JP AND NEILPRYDE 2025 FREESTYLE GEARJP AND NEILPRYDE 2025 FREESTYLE GEARThe video for the new JP and NeilPryde Freestyle gear has just dropped! The action is hot and the video edit is awesome!JP & NP Freestyle 2025JP and NeilPryde sayWhether youre just getting started with freestyling, trying to take your freestyle skills to the next level or youre training for the next competition. These are the ingredients to perform: 2025 Wizard Pro & Freestyle S-Tec.Get inspired by Yentels thrilling moves and tropical, windy vibes during the latest trip in Brasil. This new JP Freestyle board range is short, responsive, and radical, allowing riders to spin, rotate, and pop with unparalleled speed and precision. Despite their liveliness, these boards still offer the early planing and speed potential of their predecessors. The tail provides a powerful pop for multiple rotations and more impressive freestyle moves all-round. All the cool moves you and the pros can pull off will be lighter this year thanks to our brand-new technology called S-TEC which allows the most significant weight savings ever made in our Freestyle range and boost the boards performance to a whole new level. The NP Wizard, our pure, no compromise freestyle sail offers power when you need it, is incredibly neutral when you want it to be and provides pop that will blow your mind. Its ease and forgivingness helps you to slide through your first spock as well as to perfecting double power moves. The 2025 edition features Powerfuse panels to reduce weight and a Taffeta luff panel for extra springy pop! We cant wait to see what you do with them!Video & Edit: Adam Sims / AALVAAMEDIAThe post JP AND NEILPRYDE 2025 FREESTYLE GEAR appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

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Liverpool to Goole: A northern adventure of a lifetime!Words: Jo MoseleyPhotos: Gee Jackson, Jason Elliott, Daisy Best, Sara Edgar, Sarah Chisem, Ant Ing, Chuck, Frit Tam, Julie Kelly, Lucy Morris, Jo Moseley and Michelle EllisonWould you like to challenge yourself with an endurance SUP adventure and wonder if its within your grasp, or would you like to know a little more about what is involved? If the answer is yes, let my friends and me tell you about the beautiful 162-mile Liverpool to Goole coast-to-coast trail along the Leeds and Liverpool Canal (128 miles) and Aire and Calder Navigation (34 miles).It is five years this summer since the Canal and River Trust officially created the trail that passes through Merseyside, Lancashire and Yorkshire in the north of England. This was shortly after I was fortunate enough, aged 54, to become the first woman to complete the challenge, fundraising for The Wave Project and The 2 Minute Foundation whilst also picking up litter. The first person was my friend Jason Elliott, who then also aged 54, made the crossing in February 2019 at times during Storm Erik. As a plastics recycler, Jason was fundraising for Surfers Against Sewage.The beauty of this challengeis that the route is very well documented, with detailed information to help you plan. Yet, as far as I am aware, at the time of writing, only 12 people have crossed it in full in one trip. More have climbed Everest or swum the Channel!The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is the longest canal in Britain. It took over 50 years to build and was completed in 1816. In its heyday, millions of tonnes of coal were transported on barges, and it was very significant in the development of the cotton and weaving industries. There are 91 locks between Liverpool and Leeds and several more from Leeds to Goole, so you will get very good at portaging (carrying) your boards!This includes the 21 locks at Wigan Flight and the world-famous Bingley Five Rise, the steepest staircase locks. There are two tunnels to navigate: Gannow Tunnel (559 yards/540m) and the mile long, Foulridge Tunnel, close to the border between Lancashire and Yorkshire, which works on a traffic light system.The canal runs through both industrial and very rural areas, giving you lots of variety to enjoy. It is also near the UNESCO World Heritage Site Saltaire Village and the stunning architecture of Salts Mill.Leisure and wellbeingNowadays, the canal is very much a place for leisure and wellbeing. You can hire narrowboats in Skipton, immerse yourself in the history of Wigan Pier, spot kingfishers, walk or cycle along the towpath, visit the highest point on the canal at Greenberfield Locks, swim in Leeds Dock or have a meal on the Leeds City Centre Waterfront. Nearby is the Holdfast narrowboat bookshop, and an ice cream boat is in Skipton Basin.Waterways LicenseThe Canal and River Trust manages the canal, and you will need a Waterways License, which is part of your Paddle UK (formerly British Canoeing) membership. Part of the license fee is reinvested back into the care of the canal structure and tackling INNS (invasive non-native species), which can impede your paddling. Go to http://www.canalrivertrust.org.uk and http://www.paddleuk.org for more information.Life changingPaddleboarding