Note: Please keep in mind while reading this review that it is written by comparing sails which have 5 years of development in between them.

Visual

When you take a good look at the Legacy you see a few differences compared to the 2008 Wave SE and the current Tiger.

- The boom height indicators are missing
- The mast protector doesn’t come standard and there is a ring instead of a pulley. This is to reduce cost and keep the price low. You can buy these separately.
- The lowest part of the sail is the same X-ply as the whole sail instead of x-ply with a closer thread woven in between the layers of x-ply
- The Lowest part of the sail has a slightly thinner plastic reinforcement
- Also the material of the mast-sleeve is a bit thinner compared to the 2008 Wave Se and the Tigers.
- The batten pockets don’t have additional reinforcement on the outside which exposes the x-ply
- The battens are made of a different material which is slightly heavier but just as strong as the other battens.

Expectations

Before entering the water I did think about what the differences could be, because the sails are very alike on first sight. What can change in 5 years? There are a few additional differences I didn’t mention before:

- The sail uses a shorter mast
- The sail has a shorter Boom length
- Due to the more compact design the luff runs wider through to the top of the sail
- The sails are lighter in weight

I took a good look at the differences and thinking about them it made me expect:
 
- More power
- Better handling
- More stability

On the water

After days of no wind we got some wind in the morning so I got up real early to get the best wind at sunrise at “de zandmotor/ Kijkduin”. I was very curious on how the Legacy would be performing on the water. Unfortunately on this first session the conditions where far from epic with a chest-high chop, so it wasn’t a very good session for windsurfing itself. Nevertheless it was great to be on the water with my new sail!

My biggest concern was the strength of the sails. That concern was quickly laid to rest. In one of the runs I got “chopped” right out of my straps straight into the sail (5.2). No worries. Not a scratch!!

The sails are lighter in weight but they also feel lighter on the water and still give lots of power. I really experienced this another days when I was using the 5.2 in side onshore wind and waist to shoulder high waves. The shorebreak was pretty strong and the wind wasn’t . I would normally have taken my (older) 5.8 because with side onshore winds the waves are more messy and there’s more current in the same direction as the wind. You can not sail straight through the break so you need more power to get out, but I took the 5.2 just to test to see what happens. Surprisingly the 5.2 gave me the power I needed to get through! Behind the break it was great fun.

The day after I did take my (older) 5.8 in the same kind of conditions and I really wished I would have rigged the new 5.2!

Then I had a few days where the wind was very unstable, strong gusts and also big lulls. Testing the sails on these days is great because you can feel very well how the sail reacts on the gusts and your tuning. The ‘pull’ of the sail was very constant in conditions ranging from “just planning” till “almost overpowered”. In my experience:

- When “just planning” the pull is strong enough to feel it and make you plane.
- When “almost overpowered” you feel more pull, but it is not an unpleasant.
- When you’re really overpowered the pull is stronger but okay. You’ll have to work harder (obviously) but the sail remains stable and there’s no shifting of the pressure in your sail.

Tuning the sail works very well. Whenever the wind gets really strong you pull the outhaul and downhaul to the max and the sail can handle so much more! Also when the wind is getting weaker, you just release the outhaul a little and the power comes straight back. This makes the wind-range in which you can use the sail so much bigger.

The handling is really great! You can really feel the sail is much more stable compared to the 2008 Wave SE. In the turns the sail feels light and still gives more power, so my jibes and wavering is brought to the next level, the sail is so stable I can pay less attention to it and concentrate on the waves more… so this really helps in getting better and better.

To take this review to the right perspective, I am an experienced sailor at sea, I don’t do loopings and I’m currently very busy working on further improving my wave riding skills. If you want to read more you can check out my profile.

Conclusion
 
My conclusion on the Ezzy legacy’s compared to the Wave SE 2008:

- The sail feels much lighter
- Has more power in the low-end
- Provides better control in strong wind
- Tuning the sail provides a wider range of use which means less re-rigging
- More stability and better handling which is great for moves on and off the wave

Below is a short video impression of one of my recent sessions on my Ezzy Legacy. Enjoy!

