Every year until the 2000s, ISPO was held in Munich in autumn, where manufacturers presented their new products for the coming season. In 1988, mono film was all the rage, only North still "demonised" transparent film. "Mono film should actually be banned!" rants North boss Wagner. He sees hobby surfers in "mortal danger" if the sails tear due to minor damage. Mistral, on the other hand, is the first brand to use the new material in its entire range. Following the Klepper bankruptcy, several brands are battling it out for the market share that has been freed up, including F2, which now has a race version in addition to its bestseller Sunset Slalom. Fanatic is showing the new Mamba and an extra-light Bee in carbon honeycomb construction for 10,000 marks (!). If you still have money left over after that, you can order the surf simulator for around 45,000 marks. The device is reminiscent of a bullriding machine and is said to offer an "amazingly realistic surfing experience" with its hydraulics and electronics. Alpha provides a talking point with a bald catalogue model ("We deliberately want to create identification for older surfers"), while Quiksilver's slogan "No fat chicks, no big sizes" was already a no-go at the time.
Adventurer Stephane Peyron has set off to surf to the North Pole. The goal of the expedition, which starts in Canada, is the magnetic North Pole - which moves and is mobile within a radius of around 50 kilometres. Peyron not only has to hope for thawing ice (what an irony from today's perspective...), but also surf against the current, which pushes countless blocks of ice in front of him. Even "curious" walruses can become a danger. Peyron surfs for four to five hours a day, his equipment includes two Mistral boards and five sails, in the sponsor's design for media impact. The mission was a success: on 23 August 1988, he became the first person to reach the North Pole windsurfing!
How much strain is put on the fin, mast and boom when surfing? surf and TÜV Bayern want to find out and are starting a series of tests on Lake Garda: test rider Werner Buschmann goes out on the water with a football helmet, a bulky device on his back and lots of cables. The cabling is connected to thin strain gauges, which were previously distributed over the material and which measure even minimal changes. A tape recorder records the values and a recorder on land ticks the results onto continuous paper. Shortly afterwards, the TÜV inspector cheers: the boom is broken! "It's a stroke of luck when a component breaks during the measurement!" Werner Buschmann, the "lucky guy", was then allowed to test the fin and mast for breaking strength, but everything remained intact. Nevertheless, there were some findings: a low but dynamic load can be more damaging to the fin box than static but higher values. The mast test showed that it does not bend only backwards or only to leeward, but twists like a corkscrew depending on the trim. The aim of the test, which cost 20,000 marks, was to establish reliable values for the DIN standard and to improve the quality of the industry in the face of numerous defects and complaints.
You can click through the entire magazine in the gallery above!
You can click through the entire magazine in the gallery above!

Editor