coast-to-coast changed my life back in 2019, and it was one of the reasons I went on to write my two books about beautiful places to SUP, launch a podcast, and make a film about the trip called Brave Enough A Journey Home to Joy with Frit Tam of Frit Films. The route is included in my first book, Stand Up Paddleboarding in Great Britain.However, I didnt just want you to take my word for it, so I invited paddlers who have completed the challenge to share their tips and memories with you. Thank you, Jason, Gee, Daisy, Julie, Lucy, Sarah, Sara, Anthony, Chuck, Mel, and Michelle, for your experience and generosity.How long does it take to paddleboard coast to coast?Usually, it takes about 10-14 days, depending on how many rest days you include. That said, Anthony, 33, and Chuck, who were raising money for Suicide Prevention UK, completed it in under 100 hours, sleeping by the canal side in January 2024. Gee, the youngest amongst us at 28, also powered across in just five days as part of her demanding English trails coast-to-coast adventure triathlon (SUP, cycle, and run).Whats the best way to train?For most of us, training for the distance was important to prevent injury and increase enjoyment. Long tedious paddles on a local waterpark helped physio Julie, 55. Sarah, 54, lifted weights and did strength and conditioning exercises at the gym. Lucy, 55, a former physio, swapped to a standing desk at work to build up her postural stamina. Her legs never felt tired on the route! Jason worked with a PT for some heavy kettlebell work and, along with Sara, 58, emphasised the importance of using your core and legs to power your paddle. Daisy made long trips near her home beforehand, feeling they were never enough but of course, they were! Personally, I was recovering from a frozen shoulder and plantar fasciitis in the lead-up to the trip, so kettlebells, yoga and spin helped me get strong enough.Invest in yourself and your kitAnthony, who runs Stand Up Paddleboard UK and is a highly experienced white water coach, stressed the importance of correct technique, and I would definitely advise updating your skills. Sarah also recommended investing in a good-quality paddle. She recorded 12,300 strokes on one 19-mile day! Gee suggested padded gloves to ward off blisters and some used trolley wheels to carry the boards between locks. Lucy recommended a smaller fin to help navigate weed, which can really slow you down. Keeping hydrated and fuelled is key, too, as is knowing how to self-rescue.A huge of SUP supportSupport from friends, family and strangers was a recurrent theme. This might be driving a motorhome and making soup on chilly days or surprise visits from friends travelling from afar. Michelle spoke about strangers on the towpath offering her and Mel a cup of tea. Having a friend you can laugh with when things go wrong was also pretty awesome and priceless for this duo.As Ant says, you can get through anything with a good friend beside you. A community can make all the difference.Lucy noted that The Coast-to-Coast Alumni will support you all the way, sharing their experience and the latest updates on the route. If you follow anyones journey on social media, you will see people cheering from afar and donating to the causes, be that Cancer Research UK (Lucy and Julie), Mind (Daisy, Michelle and Mel), Changing Faces (Sarah), Andys Man Club, or the Eve Appeal (Sara).Overcoming challengesThe coast-to-coast inevitably throws up obstacles to test you. There is always the chance of strong winds, rain and swans, quite understandably, defending their territory. There are also sections around Wigan to Blackburn that can be prone to weed, which makes paddling very slow, It nearly finished us! Lucy recounted.Joy and self-beliefFor all the challenges, what shines through with each interview is the sense of joy and self-belief this trail brings. Singing, dancing, and laughing on the boards was not unusual!Many told me how proud they felt of their achievement. They came to realise that you never know how strong you are unless you try and that our minds and bodies are extraordinary. Trusting yourself and your training is key, as is taking the 162-mile journey one paddle stroke at a time.I think Sara summed it up when she said, At the top of the lock, I had an overwhelming sense of accomplishment, camaraderie and simple joie de vivre.I couldnt remember feeling so happy and alive in a long time and I let anyone within shouting distance know it!Im so grateful to everyone who has shared their story. I hope they inspire you to take on the coast-to-coast and feel the same joy, confidence and achievement. Do let us know if you do! Happy fifth anniversary to this extraordinary trail!For more information www.canalrivertrust.org.uk and www.paddleuk.org.uk