On shore.

Both boards are great looking boards and we couldn’t wait to ride them. We tried to have a similar setup on both boards. The footstraps were placed in the forward position for easy planing and manoeuvrability and the (back) fins were placed in the centred position. The sail was placed around the middle of the mast track.

Jacco.

First impression

On our testing-day, I was already ripping for about 2 hours on my own gear, being well powered on 4,7 NP Atlas and the 82 Quatro Thruster LS, when we switched boards. So, waves up to logo high on the second bank and great windsurfing conditions to jump high and ride big. As I’m around 190cm and 85 kg’s the Quad LS 84 has an ideal volume for me. First feelings on the 84 Quad was ‘get-up-and-go’ and ‘lively’!

Straight line performance

Both boards are easy to sail. I found them ‘get-up-and-go’; not much time needed to get used to the boards. The Quad LS feels stable and a little wider when getting up from a beachstart. It goes onto plane quickly and feels lively under your feet. I used to sail Starboard Quads for the last three years and they feel more ‘planted’, I liked the dynamic feel of the Quatro Quad LS, which makes the ride light and responsive. The Thruster LS doesn’t feel much faster but as it tracks and locks better and feeling more in control I think it’s easier to go fast and push it harder to top-end speed as the Quad LS invites you to play around more.

Gybing

As the Quad LS is quite wide around the mast track, gybing is easy and comparable to the Thruster LS. Maybe the Thruster LS needs a little less attention to stay in the carve but it was no problem at all to gybe in the face of the wave and get out on full plane. Adjusting the arcs is easy, just put a little more pressure on the rail and the board turns on a dime.

Jumping

Both boards are great jumping machines but I guess in these conditions most other boards are too. Both boards get into plane quickly, just steer a little downwind and push on the front foot and the board quickly accelerates giving you a lot of waves to jump. Not much speed needed to get up high and I couldn’t find any differences in the air.

Wave riding

I felt the Quad LS is better in slow wave riding. As my Thruster LS wants to go full speed in the bottom turn and push the rails to carve to the top turn, the Quad is easier to ride on the back foot and turns tighter especially on low speed. I love to get on the bottom turn in good speed and going into the top turn both boards are super controlled and the fins grip real well and even when my weight was on the wrong spot and the boards slid, I never felt that the board was getting away from me.

Verdict

As I rode SB Quads for 3 years the reason to buy the Quatro Thrusters LS was just to try something new. If I had to change them to Quatro Quads that wouldn’t be any problem as both boards are easy to sail and fun to ride, maybe the Quad LS even a little easier when your focus is on wave riding and jumping. When riding in a straight line, the Thruster LS feels more controlled and at ease so maybe a better choice for guys used to single fin. Getting up in volume without loss on high end performance gives you a lot more waves, both in jumping and wave riding. On my weight the 82 and 102 Thruster are performing exceptional well. A 84 and 104 Quad LS, or even the 110 Quad would do the same trick.

Peter.

As mentioned before I’m a big guy (100kg). 84 and especially 82 are quite small for me. I love the Quad LS 84 though and can sail it as soon as I get properly powered up on my 5.3. The board works best for me when sailing either my 4.2 or my 4.7. I compared the Thruster LS and the Quad LS sailng my 4.7 Ezzy Elite.

First impression

Both boards look great. The Thruster LS is obviously a few litres smaller which makes it a little more challenging for me. The Thruster LS is also a little longer and has less width. I immediately noticed that the tail was a narrower. This will most likely makes it a bit more nervous when floating without speed.

Straight line performance

I could feel that the Thruster LS accelerates slightly faster then the Quad LS. It’s not by a huge amount but just enough to notice. The Thruster also feels faster. The board clearly has a more direct feel when sailing whereas the Quad LS feels more planted. Both boards have equal performance when going upwind.

Gybing

Wide gybes are fine and fast on both boards. I felt short gybes are a little bit more work on the Thruster LS. The Thruster LS gets less drive from the fins so it slows down slightly sooner.

Jumping

Both boards jump equally well. They both give great control in the air and make jumping great fun.

