Surfersblog

During the first quarter of 2020 - Youp Schmit (Tabou / GA Sails) - was locked down in Holland. Luckily the Bonairean was still able to sneak in some Freestyle sessions… the remnants of which you can see here @ youtu.be/26nltivvJp8.

Youp Schmit: “Freestyle footage from Holland during quarantine April 2020”

Maaike Huvermann (Severne / Severne Sails / Maui Ultra Fins): "It’s been a weird year for all of us and I think everyone was effected in a different way. For me personally it created quite a lot of freedom. Normally I’m quite constrained to my schedule at university, often leading me to miss out on good days on the water. With the lockdown of uni, the online teaching has made it possible for me to do work in my own time at my own speed. Since we don’t get windy days that regularly, it’s great to be able to adapt to the weather situation. As a result, I’d say I had the most time on the water in Holland I’ve ever had! During the Dutch lockdown we were always allowed to travel freely in the Netherlands, so that really helped as well.

Over the summer, the restrictions eased off a bit and I was able to get some training in Naxos. Together with Oda Johanne, Lennart Neubauer and Balz Müller we had a little team training get together and it was the best. Being out with them is so much fun and very motivating as well. I got much more consistent on my Kabi’s with the help of Balz and started practicing double moves such as Double Culo, Spock Kono etc. After Naxos, I visited Cornwall and scored some really great days. It was my first time there so I had to find my way around with the tides, swell, and endless amount of spots, but with the help of some locals we had some great times on the water. All in all, a great year for windsurfing. Hoping for the tour to continue and that we can all have a good windsurfing year!"

You can see the highlights of Maaike Huvermann's 2020 @ https://youtu.be/5u9LZIabFN0

Last week a huge swell hit Hawaii - bringing Pe’ahi to life again and there was a whole blockbuster crew in the lineup. There have obviously been several talking points about the last huge swell, but the main one involves 19-year-old Adam Warchol (Quatro / Goya Windsurfing), who suffered quite possibly the worst wipeout in windsurfing history after a 60 foot plus bomb landed on his head. Thankfully, the young gun survived unscathed and you can now hear him recount the experience in person @ www.instagram.com/p/CKPlfTjn25c/

Adam Warchol: “Living the dream!!!

Was always my dream to come to Hawaii and ride big waves!! @quatromaui @goyawindsurfing
First of all, I want to say Thank you so so much to the safety crew, to @kurtischongkee for picking me up from the mordor, and for all the support from everyone!! Thank you to all the people that made that session happen starting with @priority.plaster and all his support on the boat and after, along with @andreamollermaui and all the medical staff, and amazing people supporting me on that boat:
@alexmblau @surf.travel.explore @kealakennelly @wheresgabs (...)Thank you @zaniac1, @mat5o for all the training sessions together!! Im so grateful for everything!!
I met so many amazing people!! Is crazy how everything changed since my first ever session on big waves at Jaws at the beginning of December!!

Here is a little story of my wipeout!! Thank you so much @levi_siver for the amazing edit!!!
: @damiengirardin @acl_cinema, @mattp.aul, @david_swifft - Thank you!!!
@balticasurf @solkinemaui @international.windsurfing.tour @surfline @redbull @wslbigwave @wsl @stab @magicseaweed

The Professional Windsurfers Association is pleased to announce that the PWA World Tour will become the latest sporting arena to introduce equal amounts for prize winners in the men’s and women’s fleets at its events. Building on the achievements of events like the Gran Canaria PWA World Cup, which has provided fully equal prize money for both divisions since 2018, all events will now enjoy a prize money structure that equally respects the outstanding pool of talent and professionalism that exists in the women’s divisions, alongside the men’s divisions.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has been a difficult time for everyone, including the PWA, with almost all events being forced to cancel in 2020, it has provided an unusual opportunity for review, analysis and change. Earlier in the year, the PWA announced that the points allocation of the annual constructors ranking would be upgraded to grant equal points to female riders, offering greater value to manufacturers for supporting women on their team. Now the final steps have been taken to bring prize money amounts in line too.

The new structure will mean that all competitors at events who earn prize money will receive the same amount for their finishing position, regardless of gender. This has been achieved by reducing the depth of places to which the men’s division are awarded prizes and reallocating those funds to the women’s division. Although fewer of the men’s division will receive prize money, those that do will not receive any significant reduction to the amounts currently awarded.

In the Men’s division, prizes will be awarded to the top 16, reduced from top 20 (or 24 depending on discipline). In the Women’s division, prizes will be awarded to the top 8 for fleets of 12 or over, and top 6 for fleets of 8 – 12 competitors. In each case the amounts awarded for each position will be the same for men and women. The differences of the depth of the fleet to which each division receives prize money is proportionate to overall fleet sizes.

These changes will usher in a new era of equality in windsurfing and, combined with other adjustments to equipment rules, will help to further boost the already growing participation in the women’s divisions.

Jimmy Diaz, PWA President: “We are very happy to finally be able to make these changes, but it would be wrong to say I am proud of them as such, as equality should be a fundamental right, not a privilege. The PWA strives to ensure equal opportunities for anyone, regardless of race or gender, based purely on merit and ability, and with these changes, we are able to make that claim more fully.”

