With an absolutely stonking forecast for the coming days, the BSA Slalom event at Portland Harbour promises to be an incredible one. Hosted by the OTC and Puravida, there will be stacks of great demo equipment to try. The first event of the year at Hayling Island saw no result, so it’s all to play for going into this second round of Slalom.

Plenty of wind this weekend in Weymouth...

To celebrate the launch of the new collaboration between the OTC and PuraVida (more details here), there will be a huge party on Saturday night to kick off the new venture. Local band ‘The Cheapshots’ will rock the party tent following a big BBQ. For any non-windsurfing family/spouses, the OTC will be running taster sessions at an incredible £5 per person! The perfect way to get into the sport…

OTC Centre manager Kev Greenslade, will he take victory this weekend?

Heralded as an event open to anyone, the Boardskillz crew have big plans for the next Northumberland Wave Slam. When the conditions are forecast to deliver, a wave event will be held at the most suitable location. Last year the competitors scored great jumping and down-the-line riding at Mouth of Budle Bay.

For 2012, the organising team have some great prizes from the likes of K4 Fins, Animal Wetsuits and Neil Pryde Harnesses. The best part is that some of the prizes will be raffled, so you don’t have to win to walk away with a prize! The judging has also been vamped up this year with Pro sailors, including Steve Thorpe, confirmed to attend as judges.

The last event saw sailors coming from as far and wide as Aberdeen and Yorkshire, so if you are in the region and think you’d like to join the fun event, check out the website HERE.

You can also get in touch via email: enquiries@boardskillz.co.uk

Making the most of the Easter break, Tim Gibson, Dave Coles and Chris Bond travelled to Holland to fine tune some new equipment and compete at the Dutch Open. Following some great training on the mirror flat waters of Brouwersdam, the trio headed to the event site near Amsterdam for some Formula and Slalom action.

The trio test their new gear on Dutch waters

To read the full report, head over to the UKWA website by clicking here.

Top Tushingham/Starboard rider Muzza has been out in Hawaii for the Starboard photoshoot and some product testing. Join him now for a candid look at what windsurfing means to him and the ‘tough life’ he’s been living on Maui! While some of the dialogue may seem familiar for anyone who’s seen ‘The Windsurfing Movie’, be sure to check out some great action from Muzza!

Making the most of some wet and windy conditions, Aleksy Gayda is ready to take on the Pro fleet in the 2012 BWA season. Check him out in action using his new Firelight sails.

Keep up to date with Aleksy’s latest news on his blog by clicking here.

Saturday night saw the launch of the Dahab Watersports Festival. Coinciding with a massive beach party, the windsurfers took to the water to provide a Tow-in exhibition for the huge crowd. Big names in attendance were World Freestyle Champion Sarah Quita-Offringa, Jamie Drummond, Maarten van Ochten, Arriane Aukes, Alex Seyss and lots of the local sailors.

World Champion Sarah-Quita Offringa launches a Funnell

Towed behind a ski boat, the riders disappeared into the darkness before being whipped into the spotlight to perform big moves. Lots of Funnell variations were landed, with Maarten van Ochten and Jamie Drummond launching big Burners to end the spectacle.

Gear lines the beach at the Dahab Festival launch party

Monday saw the start of the freestyle competition. With 20 riders registered, the fleet consisted of sailors from the UK, Holland, Russia, Egypt, Germany and Switzerland. Blessed with solid 4.7/4.2 weather all day, the competition managed to advance through a single and double elimination.

The Judges in Baby Bay

In the single, Jamie Drummond advanced to the final to meet RUS-99, Vladimir Yakolev. In an extremely close final, Drummond managed to pull out the win, nailing a high Kono and Burner 900 to top the Russian’s double jumping moves on both tacks.

Winner Jamie Drummond throws a Shaka

The Double Elimination saw young Swiss sailor Loick Spicher battle his way through 4 consecutive heats to finish in a great third place. Yakolev managed to take him down, resulting in a mirror image final against Drummond. The wind picked up towards the end allowing the Brit to take the win on Day One.

Competition is scheduled to resume on Thursday and the forecast looks excellent, so the action will no doubt be massive once again!

Loick Spicher, 3rd Place

Results after one Single and one Double elimination:

1. Jamie Drummond, K-787

2. Vladimir Yakolev, RUS-99

3. Loick Spicher, SUI-19

Thanks to Dahab Holidays for all the great photos, make sure you check out the full albums on their Facebook page HERE. If you are thinking of a holiday to Dahab, definitely have a look at DahabHolidays.com to see what they can do for you; tailor made windsurf, kite and dive packages, accomodation, transfers and more.

