surf-matic

Testing testing testing prototype sails means that every session is full of analysis...and off the lips!

Maui is the center of the windsurfing universe right now. I know because there are a million people on every single wave at Hookipa. Enter photoshoot season. And it doesn’t help that the winds are f***ing strong at the moment! It’s like 30 knots or nothing. What’s up with that? After using basically a lot of 4.5s and 3.7s, a 5.0 felt strangely big (and 5.0 is my favorite size!).

More protos! The new sails are going to be insane after all this testing.

I will add that it’s nice to see the windsurfing industry in bloom. The beach becomes much more social when all “the guys” are here to chat about waves, wind, and nothing else. And with 7 or 8 photographers in the water, us Pro’s feel that the sport is alive beyond our delusions.

During these days, I am not photoshooting. Quatro has their photoshoot next month. And with Ezzy, we’ve already done our flat water shoots and will do the other sails as needed– the advantage of living on Maui! But I AM testing and training. Testing sails is good. There is so much to test! At Ezzy, we’ve been working on 4 batten prototypes for about 3 or 4 years. Until now, everything was less stable than the 5 batten sails. We decided that we would not compromise. So, if we were going to put a 4 batten into production, it would have to be better than the 5 battens in every regard. I won’t spill the beans on how this process is going but I will say that because we use a completely different method for creating windsurfing sails than the other brands, we’ve come up with some special stuff. And I’m not just talking about our little joke against the industry and the media, the 3 batten sail (if you don’t like it, we’ll send you the 4 batten free! hahahha). I should say that the proto sails that I’m on in these photos are exactly that: prototypes. They will not be available ever. There will be some sexy new sails unveiled after the summer for that release. Until then, we are testing and prepping to make those sails f***ing excellent.

I’m also testing a lot with fins. K4 has sent me a massive package of new styles to try. We’re playing with shapes and materials. Only good things can come from testing!

I've learned a new style of 360 and they are so much fun.

Training is learning. Learning is failing. I do a lot of falling. But falling is good. Well, that’s what I tell myself.

It seems that despite however many million years that I’ve windsurfed, I still learn new things about the basics like the bottom turn. And not just small very technical things. Over the last week, I’ve figured out some very basic things about the bottom turn and how to use it effectively to do good moves off the lip. The key? Commitment, no matter what happens.

Windsurfing is so hard. In what other sport do you spend your entire career (in some cases professional career) learning the basics?

I guess that keeps it fun. Humans like a challenge. Humans like solving puzzles. Windsurfing then is the ultimate human recreation. No matter how smart or physically talented anyone is, they will never be more than a novice. We are all novices, just of varying degrees.

On that note, I’m going to bed. Here’s what to expect from surf-matic for this week: the final installment of Ireland (yes! it is written and just waiting to be posted… it’s begging actually), some updates from Maui (especially if I get around to pulling off photos from the camera memory), and a special treat on here and the umi channel with a new move (be excited!).

Signing off!
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