Visit: https://sarah-quita.com/
[00:00:00] Welcome to the Wing Life Podcast, where we talk about wing foiling and the lifestyles
[00:00:12] of those who enjoy this great sport.
[00:00:15] Thank you very much for joining me today.
[00:00:17] It's an honor to meet you and super stoked to chat.
[00:00:20] Thank you.
[00:00:21] It's a pleasure.
[00:00:22] So where are you on this wonderful planet today?
[00:00:25] At the moment I'm in Cape Town, I decided to do my winter training here.
[00:00:30] What I really like about this place is that it just has so much to offer.
[00:00:34] And that's the thing that I like as well about winter because I only stick to one this to
[00:00:39] a degree.
[00:00:40] I really like freestyle, really like wave sailing.
[00:00:43] I like guiding as well, so I feel like it's the perfect place to spend a couple of weeks
[00:00:47] to just get on the water every day.
[00:00:50] And it's been firing pretty like we saw a little bit of your Instagram stuff.
[00:00:54] It's been firing pretty decently for you lately.
[00:00:56] Yeah.
[00:00:57] We had sun conditions pretty much every day.
[00:01:00] The main thing here is that you do need to drive quite a bit to find something every
[00:01:04] day.
[00:01:05] So like the first day I'll be windsurfing here in Tableview then there's no more wind.
[00:01:09] So we all end up driving all the way down south to Witsand or Scarborough.
[00:01:15] The other day I drove an hour and 40 minutes to Plattboon.
[00:01:19] So it's quite an adventure every day.
[00:01:22] But definitely found some good conditions already.
[00:01:25] Nice.
[00:01:26] And you said you were there for a couple of weeks?
[00:01:28] Yeah, I'm going to be here for a month.
[00:01:30] Like ideally I would like to stay longer, but I need to go back to Aruba.
[00:01:34] And also of course in the Caribbean it gets windy as well, beginning of February.
[00:01:38] So at the end of this trip I'm always, I also have like a nice place to look forward to
[00:01:42] Tableback too.
[00:01:43] So for those who aren't as fluent with the tour or as fluent with your schedule, like
[00:01:48] when does your competition season start back up?
[00:01:51] Yeah.
[00:01:52] So right now it's off season.
[00:01:53] My last contest was the beginning of November, mid-November.
[00:01:58] And usually the contest season will start around April / May.
[00:02:04] There could be a contest before, but I actually don't have the calendar for next year yet.
[00:02:08] I have a vague idea of what's going to happen.
[00:02:11] But I'm guessing around April I'm going to start.
[00:02:14] And then usually I'll be home January to April because Easter time is really windy at home.
[00:02:22] And then from April onwards until November it's basically competition season.
[00:02:26] I try to come home in between when I can, but in general I'm off to Europe and the rest
[00:02:32] of the world travelling and competing.
[00:02:36] How's that been?
[00:02:38] Because that's such a beautiful and unique lifestyle.
[00:02:41] How do you ever get the chance to think back a little bit of how differently things could
[00:02:45] have been or how special this whole moment is for you?
[00:02:50] Yeah, actually that's very interesting because I feel like I kind of just rolled into it
[00:02:55] because I didn't compete since my first professional contest was when I was 12 years old.
[00:03:01] And then when I was 14 I actually went to the Canary Islands to compete.
[00:03:06] And I did my studies and everything.
[00:03:09] I finished high school, then I moved to the Netherlands to get my bachelor degree.
[00:03:14] I got science and innovation management done.
[00:03:17] And then I finished that in 2014 and since then I've been travelling non-stop.
[00:03:23] So I feel like it's almost all I know.
[00:03:26] But the funny thing about it is that the more I do it, the longer I do it, the more I appreciate
[00:03:32] it.
[00:03:33] I just think with age and maturing a bit more you start to appreciate the lifestyle because
[00:03:41] I see the people around me that don't get to travel as much or aren't necessarily doing
[00:03:47] what they love.
[00:03:48] So I feel like more and more I start feeling more fortunate.
[00:03:53] Even though it's something that I've always loved of course but it's just like the appreciation
[00:03:56] just gets bigger now.
[00:03:59] That makes sense.
[00:04:00] I think we can start to see it from a different vantage point than maybe we would see it
[00:04:03] before.
[00:04:04] But how did Hawaii finish up this year for you?
[00:04:09] How was that contest?
[00:04:11] I finished, I actually won the event.
[00:04:15] And with that I won my third wave rule title.
[00:04:17] So it's an awesome way to finish the year.
[00:04:21] And just for me coming from a Rubo where it's not necessarily a wavy, for me it's a huge
[00:04:26] accomplishment and I'm very happy about that.
[00:04:29] So how did you, when you were working so hard on freestyle, when was it a moment in time
[00:04:35] where you decided that you wanted to start to spread out a little bit?
[00:04:38] Well I think it's without knowing it I just want to keep on challenging myself I guess.
[00:04:44] So I won maybe two or three freestyle titles and then of course I'm competing in places
[00:04:51] where they're also doing the slalom contest.
[00:04:54] So I see the slalom racers and I think wow I actually want to try that as well.
[00:04:58] So then kind of venture into slalom and Aruba again is the perfect place for that.
[00:05:04] It's flat water paradise and I could train that a lot.
[00:05:09] You know and at some point I started getting better at slalos and it's also like this love
[00:05:14] for the sport.
[00:05:15] You know I just kind of want to keep on progressing.
[00:05:17] And at some point I actually won some slalom titles and then from there I started looking
[00:05:24] at the wave discipline because I started realizing that the more the better you get at the sport
[00:05:30] the more fun it becomes and you just want to do more of it.
[00:05:34] So then waves became the next thing I just wanted to challenge myself in that and actually
[00:05:38] my first proper wave trip was here in Cape Town in 2014 and I can still remember getting
[00:05:44] washed the first time and feeling the cold water in my wetsuit.
