The second day of Fiji Surf Pro was in many ways a party. A welcome day of respite from the anxious tension that preceded the Day 1 and the hyper-excitement that accompanied it. Opening ceremonies have been postponed to Day 2 to give the opportunity to the Round 1 to take place on Day 1, given the optimal conditions for the regatta. Now that the wind had calmed down and the waves had calmed down, you could take a collective breath.

In the morning, Our media team continued to upload and edit Round 1 acquisitions. The seating arrangement of the hotel's diner becomes largely governed by photos and videos. Tables are arranged in clustered island patterns centered around laptop screens. Just a photographer sifting through his shots, A host of riders gather in formation behind the photographer's shoulder. Like gold diggers exploring the bed of a stream, The editing process is to find gold as quickly as possible, Evaluate its value and scan for more. This goes against the instinct of the windsurfer, who wants to capture the spectacle of a great shot, further frustrating the photographer's efforts to streamline their workflow! At one point a corner of the diner burst into an exalted cry, reporting that a perfectly synchronized shot of a large aerial had been found, Then the murmur spread around the room and the other athletes could see it..

On the first day we had a crew of five cameramen and photographers placed in various areas of Cloudbreak. Most of the initial images that emerged came from the husband and wife duo.: Fish Bowl Diaries. Paul Karaolides filmed from the corner of the canal riding a jet ski. Paul's wife, Sofie Louca, took photos aboard the trimaran Thundercloud, about 200 meters from her husband.
It is worth noting that after about 10 Hours of tour aboard the trimaran, Sofie switches to night editing mode only to get the images out in time to publish them on the IWT Facebook page.
This happens extraordinarily without much thanks and miraculously without Red Bull..

Jace Panebianco sat inside the reef, where the old WSL judges' tower has long since sunk into the coral reef, But the foundation still provides enough traction, however precarious it may be, To place a tripod. Guillermo, a National Geographic photographer, came to document the event. Swammed just outside the most critical barreling section, just before the wave runs into the shallow reef at Shish Kebabs. All these people push their comfort limits in an attempt to create their best art and pick up the best angle for the perfect shot.. Paul van Belen flies a drone aboard Thundercloud, providing aerial angles to shooting. Paul is also responsible for the multitude of gold behind the scenes that comes out on YouTube.!
Every single member of the media team works tirelessly for long days and late into the night to post content online. Addressing the challenges of irregular Wi-Fi access, the logistics of working on the water and the oppressive heat of Fiji. Thanks to their efforts, particularly those of Brian Welsh, Tritian Young-Glasson and Kai Katchadourian who made a night montage, a beautifully finished recording of the Round 1 is available for online viewing.

As the media team works to capture the magic, Riders are out there pushing the limits of the body, of boards and rigs. The carnage of equipment on the first day was significant, but luckily no one was hurt.
The task of sifting through broken equipment turned into a warm memory. The scars that carry our boards and sails become talking points around the resort grounds. Every scratch and’ a unique seal, describing a moment of adrenaline. Among the riders, These moments are so easily communicated, The dialect of carnage pervades language barriers and cultural differences.

After the morning ritual of breakfast and media content processing, and once the equipment has been prepared for the next few days, Our opening ceremony was ready to start. This ceremony was the official welcome of the windsurfing community by the Village, owner of Kuru Kuru Reef. These villagers came with ceremonial bowls and Kava, sharing with us the traditions of their people.

The officiating chiefs previously oversaw the mixing of Kava, then they arranged for it to be distributed through coconut shell bowls.. Drinking Kava means bonding with the earth and people, and the traditional nature of the ceremony slows down the pace of time here: Fijian weather. The word “Bula” is pronounced when receiving Kava – a word similar to Aloha in Hawaiian – and “Matha” is the word used to express gratitude and purpose once the cup is emptied. The Kava bowls are passed during the ceremony so slowly and deliberately that a kind of clandestine calm falls on the hotel grounds.. Drinking and speaking Fijian words of gratitude, The nature of the day has changed profoundly. Now media concerns can, temporarily, disappear and the concerns of human beings who relate to each other come to the fore.. The process was also enriched by the fact that we had already gone to navigate the spot, and so we drank Kava together, grateful for the generosity of the Fijians and humbled by the perfection we had experienced, lie just offshore.

In the most hospitable way, The villagers had also prepared a monumental banquet of slow-cooked pork and smoked lau lau leaves.. Music and dancing followed. It was during this period that real bonds were forged.. And not only between windsurfers and Fijians, but among the diverse group of windsurfers participating in the Unified Tour: there may be no better way for PWA and IWT athletes to gather than over a bowl of Kava, satisfying food for the soul and the glow of a perfect windsurfing session.

source/photo/video : PWA / IWT
text by Bernd Roediger
photos by Fish Bowl Diaries
video: Paul van Bellen