Micah Buzianis:
Formula World Champion 2004

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Halfway to China?
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Package

Board

Sail(s)

What they say

What the testers said *

Starboard Z Class

272cm long, 100cm wide

70cm fin & daggerboard

10m and 8.5m Severne, 7 battens, 3 cambers

We wanted to design a board that would appeal to the widest range of windsurfers as well as meet all the ISAF Olympic board requirements.

Does the job, a good all rounder but dull to sail.

Mistral Prodigy Light

298cm long, 87cm wide

North R-type 9.5m, 7 battens, 2 cambers

The Prodigy is the hybrid of a long board and a formula racer covering wind speeds from 1 to 40 knots. (This board is lighter than production models)

Jack of all trades, master of none.

Maybe light but not very durable.

Could be the eventual winner.

Exocet Open 310

310cm long, 81cm wide

Sails East prototype, 6 battens, 2 cambers

The Exocet Open 310 offers incredible performances in the widest range of winds, bringing a truly new kind of board to the windsurfing world.

Uncontrollable in 20knot plus winds, but the fastest and most efficient board in non-planing winds.

PD Project Olympias

295cm long, 89cm wide, 65cm fin, 82cm daggerboard

North Warp Formula sail 10m, 8 battens, 5 camber inducers

I’ve changed almost everything with this board since the Garda Trials and it now works much better in non-planing winds

The fastest board in 15knots plus wind.

Most fun in strong winds.

Bic Sport Techno 293D

293cm long, 80cm wide

36cm fin

Bic Space Dog 9.8m

The Techno 293 One Design is the perfect board for this very demanding sailing format covering a wind range of 5-30knots. It is also the only production board at these Trials.

Great fun in strong winds but just wouldn’t make it around an Olympic course in non-planing winds.

Neilpryde Olympic Hybrid

279cm long, 92.5cm wide

Neilpryde prototype 10m and 8.5m, 8 battens, 2 cambers

This is not just a Formula board with a daggerboard! We have designed a longer, narrower board with a different nose and tail shape to the other designs which we think will work better in less than 8 knots of wind.

The closest feel to a Formula board.

Very close to the PD Project board for speed in planing conditions.

Looks the best.

Tell us about the board
“This has been called a hybrid board which windsurfers could relate to but could also be sailed around an Olympic course in the same wind strengths as the dinghies. Also we wanted to design a board that didn’t require you to weigh between 65 and 70 kg to be competitive on it. That rules a lot of people out.

This is half a formula board and half a race board. When planing the nose lifts out of the water and the board rides on its tail which is why we use a formula design at the back. When non-planing, the shape of the nose means you use the whole waterline length more effectively, like a hull of a dinghy, to glide the board upwind.

The bulge is to encompass the wide daggerboard which you need in the light winds. You can also use the bulge to rail the board by putting foot pressure against it.”

And if you are not chosen?
“This is already a production board. Regardless of the decision, we want to market a board that you can just windsurf in non-planing and planing winds. If they go with the IMCO, then a lot of brands will have put a lot of work into the hybrid boards and I can see a new hybrid class starting. In the future we would like to see all the top Pros from Formula and Raceboard competing together in this class.”

Click images to zoom

Click images to zoom

PD Project: Olympias, meaning “The Greek Wind”
Mini interview with the designer Patrick Diethelm

Tell us about the board
“I have changed nearly everything with this board since the last trials. The Garda board was perfect in planing conditions but in light winds it was too wide, you couldn’t rail it so it slipped sideways. So I made it narrower, (100cm to 89cm), much longer (295cm instead of 264cm). I changed the Mistral mast track for a Fanatic mast track which doesn’t shift as much. The bulge on the top was getting in the way when on a run or gybing the board so I made it is narrower and shorter. Now the board is perfect: not too wide, not too narrow, not too high!”

