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Re:Fuerteventura Grand Slam 2008 - 2008/07/23 07:23
The 2008 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam – Day Four
22.07.08 -
The fourth day of relentless wind put the sailors endurance to the test in three more rounds of adrenaline fuelled racing.
Men’s races 9, 10 & 11
The men hit the water first to add a ninth race to their tally from the previous days. Signs of nerves were all too apparent, when four out of the twelve competitors in the losers’ final false started.
Taking the reigns of the depleted heat, Josh Angulo (MauiSails, Dakine) clawed his way into first position, meaning he’d walk away with a 13th place finish for that race.
In the winners final, which would decide the top twelve positions of the race, Bjorn Dunkerbeck (T1, North) emerged as the man to beat. He fended off advances from event leader Antoine Albeau (Starboard, NeilPryde) to take his second race win of the event so far. Albeau finished in second, and Ben Van Der Steen (Exocet, Simmer) looked dangerous in third.
Following a short break for lunch, the second race of the day swung into action. First to slip up was F2’s shaper, Patrick Diethelm (F2, North), who failed to make it through the first round of heats thanks to a false start.
Maintaining his form from the previous race, Van Der Steen sailed to an impressive victory in the first semi final, leaving Albeau plenty of time to contemplate what had happened, far behind in second.
Current number two; Micah Buzianis (JP, NeilPryde, MFC) sustained an unfortunate injury in the second semi final. The harsh blow meant Buzianis was left seeking medical attention and could no longer compete in the race.
An action packed losers final saw Sylvain Moussilmani (F2, Simmer) and Finian Maynard (RRD, NeilPryde) sail neck and neck around the six gybe course. It was only after the technical shorter reaches at the end of the course that Maynard gave Moussilmani a small break, which was enough for him to take the lead. Maynard came close behind in second.
Van Der Steen was on fire in the winners final. Untouchable pace down the first reach combined with a perfect gybe saw him storm to the front of the fleet. He remained there for the duration of the heat to take home his first race win of the event. Behind him, Cyril Moussilmani (Fanatic, North) managed to hold of compatriot Albeau to take second, Albeau looked consistent, but no longer dominant in third.
The final men’s race of the day mixed things up a bit. Maynard was edged out of a place in the winners final when he failed to match the speed of his fellow semi finalists. And Van Der Steen, who was riding high after his previous race victory, fell victim to technical issues when his mast snapped midway through an enormous catapult on the first reach. He’d have to make do with a place in the losers final.
When the heat hit the water, Angulo stated his intentions from the word go, with a perfectly timed start that teed him up for the rest of the race. Holding onto his lead, Angulo finished in first, with Diethelm fronting the chasing pack in second.
The final saw Albeau return to dominant form, as he held off Dunkerbeck to further reinforce his event lead with another race victory. Dunkerbeck hung onto second, placing him in third place overall, and Kevin Pritchard sailed well to take third in the race final, meaning he’s positioned in fourth overall with one day to go.
Women’s races 10, 11 & 12
Race 10: Karin Jaggi (F2, North) and Valerie Ghibaudo (Tabou, The Loft) proved to be impossible to shake from first and second place. In three successive races they showed they were a cut above the rest, but almost equally matched.
Ghibaudo sailed an amazing first race, leading for the duration, but Jaggi was never far behind. Most impressively, the pair were several hundred meters ahead of the nearest challenger, Lee Korzitz. At the finish line, Ghibaudo claimed the win, Jaggi second, and Korzitz third.
Race 11: In a carbon copy of the first race, Jaggi and Ghibaudo exploded out the start gates to open up a huge lead. As before, Ghibaudo lead around the final gybe, but Jaggi summoned an awe inspiring last blast to the finish to steal victory from under Ghibaudo’s nose. Again, Korzitz fronted the chasing pack, in third.
Race 12: The final race of the day saw a spirited performance from Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard, NeilPryde). The famed freestyler kept her nerve in the building wind to reap third position. The result added to a fourth and a fifth in the two previous races, a remarkably consistent performance from the young Aruba local.
The story of the race was once again the Jaggi versus Ghibuado showdown. Ghibaudo had Jaggi around the corners, meaning once again it would be a last reach drag race to decide who’d walk away with the race win. Inseparable until the last 20 meters, Jaggi showed defiance to steal another victory from Ghibaudo.