Additional pictures by Gala Liubytska.

As one of the most successful Formula Windsurfers the UK has ever seen, Keith Atkinson is happy to announce a new sponsorship deal with Fanatic, North Sails and ION.

“11 x British Formula Windsurfing Champion and BBC South East Watersports Personality Keith Atkinson (GBR-56) has joined Fanatic, North and ION for the 2012 season, focusing on Slalom and Formula events.”

The Fanatic Falcon and North Sails Warp - Keith's new weapons for the racecourse

“Through testing, I am very impressed with the performance and unbelievable high quality of the equipment. The Warp sails and Fanatic Falcon board range offer fantastic ease of use, especially in overpowered conditions. I feel secure that the sails will give me incredible control when the gusts hit, and offer me great power in low wind conditions. I’m really looking forward to the start of the season”

Follow Keith this year through Facebook and his website: www.keithatkinson.com

Last Friday saw the ‘Round the Island’ race return to Hayling Island. Although the event saw very light winds, the turnout was fantastic, with over 100 competitors turning up to get involved.  Peter Hart was there to capture all the action, as well as speaking to the competitors and organisers, and taking a look at the history of the event.

Spring is here and Peter Hart is ready to give you the tune-up your windsurfing might need. Over to Harty…

“If you’re struggling to nail a specific move or are just a bit despondent at your general lack of progress, the root causes are usually the same. So on this course Harty, the ‘guru’s guru’, will take a holistic look at your windsurfing and address the details that will make a huge long term difference to your sailing. You can ask him to address a particular skill or you can just ask him to have a look and make you better! Whichever, you WILL emerge a better player!”

Harty with some happy students at West Wittering

Taking place in just a couple of days time, the clinic will be held at the fantastic South Coast location of West Wittering. If you aren’t nearby, hotels, B+Bs and campsites can all be arranged.

The Club
You will be the guests of 2XS and the West Wittering Windsurf Club. The facilities and beach set-up are spectacular. It sits within an immense swathe of undeveloped coastal plane. You rig up on grass. The clubhouse has tea cofee, wi-fi and classy piping hot showers.

Give your sailing a makeover with Peter Hart

The sailing area
The appeal of the sailing area is that it offers everything to everbody at different states of tide. At low water, the sea retreats behind a sand bar to leave a silky smooth, waist-deep ‘gybe-atorium.’ As the tide pushes, waves break on the banks and the more accomplished can strut their aerial stuff.

Running on the 13th and 14th April, the 2 days will set you back just £200, while the benefits to your windsurfing will be immeasurable! To book your place on the course, hurry up and contact Simon Bassett at X-Train via email: info@x-train.co.uk or by phone: 01243 513077.

Catering for windsurfers, kitesurfers, scuba divers and many more, the week-long event has something for everybody. With this year’s Dahab Festival fast approaching, we take a look at what’s in store for the windurfers.

Starting the festivities with a bang will be a tow-in windsurf competition on Saturday night. Launching from the Neilson centre from 8.30pm, competitors will be towed behind a ski boat before flying into some massive tricks in front of the crowd-lined beach. Last year saw World Champion Gollito Estredo grace the water as he launched into some awesome freestyle trickery. Gollito isn’t joining the proceedings this year, but word has it the local sailors have been putting in the practise and have some amazing moves up their sleeves. It’s a sure fire way to get the week off to a good start!

Night tow-in action at last year's event

Following on from the night tow-in, 5 days have been set aside for the Freestyle competition to allow the competitors to get the best from the conditions. Last year saw 18 competitors take to the water for everything from 4.2 to 5.3 weather. Phil Richards from GetWindsurfing.com won the single elimination and finished 2nd overall.

This year there are many of the top PWA freestylers training in Dahab, so the freestyle event should see a great turnout. Visitors such as Jamie Drummond from the UK, Maarten van Ochten, Laure Treboux, Alex Seyss and Loick Spicher, as well as many of the local sailors are all expected to compete next week, so the level should be very high.

Phil Richards in action

So, it is set to be a week full of action and the forecast is already looking good for the earlier part of next week. If you are heading out to Egypt be sure to check out all the goings on.

You can find out more info on the other events at the Dahab Festival by heading to the official website HERE.

Dahab Holidays have this to add:

“Don’t miss your opportunity to be part of the second Dahab festival of Culture and Water sports. Great windsurfing events, live music and big parties.  