[00:05:50] Yeah looking back now like back then I don't think I would have ever guessed that I would
[00:05:55] have yeah win wave titles I guess.
[00:05:59] So I yeah I think it's insane I'm super stoked about it and yeah I guess the main thing is
[00:06:05] just to keep on challenging yourselves.
[00:06:09] Where like if we take a step back and look at like I know you've been doing this for
[00:06:15] quite a long time but how do you let's say stay in a positive mindset or take on like
[00:06:22] you were competing against let's say women who had been focusing like a hundred percent
[00:06:26] in waves like how do you where does the mindset and the confidence come from to be able to
[00:06:32] say you know what I can I can do this and I would like to give it my all.
[00:06:37] The thing is I think the meeting is that most of it is just really fun for me like I like
[00:06:42] to compete because I enjoy it and I know that it's going to bring out the best in me or
[00:06:48] I have to especially in waves sailing like I have to give a hundred and twenty percent
[00:06:53] and I will always I will always be a better windsurfer at the end of the contest.
[00:06:58] So whether I win or lose like I will always learn something new.
[00:07:03] So I don't think it's necessarily about feeling whether I can compete with them or not it's
[00:07:08] just the mindset of wanting to learn more and wanting to push myself.
[00:07:14] So that's the thing it I think the mindset is more of enjoying what I do and having fun
[00:07:19] because I it's competed for a long time and I think there was a point in competition where
[00:07:24] I felt I felt so much pressure and you know I was that was one specific competition in
[00:07:31] the Canary Islands where it's just super unhappy and I told myself then like if I don't I should
[00:07:37] not compete if I don't enjoy it and I think that was maybe 2017 or something.
[00:07:44] And I think since then I have I've never put that much pressure on myself anymore.
[00:07:49] So just going to remind yourself that is something you love.
[00:07:53] Definitely a good mindset to have because it once it becomes yeah I guess once it doesn't
[00:07:57] become fun it's not really worth doing anymore that makes sense.
[00:08:01] Have you seen like I know you're a big advocate for women in sport.
[00:08:05] Have you seen a positive change when for over the course of let's say when you were 12 years
[00:08:11] old all the way up until now.
[00:08:13] The most notable change of course is that we've and given that you said since I'm 12
[00:08:19] years old it actually came late but we have equal price money since 2019.
[00:08:27] So that's the most notable change I think besides that it's still quite a hard sport
[00:08:31] for women to be in because it is male dominated.
[00:08:35] Having said that I know that the men are men also don't have it easy.
[00:08:39] I think the sport itself is quite challenging within the industry because there's so many
[00:08:43] other extreme sports that we're competing with guiding, winging.
[00:08:48] These sports didn't exist when windsurfing started you know so it's almost hard to compare
[00:08:51] windsurfing back then to now.
[00:08:55] But I don't know that women need to work double as hard.
[00:08:59] Yeah unfortunately and I haven't found the solution yet for making it more equal but
[00:09:05] we're definitely moving into that direction.
[00:09:09] In what regards would you say sorry that you would have to work twice as hard.
[00:09:13] I would say mostly for sponsorship.
[00:09:17] I will say that for a guy it's easier to obtain sponsorship from within the industry.
[00:09:25] And I've seen like you know when you get that support with gear alone you know because
[00:09:30] of course windsurfing is expensive.
[00:09:34] If you already have that gear that allows you to go to the water more often.
[00:09:37] If you're getting a salary it allows you to travel to places to train.
[00:09:41] Whereas I know for a fact that many women they have a job on the side or they're studying
[00:09:47] and they're not necessarily getting that support which means they're standing less
[00:09:50] time on the water and they just can't commit as much to the sport so I think in that regard
[00:09:59] it's harder for women just sponsorship wise and financially but at the same time I also
[00:10:06] see many women that have to be just much more smart about it.
[00:10:10] Find sponsors outside of the industry and support themselves in a different way I guess.
[00:10:17] I feel like it builds your character also.
[00:10:22] I was going to ask if you can if you get like if it strengthens that sense of character
[00:10:29] to get because we talked to Marcella Whit quickly in the show with her boyfriend Dane and they're
[00:10:34] doing trips for F1 and they're working there and I think she had said that before she was
[00:10:38] able to be a sponsored rider without competing she must have gotten hundreds and hundreds
[00:10:43] of nos and I wonder if you just have to adopt that personality mindset of the same sense
[00:10:50] of competition and training and adopted into the business aspect of things because yes
[00:10:56] like you can't you can't expect people to be able to do both unless there is some financial
[00:11:00] backing that makes sense for sure.
[00:11:03] So I think what is like a big positive these days and actually allows many people and women
[00:11:10] to support themselves within the sport is just you know through social media and stuff.
[00:11:16] There all of a sudden there's this platform where everyone can yeah promote themselves
[00:11:21] on so I do think that is a huge help almost and I yeah people find different ways of supporting
[00:11:28] themselves through social media also so yeah that's cool to see.
[00:11:33] Okay so they're having to go they're having to go to all these other places in order to
[00:11:37] be able to compete and continue their pro career kind of thing.
[00:11:40] Yeah because you have a following and I think yeah it's I think that helps a lot.
[00:11:49] Okay that makes sense can we step back to your island of your beautiful island of Aruba
[00:11:56] and I know we got a lot of winged forlars but we do also have some wind surfers here.
[00:12:02] Are there like my friend just went there I think it was last year or the year before
[00:12:07] and can we give a bit of maybe a bit of a tour of Aruba just to see maybe favorite spots
[00:12:14] what beautiful spots are there for winging and and I know we had a couple questions in
[00:12:19] the audience about downwinding so maybe we can go into that a bit later.
