The defi wind experience

Whilst at most events, the results are the most important part - being the best in the World and winning races is something that drives us to keep producing the best products, but at the Defi Wind, the performances of the pro riders on the water are only a tiny part of the overall event. Still we had some amazing performances from the team - Pierre Mortefon taking 2nd in the "FREE" category using theWARP_FOIL and Jordy Vonk winning 3 races as the first fin with the WARP_FIN! 

As special mention must also go to the Thebault family - of which father Jerome and 13 year old Mahe competed in all 3 Defis - Wind, Wing and Kite! And it truly was a family affair for many of the Duotone Team with Pierre and Marion Mortefon, Raphael and Cesar Filippi and Laetita and Lisa Wermeister all pushing each other for the family bragging rights! 

The Defi Wind is about so much more than racing. Its the electric atmosphere that windsurfing is as alive as ever. It's the annual celebration of the windsurfing family coming together - young and old, brothers and sisters, friends and family. Everyone descending on one location to celebrate their love of windsurfing and on and off the water we had a lot of fun at the DUOTONE stand. With all the latest equipment and many of the pros standing by, there was never a quiet moment during the day... but the Defi truly comes alive at night and the infamous DUOTONE booth parties did not disappoint! With the biggest Defi Wind on record with over 1400 competitors, it was certainly one to remember and for the 18 participants on Jordy Vonk's Defi Wind Experience, it was a week they will never forget...

The Defi Wind Experience (in collaboration with Surfcenter and Tenzing), now in it's 2nd year, was the idea of Jordy Vonk to make the Defi Wind more accessible. Whilst many people want to participate in the Defi, it can be quite a daughting prospect with the infamous Tramontana (strong, offshore winds) and 35-40 knots, not to mention lining up with 1400 people! Jordy's idea was to initally take a small group and prepare them as much as possible with physical training, an evening at the Surfcenter shop before the event to talk about the event and also provide some coaching before and during the event. This year, he took it up a notch, providing a full VIP experience for his group, including meeting legends of the sport like Bjorn Dunkerbeck and Antoine Albeau, a VIP registration and providing teamwear so in a sea of 1400 people, they really stood out as a team.

What we loved the most about Jordy's Defi Wind Experience is the feelings of family and teamwork - two values that mean a lot to us at DUOTONE and are truly emphasised when we go to the Defi. Seeing the crew meeting up every morning and evening, sharing their stories from the water and learning how they can do better in the next races. Led by Jordy, one of the best windsurfers in the World, but with a huge range of abilities in the group from top 50 finishers to people happy just to make it around the course, one thing was for sure, everyone loved their Defi Wind Experience! 

If you're motivated to join Jordy next year, you can send an email to aloha(at)surf-center(dot)com or message Jordy on his social media and get yourself ready for the ultimate Defi Wind Experience as it surely is not one to miss!