Francesca Floris, ITA-2111, is an insiprational Italian windsurfer who doesn’t let age get in the way of ability. In her late fifties she competed earlier this year in the PWA freestyle event in Bonaire, winning heats and finishing a very respectable 6th place overall. She gives us an insight into her life and how she started freestyling at 47!
Words Francesca Floris //Photos John Carter, Lorenzo Mittiga & Michela D’Orazio.
Iwas born in Olbia, a coastal city in northeast Sardinia on the 21st of November 1961. I still live in Sardinia, where I am a physical education and sports teacher. I have been active in sports most of my life. As a child I was very restless and by the age of 5 my parents had me involved in lots of sporting activities. Around the age of eight I discovered fencing, which became my main sport until I was 30! After many years I took up other sports and passions and among these was windsurfing, which I started practising during my summer holidays. Around 12 years ago, I returned to live in Sardinia and that is when windsurfing became almost a daily activity. I work at school in the morning and then in the afternoon, when I am free, go windsurfing in one of the many spots in northern Sardinia.
In Sardinia there are plenty of radical wave spots, as well as flat water spots ideal for freestyle or slalom. Initially I was more into wave sailing, but I realised that all the good flat water spots were located close to my house, so it was very easy for me to get there after work and have a windsurfing session. That is mainly the reason why I became passionate about freestyle at the tender age of 47. I actually started my first Vulcan attempts at that age and slowly learned more moves. I must admit that it has become a real addiction, but also a personal challenge to those who told me that at that age it was impossible to learn freestyle.
LEARNING Certainly the speed of learning is not the same as when you were fifteen years old, but with commitment and a bit of stubbornness even at 47 years old you can do it. I have my own method when I am learning a new move. I don’t just look at the move and try it, but I analyse it, break it up into small sections and learn it one section at a time. This method may take longer, but it always works for me. For me, there is no greater feeling than when I am learning a new trick, it gives me an immense boost.
The manoeuvre that was a real challenge for me to learn was the flaka. It still makes me crazy. Now I am committed to learn the Eslider and Puneta. We will see how I progress!
Being competitive for most of my life, I couldn’t resist signing up for some windsurfing events. First in Italy and then at some PWA events. It has always been a great experience and most of all a motivation to continue to improve. I hope I am a good example to any women who might not believe that it is possible to have fun and progress in whatever you do and show also that windsurfing is not a sport for men only. Most of all I strongly believe that taking part in sport is the best way to stay young!
KIT I have been using RRD boards and sails for years, while my friend Francesco Cominardi sponsors me with the best booms (AL360) and Alessandro Carluccio supplies me with fins (LSD). I somehow manage not to spend too much on equipment and everything I save I spend on travelling as much as possible.
I mainly practise freestyle, using a RRD TWINTIP 92 litre and RRD STYLE PRO sails from 3.8 to 5.2. My favourite sizes to use are 4.4 or 4.8, rather than small sails and very strong winds. On light wind days I use an X-FIRE 114 with a 7.8 sail, which I find really good for training.
LIFESTYLE When I am at home my life is very simple. I teach physical education and sport at school in the mornings, then for the rest of the day I am at the beach with my partner (of course he is a good windsurfer) and loyal dog looking for wind. If there’s no wind I just enjoy the fantastic landscapes of Sardinia. Sport and nature are a big part of my life.
Another great passion of mine has always been travelling. Getting to know new people and different cultures excites me. I either travel alone or with my partner. I want to discover the best windsurfing spots on the planet and my goal is to travel and windsurf as much as possible, finding new and unexplored windsurf spots. In Sardinia our climate allows us to windsurf during the winter season, but whenever possible I try to spend the colder months in warm places.
In recent years I have often gone to Bonaire, which is truly a paradise for freestyle. I find it a really easy spot to progress both for the conditions, which are ideal, but most of all for the great vibes and company we have there. There are incredibly good windsurfers which are always there to help and encourage me. During the summer I often travel around Europe with my orange van fully loaded with equipment. Greece, Spain, Portugal and France, are my favourite destinations. I’ve also had some memorable trips overseas. I travelled to Australia where I spent four months in a little van in search of waves, but I’ve also been to Chile, South Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius, Indonesia, Hawaii and Brazil. All were unforgettable trips that have increased my passion for the sea and windsurfing. Soon I hope to be able to discover new spots in Colombia and Central America.
“For me, there is no greater feeling than when I am learning a new trick.”
With three days to complete a photo shoot and a last minute diversion across continents, Geraldton based photographer / fireman, Mathias Moerman, charts how a mission to capture Severne’s team and 2020 product in action turned into love at first sight with the island of Fuerteventura.