[00:12:22] Yeah so I started windsurfing in Aruba the main spot is called the fishermen's huts where
[00:12:27] they used to have the big world cups and everything then it's pretty flat water the
[00:12:34] wind is quite offshore so it is definitely gusty but the further out you go the more
[00:12:38] stable it is and it's absolutely blue so it's really beautiful and the other spot
[00:12:47] No, so at Fisherman's Hut, you have actually a big weighing community at the moment.
[00:12:53] Usually they're there around sunset or towards the end of the day.
[00:12:56] And the best part of the Hut is sometimes during the year more often than not, actually
[00:13:03] there's a little ways of breaking narrow shipwrecks so you can wing on super flat water or you
[00:13:08] can even have some fun in those little ways.
[00:13:11] So yeah, almost everything out there is like there's a group of wingers that will go out
[00:13:16] there and wing during sunset.
[00:13:19] And then one of my favorite spots for windsurfing is called Barca Dera which is a bit more
[00:13:24] side shore.
[00:13:25] The wind is, it funnels through the island and like another island like mangroves.
[00:13:33] It somehow just funnels through it it's way stronger, I'm not sure that's the best for
[00:13:37] winning because it's the gusts are pretty strong.
[00:13:44] What I have done is well, partly a dowinger from another beach that's called Rogers Beach
[00:13:49] which is more towards the south of the island.
[00:13:52] And there you go into open ocean and from there just down along the island.
[00:13:58] I don't remember how many kilometers that would be but I think it's a dowinger of like
[00:14:03] an hour and a half.
[00:14:05] Oh wow, that would be pretty fun.
[00:14:09] Yeah, that's really fun.
[00:14:10] So the last time I tried there with Oda we actually got pulled up by the boat and did
[00:14:15] surf foiling down.
[00:14:17] I still need to improve a lot in that but you can, we're waiting for our next trip to
[00:14:22] Aruba now to actually do sub foiling there.
[00:14:26] And I reckon on windy days when as well as bigger it would be pretty cool to go down
[00:14:31] there.
[00:14:32] Oh yeah.
[00:14:33] What was your first experience on a foil like?
[00:14:36] I feel like I started quite late with it.
[00:14:41] It was already quite a hike before I even jumped on a wind surf foil.
[00:14:45] It was a bit scary I guess and it's just uncontrolled.
[00:14:52] Just a moment I got lift I was just actually pretty frightened.
[00:14:56] I was like I hope I don't like get lifted out of the water and crash.
[00:15:00] But that's very that's very exciting actually is super super close to the feeling of planing
[00:15:05] for the first time you know just as soon as you start picking up it's an adrenaline rush.
[00:15:13] And the first time winging was in I think 2018 in Brazil and I remember it looked so
[00:15:18] funny everyone like there were three wingers out there it was you still didn't see it so
[00:15:24] much and actually give it a give it a go because it was so windy.
[00:15:27] I actually got up quite quickly but I couldn't turn, couldn't drive for my life.
[00:15:35] And getting on the foil was okay.
[00:15:38] And then afterwards I think I did one two three runs and that was it so it didn't really
[00:15:43] catch me straight away until maybe like two years later I think during COVID I started
[00:15:50] winging a bit more.
[00:15:52] But I have to be honest like I still struggle with the well I'm going to say the tax like
[00:15:58] I guess I need I need to put like full on practice to really get it sorted.
[00:16:03] Do you do you find it grabbed you to the same level let's say that wind surfing did or you
[00:16:09] still more like all wind surf when it's amazing but then if I need a break or if I want something
[00:16:14] different all wing.
[00:16:16] I think with winging from me now what I like yeah so I think wind surfing is still my biggest
[00:16:23] biggest passion and love in everything and I learned in Brazil that winging on the ways
[00:16:29] is the most fun.
[00:16:30] So on flat water going back and forth it the first couple of times it's amazing but then
[00:16:34] at some point you kind of want something a bit more challenging I guess and a couple
[00:16:38] of times that I've done it in the ways in Brazil it was really really awesome.
[00:16:43] But I think as the gear is being developed and becoming better and better I think it
[00:16:52] allows also for more radical maneuvers on the waves and stuff but I haven't gotten to
[00:16:56] that point yet but it looks really really cool so yeah I need to find the time to go
[00:17:03] and do it more.
[00:17:07] I guess but you're off season mainly is like you're focused on training for the next one
[00:17:13] right?
[00:17:14] So is how is your training schedule like is it pretty regimented or do you kind of go
[00:17:19] with how your body feels and how you feel?
[00:17:22] Yeah I feel like I make a plan but it really depends on how I feel and how the conditions
[00:17:28] are.
[00:17:29] I would like to say that I'm super regimented and that every day I go to the gym and stuff
[00:17:35] like that.
[00:17:36] So if you do the gym and winter for a lot of hours.
[00:17:39] Yeah.
[00:17:40] Yeah like I try to go three times a week which I tend to stick to but if I do feel if I do
[00:17:45] feel like I'm exhausted then you know I just can't.
[00:17:49] And then then you know time on the water has priority over the gym so yeah and if conditions
[00:17:59] are good for example you don't want to exhaust yourself with weights and stuff because you
[00:18:03] rather perform on the water.
[00:18:05] No that's true.
[00:18:08] But yeah I would say I tend to go to the gym like three times a week and then I'll wince
[00:18:12] off pretty much every day but usually I'll wince off maybe two or three days in a row
[00:18:16] and I take a break after.
[00:18:17] Like I'm not the kind of person that actually needs a break and then comes back to it.
[00:18:24] There are other people that will go non-stop but I feel like if I take a day break in between
[00:18:28] them I'm a bit more refreshed and I can go back at it.
[00:18:33] Now for learning like a new move or pushing something to the next level do you have a
[00:18:38] way that works best for you because there's everybody's different some people will watch
[00:18:44] some people practice on land like is there something that you've developed over the years.
