After finishing fourth at the Gran Canaria Gloria Windsurf World Cup you could tell that Marc Paré (Simmer / Simmer Sails / MFC) was more than a little bit disappointed with the outcome as it meant he lost further valuable ground to the then World Tour leader, Marcilio Browne (Goya Windsurfing / MFC). However, the Spaniard didn’t let that keep his head down for long as he bounced back with a quite brilliant performance in Tenerife to claim back-to-back victories in El Médano, which sees Paré surge into contention for a maiden world title. After the opening three 5-star events, the 27-year-old is now tied on 25,385 points with Browne with two 5-star events to go…
Hey Marc, congrats on your victory in Tenerife… where you successfully defended your event title, but this year the win must feel even sweeter with it being a full 5-star event?
“Hello!!! Thanks a lot! It feels super good and validating to win the Tenerife event again!!! Last year’s one was extra special because of the hard moments I lived previous to that… But this year's one means a lot towards achieving my end goal for the season and shows that all the hard work and preparations are paying off!"
Victory in Tenerife brings you level on 25,385 points with Braw in the race for the world title - how stoked are you about that?
“Honestly, it feels amazing and I’m really happy about it! Braw was starting to pull ahead after having a brilliant and almost perfect start of the season, so now this makes the last two events crucial for us towards the end of the season! We also can’t rule out Philip [Köster], Victor [Fernandez] and Marino [Gil] out of the equation and we’ll have to go full throttle towards the end part of the season. But nonetheless, super happy and exciting to be sitting in this privileged position. Already excited for the last few events!”
What would it mean to you to win a world title?
“It would mean everything. A lifetime achievement, a dream come true… It’s basically been the main focus and drive for the past years, and it would be the cherry on top of the cake! It would make all the hard work, sweat and tears even more worth it!”
A lot of sailors talk about it being a difficult transition from the tiny equipment in Pozo to the bigger sizes in Tenerife… how do you personally find the change?
“It is a bit of a change, but I don’t find it hard to transition. I always try to mix up the Pozo high wind sailing with some lighter winds sailing. On top of that, the new Blacktip TC sails feel really easy and light in the hands, so been finding the transitioning really easy, as for example the 5.6 or 5.3 don’t feel like it, they feel like having a smaller sail in the hands, which is a huge advantage!”
Even on your biggest equipment you are still able to land double forwards and deliver powerful, dynamic wave riding - do you spend a lot of time sailing in lighter winds and do you enjoy the process of tweaking your gear to get the absolute most out of it?
“I used to race slalom a lot as a kid and that meant that I had to fine tune the gear a lot and even more than normal as I didn’t have the weight advantage compared to my opponents. So, I think this is what crossed over and made me love light wind wave sailing, as it requires you to have really good and well tuned equipment. On top of that, I really enjoy going through the fine tuning process. I’ve been spending a lot of time over the past few years dialling in and fine tuning the gear together with Simmer, to be able to perform at my best and make the big gear exciting and FUN.”
What gear were you using in Tenerife? Fin setup etc…
“In Tenerife I was using the new Blacktip Team Carbon sails, a project we’ve been working on for the past year and a half and will be available in September for the public. I used 5.6 and 5.3 throughout the whole event.
The board I was using was a new 96/98l prototype we made mixing attributes from the Flywave (our best-selling wave board) and the Omnia (our new freewave model), and it was working amazing, as it offered early planing and speed, but as soon as you put it on rail, it turned like a normal smaller wave board. I used it as a thruster with 18cm centre fin and 11cm sides (MFCs VF model).”
On the day of the final, you were out testing in super light winds… what kind of things are you looking to tweak?
“That day I was trying how the board was feeling by only moving the back footstrap and leaving the fins in the same position and the other way around. I was basically trying to find the best middle ground between drive and snappiness, and that way I could see which had more effect!”
You earnt the two highest heat scores of the contest in the semifinal and final - how happy are you to deliver your best performances when it matters most?
“It feels super good! As in Pozo it felt completely the opposite. Both the final and my heat against Marino felt like nothing was lining up and I couldn’t do my best sailing on those… So it definitely feels really good and satisfying and gives some comfort in a way.”
How will you be spending your time before the next event in Sylt… where you are also the defending champion…
“I will stop by Portugal to train some starboard tack on my way back from the Canaries. After that, will stop by home in Spain to repack everything to then head up north to Sweden and Denmark, where hopefully some low pressures will start pushing through and I will be able to train for the Sylt event.”
Sylt can throw up pretty much anything in terms of conditions, so what equipment will you be taking with you?
“I will be taking everything from 5.9 to 3.4 with some spare sails, my Flywave boards, a couple Omnias and some of the new concept prototype boards we are currently working on (which I will hopefully be able to try during the weeks leading up to the event)."
On the whole, how would you rate your performance so far this season?
“I am really pleased so far with it. Still some things to clean up and improve, but super grateful to find myself in this position this far into the season! Excited for the last couple of events!”
Thanks a lot, Marc and congrats once again on your victory.
You can stay up to date with Marc Paré’s latest news and adventures via his Social Media Channels:
Instagram: @marcpare334
Facebook: @Marc Paré Rico - E·334
YouTube: @marcparewindsurfing