Name: Rachael InceAge: 24Location: The depths of West Somerset

How did I get into the sport? When I was about 14 Dave Woods and Ian Jameson both were doing really well on the racing scene. I saw them in the local paper, went along to the Team 15 at Durliegh Reservoir, and bobbed around for the next few years.

How Many years have you been windsurfing? I guess I learnt about ten years ago but I’d say 7 years of actual windsurfing.

What are your ambitions within the sport? Looking to the future, I’d say that I want to keep pushing my sailing, keep sailing in new places both in the UK but also abroad. The more I sail the more comfortable I am in challenging conditions and the more I enjoy those epic days.

Where do you normally windsurf? Being based in the South West I’m really lucky, there are lots of options depending on the conditions. Spending five years in Exeter I’ve spent a lot of time driving around Devon and Cornwall. Now based in Somerset I tend to sail Minehead or North Devon during the week.

Do you normally Plan your session?  Normally I have a general idea of things I’d like to improve, though I find really focusing on specific things difficult in the UK as conditions vary so much from session to session.

How do you prepare before going out on the water? I find one of the worst things is sailing dehydrated, so a big bottle of water always keeps me company on the way to the beach.

Do you have any sponsors currently? No sponsors currently, I’ve been lucky enough to have some good support from shops and centres that I’ve worked at in the past.

Favourite Discipline? Being based in the South West I’m pretty much dedicated to wave sailing. I’ve dabbled in some racing but never really got the bug.

Do you compete? I’ve done bits and pieces of competitions. Throughout Uni I did a lot of the Student Windsurf Association events. I’ve also done the Cornish BWA twice. This year I’m going to try and do all of the BWA.

What Are your best results? I’ve definitely had a mixed bunch of results, mostly a lot of finishing 2^nd after Jo Wright at SWA events. Best results are probably 2^nd Girl in the SWA tour in 2013 and 7^th in the BWA 2012. Also a couple of silvers and a bronze medal from BUCS racing whilst at Uni.

3 top tips for someone starting out:

• Keep going! There are some horrible plateaus that you need to push through.
• Hang out at as many windsurf locations, windsurfers are friendly, soon you’ll have a nice crew to windsurf with, which makes it a lot easier to get out when the weather is grim.
• A decent wetsuit is a winner, being cold is horrible and has cut too many sessions short.

Best Kit set up: To be honest windsurfing can get a little too geeky for me. However I’m loving my 2014 Tushingham Rocks. Also I really enjoy the newer style wave boards, currently I’m using a thruster, but think that quads are definitely the way forwards for wave sailing. The new kodes are great for all round sailing.

3 things about your windsurfing that other people don’t know:

• Having done my first bit of wave sailing and living on the North Coast I’m pretty shocking at jumping on starboard.
• I spent about 3 years windsurfing before I discovered what planning was.
• I spent a year dabbling in racing, even spending some time (a very small amount) on the West Zone Squad.

Other Interests? The standard stuff really; snowboarding, mountain biking, recently I’ve got really into SUPing. Also I can often be found swimming about or climbing cliffs to get a good photo or video shot