, Ben van der Steen, Kevin Mevissen (fifth in Sylt), and current Dutch Champion Nikai Droop."

Martin ten Hoeve, aka Lampie, made the best trick. He cleanly landed a super tweaked push loop, where at one point it seemed like his tall body was wrapped around the mast completely. A similar push loop during warm up caused Ramses Landman to say: "You had some nice air there Lampie. I don't know what it was you did, but you landed it perfectly on that long landing gear of yours."

Lampie: "I am happy with the best trick, but I was aiming for overall impression too. I thought I could take Peter on variety, but I couldn't keep the pace up in the last half of the heat. Pete kept on going big, he's a great sailor and he's really hard to beat in competition."

Back on the boat it was time to leave the harbour and go back to Harlingen again. After arriving the whole bunch went to the local Chinese for some food and went home to get some sleep and dream about a nice event again.

RESULT:
1. Peter Volwater
2. Martin ten Hoeve
3. Nikaj Droop

text: @ RIDERZ Productions


- ITALIAN WAVE NATIONAL COMPETITION (Standby period 23.10-24.11.2008)

The AICW-AIWS wave nationals competion was held at the north shore of the Italian island of Sardinia in La Ciaccia. The competition was won by the Sardinian local Gianmario Pischedda.

RESULT:
1. Gianmario Pischedda
2. Andrea Rosati
3. Andrea Mariotti

VIDEOCLIPS:
> La Ciaccia
> Cape Mannu

PICTURES:
> Cape Mannu
> La Ciaccia Pix I
> La Ciaccia Pix II

Source: isurf.it

Picture: @ El Gran Surf (www.elgransurf.com)

C7: Congratulations to your victory at the 2008 Red Bull Big Days 2008. So, you are the best German rider in the waves! How does it feel?
Philip: It feels very good, the level was really high during the contest. It was a hard competition.

C7: Was it your biggest title so far?
Philip: I think this year I have two big titles, the Red Bull Big Day winner, a really crazy and hard event and the 5th place in the PWA single elimination in Pozo PWA men wave event.

C7: I guess Klaas Voget and Dany Bruch, who also sails with a G in the sail now would be also very strong opponents. They were not there. Can you beat them, too?
Philip: It would be more difficult, but with luck it could have been possible, in strong conditions.

C7: Did you like the conditions at Weissenhaus? Were they similar to your homespots?
Philip: The conditions were very similar to Vargas. I liked it very much to be there, but it was definitly too cold, but i did it. That is the main reason, why I am so happy.

C7: Which gear, sail- and boardsizes, did you use out there in the Baltic sea?
Philip: I had used the 4.2 Alpha sail, and the EVO 70. Just perfect!

C7: We saw, you sailed without shoes! The water just had 8°. How could you perform in that cold water without shoes?
Philip: I do not know. It was freezing, but I can not surf with shoes. I don not have the right feeling for the board, ok with the frozen feet either :o) It is in the body.

C7: You live on Gran Canaria! Would you change GC, especially Vargas against Maui?
Philip: No, but I like to be there, do training in starboardtack. I hope to be there again in April for the photoshooting with Neil Pryde.

C7: You could land a Pushloop into Forward, one of the most difficult moves. Was it a clean one?
Philip: It was my best clean one!!!

C7: What´s about the Black Shot? Did you practice Boujmaa´s new signature move already?
Philip: No, I like to learn one handed and one footed backloop. But the problem is we don´t have enough wind in GC to do trainig with small boards. Wintertime is freestyle fun and when I have my Isonic, as well a bit slalomtraining.

C7: How will you prepare for the 2009 season and what are your goals for the PWA competitions?
Philip: I don´t prepare myself especially for PWA, i just go windsurfing. But I will fly to Australia for the first time, so I really expect great fun, and waveriding-training.
My goals are to be next year as good as this year in pozo, but it is luck against whom I will have to do the heats. In sylt my second heat was against Kauli. I made a very good scoring, but could not do it in waveriding, so I was out. And I could not compete anymore because it was only a single elimination. In competitions there can always things happen. And I will try to do 3 PWA events. Hope there will be one in Brazil.