Words & Photos Two Goat Media// Mathias Moerman & Manca Notar
Normally when Ben Severne calls trying to talk me into a windsurfing mission, it’s the night before he wants to leave. Most of the time, like most people, I have things I’m committed to, like work or projects at home, so the answer is usually no, or something to that effect. This trip was different, I had the time booked off work and we had a plan. I like having a plan. In Australia they call me the German, I was born in Belgium but the Aussies in Geraldton have never heard of Belgium, that makes me the German.
THE PLAN So, the plan was…. Mauritius for 2 weeks. Windsurfing…. lots of windsurfing, and photos with the new 2020 Severne gear. We had an epic crew lined up – Jaeger Stone, Phillip Koester, Iballa Moreno, Timo Mullen, Mauritz Mauch, Dieter Van Der Eken, the man himself – Ben Severne, and Thewes De Boer from Severne Europe. The forecast was looking solid and it was all lining up to be a great trip.
However, as we got a bit closer to departure, Mauritius started looking dodgy. Every 10 minutes I was checking Windguru and the colours were fading and fading. We had to make a call. Drinking spicy pineapple mojitos and playing poker with Russian tourists sounds fun, but that wasn’t the plan, the plan was simple – windsurfing was the plan.
We started looking at different spots, Fiji…. no wind, Indo…. no wind, everywhere we looked…. no wind. Then the Canaries popped up on the radar. I wasn’t overly excited about the Canaries, I had never been there, so all I could think about was trying to get decent shots in 45 knots onshore. But the forecast started looking good for a 3 day strike mission and next thing it was on….Canaries was the plan. Ben had some work in Germany, so left Australia early, Thewes left from Holland, Timo from UK, Phillip and Mauritz from Gran Canaria, Dieter from Tenerife and Iballa got to wait for us all to arrive. I pulled the short straw, a 400 km drive to Perth, flight to Doha, flight to Barcelona, 10 hour stopover then a flight to Fuerte’. By the time I got there, I was cursing Ben and his great ideas!
“The plan was simple – windsurfing was the plan.”
PUERTO LAJAS Iballa picked me up from the airport and took us straight to the beach, first stop Puerto Lajas. This place looked like lots of fun. Waist to head high waves with side offshore wind. First thing I noticed was the angle of the sun. As a water photographer in Western Australia we can’t shoot wave riding after 1 p.m. because of the sunlight, this place was the opposite, awesome. Flippers on and out we went. I felt pretty relaxed, the water temp. was similar to home, the current was mild and there were no men in grey suits to worry about. In Australia sharks are always in the back of your mind when you’re swimming.
It was a great afternoon, side-off with plenty of waves, definitely not the 45 knot onshores I was dreading. Lajas has waves for all levels, the perfect spot to progress your riding and the locals were super friendly and helpful. Phillip’s girlfriend, Manca Notar, was taking photos from the beach, so it was great to see the two different perspectives from the same session. This was all lining up to be a great 3 days. After the session I was in need of a beer, and quickly, but when I realized it was 9:30 p.m., I started to panic about getting dinner. In Geraldton you’d be lucky to find anything other than fast food after 9 p.m. but Iballa assured us there was no stress, it’s all “tranquilo’’ on Fuerte’, you can get croissants and steaks at midnight! That night I woke up after 3 hours sleep, wide awake with jet lag, so I edited photos until the morning and got pumped for day two.
“It’s all ‘’tranquilo’’on Fuerte’.”
COTILLO The plan was to head to El Cotillo on the other side of the island to try and find some beach break action. We had to wait for the tide to come up when we arrived, but I could already tell this place had massive potential. Really nice water colours and super smackable sections. It reminded me of a spot in Esperance, Australia, just the opposite tack and maybe a little more onshore. It was fairly heavy and everyone was hitting some big sections. The shorebreak was nasty too, so it was surprising no one broke a mast! We had a couple of hours before the wind went too onshore and brought the session to an end.
As we were packing up, we were invaded by little squirrels living in the rocks. Really amazing stuff. This place has it all, beautiful beaches, friendly squirrels, cold beer everywhere, midnight croissants and steaks, absolute heaven!
SLAB TIME Day three was the highlight of the trip. After another daily dose of croissants, it was back to the west side of the island to have a look at a bodyboard wave that can be ‘sailable’ on certain tides and wind directions. When we arrived there was some solid sets rolling in, not massive in height, maybe ¾ mast, but very wide. Big barrel sections breaking on a shelf.
I was a little nervous jumping off the rocks. There was a fair bit of surge and you had to wait for a wave to time your jump. But if bodyboarders could do it, we could do it..or so I thought!
Phillip made it out first while I was swimming out and launched an air on the barrel section but lost his gear. I was thinking noooo! That’s it. It’s over, but magically his gear gently landed on the rocks where someone could grab it and carry it back. No damage!
