The Shaka is a combination of a Shove-it and a Flaka – it is not one of the newest moves but is still one of the nicest to watch but also one of the most difficult to learn.  It was invented by Ricardo Campello back in 2002, it was and still is used in the freestyle arena today.  However, as with a lot of the freestyle moves the Shaka has made it in to the wave sailing arena in the form of a backside 360.

• The most important requirement for a good Shaka, especially without a piece of chop or small wave is a lot of speed.
• Then to start the rotation, carve hard and fast to windward by putting the weight is on your heels. Make sure you sheet in hard with your backhand by pulling the boom in and upwards (this is the Shuv It part).
• As you carve up in to wind turn your back hip into the sail and push your back foot down, this will allow you to pop the board (this is where a small wave or piece of chop will help). Your front heel should stay down to keep the board turning in the right direction to windward.
• Once in the air you can push downwards on your back arm to backwind the sail to give you some lift and help float you around the rotation.  It’s very important that you keep turning your head in the direction of the rotation, also try to think about turning your shoulders and body in this direction as well.
• Hold this position in the air as you rotate.
• As you come down you should land with the front of the board first providing you held that same position and kept your front arm straight.
• This part is much like the end of a Flaka providing you got the fist steps right! The end of rotation will happen naturally and you will just spin round!

Andy ‘Bubble’ Chambers K540 Multiple British Freestyle Champion with over 10 years coaching experience.  A regular on the World Tour and a well travelled windsurfer; Bubble has the knowledge and experience to teach all aspects of windsurfing from beginner to the most advanced freestyle moves on the planet.  Follow him on Twitter https://twitter.com/bubblek540

Life as a professional windsurfer is a dream for many, however as well as endless beaches and hours on the water, pro windsurfers work hard, travel with incredible amounts of gear and struggle to stay injury free. But how does the life of a professional windsurfer compare to other extreme sports?

Boardseeker talks prize money, equipment and crashes with UK Freestyle Champion, Andy Bubble Chambers, and O’Neill Pleasure Jam winner, Aimee Fuller. 

Aimee Fuller. Image courtesy of Red Bull content pool.

Name: Aimee Fuller

Date of Birth: 21/07/91

Sport: Snowboarding

Discipline: Slopestyle

Height: 5’3

Weight: 60kg

Best results: 2x 1st place O’Neill Pleasure Jam

Sponsors: Roxy Red bull Vans Level

Andy Bubble Chambers

Name: Andy “Bubble” Chambers

Date of Birth: 30/06/1983

Sport:  Windsurfing

Discipline: Freestyle and Waves

Sail/rider number:  K540

Height:  5’9

Weight:  75kgs

Best results: 5th PWA Sylt, 9th PWA Aruba, 3rd BWA Waves 2011, 2nd Tiree Wave classic 2011, Multiple British Freestyle Champion

Sponsors:  JP Australia Boards, NeilPryde sails, NP waterwear, Animal, Boardwise, Club Vass, K4 Fins.

Aimee Fuller practices on the jump at Red Bull Snow Performance Camp in Sun Valley, Idaho, USA. Image courtesy of Red Bull content pool.

Aimee: When I was 12 years old I hung up the skis and made the transition to snowboarding.

Bubble: When I was eight years old in Cyprus I used to stand on the beach with the sail and board, the fin dug into the sand and I would windsurf on the beach without going anywhere! I did that for two years before I was finally carried into the water still on my kit and just sailed off! Haven’t looked back since!

Aimee:  Things all happened very quickly, I was just riding for a laugh with friends and before I new it, I was sponsored by Roxy and competing; it was a dream so I am still shocked now to think I am doing something I love.

Bubble: It was windy everyday so I could go windsurfing straight after school, which meant I progressed really quickly. I started competing straight away because it was longboard racing back then. I didn’t start competing in waves or freestyle until much later.

Bubble in Cape Town. Image credit Line Wittrup.

Aimee: I guess last season. 2011/12.

Bubble: I became a pro in 2004.

Aimee: Just snowboarding, that’s what pro means…. in our sport. You are making a living from it!

Bubble: Teaching windsurfing at Club Vass, bit of prize money, selling my equipment and a bit of event money from my sponsors.

Aimee: It depends on the events. Prize money varies soo much from event to event and the star level of the contests. I’m not riding for the prize money, I am doing it for myself, if you ride thinking of the money it doesn’t work. You gotta be in this game for the right reasons.

Bubble: At the PWA events the prize fund for the men is 35,000 Euros. Which is split amongst the top 20 with 1st place taking about 18% of the total which is about 6,300 Euros and it goes all the way down to 20th place taking about 1.65% which is about 577 Euros.  It all depends on how many events are on, last year we had seven events so there was potential for the the guy who wins all of them to make about 45,000 Euros. Last year we had three events! So not a good year for money!

Aimee Fuller. Image courtesy of Red Bull content pool.

Aimee: This year is going to be mental. World cups, Xgames and TTR events , I’d say between 8-12 contests; there is pretty much one every week throughout the winter!

Bubble: There was seven last year on the PWA Tour, then you have four UK Wave events, six UK Freestyle events, European freestyle events.  There is potential to compete in a lot of you can get to them all!  Last year I competed at all three PWA Freestyle events which were in Austria, Fuerteventura and Germany.  Also the UK wave tour, freestyle tour and  European Tour event as well but only because it was in the UK!  Usually the events spread across the globe from Vietnam to the Caribbean places like Bonaire and Aruba.  Also lots around Europe and the Canaries.