Thanks a lot, Philip and good luck from continentseven.com.

- RED BULL BIG DAYS 2008

Youngster Philip Koester dominates his opponents in the icy and stormy waters of the Baltic sea and wins the 2nd edition of the Red Bull Big Days.

20th November 2008:
After a 2 months waiting period a strong storm from north western direction arrived and the best German windsurfers could fight for the waveriding title at Weißenhaus/Baltic Sea. The action can be described as breath taking: doubleloops, tweaked pushloops and for the very first time a pushloop into forward. The spectators, who made it down to the beach, had a great time, although the air temperature only got up to 8°, some hail went down and the wind blew with 7 to 8 beauforts.


32 competitors, who decided to sail in a preround at the morning, had to resist the 8° cold water of the Baltic sea. At 12.00 midday the best 12 sailors out of the qualifacation met the best 12 of the last season´s result.
From the very first moment of the competition the 14 years old Philip Koester, who lives in the bay of Vargas on Gran Canaria, impressed most. The thick neopren wetsuit did not hinder him to show a great performance.
Andy Wolff from Munich, Matze Bade from Kiel and the last years winner Lars Gobisch from Kiel were hard on Philip heels fighting for the this years title.
Lars Gobisch landed the first doubleforward of the day and made it into the final, where he met 14 year old Philip. Andy Wolf and Matze Bade fought in the semi final for the third position. In the small final Andy Wolff felt tired and could not impress with very high stalled forwards like in the heats before. Matze Bade could defeat the former PWA pro with long waverides and high pushloops.
The final was a fight in between old and young, a local windsurfer against a Gran Canaria local. Philip Koester took the victory after a 9 minute long heat. The more radical jumps saved him the first position in the Red Bull Bigdays.
"Incredible, the level of the competitors and the conditions here at the Baltic sea were much better than I expected. I´m really happy to win this competition. I will be back in 2009 for sure. But I will bring a thicker wetsuit," the winner stated after the pricegiving ceremony.

By the end of the day race director Holger Lass sent all participants out on the water for a supersession: Leon Jamaer, a radical youngster from Kiel, landed an extremely tweaked pushloop and could win this title.

>>> SLIDESHOW Red Bull Big Days

Results:

1. Philip Koester
2. Lars Gobisch
3. Matze Bade
4. Andy Wolff


- PENGHU PRO-AM SLALOM CUP

Jesper Orth (AUS10) wins the 2008 Asian Penghu Pro – Am Slalom Cup

With 3 days of competition with any kind of conditions from really light breeze the first day to the renowned Penghu nuclear wind of 50-60 kts the last day, it was a matter of having light wind skills and “big b... skills” handy, to could master the equipment in the 50 kts choppy sea.
Penghu Island is located in between Taiwan and the coast of China and picks up some very strong wind weather patterns, from the months of November to March.
90 competitors were competing in different classes over the 3 days. Jesper Orth AUS 10 was fighting it out in the Pro class and could claim the first position after a total of 7 finals.
“ I’m super happy to be back here in Penghu and winning the Asian Windsurfing Penghu Cup. When the winds kick in here, you’re in for a real beating, with gust hitting up to 60 kts. It was very motivating to see so many local sailors battling those conditions, with a big smile on their face. Organization and the hospitality of the local people was a usual big plus” – says Jesper.

Results:

1. Jesper Orth
2. Paolo Iannetti
3. Alex Mowday

Torben Sonntag from Northern Germany is one of the windsurfers, who could be on top in competition, but decided to start a business. He founded "Ohana Sports", a direct distribution for Windsurfig, SUP and Kite gear. And Torben Sonntag decided to advertise his products with super-sexy girls, who are placed on banners in the Internet. His headquarter is based in Kiel and if there is sparetime and wind, you will meet "wild Torben" in Klitmoller /Denmark, Capetown or on Maui. Torben also participated in the first ever edition of "The Stormchase" and the outcome was a sick part on the DVD sailing on Norderney together with Klaas Voget!
In the moment he is off the water for a while because of a broken Achilles tendon. But that´s not a reason to get crazy!! Read more in the following lines and check out his nice pictures!

