Blog Archives
  • Thank you, Bruce and Sailworks!
    Congratulations, Bruce Peterson, for a remarkable 30 years of designing and running Sailworks! It is a well earned “end of an era”, and it is an […]
  • Dial-in your windsurf gearDial in Your Windsurf Gear
    Imagine that every single time you get to the beach you quickly rig your sail and perfectly tune for the conditions. You never fumble with your […]
  • Slalom windsurfing with Phil Soltysiak at the 2021 US Windsurfing NationalsOBX Wind 2021
    A five discipline event! Well, if you count my free clinic and Friday wave session. Hatteras OBX Wind once again delivered the goods. A packed start […]
  • Philip Soltysiak windsurfing starboardVideo: Hood River Home Sessions
    It’s crazy to think back on this season and realize how little I travelled compared to when I was doing the PWA World Tour. I managed to […]
  • A Pandemic Windsurf Summer
    Although all the windsurf contests I was planning to attend this summer have been postponed and cancelled, it definitely hasn’t put a damper on the […]
  • Phil Soltysiak and Casey Hauser dueling it out at the 2019 US Slalom Windsurfing Nationals Photo by Jimmie HeppThe 2019 US Windsurfing Slalom Nationals
    Three days of completely overpowered slalom sailing! What a blast! I arrived at Kanaha Beach Park on Maui one day early for the 2019 Slalom US […]
  • Highway 101 near Cape Sebastian windsurfing spot on the Oregon Coast photo by Si CrowtherIWT Pistol River and Coast Trips
    I love heading to the Oregon Coast. It’s windy, wavy, beautiful, rugged and wild. In the spring I did a few weekend trips to Newport, conveniently […]
  • Phil Soltysiak is 2019 US Champion in Freestyle Windsurfing2019 US Freestyle Champion!
    OBX-Wind – North Americas biggest, and fastest growing windsurfing competition once again delivered the goods! With 300 people registered for […]
  • Phil Soltysiak Windsurfing the Columbia River near Hood River OregonSpring 2019
    As some of you may know already I’m not headed to Bonaire for the PWA event, and I will no longer be attending PWA events. I’m including a press […]
  • Phil Soltysiak windsurfing backloop at Arlington, Columbia River Gorge. Photo by Bob Stawicki.Headed to Sylt
    Since the PWA World Tour stop in Fuerteventura I’ve been back in Hood River, Oregon. The summer season there delivers some of the best windsurfing in […]
  • Phil soltysiak Windsurfing Pushloop in Fuerteventura. Photo by JC/Carter9th place in Fuerteventura!
    The 2018 PWA Fuerteventura Grand Slam was an event to remember! For two days straight, 4.0 conditions kept the sailing on edge, followed by two days […]
  • Freestyle board top turn - photo by International Windsurfing TourPistol River, Gorge Cup, US Nationals and OBX-Wind
    Spring has been buzzing: 230 windsurfers on the start line of the OBX-Wind long-distance race in Hatteras The OBX freestyle contest The OBX slalom […]
  • Hiking through the trees.Pristine Snow
    A break from turquoise waters to pristine snow! Life is good! Last week I had a chance to join a group of 12 friends on a ski trip in the Eagle Cap […]
  • Windsurfing on Aruba. Hard to beat Aruba's water colours! Photo by Armando Goedgedrag.Mexico, Avalanches and Aruba
    After a few days of resting, hanging out with the family and eating Christmas food at home in Canada I flew to windsurf a popular winter destination […]
  • Tapioca for breakfastThe Jeri Routine
    ***Don’t forget to scroll below the galleries to see a few video clips! Over 24 months of my life has been spent in Jericoacoara. Why so much? […]
  • Phil Soltysiak windsurfing mid-heat in Sylt, Germany. Photo by John CarterCappuccinoed in Sylt
    I got “Cappuccinoed” in Sylt, and it was fun 99% of the time. The fun times started in the 2nd round of the single elimination, the round of 32. I […]
  • Phil Soltysiak slalom windsurfing in the Gorge - Photo by Bob StawickiStorms and Fires
