The Distance

Making as many kilometers as you can in 24 hours - of course, on the windsurfing board - so called "distance" somehow made its way into speedsurfing world. I am not convinced that it belongs there, because it is sort of an endurance discipline. Ok, if you go faster, you will make more distance, but actually it is more a matter of how strong and determined you are; or, honestly, how badly you want that number on your GPS device screen, in spite of ruined hands and uttermost tiredness next couple of days.

But, however you look at it, it is here: if you are into speedsurfing, you will have to deal with the distance.

I don't like it, actually, because, from all speed disciplines it is the least fun. After couple of hours (and you have to windsurf many hours if you want to make a notable result), it gets boring. You have to occupy yourself with some other thoughts, otherwise you are in danger of literary falling asleep.

Well, this summer, in spite of what is written above, I used one nice day on Karpathos to make 200 km of distance for an Odyssey of Speed competition. For a while it was the best result. Johan Huitema from Netherlands made 216 km, a week latter (his best distance is 398 km, just to be noticed). In that moment I told Tim Otte, an organizer of Odyssey of Speed event that Vladan Desnica, from Croatia, the defender of the crown for last year competition, will surely made 300 km.

And he did (322 km). At the moment, due to other amazing results, specially 500m alpha turn, he is in a tight race for an overall win with Alexandros Petikidis from Greece.

At the same day (August 31, 2015), Urška Desnica, Vladan's spouse, made also an impressive 134 km distance - very rare for a lady windsurfer (6th all time place for ladys on GPSTC). Again, just for noticing, the best posted distance on GPS Team Challenge site is 538 km (Craig Hollins, Australia) for gentlemans, and 207 km by a unnamed lady from Belgium going with the nickname "speedfalconster").

Here is what Vladan says about that day:

"The day before we made a recovering pause from windsurfing, to gather the energy. I started at 09:20, and ride in 6 blocks for hour and a half (see GPSR picture), with 15-20 minutes rest in between. I ate some 5-6 bananas, 1 twix, 1 bounty, 1 snickers and 1/2 lit energy shake. And a lot of water. All in all, 8,5 hours pure windsurfing. I finished after the sunset, around 19:20. The secret of making distance is a good trim; everything has to be perfectly aligned, to avoid blisters on hands and unnecessary tiredness in jibes. I made some 250-300 turns without falling from the board."

Karpathos, 2015

For more than 10 years, from my very first visit to this magic island, Karpathos has been my winter dream; a place you are longing for when days are short and nights freezing cold. Each summer, at least for a short while - and preferably for as long as possible - I have been able to fulfill that dream. And after each visit, in spite of any shortcomings, I know I will be back.

There is only one ferry, one boat, taking tourists and supplies from and on to the island - the legendary Prevelis. After boarding it, while watching familiar streets and houses of the port of Pigadia disappearing in the distance, I was thinking how strange is this passion of true (soul)windsurfers. It can take you far away from home, just to catch right gust of wind. It can fill your thoughts with blueness when everything is white around you. It can make you wonder about the meaning and purpose of anything else beside windsurfing. Or, if you are lucky, it can give that meaning and purpose to everything else.

Karpathos feels the climate rhythm of the Europe. The island is always sunny, always warm. But, if you are a windsurfer, you can sense the change in the wind. This years weather was strange. The Europe was either to hot, or to stormy. Consequently, I have never experience so many windless days as this summer. But, there is nothing to be worry about. As my friend Johan Huitema from Netherlands says: "Waiting for the wind is better than waiting for nothing." And, all in all, we didn't wait for too long. "No wind" on Karpathos usually means enough wind to have fun.

One of the reasons I like windsurfing so much is that you never stop learning. This year was no exception. I am returning home with many new insights. I have learned a lot from people I have met on Karpathos. The only problem is that I always get the feeling of needing just one more day to try this or that new thing I have learned about. The dream is always one day too short.