>>> SLIDESHOW Torben Sonntag

C7: Hi Torben, do you like the extreme side of the life?
Torben: Haha, what a specific question! Regarding my sports life the answer is “Yes”. When I try a new sport I try to reach a high level in no time.
I windsurf since I am 12. Windsurfing in high winds and large waves is just the most thrilling thing. But basically I am a balanced guy and don´t need 100% action in my life. I don´t turn crazy when I can not windsurf for some weeks.

C7: If you go for something, do go for it for 100%?
Torben: That depends. I go for 100% as long as I believe in it and have at least some fun doing it.

C7: Let´s talk about your business: you are selling all Hot Sails Maui products and selected products of brands like Starboard, FCS, Airush. It seems, you are the only one pushing Hot Sails Maui on the European market. Is that true?
Torben: No. We have good distributors all over Europe! Hot Sails is a great brand. We have an outstanding quality; eye-catching designs and our sails work well in all conditions. The market is not easy: Most customers just repurchase the brand they are on since years. But especially in the last 7-8 years some small brands got equally good or even better than some of the big brands.

C7: Is it hard to market a brand alone and just sell them dircetly?
Torben: Well, it is something I believe in and there are defenitely fun parts in my job!

C7: But it´s not a real one man show. You play with your advertising bunnies a tough game. You place them on banners at many well known windsurfing websites!
Torben: That's right!

C7: Would that be an idea for many other brands in windsurfing to get hot girls into their advertising campaigns?
Torben: Depends on the brand. I think a campaign like this doesn´t fit to most brands. Hot Sails is different. We polarize with our sails, so it is ok to do the same thing in marketing. We do have sexy sails, so why not advertise with sexy girls?
We are a brand with a character. It´s always the same when somebody has character: some like it, others don´t.

C7: Why there are no hot chicks on your websites hotsails.de, ohanasports.de and airush-kite.de. Or are they only visible, when someone buys anything?
Torben: We founded an own shipping company and most girls are always on the road, delivering products to our valued customers!

C7: Torben, could you increase the business with your sexy advertisig strategy and counts the advertising slogan "sex sells" als in the windsurfing business?
Torben: I think we don´t increase windsurfing by “sex sells”. We increase it by performing sex! Just like Brian Talma preaches at all events: “We have to reproduce to save our sport!” WE ALL HAVE TO REPRODUCE!!

C7: Do you also sell sails to ladies? Hotsails Maui has an own lady line, the Diva.
Torben: Correct, we are the only brand with a sail specifically for the needs of women. It is a lightweight sail with 4 battens. The center of effort is further down than in regular sails and the boom cut-out and clew are also lowered. A perfect sail for women.
In 2009 the DD will replace the Diva in our line. We found out many girls don´t like the flower design and want “male” designs. The DD is a unisex sail and I have to confess: It is the best low-wind sail which exists! Some weeks ago I forgot my own sails and “had” to take a 5,3 Diva testsail that was in my car. I was planning earlier than most guys with 6,0 and was stunned by the incredible light handling of the sail. For light winds I will never choose another sail than the DD in future. …and I am 188 cm tall with a weight of 82 kg!

C7: You are into the business of windsurfing? Do you see an icrease in selling?
Torben: Yes, Brian Talma is right. I see more young people buying sails again!

C7: Is direct marketing the future of selling or will it always stay a channel, which will compete with the shops? Gun Sails seems to run well.
Torben: Direct marketing is definitely the future! There are too few shops to supply all windsurfers in Germany. Nobody wants to drive 100 kilometers to the next shop anymore. Gas gets more and more expensive, it is a waste of time to sit in the car and in many shops there is only unqualified, temporary personal working.
I know all my products perfectly well and can counsel customers better than most shop employees -even if I do it over phone or internet. Direct customers can think it over and buy whenever they want. They will have their purchased item 24 hours later. No need to drive to a shop twice, no stress, nothing. You get a good consultancy and a delivery to your home adress. Same thing in aftersales service: You just need to call or email your problem and your sail or mast will be replaced for free. Your contact person is the distributor directly. The whole warranty procedure is easier and faster and you don´t have to drive around.