Wave riding

The Quad LS turns tighter and has slightly more drive from the fins. I’m used to trying to go has hard as I can into my turn with the Quad LS and still have control. With the Thruster I would accelerate fast and sometimes miss my turn. This made me have to slightly change my approach and try a bit more delicate sailing.

Verdict

Without a doubt both boards are great. I love sailing both and I wouldn’t mind if I owned the Thruster LS instead of the Quad LS for one bit. They’re both very accessible for riders of different skill levels. You can just get on and go. In my opinion the Thruster LS is clearly designed as an allround wave board. It will perform in all kinds of conditions. The Quad LS is aimed a little more at wave riding. It can do all the things you’d expect from a wave board, but it really comes to live when wave riding. Giving you a lot of control on the wave and enabling you tot turn on a dime.

Which board is best depends on your sailing preferences and sailing conditions. If you’re moving from a single fin board to a multi fin board and don’t have a lot of wave riding skills I would suggest the Thruster LS. If you’re already used to multi fin boards and/or want to further improve your wave riding skills I would suggest the Quad LS.

Tip: Quatro suggests to always take a slightly bigger board as their boards always feel smaller when sailing. I found this to be true. 82 and 84 litres is quite small for me. I’m lucky to have more then one board. Personally I would have to use a slightly bigger size if I only had one board (around 90 litres). I feel confident the fun I would have wouldn’t be any less though.

Next.

We have now completed the review of our small wave boards. Next we want to do a review of our XL wave boards; Thruster LS 102 vs Quad LS 110. Hopefully there will some nice conditions in the coming weeks to do so.

Special thanks to Jan Peter van Popta for providing the action pics!

NP Atlas 2012                                                               P7 Salt 2013

With some of my friends riding Point-7 sails I was eager to try out the new Salt, the opticly best looking sail in the P7 range. I cruised around for a couple of reaches with the set of a friend of mine, a powerwave Sado 5.8 in combination with a Goya 104 Quad and I got surprised by the quite light feel as I expected it to feel more heavy and grunty. I was really anxious to ride the Salt,  P7-ens 4-batten wavesail and compare it to my NP Atlas (2012). I got in touch with P7-Benelux and they lent me a Salt 4.8 and 5.6, a 4.7 Swag (3-batten!) and a 100% 400 P7 mast, just for testing, great!

Salt 2012 (Wissant april 2013)                             Salt 2013 (Wissant april 2013)

On the land;

I didn’t like the looks of the former editions that much but this sail looks great in my opinion and much better as the 2012 version. I love the contrast of the blue and black and fantasizing, maybe with a blank x-ply-window, probably even more! Unboxing it, the black clothing is glistering and looking like silk, smooth…Putting the mast in the 4,8, it just needs a little guidance as in my NP Atlas, and as I pulled the downhaul to the medium settings you can see the shape appearing in the sail with the pressure point more in the midde and between the hands. The NP Atlas and the P7 Sado have a more forward pull with a somewhat deeper profile closer to the mast. I increased the tension on the battens somewhat more and, with the boom attached and normal outhaul they rest over the mast. I used the 4,8 with the 400 mast which works fine but probably makes the profile a little deeper compared to a 370 mast, which is the recommended mast for this sail. In my NP Atlas I’m using the base of the 400 and top of the 370 to create a deeper and lower profile in minimal conditions just to increase early planing. Some other thing, the sail is definetly suited for taller riders as you can get the boom up quite high and about 10 cm higher compared to my NP Atlas.

On the water;

