MARTIN BRANDNER: SEEKING THE PERFECT GYBE!
MARTIN BRANDNER: SEEKING THE PERFECT GYBE!
MARTIN BRANDNER: SEEKING THE PERFECT GYBE!
We caught up with Martin Brandner, former F2 brand manager and co-founder (with Jason Polakow) and long term manager of JP Australia to find out about one of his latest passions; teaching windsurfers how to gybe! Martin, holds several gybe camps each year based at the Harry Nass Centres in Dahab and in Rhodes. He has even designed his own gybe simulator using his engineering background, as a key tool in aiding the learning process.
Photos courtesy Martin Brandner.
DAHAB
Martin Brandner:
“I went to Dahab for the first time around 1995 and have been there many times since then. During my time as JP-AUSTRALIA Manager we organized with Harry and Elke an international distributor meeting for the whole Pryde Group in Dahab including JP, NeilPryde and Cabrinha. The meeting was a big success. I also organized various photo and video shoots in Dahab with some of our international team riders. I kept coming back many times for private holidays with and without my family and now I am holding my Gybing Camp there as for me the whole package of the spot, the conditions, the Dahabeya hotel and the great service and location of the Harry Nass centre are simply perfect.
CLINICS
I run my Gybe, Speed, Fitness, and Fun Camps in Dahab and Rhodes purely for enjoyment. I love helping people improve and seeing them finally nail their gybes. My camps are designed for advanced windsurfers who struggle with jibing or want to perfect their technique. Many of my clients have been windsurfing for 10–20 years but still can’t get their gybe dialled in. I believe I can help them overcome this challenge. To aid training, I’ve developed my own gybe simulator, with one located in Rhodes and another in Dahab. It not only helps with rig control but also simulates board edging, mast foot pressure, weight shifts, and sail handling with wind pressure.
I also use drone footage (in Rhodes) and tower-mounted cameras in Dahab for detailed video analysis. Additionally, I incorporate mental training techniques, simulating the gybe movements using a gymnastic stick in the centre or in a meeting room before taking them onto the water. So far, I’ve been doing these camps only with German speaking clients, and the approach has worked well. But who knows maybe one day I will do one for English speaking windsurfers.
My clinics are unique in that I contact participants a few months in advance, sending them a detailed questionnaire to assess their skill level and fitness. I then provide them with two workout videos focusing on core strength, upper body, and leg conditioning to prepare them for the camp.
In Dahab, Harry’s team sets up a tower in the water, allowing me to capture close-up video footage for analysis, an essential part of the training. The flat-water conditions make Dahab an ideal spot for my camps. At Centre 1, we use the beach for gybe simulation, while Centre 2, our launch site, provides ample space for mental training exercises. The shuttle boat service between the two centre’s makes transitions quick and easy. We also conduct video analysis and theory sessions in a dedicated meeting room at the Dahabeya.
WHY?
Windsurfing has given me so much throughout my career. During my time at JP, we were incredibly successful; I helped NeilPryde acquire JP, and we skyrocketed as a brand. I worked like crazy, but I loved it, especially collaborating with riders like Anthony Baker, Andy Chambers, Jason Polakow, Josh Stone, Kauli Seadi and Ricardo Campello – just to mention a few. It was a dream job where I combined my passion with my profession.
Now semi-retired, I feel blessed to have been part of the sport. Because windsurfing has given me so much, I want to give back. Already during my F2 and JP days, I saw many windsurfers struggling with the gybe. After years of frustration, some simply quit the sport. That’s a shame because, for me, the real fun in windsurfing begins when you can consistently plane through a gybe. At JP, we designed boards that gybe easily, but no board can gybe on its own; proper technique is essential.
The sport is already small compared to kiting and wing foiling, so I want to help keep people engaged in windsurfing. It surprises me that so few windsurfers take advanced lessons. In other sports, like tennis, dedicated players regularly take coaching sessions to refine their technique. I experienced this first hand with skiing. I’m a state-certified ski instructor in Austria, but I did my training 35 years ago, before carving skis existed. When I was at F2, I snowboarded for years, and when carving skis emerged, I struggled at first. So, I booked a ski instructor for a day, and by the end of it, I had the technique down. That experience reinforced the value of lessons in improving any sport.
THE CENTRE
Click below for more details on the Harry Nass centre:
In area 2 where we practice, we have nice flatwater conditions. The wind is usually quite reliable, and I personally use something between a 4.7 and 7.2m sail. The centre is equipped with plenty of boards and riggs, which are all in good shape. The service offered by the centre crew is second to none.
The boys prepare your equipment and bring it to the beach and when you come back from the water, they come running to help you to carry it back, while it is actually only a few meters from the water to the centre. Harry is also very serious about safety. He has two very good boats and for every sailing session you get a waterproof mobile phone with you so that you can call the centre in case of an emergency.
GEAR
My clients use, depending on their weight and sailing level, freeride boards between 100 and 140L. I personally love to sail in Area 3 where you find, on good days, a nice rolling swell and I would then use a 94 or 102 L Freestyle Wave.
ACCOMMODATION
I always stay at the Dahabeya and it is just perfect as it is right behind Centre 2 and offers a really nice pool, nice rooms, good food and has very friendly staff. The airport transfer is in nice, air-conditioned vans and is super easy and only takes about 50 minutes.
EGYPT
I simply love the place – that’s why I have been there so many times. I first went in December 1995 and there was hardly anything there back in those days. Sailing in the flatwater Area 2 is really cool to work on your manoeuvres and as mentioned earlier – on really good days my favourite is Area 3.
I also love to go to town, from time to time for dinner as there are some excellent restaurants right on the water with great food, especially fish. The one thing you can’t miss when you go there, is a sunset drink at the bar next to Centre 1: it’s just magnificent!”
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