SURVIVORS OF THE STORM: A TRUE BATTLE AGAINST THE ELEMENTSSURVIVORS OF THE STORM: A TRUE BATTLE AGAINST THE ELEMENTS Faced with 50 knot winds at the IFCA Slalom Worlds in Hvide Sande, Denmark, the race crew were forced to abandon the racing due to an extreme squall, which reduced visibility to almost zero. We spoke to a selection of sailors who survived the extreme conditions.Words: Johan Se, Jordy Vonk, Bruno Martini, Taty Frans, Jenna Gibson & Andrea Cucchi // Photos: John CarterJOHAN SE THE BEAST TRIES TO TAME THE STORMI was on my smallest gear that I registered, which was my 6.8m and medium board which is 118 litres. And its safe to say that was way too much wind for those conditions. The wind really picked up during the semifinal. In fact, it picked up that much that it became more of a battle of sailing against yourself and the conditions, rather than the other riders. At its peak it was well over 40 knots and I could barely make the finish line, yet alone try and focus on racing. The course was normal, but I simply couldnt push the fin downwind there was just too much lift.LIVING ON THE EDGE I almost crashed several times and I saw Bruno [Martini] crash, but luckily he was leading at the time, so he still had just about enough time to recover and make it through. If you went down, it was the worst because it was so windy that it was almost impossible to waterstart. To try and put it into context, after the finish I was just laying in the water for about five minutes because it was too windy for me to even be able to waterstart. The visibility was almost down to zero and you couldnt even see the beach. For ten minutes we couldnt see anything. It was carnage out there, but we knew the wind would calm down eventually after the squall had passed by. On the plus side, at least it wasnt open ocean. Overall, it was a great experience and I love those days when we are all overpowered. It was certainly a day to remember, thats for sure.JORDY VONK THE FLYING DUTCHMANI was on a 6.8m and a 116L medium board. It was insane. The first two eliminations were fine and I was under control, but the last one became extremely hectic. During the semifinal I finished second and I saw Andrea Cucchi just going in a straight line as he simply couldnt turn. I remember Taty Frans was in front of me and out of nowhere he was lifted up into the sky into a huge catapult.ONE FOOT IN FRONT OF THE OTHERAfter that, I just said to myself, I just need to make it round the course and finish as it was just a qualifier for the final. Taty was really fighting because he had his medium board with a small sail. Thankfully, I didnt have that problem because I was on a 6.8m. It was just a battle of me versus the sail, and even then, it was absolute carnage. When we were going upwind, the rain started to kick in and I couldnt see anything anymore. I saw some young kids from the youths just sitting on their boards looking completely lost. They didnt know what to do because it was picking up to 45 knots with zero visibility. It was truly unsailable. Even if wed have had small gear, we wouldnt have been able to race as the boats couldnt see anything either. I remember in the quarterfinal, it was also pouring it down, and due to the lack of visibility, it took me the first one hundred metres of the first reach just to figure out where the first mark was. It was just super hectic conditions.SURVIVAL MODEEven on a 5.8m and a small board it would have been really tough to sail in a straight line. The wind did stabilise a little bit but there were still some huge squalls and it was still nuking. Every time the rain came, the kids just didnt know what to do. They were just sitting on their boards waving for help. Even though the wind was offshore, it was still really wavy out there just because of how strong the wind was. It was actually quite dangerous as the kids were getting blown out into the lake.ONE FOR THE HISTORY BOOKSIn a way I enjoyed it, but for the racing itself, it was a bit annoying as normally you want to sail as fast you can and really compete flat out with the other guys, but when its like that you are really only fighting your equipment and trying to survive. These are the days you talk about and look back on forever. You dont remember 12 knots and pumping on an 8.4m! It was cool, especially when everybody made it back it one piece. Nobody got lost, so we can look back at it as a memorable day for all the right reasons.BRUNO MARTINI BELIEF IS KEYWhen it was really nuclear, I was on my smallest gear which was a 6.5m and 115L board. At one point I thought to myself that I cant hold it anymore. As you are only allowed to register two boards I decided to bring my medium and big board, which wasnt ideal for the conditions we were faced with. However, everyone was in the same boat with medium boards, so it was a fair fight with everyone equally out of control.In reality, it was a fight just to stay on the board and finish the course. At the last mark I was thinking: Theres no way Im going to make it around that buoy, but I just had to tell myself that I could do it and believe. There were huge gusts, so to say it was hardcore is an understatement. To be honest though I was enjoying the moment. I really like strong and stormy conditions unfortunately, a lot of the kids were scared though. You couldnt see anything, so you just had to try and keep calm and sail back to the beach once the