Light! The sail really feels light in the hands and that is what triggered me most in the first reaches. Looking up when planing I only saw a wrinkle between the top batten and below. I do have the same in my NP Atlas. Maybe with some extra trimming I could get that even better but I guess you won’t feel anything about that. I’m not so much of a tuner, I usually stick to one setting and only adjust that when the conditions really change. The lattens rotate without a problem or without a ‘bang’ of the sail. My Atlas is better in lowend and planes faster, but that is a powerwave sail and also feels more grunty in subplaning conditions. The Salt floats better and feels lighter in the hands, I can get used to that in low-wind-but-good-swell conditions! I tested the sail at Wimereux and Wissant yesterday in quite gusty conditions and with both my Quatro thrusters (102/82). The Salt handled big gusts great both in minimal as medium outhaul settings, breathing well and feeling easy and controlled and, well, quite effortless compared to my NP Atlas which needs more work and bodystrength to handle the power. During the afternoon-session yesterday at Wissant the conditions were hardcore, being overpowered and with choppy and 2m waves in the first hour it wasn’t easy for me to do smooth rides or loops but the sail handled it nice. The light feel is great in the bottomturns as the sail depoweres better as my Atlas. The last hour at midtide and falling, Wissant was magical, with waves cleaning and building up to 3m+ we had an insane last hour, laying down my bottomturns and hard carves in the topturn and that’s where the sail really works brilliant. I crashed a couple of them bigtime but the x-ply window handled that fine, it got bruised a little with some dimples in it but that’s what happens when surfing waves in these conditions. The monofilm of my NP Atlas is much more fulnerabe as I had to replace the window and tore some other panels also.

My conclusion;

P7 is cheaper compared to the ‘big brands’ and that makes it interesting. The Salt is a light, goodlooking 4-batten wave-sail with better highend capacities and better handling compared to my NP Atlas. The fact that I was able to test this sail and the quiver I was able to try (5.6/4.8 Salt with a 100% 400 mast and a 3-batten Swag) is a great gesture of P7 Benelux, thnx fot that!

For a long time I was already thinking about a concept like this. Several other brands already came out with a extreme short board as well. Finally there is a production version coming out. But going from a quad ls 95L back to a 87L BlackBox didn’t sound very logical to me, although they (Starboard) claim it to be a light wind board. I’m sure the BlackBox does plane quick, but the float in my opinion stays put on 87L. On minimal days I do almost sink on a 95L and having a light wind board with 8 litres less on volume will not do the magic trick for me. I already have a 75 & 85 litre quad for the windier days… but would love to have a rocking light wind waveboard! 8-) I wanted a board that actually floats when the wind suddenly dies on me,  planes quicker then I can get into my harness, turns on a dime,  has a light construction and is feeling loose and snappy! A bottom/rocker-shape that is perfect for our NASTY DUTCH MUSHY, everything but perfect waves along the Dutch coastline.

 

  

Single, twin, tri, thruster or quad; A very wide twin fin setup with a trailer fin in the centre it is. This should make the board feel loose and turn like crazy! Three slot boxes, the center/trailer fin as well (instead of a US box). It saves a bit of weight too. The side boxes are placed ‘toe’ and as far as possible towards the rail. This setup should make the board very manoeuvrable. In my opinion even more loose compared to a quad setup.

Fins; Probably placing two Maui Ultra Fins X-Twins 16.5cm in the side boxes and in centre a Maui Ultra X-Twin 14.5cm. But I’ll try for sure more fin combinations, just to play with the concept and figuring out what works best. The fin-setup mentioned above is going to be the one to begin with.

  

   

March is behaving crazy, the 5^th we had record breaking warmth with 17 degrees, but no wind… Then the rain came and we had a record on the 9^th with 24hours nonstop raining. And the cold returned. At Monday 11^th there was blistering East-North-East wind, and despite it being -5 in the morning I just had to go out after over a month windsurf-less. Forecast was promising: windy and dry.

I decided on the lake at Muiderberg, well known to me and only knee to waist deep at the front, which gives a lot of safety (needed, since it was probably going to be a single session). First inspection upon arrival was if the water was still fluid, yes it was. But temperature stayed all day just at or below -1 degrees celcius…

Wind was strong enough with gusts, so decided on the Neil Pryde Alpha 5.4 and some extra volume with the JP 107 freestyle board (less chances of dropping into the water as well ! ) After rigging in my nice warm cloths (thermo shirt, winter socks and gloves etc ) time for the wetsuit.  I was parked a little bit out of the wind and behind the car with the backend opened, I was sheltered enough to change.

5/4 O’Neill Psycho 2, ION 6.5 ballistic boots, a mystic windstopper, a hood as neck collar, a prolimit beanie and a pair of new prolimit open palm mittens. Let’s go!