Once I made it out the back, I noticed my camera was stuck on the wrong aperture setting and I couldn’t use the back dial on the housing to change it. I had to swim back in and pass my camera to Ben so he could open the housing and restart the camera. Not a good start, but luckily, we didn’t miss any action and made it back out for Phillip’s second round. By that time Mauritz and Timo were also out and the spot fired for about 45 minutes until the tide became too high and the waves were literally breaking on the rocks!
In that 45 minutes everyone had some amazing waves. Philip had huge airs hitting the barrel section, Mauritz had rail to rail hacks and Timo’s all-round skills were really cool to watch from the water. Getting in was a little tricky because the tide had risen and the surge on the rocks was a lot worse. It took me about 30 minutes to find a spot to climb back up!
After a few beers it was time to start my journey to the legendary Défi Wind de Gruissan in France. My three days in Fuerte’ was really amazing stuff, what a place, it has it all, cheap flights from Europe, good windsurfing, good food and cold beers. As a windsurf destination it really has a place on my map and I’m stoked the Canaries became the plan! I can’t wait to come back and check out all the other islands.
“My three days in Fuerte’ was really amazing stuff.”
Leon Jamaer rips no matter what the conditions, from the extremes of the Red Bull Storm chase to winning German wave events on his home waters off the North Sea. Unlike a lot of his peers, Leon still spends a large amount of time training in Northern Europe and as such his onshore game is strong! We asked him to share some of his tips for the art of onshore wave sailing.
Words Leon Jamaer//Photos John Carter
Chaotically crumbling onshore waves, patchy wind and lots of current is not exactly the material that our wave riding dreams are made of. However, it represents the conditions that most European sailors deal with most of the time, especially in small stretches of water where groundswells can´t exist. Onshore or side-onshore wind is, after all, the best guarantee for at least some waves. Yet, onshore wind often goes hand in hand with a set of difficulties that the sailor will have to face. First of all, the wave patterns are very unorganized and chaotic. Waves break all over the spot, there are hardly any clearly distinguishable sets coming in and there is no defined impact zone. Because the wind literally pushes the waves towards the shore, the wave’s top breaks earlier than usual, which results in a rather mushy and gutless wave face. In onshore conditions the wind is normally patchier and lighter close to the shore than further out at sea. This is due to obstacles on land like buildings, trees or cliffs, which hinder the wind from passing through without resistance (in German we call this phenomenon Luvstau). Furthermore, all the water that is being pushed towards the shore has to go somewhere. The back stream often creates strong currents, which makes it even harder to get going. Nonetheless, not everything about onshore is bad. In fact, some manoeuvres become easier and lots of onshore practice can refine your sailing technique a lot. To successfully master all the challenges there are certain equipment choices, trims and techniques that will make your life a lot easier and will enable you to maximize your sailing potential and joy on the water.
RIGS To be able to get on the plane your onshore sail should have a decent amount of power. At the same time, it should also be very easy to control and have lots of stability so you don´t get too overpowered when using a slightly bigger sail. In general it helps to choose a sail size which is a little bit bigger when the wind is gusty and full of patches. As onshore waves have hardly any push, all the acceleration and momentum has to be generated by the sail! Usually five batten sails have more stability than four batten sails, which have more stability than three batten sails. Especially the clew of a five batten sail is very stable, which is important when the bottom turn becomes more stretched out and you go clew first towards the lip. Trimming the sail with a tiny bit more down and outhaul can also help to increase the sails controllability without sacrificing much acceleration. Putting the boom a little bit higher than usual will help you to plane earlier as well as the board doesn´t get pressed down into the water so much.
“Lots of onshore practice can refine your sailing technique a lot.”
BOARDS Whether to use a bigger board than usual or not can be a matter of taste. Most important is that your board can plane freely and easily. This can be due to a flat rocker line, a wide tail or bottom contours like for example a single concave, which creates extra lift. Bigger and stiffer fins positioned a tiny bit further back than usual will further help to keep speed on the wave. Most people say thrusters work better than quads in onshore conditions. However, in my opinion, quads can also be great onshore boards. I use the exact same quad board in pumping Ho’okipa and dead onshore Sylt. The only difference is that I put the rear fins about 5-8 mm further back when it’s onshore.