wind had died down.TATY FRANS THE WRONG COMBINATIONIn the first heat I was on a 6.8m and I was way too overpowered, so I came back in and took my 5.9m. I thought it would be perfect for those conditions, but when I got out there, both the wind and the rain picked up in intensity, so it was totally the wrong size sail for that board and it just felt all wrong. We arent used to sailing with a small sail on a medium board and I couldnt even hold the board down. Every time I hit the chop the board just wanted to fly. I was rounding the gybes and suddenly the wind was pushing the board up instead of forwards. I crashed at the third mark, but I didnt really know why. I felt like I was gybing like a beginner with one hand.It can be fun racing in high winds when you have the right equipment, but sometimes it just gets too much. My combination just didnt work when it was blowing 50 knots in the gusts. We also had rain in our face and it was hard to see anything. For a while I enjoyed it, but after a while nothing made sense anymore. We had similar conditions back in 2019 at the PWA racing and there does come a point where it just gets too much. When I was coming back to the shore, I couldnt see anything anymore and I hit some chop and I actually went up in the air and flew backwards. After that I just stopped in the water and let the wind pass by. It was gnarly. I saw a lot of kids just sitting in the water crying because it was just so incredibly strong. In Denmark you have to expect anything and everything. It can be 45 knots or it can be sunny and light. I personally like European conditions like this because we dont get big storms like that in Bonaire, so its a new challenge.JENNA GIBSON WAITING FOR THE WIND TO DROPSo for this event I signed up with my medium and small board, which was a 99L, so I actually had a smaller board than many riders. With the 5.8m I couldnt sheet in at all. It was just a case of getting round the course. I still fell in at one of the gybes as it was very tricky. When we were waiting for the final out on the water this massive squall came through and it was savage. We all just got flattened and sat on our boards while the worst of it passed. Even on the 99L I was nowhere near being in control.In our semifinal it was 40 knots, but in that squall, it must have been 50 knots and there was no chance of windsurfing in that. I fell in the water and my kit just got lifted up in the air and flew 30 metres. I enjoyed it though. There was a tiny youth girl, who was out on a 4m wave sail. The boat couldnt see her and she was waving and crying. The rain was so intense, but as soon as it dropped back to 40 knots she managed to get back up and sail in, which was quite impressive to see.ANDREA CUCCHI A DAY TO REMEMBERI had two heats in the strongest wind and the first one I was on my 7m and 118L. Then in the last race I changed to a 5.9m, but I was still on my 118L medium board. You are only allowed to register two boards and I think two boards can be enough to cover most racing conditions, you just have to change your mentality a bit. It was a bit weird using my small sail with the medium board, but I actually felt OK. I was actually upset that we didnt continue racing. I was having a lot of fun and could have kept going without any problems. I sail in those conditions for fun sometimes in Lake Garda when there is a storm. As long as it is not thunder and lightning. I had bet a with Taty [Frans] who would fall first in the semifinal and I was laughing when I saw him go down. I loved the drama and when it is windy like that I just love to go and sail for fun.I love those days when it is 40 knots I think this is what we are missing in windsurfing. In the 90s the guys were going out in crazy winds. There were a lot of the youths struggling to get back in, so I guess they had to play it safe. The crew were having some major problems getting all the riders back to the beach. I will remember that day for a long time. This one will go down in the history books. It was fun, there was plenty of drama, but I was still under control. To send out the kids in that wind was maybe too much as they dont all know their limits. Everybody has to learn their limits and know when not to go out. When they are racing, they all want to go out, so that was the problem. In one of the semifinals, there were only three guys racing out of supposed ten-man heat, the rest stayed on the beach. For me it was fun and I wanted to keep on going.The post SURVIVORS OF THE STORM: A TRUE BATTLE AGAINST THE ELEMENTS appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

