Bonfire night, a massive firework display, a spectacular tow in show with the pros and an Austrian champion. [more]
5.00pm the skippers meeting at the town beach of Weymouth was scheduled. The riders transport was arranged and at the spot right in front of the big promenade sponsor flags were hoisted and a few clothing brands put some nice stuff for the upcoming winter season on display, some also knowing how to attract the masses (and the riders) by letting two pretty girls provide cupcakes and waffles.
Day 3. Sunshine, 20 knots, a finished double elimination and the big night tow in show!
Starting the double at 9.30 am this morning it became obvious quite quickly who went into it with the intention to make a come back! [more]F2 rider Nikos Athansiou from Greece won two of his heats against Will Rogers (Starboard) and Malte Hecht (Sailloft) to then be just stopped by Adrian Beholz (Sailloft). Nikos showed a strong repertoire on moves including power moves and very technical maneuvers like a switch flaka.
Pro freestyle windsurfer of Slovenia Andraz Zan (F2/F2) managed to climb up in the double elimination ladder after having a rather disappointing result in the single. He faced Adam Sims (Sailloft) and Julien Mas who he defeated with routine until young Rick Jendrusch (F2) dispatched him before he could step up into the top five. F2 team member Jendrusch showed a strong performance and sailed five heats in the double also taking out Jeremy Pluss from Switzerland, Adrian Beholz (Sailloft) from Germany and even UK top rider Andy Bubble Chambers (JP/Neilpryde). Only Adam Gavriel from Israel could stop the rookie with a sick style in all of his power moves and made Jendrusch end up in 4th place! The wind dropped a bit in the heat for the second and third place between Gavriel and Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard) but clearly favored Van der Eyken.
Day Two – When you consider the completion of the single elimination today, most would call it perfect timing. We only had to run the losers and the winners final to get a full standing result. Seeing Andy ‘Bubble’ Chambers (JP/Neilpryde) against Adam Gavriel from Israel in the losers final and winner of the previous event Dieter Van der Eyken (Starboard) against current tour leader Davy Scheffers from Holland in the winners final, always promised for a high class finish to the first round.
Even though the morning surprised the crew and the riders with sun instead of the forecasted English rain, the weather was freezing cold and the motivation of the first competitors of the day should be highlighted, especially Adam Gavriel, who is used to much more tropical temperatures.
Today the crew and the riders of the EFPT conquered the OTC in Weymouth which is located right next to the Portland Sailing Academy, also been the venue for the Olympic sailing disciplines 2012. Sunshine and wind welcomed us and it became clear how much potential this spot has as a destination for sailing and windsurfing competition.
The registration today started at 8.30 and saw a big involvement of British sailors of different levels. Next to top pro riders Andy ‘Bubble’ Chambers (JP/Neilpryde), Jamie Drummond (Starboard) and Adam Sims (Sailloft) we saw some Brits giving their debut in international competition. Charlie Jones (North/Fanatic) and Josh Sparks (North/Fanatic), both under 18, decided to give it a shot this year. While some of the english sailors who already competed in France and also got involved showed more confidence and were already hunting the EFPT team for the 2013 tour plan.
