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2008 Archive Interviews |
Postcard from Prassonisi The spot is awesome, a small island, almost connected to the Rhodos mainland by 150 metres of sandy beach, nice onshore waves on one side and perfect flat water on the other. The Maltermi winds that howl through Greece in the summer average around 20 knots so Ive been in heaven on my 4.7 combat most days. Nothing beats waking up on the beach, a morning freestyle session, some waves for lunch and then a nice evening flat water session as the sun goes down! Ive loved Greece, but it was a huge learning curve for me as far as competiting goes. My sailing was good but my head was somewhere else for the events in Prasonissi and Paros, but come Mykonos I had sorted some shit out and was ready to rip. The European Freestyle Pro Tour is a really well run, fun, but totally professional tour. All the guys know each other, the level is really really high, and the locations are sick. In Mykonos we were treated like kings, free accomodation in a four star hotel, free meals, good parties, and best of all, good conditions. I sailed on my 4.1m Combat and 91 litre JP freestyle board in all my heats, it felt like being back in the ditch again, my favourite gear in my favourite conditions. What more could 25 young windsurfers want? So to celebrate I decided to shave off my trademark long hair for the final party. Ive never come so close to missing so many ferries, Ive never sailed in so many different locations, and never had so much fun, all in just three weeks. Its a very cheap way to be totally spoilt, Greece rules! So with my hair gone Im in full training mode in Rhodos. Im stuffed from a wicked sail today, my cosy boardbag is calling from the windsurf centre on the beach, so I better hit the road. Ive got a solid hitch hike ahead of me to get back to Prasonissi. The next event is Bredene, Belgium, so keep checking out efpt.net for more info. Take it easy, from Tom in Rhodos!
Wow the level is high though, Kauli went out first round, so did local star Kiri Thode and very nearly Tonky Frans until his heat was posponed. The problem is that the forecast doesnt look good so the proposed four eliminations dont look good. At the moment the judges are pushing to get the first round of the first elimination complete. So its swimming, fooling round and relaxing for now, with turtles, flamingos and donkeys to keep us company. Fingers crossed for some planing action otherwise its going to be a depressing wait to get my next chance to prov myself. But hey, this is the PWA, its so much fun! Me and room mate Andy Chambers(K 540) nearly killed ourslves and a flamingo last night on our scooter and Roberto the commentator has just repeated himself for the 13th time, hes finding it harder than us! Will keep you updated! Tom - NZL 19
Report 1 from El Yaque Well Ive been here almost four weeks now, but it feels like a lot longer, I have to say that getting here was an absolute mission and the first week here was like hell. Big time culture shock! But now I'm getting used to El Yaque and have moved into a pretty sweet apartment with a swedish dude and a german chick, and Ive now met lots of people! The season here is aparently one of the worst they have ever had, but as soon as I got here, guess what, it got windy. Ive had wind every day, thats 26 days straight of wind. I did have to take one day off though, we had some waves a week or so ago and I managed to land my first ever air chacho, a forward loop with a duck gybe mid air, in only two feet of water, lets just say I could hardly walk the next day from hitting reef! The last few weeks have been nuking and Ive been on my 4.1m Combat almost every day, one thing they dont tell you about el yaque is the chop, its pretty horendous but there are some flat spots to be found. They also dont tell you how cheap it is, petrol is NZ 5c per litre and beer is $4 per dozen, increadible! But I have to say the night life isnt the best with only one bar, and the same people every single night! Yesterday was my best day yet, I landed my first shaka and my first puneta (switch stance spock). But its hard to celebrate after 6 hours on the water, even if you are stoked. I have been sailing with some of the best freestylers in the world here, Remko, Gollito, Riccardo to name a few, Gollito is sailing like a god and Riccardo is a bit worried about defending his title! Im definitely getting wave sick though, the biggest wave Ive seen in a month was about 3 feet! I see Wellington has had some pretty big southerly swells, sick! Hope all the Welly crew are sailing hard, keep updating the website, Buenas noches, Tom
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