Team NP 2011

NeilPryde announce their international team riders for 2011.

With contracts all signed and sealed, NeilPryde have just released their list of international team riders for the forthcoming year.

Team NeilPryde for 2011 is as follows:

Antoine Albeau
Carine Camboulives
Fabrice Beaux
Jason Polakow
Julien Quentel
Kauli Seadi
Manu Bouvet
Micah Buzianis
Philip Koster
Pieter Bijl
Ricardo Campello
Robby Swift
Wilhelm Schurmann

NeilPryde commented:

These riders are amongst the best in the World and share a huge passion for Windsurfing. We are proud to have such a dedicated team to represent NeilPryde and look forward to a great year ahead.???

Check out the NeilPryde website for more details on Team Pryde, including team tweets, and some fairly dubious photos of the team in their youth.

Nice day in Western Australia

This is what windsurfing in Western Australia is about.

Cheers....
Robert

Nightsurfing at Jaws

After a career spent chasing enormous surf, freediving, and generally getting into ridiculously heavy aquatic situations, Mark Visser is the kind of guy who could surf Jaws with his eyes closed. Which is handy, when you’re surfing in pitch dark…

At 2am local Hawaii time this morning, professional big wave surfer Mark Visser made history by achieving a night ride on waves measuring 30-40 foot faces off the shores of Maui with specially engineered LED lights built into a buoyancy vest and modified into the surfboard. The lighting technologies were created especially for the project by Solus Corporation using ground breaking NASA submarine lighting to ensure the wave and board were lit in the right places, at the right time and illuminated the wave without hindering the vision of Visser, the jet ski drivers and the helicopter pilots.

No one has attempted to ride and capture big waves at Jaws, Maui before in total darkness quite like this. With the help of his team overhead in a helicopter, Visser was towed in by jet-ski as he entered the infamous big wave break just prior to the peak of the swell, completely illuminated.

“It wasn’t until I saw the pictures I realized how big it was. This project has been two years in the planning and it was the scariest, but most exciting thing I have ever done,” says Visser. “Riding in complete darkness meant I had to go off feeling. I had to zone out from
how you normally ride and just be part of the wave. I am so pumped to achieve something that no one thought possible and that I was told was couldn’t be done.”

Coined “The Night Rider,” this feat is set to be the first of a series for Visser. These “world first” extreme adventures will form a documentary collective called “9 Lives” that will be distributed internationally in late 2011, early 2012

2011 PWA Calendar Released

Boasting 14 events, and three confirmed new destinations, the 2011 PWA World Tour calendar is unveiled.'

After months of negotiations, we?re proud to announce the release of the 2011 PWA World Tour calendar. In what?s set to be one of the busiest competition years in recent history, all three disciplines (race, wave and freestyle) look to have a healthy share of the 14 event competition year.

The action starts with an all-new event in Mui Ne, Vietnam, which will see the PWA?s men?s and women?s freestyle and slalom fleets battling it out for a share of the event?s ?100,000 prize purse on the palm fringed beaches of the South China Sea.

Adding to the tally of new destinations, the World Tour will also pay a visit to the turquoise waters of the Caribbean for the first time since 2005. Taking the plunge will be the freestyle and slalom fleets, who?ll christen Aruba?s waters in a week long Grand Slam extravaganza.

The final new installment for 2011 is a stop on the wave drenched stores of El Medano in southern Tenerife. Like its neighboring islands of Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura, Tenerife enjoys the consistent north east trade winds which blow for the duration of the northern hemisphere?s summer. Couple this with a reliable supply of Atlantic swell, and you have the makings of a classic show down for the PWA?s wave fleet.

Standing alongside these new additions there?s the eclectic selection of tried and tested locations, which include the grueling European leg of the World Tour and slalom action in Ulsan, South Korea.

To view the 2011 PWA World Tour calendar in full, navigate to the events tab and click the corresponding link.

Be sure to enjoy all the action over the course of the coming year here at www.pwaworldtour.com

© 2011 www.pwaworldtour.com

Australia January 15, 2011

After a lacklustre start to the summer, the pieces are finally falling into place. Tropical Cyclone Vania is pumping out swell and with favourable winds forecast for the next few days, surfers on Australia's East Coast are in for a treat. Here's a glimpse of the kind of thing Sydney surfers can expect over the next 24 hrs... Photo: Morris

Cheers

Lancelin Ocean Classic – Day 3

Locals take the podium in elite wavesailing at the 2011 Lancelin Ocean Classic

Western Australian sailors were the winners on the waves at yesterday’s Lancelin Ocean Classic elite wave sailing competition.

Geraldton’s Jaeger Stone took out top position making the most of the great conditions making some spectacular jumps and out-manoeuvring the other 14 elite level sailors.

In second place was local Lancelin windsurfer and past winner Luke Walmsley and in third place was Perth’s Ben Severne, who was last year’s winner.