Aimee:  All over, currently I am on a plane back to the US having just been in Canada. I’ve already been to the US three times this season. On the schedule coming up we have Germany, Russia, Switzerland, the US, France, Spain, Czech and back to the US; it’s a whirlwind but a fun one!!!

Bubble: I train a lot at the event sites as I think it’s good to get in tune with the conditions where we will be competing, also it pushes you a bit more having all the other sailors and media around.  I also train wherever I am if it’s windy! A lot of the summer is spent out at Club Vass in Greece and the last couple of years I have been finding some great sailing spots in the UK.  During the winter months I tend to head out to Cape Town where I can train everything from waves to freestyle.

Bubble at the EFPT in Weymouth. Image credit Global Shots.

Aimee: As much as possible injury and weather permitting four hours a day, four to five days a week.

Bubble: All depends on the wind!  If it’s windy everyday, all day then I will sail for as long as I can, which could be five to six hours a day.  Most of the time it’s just on the water.  Off the water it would be more on the fitness side.  Surfing and SUPing really help with your fitness levels and wave knowledge.

Aimee: For the actual practical side of snowboarding I head abroad, the dry land I do in the UK; I trampoline, cycle and do strength and conditioning sessions with Red Bull performance. It’s fun to mix it up! And it’s nice to be home.

Bubble: In previous years it was mostly abroad but more recently I have been spending more time in the UK.  I still travel a fair amount though!

Aimee Fuller does her morning warm up at Red Bull Snow Performance Camp in Sun Valley, Idaho, USA. Image credit Red Bull content pool.

Aimee: Canada. Retallack BC, waist deep powdaaa!

Bubble: My favourite conditions can be found in lots of places! It all depends what I want to do at the time.  At Club Vass it offers warm wind and water with an amazing atmosphere on and off the water.  Cape Town offers the waves, wind and some great freestyle spots.  The UK also has some amazing spots for training on the flat water or in the waves as well.

Aimee: Two boards, and then just all the other gear that you need for the hill.

Bubble: When travelling to events it’s usually around two boards, six to seven sails, five to six masts, three to four booms and all the other bits.  Going for a trip or training somewhere like Cape Town I would usually take a wave quiver of boards and sails and a freestyle quiver, so usually double the amount that I take to events!  Oh and a surfboard as well!

Aimee: It always stays the same, other than an extra layer or two to keep warm!

Bubble: If I got to a freestyle event I will only take freestyle gear and the same for a wave event. Like I said above if I am going somewhere to train I take everything!

Aimee Fuller poses for a portrait at the O’neill Pleasure Jam in Ramsau, Austria on November 10th 2012 // Lukas Pilz/Red Bull Content Pool

Bubble with his board and K4 fins in Cornwall. Image credit Simon Crowther.

Aimee: Bruised heels, broken coccyx, broken collar bone, torn rotator cuff. All knocks and bruises here and there but the bruised heels actually had me out for the longest, a solid five months.

Bubble: Usually my injuries occur when I am off the water! Whilst on the water most of the time it’s just been the odd knock, bump or sprain but nothing major.  A lot of the time it’s getting cuts which don’t heal because of being in the water everyday, after a week they just become massive craters which you then have for months.  Most of the time you get them on your feet and they always end up right where your footstraps go, so in the end you can end up having to stay off the water until they heal properly.

Aimee: Every way…

Bubble: Usually it’s the most simple of crashes that end up hurting the most! A good hooked in catapult is a classic for giving you a hell of a smash!

Bubble

Aimee: Bruised heels.

Bubble: Ankle sprains, broken feet, cuts, bruises, ligament damage in the knees.  Mostly though it’s just the pride that gets hurt the most!

Aimee: Backflip to face plant wasn’t my best manoeuvre!

Bubble: When we were at an event in Vietnam the wind was taking it’s time to fill in so me and a few others went out for a wobble to see if we could get going. On the way back towards the beach, (still wobbling at this point) I suddenly see people coming out of the restaurant on to the beach all pointing and looking in our direction.  Next thing I see is a fin come up out of the water by another. Turns out to be a very big tiger shark just cruising up the coast in between us and the beach! That was too close for me!

Full Gallery:

For fans of watersports then this video will quench your thirst, it includes some nice action from Kai Lenny as well as the XXL surfing awards and mark our words, there is some serious eating it in there!

Lastly, this cool one with a nice sound from the wakeboarding scene.

Good news, we are all still here. Even better news, Boardseeker brings you a healthy update this morning. Check out the action that went on around the world in the last few days before the apparent end of days.

Jason Polakow and Robby Swift report in with this edit from their recent trip to Chile. Outstanding action.

Up next is one for spanish listeners or just fans of top level windsurfing. Having featured in our afternoon news section yesterday, Gollito now stars in another movie which shows off the champions that have come out of Venezula.

Something esle of high quality is this sweet looking website from the Austrian slalom sailor Marco Lang, keep up to speed with the Marco as he progresses on the 2013 PWA tour – www.marco-lang.com.

More from the five times World Freestyle Champion, Gollito Estredo. Team QSW recently hooked up with Nik Baker to interview the freestyle champion himself, if you’ve ever wanted to find out what goes on inside the head of Gollito then this is one of the best chances.

Finally for those interested in the European Freestyle Pro Tour, it looks like the calendar for next year is beginning to appear on their website. So far just a couple of events but rumour has it that there is quite the potential for 2013. Check it all out here – www.efpt.net. Whilst you are there be sure to take a look at the nominees for the European Freestyle Pro Tour Rider of the Year and get your votes in. For the UK we have Adam Sims and Andy ‘Bubble’ Chamber nominated, a fair chance for a Brit to hit some pretty decent headlines. Obviously there are also a few others in contention…

Until this afternoon.