[00:18:50] Yeah I think I actually watch another videos that can well there's still the websites
[00:18:56] that exist it's continent7.com and they will have there's also dailydoze.de and they will
[00:19:03] have all the she-style moves online and I would just play those videos non-stop and
[00:19:08] slow motion and really try to analyze what they do and when I want to really want to
[00:19:12] learn something I ask everybody that can do that moves how to do it the best way.
[00:19:17] So I really try to learn from other people and then when I'm on the water basically you
[00:19:24] just it's like trial and error you just try over and over and over again but I think what
[00:19:31] helps me mostly is to at some point if you realize that it's just not getting better
[00:19:36] it's just to stop and try something else or just take a break or you know step away from
[00:19:41] it and then when you come back to it a lot of times maybe you take a day or two break
[00:19:48] and I think me at least I end up thinking about it a lot and then the next time I get
[00:19:53] on the water somehow it clicks so I don't think that trying like mindlessly non-stop
[00:20:01] is the best way to go I feel like you know after every trial you kind of try to analyze
[00:20:06] what went wrong or what you did well and and the best way only only since I started traveling
[00:20:12] with Uda I do think the best way to learn is through filming because once you see what
[00:20:17] you're doing yourself that's when you realize the mistakes you're making or what you're
[00:20:21] actually doing right that's a good point you imagine you imagine yourself doing something
[00:20:26] but actually it's almost always different than when you see yourself that makes sense
[00:20:34] and so is the next big thing freestyle winging for you I guess I should give it a better
[00:20:43] try but I do think what she's telling that we're doing the freestyle looks so insane
[00:20:48] at the moment when I was in Brazil now we I was at a spot where the the going team was
[00:20:53] training and I was ridiculous what they were doing and I did I quite see myself trying
[00:21:01] that stuff so I think I'd rather venture into wave riding rather than she said I think
[00:21:08] at the moment I went to wave riding yeah that makes sense yeah like we just started doing
[00:21:14] that or I started doing that a little bit over here and the feeling of like how does
[00:21:19] that feel compared to windsurfing let's say whole keeper or some other of those amazing
[00:21:23] wave spots that you would have been like do you feel the acceleration on a foil makes
[00:21:28] the wave feel bigger is there you have to focus more because you have to make sure that
[00:21:32] your foil stays under the water well yeah definitely have to focus more because I just
[00:21:39] don't do it as much as surfing and I think well it was a really cool experiences here
[00:21:43] is that I did surf oiling in Peru so this wave is super long like I think you can stay
[00:21:49] on the way for a minute or two and I got pulled into it for comma this is the best in well
[00:21:56] yeah Pecasmayo and Shikama and that that was incredible you can that you you can turn
[00:22:05] endlessly on the wave and it's like the best practice you can get and I do think that the
[00:22:10] growing yeah just not preaching I guess is one of the things that you need to learn to
[00:22:17] control and the ceiling of being so much higher up on the water is it's a little bit scary
[00:22:22] but I guess when you get used to it and then it's fine but everything everything just flows
[00:22:28] more whereas if I'm sailing at who keep it's all about putting as much power as possible
[00:22:34] and putting the board on the real so I think it's still completely different feelings.
[00:22:38] It looks yeah like wave sailing on winging and there's people charging harder and harder
[00:22:43] now and like it's definitely a lot I don't know I wouldn't say because I've never I've
[00:22:50] never a windsurf hokeepia but I could say that it's there's things that could go wrong
[00:22:56] with your foil turning around and you got to be careful of all these things but it does
[00:23:00] look like they're pushing this thing to a crazy level have you come close to hitting
[00:23:05] the foil or come close to any of that kind of stuff or has it been pretty good so far
[00:23:10] not in my face but I've had some blue spots on my legs like I went full on into the front
[00:23:15] wing with my with my thigh before and or hitting the side of the board also yeah I think anytime
[00:23:23] you get on a foil you you always have these like flow shades so nothing serious yet but
[00:23:28] definitely some blue spots that happens have you tried downwinding yet and just yeah just
[00:23:37] a little bit so with winging I did it in aruba a little bit I'm trying to think where else
[00:23:45] or in Brazil as well I did it on this well but I think at the time I was not super comfortable
[00:23:51] and this was quite big so honestly it was a little bit a stressful experience and fantasy
[00:23:57] because I was on a smaller wing than usual and I just couldn't control it so I was like
[00:24:01] I managed and I made it back but it's not when I made it back to the teach and that makes
[00:24:08] sense yeah and this subfoiling I haven't managed to like I'm getting up I'm getting up on the
[00:24:18] foil every now and then but then to connect the waves that's still definitely challenging
[00:24:25] but I think I need to just put more hours into it and really yeah just try harder I guess
[00:24:31] so I see I see Uda trying it all the time lately and she's completely hooked to it and
[00:24:37] yes it's inspiring to watch to see how yeah when you put the time and effort into it how
[00:24:44] far you can go and it looks like a lot of fun to do that makes sense do you think like
[00:24:49] Aruba has good potential for some downwind for people who would plan that as a trip or
[00:24:54] a vacation yeah I definitely think so it's just maybe the sport is not as big in Aruba
[00:25:00] as anywhere else in the world so I feel like it just hasn't really been explored yet and
[00:25:04] yeah hopefully in the next couple of months we'll be doing more downwinders yeah because
[00:25:10] we had a question here that they asked some community members asked if you ever thought
[00:25:14] there could be an Aruba to cure us out downwind race or the other way around or something
[00:25:18] or along the coastline it would have to be from cura south to Aruba with the wind yeah
[00:25:28] your south to Aruba okay because the north east wind I
[00:25:34] Everything, actually, that could be pretty epic to be onto what I hear from fishermen and people that sail between the islands.
[00:25:40] Actually, might not be a good thing. But between Aruba and Curacao, the water actually gets pretty rough.
