Name: Aleksy Gayda Weight: 7 ½ stone Age: 14 yrs old

During the UKWA event in Ireland, we spotted a very tiny wave board at the beach that belonged to one Aleksy Gayda. Lecky (as he is known) is a 14 year old windsurfer who reads waves and rips them up with the experience of someone well above his tender years. We were intrigued by his obvious custom board so we dragged him off the water and forced him to tell all.

So did you wake up one morning and say, ‘dad I need a custom board’!
Not exactly!! It was actually my sponsor (Goya importers Zero Gravity) that approached me about it. I was starting to get some decent photos on windy, wavy days but I was on the wrong kit as my smallest Goya board (68 litre) was just too big when it got to 4m weather. This was no good for the magazines. When Zero Gravity understood this, they got straight on the hotline to Maui and spoke to Francisco himself about getting me a Goya custom.

Was it designed specifically for you?
No, it was originally made for a sailor of a similar size to me called Kalani Hunt who lives on Maui and is also the son of Doug Hunt, the first sailor to land a backloop in the 1980’s! It was re-sprayed and then Brandon Bay sail repairer, Rob Jones, brought it back after his holiday there at Christmas. So I didn’t get my hands on it until the UKWA wave event in Ireland this April.

What are the board’s dimensions?
45 litres, 47cm wide, just under 2m long and with a 19cm MFC fin.

So how does this board fit into your collection?
I have a 85 litre Goya ONE board for freestyle and then I’ll use my Goya 68 production for wave riding down to 4.4m weather then I’ll switch to the custom board for winds stronger than that, which is around 25knots upwards. Rob Jones did take it out in super windy conditions in Ireland and loved it so it can be used by full size sailors!

How does it feel for you on the water?
I’ve only had one day on it at Inch in Ireland and it was fairly marginal winds but I wanted to give it a go. The waves, however, were perfect so once I got on one; it was really smooth and so much easier to get aerials. It did feel small and certainly when the wind dropped, it was a total sinker.

So what are you windsurfing goals this season?
Well obviously to compete on the UKWA Junior wave tour and do the best I can and get better at looping, get better at aerials and in the waves generally. I will do freestyle if there are no waves and I’ve got my first spock now which is a good move to have on the Junior tour. In terms of trips away, we are taking out family summer holiday to Tenerife in August which will be great and I’ve just got back from Ireland which was, as ever, a fantastic event. However, my immediate aim is to get some decent photos on my new custom board for Zero Gravity who set this whole thing up for me in the first place – thank you Rik!

For more on Goya Boards visit Zero Gravity.