Having just moved sponsors to Starboard, we caught up with Brian to ask him just what it is like to be a Pro.
It's brilliant!
Name the worst thing about being a Pro Windsurfer? Jealously. Sometimes people get jealous. You’re in the spotlight, people get envious and people react differently to you. That’s hard because I love people.
Have you ever lost your temper at a competition and why? I get stressed for a few mintutes, say after my heat, and think, ahh, I could of done better but then I stop as I want to feel the place, I want to absorb as much as possible and no ones wants to talk to you when you are upset. I have never cursed people or thrown things, that’s for sure.
Who has the best bottom turn in the business? Francisco Goya.
The action man on his NEW Starboard board
If you could nick a sailors move, what would it be? Mark Angulo’s wave 360. I remember seeing him do it years ago. It was so unbelievable in those days, it was never thought of and he did it.
When I was just a surfer and the first person I saw really ripping in the waves on windsurfing kit was Micki Eskimo. He blew me away. I suppose the innocence of it always gives it the most impact.
If you had to live in one country for the rest of your life and weren’t allowed to leave, where would it be? That’s a hard question. I’ve never stayed in one place for more than a month over the last 10 years! But I would have to say Barbados.
We love this shot!
Which is your favourite airline? Virgin Atlantic First Class. (Brian is sponsored by Virgin, stupid question!)
Did you pass your driving test first time around? I failed it 3 or 4 times! I didn’t get a driving license till I was 24 years old. I just didn’t drive, I used to walk everywhere at home and then I didn’t need to drive on Tour.
If you could turn Pro in any other sport, which would it be? Surfing.
What will make you give up being a Pro Windsurfer? Children maybe, I’d wouldn’t want to be travelling all the time then. But for now I’ll try to make money from doing what I love to do!
Donkey
of the month:
Lars Petersen
For breaking his ankle on a trip to South Africa whilst filming his new instructional DVD.
"It happened one week into my three week trip. I headed to Sunset Beach just outside Cape Town. It wasn’t classic; 5.7m sail and one metre waves. I was just pumping the sail down the face of a wave, trying to get the speed and momentum to go into a bottom turn.
I was having to lean really, really forward to keep it going and I suddenly hit some chop on the wave face and my back foot comes out and the board just stops. The sail pulls me forward and I let go but it projects me forward as well over the front of my kit with my front foot still in the strap. I thought, oh no, I’m going to fall in front of the equipment and the wave is going to push the equipment onto me – that’s all I was worried about. But in the water, I feel my leg is stuck and it’s getting tighter and tighter and I can feel my muscles tightening up. I thought, ok, a slight strain but then the wave comes and takes the board which twists my foot further before releasing it.
I came to the surface and I thought it’s not good but I would give it a few minutes in the cold water to see if I could sail again. The pain doesn’t go away, but I was sure it was just ligaments I had pulled. I felt small bumps of muscle around my ankle that had cramped up trying to protect the bones. I swam in and hobbled up to the car and thought, oh shit, that’s it, no more South Africa! But I drove the car home as it really was not painful; I’ve had a lot worse.
But when I arrived home, my foot just exploded and I went to the emergency room and I was very surprised that they told me it was broken.
I went to a few specialists out here and they gave several options of which the best was to have it operated on and put in a titanium plate with screws.
I am now off the water till May. It’s more important to get the DVD’s done than postpone them till May so I will now have to choose other riders to star in them as Lars Petersen is definitely out of action!"
Bad timing or what? We feel sorry for you Lars, but you’re still a Donkey!!
Sportif New Summer Brochure
Come on, isn’t it time you treated yourself to a week or two of warm, windy windsurfing whilst staying in a swanky hotel? Well Sportif hope you do as they release their Summer 2005 brochure.
Take your pick from the Greek islands of Kos, Rhodes & Karpathos as well as Turkey and Morocco. Or why not try the Red Sea, Spain and the Canary Islands, the Caribbean, Cabo Verde, Brazil, Mauritius or Maui.
Email sportif@compuserve.com or call Sportif on 01273 844919 for your copy of the NEW brochure.
Probably the world's best aerial
This download is the trailer for a new DVD called SPAM. It contains the best wave aerial we have ever seen, courtesy of Mr.Polakow.
The SPAM DVD is a follow up to BASIC WINDSURFING by Robert Sands which will be available in May and which we will review in the next issue. The completed SPAM DVD will follow in the early summer.
You will require the latest Flash Player for the clip below:
[184K Video Stream - Audio OFF]
Did you invent this move totally by yourself? Yes, and it took me quite a while to learn! First I was doing it in light winds, so I could just get the feeling of when to let go of the sail.
How long exactly?
To do this on my freestyle board in planing winds took me 5 to 6 months and still I am trying to do them more consistently.
What’s next?
Right now I do not have any move that I am trying, but I have some moves in my head that I will try once the wind picks up here in Bonaire (and they are top secret!!)
Thank you to everyone who voted in our online poll last month. We asked the question:
Where do you do the majority of your sailing?
Your answers were:
Inland
28%
Coastal Chop
38%
Coastal Waves
34%
Head-to-head at last!!
Will Bjorn Dunkerbeck outpace Finian Maynard on his new North Sails at the first speed event of the season?
Bjorn...
The battle commences as 120 sailors descend on Port St.Louis, near Marseille in France.
Bjorn v. Finian will be the main attraction but could Antoine Albeau, Dave White or Ben Van der Steen barge in on their fun and games? As for the women, well Karen Jaggi will attempt to fly back from Maui (a mere 20 hours of airtime) on the last day of the Hawaii Pro to join the other women, including France’s Marianne Tertian down the speed strip. Why not go and watch the action: Port St.Louis du Rhone, just west of Marseille from the 2-10 April 2005. Be there!
Sail on the sea in the bump & jump or round the back on the flat water lagoon. Try out the new Starboard Kombat, the Naish Vector and the AHD Pit with 05 Tushingham rigs.
Come the evening, head to the local bar to hear John Hibbard regale us with tales from the PWA Tour before taking part in the legendary Solent Sailboards Quiz. Tickets cost £3 and can be bought from the shop (Tel. 023 8089 4000) They will be £5 on the night, so buy now.
PWA Freestyle Champion, Ricardo Campello, is bringing out a DVD full of action from the man himself and his friends
like Kauli, Cheo, Konan and Robby.
It will be premiered at the Surf Festival in Ferhman and Lake Garda but it is still unnamed!
Ricardo has asked us to ask our readers to suggest a name for the DVD. So email info@boardseeker.com with your suggestions.
Once we get our hands on it, we promise you a full review!
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