Rio Vista Grand Slam – Steady breeze awakes competitors on Day 1

by American Windsurfing Tour on 18 Jun 2016 Rio Vista Grand Slam – To the general onlooker, the quaint and remote cow fields on Sherman island may just be a picturesque escape from the bustling city of San Francisco, but this weekend the Wind Turbines are busy spinning as the island hosts over 80 windsurfers from international destinations as far afield Bon Aire and Holland.

Just a few days before the event the forecast looked rather uninspiring, so as we entered into Day One many competitors were not overly optimistic at the chance of getting wet. Not to be deterred by this, event organizer David Merten, determinedly announced that Slalom racing was to commence at 1.30 and sure enough exactly at that time the wind turn on.

There was much excitement during the afternoon:
In the Pro Slalom racing every heat was unequivocally dominated by last years event winner and US Slalom Champion Jesper Vesterstrom, but Tyson Poor showed his teeth holding a convincing second in most heats.

A surprise entry into the final race of the day came from the windsurfing legend Francisco Goya who entered on his Goya Free Race (non Cambered) sail, blasted through the start line crossing the finish with a solid fourth and shocking all the other competitors whilst demonstrating that he still has a unique and untouchable talent in windsurfing.

The Freeride event was an absolute hit with all, as no less than thirty windsurfers joined together to blast across the river and back. Notably Kevin Pritchard teamed up with promising young windsurfer Alex Merten to show exceptional skill in negotiating the course on a tandem board.

The Freestyle event was unfortunately postponed until today but the crowd was rewarded by a spectacular evening sunset show, by none other than the exceptionally talented Caesar Finies flipping his rig into the air as if it were a feather!

Today the competitors are awoken by a steady breeze and the days event commences with the Kids slalom racing, so stay tuned for more action from the Rio Vista Grand Slam.