Maybe, that is exactly the reason why it is so attractive, and in the same time so utterly indescribable to outsiders. How can I tell you about the minute corrections in the stance; about the releasing or adding the pressure on the fin; about the details in trimming the lower batten or, in general, making the sail looks like it should look (the one thing I am never getting right, it seems)? There are only few people who would understand that, and, honestly, it may be that I am not one of them. But, I like to listen. I like to make small adjustment and make experiments, even if they are not practical or successful. One more pearl I have heard from a Karpathos friend from Norway, Morten Knutsen: "The beauty of windsurfing is that there is always one more door left unopened."

For me, it is more than one, for sure. But, I am young, and I still have time. I can learn. Until next year, on Karpathos.

PS
The video below is basically inspired by the playful peace of music by Antonio Bazzini, La Ronde des Lutins (The Dance of the Goblins), played by violinist James Ehnes). The shots are taken on one busy day (thank you, Linda!), with lot of freriders and freestylers interfering with speedsurfers. If you look at the bay from the above for long enough, your head starts to spin a little, and all you can see are strange lines and forms made by seemingly chaotic movements of windsurfers. There are few interesting scenes to see, if you know what to look for. I am leaving to you to decide who are the goblins in this dance. :-)

No wind day on Karpathos

When you see the weather forecast telling you that there will be no wind on Karpathos, do not believe it. Because, instead of silence, you will probably get something like this:

Luderitz - My personal challenge

by: Alberto Possati

Since I've been able to windsurf (I've started back in 1978) I've  always been fascinated by speedsurfing. To go fast is fun, I kept saying to myself. Back then, my windsurfing activity was restricted to 2-3 weeks every summer, in which when possible I looked for the windiest spots I could find, to maximize my time into the water.

As years passed by, my love for windsurfing was always pretty alive and when, a few years ago, a good friend of mine asked me to attend to a Speed World Cup event with him, the first thing I thought was that I couldn't match up the situation. "It's too late", I said to myself, I thought I should have started earlier. But, somehow, in a few months I found myself on a Fuerteventura beach waiting for some wind. That was the 2006 Speed Word  Cup which was held in Sotavento together with the Fuerteventura PWA slalom event. I was not alone: there were all the top slalom sailors in the world, wanting to test their speed as well, as well as a few 'down to earth' guys like me. I never saw these top guns if not in windsurf magazines, and to be in the water with them was bit intimidating. But I was there, I spent money to be there and...yes, I had to go down the course, and I did it. And I was hooked. Hooked! That event really changed the last ten years of my life. I realized I could do it, there was a lot to learn but I could do it. Great!

Every year I started to attend to all the speed events that I could, together with a bunch of very good friends that I met during the events. UK, Ireland, Greece, Namibia, France, we crossed the sky many times to follow our passion. Results were nor very good neither really important to me, I felt more like the competition was in between myself and the speeds I recorded, instead of winning over somebody else. In other words, even now I like to see my speeds improving, but usually I'm happy if a friend is faster than me. In the end, he's been better than me, and I feel it more like a push to improve myself than a defeat. But it was interesting to see how slower I was compared to the experienced riders, so to have an idea of my performance.

Back in 2008, I started to think that a record attempt could have been closer to my expectations, so I registered for the Masters Of Speed event in the Canal of Saintes Maries De La Mer, the fastest sailing spot in the world, at least back then. But the event didn't go through, and my last competition was in Karpathos, Greece in 2009. Then, somehow, speedsurfing stood still for a few years: no more races, no more calls. A pity, I thought.

In 2012, I heard about a new speed canal in Luderitz, Namibia. They were organizing a speed

event in this newly dug channel that I heard to be

extremely fast. I tried to place my registration and...I was in!! First thought was obviously "will I be able to fly down the strip without killing myself?", second thought was "I'm too old for that" and so on. Lots of excuses, lots of little fears crossing my mind. Final thought, luckily, was "let's go there and see".

Luderitz is hard to reach, especially with 3 quiver bags. I flew 14 hours, drove alone for 2 days for 1.200 km through 2 unknown southern Africa countries and when I got there I said to myself that the record attempt was going to be "bread and butter", compared to what I faced during the trip. Actually it was not really like that, but the excitement I started feeling the day I reached Luderitz was really a great, great feeling.