First set was about 25 minutes, then a little stop to warm the hands, specially the thumbs where getting cold. Easy that the car is nearby, so a little drinking water and sheltered. (And there was a bit further away another local windsurfer)

But the windsurf equipment was picking up a bit of ice!

Next session was about 20 minutes, no problems with ice on the board, but kept the top of the sail dry and the boom as much as possible, there was an ice film forming on the sail and the boom end!

Gave it another short rest with the set out of the wind and removed some ice pieces…

Last set was a short one, about 10 minutes, the wind was getting less and the ice formed quicker and thicker, making my sail much heavier and very slow responding. Time to quit!

I was not cold, but I did not fall in, so the wetsuit was still dry inside and from the waist up, which helps a lot.

The board was so frequently flushes during windsurfing that it did not freeze, so no ice on the board and footpads. The boom was solid frozen except for the places where my hands are and the frontend which stayed dry.

And all the sail lower 1/3^rd was frozen with 1 to 2mm of ice. On both sides!

It became a NP Alpha 5.4 “Ice edition”…

I had to knock most of it off or break it gently; otherwise I could not roll the sail. The outhaul took some fiddling as well. The downhaul had stayed out of the wind and flushed enough.

After putting the stuff back in the car, I changed suit on the backseat inside the car, that way I stayed way warmer than changing behind the car. (it is a 40 minutes drive home, just a bit much with the wetsuit on…)

My conclusion; -1 degrees is the absolute limit for your gear on a lake to stay functional, and only for a good half an hour, then you have to start deicing. Problems will grow if you fall in, because on the whole sail there will be forming an ice film, making it heavy and handling poor, as well as a frozen boom to grab…  Any colder and your board will freeze making windsurfing impossible. (seen that 2 years ago with a friend of mine, he had to bring hot water to defrost the ropes ;-))

I stayed warm enough with the good suit etc. And the shallow lake makes that you can always walk to shore when something happens. Also easy that your stops can be sheltered out of the freezing wind.

Aloha, Erik

It started with a very cold session just after the snowy weeks on January 27th. The forecast showed temperatures going up from zero to 4/5 degrees. So, with a small group including myself and Jacco from Boardkings, we decided to meet at the Zandmotor (Kijkduin).

In the morning the temperature was still around zero degrees Celsius. The snow was still on the streets and dunes when we got our gear out of the cars and rigged our sails.

The session itself was good with enough wind for my 4.7 Ezzy Wave and nice waist high waves to ride. The water was about 5 degrees and didn’t feel cold, just a little bit colder when swimming (obviously).

On February 24^th we pushed it even a little bit further at Scheveningen Zuid. This day the wind direction was NE which is much colder then the SW wind we had in the previous session. It started with -2 degrees Celsius and ended around zero. Despite the low temperatures we had another enjoyable session.

Why would I do this?

The answer is simple, I just love to sail! It is my passion, my addiction. I just have to go out on the water as often as I can!

But isn’t it cold?

There are two sides to that question. For me personally it is also an exploration, just to see what is the limit for me. I like to push myself physically, and to find out what is the limit I just have to go out and try.  There is also a second side. The air temperature is low and it is cold outside which makes what you wear is crucial. Windsurf wetsuits and waterwear have improved significantly over the past years. Wet- and drysuits have become capable of keeping a body warm at lower temperatures then ever before. There is no need to use thicker wetsuits. 5mm will work great as long as you have a good quality wetsuit. Many people still believe 10 degrees Celsius is the minimum temperature to go out sailing when the new wetsuits have significantly decreased that number. 5 degrees, and even lower, is no longer a problem.

Preparation- What do I do to keep as warm as possible?