[00:25:49] But having said that, actually, you want to have nice rolling swell and not messy stuff.
[00:25:55] I know they've windsurfed from Bonaire to Curacao. A guy swam from Curacao to Aruba, but I think the Curacao, Aruba Cross, hasn't been done yet.
[00:26:06] I think a guy actually challenged me to do it at the time, maybe two or three years ago, but I was too busy with the contest I was doing.
[00:26:14] Oh, that's fair. That's fair. Obviously, you ride for Starboard, and there's been some women that have been asking specific gear-related questions as to which brands do you think for gear, let's say wetsuits,
[00:26:32] or that would be more tailored, or that you've found that you've the best over the course of your career, or are there any that stand out?
[00:26:42] Well, I'm sponsored by Brunotti, and over the years the wetsuits are stylish, first of all.
[00:26:49] For me, I feel like they're super comfy and super stretchy also. I think in the first few years that I was riding, maybe 2017, I felt like it wasn't as warm and not as flexible.
[00:27:01] But now it's like the most amazing wetsuit. I actually haven't tried many other brands, so it will be hard for me to see which other brands are better, but I know that there are many out there that are specifically for women.
[00:27:16] But I can say just from my experience with Brunotti that that gear is very nice, so the wetsuits and the harnesses.
[00:27:22] Oh, beautiful. Okay, that's good to know. And we had somebody else ask as well, how do you feel that they could go from an intermediate level to a higher level in windsurfing?
[00:27:33] And how would they be able to find opportunities, let's say, after school? So what would be the easiest way in you felt into the industry today for women?
[00:27:45] I think to go from intermediate to higher level, the main thing in windsurfing is just putting in the hours and the effort.
[00:27:54] And so what I have done for myself is just always challenging myself, if you have the opportunity, of course, challenge myself in different conditions.
[00:28:03] So I did get sponsored pretty early, so I was able to travel to Brazil, go to the Canary Islands, keep down at it when I was still studying in the Netherlands.
[00:28:13] And I feel like putting yourself out in a variety of conditions is the best way to improve, so that later on, if you do want to compete at least, I'm competing on a world tour, which means we're competing in a bunch of different conditions.
[00:28:29] So you need to put yourself out there as well in different conditions.
[00:28:33] And then the second thing that I think is really important is to surround yourself with people that are better than you are, or are maybe striving for the same thing.
[00:28:42] You kind of need to surround yourself with the people that are doing what you are doing as well, if you can.
[00:28:49] And then for after school, as I mentioned with social media and stuff, I feel like it gives a platform to people who are ready to promote themselves.
[00:29:00] So I'm not necessarily the biggest fan of putting everything on there, but you can show the skills that you have or show a bit of your personality.
[00:29:10] And these days people check that all the time, whereas before you're making a portfolio with photos, maybe adding videos and sending that to sponsors, it's social media that does that for you.
[00:29:23] That's a good point.
[00:29:27] And then which, for winging for example, which ones have been your favorite launch spot so far around the world?
[00:29:35] Are there some that stand out that would be your best and most favorite place if you had a week that you would go back to?
[00:29:44] For winging?
[00:29:48] Yeah. So where I really kind of started to enjoy winging was in carpatops in Greece.
[00:29:57] And to be honest, it's just a flat spot, but it's so beautiful, the water, especially if you go in the morning, it's super clear everything.
[00:30:07] So just go along and you can get really close to the beach actually.
[00:30:12] And to just go along the beach and wing, that's really really beautiful.
[00:30:19] So in terms of scenery, that was pretty awesome.
[00:30:22] And then yeah, I think Brazil is fun because it just offers so many different conditions.
[00:30:28] You can go out in the choppy conditions or you can be on a swell right next to the beach and there's palm trees and people hanging out on the beach and it's like a wolf vibe.
[00:30:37] So Brazil is always a great time.
[00:30:40] So when you're time at home, do you take a little bit of downtime, hang it with family, step away from training and sailing a little bit?
[00:30:48] Or do you always kind of have it in the forefront of what you're working on?
[00:30:52] Yeah, it's really hard to take time off from windsurfing because it's still my hobby, you know?
[00:31:00] It decides my job is actually my hobby.
[00:31:03] And I mean, I can take a week off and not even touch my gear but there is a moment where I just have to go to the water.
[00:31:12] I do think I will serve the least when I'm in Aruba.
[00:31:17] My world doesn't revolve as much around windsurfing when I'm there just because of family and other projects that I have at home.
[00:31:23] But as soon as I start traveling, then it's fun on windsurfing.
[00:31:27] Yeah, I would say at home, I focus a little bit more on daily lives and family stuff.
[00:31:35] Hey, that's okay.
[00:31:36] What's the next move that you're really trying to get that maybe we can't share anything, obviously, that nobody knows about?
[00:31:43] But what's the next thing that you're really trying to work on?
[00:31:46] I mean, besides, I don't know.
[00:31:50] For me, it's been the same moves for the past two or three years.
[00:31:53] Unfortunately, I feel like once you get to a certain level, it's very hard to get to that next level.
[00:31:58] And you need either very specific conditions or you need to be in the right mindset.
[00:32:03] So in waist thinning, I would love to learn the double forward but I'm not always in that mindset to fling myself to the air that I got.
[00:32:12] So that's a hard one.
[00:32:14] And then in freestining, I always work on the double moves, like double collar or even double earkulu, which is two rotations in the air.
[00:32:24] But there you need like 25 to 30 knots of wind and the wave which, yeah, I've seen in those conditions but not consistently enough.
[00:32:33] So yeah, that's the stuff that I'm working on when I can at least.
[00:32:38] So what are your thoughts on a double forward?
[00:32:46] It's driving me crazy.
[00:32:48] But what rushes through your head when you're thinking that you're going to flip over to ice?
[00:32:55] Yeah, that's the thing is just like as soon as I see the waves coming and right before I'm thinking, okay, I'm going to do it this time.
