ROSS WILLIAMS UNVEILS THE NEW GAASTRA VAPORS!

January saw Gaastra/Tabou international rider Ross Williams travel to South Africa for his off season training program. It was the first chance for Gaastra to show case the new vapor racing sails. The first test came at the IFCA world slalom championship. Conditions in Cape town were a little lighter then usually, and the competition had to be move away from Big bay for the first half of the event. Williams looked dangerous form the start of the first race, with great speed on his new 7.6m and manta 64, a set up that had seen him race so deadly on the PWA tour in 2008. but in the last race of the championships back in Big bay, Ross found himself playing catch up, after what seemed to be a blatant premature start, was not called. Williams could only claim 4th in this race, which in turn saw him lose his lead in the event and the world title. After the racing had finished Ross had this to say. "I am a little disappointed not to win , but i feel the new sails are working great and i am very much looking forward to the new PWA where i think Gaastra/Tabou set up will continue to prove an amazing combo."

The Following weekend saw the return of the Langebaan down wind dash with over 300 windsurfers and kitesurfers competing in the high wind, 20 KM, long distances race. With speed world record holder intending the event, it was going very interesting to see weather the windsurfers could claim back some pride after losing out to the kiters for the last 2 years. With Gusts of over 35knots, it was pretty clear from the start of the race that it was going to be a battle. Williams was out to prove a point, and was looking very comfortable on his 6.0m and manta 54. After the start it didn't take long for Ross to push ahead of the rest of the fleet, from where he controlled the race, keeping enough distance between him and the next sailor that he never look like losing. By the finish Ross was half a minute a head of his closest rival. " Yes, after the result in the IFCA that i felt was a little unfair, i wanted to prove how good the 2009 Gaastra/Tabou equipment was working. I love sailing in challenging conditions, it was pretty windy and rough out there too, but i know my gear well, and when things get tough i knew i had the advantage, i was comfortable and fast. So the rest was easy and a lot of fun. I guess windsurfing is still overall the quickest equipment on the water when it comes to sailing in normal everyday conditions."

Ross, now has a couple more weeks in South Africa, where he is looking forward to wave sailing and getting more tuned up, ready for the new season on tour.

"This year should be very interesting, and i can't waiting for it to start."

Photo Credit: © Darrell Wong © capesessions.com

VAPOR - “Move Over”