Jaeger said he didn’t go into the day expecting to win and just had to try his hardest in the heats.

“It’s always hard when you’re up against all those other talented guys.  It was a bit gusty and everyone was going pretty hard and in the end I think it was my jumping that gave me the edge.

“It got a bit light towards the end but I still managed to get my jumps in which I think won it for me.”

Jaeger was happy to be on the podium with his fellow West Aussie sailors.

“I think the West Australian wave sailors are the best in the country.  It was heaps of fun to be up there with my mates.”

Dutch windsurfing great Peter Volwater didn’t manage to place and said it was just not his day.

The Lancelin Ocean Classic wraps up today with the high-speed Slalom events.

Presented by KineticIT, The Lancelin Ocean Classic has been held since 1986 and is Australia’s longest-running windsurfing event. It is made possible thanks to the enthusiastic Lancelin community, Eventscorp, Bendigo Bank, Endeavour Tavern, Shire of Gingin, 92.9, and a team of dedicated volunteers.

Lancelin’s population of 800 can swell to more than 4000 over the four days of the event with competitors, spectators, media and supporters descending on the crayfishing town, which boasts long stretches of white sand beaches ideal for all forms of watersports and water-based activities.

For event details and full results visit www.lancelinoceanclassic.com.au

Lancelin Ocean Classic – Day 2 Dunkerbeck!

Bjorn Dunkerbeck and Karin Jaggi rule the Ledge to Lancelin Marathon
Dutchman Bjorn Dunkerbeck lived up to his legendary status by winning Western Australia’s Ledge Point to Lancelin marathon today, finishing 44 seconds ahead of his nearest rival Chris Lockwood from Perth.
Dunkerbeck, 41, said he had a great race, finishing in 33 minutes 11 seconds, and choosing the right equipment this year helped him over the line.

“Last year was my first time in the Lancelin Ocean Classic and I learnt a lot.  I knew with the right equipment I would have a good chance at winning.

“The conditions were similar to last year and in the first leg I was fighting with Dan (Daniel Engdahl) for the lead on the way to the first buoy.

“On the second buoy the wind picked up and I managed to grow my lead.

“It’s a great race, all about long distance and tough conditions and if I can be back here next year I will for sure,” Dunkerbeck said.

At last count Dunkerbeck holds an incredible 40 world titles in the sport so coming second was a huge success for Chris Lockwood.

The 25km downwind marathon race started with 215 registered competitors and 197 starting. Strong contender for the event Peter Volwater did not start the race.

Conditions in Lancelin were perfect today with 26kn winds and a 2.5m swell.

Third fastest in the marathon was Jesper Orth, who was competing in his 11th Lancelin Ocean Classic.

“It’s great to be here again.  This race is pure enjoyment and the competition again provided top racing,” Orth said.

Switzerland’s Karin Jaggi was the fastest woman across the line at 38 minutes 8 seconds, keeping her reputation as world’s best female windsurfer intact.

“It was a tough race again and the last two legs felt really long.  I’m pleased with my finish, it’s always good to race with the guys and it’s not just about speed but also about being able to last the distance,” Jaggi said.

Daniel Engdahl managed to retain his fourth placing from 2010. First youth across the line was Matthew Gwynne.

The race follows a set zig-zag course of eight legs down the coast, with anchored crayfishing boats acting as marker buoys, starting at the beach at Ledge Point and ending at the beach outside the Endeavour Tavern in Lancelin.

The biggest enemy for competitors is fatigue, and other challenges include the crowd of sailors at the start, reef, and just being able to navigate the buoys through the swell.

Many competitors will celebrate with a cold beer at the Endeavour Tavern at the end of the race – but not all as several of the elite racers are competing in the wave sailing competition held over due to yesterday’s light wind conditions.

Top contenders in the wavesailing include last year’s winner Perth’s Ben Severne.  Severne said his biggest threat in this year’s competition would be 20-year-old Jaeger Stone from Geraldton, WA.  Past winner and European Champion Peter Volwater will also be tough to beat.

The Lancelin Ocean Classic wraps up on Sunday with the high-speed Slalom events.

Presented by KineticIT, The Lancelin Ocean Classic has been held since 1986 and is Australia’s longest-running windsurfing event. It is made possible thanks to the enthusiastic Lancelin community, Eventscorp, Bendigo Bank, Endeavour Tavern, Shire of Gingin, 92.9, and a team of dedicated volunteers.

Lancelin’s population of 800 can swell to more than 4000 over the four days of the event with competitors, spectators, media and supporters descending on the crayfishing town, which boasts long stretches of white sand beaches ideal for all forms of watersports and water-based activities.