[00:33:01] And as soon as I hit the wave, I'm like, why would I fling myself into a double forward right now?
[00:33:07] So then I'll do one and I'll let go for the second one.
[00:33:12] So I just need to have a better, I don't know, maybe visualize it better or there is this element of fear that always comes into play when with those kind of moves.
[00:33:23] And I've tried it but if, you know, I've elbowed myself and I've had whiplash from it.
[00:33:30] So the thing is, yeah, I haven't figured out yet how to try it and consistently.
[00:33:37] Yeah, I need to build up the confidence.
[00:33:40] Like I'm going to, like the only, and I'll be brave here and I'll put this out to everybody in the world.
[00:33:45] The only freestyle move I've ever tried is a shove it.
[00:33:49] And I was flying on my five three going so fast.
[00:33:54] I popped up, went in, thought because the board takes off, right, because you're not like the board to win the board.
[00:34:00] And I was like, done, I'm never doing this again.
[00:34:03] But like, how do you deal with fear and the thought of potential injury and all of that stuff going through a move?
[00:34:11] Is it just because you started it so young and you became so one with the board?
[00:34:16] Or is that, do you think, like kind of like how the guys in Bonera did?
[00:34:23] Yeah, I think when you're younger, you just have less fear and you don't think about consequences.
[00:34:29] Okay.
[00:34:30] And also, you also learn to fall, I feel like.
[00:34:33] So even though I crash, it's like, I know exactly where to kind of fall next to my sail on my board to not hurt myself.
[00:34:40] But as I, I've seen really now, as I'm getting older with moves, like with the jumping moves where you get much more height.
[00:34:47] And I'm so much more in my mind about it.
[00:34:50] Even, and I promise that I've never hurt myself, never twisted my ankle and nothing.
[00:34:54] But it's, it creeps in at some point, you know?
[00:34:58] So I see you like, yeah, the younger you are, of course, I've seen like, it's easier to learn things.
[00:35:04] But that doesn't mean that you can't, when you're older, I just think it takes a little bit more effort to push yourself past your limits, I guess.
[00:35:13] We all have faith in you.
[00:35:15] Oh, so?
[00:35:16] And where do you think, where do you think the best place that you travel would be to maximize your chances of, let's say, a double forward or something?
[00:35:27] Well, I see them the most in Gaakanaria and the Canary Islands, but it's just such extreme conditions.
[00:35:34] Okay.
[00:35:35] I think it's the best place, because if you stay there for an extended period of time, so like maybe two months, three months, then I think it's a great place, because then you can just gradually build up your confidence.
[00:35:45] But if you're there just for a week, I wouldn't suggest going for a double forward like crazy, because first thing to get used to the gear, get used to the conditions, then get used to the height, and it's such a long process.
[00:35:56] And I would say the same for here in Cape Town, except for the conditions are not as consistent as, for example, in the canaries in the summertime, so I would say canaries, yeah.
[00:36:07] All right.
[00:36:08] Well, it's something to keep in the back of your mind, I guess.
[00:36:10] Yeah.
[00:36:11] Yeah.
[00:36:12] Something.
[00:36:13] So can you walk us through a day of what it's like to be, I guess, just win-serve champion, and what does it feel like to guess to get up?
[00:36:22] And then we're always kind of curious as well as to what, like nutrition and exercise a little bit.
[00:36:27] So can you walk us through a regular day of training for you?
[00:36:30] What would that look like?
[00:36:32] Yeah.
[00:36:33] Yeah, I think, yeah.
[00:36:34] There's different days, like if it's a windy day and I know I'm going to get on the water.
[00:36:39] So I usually will go to the gym.
[00:36:42] I'll say I'll go to the gym from 7.30 to 9 or something.
[00:36:46] Then I have breakfast, then I had to, in Aruba, then I had to the water around 11, maybe still an hour and a half or two.
[00:36:55] I usually don't feel more than an hour and a half or two per session.
[00:36:58] And lately, I don't necessarily do a second session again.
[00:37:02] It really depends where I am.
[00:37:04] Okay.
[00:37:06] So, yeah, we'd start mixing up a bit.
[00:37:09] But like here in Tetons, for example, it'd be just in like gym in the morning, then probably get breakfast, go to the water,
[00:37:15] have a break, have lunch, and then do an evening session again.
[00:37:18] But I can only do that maybe two days in a row and then I'm destroyed.
[00:37:23] So I need to like place myself a little bit.
[00:37:25] So one day I'll be windsurfing for the two sessions.
[00:37:29] Maybe the next day I'll just have one big session the day after maybe only the gym or just only windsurfing.
[00:37:36] So it really changes during the day, during the week.
[00:37:39] Okay, that makes sense.
[00:37:45] Yeah.
[00:37:46] And you're training with friends, training with family, like who do you train?
[00:37:50] Do you train by yourself or do you train with people?
[00:37:53] Um, here in Tetons, for example, everyone is here at the moment, so they're either training free salary.
[00:38:00] Oh, awesome.
[00:38:01] There's this WhatsApp, there's this WhatsApp group and everyone says where they're going.
[00:38:04] So I would say training with friends, but these are all people that put their lives into windsurfing, right?
[00:38:11] So, yeah, you're training with the best people in the world.
[00:38:15] And yeah, so for nutrition, unfortunately I'm not super...
