We jumped at the opportunity to speak to these two and got a few words off them below…

Max Rowe

BS: Brazil is certainly one of your favourite spots, what keeps drawing you back there?
MR: Yeh I love it out there! Well for a start its windy everyday I dont have to take bigger than a 4.7 which is nice. Its just a really nice lifestyle out there as well, very relaxed, nice people, surf etc.
BS: You are busting out some pretty technical and power moves in this video, how necessary do you think it is to have these in your arsenal for competition this year?
MR: Cheers. It would be great to do a lot of those moves in heats but unfortunately it wont be that easy. I’ve been training them in the chop as well but its lot harder to do them in all conditions but hopefully I can manage a few.
BS: You are now in cape town, are you keeping on focus with intense freestyle training or are the waves grabbing your attention?
MR: My main focus here is the waves for sure, trying to learn to jump properly. There’s quite a few freestylers out here so I do keep on top the training for that. I’m off to Maui after here so think it could be pretty distracting out there!!!

Josh Willmot

BS: A different style of edit for you, yet another step up, what’s the plans for 2013 with filming, anything in the pipeline?
JW: Cheers. The next video will probably be a collection of footage from the last 6 months or so featuring Adam Sims so that should be fun. It would be nice to do a web edit from the UK thats not a competition, maybe wave sailing, maybe in the South West or Scotland. Other than that there could be something happening which would be epic but have to wait and see on that one for now.

BS: Have you considered a feature length film on freestyle windsurfing?
JW: Haha it would be cool to do but I think for me personally web edits are the way forward. You need a lot of skill, time and $ to make something that keeps people entertained for more than the length of your average web video. I’ve always wanted to see a film following the pro tour and the story that goes with it.

BS: Where do you see action sports film progressing, can it step up further, are there tricks of the trade that many windsurfing films miss out on or is it as much about the moves as it is the edit?
JW: I’m sure it will keep moving forward just like freestyle has. Brain Farm (The Art Of Flight) are producing a skate film and I’ve seen pictures of crazy motorised crane rigs chasing skaters around so that will probably be next level! If anything it’s probably more about the action and tricks than the edit but for sure you have to have a good balance between the two.

Opening this featurette is none other than Philip Koester who has been nominated alongside the likes of Sebastien Vettel in the category of sports personality of the year by the German channel – Sport1. It’s a pretty big achievement to just reach that short-list, let alone win it, so Koester will no doubt be elated with the result so far. To check out all who are in contention head over to this link here, where you can also cast your vote.

Koester doing what he does best!

Heading on to flat water and over to UK freestyler Max Rowe, recent news snippets tell us that a video from his trip to Jeri is on it’s way and that Blacklab’s very own Josh Willmot will be producing the goods. We are pretty excited to see the outcome, after some of Josh’s recent clips. Rowe also seems pretty stoked to have made it into the new North brochure with this awesome Chachoo shot.

Transfers are hot news around this time of the year and it is not too much of a surprise to see them coming in, however Ben van der Steen’s move to Gaastra seemed to have caused a bit of a stir, but by the sounds of it he is happy with the change and looks forward to less time actually testing and more time tuning his kit to enable him to grab the world title that he is so close to.

The last of the news today comes from the MTB scene. The Athertons are highly famous in the world of mountain biking and alongside their sponsors Red Bull, they’ve teamed up to produce this little masterpiece.

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Today we open with a bit of quality. We have followed the progress for the Ghosts of Speed Movie from the beginning and now their official trailer is out and the full video has hit the shelves in a number of stores. So if you like what you see then head on over to www.gosmovie.com to find out how you can get your hands on it, or you can hold fire until the 15th January when there will be a digital download copy online.

Neilpryde have been making headlines with their racing series and now with their 2012 tours wrapped up they have released this final report from the events and the support of the tours from Jaguar. What’s more they are looking forwards to an even stronger tour in 2013, so watch this space.

Over on the PWA World Tour many riders are still awaiting the much anticipated 2013 tour calendar, in the meantime the press officer remains busy as he realeses this nice interview with one of the top Fanatic wave sailors – Leon Jamaer.

Up next, these aerial freestyle moves are reaching insane new levels lately. Many were wondering about the progression after many new moves were invented in the last couple of years, well put those thoughts aside as it looks like air and style is in the house. After posting the air Kabikuchi from Jacopa Testa yesterday, UK freestyler Max Rowe threw this out there!!! Hugo De Souza is making quite a name for himself as he launches in to breathtaking moves which even the likes of Gollito struggle to perform. However, the struggle is really on Hugo as he desperately seeks the sponsorship needed to attend some of the PWA events next year. Here you can help towards making this dream become a reality by donating on a webpage created for him by the Swiss freestyler, Loick Spicher. Just to help convince a little further, a recent video of Hugo in action.