    It’s not due to lack of content that I haven’t had a blog update for a month now. So what’s been keeping me away from sitting down and and opening […]
  • Phil Soltysiak jibing in front of San Francisco. Photo by Lyrah Colvin.2017 US Nationals
    After the Fuerteventura PWA World Cup I flew into Portland, somehow getting away with checking in all my board bags for free, and drove down for the […]
  • Soltysiak Shaka coming into the beach. Photo by PWA/Carter13th at PWA Fuerte
    After 5 days of competition and a full double elimination I managed to finish the PWA Fuerteventura Grand Slam in 13th place. This past week Fuerte […]
  • Phil Soltysiak captured by GoPro backloop off Balz's boom in FuerteventuraFuerteventura Preview
    The flying sand of Sotavento Beach is impossible to get use to. Actually the more days you spend here the more frustrated you get with it being […]
  • Philip Soltysiak take-off at the 2017 IWT Gorge Beach Bash windsurfing event. Photo by Bob Stawicki.Rio Vista, Whales, Hood River
    40 degree heat and dry camping are not the best combination. Luckily the Sacramento River off Sherman Island was refreshing enough to keep the Rio […]
  • The Pro Men Podium at the IWT Pistol River Wave Bash, L to R me, Boujmaa, Morgan, Russ.IWT Pistol and Coastal Times
    It was my birthday 2 weeks ago and I celebrated by completing my best workout of the year and most skillful negotiation; I dragged 6 checked bags […]
  • Experiences on media trips.No Trip is Created Equal
    People often ask me “Where are you off to next?”. It’s an easy question and I often reply with a simple answer. However, I often find myself feeling […]
  • Phil Soltysiak windsurfing pushlooping in front of my sponsor JR from Makani Fins - Photo by Nicholas ChapleauOBX-Wind Hatteras 2017
    Cape Hatteras has always been a “family” destination for me. My parents use to take my brothers and I down for a week every October. A 14 hour drive […]
  • The windsurf life! Chilling with Yentel Caers and Antony Ruenes. Photo by Flo RagossnigCape Town Times
    I’m not much of a tourist. Spending 2 months in Cape Town I only went on 3 hikes and wine tasting once. However, I did drive 7000km to windsurf and […]
  • Kono on Rietvlei - Photo by Kiril UmrikhinClassic Cape Town
    The wind blows nearly every day in the Cape Town area. Most days it’s a matter of looking out the window to know what the wind’s going to do, […]
  • Heading to the water at Melkbos on a busy day - photo by Ryan Allderman2017 is on!
    I’m seriously stoked on how my 2016 shaped up, and if the first few adventures of 2017 are a sign of things to come, it will be another epic […]
  • Phil Soltysiak Backloop at Praia de Malhada - photo by Winnie PixSecrets of Jeri
    So we continue with the eat, sleep, windsurf theme of my blog. After all that’s pretty much all I do. So in this post you’ll read about […]
  • Helis, Buggies and DownwindersHelis, Buggies and Downwinders
    I had a week of adventures here in Jeri. Lagoon sailing in Tatajuba, a return roller coaster flight in a helicopter, a downwinder to the Guriu river […]
  • Tapioca for breakfastFour Jeri Foods
    My top four Jeri Foods: Kiwiroska, Abacaxiroska, Maracujaroska and Caipirinhas. No…just kidding ;-)… Every person organizes their life priorities […]
  • Phil Soltysiak pushloop windsurfing at Sherkston Shores - Photo by NiagaraMike2000Europe>Canada>Brazil
    A week in Poland, a week in Canada and now day 3 in Brazil. After the European Tour event in Brouwersdam, Holland, I flew to Poland to visit family. […]
  • 4.7m Sailworks Revolution and 93l Starboard FlareDAM X European Tour
    After the Sylt PWA event I had a 2 day break at my  friend Steven’s house in Belgium, then we went straight to Holland to probably the coolest […]
  • Phil Soltysiak checking the flags at the PWA World Cup Sylt Grand Slam5th in the World!