JUMPS Jumping and wave riding techniques change quite a bit when the wind turns from side-shore to onshore. In side-shore conditions you head out at a right angle from the beach, which means the waves will come right at you and you don´t need to change your direction to use the wave as a ramp. In comparison, when it’s more onshore you are moving parallel to the swell, rather than actually crossing it. Therefore, in order to take off and use the wave as a kicker you need to carve into the wind. This necessity will make some jumps a lot harder than others. Back loops and tabletops for example work fine in onshore conditions, as you would take off and jump into the wind anyway. With back loops in onshore a popular problem is that you either over or under rotate. You will need to actively jump into the wind and initiate the rotation in order to not under rotate. Once you have passed the highest point however, you really need to slow the rotation down and control the landing. Therefore, it is very important to compress and stay close to the equipment. Don´t lose your body tension and faith! Forward loops and push loops can be a little tricky in onshore conditions. For push loops, you want a decent ramp that allows you to gain some height so your mast won´t get stuck in the water mid rotation; that is crucial in onshore conditions. For forward loops you don´t want to take off too much into the wind, as this will make the rotation a little strange and difficult. If you want to stall your forward though, you might have to take off after carving into the wind. Then while in the air, compress at the highest point and point the nose of the board away from the wind and towards the beach before you initiate the rotation. While in side-shore conditions you often get away with some technique flaws, in onshore conditions most of the time you will get punished for them straight away. So always remember the important basics of each trick. For forward loops, move the back hand further back, look back over your shoulder and compress.
“Always remember the important basics of each trick.”
RIDING Using the same logic, that you move parallel to the waves, also affects wave riding when wind and waves come out of the same direction. In side-shore conditions your bottom turn will do at least a 90 degree direction change before you initiate the cutback. In dead onshore conditions however, you will have to turn at least 180 degrees in order to hit the lip. To successfully manage this huge direction change with speed and flow it is important to have a board that planes well and a sail that stays stable and provides control. Normally, you won´t bottom turn super tight and lay the rig down, so your board doesn´t need to turn ultra radical. Although it helps if the bottom to top turn combo is one smooth transition and your board doesn´t go flat midway. By the time you approach the lip for the cutback you might have a lot of power, as most sails tend to load up when going clew first. Grab the boom wide to control all that energy. The cutback should be gentle and controlled. If you push too hard you will quickly lose traction and spin out. To prevent this from happening I put my rear fins further back, as mentioned before. The best technique tip for the side-onshore bottom turn that I can give is to compress low and lean forward. Jaeger Stone has this really dialled. Don´t think you have to lay the sail down. It is more important to have the sail upright so it constantly faces the wind. Once the wind is almost dead onshore it can help to shift the sail mid bottom turn. The shift might be tricky, but once you hit the lip you will have a lot more sail control. You can also go more vertical and really carve the board into the water. After the cutback you normally shift the sail back to the normal position. If you want to link many turns on an onshore wave you will often have the problem that the wave will roll away underneath your board. You might lose the wave because on this downwind course towards the beach your sail is not powered up anymore. To prevent this from happening I recommend a bigger sail and bigger fins.
Talking about wave manoeuvres, some can become easier when the wind is onshore, e.g. wave 360s, shakas or sliding takas. Other manoeuvres like goiters or air takas become harder though. Backside riding is a big deal in onshore. You can use a wave that suddenly stands up in front of you to hammer a big backside slash, throw a shove it or shaka or to implement other jumps into the ride. Onshore winds will often transform a spot into a huge playing field with lots of ramps. With the right equipment choice you can refine your sailing technique and learn new manoeuvres. It also gives a lot of room for improvisation and to implement tricks into wave riding, so stay open minded and be creative on the water! The starboard tack onshore conditions around Marseille are Thomas Traversa’s bread and butter. Look where that took him!
“Onshore winds will often transform a spot into a huge playing field.”
AFFAIRS OF THE HART | JACK OF ALL TRADES AND MASTER OF ONE
Are you better off for having NOT windsurfed from the cradle? Harty champions ‘generalism’.
It’s been a great day and as you finish it off with a flawlessly timed planing carve gybe, a familiarly sarcastic voice whines in you inner ear – “That was pretty good for an old fellah – just imagine how good you’d be if you’d taken it up earlier and really specialised? Ah well, never mind, too late now.” I empathise, and yet recent evidence suggests that the nagging voice is misinformed.
Beginnings I first set foot on a board aged 21. Up until then I’d trained as a gymnast (until I grew too tall); played 3 months of first division rugby in France (3 months was all it took to discover I wasn’t good enough) and had a go at any sport that caught my eye. I was also in the middle of a 4 year language degree; sorry, this is not supposed to be an ego-caressing exercise … it will be relevant. Then when windsurfing fell into my lap, never have I connected so deeply and obsessively with anything before or since – I’m sure you recognise the condition. Three years later I was competing on the pro circuit.
At 25 I was comparatively ancient compared to my racing peers. Guys such as Ben Oakley, Barrie Edgington, Dave Hackford and Dave Perks, had all taken the sport up in their early teens. My initial and everlasting impression was that they were … better. In course racing they just seemed to smell shifts before they arrived and had instinctively perfect board and sail trim. An elite swimming coach told me quite categorically that you can’t teach that sort of stuff, it’s something you only pick up as a youth when brain and body are sponges for information. And it’s only as you’re growing through adolescence that you’ll develop the specific strength and musculature needed to excel at your chosen sport. In his own sport he said they wouldn’t accept any kids into the elite program over the age of 10. Bad news – my windsurfing goose was cooked. Or was it? Had in some way my generalist early life been an advantage?