C7: Where are your main markets right now and your most sold products?
Torben: Earth and surrounding planets. We mostly sell Hot Sails Maui sails!

C7: You are a very radical freesailor, but not interested in competition. What were your highlights in your windsurfing career so far?
Torben: I don´t really see it as a “career”. I windsurf for myself. Wavesailing is not a competition sport. Your results depend on the opinion of some judges, not all decisions are comprehensible you usually have no wind in competitions.
For me it is not important if you land every jump. It is the action in the air that counts, even if you crash. A nice crash is always more exciting than “just” another clean forwardloop. That´s how I sail and that´s the exact opposite of the current judging system.
Projects like the Stormchase are good and the media is attracted by things like that. It shows how extreme our sport can be. The Stormchase was in all German TV Channels and Newspaper. When did you see the last good article about a PWA event?

C7: Where do you see yourself in 10 years? World market leader in sails selling through the internet?
Torben: Sure, where else?

© Continentseven 2008

Vicky Sanchez has just jumped on the windsurfboard 4 years ago for the very first time and already nails sick moves like shakas, clew first spocks or switch moves. We got an exclusive interview from the Spanish supergirl to keep you informed what´s going on at the ladies freestyle front:

C7:You started windsurfing in September 2004. How could you become so good within this short period of time?

Vicky: Thanks for the compliment! I’ve always had the help and support from my partner Tato Brunet (E-540), who is a great windsurfer himself and an incredible trainer. Apart from being passionate, he is really disciplined and motivated. And that has rubbed off on me! I’ve been training 5 to 6 hours a day for almost a whole year, really motivated to reach my goals. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication. But its a lot of fun!

C7: Did you find sponsors already?

Vicky: I´m very happy, I just get sponsored by Starboard-Severne, it means so much to me that a company like SB and SV is putting its trust on me. Of course it brings me more responsabilities, but I´m going to work really hard for them, to let them see that they have done a good investment. I´m really focused on the promotion of the brand by articles, photos, reports and videos. I have a lot of media projects on mind that I want to work on. Of course, I will compete if it´s necessary but is not my priority. I know there are better ways of promoting SB-SV than just competing. Besides I’ve got the support from Mormaii clothing and wetsuits.

C7: Are you generally good in competition and what are your goals for the upcoming events?

Vicky: Actually I’m a very competitive person at anything! Unfortunately the three female competitions they run are only on the Canary Islands, where the conditions are very strong. All port tack winds and a lot of choppy water. I’m not yet used to these conditions. In 2007 I could only compete in Fuerteventura, where the only heat I had (because of the wind) was against Daida. What a luck! Let´s see next year year!

C7: Are you different compared to the other freestyle girls?

Vicky: In my opinion, freestyle girls are always looking for their own style to try and stand out. In general everybody thinks that the level of womens freestyle is low, and somehow we’d like to show them that is not the case.

C7: Are there any idols out there or do you work on your own style?

Vicky: I’d love to have my own style but its hard not to get influenced. In the mens category I love the style of Kiri. He’s so fluid.. to be capable of doing 6 moves in 30 seconds is incredible! But Gollito has got the perfect combination of fluidity and power! In the womens fleet I admire the fluidity of Sarah-Quita Offringa and the "Go for it" mentality of Daida Moreno. She’s got a lot of guts.

C7: You look very fit!! Do you practice some other sports, too.

Vicky: I love to be in the water! I practice a lot of water sports like wakeboarding, surfing, diving and others out off the water like snowboarding and climbing. I try to follow a balanced diet, but the truth is I can´t resist stuff like chocolate and sweets!

C7: Where do you see yourself in the near future, within two seasons (years)?

Vicky: Well, I’ve got a lot of travelling to do, to wave- and freestylespots. So I’m really looking forward to that. Also I’d like to try and publish a lot of features and articles that I’ve had in the pipeline during this time. Ideally I would like to complete projects and innovative ideas that I have been working on.