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Words: Andy BurrowsPhotos: Andy Burrows, Sarah Thornely (SUPjunkie.uk) & Albert P. LabordaI love drafting. It is both a mental and physical challenge. It has improved my technique and my SUP fitness and definitely helped me achieve any success I have enjoyed in racing. Once, it even played a key part in helping me escape from a difficult situation in the water.Strangely (to me), many of my paddling buddies are less enthusiastic about it. In racing, it is often perceived to be freeloading at best and cheating at worst. In general paddling, it is largely seen as irrelevant.So, why should paddlers practice drafting?RacingDrafting is an essential skill if you intend to race. It offers the biggest opportunity to finish as high up the field as possible. Why? Because you can paddle faster and further in someones draft than you can on your own. In my experience, it lifts my average speed over a 10k race by 0.2 to 0.4 km/hr. This might not seem much, but in terms of places, it is quite meaningful.You can use the draft like a step ladder through the field. Always start a race as fast as you can. After 0.5 km, you will feel the effects of an intensive start, so look for someone to draft. Dont leave it too late, or the opportunity will be lost, and you will have a lonely race. Use paddling in the draft to settle down your breathing and heart rate. Get into a rhythm and gather your energy.If someone goes past you faster, catch their draft. When you feel you are ready, look ahead to see if there is someone in front that you could catch to make more progress through the field. Conversely, if you are feeling stretched, then hang on in there. It will be much harder paddling on your own if you lose their draft.Dont feel guilty about being in someones draft. You are making them faster at the same time. They have the choice to allow you to draft. They could go faster to lose you or slower to invite you or force you to overtake.Dont feel intimidated if its you who is being drafted. Just paddle the way you want to. Dont get forced into paddling faster than you want to. The person behind can overtake whenever they want.If you find yourself in a draft train and the race is nearing the end, you need to decide when and if you are going to make your move to try and improve your position. In SUP, overtaking is not instant. It can take minutes to get past someone. It can also be exhausting and possibly counter-productive (it could cost you places). If you are leading the draft, slow it down about 1k from the end to conserve some energy for the sprint finish. If anyone tries to get past, make it difficult by upping the pace. Keep your lead at all costs.Drafting in non-competitive paddlingYou might wonder why you would ever bother drafting if you are not racing. But it is a skill that any paddler can benefit from.Why?It is enjoyable. You feel part of a larger unit in the draft a single mass of paddlers. Each person has a role in maintaining the integrity of the whole, whether leading or following.It develops your paddling skills. Its a different challenge to paddling on your own. You mirror the person in front, observe their strokes, and predict where they are going while always being aware of the water around you.It is a strangely hypnotic experience. After a while, you might become resonant with everyone else. Your stroke matches others, and you fall into an altered state of consciousness. You feel hugely energised and feel like you could paddle forever.It will collectively increase the paddling range substantially. Drafting saves each paddler energy. This has been estimated to be about 30 per cent. If a group gets caught out by a change in weather conditions and faces a stiff headwind on a return, the ability to draft will help get everyone safely home.This happened to me once when an exciting downwinder suddenly became particularly challenging because of a change in wind direction. The strongest paddler in the group led the rest of us into a safe haven through drafting. Without the draft, I might not have made it back.CooperationIt fosters cooperation. In the act of drafting, the lead paddler changes after an agreed-upon period, so everyone shares the load. Each paddler takes the responsibility of being both leader and follower.It allows you to experiment with your stroke and judge the results immediately. For example, you can play with stroke length and cadence rate to see how they affect how the board behaves in the draft.It offers a direct opportunity to compare the effectiveness of your stroke with others. Before I got into racing, my coach insisted on our group paddling extensively in the draft. I learned a lot about technique in these sessions. I got to observe better paddlers at close quarters. I realised how my positioning and timing differed from theirs. I could see first-hand how much power they were generating per stroke and how they used their bodies differently from me. It was a great route to self-awareness and a stimulus for self-improvement.The drafting techniqueI called this the art of drafting. And it is an art. Its not something that can be executed perfectly in a matter of hours. You develop an intuition for it. Simply put, you aim to keep your boards nose approximately two feet from the back of the board in front. I say approximately because this distance depends on the wake you observe from the board in front and the type of board you are on. Technically, you are trying to mount the little wave that comes off the back of the board in front.This little wave varies depending on