ABC: Ciao Jurjen, welcome to our website and thanks for the availability!

J: Thank you for asking me!

ABC: The most important Speed Event in the world is concluded and you were one of the most important protagonist: what atmosphere did you

breath in Luderitz?

J: I went there with one purpose only; the be the fastest man on a windsurfer. I knew that the other competitors would be really strong so it wouldn’t be an easy job. A balance between focus and relaxing is important for me and the conditions were perfect for this. On average the wind was blowing on every second day. This gave us time to relax and to focus. Because it was a world record attempt and not a competition, the atmosphere between windsurfers was very friendly and helpful. An other important issue was to learn very quickly. This canal was new to me. Guys like Antoine and Anders surfed canal’s many times before. I think I had two days to get used to the canal, on the third day it felt comfortable.

ABC: Which windsurfing disciplines do you practice? Why do you like speed windsurfing?

J: Speed is my main focus. I like it because it’s competitive and it can be done every day and on every place. The technical part in speedsurfing is bigger then in other disciplines, that’s also a interesting factor for me. Besides speed I try to focus on slalom a bit more. I would like to do some big slalom competitions this Year, maybe a PWA slalom event.

ABC: Did you thought you would have broken the 50 kts barrier or was an unexpected surprise?

J: My goal was to beat the old world record. The first day I managed to do 47knots. On the second day 49 knots and on the third day 49.9 knots. I knew then that 50 or even 51 knots was possible. All I needed was the right wind. On my last day I had the luck that the wind was really good and I managed to do 51.26 knots.

ABC: The development of the technique to reach 50 kts is very intense, can you tell us what kind of training do you follow to reach such a great

result? Does the luck still exist at this speed or it doesn’t?

J: Of course luck is needed. You need that one magical gust to go fast. But to go fast in that gust you need the right material, the right trim, the right

technique, enough power, enough weight and you have to have guts. Because 53.85 knots (peak speed) is really fast on a canal which is only 8 meter wide. So it’s a combination of many things. To get the right combination it takes as lot of preparations. So I would say, you need some luck, but the biggest part is in your hands.

ABC: How do you feel to have excelled in this competition with guys like Bjorn, Albeau, Bringdal and Patrik?

J: These guys have so much quality. They are all very strong and have a perfect technique. No wonder these guys are the best of the best. Besides being really good they are also nice guys. All in all a great experience for me.

ABC: Do you have some role in the speed R&D of some sail/board brand or do you develop your own equipment?

J: Yes for Starboard and Severne I do R&D for speed surfing sails and boards. In the future I also might do R&D for fin development. This is also a part of the fun for me. I’m always thinking about what could be changed to go faster. It’s good to see that the big brands in the industry also think that speed is important and they all want to be the fastest brands in the world.

ABC: In your opinion, what means “have the right trim for speed?”

J: Ai. That’s difficult to answer. It depends on so many factors. My tip for going fast is: always watch what the faster surfers are doing and learn from that. I also try to surf on equipment of other sailors as much as possible and learn from that.

ABC: I was looking at your pics when I noticed something of interest…why your front footstrep is very large and you have 2 streps on the back with all the foot inside?

J: My footstraps are big because i like to have a lot of grip on the board. If a gust hits I can easilly push against the board. For the same reason I use a double footstrap on the back. I also like to be sure that a gust does not pull me off the board, with the wider straps that does not happen, or atleast not so easy.

ABC: Do you think 55 kts could be reacheable during the next year or do you think the speed discipline needs more development and radical

innovation?

J: Yes, for sure it can be reached. I think to most important factor is the canal it self. If the wind is more laminar on ground level (like it is a 10m altitude) our speed will go up by a few knots. With our current equipment these speeds can be achieved and we might be as fast as kitesurfers.

ABC: Which is your next goal?

J: My main goal for 2013 is simple: “the get the world record!” I will do a lot to reach that goal. Preparations have already started. Besides that I would like to do some big slalom events. I’m no pro windsurfer so to win one of these is not likely, but I like to see how far I can come.

CLICK HERE FORE MORE : https://www.abcwindsurf.eu/index.php/news/eventi/2850-abc-exclusive-interview-to-jurjen-van-der-noord