The next morning I was at the canal at 10, with many other speedsailors. The atmosphere was nice, with many friends welcoming, and that was really helpful. That fist day was really windy, something like 35kts gusts, and I ordered myself "now you have to go". Not an easy task, when you see the the canal in some spots is probably no more than 6m wide and you are told it can have shallow spots here and there. But if they were going, why not me?? I only made one decisions: no harness on the first run: in case I fall, I thought, at least I'm free to fly (hopefully, in the water).

From then on it all was very quick: jumped in the water, made my waterstart, started planning. Footstraps in, you gain speed with wind on the side then, when the canal bears left, you slingshot yourself down the strip, with the wind pushing you with a 130 degrees angle. No harness, no breathing. Shhhhhhhhhhh, the water boiling under my 49 iSonic. Some 20 seconds after I stopped (actually I crashed, with no consequences) and my GPS was showing 39,5 knots average over 20s. With no harness!?! No you kidding….WOW!

So I finally wore my speed seat and threw myself down the course again and...42.xx knots showed up. And again and again. Then in 2013, 2014. And I'm ready for 2015. My best result, in 2013, was 45.87kt/500m, officially registered by WSSRC. If in 2010 you were telling me that I'd be going that fast I would have laughed and said "forget it". But it is true, and sometimes it still sounds a little weird to me.

Buried into the (too many?) words that I've written in this post,

there's a couple of messages I would like every speedsurfing fanatic to listen to, and the first one is: “YOU CAN DO IT". If I did it, my friend, you can do it. Because I'm an average amateur windsurfer, that has got some better recently thanks to the experiences I've just written about, with the help of many friends. I’m old enough to try to use my head better than when I was 25 but too old to get the best out of my big body. Provided you have the money and time, your windsurfing skills are reasonable and you like going fast, you can do it, and I’d swear that if you’ll be there you’ll have some veterans trying to help you to get the best out of your experience. If I’ll be there, I’ll be one of them for sure.

The second message I’d like to send you is that, at the end of your stay in Luderitz, you’ll probably find that GOING DOWN THE COURSE AT 40+ KNOTS IS ONLY PART OF THE OVERALL EXPERIENCE. The incredible place, the different culture. the riders from different countries, the spirit that keeps them together, all these things make this venue much more valuable than the speed attempt itself. Moreover, the Luderitz Speed Challenge is not a race, it is a record attempt. So there’s no official ranking, and basically you
race against yourself, or your GPS if you prefer. And this is what I like so much.

If you go to Luderitz, I’d swear you will never forget it.

PS: my first year in Luderitz I used my Starboard iSonic Speed 49 with Severne Reflex III 5.6. Now I know that to go faster you need a 40-44 board, 5,6+6.2 slalom sails and a few 18/19/20/21 asymmetrical fins. Sizes depend on your weight, too. Helmet, Weight+flotation jacket and spine protection are a good advice. And your GoPro, obviously.

Karpathos pictures

Folow Soulwindsurf on Facebook or Twitter for fresh pictures from Karpathos in July and August 2015.

Vasiliki, Lefkada, Greece

Vasiliki was hanging on my "places to visit" list since I started windsurfing. It was about time to check it out and see if it stands up with its reputation as one of the best windsurfing spots in the world. After a week spend there with my son Borna, I can confirm: yes, it does!

We took a ferry from Trieste (Italy) to Igoumenitsa (Greece). I grow accustomed to longish ferry travels. They are time consuming (some 30 hours with this one), but if you like it slow, in the company of some good book, watching amazing onboard sunsets and enjoying long talks with your travel mate(s), that is the right thing to do. In comparison with get-me-there-asap philosophy (which is an unfortunate consequence of modern living) this is more alike oldish way of traveling, with much time to think and adjust to enjoyable moments ahead.

Lefkada is officially an island, but you cross over with one short undersea tunnel and a 20 meters long pontoon bridge. After that, you enter the islands capital city, with the same name - Lefkada. We didn't spend much time there. It looks like very crowded topical Greek city, with lots of car, and no place to walk undisturbed, so we just give it a glance and drove through it.

