Jake Schettewi is 16 years-old and seems to live the windsurfing dream. The Hawaiian already saw a lot of the famous windsurfing spots all around the world and shreds the waves on port tack and starboard tack. Living on Maui helps him a lot to constantly improve his skills in wave sailing. At the moment Jake is in Pozo Izquierdo to compete in the 2017 PWA Gran Canaria Wind & Waves Festival. It’s his second time at the windy port tack spot and he improved his onshore port tack windsurfing a lot compared to last year. He lands Push loops, Back loops or Forwards off the lip and does some nice wave rides.
We had a chat with the blond curly head, to speak about windsurfing in Pozo Izquierdo and how the competition goes.
Jake Schettewi – Photo: Chris Pressler/Continentseven
Continentseven: How would you describe windsurfing in Pozo Izquierdo in 30 to 40 knots compared to other places where it’s not that windy?
Jake Schettewi: Well, it’s a lot more intense and when you hit a wave you go a lot higher. It’s a lot harder to control your jumps, but you can definitely go a lot more radical. The tricks are a lot higher and it’s a lot of fun.
Continentseven: Is Pozo a place to improve quickly or does it take longer to learn new stuff?
Jake Schettewi: Ahhh, I think it takes a while, because the conditions are so different here than any other place. You really have to spend a lot of time, if you want to improve here.
Continentseven: You normally windsurf Ho’okipa or more down the line conditions, but it seems you enjoy the conditions here, too. What do you like about Pozo?
Jake Schettewi: Well, in Maui it’s more wave riding and you can have mast high Ho’okipa and a lots of fun in the waves, but here it’s the opposite where it’s mostly jumping and you can also go really big here in jumps. I like that it’s almost always windy in the summer in Pozo. When it’s good you can sail all day and it’s one of the best places to really go big on your jumps. Even though the waves aren’t always big there is usually enough wind to jump high and really push your level.
Continentseven: You are one of the riders, who go really close to the bunker, the critical section at Pozo. Is that something what challenges or motivates you?
Jake Schettewi: Yeah, you usually get more waves down there but it’s a bit shallow there! You have to be careful, but it’s all fun.
Jake windsurfing in Pozo Izquierdo
Jake Schettewi in Pozo
Continentseven: Did you lose any fins yet?
Jake Schettewi: (smiles…) I’ve broken a few fins, but they are still on my boards, so it’s all good.
Continentseven: Do you already have local friends?
Jake Schettewi: Yeah, there is a lot of locals here and they are all super nice. And they are all on the wate too, which is good.
Continentseven: You had a kids competition on day 4 at Pozo Izquierdo. How was that for you?
Jake Schettewi: It was a lot of fun. The conditions were good. There were some waves and a lot of juniors on the water.
Continentseven: Is it motivating to sail not only with the pros, but also with friends and boys in your age?
Jake Schettewi: Yeah, it’s a lot of fun because there is not a lot of opportunities to compete with juniors especially at a pro event like this in Pozo. It’s a lot of fun just to have the water to yourself with all your friends.
Continentseven: How often do you wash your hair here in Pozo?
Jake Schettewi: Every day!!
Continentseven: We bet it will not be the last time for you in Pozo.
Jake Schettewi: No, I will be definitely back next year for the contest.
Thanks Jake. Enjoy Pozo!!