You have chosen a pure Formula sail which is no good in light winds as you can’t pump it. Why?
“Rubbish! Not all people agree, but I think the formula sail can be pumped effectively as long as you let the downhaul off which loosens the leech and allows the sail to “breathe”. And once planing, the formula sail is the best design, no doubt. So I have come up with an eight pulley system so you can adjust the downhaul very easily, even on the water.”

Who’s going to win?
"I don’t know. The hybrids are working in 8 knots plus and they look good. But under 8 knots, everyone still has a problem and none of them will have a chance against the IMCO. That will always win in light winds but the questions is, if everyone is on the same board, does that matter? As long as it can make it around an Olympic course then who cares how long it takes? If you want the best board to race in all conditions, then bring back the Lechner! That is way better than the IMCO. But we don’t want this, windsurfing is planing off the fin, footstraps, speed, we want equipment to represent this and it can all be done in 8 knots of wind. That’s not that much wind."

Are you keen to make a hybrid class like Starboard are?
"If it stays IMCO we will make a class for sure with this new hybrid equipment. We have to prove this class works with world wide events, structure, training etc. then we shall see for 2012."

Tell us about the board
"In Garda we had a pure formula board which had a few adjustments so it would plane a little earlier. To us, windsurfing is planing but ISAF said we had to find a board that would work as well in non-planing conditions. So we set out to design a hybrid board. This is a compromise rather than the most high performance set of equipment. But at least it looks like windsurfing.

Our board is longer and narrower. You need more length and less width to get upwind in light airs and with a 10m maximum sail width in planing mode it isn’t so necessary. Of course we had to add a daggerboard to give it directional stability in non-planing winds.”

Your nose is completely different than the other designs. Explain yourself!
"Other designs have a ‘V’ shaped nose that looks like a small hull. This gives them very little rocker along the centreline which is good but the hull shape means you are pushing water aside which we believe isn’t that efficient. We have gone for a flat, single concave nose which pushes water underneath it which helps to lift the board out of the water. It may slap into waves a little bit more than the ‘V’ nose but we think overall it works more efficiently."

As is your tail?
"Our tail is rounded to allow the water to flow along the rail and come together nice and smoothly before it is released. This means the board glides much better in lighter winds. A square tail would be like the back of a speedboat where the water is very disturbed and swirls around."

And what about the Neilpryde prototype sail?
"The RS4 we used in Garda was not so good to pump and was quite heavy in non-planing winds. So we have designed a 10m and 8.5m prototype, 2 camber sail which is softer, lighter and easier to pump."

What about the Patrik Diethelm theory of just letting off the downhaul of a formula sail and it pumps just fine?
"Yes if you are 100kg and have the weight and the power to bend the mast and therefore pump the sail. But between 70 and 80kg is too light. There is so much ‘grunt’, the power is so locked in on formula sails that I don’t think you can really get them pumping properly."

The Winner!! See STOP PRESS at end of article.

Click images to zoom

Click images to zoom

Exocet Open 310
Mini interview with the designer Patrice Belbeoch

How is the board shaping up at these Trials?
"In these force four winds it is going ok, but not the best board. This design comes into its own in light, non-planing winds which is what we will have in Beijing. We have widened the nose and made it slightly longer since Garda so it is even better in light winds. My design is a totally different concept than the others. For example, the Neilpryde design looks like a freeride board, others like formula boards with daggerboards."

Who’s going to win?
"I don’t know, but whatever happens we must make sure windsurfing does not get kicked out of the Olympics. If they pick some of these hybrid designs, they will not be able to go around the course. No races, no regatta and we’re out! My board is the best in light winds and tomorrow when we go to Queen Mary, this will be proved."