Tiger vs Roger Tiger Woods and Roger Federer have set new standards of excellence within their respective sports of golf and tennis. The Tiger story is well documented. He picked up a golf club aged 7 months in his baby walker, imitated his dad’s swing aged 10 months, was on national television aged 2 and by 21 was the best golfer in the world. His was the story quoted in many books about the need for early specialisation. But Roger Federer’s path was very different. He was a good natural athlete, but early on did the lot – skateboarding, skiing, handball, wrestling, basketball, badminton etc. He didn’t specialise until he was about 12. So the question is, which path is the norm for champions? Well contrary to popular opinion, it’s the Federer path. Research reveals that the majority of elite sporting folk have had what is known as a ‘sampling’ period where they try out a number of sports, during which time they learn a variety of physical skills. They also discover what they really like as well as their physical abilities. They delay specialising and this seems to be a definite advantage in sports which take place in a ‘wicked’ world.
Kind and wicked worlds ‘Kind’ and ‘wicked’ are terms coined by the psychologist Robin Hogarth. Golf is almost unique in that it’s a ‘kind’ learning environment. People take turns, the ball is static, all the patterns repeat, you get immediate feedback from good and bad shots and there are rarely any surprises. Other sports, like tennis, are more dynamic. You need to anticipate the flight of the ball and the position and movements of the opposition. There are very few patterns and in high pressure matches the next step is not always obvious, resulting in the need for a lot of spontaneous decision making. That’s a ‘wicked’ learning environment. Most of the business of living is ‘wicked.’
It’s proven that specialising early is the best way to make immediate gains, but undermines your future development in activities where you need broader skills. There is a famous saying – ‘breadth of training predicts breadth of transfer’ – ‘transfer’ means your ability to apply your skills to unseen situations. You won’t get a more ‘wicked’ learning environment than windsurfing, which even in the most benign conditions demands constant evaluation, anticipation and decision making. No run in or out is the same – never has there been a call for a broader set of skills, which you can gather from many sources.
Looking at some of the greats of our sport, many had ‘sampled’ (and are still sampling) other sports. Jason Polakow was a committed motocross rider as a junior; Anders Bringdal trained as a skier before he discovered windsurfing; Robby Naish was a surfer; Kai Lenny does everything to do with water. And when it comes to designs, so much inspiration, such as in foiling for example, has come from those with experiences outside windsurfing.
If the match fits … I was talking with a very accomplished windy friend the other day, who although not a pro, has a reputation for practising manically and has reached a very high level. He puts his attitude down to his musical training where he embraced and actually enjoys repetitive practice – focussing on a phrase and drilling it and tweaking it until it’s perfect.
There’s another element afoot here. As the economists say, ‘If the match fits, it looks like grit.’ In other words, if you’re enjoying what you’re doing (i.e. you’ve found your perfect match – windsurfing, guitar, baking … whatever) then what looks like hard work is actually fun. There are many stories of averagely motivated athletes who suddenly become the most committed practisers, simply because they’ve found something they enjoy. You found windsurfing after trying many things, but because you love it, you will practise with an enthusiasm that might have been lacking had you taken it up as a toddler. Well back to my own story, having decided I was rubbish at light wind course racing because I’d taken it up too late, I discovered I was pretty good when it got windy. “How do you hang on?”, asked one of my younger peers, “I don’t know, it feels a bit like a rugby training session …” Peter Hart–30th Sept 2019
Lake Powell is the second largest man-made reservoir in the United States, situated on the border between Utah and Arizona… and completely off radar for windsurfing! Kevin Pritchard gets his redneck boots on for a sideways look at its beautiful scenery.
Words Kevin Pritchard//Photos Christine Suits
Eight world titles… check. Winning the Aloha Classic in 2000… check. Winning the Aloha Classic in 2017… check. Windsurfing on Lake Powell… never done it, let alone foiling on Lake Powell. I am pretty sure that no one in the world has windsurf foiled there before and lo and behold I dreamt it, manifested it, wanted to do it, call it whatever you want, but boy did it ever happen.
It all started when my friend Eric Sanford sent me some photos of Lake Powell, and I was like, “Why do you always send me the photos after you go?” It’s been my dream to do a unique foil photo story, so when I saw the photos he sent me, I was on it. I had to foil on this incredible lake. Little did I know it was going to turn into one of the best trips of my life.
NO SWELL It started out like this; there was no swell on any forecast; what should we do? My photographer friend and I had just wrapped up an epic 10 day trip to Baja and were hungry for more. “Let’s go to Lake Powell and do a photo story,” I suggested. How about checking the forecast? Nah, I heard that you can windsurf foil in no wind, should be fine.