the tail shape of the board in front. Square tails are generally easier to draft than pin tails because they have a wider area of water to aim at. You know when you are successful in the draft because your board starts to feel lighter and easier to paddle. The nose of your board will also dictate the best location. Planing boards with upturned noses love finding this sweet spot, and because of their rocker, they will need to get closer to the board in front (sometimes it feels that the nose is almost over the tail of the board in front.) Flat water boards, with little or no rocker, will sit further from the tail.Maintaining a rhythmOnce in position, try always to copy the paddling side of the paddler ahead. When they change sides, you change. Maintain a similar rhythm. This will help you to match the behaviour of the board in front. Also, observe the water around you. If you dont, its easy to get caught out by waves, fishing lines, or speed boats. If you are in a draft of multiple boards, look ahead to the lead paddler. Watch how they are paddling and use them to predict direction and pace.If the front of your board strays, you must correct it as soon as possible, or the draft will be lost. Try to predict when the leader will change sides so you dont get caught out. Aim to keep your boards nose pointing at the centre of the tail in front and your board travelling in the same alignment as the one in front.When you are leading, pick a spot ahead and try and keep a straight line to it. This will make it easier for the paddlers behind. Try to look back now and again (using your peripheral vision) to ensure your colleagues are still with you.Flat water in calm conditionsDrafting is easier on flat water in calm conditions and gets progressively more difficult as conditions deteriorate. Drafting downwind is not worthwhile, as catching bumps might easily take you into the back of someone else.You can also experiment with drafting at the side of the board in front. There is usually a prominent wave to catch about two-thirds down the length of the leading board. Maintaining your board in the sweet spot requires more skill, and you will find this demands a greater range of paddle strokes.You can also use your feet to steer the board to keep in the draft. If you are looking to take the board slightly left then move your right foot further to the edge of the board than normal and lift your weight off the left at the same time. The board will track left.My favourite form of training involves drafting. Ill go out with someone else or a small group, and well hit a challenging pace and change the lead every 1 km to share the load. My average speeds are always faster in such sessions, creating a great bonding experience.Drafting is also an excellent way to undertake interval training. The leader creates the interval through a change of pace, and the rest try to stay in the draft for the duration of the interval.To summarise, practice drafting whether you race or not. It will improve your technique and your fitness and bond your group. It might also get you out of a life-threatening situation.Andy Burrows is the author of the book Improving your Stand Up Paddling. He spends most of his time living in Spain, where he paddles with some of the best in the world.https://fernhurstbooks.com/books/permalink/172/improving_your_stand_up_paddleboarding

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NO RISK, NO REWARD...SYLT ON FIRE!NO RISK, NO REWARDSYLT ON FIRE!While many sailors were waiting for their equipment or busy rigging, Antoine Martin and Leon Jamaer snuck under the radar and scored an epic session on registration morning at the Sylt, PWA World Cup!Photos:Carter/pwaworldtour.comLEON JAMAERI woke up early that day. I was obviously getting ready for the world cup. When I arrived at the beach the North Sea was on fire already. It was nuclear winds and the tide was coming up. The wave were pumping already. Normally, Sylt is best at high tide and around three hours before and after. That is when the waves are the biggest and the shore break is the heaviest. I knew the morning was going to be the golden slot for scoring.ANTOINE MARTINThe season was pretty stacked this year. Before Sylt, I was in La Runion working on my project YLEM. Shortly after Sylt, I planned to spend a week in Guadeloupe before heading straight to Maui for the Aloha Classic.Usually, when you travel from far away and arrive in Hamburg, you have a couple of options for getting to Sylt with your gear. You can either load your gear onto a big truck at the airport, organized, scheduled, and paid for by the event organizers and then take the train, or you can rent a car at your own expense and make the trip alone or with other riders. Most riders take the train, but I decided to rent a car in Hamburg and avoid leaving my gear in the truck. I wanted the freedom to move around.Somehow, epic conditions arrived right during registration. I quickly signed up for the contest and headed out to sail. Unfortunately for most of the fleet, the truck was delayed that day, so many riders couldnt