Our navigational system directed us on the main road to Vasiliki, following the eastern shore of the island. However, following our own gut feeling, we decided to visit some famous beaches on the western side, like Milos beach, and (that one we did latter), Eregmni beach. The western side road is going over the hills, up and down, with lot of turns. But, if you are patient, you are rewarded with some of the most beautiful views I have ever seen. And those beaches... My, o my! No, we didn't windsurf there, but that blueness which dazzle your eyes when you look at it from above, and makes you wish you lost your self in it, when you jump in to swim or dive... that is something special, indeed. The western beaches of Lefkada are abundantly decorated with white foam created by moderate swells breaking over their sandy shores.


Windsurfing

Deliberately or not, the bay of Vasiliki was created for windsurfing. It is protected by the hills, the beach is mostly sandy and the see is shallow some 100 meters from the shore, making it ideal for learning all kind of windsurfing skills, from beginners to advanced. The wind there is created each afternoon by local thermal differences. It blows down the hill on the western side, and it is quite regular. You can count on it each day, even if the rest of the island doesn't get any pressure wind at all.

The direction, however, changes from day to day, and also during the day. The usual, light to moderate wind is crosshore, so you can sail crosswind parallel with the western shore. Sometimes, it blows a little bit more from the northwest, and it seems a lot stronger. But, you get a smaller area for windsurfing, and a more offshore feeling.

Choppy it is, always. And gusty it is, always. But, it is not really an issue - it never gets annoying or tiresome. During my stay I never have seen anyone left on the see without a wind. You can always find your way back, especially if you mind the timing and respect the after 19:00 silencing down.

Those searching for flat waters and speed runs... well, you can find them in Vasiliki, but not everyday. You have to wait for a right direction (I would say, northwest is the best one). In that case, you have some 200 meters upwind, and more than a mile pure downwind! If you are lucky, and gusts are merciful, you can catch a great speed, no doubt. But, after that, prepare for a bumpy upwind sailing, directly through a lot of chop. (I was not lucky regarding gusts, and only two days out of seven, we got the right strength and direction - but +36 knots of speed was done with ease on 98 liters board and 7,0 sail).

For a regular windsurfer, though, Vasiliki is a real heaven. Mostly, you can see sails from 4,0 to 5,0. That means -  a lot of wind everyday. And that is all we need, isn't it? The be honest, the only thing I didn't like, goes with a place being so friendly and so uplifting as Vasiliki is: a lot of people. Sometimes, you have difficulty finding your way to clear space through a lot of windsurfing beginners near the shore. And there is simply no spot without a windsurfing sail, so you have to be always on guard for possible close encounters.

Along the shore there are many windsurfing centers; the most famous and with best choices of new boards and sails is, of course, Club Vass. Any freerider or freestyler will find there whatever s/he desires equipment wise. You can bring your own equipment and pay the storage, or, if you don't mind to rig it every day, you can easily park the car some 20 meters from the shore and spear some money. However, if you plan to windsurf every day, it could be somewhat tiresome activity, so better take the comfortable and more secure approach and join some of the Centers there. (Since it is never a good idea to teach windsurfing to your own kin, I left my son Borna in a good hands of the instructors of Quicksilver Windsurfing School.)

The food and the rest

Starting with the rest, Lefkada is typical Greek island with typical Greek activity. I can not say anything about the fun and the parties, but I am sure the ones who enjoy in such activity will find something for themselves. If nothing, each Friday night the Englishmen from the Club Vass will give you some kind of a surprise. You can enjoy in thematic costume party (pretending that you are cowboy or the Indian, old Greek or alien). Man, you can even "enjoy" the BBQ stuff without the costumes, if you are into it (as you can see on the photo).

But, we took more like daily approach to investigating the island. So, we found beautiful long beaches where you can be alone even if there is a lot of people on it. The special little something is a waterfall near the town of Nidri (20 minutes drive from Vasiliki). You can take the morning hike uphill (3,5 km), and arrive there when it gets hot - just for a nice, refreshing swim in the small lake beneath the waterfall. A rare opportunity given that it is a fresh water on the island.