    1 drive, 3 flights, and 2 trains is all I needed to get myself and my life packed in a suitcase and board bags to Sylt, Germany. All that effort paid […]
  • The sun goes down at Sauble Beach3 Weeks at Home
    Although generally the fall is decent for windsurfing in Southern Ontario, these last couple weeks have been below average. I still managed to […]
  • Backlooping at the Hatchery - photo by Brian Sprout - rider Phil SoltysiakEnd of Summer
    Or is it?… I just got home to Toronto from 4 weeks of chasing wind up and down the Columbia River Gorge and it’s probably the hottest day I’ve […]
  • Sick freestyle spot downwind of the Event Site with the Hood River bridge behind me - Photo by Brian SproutHome and Hood
    Checking in my windsurf gear for free has become a norm for me! This was my 2nd check-in in a row with a ton of gear and taking it all for free. […]
  • Top 4 after the single elimination - Left to Right - Phil Soltysiak - Yentyel Caers - Amado Vrieswijk - Gollito Estredo5th at PWA Fuerte
    The PWA Fuerteventura Grand Slam opened up with a bang as gusts to 40 knots greeted us riders on the first day. Classic Playa Sotavento conditions […]
  • Skopu next to the beach in offshore winds - photo by Tom BrendtFuerteventura Preview
    The lead up to the PWA Fuerteventura Grand Slam. What’s it gonna take to win? Who’s hot? And live scoring. 2 weeks of warming up in Fuerteventura, […]
  • Freestyling at The WallGorge Beach Bash
    The Gorge Beach Bash sponsored by Sailworks was held June 24th – 26th in Hood River, OR. The event featured freestyle, slalom racing, tandem […]
  • CAN 9 top turn windsurfing Pistol River Oregon - Photo by Ryan AlldermanPistol and Rio
    The beauty of windsurfing competitions is no matter how you finish, at least you were on the water windsurfing. Well, as long as it’s windy. […]
  • Phil Soltysiak bottom turns at Pistol River - Photo by Lawrence StewartWest Coast Escape
    Sorry I can’t fill you in on the big project I’ve been working on the last 2 weeks with Max Matissek, you’ll have to check our your local […]
  • Sailworks NX 7.8 and Starboard ISonic 114_webreadyUS Slalom Champion
    Everything truly is bigger in Texas. Big sails, big boards, big fins, big gear bags and a big event. The 2016 US Windsurfing Nationals held down in […]
  • PWA stickers ready for the sailsPWA Austria
    112kgs it said on my luggage sticker. That should be enough to cover any wind and weather Podersdorf throws at me I thought. Podersdorf is a small […]
  • Phil Soltysiak CAN 9 zoomed in windsurfing action at the Canadian Hole, Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Photo by Makani Fins.Spring in Hatteras
    Cape Hatteras was erased off my calendar last year due to the last-minute PWA Leucate event being on the same date. Thankfully this year there was no […]
  • Phil Soltysiak CAN 9 windsurfing spray at Ho'okipa - photo by Lawrence Stewart.Maui Impressions
    Although my 10 days in Maui weren’t the windiest, the trip was a success. I had the opportunity to windsurf various beaches around the island and […]
  • Phil Soltysiak sliding a grubby on Isla Margarita.Podium at Freestyle Crown
    The lightest wind of the winter plagued the 2016 El Yaque Freestyle Crown. Thankfully that didn’t stop either the Freestyle or SuperX competition […]
  • Sunrise on the El Yaque Mountain Biking trailsOff Water Training
    What do I do to stay in shape besides windsurfing? A change in the weather pattern lead to a week of lighter wind, even a couple of days without wind […]
  • Phil Soltysiak CAN 9 Windsurfing at Manglillo, El Yaque Beach, Isla Margarita, Venezuela. Photo by Tom Brendt.Spots of El Yaque
    So you thought I windsurf at the same beach for 2 months straight?!? Hood River and Cape Town are destinations where you windsurf different spots […]
  • Viva El YaqueYaque Life
    2004 – My first ever visit to El Yaque – 10 windsurf centers – Over 100 windsurfers on the water – Windy every day. 2016 […]
  • Manglillo action. Photo by Fukajaz.January in Venezuela
    No better way to spend the winter than on a Caribbean beach! I’m back in El Yaque for some winter training, and the season is on fire! […]
  • Planning with our friend and guide Russ.Skiing, 2016, New Sponsors
    Happy New Year! Hope if you’re reading this you enjoyed the holidays and welcomed 2016 in style. I spent Christmas at home in Canada at my […]
  • Flying over Jericoacoara.2 Months in Brazil
    Praia de Malhada Backloop. Photo by Adrian Irvine. I had a great 2 months on Brazil’s North Eastern coast this past November and December. My […]
  • Lac Champlain Windsurfing by Adam WojtkowiakPWA Indoor & East Coast
    Two weeks ago I flew to Poland’s capital, Warsaw for an indoor windsurfing competition. The first indoor event in the last 8 years. I was really […]