July 17, 2012
7 Extraordinary Destinations Picked
It's an essential part of the chase: The exploration of extraordinary, one-of-a-kind destinations for competitive windsurfing in storms beyond force 10. Red Bull Storm Chase will boldly go where no windsurfing competition has gone before.
Experts took heed of community input
During the pre-planning stages of the event it became apparent that the crew needed insider input to find suitable destinations. Thus, with the return of the event to the scene on May 1, windsurfers around the world were asked to nominate locations.
148 suggestions were sent in during the four-week nomination period. “The feedback was stunning”, said Sports & Athletes Manager Klaas Voget, who assisted Robby Naish, Duncan Coombs and John Carter with assessing the nominations.
Characteristics of the destinations
The main criterion for suitable destinations was obviously a great chance to get massive storms in the four-month holding period. At the same time the expert team looked for locations which offer various spot options for changing wind directions, feature basic safety infrastructure and cater to the worldwide approach of the competition.
"As the contest format requires maximum flexibility we spontaneously decided to pick seven instead of six destinations", commented Klaas Voget on the last-minute decision to put an additional destination onto the Red Bull Storm Chase map.
Selected destinations in alphabetical order
• Brittany (Atlantic Coast in France)
• Galicia (Atlantic Coast in Spain)
• Iceland (South West Coast)
• Ireland (North West Coast)
• Japan (South East Coast)
• Tasmania (North West Coast)
• US East Coast (Cape Hatteras)
Taking windsurfing to new frontiers
In the spirit of taking competitive windsurfing to new frontiers, missions to three out of these seven destinations will be undertaken. Once a suitable storm system is confirmed to hit one of the destinations, competitors and crew will go on their journey.
After having reached their target, the crew will select the best spot option for prevailing conditions. Then, the time of the Storm Chasers will have come: They will be sent out into the roaring sea to compete man vs. man vs. nature. It's going to be a fierce challenge!
Are you ready to be blown away?