Now, the food is usually excellent. There are taverns all around, and you can hardly make a mistake picking the one randomly, in Vasiliki or somewhere along the road. However, if you are a gourmand, as we are for sure, I have two recommendation for you. Both are placed in Nidri. The first tavern is called "The Barrel". Usually, I would not mention the prices, because, usually, it is understood that quality is expensive. But in this case, the prices are even lower than in the taverns around. But the taste of the food is much more refined.

The second recommendation is probably one of the best taverns, if not the best, on my Greek cuisine list. It is called "Ta Kalamia". Placed on the entrance of the main pedestrian area in Nidri, this tavern has a special "no menu" philosophy. That means, you can chose between four kind of dishes (vegetarian, see food, meat and mixed) and the cook - a genuine food artist by the name of Vanghel - will bring you his version of a perfect meal, made for you. Now, call it a rhapsody, call it a symphony, or a music made in heaven, but that is how his food taste like! If you ever come to Lefkada, Ta Kalamia, and Vanghel, the artist cook, is a must, at least for one night. But, I suppose, you will come for more, as we did. Love and food - that is written on the entrance to Ta Kalamia, and I have no doubt that you will find them both.


Conclusion

I have been there, and I will come again. :-)

FUERTEVENTURA – Sotavento session

 by: Zoran Košmrl

We heard a lot of wellknown Sotavento beach on the Canary island of Fuerteventura, the windsurfing and kiteboarding mekka for recreational and professional athlets. PWA Tour stops there every year too. So, three of us, fellow windsurfers,  decided to use the opportunitiy to experience our first windsurfing in the ocean.

Factography

Fuerteventura is longest but with the area of 1660km2 the second largest of the Canary Islands.  It is closest to Africa (less than 90km away from Marocco) and separated from Lanzerote by the 10km-wide Strait of Bocaina. Volcanic mountains stretch along the western half of the island up to the 807m abowe the sea level (Pico de la Zarza). A lot of dry river beds suggest that there is limited precipitation (only 140mm/year) mainly between September and May. Humidity varies from 19% to 38% and sunshine reaches an annual average of 2800 hours. Fuerteventura is affected throughout the year, specially in summer, by anticyclones of the Azores (high-preassured air). These winds are loaded with humidity, salt and clouds due to long jurney above the ocean. The constant northeast winds – Alisios – speed up on account of the island's relief and reach average speed of 25km/h. So generally, west coast („barlovento“ – windward) has side-onshore wind with lot of breaking waves along rocky and sandy beaches (the longest and nicest is the Playa de Cofete).

The seas are very rough with lot of current and suitable for pro surfers and windsurfers. East coast („sotavento“ – leeward) has side-offshore wind with flat seas along the sandy beaches and ocasionally swell as a result of the ocean. The longest and most popular windsurfing and kiteboarding beach is Playa de Sotavento de Jandia in the south of Fuerteventura between Costa Calma and Morro Jable. It is nearly 6km long and in low tide about 500m wide. During high tide it fills up with up to 60cm deep sea that is separated by a narrow sandy dune from the atlantic ocean and is ideal for windsurfing and kiteboarding beginners.


Windsurfcenters

In 1984 Rene Egli established the biggest windsurfing center in the north of the Playa de Sotavento de Jandia and later the kiteboarding center near the Melia Gorriones hotel too http://www.rene-egli.com/ . The windsurfing center has a wide selection of first class NeilPryde and JP Australia equipment and rental is devided into three categories. Prebooking is 15% cheaper as the rental on the spot. Besides the center has storage for guest equipment, changing rooms, lockers, showers, relaxing area with free WIFI under palm trees, simple snacks and drinks for refreshment, professional photo service, massage area, ... It is well organised and comercialised, everything in favour of windsurfing from the beginner to the professional. Windsurfing area is wide so no crowd on the water is expected. With offshore wind the sea is flat to choppy after 100m of the coast. 