To stay as warm as possible I get in my wetsuit at home and take hot tea with me. Turn on the heater in the car as hot as possible but still comfortable. You don’t want to fall asleep behind the wheel ;) Then on arrival I keep my winter-coat on as I rig my sail to trap as much heat as possible in my wetsuit and to reduce wind chill. With sessions under 10 degrees Celsius I will wear a 1mm chill vest underneath my wetsuit for extra insulation and I will wear my Mystic anti-wind coat over my wetsuit. This anti-wind coat is made of raincoat material and takes away the wind-chill on your chest and back. I also wear my 5mm boots and a 3mm cap. There are also many windsurfers who will opt for a wetsuit with an attached cap to (significantly)  reduce the risk of water entering the wetsuit via the collar.

Last but not least, right before entering the water I will have some hot tea to get some warmth inside my body. You can also drink another warm beverage. Also make sure to have enough energy in your body before and during the session. Powerbars, nuts, fruit like bananas or even a good old peanut butter sandwich will get the energy levels up. You really need this to last during a session. Especially as you want to have enough energy when you fall in or even loose your equipment.

Experience

I found out during these sessions that this was still very do-able and it is really important what you wear. It got warm on my chest, even in this cold air, as long as I didn’t fall for a number of reaches! The wind was very on/off this day, so I did get caught by some waves and ended up in the washing machine a few times. This had a very cooling effect, so when this happened I had to warm up by sailing a few reaches without falling.

Not fixed yet

One thing I didn’t fix yet; cold hands!!!  The thing is, you just have feel the boom, so you cannot wear closed gloves with rubber on the palm of your hand. I wear gloves with an open hand palm. This reduces the wind chill and makes you feel the boom. But it still is very cold on these days. What really helped on this day; after a few runs my hand got cold really quickly so I went back to the beach and warmed up my hands so they where painfully tingling. After this my hands where still cold, but ok to sail!! The hands will no longer tingle after that.

There is also another method I have heard of and that is the use of a heated vest like the Rip Curl H-Bomb. These vests will have heated elements located near the kidneys. The kidneys function as the bodies thermostat. When they sense cold they will reduce blood flow to the bodies extremities like the hands and feet to save energy resulting in cold hands. When they get warm they will be tricked into thinking there is no need to reduce the blood flow. A friend has this vest and swears he doesn’t need gloves or boots until it gets really cold. This works! This will be the next thing for us to test.

Warning!

Be very careful when you go out sailing in conditions like this! Make sure you’re not alone and keep your energy levels up. Take brakes as soon as you feel you need some more energy and be aware from the start that you’re session won’t last for hours. Be happy with a 1,5 hour session. Don’t take any risks. This way you can enjoy a session when many other can’t and you will be save afterwards.

Conclusion

Sailing with cold wind and an air temperature of -2 to zero is still very do-able. This really increases my TOW (time on water) !!! I hope it will do the same for you.

Impressions of these days

Big Irish swell

We’re still waiting for some good windsurf sessions here in the Netherlands, but that doesn’t stop us from starting to plan the best week long session of all; the BoardKings windsurf trip 2013.

We had a great group of windsurfers during last years trip to Brandon Bay. We had an amazing time, even if the wind didn’t always want to play along. Ireland is a beautiful place with well known as well as many secret windsurf,surf and sup spots scattered along beautiful beaches. You can read the full reports elsewhere on our blog (part1 and part2) and this forum topic on windsurfing.nl. Unifiber even created an album on Facebook with some of our best shots. This year we will once again go chasing the beautiful waves that hit the Irish coast every fall. We will be there October 19th to 26th.

We invite anyone who wants to have a week of amazing waterman action to join us during this trip. Get in touch through our contact page to make sure you’re on the list. Details will be made available over the next weeks and months. You can also check out our new topic (in Dutch) on the windsurfing.nl forum.

Make sure you like us on Facebook to receive information about other upcoming events.

