Spotlight on a Pro: Vidar Jensen
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Vidar Jensen (North/Drops) is one of the most consistent windsurfers on the world tour. For the last 10 years he has placed inside the top 10 PWA Wave Rankings, almost taking the title three times. Perhaps most famed for his |
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crazy one-handed, |
sometimes no-handed double forward loops (no joke!), we thought it was time to find out a bit more about the flying Norwegian.
How did you get into windsurfing?*
My school in Gran Canaria* had the option to learn windsurfing in gym lessons (handy!). I learnt on a Ten Cate 39 and then moved onto a F2 Lightning. My first short board was a Sunset Slalom that I had at the Aguila Playa Surf School which was owned by Bjorn Dunkerbeck’s father. From there we started going to Pozo whenever we could, often hitch hiking to the beach.
* Vidar is 34 and hails from Stavanger in Norway but moved to Gran Canaria when he was 10 years old.
 How did you get to know Bjorn Dunkerbeck?
We went to school together and then started travelling on the Tour together. Although now he has a wife and kids the travel arrangements are a bit different!
Does your friendship have an effect when you compete?
When we compete against each other, it doesn’t really piss me off any more or less than if anyone else beats me. I want to win against him just as much as he does against me. I can be pissed at other people if I lose; it is just part of the game.
What made you decide to get into competition?
As soon as I learnt I got really hooked on competition and being close to Bjorn and seeing him on the Tour, it seemed like the thing to do. So I had a lot of support from my parents and took a year off from school to see how it went. The first few years the results were slow, but I started getting some sponsors and gradually it came together.
What disciplines did you first compete in?
In the beginning, from 1990 – 1995, I did all of them. I was doing OK but not great because my size was not right for slalom and course racing, and without the right support/sponsorship it was tough. I dropped slalom and racing in 1995 and that was the first year I got a good result, coming seventh in the waves. Since then it has gone pretty good.
What are your strengths?
Everyone has a favourite and port tack is my stronger side. I lacked a bit with starboard tack jumping over the years, but I can defend myself on starboard riding. The best sailors are the ones who are best at everything.
You have been in the top 10 for years. How do you do it? The doubles?
For sure, the events that I have done well at, like Pozo in ’97, I was the only guy doing consistent doubles but now lots of sailors can do them. The key to being at the top is consistency and experience which ultimately makes you into a good competition sailor.
In 2001, 2003 and 2004 you have come really close to winning the wave title, what went wrong?
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2004: Last year we didn’t finish the event at Sylt (got down to the last 16 only) and I broke my mast in the final at Pozo. |
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2003: I was leading the rankings until the last day and then got pushed down to fifth overall in the double elimination. Bjorn, Josh Angulo and myself all had the same points, I just got unlucky. I don’t know if I will get a chance again, but I am pretty happy with what I have achieved. 10 years ago I would never have dreamed it!
2001: We had more events with more variation and I was also leading the rankings until the last day in Ireland. Everyone was calling for no competition because there was no wind but it picked up and I had a really bad day. I dropped down to fourth from almost winning it.
You were also doing well in Freestyle?
I did the Freestyle Tour from 1998 to 2002 but I was getting too old! It is really specialised now with very few of the guys doing the Wave Tour as well. But I enjoyed it and it kept my sponsors happy.
What are your views about the new moves they are counting in wave jumping (like shakas, & ponches)?
I think it is good that new moves are scoring high but they need to be done in a clean manner and done high to score well. For example, I don’t think that a 2 to 3 meter high air chacho should score as high as an 8 metre high backloop. But they definitely need to score these new moves and we need to see some changes. I started doing clew first forwards 10 years ago but they didn’t really count then.
What is your favourite move?
One-handed doubles! I put my hand back on half way through the first. I think the secret is when you start you can’t do it half half, you can’t pull out. You have to have the normal double really nailed and just have the balls to go for it and hope for the best!
Hope for the best?! Surely there is some other technique?
Ok, the key with doubles is that you need to control normal forwards in any conditions. Then you want to go really sideways in the move, not end over end. You have to put your back hand further back and pull a lot harder. Then even if you do not rotate twice you won’t land on your kit. You get a lot of speed in doubles, but I have never really got hurt.
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