Overall, Ghibaudo tops the women’s ranks having never dropped below third place. Jaggi sits in second, haunted by a last place finish on the first day, and Korzitz looks solid in third.
Sailor of the Day
Ben Van Der Steen earns the honour of ‘sailor of the day’. The flying Dutchman was like a bullet in race 10. The only thing more impressive than his victory was his race 11 catapult, that literally vaporised his gear, leaving it looking like tumble weed. In his words, ‘I went down like a man’.
Tomorrow’s skippers meeting is scheduled for 11.00am, with the racers hitting the water from 11.30am onwards. Be sure to tune into pwaworldtour.com to follow all of day four’s trials and tribulations.
© PWA / Andrew Buchanan
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Re:Fuerteventura Grand Slam 2008 - 2008/07/24 20:31
The 2008 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam – Day Five
23.07.08 -
Albeau and Ghibaudo show defiance to reign supreme on the final day of racing in Fuerteventura.
First shock to the final day’s proceedings was that Micah Buzianis (JP, NeilPryde, MFC) would not be participating after sustaining a broken leg in the previous day’s racing. The upshot of Buzianis’s injury meant he’d clock up last place finishes in all subsequent races, a devastating blow to his event campaign considering he was ranked second overall.
Men’s Eliminations
Having completed 11 races over the previous four days, the men’s fleet needed to rack up a minimum of two races on the final day to gain a crucial third discard (i.e a sailor’s worst three results could be discarded).
Ample wind and time on the clock meant this wouldn’t be an issue, and the first two races were completed back to back before lunch.
A late flourish from Benoit Moussilmani (F2, Simmer Sails) saw him sail home to victory in the final of race 12, awarding him his first ever race win in PWA competition. Behind him, Ben Van Der Steen (Exocet, Simmer) continued his assault on the podium in second, and Bjorn Dunkerbeck (T1, North Sails) added a third to his bag of results. Antoine Albeau (Starboard, NeilPryde) took a conservative tenth place, handing him the guaranteed event title, with races still to go.
The second of the day’s races saw Albeau, the consummate professional, continue to dig his teeth in and sail to yet another victory, when he could have sat back and reveled in his glory. And crucially, Dunkerbeck, who finished in sixth, had done enough to cement himself into second position overall for the event.
Meanwhile, more solid sailing from Van Der Steen earned him second, and Volwater (F2, North) found his feet in third. Van Der Steen’s result meant he was in contention for third place overall, but rivals Williams (Tabou, Gaastra) and Pritchard (Starboard, Gaastra, MFC, Dakine) had also done enough to be knocking on the podium’s door. Therefore, positions three, four, and five would all be settled in the event’s final nail biting race.
First to falter in the pressure cooker like final race was Williams, “I was leading my semi final, then when I flipped the sail at the second gybe, I fell in & there was no wind so I couldn’t get up. I’d already put the hard work in on the first reach, but just got unlucky and kooked a gybe y’know, there’s nothing you can do about it.”
William’s blunder placed him the losers final, and fifth place overall. Van Der Steen and Pritchard had both done enough to make the final, meaning the pair would go head to head for the remaining place on the podium.
The super tense final started with a bullet from Albeau, who threw caution to the wind and disappeared down the fist reach after a perfectly timed start. He wouldn’t be seen again, winning the last race of the event in style with a mammoth jump over the finish line.
A crash from Angulo (MauiSails, Dakine) caused havoc at mark two, allowing Pritchard to sneak through the pack and sail into third behind Volwater, it was enough for him to claim third place overall. Van Der Steen also took a fall ending in ninth, and thus fourth place overall.
Antoine Albeau: “I started the event really well with three firsts, but I was taking a lot of risks to win. After that I dropped down a bit to stay safe. I didn’t want to go over early or make stupid mistakes, just be consistent. I think I did a good job, and today after the first race I knew I’d won the event, so I went full on. I could have stopped, but I just had to win those last two races, and I did. I’m really happy now!”
Kevin Pritchard: “In that last final I was really focused on not crashing, the wind was so strong. It was crazy, there was people going everywhere. I didn’t know how good I was doing, then Josh (Angulo) fell at the second mark. I was kinda committed to my line, and almost ran right into him. I think that piled everybody up, but I just squeezed through, and going round the last mark I saw Ben (Van Der Steen) a bit back, so I knew I was doing alright.”