Here is a sneak preview of what is happening:

Saturday 14th April – The opening party hosted by the Coralia hotel with the tow-in winsurfing spectacle. Plus Radio Sinai live and various DJ’s will get the beach rocking!  

Sunday 15th April – Start of the 5 day freestyle competition with local rippers and imported talent doing amazing stunts.

Friday 20th April – The biggest party and prize giving, with Radio Sinai live and special guests. Followed by a 48 hour desert dance party.

This year the festival will be even bigger than last year. Other events happening throughout the week include diving and free diving competitions, an underwater photo competition, a kite surfing long distance race and jumping competition plus free tasters. Free banana or inflatable rides, art workshops and live music from local and international bands to round off the day perfectly.
 
The festival is lovely for the whole family with the circus, face painting, baking and a kite making competition. There will be taster sessions in yoga, reki, zumba fitness, modern dance, belly dancing and massage. Plus  Bedouin dinners, culture exhibitions and a daily market.  The raft and camel race are great fun – not to be missed.  

Its not to late to book flights and accommodation.  E-mail: info@DahabHolidays.com for more details and quote ‘festival’ to receive 20% discount off your stay at the Lagoon Villa Apartments.
www.dahabholidays.com“

The new signing to Fanatic and North catches some nice shots at one of his local spots. While the waves aren’t as big as in his recent Magerhoarty video (check it out here), Mikey still launches some nice wave 360s and big loops. Check out the full gallery on MikeyClancey.com and don’t forget you can follow Mikey on Facebook too.

A great Double Forward sequence

Mikey launches a big backloop

]]> http://boards.mpora.com/news/mikey-clancey-scores-portmarnock.html/feed 0 http://boards.mpora.com/news/skyeboy-maui.html http://boards.mpora.com/news/skyeboy-maui.html#comments Fri, 06 Apr 2012 09:05:56 +0000 editor http://boards.mpora.com/?p=35618 The latest Brit to arrive on Maui for photoshoots, we catch up with John Skye and find out what’s happening on the North Shore…

As one of RRD’s principle riders and chief R and D testers, John Skye brings his sick wave sailing skills to the team. Flying out to Maui for the photoshoot season, Skyeboy has scored epic conditions every day since arriving in Hawaii. It’s a tough old life…

“I have now been on Maui for just over a week and it has been pretty epic. So far I have sailed everyday, including 2 or 3 mast high days. Its pretty standard out here, with the whole world turning up for their photo shoots. Everyone is ripping, so its fun both to sail, and also to sit on the beach watching the action. The photos we are taking are mostly on next years gear, so ‘cant give too much away yet, but in this shot you dont really see the sail!! Thanks to Jimmie Hepp for the photo.”

John Skye flying high...

The new gear certainly seems to be working for John if this massive Goiter is anything to go by! Make sure you keep up to date with John on his website HERE and keep an eye on the RRD website for more photos of the 2013 gear…

Jimmie Hepp is always capturing the sick action on Hawaii, ‘like’ his Facebook page to see his brilliant photos.

Joining the rest of the world’s best windsurfers in Hawaii, Timo demonstrates why he is one of the best wave sailors to come out of Ireland. Check out this awesome Wave 360 and follow Timo on Twitter for all of his latest news…

With the Olympic Games fast approaching, Bryony Shaw is putting in the training to ensure she can win that Gold medal. After winning Bronze in Beijing, Bryony is fired up and eager to improve on her success. In this video we have a bit of a glimpse at her training programme out in Spain and see what it takes to be an Olympic athlete!

Do you compete at a national or international level? If so, you could be in with a chance of securing yourself a prestigous two-digit sail number through the UK Windsurfing Association. While the application process is open to everybody, preference will be given to those regularly competing.

The numbers available are:

• 28
• 35
• 37
• 41
• 61
• 65
• 69
• 78
• 81
• 85

“The UKWA intends to issue these numbers to deserving members at a small charge of £50. These numbers are non transferable, therefore you are not entitled to sell them on, sail numbers remain the property of the UKWA at all times.

Whilst all members are entitled to apply for these numbers, priority will be given to those sailors who regularly compete on the National and International stage right across the disciplines. A UKWA subcommittee will decide who receives the numbers and its decision will be final.

Will Muzza be changing numbers?

Applications will close at midnight on 30 April 2012. A list of successful sailors will be published on Sunday 13th May 2012.”

If you are interested in applying for a number, follow this link to fill out the form.