"Mutiny on Maui", "Star Wars", "War of the Generations": Sounds dramatic, but it was simply the breakthrough of a new generation of wave riders, who rode in front of old stars like Robby Naish with double loops and unprecedented radicalism. Names that today belong to the absolute top class and are themselves already considered "old". In 1993, Francisco Goya, Jason Prior, Josh Angulo and Sean Ordonez caused a sensation and were emblazoned on almost every title and poster. "We are about to change the face of windsurfing," Josh Angulo summarised. The role model is Jason Polakow, the figurehead of the new generation. The Hawaii clique around Rush Randle and Dave Kalama don't find this funny, but the young savages are demonstratively open: "Our 'family' is more tolerant," says Sean Ordonez. "I also respect the Europeans," adds Josh Angulo, 20 years old at the time. The style is less cosy: "Josh doesn't play with the waves, he destroys them." New moves and the courage to take risks are what unites the group: "We try very hard to show the world what everyone thought was impossible," says Sean, describing their attitude. He is also the house shaper for the young savages and drives material development forward so that everyone has the toys that make radical sessions possible. "If you put Seeger on one of our boards with the new shapes, he'd have to seriously worry about his health."
The "eternal power neck"
The most popular manoeuvre in windsurfing? A combination of "jibe attempt and subsequent water start", says editor-in-chief Gerd Kloos in the editorial. Letters to the editor complain about constant jibing advice, yet 61% of readers admit that they are still honing their power jibe. Why do many have such a divided relationship with jibes? "Those who learn it stay in the sport, those who fail are potential dropouts," says coach Wolfhart Smidt, summarising his experience. Falling in means frustration, and people want to avoid that. To make matters worse, the boards at the beginning of the nineties were primarily trimmed for speed, because everyone wanted to race across the lake on the latest Dunkerbeck design. Back then, hardly anyone thought about turning round. Surf school operators on Lake Garda estimated that only around 10 to 20 per cent of windsurfers were making clean, smooth jibes. But shaper Helmut Kirner predicts: "There will be boards on which you can improve your jibes and, above all, glide through!" surf has worked out what these will look like with the shapers - and they are surprisingly close to today's freeride shapes!
"No one is looking!"
...is the headline of Dietmar Kornelli's portrait. Who? Exactly, because although Kornelli was the most successful German surfer of the early nineties and "pre-Flessi era" with German championship titles, European championships and a runner-up World Championship title, he was usually overshadowed by Team Germany. His weaknesses lie in the waves - and in self-promotion. "That goes against the grain," he admits in the surf portrait. At the same time, the outspoken "competition guy" feels it's unfair to be so little recognised: "Somehow I'm an unloved winner." Nevertheless, the man with the sail number G-5 is able to make a living from windsurfing with sponsors such as F2 and drops out of university after his breakthrough. He concentrates on the Windsurf Cup, he does the World Cup "just for fun" and "goes out a lot in the evenings", which is more training for the funboard races.
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And what else?
- Robby Seeger wants to present his own boards under the "Edge" label at ISPO
- To recordings for "Against the wind", a regatta for everyone is organised in St. Peter-Ording
- surf announces in the Finns Journal "The end of the Spinouts", declares long fins to be dead and G10 to be exhausted. More than 30 years later, all three are still part of windsurfing.
- The F2 Sputnik 265 is one of the first no nose boards to be surf tested. "It'll give you a headache", is Jürgen Hönscheid's verdict on the "fastest marterpfhaln in the slalom industry". However, there is little to criticise in terms of performance.
- Looks like a spin out, but is "great fun": Robby Naish shows the lipslide on the crest of the wave.
- Unusual materials: ART offers a fin with a wooden look (classy!), the company TWA offers aluminium battens for high-wind sails.
- The Baltic Sea coast from Lübeck to Wismar and the Veluwemeer are the topics of the Spotguides - despite much change, they are still perennial favourites today
- Pozo alternative "between rubbish and military area": surf presents the Ojos de Garza spot on Gran Canaria.
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Tobias Frauen
Editor