For those who are a fan of the popular Wapala mag, the latest issue has now been released with a round up of water-sports action that took place in November. Check it out.

To wrap up the morning update, we couldn’t wait until this afternoon to show this, so we are switching things around for today. Surfing also just hit a new level, double aerial moves, why not!

I’m currently out in Brazil for my annual voyage, which I am now making for the fourth year in a row. When thinking about other options earlier on in the year of other places that could contend with what Brazil has to offer I really couldn’t think of any for this time of year.

That is why I’m back out here again and after being here for almost a week I still haven’t rigged bigger than 4.2. Along with the amazing wind which is always a given out here we’ve also had some of the best swell ever experienced for this time in the year.

Photos: Bethany Mercer.

Situated in the North East of Brazil in the state of Ceara just four hours from Fortaleza, Jericoarcoara A.K.A Jeri has become a must visit location for many freeriders, aspiring wave sailors and freestylers alike. The season runs from September to January with the windiest time being the early part of the season and the wavier part towards the end. I can honestly say out of all the places I’ve been in the world in terms of reliability of wind then nowhere even comes close.

Jeri

The conditions

The tide plays a big part in the conditions that you can expect in Jeri during the day. If you imagine the spot as a point break, the higher the tide gets the waves start to increase, this also means there’s a wind shadow created by the point. However if you sail past the breaking zone then there’s plenty of rolling swell to play in. Then at low tide you will get much cleaner wind, normally with smaller waves. This is the perfect time for freeriding and freestyle as you get amazingly flat areas of water in between the small and perfectly peeling waves and then great bump and jump conditions on the way out. It’s worth mentioning that even in a big swell the waves are pretty forgiving and whilst satisfying for the wave sailors you’ll never find yourself in too much trouble. As far as wind strength goes then the fact that for my last two trips out here in October/November time I haven’t packed bigger than 4.7 can tell you a lot. Everyday the wind starts around 9am but doesn’t fully kick in until around 10pm but will then lat the entire day. My board quiver for this year actually exceeds my number of sails and I’ve got packed the 2013 Fanatic Quad 75. Tri-wave 86 and the Skate 89, which has been working perfectly for me. When the swell is lacking there’s always the option of heading upwind to the wave beach of Malhada where at mid tide you’ll find some nice cross-on wave conditions

Jeri

Getting there

When travelling from Europe your easiest option is to contact the travel agents Sportif http://www.sportif.travel. These guys can arrange everything for you, which will definitely be the easiest option if you’re planning on renting kit. The main centre on the beach is Club Ventos which sits right on the prime spot, the centre is fully stocked with loads of up to date kit including surfboards and SUPs. If you’re planning on going through the process of booking it all yourself then the easiest flight option is with TAP via Lisbon however if you plan of taking kit then you’re much better off booking with TAM. TAM fly from many cities in Europe either via Rio or Sao Paulo and though the flight time may be a fair bit longer and the hassle of re checking your bags in Brazil can be frustrating the excess policy is second to none. With TAM 2x Bags of 32kg is accepted regardless of the length under your normal allowance, which means unless your planning on taking a small centre out there then you should be well clear of any excess baggage charges. To give you an idea of how much gear that is including clothes my Girlfriend and I had packed in our 4x bags of 32kg were 4x boards, 5x sails, 6x masts, 3x booms, 5x extensions and 4x UJ’s. Again if you do take your own kit then your best bet for storage is at the Club Ventos centre where you’ll be the closest distance to the water. If you’re booking your own transfer then contact Jeri Viagens a Jeri based company that specialise in airport runs.

Jeri

The town

The small town of Jericoacoara is full of South American charm from its brightly coloured walls, hand painted shop fronts, sprawling fuchsia flowers and donkeys roaming the streets. It is a National Park therefore you can’t build any concrete roads or obtrusive housing therefore the entire town consists of sandy roads and little Brazilian pousada’s; it’s exactly how you would dream of a picturesque Brazilian fishing town. The town never seems to sleep or stop with windsurfers up early to catch the best wind and tide, buzzing all day throughout the sunshine with music blaring from bars and restaurants. The town then becomes alive in the evening with capoeira dancers on the beach during sunset, rum carts lining the entrance to the main streets serving drinks with every ripe fruit imaginable and forro dancing only getting started in the early hours of the morning. There is something here for everyone whether you want to relax in a hammock, try the Brazilian cuisine, windsurf all day or party all night.

Accommodation

The town is full of various options but the best bet will be to go through your travel agent to get the best idea of where to stay. If you are doing this trip for a few months then it’s worth booking somewhere online for a few nights then searching locally when arrive for the best deal.

Jeri

What else is there to do?