go on the water early, except for a few locals, like Leon, who brought their own cars.I couldnt believe it. For a while, it was just the two of us out there, which is so rare because at every event, no matter the location, the water is always packed with windsurfers.LEON JAMAERIt was pretty chaotic with rain and howling wind. I went to the tent to prepare my equipment and Antoine Martin was also in the tent rigging. Antoine was motivated to go in for the early session. So, we both rigged and headed to the beach before any of the other sailors were on it.We ended up having an incredible session.In the sets it was probably three to four metres in height. At first there was a lot of rain and it was pretty hectic but then once the high tide had passed, it cleaned up and there were some epic sets coming in. There were some waves that were not ridable, but when the good ones came through, it was pretty amazing. There were some clean sections with steep faces. It was a sick session. Just about as good as it gets at Sylt.ANTOINE MARTINMan, we all know the shore break in Sylt is intense! The beach has a few sandbanks, but its mostly straight, so the swell often comes in directly facing the beach. That makes it tough to handle on its own, but the worst part isnt just the strong shore break its the current and the onshore wind. That combination makes it even harder. When its light wind, onshore, and wavy with a strong current, I think Sylt might have the most challenging shore break in the world. I never, ever think about injuries during a session, so I was charging full power!LEON JAMAERBoth myself and Antoine are sailors that go hard whenever we sail so we were not holding back. If I was on my own I might have taken a bit more time to start pushing it but with Antoine there we were both going for big moves from the word go.When you see Antoine busting out wave 360s and nailing huge back loops I knew I hard to go hard, even though it was the day before competition. He was really going to hit the steep vertical sections so I also tried that. It was nice to have another sailor out there and not be fully on my own. A few freestylers also came out but they were more focussed on the flat part of the wave.It was pretty intense sailing and not very user friendly. There was a tonne of current, chop on the waves and the shore break was breaking top to bottom. If you missed a section by a split session, there were some pretty intense beatings and I had some big swims after my gear. It was quite exhausting and taxing on the body. But when you timed a 360 right in some of those steep sections it was a really satisfying feeling.It reminded me of Atlantic swells with big clean faces but in Sylt we only getting one of the epic sets every ten minutes or so. When you got one of these it definitely did not feel like Sylt. For a brief second the waves felt a little bit like Maui, aside from the weather and the colour of the wave.ANTOINE MARTINI had mixed feelings. No matter the spot, its always incredible to sail in the best conditions a location can offer. But I was also sad that we didnt compete on that day. Theres nothing more frustrating than competing in low-average conditions. Even though we managed to finish the event and I got a good result, I wasnt fully satisfied. I always aim to compete in the best conditions, even if they dont necessarily suit me.Leon absolutely pushed me to go harder. Hes such a big ripper! Watching him sail motivates me to be as good as him or better. I believe there wasnt a sense of rivalry nor competition that day between us, but having someone close by to push the limits is always a bonus. You could feel the joy and excitement we both shared while sailing together. I had as much fun watching him as I did sailing myself.LEON JAMAERI was riding an 87L Flikka board and it was ripping. It was just working perfect. I made a few alterations with the fins and it was working just the way I wanted it. I was on the GUNSAILS Seal 4.2m. It was actually a little bit too big and I was struggling to keep the control. I wished I had rigged a 4m.I was surprised that myself and Antoine scored this session in Sylt right under the noses of the rest of the PWA sailors. I thought everyone would be out there. It turned out they liked to sleep a bit longer and take it easy. It was also it was registration day of competition, so a lot of sailors did not want to risk anything. Some of the guys only got their equipment mid-morning so they missed the best of it. They needed to rig up and were busy organizing everything. It was a cool session.It was just epic! The was probably the best I have seen Sylt. I guess it can get a bit more side shore or down the like but it was pretty much as good as it gets, I would say.ANTOINE MARTINMost of the time, I was riding my North WAVE 4.2 and Starboard Hyper 88L. As it got windier, I switched to a 3.7m, but eventually, I was completely overpowered and didnt have anything smaller. I would say that was a session to remember!The post NO RISK, NO REWARDSYLT ON FIRE! appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.