C7: Which moves are you training in the moment?

Vicky: Right now I’m trying to nail the shaka. It is hard to crack! I’m throwing ponch’s and blending some of my switch moves like the funnel and chacho.

C7:What´s your strong side?

Vicky: After spending 7 fantastic months in Jericocoara I’ve strenghtened my starboard tack, and right now this is without doubt my strong side for wave riding and jumping.

C7: Do you have a weak side, too?

Vicky: When I sail port tack it benefits me doing the forward and the switch moves because I work better on this side. But it is my weak side for normal moves.

C7: Why you did not compete in the this years PWA freestyle tour? and what her general thoughts are.

Vicky: July is the month where I´m fully busy (and specialy this year) and I had to choose beetween win and save money to spend the other 9 months sailing and training around the world or compete. This is a fact. I have a business, where I have to work super hard during 4 months but it gives me the chance to spend other 8-9 months windsurfing!. So I feel really lucky. It´s a business that I love and I can´t loose it. As you must know, a sailing school brings a lot of responsibilities. I have 12 instructors working, 6 catamaran sailing all the long day, people windsurfing, the wakeboarding lessons, the kayak tours... So I coudn´t leave the center alone in July 2008.

I hope one day the freestyle circuit change and we have events during other months and in other spots than just the three of the Canaries in July. So we could have at the end a "PWA World Tour" and not a "PWA Canarian Tour". It´s a pity, but the actual tour doesn´t motivate me at all. Not enough to leave my center. I can not understand why the 3 events have the same kind of conditions: Left tack winds, super choppy and really strong wind. Are this the ideal conditions for freestyle? I hope now with Laure´s accident, were she allmost broke her neck, they start to think that maybe the 50 knots and the super choppy water of Pozo are not the ideal conditions for a female freestyle event.

The freestyle has been created to give an opportunity to all this people, who live in Europe, at lakes, in the Caribbean and other places without waves and with normal wind. I agree, that it is good to bring the sport to another level by putting events in more choppy and windy conditions (like Fuerte), but the best would be to combine spots (like some years ago with Bonaire). If they leave this discipline just to the extreme conditions of the Canarias they are going to close the door again to many people. And we definitely need more girls in this sport.
Also, if you stop to think about it, how is it posible that a World Tour has just 3 events, and the 3 of them have the same wind direction? It´s like if the Moto GP Tour had just 3 events with all the turns to the right... Do you think that will give a fair victory? Or the ones who are used to the right turns will have some advantage to the other ones, who are not used that much? It would be fair to combine different sailing conditions.
But this is just a little reflexion, my point of view.

Thanks for the interesting and honest interview.
Vicky just closed the watersport school for the wintertime and is ready for travelling, training and even working harder for her future in the windsurfing business.

Jägermeister Wave Riderz – the return

The first edition of the Jägermeister Wave Riderz event (2006) on the dutch island Vlieland was blessed with good conditions and great atmosphere. This positive memory made the riders decide to go back again for the 2008 edition after a nice roadtrip event to Denmark in 2007. On the Wednesday, 5 th November riders and crew will again gather in the harbour of Harlingen to head to Vlieland with a big historical ship. This ship will also be the basecamp and hotel during this trip.
On board will be the crème de la crème of the dutch wave scene.
To name a few: Kevin Mevissen, Martin ten Hoeve, Ben van der Steen, Nikaj Droop, Sander van Baaren, Mike Bossaert and Jeroen Boelema. PWA Judge Thijs van der Meer will lead the competition.
From 5 till 9 november there will be serious action on the water and of course in the local pub at night. Vlieland is a very special location. It is a small dutch island where it is not allowed to drive a car unless you are a local. Vlieland is known for the beautiful nature and it’s is also special because of the nice wave conditions and the fact, that it normally has a more wind then elsewhere in the whole country. And that’s what everybody is hoping for.
More infos and the complete entrylist can be found on www.riderz.tv.