So, we took a quick peek at Google maps and decided to repack my Sprinter van with bikes, boards, camera gear, and a fresh appetite for the unknown. After hearing so many rave reviews of Zion National Park, I figured we could check it out on the way there. That way, if all else failed, we could score some photos and a few bike rides in some sick terrain.
“No one in the world has windsurf foiled there before.”
VEGAS! First stop… well, you have to drive by Las Vegas to get out to Utah when your van is stored in Southern California. Was it on the plan to stop in Las Vegas for a travel story? Nope! Did we… well… of course we did! I checked the price of a quaint hotel on the strip, $50 bucks. After 10 days in Baja, 50 dollars worth of showering seemed like a good investment. But, after the long drive and even longer shower, it took some motivation to step out onto the strip. So we hit the local liquor store, grabbed some Don Julio and lemonade, downed some margaritas that would knock your socks off, and finally found the motivation needed to hit the town.
We stepped outside into 100 degree heat with thousands of other spirited tourists. BAM – this is Vegas! Slot machines, flashing lights, people begging you to come into their bars; it’s like no other. After a few more margaritas and a couple of slot machines, I texted a local friend asking what we should do with a single night in Sin City. He said, “You can’t leave Vegas without going to see 100 of the most beautiful women dance right in front of you!”, to which I saw his point. “Oh,” he added, “by the way, strippers are the loneliest people in the world.” Made sense. Fast forward 8 hours, I wake up tied to the bed with a bunch of one-dollar bills spread all over the room, a full bathtub, the headache of my life, and the cleaning lady politely waltzing into the hotel room, taking a glimpse at what I am sure is a familiar sight, then promptly leaving after hanging up the “please do not disturb sign” on her way out. Other than that, I’m not really sure what happened, or maybe what happens in Vegas really should just stay there.
ZION Second stop, Zion. I don’t think I really got to experience Zion to the fullest. Having a hangover the size of Texas, hiking on hot red rocks with other tourists didn’t scream “fun” at the time. But when in Zion, you have to check it out. And it was awesome. We picked off some really amazing little hikes. The four hour hikes were off the list due to the high probability of death through dehydration, so we went for some more simple hikes that were attainable. And boy when I looked up at those magical rocks, the hangover slipped away, and the utter beauty and awesomeness of this majestic place started to present itself. I couldn’t shake the thought of, “How did this happen? And why??” I couldn’t fathom the beauty. No words or photos can do it justice. As it goes, with the sun sinking down over the red canyons, the claw of the hangover started to release, and the awe of this raw world sunk in. It was time for a ‘near the grave’ deep sleep, under a thick blanket of stars in the middle of the Utah desert.
With a solid bike ride in the morning, it was time to press on, and head over to Lake Powell. Or so we thought. When you’re in this part of the country though, you cannot help but pull over to stop to take photos…and more photos… and more photos. The three-hour drive from Zion to the lake took about 8 hours as well as an overnight camp and tons of hikes along the way. Views and curves, rocks on rocks, and towering mountains, you really can’t take it all in in one trip. We didn’t even scratch the surface.
POWELL TIME We eventually did make it to Lake Powell. Well, it turns out that it isn’t a real lake at all, but a 128 mile long man-made reservoir, comprised of many veins and tributaries. This place has so many different beaches, nooks, in’s and outs, and peaks and valleys that we really had no idea where to go. And guess what the weather conditions were? Glassy. Not a breath of wind. Zero, zip, nada. No chance. I was like, “Shoot, I just hauled all this gear, and there is no chance this is going to happen,” especially after seeing all the people with their ski boats, jet skis, and houseboats, all enjoying a typically calm day on this unique desert oasis. So, we kept checking our phones and crossing our fingers for an updated weather forecast, all the while driving around looking for potential spots to sail. I went and spoke to one of the park rangers and innocently asked, “Is there any access for windsurfers around here?” She replied with a very confident “NO. My son’s a windsurfer, and he NEVER windsurfs here. He goes to Hood River. I am a sailor as well, and it’s too gusty with all the mountains and turns to be any good for windsurfing,” she explained. I was a little disappointed, but what she didn’t know was that I had a new MFC foil and the new Ezzy Hydra.
“So many different beaches, nooks, in’s and outs, and peaks and valleys.”
NO LIMITS I hadn’t tried either my foil board or the new Hydra sail yet in extremely light wind conditions, so I decided to explore the limits. Maybe it could work in three to four knots? I didn’t really know. The biggest Hydra David had in his shed that he could loan me was a 6.0. I figured if Kai Lenny can pump around sans sail and just a foil, that with a sail and some legwork you could get going in almost nothing. Finally, we settled on a spot, and just as we were parking, we felt a hint of a breeze. I quickly rigged up, got to the middle of the lake, and sure enough, just like the lady at the ranger station had said, the wind completely spun around and died.
