'LOST DOG. Blind in one eye, one leg missing, recently castrated... answers to the name of "Lucky"."
It was the joke I was reminded of as Sam recounted his pothole ridden Olympic journey - car smash, busted toe, fishing nets, on water crashes and much broken equipment (but happily not castrated). If Hollywood decide to make a film of his life, they'll need someone pretty robust in the lead role... Jason Statham, perhaps? The upshot was that despite having to use and retune a completely different set of gear (normally many weeks work) just days before the start, he still managed to qualify for the medal races and score fifth.
I've known Sam since he was a lad and have admired both his talent and his maverick attitude. His has not been the traditional route to the top. Having won junior world championships he became disenchanted with the system and left for a short while. However, he returned to the British Sailing Team in '21 when the class changed to iQFOIL, and fought his way through qualification, which is arguably harder than the Olympics themselves.
DIGGING A LITTLE DEEPER
PH: I found Sam resting in Portland and recovering from a nasty neck injury a fully powered, foil breech catapult?
SS: "No! We were at a post Olympics party celebrating Ellie Aldridge's kiting gold medal, when someone decided to do a bar dive and landed straight on my head. It's been really bad but I'm going to be all right. Let's talk about more positive stuff!"
PH: You hear many stories about the Olympic Blues - athletes feeling under constant pressure; driven by a "I'll be happy when..." attitude; and then discovering even when they succeed, that nothing has changed. How was it and how is it for you?
This story is from the Issue 438 - October 2024 edition of Windsurf.
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This story is from the Issue 438 - October 2024 edition of Windsurf.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
New School
Slingshot’s windsurfing brand manager, Wyatt Miller, has noticed that kids are drawn to playing with wings and puts forward an interesting case as to why he thinks this could help entice them and others into windsurfing.
Changes
Wave sailor Flo Jung reflects on our changed world during his lockdown in Germany.
THE LAST WAVE
Lockdown stirred the creative juices of reader Björn Alfthan, who peers into the future to present a fictional story set in the wild waves of Norway, five years from now.
STILL IN THE GAME
After a horrific fracture in his leg from a crashed aerial in 2018, Alessio Stillrich is back! John Carter talks to the highflyer from Gran Canaria about his move to the Simmer team, recovering from injury and how he learned to windsurf in Gran Canaria!
MOVE ON UP - GET ON THE FRONT FOOT
This month we look at how our front foot weighting can affect and improve different aspects of our main windsurfing moves.
SOUTH' KIPA
Nik tweaking it over home waters.
A NEW NORMAL
On a trip to La Tranche-sur-Mer in France last year, Tris Best estimated over 80% of the windsurfers were foiling. This summer in Portland Harbour, foiling activity has increased dramatically too he reports. With the market offering plenty of choice to recreational windfoilers, our test team check out some of the latest foil offerings.
TACKING – THE SEQUEL
Having given you time to practice, Harty concludes his tacking series by critiquing various tacking options, including the carve tack, as well as offering solutions to common slip-ups.
‘NO VAPOUR TRAILS TO SCAR THE SKY' *
Realising we may be about to enter an extraordinary period in our lives, Harty decided to keep a windsurf-centric lockdown diary. Here are some of his choice excerpts.
REDEMPTION DAY!
Renowned for its windsurfing and variety of spots to sail at, Kimmerdige Bay is a wave sailing jewel on the south coast of England. Timo Mullen gives a guide to its shores while reflecting on why a recent session there was a reminder that there is no place like home!