The restricted area is marked and ends with the start of the dark blue sea some 200m from the coast. The guys on jetski are fast and effective when rescue is needed. In case of being to far from the coast they are there in the moment and in the other moment the equipment and the windsurfer are safe in the shallow water. The whole area is supervised from the highest point on the beach from 9:00 to 19:00. The same goes for the kiteboarding. There is shuttle service from Costa Calma to windsurfing and kiteboarding center several times a day (distance is 5km). The surfshop in the nearby hotel Melia Gorriones is well equipped. Neverhteless, on my opinion, the prices are generally in both the surfshop and the center to european and a bit to high.
    

Club Mistral joined later with windsurfing centers in Costa Calma and in the southern part of the Sotavento beach called Risco del Paso. We did not visit the center in Costa Calma but that one in Risco del Paso was a discovery for me. It is less equiped and smaller but more user friendly, with more relaxed and cosy atmosphere. Everything is cheaper and less commercialised in comparison to Rene Egli's station. There are some slowenian instructors in well organised staff, and a friendly multilingual croatian girl on the reception desk. Windsurfing equipment offered is by Northsails (sails, masts, booms) and  Fanatic boards. http://www.club-mistral.com/en/destinations/home/29/genInfo.

There is no place for storage of guest equipment, no drinks and snacks (you should have a plenty of own drinking water and a lunch package with you), no shade for relaxing. But the conditions on the water are different from that in Egli's center. Due to direction of the coast there is no chop, just flat water with some swell coming from the ocean ocasionally forming jumping ramps or nice waveriding slopes. Direction of windsurfing is from 20 degrees to paralel to the beach in the shallow sea (standing area is to 20m from the coast depending from the tide. All the time there is a small laguna basin between the station and oceanside for beginners. During high tide the laguna with knee-deep sea is stretched across the whole beach up to the station over the period of few hours. The supervision is organised from the station and from the nearby mountain. Constant radio connection with rescue team on jetski asures fast and efficient operation.


Trip 

Everything started and was going as planned. Ivan, Mario and me, we left Varazdin at 4 a.m. and after a short break and vehicle change in Satledt, where Jura joined us, we arrived to Munich airport at 11 a.m. just on time to check-in before the crowd started at noon. Some Slowenian guys joined us with windsurfing luggage too. Later they happened to be in the same apartment house with us.

The afternoon flight aboard the confortable Condor Airbus took 4h30m and finally we landed on the sunny Fuerteventura island. We picked up the windsurfing packages and luggage and checked-in for the car rental. The new Citroen Berlingo (the car had 18km) was the right choice.

The only pain in the ass was in stead of the two, just one sliding door in the back, but we used to it soon. We have put all the luggage into and onto the car and our jurney along the desert island to the south started. The moon relief without any flora except in the cities, around hotels and on the golf grounds, was accompaning us all the way to Costa Calma. The wind coming from northeast helped us to come to Costa Calma in less than an hour. The apartment house was not difficult to find because it was the last one on the road to windsurfing center. The boys had to check-in for the equipment rental in the Rene Egli's office but it was closed so we had to leave it for the first thing next morning. Whole Costa Calma is 90% tourist oriented. Apartments and houses to rent are on every corner and big hotel complexes on every second corner.

After a big breakfast next morning and Egli's office check-in Jura and Mario went to the windsurfing center to get the board and sail. In the meantime I rigged my 5,8 NP Atlas on the FSW102 and started my first ocean session. The wind was pretty stable and offshore but there was apsolutely no crowd on the water in spite of some 30 windsurfers moving up and down. The aclimatisation period was pretty short for us. Only 1hour difference made a trouble for a start but we got used to it soon. As we injoyed windsurfing Ivan got infected with kiteboarding virus and started kiteboarding lessons in Club Mistral.

First two days we had to put on the right place all the details with the Polish owner and get used to the microscopic dust coming into and scatering all over the place. A Czech boy helped us to get familiar with the apartment, city, shops, restaurants...