For event details visit www.lancelinoceanclassic.com.au

Lancelin Ocean Classic – Day 1

With strong swells today off the coast of Lancelin in Western Australia, local and international wave sailors competing in the Lancelin Ocean Classic had a good time on the waves but would have preferred a bit more wind to really show off their skills.
In divisions of Masters, Women, Junior, and Open, 33 sailors took to the waves to out-manoeuvre each other with the highest aerials and radical wave sailing under clear blue skies.
While it is too early to know results for the day’s wave sailing, competitors said they had a good time out on the water with a swell of four metres and winds of up to 13kn.
World’s best female windsurfer, Karin Jaggi from Switzerland, said she caught some good waves in the light onshore winds.
“I had a good time on the waves but found the wind conditions pretty hard as I prefer more offshore conditions, but I think it would be the same for everyone.
The elite competitors including titleholder Ben Severne from Perth and 2010 second place winner and European Champion Peter Volwater will have to wait until tomorrow to compete for the wave sailing title.

Volwater said he was looking forward to getting out on the waves for the elite wave sailing plus the Ledge Point to Lancelin Marathon and challenging 2010 marathon winner, multi world champion and fellow Dutchman, Bjorn Dunkerbeck, to the prize.

“It will be like the lion showing up and being harassed by the fly!  I’m looking forward to getting out there again.  It’s always a bit crazy at the start with hundreds of us out there, but once we get going it’s great fun – but always good to get back to the beach at the end.

“It’s great to be in Lancelin again for the event, catching up with windsurfing friends to start the year and enjoying the great welcome the town puts on for us.”

Organisers are expecting more than 200 windsurfers to compete in tomorrow’s 25km event, all hoping to take home a share of the $25,000 prize pool.  Winds are expected to be stronger with speeds of up to 25kn forecast and a slightly smaller swell.

The Lancelin Ocean Classic wraps up on Sunday with the high-speed Slalom events.

Presented by KineticIT, The Lancelin Ocean Classic has been held since 1986 and is Australia’s longest-running windsurfing event. It is made possible thanks to the enthusiastic Lancelin community, Eventscorp, Bendigo Bank, Endeavour Tavern, Shire of Gingin, 92.9, and a team of dedicated volunteers.

Lancelin’s population of 800 can swell to more than 4000 over the four days of the event with competitors, spectators, media and supporters descending on the crayfishing town, which boasts long stretches of white sand beaches ideal for all forms of watersports and water-based activities.

For event details visit www.lancelinoceanclassic.com.au

Tags: karin jaggi, lancelin, ledge point, ocean classic, western australia

2011 LOC Wave comp update

Update Lancelin

Just a quick heads up that we may also run the wave event on the Sunday if we do not get a result on the Thursday or Friday due to light winds.

I know many of you wave sailing guys and girls sail your best with a hangover so it could be perfect for you.

See you in Lano

Cheers

Final preparations 2011 Lancelin Ocean Classic

Final  preparations  are  being  made  for  the  2011  Lancelin  Ocean  Classic  –  sailing  off  the  stunning  Western  Australian  coastline  from  6  to  9  January.

Windsurfing  world  champion  Björn  Dunkerbeck  (Team  Red  Bull),  will  be  the  man  to  beat,  giving  local  windsurfers  a  chance  to  pitch  their  skills  against  the  current  world  number-­‐two  slalom  rider.  Joining  Bjorn  will  be  international  Swiss  windsurfing  superstar  and  current  World  Number  1  in  Women’s
Slalom,  Karin  Jaggi.

2010  Lancelin  Ocean  Classic  Marathon  winner  Peter  Volwater  is  returning  to  defend  the  title  he  has  won  for  the  past  three  years.    He  is  a  past  European  champion  and  is  currently  ranked  15  in  the  world  for  slalom
and  25  in  the  world  in  for  wave  sailing. 

Newcomer  to  the  event  but  certainly  not  the  sport,  pro  windsurfer  Timo  Mullen  from  Ireland,  will  take  on local  champions  Ben  Severne  –  the  2010  Lancelin  Ocean  Classic  Wave  Sailing  winner,  Jesper  Orth,  Chris  Lockwood,  Dan  Engdahl  and  Jager  Stone.    Past  world  champion  Scott  McKercher  from  Margaret  River  he will  also  be  extremely  competitive  in  the  waves  and  marathon. The  Lancelin  Ocean  Classic  combines  three  races  -­‐  Wave  Sailing  (6  &  7  January),  Slalom  (9  January)  and  the main  event  -­‐  The  Ledge  Point  to  Lancelin  Marathon  (8  January)  where  competitors  zigzag  through  25km  of open  ocean,  racing  to  the  finish  line  at  the  Endeavor  Tavern  and  a  well-­‐earned  beer!   Ledge  Point  to Lancelin  is  the  longest  marathon  event  in  the  world. More  than  400  windsurfers  are  expected  to  be  competing  for  the  $25,000  in  prizemoney.

The  Lancelin  Ocean  Classic,  presented  by  KineticIT,  has  been  running since  1986,  making  it  one  of  Competitor  entries  are  still  open  and  more information  is  available  at  www.lancelinoceanclassic.com.au.