[00:38:21] regimented with that. I just feel like in general, I eat healthy enough. And it's hard to, when you're
[00:38:31] traveling, it's hard to keep a routine. That's the only thing I'll say about that. So when you go from
[00:38:35] country to country, sometimes it's hard to stick to the food to the food that you enjoy eating. Oh,
[00:38:40] yeah, that would be. Yeah, so that's that's maybe a hard aspect. Same with training, like gym training,
[00:38:46] and stuff like that. It's hard to stick to a routine a lot of times. Is there anything else that
[00:38:51] you'd like to share with the community out there about about anything that you're working on? Yeah,
[00:39:00] so besides all the windsurfing for myself, I guess what I'm really enjoying, Lee, is coaching
[00:39:05] also. I've done a couple of clinics with with with with Uda in in Greece. The recent most recent
[00:39:13] one was in Brazil and hopefully will do one in February. And we started Windsor University, which
[00:39:19] started out as online coaching, basically, because this was during Covid. And we're like, how can we
[00:39:25] still reach people that even even though we can travel at the moment, how could we still reach
[00:39:30] people? So the most obvious thing was to do like online coaching. And we found out that it's actually
[00:39:36] a really efficient way of learning as well, because it's not only about getting on the water and
[00:39:42] practicing nonstop, I feel like you really to stop and analyze what you're doing. So in this online
[00:39:47] coaching, we show you videos of how to do a certain maneuver and we go through it step by step. And
[00:39:53] if you have any questions that we we also just answered that. And it's if they have their own
[00:39:58] videos, we can pretty quickly see what to improve, for example. So I feel like if you kind of get
[00:40:05] the theory behind the move it and think about it helps a lot for once you get on the water.
[00:40:12] Oh, yeah, that's cool. So then and you can help people from all over the world then. Yeah. Yeah,
[00:40:16] it's so much fun. Like we've met people from literally all over and that. Yeah, that's the cool
[00:40:21] thing about doing surfing also, like the people, the people that are stoked about this sport, like
[00:40:26] it, like we're all over. Did you have you found like a change in Aruba with the kids? I've asked
[00:40:32] us to a couple of people asked it to Mauritius. Do you find that kids are as adventurous and are
[00:40:38] playing outside as much? Like I just turned 40, maybe 41 now, but like soon, but like do you find
[00:40:46] kids there's been a big change there? Or is it like because for here in Canada, there's a lot more
[00:40:53] people inside. They're not playing as many sports. They're not pushing into hobbies or anything
[00:40:59] like that. They're more stuck online gaming or doing all that kind of thing. Have you seen a big
[00:41:03] change there as well? Yeah, I feel like it's hard to gauge. I guess that's the natural that I would
[00:41:11] guess that's the trend around the world. I'll just say that, for example, in Aruba, it's you know,
[00:41:18] it's hot all day long. So people can actually get out and be outdoors. Whereas maybe in Canada,
[00:41:25] it's much colder. So it's easier to stay indoor and get online, you know, like we can get to the
[00:41:30] beach so quickly. That's true. But I would probably agree that more and more people are just online
[00:41:38] more. Yeah, I find that sad, but I'm thankful that they have more outlets and more new sports.
[00:41:46] Like winging has just been so helpful and like obviously there and around like what's the age
[00:41:52] group that you're seeing winging? Are you seeing like obviously kids are just charging at this
[00:41:56] thing? It's so amazing to see like 13 year olds and 14 year olds doing back flips and front flips.
[00:42:01] It's absolutely crazy and it's really fun to watch. Yeah, I see some incredible maneuvers
[00:42:08] by kids mostly. In Aruba, I would say it's still, I actually haven't seen many kids
[00:42:15] winging to be honest. It's older groups like 30 and up. I think the kids are actually getting caught up
[00:42:25] kiting more than winging. But maybe it's something that just needs to be promoted more. Yeah, there's
[00:42:30] a lot of kiting, kids that are kiting. Oh, that's cool. How is your kiting coming along?
[00:42:36] And windsurfing. I would say it's going good. I really like I hate this. Well, I don't hate to
[00:42:42] say about people hate to hear it, but I really, really enjoy kiting surfing a lot. And it's
[00:42:47] because I was going to say like my in Aruba, I'll do one or two sessions, but usually it's like one
[00:42:53] session in the morning windsurfing and then I'll go for evening kite session. I didn't want to
[00:42:57] say it be swear, but it's yeah, a couple of times a week for sure. Let's not tell the 65 year old plus
[00:43:03] windsurfers. Yeah, I just have to keep it sonic. Anything or gets you on the water?
[00:43:09] Yes, I think so. And so are you planning any in-person clinics in let's say 2024 or 2025?
[00:43:18] So car pathos is six. That's probably going to be in August. We don't have the dates exactly
[00:43:23] yet because it depends on my schedule. But car pathos we're going to have two clinics in August.
[00:43:29] We would like to have one in one era in April. We just need to fix the dates for that. And I will
[00:43:36] have kids clinics in Aruba. Yes. And as far as I can see, we'll do another one in Brazil,
[00:43:44] but that's going to be in November. So that's as far as I can see for the moment.
[00:43:50] Okay. Well, that sounds pretty fun. So you have a pretty fun year. Is there one tour spot that
[00:44:00] stands out that you're really looking forward to being at? For competition, I'm not sure if I
[00:44:06] can say looking forward, but I... but it wasn't in the same experience. I competed in CG this year.
[00:44:12] And yeah. Okay. I mean, we should be competing there again this year, but if I never go again,
[00:44:18] at least I can see that I sealed cloud break. And it was pretty incredible to
[00:44:21] feel such a perfect way. At the same time, it was just extremely terrifying.
[00:44:26] And that's one of those things where I'll say like if it wasn't for competition, I would have
[00:44:32] never, ever thought that I would go down the weekend. So that's something that definitely stood
[00:44:37] out this year or last year. And what else? I feel like there's just some places that I really need
[00:44:45] to explore. So I kind of like, I don't know, Mauritius or I haven't been to Eilis in the Caribbean
[00:44:51] enough yet, even though I'm from there, like I would love to go to Guadalupe, Barbados.
[00:44:55] Yeah, Chile, I would love to go to. So there's, yeah, there's some places on my bucket list to go to.