Ben Van Der Steen: “Considering how I started the event, I’m pretty stoked how I finished. Of course there was a chance I could have got third, and I’m a little pissed off I didn’t get it, but I’m so stoked with fourth place.”
Ross Williams: “Considering after two races I was bolt last, I’d say 5th overall’s a pretty good comeback!”
The 2008 PWA Fuerteventura Grand Slam Men’s Results:
1st Antoine Albeau
2nd Bjorn Dunkerbeck
3rd Kevin Pritchard
4th Ben Van Der Steen
5th Ross Williams
The Season as it stands:
1st Antoine Albeau
2nd Kevin Pritchard
3rd Bjorn Dunkerbeck
4th Cyril Moussilmani
5th Peter Volwater
Women’s Eliminations
The women’s fleet sailed two races on the final day. Valerie Ghibaudo fought to claim second place in the first race, doing enough to seal her the event victory. Karin Jaggi added a fifth race win her impressive tally, making her untouchable in second place overall, and Sarah Hebert (Starboard, Naish) cruised across the line in third, edging her up the overall scores.
Moving into the second and final elimination, Nagoshi (Simmer) and Korzitz were locked in a battle for third position overall. Aiding Nagoshi, Korzitz took a fall rounding the third mark, meaning Nagoshi just had to stay upright and hold onto her third place in the race to beat Korzitz in the overall rankings.
On the finish line, Ghibaudo won in true style, with Jaggi in second, and Nagoshi holding on to take third. Nagoshi’s podium finish is all the more impressive considering she was competing on borrowed equipment right the way down to her fin bolts!
Valerie Ghibaudo: “For my sponsors, I really wanted to do well here, so I feel superb. It’s fantastic to come first. I had some really close runs with Karin Jaggi, and conditions were really difficult all five days, so it hasn’t been easy. It’s still sinking in that I’ve actually won, I just hope I can sail like this at the next event in Alaçati!”
The 2008 PWA Fuerteventura Grand Slam Women’s Results:
1st Valerie Ghibaudo
2nd Karin Jaggi
3rd Junko Nagoshi
4th Lee Korzitz
5th Sarah-Quita Offringa
The Season as it stands:
1st Karin Jaggi
2nd Lee Korzitz
3rd = Iballa Moreno
3rd = Valerie Ghibaudo
5th Alice Arutkin
The event now switches over to freestyle. Tune back in tomorrow from 10.30am onwards to follow all the action here on pwaworldtour.com
PWA / Andrew Buchanan
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Re:Fuerteventura Grand Slam 2008 - 2008/07/25 17:20
The 2008 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam – Day Six
24.07.08 -
Big air, dynamic moves and radical action: The PWA freestyle crew take over Sotavento beach for the first day of mind blowing trickery.
The strongest wind of the event so far, confused chop, and a building ground swell marked the first day of freestyle competition in Fuerteventura. From the outset, Normen Günzlein (JP, NeilPryde) made his intentions clear, as he cast team mate Andy Chambers (JP, NeilPryde), then Thomas Traversa (Tabou, Gaastra) and Kiri Thode (Starboard, Gaastra) aside en route to the semi finals.
Mounting similar attacks; Marcilio Browne (Mistral, Gaastra) made light work of Cheo Diaz (RRD, Simmer) before edging past Nicolas Akgazciyan (Starboard, Gun Sails) to reach the semi final, and Jose Estredo (Fanatic, North, MFC) felled Taty Frans (Starboard, North) to make the short step into the final four.
Filling out the last place was Tonky Frans (F2, Gaastra), who had to take down man of the moment, Ricardo Campello (JP, NeilPryde, MFC) to bag his place in the semi.
Challenging Estredo, Günzlein had his work cut out to match the ex-World Champion. As always, his moves were super clean, and executed with pinpoint accuracy, but to topple Estredo you need something extra on top of a polished routine, and Günzlein just didn’t have the spice required to overthrow the Venezuelan. Estredo advanced, moving the focus of his assault onto the winner of Browne versus Tonky Frans.
Trademark shuvit spocks and gravity defying forward loops from Frans meant Browne would have to step his game up if he wanted to continue onto the final. Luckily for Browne, his bag of tricks is arguably the most extensive in the fleet, and a tactical heat eventually rewarded him with a place in the final.