Sarah-Quita Offringa – 2019 Wave World Champion, Multiple Freestyle and Slalom World Champion: “It’s amazing that we get this news and that this is how the year is going to start for us, it’s a big step for women in windsurfing, I thinks it’s awesome that PWA has moved in this direction as well. I want to thank Daida and Iballa Moreno who kicked this off in the Canary Islands a couple of years ago at the Pozo event and it’s about time this happened. I think that for the next generation its huge that they can step into competing in the PWA and know that they are equal, because we put the same effort into the sport, we do the same amount of hours, travel the same, take the same risks, so in the end I think it’s very important that we made this step. I’m really looking forward to how this is going to help get more women into the sport”

Iballa Moreno – Multiple Wave World Champion: “I’m pretty stoked to see the PWA making new rules concerning the prize money for the women, it’s a really good step forward, and I’m really happy to be able to live this moment because its something we’ve been fighting for for many years, we’ve been doing it in Gran Canaria now for the last 3 years, and I am happy to see that the whole tour now will have something equal too.”

Delphine Cousin-Questel – 2019 Foil World Champion, Multiple Slalom World Champion: “I have an amazing feeling because we are fighting for years for more equality in our sport, and now it’s a big step forwards for the women. Now we just have to continue to work, especially with the industry, to arrive with full equality. It will for sure bring more women on the tour and help a lot of girls to become more professional. I’m really, really happy about that. For 2021, I cannot wait to be on the starting line again!”

We will bring you more updates from the PWA Tour as they develop.

Before the latest lockdown the Fanatic Team - Victor Fernandez (Fanatic / Duotone), Marc Paré (Fanatic / Duotone), Klaas Voget (Fanatic / Duotone), Arthur Arutkin (Fanatic / Duotone) & Craig Gertenbach headed for Cold Hawaii for a bit of team bonding and R&D.

Fanatic: “A boys trip is always a good idea. Our Wave Team with Victor Fernández, Marc Paré Rico, Klaas Voget, Arthur Arutkin and Fanatic boss Craig Gertenbach enjoyed a team training and R&D trip to Cold Hawaii pre-lockdown with bsp media behind the scenes. Here is a little edit from their journey.”

Klaas: “It’s been great to re-connect after a long summer without any contests! We had all the toys there and we’ve been in the water pretty much every day surfing, foiling, winging and windsurfing – testing each others boards and making the next round of protos. It’s always great vibes hanging out with the team!”

You can see the Fanatic Team’s Cold Hawaii highlights here.

The start of a new year often sees new goals set and new adventures undertaken… for Thomas Traversa (Tabou / GA Sails) that means starting a new YouTube channel where the Frenchman will take you on a guided tour of some of his previous trips. The first episode sees Traversa in Reunion Island and you can watch it @ youtu.be/DLu9e-FTz3s.

Thomas Traversa: “I am officially starting a new chapter in my life. I will run a YouTube channel with a new series called “GUIDED TOUR”, where I will share stories about trips and special sessions. I’m not very sure about what I am doing but let’s see how it goes. 1 episode every 3 weeks, until I run out of footage. The first 3 episodes will be about Reunion Island.”

Iballa Moreno (Severne / Severne Sails / Maui Ultra Fins): "Taking advantage of the storm Filomena at home #canaryislands @anfigroup @severnewindsurfing @vwcomercialescanarias

Iballa Moreno (morenotwins): "Taking advantage of the storm Filomena at home #canaryislands @anfigroup @severnewindsurfing @vwcomercialescanarias"

You can see Iballa Moreno's latest video @ https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ-sqsCJtA-/

For most people snow and freezing temperatures would be a cutoff point for whether to still go sailing or not… however, that still isn’t enough to put off Balz Müller (MB-Boards / Severne Sails).

Balz Muller: “Ain’t no snow stops us from riding Swiss lake waves! actually it almost only happens in winter. Good memories from an epic snowstorm last year.”

You can see Balz Müller enjoying the freezing Swiss lakes @ youtu.be/UVRwps5BaYo

The latest transfer, in what is looking like a busy transfer season, involves Nico Prien (Starboard / NeilPryde), who has announced that he will be joining Starboard for 2021.

Just a few days ago, Nico Prien (Starboard / NeilPryde) announced on social media that he would part ways with board manufacturer JP Australia after 5 years of partnership.

His announcement was followed by the windsurfing scene responding with assumptions about joining various other brands and even rumours about him starting his own board brand. Prien later denied such assumptions, and a few days later went on to announce his new partner, Starboard Windsurfing, including a rather surprising move by the young 26 year old.

Nico Prien: “I’m ecstatic to not only ride Starboards from 2021 on, but also work on supporting the brand in the management aspect. Starboard being the only windsurfing company that genuinely and actively considers the environment in all their actions, is the perfect match for me. I’m thrilled to work closely with Svein Rasmussen and Tiesda You who both have shaped the windsurfing world in the last decades.“

Even though Prien, who has built himself a reputation with frequent and engaging videos around windsurfing on his YouTube Channel, will have a great deal of new tasks; nonetheless, he stays optimistic about taking part in competitions and publishing more videos. “Realistically this will probably mean that I’ll take part in competitions less compared to the previous years. Of course, I will still want to be the fittest and best version of myself and do well in certain competitions; being able to compete on Starboard’s iSonics and foil boards will help tremendously with that.

On the other hand, a lot of interesting new things will come my way with this move that I’m more than excited to document and share on YouTube.“

It’s still unclear what implications this move will have on the sail brand he will be on from now on.

Quick questions:

How did it happen?

Since I’ve been digging into sustainable economics for a while, Starboard obviously has been on my radar. When Svein himself gave me a call to see whether I’m interested, it was clear quite quickly that this is the only logical step for me to take.

What will your tasks be?

Next to my activities as ambassador I will work in the Brand Management for Starboard. That means that I’ll be involved in the whole process from developing the product, up until the launch and everything that comes along with it, such as marketing.

What does that mean for competitions and your living situation?

I will spend a lot of time in Starboard’s Headquarters in Bangkok. My main hub will remain Germany and Europe though.

You can learn about Nico's move via his latest YouTube @ https://youtu.be/EMpCkaTwRGM