PWA Photography

I'm not really the type who follows professional sports. It seems like a waste of time, generally. But I make an exception for the best sport in the world: windsurfing.

Josh Angulo holding off Finian Maynard at the PWA Slalom Event in Alacati, Turkey


It's tough to be a fan of windsurfing compared to a fan of other sports because: 1) there are no televised competitions, and 2) there are usually no professional-level competitions in the United States. Magazines report event results, but there's always a big time lag there, and there aren't enough pictures, interviews, or play-by-plays to really get a sense of what happened. The internet is the only place where you can get daily coverage with results-as-they-occur, pictures, video, interviews, etc.

Back in, like, 2003 or so when I first got obsessed enough to start paying attention to the professional windsurfing association events, the online coverage was mediocre. But it has improved a little every year, and lately it has been fantastic. Like they've finally learned to maximize the impact of the internet format. The daily event write-ups are dramatic and juicy; not just glorified results listings. The videos are generally good, although they vary a lot in style. Some are splashy with quick editing cuts, some have more narrative, and others are complete action sequences, like a slalom heat in epic winds. I kinda like the latter kind; draws me into the competition more.

The best thing of all is the photography, though. Whoever does the shooting has really been unleashing his or her artistic creativity at the scene, going well beyond just documenting the windsurfing. **UPDATE - I think it's a dude named John Carter. He rules.**

The pictures really capture the beauty...



...the action...





...and the drama of the sport.



They're also good about getting unique portraits of the competitors, like Israeli racer Arnon Dagan...



They're really worth checking out, even if you're not that into windsurfing. The website is http://www.pwaworldtour.com.