The Frans versus Günzlein losers final was an impressive showdown, but mimicked much of their previous clash. Frans seemed to lack tactics, but made up for it with flare and a unique approach to the heat. Conversely, Günzlein was precise and structured, however the judges sided with Frans’ off the wall and colorful ambush, meaning he’d take third, and Günzlein fourth.
The elimination final was a showdown that’s been sailed many times before this season, Browne versus Estredo. Browne commented, “The final was really windy, I got a couple of moves but also had a few crashes. On my way out I landed a ponch, a one-handed air flaka, a clew first ponch, an air chachoo, and a clew first flaka. On the way in I got a shaka, a one handed funnel, a burner, a one handed burner, and a gozada. I just did what I know I can do, but it was really hard sailing out there, really choppy, and really gusty.”
Estredo, who was competing with an injured ankle, threw moves back at Browne, but didn’t have enough to convince the judges he was the better man. In a 4-1 judging decision, Browne claimed the first single elimination as his, and will now have to wait for his challenger to arrive, and defend his position in the double elimination.
In the women’s single elimination, the first big match up came when Laure Treboux (Fanatic, North) dueled with stable mate Iballa Moreno (North). Treboux’s downfall started when she fell on many of her ‘safe’ moves, giving her very little fall back. Moreno then crippled Treboux, landing a big backloop and an equally big forward. Moreno advanced.
Story of the elimination was Yoli De Brendt (Fanatic, North), who was on biblically good form. The Venezuelan underdog slayed Nina Tjernberg (F2, North), heavy weight freestyler Daida Moreno (North), and Junko Nagoshi (Simmer, Dakine) to claim her place in the final against Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard, NeilPryde).
In the losers final, Iballa Moreno challenged Nagoshi for third place. The super close heat saw flakas and planning spocks from both sailors, with a split decision eventually awarding Nagoshi the victory, and third place in the elimination.
The De Brendt versus Offringa final was another close affair. Both sailors were matched on points until Offringa landed a huge ponch on the way out, Offringa: “In the final I started off with a flaka, but not a very good one, I just made it. Then I did a one handed puneta 540 and I fell on a spock on the way out. Coming back in, I started to get a bit nervous, I don’t know why. I didn’t land anything though. I finally got it together and landed a big ponch. Overall I didn’t sail my best heat. I was overpowered on my 3.7m, and it was really choppy, so hard to do moves. I was actually pretty surprised I won, as Yoli was sailing really well!” Offringa’s victory was impressive, but a wake up call for her given the 3-2 split judging decision.
The day also saw the start of the men’s double elimination. The most impressive inroads were made by Quincy Offringa (Starboard, Severne) and Ian Mouro Lemos (JP, NeilPryde), who will be looking to continue their run of form through to tomorrow.
Sailor of the Day
Sailor of the day gets awarded to Antxon Otaegui, for being the only man crazy enough to throw a double forward loop in competition. “There was a shoulder high ramp out the back, and it was pretty steep. With the wind angle it was quite hard, you have to go way down wind to hit the waves square on, as it’s so offshore. It was kinda lucky!” Antxon’s definitely one to watch as the competition progresses, and the sailors push their boundaries to the limit to advance through heats.
Tomorrow’s skippers meeting is scheduled for 10.30am, with the freestylers hitting the water from 11.00am onwards. Be sure to tune into pwaworldtour.com to follow all of day seven’s trials and tribulations.
© PWA / Andrew Buchanan
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Re:Fuerteventura Grand Slam 2008 - 2008/07/25 17:25
Mattia Pedrani
Pic - PWA/John Carter
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Re:Fuerteventura Grand Slam 2008 - 2008/07/26 20:15
The 2008 Fuerteventura PWA Grand Slam – Day Seven
25.07.08 -
Double elimination victories for Browne and Offringa earns them the early event lead, ahead of hungry second place rivals Ricardo Campello and Yolanda De Brendt.
Men’s Double Elimination
Picking up the double elimination where it left off yesterday, Quincy Offringa’s (Starboard, Severne) run of form was halted by Leo Ray (Naish, Naish, MFC), who looked like he might go on to do big things. Unfortunately for Ray, he was on a collision course with Ricardo Campello (JP, NeilPryde, MFC) who shattered any hopes the Frenchman had of progressing further.