Most of the people advised me to go for a 10 or 11 ft board, just to have more fun in the beginning with the length and width giving more stability. As I started to read on the internet I found that stability, tracking and maneuverability are the most important issues when buying a SUP. Then, as I am into wavesurfing, I decided to make maneuverability the most important one and compromise on stability and tracking. The Starboard website works great in giving you the first options . The Converse, Hero and Widepoint were my main options. As I was just a beginner, the width of the Hero was the reason to buy this board. I already had a paddle, an aluminium one that I used to paddle on my Starboard Starts when surfing with the kids and I used that the first times. But…..THAT DOESN’T DO THE JOB! I found out that a good paddle is even more important than the board. Quite expensive (250 euro’s and up) but full carbon is so much better. Lighter, stiffer and giving you direct power when paddling without loosing energy in the bending of the blade and shaft. I got myself a Quickblade Kanaha Magic  but there are off course some other brands having the same quality. Tip; they usually say that the length of the paddle is one shaka above your body length  but as you’re having a deeper kneeflex and are bending more in the surf it can be shorter when used for wavesupping.

I remember the first paddle out wasn’t a success  It was far more difficult to keep balance as I thought it would be! A longer board definitely will create instant success but would make it sluggish once you make the first steps and start to ride waves windsurfing style. Balance is an issue also. You can’t put a coin in the machine and make that happen, your body needs some time to adapt and connect to the feeling of the board. It took me 3-4 times and one flatwater long distance session to create that feeling. After that, progression was made every time out! Supping is a great workout, a pure core-stability training and a good way to help you read waves better, using the energy of the waves, developing your balance and basically get a lot more TOW. The energy and dynamics are different compared to windsurfing as you spent a lot of time looking and waiting for the right wave and obviously getting the biggest of the set. A lot of paddling also, especially in the Netherlands with the constantly changing breaks due to the sandbanks and tides. Also; without the windchill, Supping is even possible in subzero degrees using 5mm boots, 5mm open palm mittens, and a 1mm polypro under my 5/3 Matuse Tumo hooded! That means surfing all year!

After one year, including our windsurf/sup trip to Brandon Bay and about 40 paddle sessions, I’ve made a lot of progression. Supping is fun and a great low wind alternative to get max TOW!

There are many shops in the Netherlands and world wide selling SUP’s. Feel free to visit your local shop and get informed how you can get more TOW. Don’t know where to start? Feel free to get in touch with my sponsor The Essential Store to discuss some options and alternatives.

Here is the Clip, watch it in HD 720p:

I’ve been wondering for a while now what nutrition is best. There is a lot of information that can be found explaining what is best, but I want to know what the people we see everyday on the beach, in videos and in magazines do. So what did I do? I went online and got in touch with some of the best windsurfers in the world to get their input. I asked each of them the following questions:

1. What do you eat/drink before a session?
2. What do you eat/drink between sessions?
3. What do you eat/drink after a session?
4. What food/drinks do you stay away from in order to stay fit and healthy?

All the guys were great and send me their honest responses. Here’s what they had to say (in no particular order and in their own words).

Martin ten Hoeve
Jem Hall
Graham Ezzy
Marcilio Browne
Francisco Goya
Victor Fernandez
Scott McKercher
Josh Stone

Name: Martin ten Hoeve

Description: Dutch wavesailor. Tallest competitor (by far) in the PWA World Tour.

Before a session: If possible a banana or bread with peanut butter, drink would be water or Healthy People fruit drink.

Between sessions: Banana, some chocolate and again bread with peanut butter, I drink water and the same fruit drink.

After a session: If that’s my diner then I would try to eat something with pasta and vegetables, and drink tea or water.

Avoid: Nothing special. I don’t eat any snacks that fast anyway.

Name: Jem Hall

Description: Super coach! The man who can make any windsurfer at any level perform better.

Pre session: Complex carbs with low GI preferably. Whole wheat toast or cereal, porridge oats .. and some protein for recovery and ensure I am hydrating as long before the session as possible. Lastly, some caffeine.

Between sessions: Fruit or dried fruit. No big meals! Oat cakes and fish for a medium snack, or peanut butter on whole wheat bread, great sports snack.

After a session: Rehydrate as much as possible straight after a session, mix of water, fruit juice and a tiny bit of salt, or poweradd / gatorade etc. Complex carbs like rice, whole wheat pasta, vegetables and protein for recovery. Raw nuts to get some protein in as a snack.