If you’ve got some energy left after the windsurfing then there are plenty of options to keep yourself entertained in Jeri. The SUP and surfing conditions can be about as idyllic as they get with the point being sheltered by the wind you can still get some glassy waves even when its blowing 30+ knots on the outside. The waves are small but long and using a long board or a SUP you definitely get the most out of them.

If you dabble with the dark side then even though kiting is banned at the main point there’s a beach a few minutes down wind that Club Ventos offers a taxi service too.

Along with the obvious watersport side to the town there’s many other excursions to keep everyone entertained including horse riding and buggy rides through the dunes. Club Ventos also offers a best of both package where you can check out their other centre in Icaraizinho.

Top Tips

• Try an Acai. You’ll never regret it and will possibly become addicted for your entire stay.
• Head to Pousada do Mauricio’s during happy hour (6pm) to make the most of the free snacks and amazing vibe.
• The local fruit is amazing especially the papaya’s and Maracuja’s
• Head to the baraca’s (rum carts) in the evening to sample some caiprinhas. The best cart is Rodolfo Drinks.
• Watch the locals doing their Capoeira on the beach. (dance fighting)
• Ignore the man wearing the metal skirt shouting at people with a megaphone. He’s crazy but will make you a very nice ash tray out of a coke can.
• Try the cans of Guarana.
• Don’t pack a wetsuit unless you want to cook yourself.
• Where sun cream!!!!
• Head up the dune for an amazing view of the town to watch some of the most incredible sunsets.
• Look before you gybe (It can get busy out there)

Max Rowe joins Boardseeker to guide us through September in his ultimate year. Max is back on home soil and looking forward to some incredible sessions at his home spots.

Max Rowe

For the feature this month I’ll be looking into it all a bit differently. This is because for September I’m going to be concentrating on my favourite freestyle spots around England. The main reason for this is the last two years I’ve been at home in September, the conditions have been absolutely word class. I’m really hoping that the last comment doesn’t jinx it as I head back to the motherland!

I’ve decided that the easiest way to do this is to go through the spots in order of my personal preference, however please bear in mind that this is biased due to the ease of getting there from either my house in Colchester, Essex or my other frequent residence, my girlfriend’s house very close to Chichester.

Photos: 2xs

Hands down one of my favourite freestyle spots from across the world this place really is in a league of its own when it comes to freestyling in the UK. “The Trench” has rivalled some of the best freestyle windsurfing spots I’ve visited; which is why it’s sitting firmly at the top of my table. What makes it so special is the sandbar that forms at low tide forming what we’ve dubbed as “The Trench”, It sits perfectly across the wind in a South Westerly and various parts of it will work in anything from a dead South to dead Westerly. I’ve even sailed it in a Northerly and it was still epic. Whilst waiting for the tide you can often sneak in an epic wave sail, which is one of the big things that compliments this spot even more. The trench will appear around two hours either side of low tide depending on whether it’s springs or neaps, the ultimate session is of course during spring tides at the lowest of lows and on this day it really shines.

Now time for one my local spots, which I discovered thanks to the legendary Dave White. It’s just down the road from Brightlingsea in Essex and can provide some epic conditions for freestlye, bump/jump and speed. It will only work at high tide and is best two hours either side. The wind blows onshore on to the beach fifty metres past the campsite and to the left hand side a big lagoon will form as the tide comes in. It works best on the highest high but is still seriously flat on most high tides, it just means it a bit less sheltered when it is fully high. Again it works best in a South West but is sailable in anything from a S-NW. One of my favourite things about this spot is fact you can sail from mirror flat water straight into the rolling swell.

If you drive on to Hayling Island and keep to the right you’ll come across an Esso garage which if you turn right at immediately afterwards you can find another top class freestyle spot. To be honest the best thing about this spot is the fact it works at high tide, which compliments “The Trench” beautifully. You need to get the tide pretty right here as at low tide there’s no point making the sharp long walk out and at fully high the water state can be a complete mess. In-between neaps to springs you’re pretty much guaranteed some flat water either side of high tide. The wind blows dead onshore in a westerly, which means you can sail parallel to the shingle bar but in a SW it still works extremely well.

Another on of my locals but one I very rarely get a chance to sail at. The Ray is well renowned for the speed potential, but of course anywhere that’s flat instantly has a massive potential to be a top freestyle spot. It’s a hell of a long walk and only works for a few hours but it is I00% worth it. Again it’s a spot that can only be sailed at fully low tide. Watch out for the seals!!

So that’s it for my top four favourite freestyle spots in the UK. Obviously some will argue Weymouth, West Kirby etc should deserve a mention but from my neck of the woods I Haven’t sailed those spots enough.

Check out the full Boardseeker beachfinder to explore more of the top UK freestyle spots

• Beachseeker: Top freestyle spots