First six days we had 25-30knots of wind during a sunny day with air temperature 23-28oC and ocean temperature of 21oC. I spent three days in front of Rene Egli's center. The choppy conditions in strong wind I changed than with a flat contitions in front of Club Mistral and enjoyed it much more. The turquise sea poured over white sandy beach in a row of 80cm high swell.

The waves coming from the oceanside would appear just few meters before the beach forming sometimes steep ramp for a nice jump over it into the flat sea before the next wave that might even not happen. It was pure soulwindsurfing experiance. During a short break I would lie on the beach between the board that was protecting my back from the sand blown with the wind and rig in front protecting me from the sun. I would just lie down and admire the moves of other windsurfers passing by. The swell would pour the sea over the sail covering it more and more with white sand. After few sets of waves the sail would be covered with 5cm of sand and one would have real trouble to get it out.

The everydays warmup due of carrying the rig for 150m over the beach to the oceanside was soon exchanged with windsurfing through shallow laguna sea during high tide to the sandbank and than crossing on foot few meters to the oceanside. It is amazing how fast filled up the beach depression with sea throught two corridors in the sandbank where the current was strong like some river. Soon the whole „beach“ was full of windsurfers and kiteboarders but noway we can speak of a crowd on the water. I personally still prefered the oceanside.
    
We made some exploration of surroundings by car. We made an excursion to La Pared on the west coast to see the oceanwaves. Unfortunately we did not go to the magnificent Cofete beach in the southwest. We visited Morro Jable, a big tourist city in the south that is 20min by car from Costa Calma. Southernmost city of Puerto de la Cruz was to far for us to go along the dirty road.
   
Last five days the wind dropped to 15-18 knots. As I had no sail for it with me I decided to go for kiteboarding lessons. Unfortunatelly, a high fever in next days stopped me from improving my kiteboarding. In spite of that it was a worthwhile trip and I would repeat it next year but go to Corralejo in the north.


Expenses
Condor has cheapest flight tickets variing from 170€ to 290€ depending of the pickedup dates. Windsurfing luggage is restricted to maximum 30kg of luggage 250cm long and costs 60€ for both ways. In my case it was a bag with freestyle wave 102 board, two masts, three sails, two extensions, one boom and harness. But in case you have more luggage that is not paid with the ticket do not forget to call or e-mail for the reservation before the flight, otherwise it is besides additional 60€ extra 50€ one way.  All is bookable online.

Nearest tourist place is Costa Calma so we looked for the accomodation online too (http://de.rentalia.com  www.houstrip.de   www.tripadviser.com  www.booking.com ...) We found a nice place to stay with the underground garage for the car in Costa Calma for 60€/day for 4 Persons. The accomodation for 2persons is possible from 30€/day. In case you are lucky you can have studio for 100€/week from Žan Ribnikar who works in Club Mistral as instructor from May to October (www.bushmans.si ).

There is a cosy setlement of apartment houses in the Risco del Paso region over the Club Mistral with terraces looking to the beach for 100€/day (www.villa-christina.eu ). Costa Calma is 70km far from the airport and because we had own windsurfing equipment we booked car rental for the whole stay. We took Citroen Berlingo and it suited perfectly to the need we had. The equipment could be inside the car but to be more confotrable we put the board derectly onto the roof fixed with straps through the cabin. The car with full insurance took us 230€ and we spent for 11 days and 500km 36€ for fuel.
 

Two persons could pass with Renault Clio for 110€ + fuel. Transfer to Munich and back took us 100€ and 60€ for parking on the airport. All the food for 11 days we bought from day to day in SPAR in Costa Calma and cocked in the apartment spending approx 40€/person.  The prices of everyday food are approximatelly the same as here, excluding fish and beer that is much cheaper. But the taverns and restaurants are not so expensive too. In case you need any medical treatment it is rather expensive all the invoices for cash payments are refundable if you have travel insurance. I have got it refunded in 10 days after coming home.


