A steady increase in the number of windsurfers has led to the establishment of several national and international windsurfing associations. These associations have not only worked Kitesurfing constantly in spreading awareness about windsurfing but also helped windsurfers in improving the sporting infrastructure. Becoming a part of such associations helps enthusiasts to enhance their sporting abilities along with having a regular interaction with fellow windsurfers.

Leading Windsurfing Associations

There are several associations, especially in the United States and Europe that feature prominently in the list of leading windsurfing associations of the world.

Professional Windsurfers Association (PWA)

PWA is a premier and one of the oldest associations in windsurfing. The PWA organizes some of the most coveted international events throughout the year. The PWA World Tour, arguably the biggest sporting extravaganza for windsurfing and features world cup and grand slams for every windsurfing discipline. For the past two decades, the PWA World Championships have witnessed some of the best performances of all the top champions of the sport. It is at behest of the PWA that new windsurfing rules are formulated and new international events are sanctioned. Currently, Jimmy Diaz is the President of the PWA while Phil McGain is the Vice President. The other high profile board members of the PWA include Svein Rasmussen, women’s champion Karin Jaggi, John Skye, Pieter Bijl, Martin Brandner and Robby Swift.

UK Windsurfing Association (UKWA)

A UK-based association, the UKWA is a key organization that promotes the interests of windsurfers and works ceaselessly for their fulfillment. The UKWA is controlled by a group of windsurfing enthusiasts who are dedicated to the development of the sport. The UKWA organizes several events of all windsurfing disciplines at various levels. Some of the major windsurfing events organized by the UKWA include the National Championships, the British Open Championships, UKWA Inland Series and UKWA Cup Series.

US Windsurfing Association

One of the leading associations in the United States, the US Windsurfing Association has a huge member-base in the country. The association helps to spread awareness about various aspects of windsurfing and provide guidelines about the safety measures necessary for the sport. The association is also involved in the administrative activities like acting as a Council of US Sailing, issuing sail numbers for national and international windsurfing contests and serves as a regulatory body for US Windsurfing and International Racing Rules of Sailing. The US Windsurfing Association supports and encourages several national and regional windsurfing clubs and organizations.

Columbia Gorge Windsurfing Association

Yet another US-based organization, this association holds some of the most popular events like Windfest Weekend and Swapmeet. The Columbia Gorge Association hugely promotes windsurfing among children and regularly organizes kids’ camps and windsurfing sessions for kids. The association has undertaken several initiatives like beach cleaning drives, construction of restrooms along several beaches and develop windsurfing sites to enhance windsurfing experience in the Columbia River Gorge. The association also supports several smaller communities at the local level.

These are some of the leading associations in the world of windsurfing. Over the years, these organizations have broadened their field of work tremendously.

How To Windsurf – Part 1

This is the first part of a how to windsurf guide that will give you the basic steps necessary to enjoy windsurfing.

So, summer is just around the corner (we all hope!) and its time to get out there and learn something new that will be good exercise, sociable and fun!

Part 1 of this guide talks you through the preparation required before you even get out there on the water. There are several steps, that if taken, will make your first windsurfing experience much smoother & more enjoyable.

Physical Preparation

Now a days it is fairly common knowledge in the sporting world that you need to prepare your body for the physical actions it is going to have to perform. The more physically prepared your body is the easier you will find the core actions required to learn to windsurf. For example, if you include some basic squats (no weights, just the action itself will be enough) in your pre-windsurf lesson training schedule, you will automatically find the action of pulling the windsurf sail out of the water (uphauling) much easier to perform.

Mental Preparation

You may have heard of the term visualisation and understand what it means but do you actually ever put it into practice? In sports, visualisation can really make ALL the difference when learning a new skill or move. The process is very straight forward, you just have to calm your mind and picture yourself going through the movement/skill you are trying to learn. This process literally programs the muscles in your body to do what they need to do and before you know it you will be completing the task at hand, windsurfing off into the sunset!

Seriously, by utilising the above visualisation techniques you WILL learn how to windsurf sooner and more effectively than without!

Take Windsurfing Lessons

taking lessons to be shown the actual step by step skills required to learn the basics of windsurfing, including uphauling, static 180 turns, sailing position, steering and if you are going to take a full beginners windsurfing course, how to windsurf upwind/tack & how to windsurf downwind/gybe. Kitesurfing All these skills are very specific and detailed but if shown by an experienced instructor, you can learn them easily within the scope of a beginners windsurfing course. The money spent on taking proper windsurfing lessons is so worth it!

So often, well meaning family members or friends try to help others learn the basics of windsurfing, where the poor learner is making the same mistakes over and over again when all it would take is one small adjustment to get them windsurfing off across the bay!

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