Bic Techno 293 D
Mini interview with Guy Chilvers (although retired from Bic, he is helping them out with this project)

Sell it to us Guy!
"Simple: ours is the only production board here. None of the other boards have gone into production. They are suggesting they can be made in ASA, which will add 4 to 5 kgs of weight to each board. So the test here is of no use as the final boards are going to be heavier. With the Bic, what you see is what you get: durable, low cost (approx 1500 euros for complete rig) with adequate performance. It doesn’t have to be the most technical board in the world. The IMCO one design was not the fastest race board it just happened to be a board that had a competition and training structure set up in many countries. We have sold 40,000 Technos, all over the world so our board is out there. We can modify the Techno within 2 weeks and have them rolling out the factory ready to go.

Can the others do that?"

Ok, Guy. But does it work on the water?
"You mean, does it work in 5 knots of wind? We weren’t at Garda so we shall see at Queen Mary, but we know it works with a smaller daggerboard with the junior one design. In light winds, on 205 litres, for sure the big guys might struggle. The sails we are using for these Trials are too heavy so if the board is chosen, we will change to a lightweight rig."

Click image to zoom

Click images to zoom

Mistral Prodigy

The Mistral guy was not there on the Friday so I got Nick Dempsey’s comments about the Prodigy and the IMCO.

"I know you’ll think I’m biased especially with a medal around my neck, but I still think nothing here will beat the IMCO in terms of working in 5-30knots. But if I had to choose one, it would be the Mistral Prodigy for general all round performance. The best sail here is the North R-type. Today we have been out in 20 knots holding down 10m sails. It’s not that pleasant but the North sail at least felt controllable.

The PD project board is good, parts of the Exocet are really good, but the Mistral Prodigy is the best all rounder."

Interview with Richard Jeffries: Chairman of the Evaluation Committee, Vice Chairman of the Windsurfing Committee for ISFA

Why change?
"The President, Paul Henderson, came to the ISFA Windsurfing Committee and said windsurfing at the Olympics wasn’t reflective of what was being sailed around the world. On his travels, what he saw was people NOT sailing IMCO. He saw them sailing shortboards, formula kit, freestyle etc but not IMCO. So we had the first Trials at Garda to see if anything could replace it in time for 2008."

So why a second Trials?
"At the trials in Garda, it was the first time we had seen these boards and it was clear they needed more work. We wanted to give the manufactures a two year working programme to work on the equipment but ISFA wanted the outcome a lot sooner. They wanted to see if a new board would work NOW, not wait another two years. So at this second set of trials we have to write a report again, recommending ONE package. This will then go to several committees and the decision will be whether we should change the IMCO to this new package. However we could say nothing worked so the IMCO has to stay."

No doubt there is a lot at stake and some manufactures will be disappointed.

Could the IMCO stay?
"Yes, the IMCO could stay but that debate hasn’t officially started yet. Some countries wanted a change but now they have won medals, they may not be so willing for it. A lot of countries also have a good IMCO training structure set up that will cost money and effort to change. Particularly in the smaller countries who have invested a lot of money in the IMCO programme. If the board does change, I’d imagine the IMCO will fall into the raceboard class so it won’t disappear completely."

What’s wrong with Formula?
"Four years ago, Formula was looked at the 2004 Olympics but it just wasn’t ready. It didn’t have its act together and a lot of the sailors came to the same conclusion. The equipment has developed so much and we tried it again in Garda. But the idea of being able to sail upwind in 5 knots was simply not going to happen, and it was apparent on the course on Lake Garda."

Slalom at the Olympics?
"Yes, we are going to recommend two slalom races alongside the course racing which you could run in fairly light winds, especially if it is pure downwind slalom. But the sailors will be on the same one design equipment as for the course racing. We could also recommend a minimum wind speed, like the 49ers class which need 7 knots of wind before racing is allowed. If we remove the one day on, one day off rules from the Olympic regatta, then that means we have almost two weeks to get a result."

When will the final decision be made?
"Over the weekend of 13 / 14 November 2004 at the ISAF Council meeting in Copenhagen. Each region has a certain number of votes, for example, North America has three votes, two for the USA and one for Canada. The decision will be theirs!"

There is a lot at stake not just between rival manufacturers but for the industry as a whole. Let's hope they make the right decision.