Tune up time!

How exactly do you prepare for one of the most difficult contests in the world? Conditions can range from absolutely nothing to just about anything. How does that sound? If you can work around that, then that’s how it goes. There’s no real training for the contest in Sylt.

How exactly do you prepare for one of the most difficult contests in the world? Conditions can range from absolutely nothing to just about anything. How does that sound? If you can work around that, then that’s how it goes. There’s no real training for the contest in Sylt. It’s all preparation. Knowing your equipment, putting your body to the test, is about all you can do. It doesn’t matter which direction the wind is coming from, because anything goes in Sylt. One day the wind can blow 25 knots from the left, then later that afternoon, it’s straight on-shore with ten foot waves. You can also wake up to 50 knots of side-shore wind from the right, and even bigger waves. The point is, Sylt can have the most radical conditions on the PWA tour, if all goes according to plan.

The most difficult thing is that we need those conditions to happen in less than a ten day period. This has always proven to be the biggest problem with this otherwise well organized and hugely attended event. Last year, 150,000 people went through the gates to get to the beach and see their favorite windsurfers and check out what is the latest of everything. The food, beer, and music make it a great event, even when the sun is shining on a windless day. It’s a quiet and beautiful place, with lots of bike trails and seashore to explore. The solid thatched roofed homes look like they are ready for anything, and I say, bring it on. We will be ready.

My fingers are crossed. This will be the final event of the PWA Wave World Tour. Having only one complete event this year, we are hurting for results. The days of the Big Maui Grand Finale have gone away, replaced by a tired and scared economy.

Lets hope for some winds of change, and see what happens.