The british wavesailor John Syke took the victory at the this year´s Tiree Wave Classic in Scotland. So far he had a great season, placed himself on the 5th position in the PWA final on Sylt. On Cabo Verde he finished 17th and in Gran Canaria, too. Winning Tiree was the highlight of the season.


>>> SLIDESHOW John Skye


C7: How do you feel after winning the Tiree Wave Classic?

John Skye: Really happy. It was my 3rd win which I think is a record. The level in the UK at the moment is really high so to win the biggest UK event of the year is great.




C7: The forecast promised good conditions. How were the conditions during the compeition?

John Skye: The day before the contest it was over mast high waves on the outer reefs, but during the contest it was a bit more manageable. Mostly we had between head and logo high waves, with wind from both the left and the right. Mainly though it was just wave riding with side shore winds.

C7: Which moves could you show in the competition? What was your best move or waveride? Can you describe it, please.

John Skye: In the single elimination I managed to land a goita on the wave. That was probably my best move. My best waves were in the double elimination final. The waves were lining up better and you could get quite a few turns on them. I had one wave with a couple of nice turns and a decent one handed aerial.

C7: You just placed 5th at the PWA Worldcup on Sylt. A very good result. Did you expect this position?

John Skye: I felt like I was sailing well all year, but every contest things seemed to go against me. In Sylt finally a few things went my way. Having spent a lot of time sailing in the cold and often in onshore conditions I always quite like Sylt. A lot of the riders struggle with the temperature, but I was still in my summer wetsuit!

C7: Was this now a good end of the season for you and how would you rate your season 2008 so far?

John Skye: It was a really nice end. As i said before the other contests seemed to go against me a bit and I think i was quite unlucky with a few decisions. Plus with the whole F2 thing happening mid season it could have been terrible. In the end though I had a couple of good results and have great sponsors with Naish and RRD. My boards and sails are working fantastic and I am really looking forward to next year.

C7: What do you plan for the last months of the year? And where will you be during the wintertime?

John Skye: I am off to Maui on Saturday to test a bit, get some photos and obviously sail a lot. Then we head to GC to chill over Christmas before starting again in January/February. With Nayra we are maybe buying a round the world ticket and stopping in South Africa, Australia and Maui. Nothing booked yet, that is just the dream.

Tiree Wave Classic 2008 Closes on a High Note/ 11 – 18 October

Some of the world’s best windsurfers have competed against each other last week at one of the most challenging of UK sporting events, the Tiree Wave Classic 2008. John Skye (31) was announced winner of the Professional competition, winning the coveted Tiree Wave Classic Crown. "I am really happy. It was my 3rd win which I think is a record. The level in the UK at the moment is really high, so to win the biggest UK event of the year is great", John stated his victory.
Louise Emery came first is the Ladies, David Edmington won the Masters and Sam Darkin won the Amateurs.

The first ever Coll Challenge was held on Tuesday when competitors braved a three-mile run, a windsurf between Tiree and Coll, ending with 11.5 mile mountain bike ride.

Paulo Nutini arrived on the island on Wednesday and did an impromptu performance for the competitors and crew, in what has to be described as the party night of the year on the small isle of Tiree. Paolo Giovanni Nutini is a Scottish singer/songwriter. Some of his famous songs are "These Streets", "Last Request" or "New Shoes".

Gordon Ritchie, director of event organisers, GMFCo said: “This week has been a brilliant success – we’ve seen superb conditions for the windsurfing competition and launched the inaugural Coll Challenge which will be held again in 2009. The whole week has been full on and the benefits for the sailors, the island and the sponsors are sure to be felt.”

Pictures Tiree Wave Classic 2008

As well you can check out the Tiree Event Report from Timo Mullen, who placed 9th, HERE.



Tiree Wave Classic 2008 Results Pro
1. John Skye
2. Phil Horrocks
3. Ben Proffitt
4. James Cox
5. Jamies Hancock
6. Chris Murray

Ladies
1. Louise Emery
2. Sarah Bibby
3. Sarah Finney

Masters
1. David Edmington
2. Keith Shorrocks
3. Nigel Treacy

Amateurs
1. Sam Darkin
2. Scott McDowell
3. Ian Gibson