[00:45:03] Let's see if I can make it happen. Yeah, maybe this year next year. Hey, can we talk a bit about
[00:45:08] cloud break? Like how can you see like, obviously, you can see like, can you walk me through that
[00:45:14] whole experience for those people who a don't know cloud break, but also like, that's a really,
[00:45:17] really shallow, shallow break, right? Yeah. Well, first of all, the flight is about 30 hours
[00:45:24] from Amsterdam. Whoa, okay. Then what I didn't realize myself is that you, at least where we
[00:45:32] were staying, the resort we were staying at, we were getting into a speedboat and literally going
[00:45:37] at max speed for 35 to 40 minutes out to, out to the break daily. So like, you go there 40 minutes
[00:45:46] and then 40 minutes back. So you're rigging your gear on this boat, I get terrible seasickness.
[00:45:52] So that wasn't a dream necessarily. But I think halfway halfway in the trip, like 20 minutes in,
[00:46:02] if it's a big day, you start seeing the, the white water flying, flying. So there's like, on the
[00:46:07] horizon, you see the flat, the white water, which is scary. Because if you can see it from that far
[00:46:13] away, it must be big. And yes, as you get there, it just gets bigger and bigger. And then most of
[00:46:21] the days, the surface are out till about 12 o'clock. And it's, there's no wind yet. So it's insane to
[00:46:26] see all the surfers. The water is incredibly clear. And as you said, you can, you can see the reefs.
[00:46:31] And there's like six boys where all the boats, the anchor, which I was in the beginning,
[00:46:38] I was scared as like, what if there's one crazy wave that just freaked on top of us? But I guess
[00:46:44] over the years, they figured out how far they can go. So that was fine. Okay.
[00:46:49] Oh, I surfed it on the first day when I was tiny. And I, yeah, I saw, I saw the reefs. But that
[00:46:58] was fine. I think on the bigger days, I guess it's a little bit more scary because you could get
[00:47:04] held down. I was totally fine. I think that only got washed once. I didn't even get washed, like my
[00:47:08] gear got washed and they dove under. But there were a couple of riders that actually hit the reef.
[00:47:13] So the, the, like, gear got washed onto the reef, which is the college shish kebab.
[00:47:17] It's a, it's all like, everything surrounding cloud break is a bit mystical. And for me, honestly,
[00:47:27] a little bit, little bit scary. But it's also beautiful at the same time. Like, how, how do we
[00:47:33] even have such a beautiful wave on this planet? You know, like, it's, yeah, it's quite a cool
[00:47:41] experience. And then so 100% focused when you're in it, does everything, everything else kind of
[00:47:46] disappear? Or are you able to kind of, yeah? Yeah, exactly that. It's the moment you go down the
[00:47:53] wave, like, it's full, full focus, like tunnel vision. And the wave is super clean though. There's
[00:47:59] no bumps on the wave. And it's like carving through butter. I guess I just told myself to not look
[00:48:06] back because I was maybe this curious, like, as I was going down the waves, I think I, I can see that
[00:48:11] I enjoyed it. But I wasn't risking too much. And I, I just didn't look back. But the sound of the
[00:48:18] wave breaking behind you, like, like, you really feel all of that energy behind you. And it's just
[00:48:23] like, it's super exhilarating. Are you ever thinking jaws or something like that in your future?
[00:48:29] You know, the thing is, I've seen like, I would, but you just need to put yourself out in
[00:48:34] conditions like that and be surrounded with people like that. So for me, I'm, I tend to travel,
[00:48:40] like, I'm in the Caribbean a lot than I'm in the Canary Islands. And then I go to Maui maybe once
[00:48:46] a year for two or three weeks. And it takes, it takes time to get used to those type of conditions to
[00:48:53] see yourself doing that. And I just feel like I don't do that enough. I think if I would spend
[00:49:00] maybe like a year, and it's like, I feel like if you're in Maui, it's like a natural thing to
[00:49:04] ride jaws because that's all people talk about. And it's like the most normal thing ever. But if
[00:49:09] you come from a flat island and then straight away, you get thrown into two, three meter waves.
[00:49:14] And then to think about jaws is like, I need more time for that. So I would like to. But I'm not
[00:49:20] sure it's, it would be my focus. That makes sense. And it's not for everyone. And coming even,
[00:49:26] like winning wave, coming from freestyle, I think that is such an amazing accomplishment,
[00:49:31] because it's two completely different mediums. And there's so much to learn from that.
[00:49:37] Yeah, so much. It's incredible to. And even with racing as well, like I went racing a little bit,
[00:49:42] like on the lake. And me myself was caught off guard with the incredible speeds that you have
[00:49:48] to do. And I can't imagine like how fast are you going, Winsurf racing? It is fast.
[00:49:55] Me, I think that the last time I checked, I was maybe sailing seven or seven, eight and
[00:49:59] I think maybe 60 61 62. I guess maybe a bit faster on windy and flat water, but I haven't
[00:50:09] made so much. Very quick. Well, Sarah, if, is there anything else you want to cover,
[00:50:16] or are you good to get back on the water? What's your plan for the afternoon?
[00:50:23] Actually, it's a nine thirty year, so it's bedtime. It's nine thirty.
[00:50:26] Yeah, you're right. Okay. Today I was a destroyed from all the sailing we've done,
[00:50:31] and we actually didn't have any wind, so it was like perfect. But yeah, looking forward to the
[00:50:35] upcoming week to get underwater. I want to say thanks a lot for joining me today and just having
[00:50:41] a casual conversation. It was super cool to meet you for the first time. And I will be stoked to
[00:50:47] talk to you another time as well. Yeah, anytime. Thank you for having me.
[00:50:52] Thanks for sharing this stuff. Yes, that's what we have to do. Alright, everybody,
[00:50:57] thanks for joining us tonight, and we'll chat with you another time.
[00:51:01] you
[00:51:03] [BLANK_AUDIO]