Hints

• Check tidal forecasts for planning the trip if you want to use laguna for windsurfing or kiteboarding.
• Don't hurry to buy the flight tickets online. Check out the price every day because it usually drops down as the date of departure nears.
• Check your windsurfing luggage not to make it to more than 30kg. Make a reservation for that luggage because on check-in it gets expensive. If you buy it with the flight ticket it is 60€ both ways. If you buy it on check-in it is 60€ one way plus 50€ space reservation.
• Check the conditions of accomodation reservation with the owner. On the spot it is usually to late to discuss all the features of the apartment, final cleaning expenses, wifi connection, SAT TV, sheets and towels changing, pets in the house...
• Don't rent car from the online rental company because it usually does not have own counter for check-in. It uses third party on the spot that does not aprove the insurance you have paid online, and charges extra 200-500€ deposit for the case.
• Be prepared to cash the medical help. Private clinics usually avoid credit cards and trevel insurance policies in spite of the statement that they accept all that. All the invoices for the medical help and drugs are refundable if you have travel insurance.
• Don't drink tapped water. It can cause digestal problems. We bought big containers of potable water even for cooking and brushing teeth.
• Check the prices in shops. The differences can be to 30%. We had good experiance with SPAR in Costa Calma.

Packing for Greece

Those days are here again! Packing for Greece is in the same time a drag and a pleasure. The usual mess in the backyard, in front of a garage. This time, I am more modest equipment wise. I have learned that too much may be really too much. So, no extremes this year - just four boards and three sails. That should be enough.

However, I have two new speed machines, acquired specially with Karpathos in mind. New RRD X-Fire 90 (which should do the trick and take me safely through wind holes) and even newer X-Fire 80 (a worthy replacement for a speed board).

This year, the plan is to visit a legendary windsurfing spot in Vasiliki, on island Lefkada. Of course, I will take a chance on other spots on the island as well. You can expect some nice and practical reports, as usual. :-)

A week or ten days there should be enough. After that, I will proceed to the place of windy dreams - Karpathos. Looking forward to meet old and new friends and participate in two GPS events: Odyssey of Speed and Karpathos Speed. Cheers!

Polar flow training

Having a heart rate monitor is a must for an efficient zone training. I have written extensively about that in past articles. However, the watches are becoming more sophisticated, with even more possibilities. Furthermore, the analyzing software and accompanying services are sometimes really amazing.

Recently I switched from older Polar RCX5 to new V800. I could write a lot about the improvements, but also some setback (fortunately minor). However, the new Polar Flow service is a pleasant surprise. Among other things, it can "relive" your track in a nice video, with some Google maps photos of the training track. All that with one click. Of course, if you wish, and know how to do it, you can spice it up with your own photos or video materials using editing software (I didn't do it this time).

Here is the video made with "relive" function of Polar Flow. One short, but nice bike ride training.

Jadrija, Šibenik. Croatia

Sometimes, you just can't  take your eyes of of the beauty: the see, the wind and the sails... South wind, moderate strength; warm weather, sunny... All is well. :-)

Jadrtovac, again

Almost ideal forecast for jugo (south) wind. Not so ideal in practice, but anyway, some of Croatian speed windsurfers enjoyed again in Jadrtovac, the fastest speed spot in Croatia.

More photos on Soulwindsurf FB page.

Oh, that is how I like it!

Long winter, cold weather, old bones... but it is finally over now! Today at Srima, nice bora (for 8,6 sail, with completely flat water), middle of the week, no people, no sailboats- just me and the easy wind.

Nobody around to make pictures, so one selfie should be enough as a proof I was there. :-)

2015. Season opening

Middle of February - quite late for season opening. But, cold and snow, mist and clouds, and me being in the north and traveling pursuing business maters... all that contributed to a little delay. However, here it is - a sunny afternoon, the village of Žaborić, little bit south from Šibenik, and weak south wind (jugo) - barely enough for 8,6.

Nevertheless, it was - ...amazing!

Starboard iSonic 87

Starboard iSonic 87, y 2012. wood. Beautiful, forgiving and very fast board for having fun in high wind. It is for sale :-(, but I am seriously thinking about keeping it for myself like a peace of art.

More pictures HERE.

Having fun... while waiting