AVOID: We all treat ourselves but where at all possible I will avoid fried food and too much sweet or sugary products. When overseas it is too easy to reach for the white bread wiht dinner and this is empty calories, so I go easy on those and ensure I have plenty of water 30 – 45 mins pre dinner. I have to work hard keeping my weight down, being a bigger guy, and so I have to stay on all this so as to float my smaller boards and keep my wind range wide!

Thanks for asking, if you s**t in your fuel tank your vehicle will go nowhere. Their is no fire without good fuel!
Rip and Enjoy, Jem x

Name: Graham Ezzy

Description: Talented wave sailor and son of the great David Ezzy.

Pre session: I like to eat at least an hour before sailing. Closer to the actual sailing and I can feel the food in my stomach, which bothers me (this bothering is more mental than physical). The food needs to be pretty simple, nothing fried or rich. Quinoa with vegetables or oatmeal maybe. I like boiled eggs before sailing too.

Between sessions: I will drink water (sometime coconut water) and if I’m hungry I like to eat an apple. Or almonds, I love almonds. Generally I don’t like to eat very much if I know I’m going back on the water. For some reason, I feel more comfortable getting worked in big waves on an empty stomach.

After a session: I like to get enough protein and carbs so that my muscles can recharge. Directly after the session, I’ll make sure to hydrate with water and if my next meal is over an hour away, I’ll have a protein shake.

AVOID: I stay away from fried food and foods that are super carby. I find I feel better without them. Also, for over a year I’ve been a vegetarian/pescetarian (with a few exceptions), but this is for ethical rather than health reasons.

Name: Marcilio Browne

Description: Former freestyle world champion and a very talented wave sailor.

Pre session: Just some fruits and water, bananas, some times also some nuts. I pretty much only drink water before.

Between sessions: Same, just water, some times if I am long time on the water i add a feel aminos.

After a session: Than I do a full meal, fish, chicken or some red meat here and there, with some vegetables, rice, potatoes…

AVOID: I don’t drink sodas, don’t eat too much red meat (once or twice week) alcohol only on special celebrations, I drink once every 2 months, almost never and I try to eat mostly organic food.

Name: Francisco Goya

Description: Former wave world champion and driving force behind Goya Boards and Sails.

Pre session: Water, as much as I can.

Between sessions: Light & not much, the last thing you want is having to deal with food while you are getting tumbled and you are trying to hold your breath.

After a session: Water, left over of what I didn’t get in between session.

AVOID: Anything that comes in a can, bottle or that the shelf life or expiration dates are longer than a week, also meat, coffee and most breads. I choose GF (gluten free when option) , almond or coconut milk instead of cow milk, etc. Things that make you feel good not only when you eat them but also after.

Name: Victor Fernandez

Description: Former wave world champion and still one of the strongest competitors in world cup.

Pre session: It depends at what time is the session but I try to eat well. Omelet, slice of bread, tea, orange juice.

Between sessions: I try to drink a lot of water between sessions and add some fruit.

After a session: A strong meal, I eat different food all the time, pasta, salmon, rice, chicken, a lot of salad, tuna.

AVOID: Fried stuff,  I stay away from fast food. I try to eat as healthy as I can and I really feel it.

Name: Scott McKercher

Description: This Aussi has retired from competition many years ago but keeps influencing the windsurfing world with his design and development work for Starboard and Severne as well as his windsurfing action.

Pre session: Water, banana’s, coffee, nothing too heavy. Whatever really.

Between sessions: Water, coffee, chocolate, nut bars.

After a session: Beer, BBQ’s

AVOID: I try to stay off the alcho, pops, pies and sausage rolls. Moderation for a happy life.

Name: Josh Stone

Description: Former freestyle world champion and wave title contender. Still rips on Maui when he’s not supporting his kids.

Pre session: I usually hit the water just after breakfast, which is most usually yogurt, bananas, berries and a little honey. Gives me energy and is generally good for you.

Between sessions: Nothing in between sessions… I usually do one session per day.

After a session: I eat protein after… my body craves it… usually some kind of meat with a little bit of carbs like rice. I like to feed my body what it wants.

AVOID: SODA… BAD BAD BAD

So what do you do? Let us know in the comments section below.

Big thanks to all the guys for their contribution.