As I was out there bobbing around like a duck on the bay, curious onlookers shot me puzzling glances from their motorboats. I have to admit I was a little disappointed. Suddenly, my fearless photographer pulls up in a boat, camera in hand, chauffeured by an exuberant local named George, who is about as redneck as they come. “I thought maybe we could get you going on this thing tow-in style,” she said. There is no wind, and there’s probably not going to be any wind for my photo story, so sure, toss me the rope! I have never done tow-in windsurfing, but I know they do it in Europe with the freestylers, so why not? I wasn’t sure if any windsurfing magazines would run a story with me ‘windsurfing’ behind a boat with a beautiful background, but I was desperate to pull something off. George tosses me the rope, hits the gas, and bam! I have one hand on the rope, one hand on the boom, and just like that, the foil starts lifting off like a son of a bitch. George was stoked, having had no idea there was even a foil under the board before we got moving.
There I was, flying through this breathtaking backdrop. But as scenic and unique as the experience was, tow-in foiling with a windsurf sail is not easy. “Hurry take my picture,” I thought, and sure enough we got the shot. As we made our way around the lake and got some photos, I had to take a break; and well, George was drinking some beers so… well…. why not? A couple of beers on the very hot lake shouldn’t matter. When you’re in the water, you don’t realize how much you are sweating. So, like every redneck, you gotta keep drinking. George hit me with about a six-pack of ice-cold beers as we toured around. It was unbelievable. He told us about the history of the lake and all the fun things that you can do there, then kept driving us around the island to get a better shot.
We were having the best day ever; from no wind and no travel story, to a day on the boat with Captain George, the character of all characters. We all took a turn behind the boat wakeboarding and water-skiing, it was epic! Beers, boats, and babes! What more could you want…
“There I was, flying through this breathtaking backdrop.”
WIND Wind. I still wanted wind. I needed it for this to all come together… and somehow my lucky streak continued into the evening as the wind began to pick up to a consistent 15 or so plus knots. I don’t know about you, but for me, foiling takes some concentration. After a six-pack of beer, getting loyal to the foil was all the more entertaining. But here we were, in one of the most beautiful bodies of water I have ever been to, with wind, afternoon/evening light, a foil, a photographer, and me; the overly buzzed athlete with a magical foil board. It was divine!!! The wind kept picking up and getting stronger and stronger.
Suddenly the 6.0 went from being underpowered to just right, to overpowered. But this was it!!! This is what I was dreaming of. For a few solid hours, I was powered up and gliding up and down the lake, shredding around with the most insane background ever. Upwind to the narrows, downwind to Lone Rock, and then even further downwind into the sunset amidst a sandstorm. I kept saying to myself, “Why do I deserve this???” I guess if you build it, they will come. I wrapped up the session with the foil singing through the water, feeling the heat of the desert through the warm gusts of sandy breeze, flying effortlessly through a utopian like terrain…it was beyond imagination. What a fantastic day on the water! Simply amazing.
SUNSET Upon the sun setting, we had planned to head out to find a nice scenic camp spot, only to be greeted by our new neighbours, offering, you guessed it, more beers! “How the hell do you do that sail thingy majiggy with that there foil? Ain’t never seen me one of those. You need a beer for your hard work. You know, I used to windsurf twenty years ago.” So bonding over our love of beer and windsurfing, we decided to stay the night amongst “our people” and simply loved it. It just doesn’t get much better.
Around mid-morning, we started to gather our things and get going, only after taking our new friends up on the offer to go shred around the hilly sand dunes on their brand new Polaris Razor A.T.V. We had gotten the windsurf shots, and now it was time to keep exploring. We hit Horseshoe Bend, Antelope Canyon, “The Wave,” Monument Valley, Moab with the bikes, Arches National Park, Salt Lake City, and everywhere between. We ‘van-lifed’ hard, seeing some of the most incredible scenery on the planet. Stunning, incredible, unbelievable, is all I can say. Words can’t describe this countryside, but if you want to take a bit of advice from a pretty well travelled person, go pack your bags, rent a motorhome, toss the foil and bikes in, and set sail on land, and go explore. You will not be disappointed.
INFO All of the windsurfing is at Lone Rock, Utah. Lone Rock Campground is accessed from RT 89. The mountain biking around Lake Powell is limitless. Within a two to three hour drive you can hit up Virgin, Utah which is very close to Zion. It is where they hold the Red Bull Rampage. If you drive the other direction you can hit up Moab, known for some of the best mountain biking in North America.
“Toss the foil and bikes in, and set sail on land.”
