A WINDSURF TRIP WITH A DIFFERENCE

This is a story that many of you will probably identify with, and I hope it stirs something inside you, pushing you to step out of your comfort zone and chase a couple of dreams you've unknowingly denied yourself. It's time to break down some boundaries!

- Maria Andrés

I LOVE WAVE RIDING BUT...

I am a passionate windsurfer who has traveled halfway around the world in search of waves. My passion has taken me to incredible places with picture-perfect, endless waves. Sometimes to lost paradises with crystal clear waters, palm trees, corals, and colourful fish... other times to remote locations where reaching the spot was already a mission in itself, like Baja, California. Or to never-ending chocolate-coloured waves such as those in Peru, where you can perform as many turns on a single wave as you would in a whole year at any other spot!

When you love pure wave riding, you seek places with clean waves, that are gently groomed by light side-offshore winds. Due to the light winds, strong currents, and waiting for sets, you sometimes spend hours and hours in the water for just a few waves. For example, in Peru, if you ride a long wave, it can take you over 10 minutes to sail back upwind. Wave riding requires hours and hours of learning, plenty of traveling and the ability to understand different types of waves, which is another skill set in itself.

I enjoy the serenity of wave riding and light winds; I love carving, learning to read the waves, and I've never minded sacrificing quantity for the quality of waves and surfing. The joy of surfing bigger and perfect waves truly is amazing, and not to mention addictive! I wouldn't change it for anything! I'm aware of the fact that I have dedicated a lot of time to this aspect, and if I had focused on spots where I could practice jumps and tricks on every run, my progress would have been quicker at normal wave spots, but everyone is different. This has been my chosen route because wave riding really is my passion.

THE HUMAN WITHIN THE WINDSURFER