Ian Mouro Lemos (JP, NeilPryde) showed promise, but was shot down by Antxon Otaegui (JP, NeilPryde, MFC). However, Otaegui’s run was to be short lived thanks to crazy air chachooing Taty Frans (Starboard, North).
Frans then fell at the hand of Kiri Thode (Starboard, Gaastra), who subsequently departed courtesy of Campello, who was gaining more and more momentum with every heat, and was one of the few sailors fully utilizing the set waves for their jumping potential.
Campello’s steamroller like run remained on its course for Browne, who sat in waiting ready to defend his previous day’s single elimination victory. Next on the hit list was team mate Normen Günzlein (JP, NeilPryde), who had little in the way of a reply to Campello’s fully planning backloops, and awesome tweaked pushloops.
Moving on to battle with Tonky Frans (F2, Gaastra), Frans had some bad luck, breaking his fin moments into the heat. By the time a replacement board had been handed to him by brother Taty, the damage had already been done by Campello, who advanced to face Jose Estredo (Fanatic, North, MFC) in the next round.
The ensuing showdown was one of the most explosive heats of the competition so far. Estredo worked the crowd into a frenzy with a monster one handed air flaka, only for Campello to reply with a perfectly landed air chachoo. When the dust finally settled, defiant Campello had edged ahead on the judges’ score sheets, and finally had his shot at Browne’s throne.
Starting well, Browne looked like he’d hold off Campello, but some costly errors towards the end of the heat allowed the Venezuelan to edge ahead, meaning the pair would have to go head to head one last time to finally settle the scores.
Back on form, Browne launched a full scale attack which included a crazy air funnel, a huge ponch, and a monumental ten foot high air flaka. Campello rose to the challenge with a routine that included a misty flip and a pushloop. It was always going to be a close call, but Browne’s technical and consistent run ultimately earned him the double elimination victory.
Women’s Double Elimination
With eye’s firmly set on Offringa (Starboard, NeilPryde), who sat in waiting after winning the single elimination the previous day, Daida Moreno (North) mounted a sustained attack from the depths of the elimination ladder to within touching distance of the young Aruban.
Defeating Anna Johansson (Naish, Naish), Nayra Alonso (Fanatic, Severne), Laure Treboux (Fanatic, North), and sister Iballa (North), Daida only had topple Junko Nagoshi (Simmer, Dakine) and Yolanda De Brendt (Fanatic, North) before she had a shot at Offringa’s first position stronghold.
Nagoshi piled on the pressure early with solid forward loop and a flaka, however Moreno was on devastating form. She nailed a one footed forward loop, a clew first forward loop, and a fully planning spock to convincingly defeat the Japanese freestyler.
Lining up De Brendt in her sights, it was no longer plain sailing for Moreno. De Brendt, firing on all cylinders, threw down a puneta, a shuvit and a flaka. The comprehensive run proved too much for Moreno to match, putting a premature end to her impressive run.
Advancing, De Brendt was given another shot at Offringa. The subsequent brawl raised the bar of women’s freestyle to a whole new level. Both sailors went off, Offringa funneled, De Brendt replied with a puneta, Offringa pulled a switch stance chachoo, De Brendt nailed a fully planning spock 540. They were literally inseparable.
The decisive blow would come when Offringa executed a massive air flaka. De Brendt had no reply to the epic move, granting Offringa the victory, and the first double elimination as hers.
The day also saw inroads made into the men’s and women’s second single elimination. All the big names in the men’s fleet have advanced through to the semi finals, however contenders Andre Paskowski (Fanatic, North), Antxon Otaegui, Nicolas Akgazciyan (Starboard, Gun Sails) and Cheo Diaz (RRD, Simmer) have fallen by the wayside.
In the women’s fleet, Iballa Moreno (North) and Silvia Alba Orozco (MFC) have also departed the ranks.
Tomorrow’s skippers meeting is scheduled for 10.30am, with the freestylers hitting the water from 11.00am onwards. Be sure to tune into pwaworldtour.com to follow all of day seven’s trials and tribulations.
© PWA / Andrew Buchanan
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Re:Fuerteventura Grand Slam 2008 - 2008/07/26 20:21
No Handed Flaka by Brawzinho
Pic - PWA/John Carter
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