Former PWA world wave champion Scott McKercher needs little introduction, but if you have been following his latest adventures, you’ll know that outside of running his board company ‘SMIK’, he’s been frothing on all things foiling. Read on as Scott charts his journey form reluctant foiling participant to fully fledged fan and why he thinks foiling’s evolution is happening at ‘back to the future’ speeds!
WordsScott McKercher //Photos Two Goat Media / Ben Pallant, Two Goat Media / Mathias Moerman, Scott McKercher
Ihave to admit I was perhaps a little reluctant to embrace the foil fever that’s infiltrated not only the windsurf, but surf, stand up paddle and yachting worlds. This was probably due to the fact that when it first appeared on the radar and the Severne boys were mucking around on the river, poor old James Hooper (Severne shaper) came a cropper (eating it in Oz slang) with one foot out of the strap. Thus the foot in the strap being wrenched, snapping metatarsals and straining ligaments, leading to a large majority of that summer spent in a moon boot with no sailing.
I equated this to my mountain biking philosophy. If I hurt myself wave sailing from going hard it’s kinda ok. It’s a bitch, but if it was sustained doing something that I truly love, I can live with that. But injuring myself from some novelty sport, that I would be freaking pissed about.
Thus, when James did this, I had a similar outlook towards foiling. Plus!!!, there were two cobblers (Aussie fish with a painful sting) stepped on by others on consecutive days walking out to foil depth which somehow mentally scared me away from giving it go.
NEW SENSATIONS Well, the cliché of “a life lived in fear is a life half lived”, certainly comes into play here. There’s not too many entirely new sensations you get to experience in one lifetime, and it has to be said that foiling certainly falls into this category. I’m aware I’m at the absolute entry level, but it parallels when I first learnt how to windsurf. “I’m really excited just by going along in a straight line.” The frictionless sensation whilst being elevated is such a cool feeling. Especially when you’re flying along in 12 knots of wind doing 20 knots. And this is with a 5.0 wave sail with little to no pull on your arms. After a whole lifetime of windsurfing, it’s all brand new again.
Then there’s gybing. It’s a totally new skill set that needs to be learnt. I’m an absolute kook again and it feels awesome. Looking back, it’s like when I got my first short board when I was a kid. Clear as a bell I can remember the joy I got from flying across the Swan River on my first short board, stepping down from a Windsurfer One Design. Windsurfing was new again and it parallels once again what’s happening here.
NEW POSSIBILITIES My experiences are only very limited and based solely from the SUP oriented crossover foils and boards, which Ben Severne enlightened me as to how unstable my setups were compared to designated windsurf foils, which again fuels further excitement for what’s possible. The design elements looking forward have so many factors to change – fuselage lengths, masts, wings front and back, rake – the mind boggles. Because I’m pretty sure right now I’ve only been riding the equivalent of a flexi polyester wave board from the 80s in terms of what’s going to be coming in the future.
Obviously, guys like Balz Müller and Wyatt Miller are at the forefront of windsurf trick/jumping foiling and the racing scene is already becoming firmly established in the PWA.
Balz is like Che Guevara, he’s a revolutionary of doing things that no one can even get close to comprehending. Which gets me to thinking that maybe Ben Severne does have a DeLorean and dragged him back from the future.
However I’m at an age where freestyle is beyond my comprehension, let alone throwing a foil into the mix. I’m also a wave sailor, with my limited mind only seeing what it can come to grips with. And my mind is seeing tiny waves with 10-12 knots all of a sudden becoming a whole world of fun. That’s a way off yet, but I can see it.
This is because I went on a little trip with Robert Teriitehau last week to Phuket, Thailand on a SUP / prone foil mission and my eyes were opened wide to the fact that I’m the arms spread, wide legged gumby stance windsurfer equivalent of a foiler. Robert’s SUP foil surfing was next level with high speed fizzing driven turns, roundhouse cutbacks and hitting the lip without the board touching the water. My jaw was agape. And this was from a 53 year old ex pro windsurfer that has a serious froth for foiling.
Robert wasn’t the tallest of the big guns back in the day, but as he explained, he got to where he did by not being a heavy or lanky slalom machine like the other racers, he was in the top 5 (with Bjorn Dunkerbeck/Anders Bringdal/ Patrice Belbeoch for example) because he was fit and extremely tuned into his constantly refined gear. He understood the tuning refinements that were infinitesimal made massive differences. And it’s this sensory knowledge along with the ability to translate that into what the next step will feel like that’s going to be at the forefront of the foil evolution.
I can’t see any reason why marginal condition wave sailing isn’t going to take a similar course. The equipment evolution is happening at light speed, or even at DeLorean speed where we’ve jumped into the future, skipping time on an evolutionary scale. However, I’m getting way ahead of myself here whilst still really stoked on the joys of sailing in a straight line and learning how to gybe. And this has always been the joy of windsurfing. It’s so much fun whatever stage you’re at! Woohoo!
