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Sail test in the wind tunnel
"High-precision, computer-controlled measuring instruments" during sail testing: surf tests which sail shape is ahead in terms of propulsion and lateral force in the Mercedes wind tunnel. The Ora from Untertürkheim has a tolerance of less than one per cent when it comes to wind force - fantastic! Together with the Benz engineers, the surf editors wanted to find out what forces are generated on sails, how these behave with increasing wind force, how different sail cuts differ and what role the mast hardness plays. The first realisation: around 80 % of the forces are merely disruptive and do not generate any propulsion; when the wind force doubles, the undesirable lateral forces quadruple. Sensitive experts have an advantage here: "Only at a very specific angle of attack does a sail actually perform as the sailmaker expects from its profile." However, there is no one design that particularly stands out; rather, every sail shape has advantages and disadvantages in certain conditions. Another finding: the longer the boom, the faster the sail - "it should be at least 2.20 metres for speed freaks". Curious: while one 5.3 test sail turned out to be only 5.14, another was an incredible 0.7 square metres larger than the manufacturer's specifications!
The fascination of raceboards
surf takes up the cudgels in favour of lances: for Ken Winner, raceboards - the long, narrow toothpicks - are the "best all-round boards for different conditions". Especially in choppy water, he sees the 3.90-long planks as having an advantage: "Especially in the rough conditions on the coast, there is not a single sports boat that could be faster!" Key to the new boards that many brands are including in their range are folding centreboards and mast tracks - the early models that could be adjusted on the fly using cables and pedals. This allows the trim to be adjusted depending on the course and wind strength. High speeds are achieved "not so much through power, but through the use of intelligence".
Surfing instead of working
A hint of envy resonates: "How do they do it?" asks surf in view of a busy spot on a weekday morning with lots of wind. Why don't they have to work? The answer: many enthusiastic surfers have either organised themselves in such a way that they can get out on the water whenever the wind blows, or have jobs that don't follow a nine-to-five pattern anyway. There are the dental technicians who build boards on the side in "the other workshop", have an anemometer installed on the roof of their house and work out who is allowed out on the water when the scale above their workplace goes off. There's the policeman who enjoys his compensation for weekend duties on the water, but also likes to patrol the best spots in the area to check the wind for the after-work session. There's the official from the water management office who is particularly meticulous about checking the water quality in windy conditions ("How I take my samples is my business."). The stories of two students and a DJ, all of whom are largely free to organise their free time during the day, are almost boring.
Kai Schnellbacher
Kai Schnellbacher is described as having "a face like from the German pop parade", having just finished a few times ahead of Robby Naish in the still young World Cup. In the surf portrait, he makes no secret of the fact that he wants to make it to the top one day. But it wasn't an easy start: after a childhood and youth with many health setbacks, Schnellbarer didn't really get going until he was 16. "It was like unleashing a force that had been tamed for years," he describes the feeling at the time. "It then becomes twice as strong." He financed his first Hawaii trips through side jobs as a surf instructor and for HiFly, where he was also recognised, but also met other talents "whose methods he detested". Not because they were unfair, but because they were diametrically opposed to the lifestyle of the "hard-drinking Bavarian": "I noticed that certain riders didn't touch alcohol at parties, [...] sneaking off to bed at nine o'clock in the evening only to cover the beautifully peaceful beaches as joggers at seven o'clock in the morning." Parallel to his regatta life, Schnellbacher is doing an apprenticeship at F2 and wants to build something for himself in the industry.
And what else?
- Klepper offers a board leasing scheme: A down payment of just under 90 marks and then 99 marks a month, and you have a board for two years. As in the car sector, however, the bottom line is that you pay a lot more.
- News from the patent soap opera: Hoyle Schweitzer is fined for collecting his licence fee for the board and rig - but the patent only applies to the rig. At the same time, Schweitzer had banned the sale of rigs without boards. Curious: Bic had sued - but also has to pay because the Windglider division, which has since been acquired, was also sentenced.
- "We're not even thinking about it!" - with this statement, all rumours about a "surfing licence" are off the table
- We should no longer help "suicide candidates", demand some rescuers at the Bavarian "strong wind area" Walchensee. During a storm warning, no fewer than 48 surfers had to be rescued. However, the water rescue organisation makes it clear that everyone will be helped as long as the capacity is there.
- Andrè Lefebvre is working on flow-optimised sails, a rig without shafts - and a wing based on the already concept previously devised by Jim Drake.
- Surf shoes in the test: With a film of water on a board and an electric tug, the laboratory tests how slip-resistant various surf shoes are. Many models are clunky trainers and bear little resemblance to modern boots, while major brands such as Adidas, Puma and Romika also have special surf shoes in their range.
- Well, we know that one, don't we? The yellow injection-moulded fin from the Tumiati ad is strikingly reminiscent of modern K4 tail units
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