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Got any particular stand out memories of
those first Vass sessions you can share?
It was an amazing time, albeit a bit blurred. We all had Tiga
260s and Neil Pryde RAF Wave 4.7m s (or similar) and we
had to walk along the beach from our old ‘Centre 1’ to the
middle of the bay. No matter what the wind was doing we
would sail until it got dark and then walk back through the
shallows, generally ecstatic and gasping for a beer or two!
What was Vass like back in the day – pre
the popular spot it is now?
Even then it was popular and not exactly a ‘secret spot’.
Windsurfing was at its peak; the days of the Golf GTI with the
obligatory windsurfer on the roof. There were fewer tavernas
but it was just as much fun. We knew all of our guests
personally and we did everything together and had some
great times.
Any particular characters you recall from
that era that helped shape Vass into the
location it is today?
There are so many; we’ve always had the most incredible
people working with us, as is still the case today. There were
a few stand out characters such as Rocket Ron who lived on
our look-out tower for a season and made curry for us in
exchange. It was a long time ago so most of the people
around then have moved on. One of the special people in
the early days was a good friend who worked with us and the
RYA, Roddy Coull. Unfortunately Roddy is no longer with us,
but he will always be remembered in Vassiliki and he’s the
first guy I had ever saw do a forward!
Has the wind changed much or is it still
more or less the same set of conditions
you get nowadays?
Haha! Well there are some theories that it’s changed, due to
tarmac on the roads and a villa on the hillside. But it’s still
the same wind, still working its magic.
What was the windsurfing move that
everyone wanted to do in Vass at that
time?
The beach start! No, seriously! I think it was probably a duck
tack or even a 360, but all pretty tame by today’s
standards.
Has it always been a location
synonymous with progressive
windsurfing?
Yes for sure. I’ve been to a lot of windsurf destinations but
none compare to Vassiliki, unless you want waves. It’s
always been a spot where you know you’ll get good wind
that will work for all levels and at Club Vass you know
you’ll find top notch instructors and kit.
What prompted Roger (Green) and
yourself to open a windsurfing centre
in Vass? Were windsurf holidays
popular then?
The centre was already there (in a fashion) and
windsurfing holidays were just starting. Luckily for us a
guest had a friend involved in Thomson Holidays who liked
windsurfing so he started promoting Club Vassiliki. I guess
we were in the right place at the right time and it’s just
grown from there. We just wanted to create a destination
that we would like to go to and that’s still our approach.
Club Vass seems to attract like-minded people; we all love
windsurfing and having a good time, it’s infectious.
How did your first week go? Did you
have pre-bookings or was it all heart in
the mouth stuff?
It’s a long time ago now. We had a few pre-bookings and we
would grab people off the beach and convince them they
would actually enjoy the experience - most actually did.
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SURFING