GO BIG OR GO HOME: TIMO MULLENGO BIG OR GO HOME: TIMO MULLENTimo Mullen headed to Newgale, Wales at the weekend and despite the light winds managed to get out epic logo high waves thanks to the mighty Duotone 118L GRIP/3 Thruster and 5.7m D/LAB sail! The question waswould he be able to shred the waves on such big kit in such marginal winds?Words and photos: Timo MullenTimo MullenSize matters!So, Im no longer a grom light weight anymore, by a very long way, a few decades and a lot of KGs away unfortunately!! A lot of the new grom rippers weigh in at below 75kg, so when you see these guys ripping up perfect glassy waves you kind of forget there is pretty much no wind, maybe 10-14 knots! I weigh in these days between a fighting weight of 85kg and a sofa surfing weight of 90kg! So even though Im probably in the pro windsurfing world classified as a heavy weight, I would say that is pretty standard weight for the majority of the modern-day male windsurfers.I love light wind wave riding! I guess wave sailing mostly in Ireland and Cornwall you have to like it, as the spots with the cleanest waves tend to also be in the spots that are most sheltered from the wind and generally light cross offshore conditions. Ive therefore become a bit of a guru on Big wave boards, my brother weighs in at 95-100kg so we tend to share what we like most about these types of boards. I think in light winds I have an advantage over say a 70kg guy, as with my weight I can in my opinion hold down a board with bigger rails and have no issue riding a bigger board than say a lighter guy who will struggle with anything more than say 5L more than their body weight.THE GRIP 3 118LId say my most used boards would be my Duotone 107L Grip 4, but even with such a big board, I have noticed on the super light wind days that it has its limit, where maybe the Wing Foil guys are starting to edge you out of set waves. So, when I saw that Duotone had put into production a massive 118L Grip 3 Thruster in the mega lightweight D/Lab construction, I put my name down straight away for delivery of one of these Aircraft Carriers!! I dont think I have sailed a board this big since I quit wind foiling, so the idea of hitting some lips with this board was kind of an unknown.Primarily, I bought the board for the summer months, when we get a lot of flat bump and jump days, as well as the odd jumping days at the local reefs with my Duotone 5.7 D/Lab sail. So I took delivery of this board last week, and out of curiosity, I chucked it in the van for a dubious forecast for wind and waves at a beach break on the West coast of Wales called Newgale. To be honest, I was pretty sure Id be using my trusty 107L Grip 4 Quad, but on arrival at the beach, it was clear the wind was at the lower end of the 12-16 knot forecast. Perfect opportunity to test out the 118L beast!!I set up my board the same way I would set up my smaller 95L Grip 3, back strap at the back inserts, front straps one from the front, so quite a wide stance. The board looks very short with a lot of the volume packed in around the middle of the board and the nose, the tail was still pretty normal size, so I knew it should turn pretty good! On launching, there was way less wind than I thought and a lot more swell, maybe head to logo high on the bigger sets and a quite heavy inside section. Basically going off if you could catch one!! Getting out through the break still required some skill as you still had to balance and generate wind in your sail to punch over the bigger sets, but once out the back, I was able to easily work my way into any wave I wanted.During my first few waves, I wasnt really prepared for the extra volume in my rails but after 2-3 waves, I soon realised that if you generated enough speed down the line, that volume and thickness from the mast track forward helped to hit some good aerials and land smoothly. I reckon I had a few of my best aerials in conditions normally reserved for either surfing or very marginal winging! I love winging, but it is not even a patch on wave sailing, so if there is a chance to ditch the wing, I will take it!! This board was outside of my allocated sponsored rider allocation, so I had to lay down the $$ for this board, so was it a worthwhile investment? Oh yes!! Suddenly thanks to this set up, Windguru 1* forecasts are nowfirmly on my radar!https://www.duotonesports.com/en/uk/windsurfing/boardsThe post GO BIG OR GO HOME: TIMO MULLEN appeared first on Windsurf Magazine.