69
STOKED YOUNG GUN
TOM PRINGUER
WORDS: WSUK, MIKE PRINGUER AND
TOM PRINGUER
PICS: MIKE PRINGUER
TOM PRINGUER FIRST CAME TO OUR
ATTENTION A SHORT WHILE AGO WHEN WE
SPOTTED THIS PINT SIZED SAILOR OUT
BATTLING WITH THE ELEMENTS ON QUITE
A BLUSTERY SOUTH COAST DAY. Under the
watchful eye of dad Mike Tom managed to
haul the rig out of the water, point in the
correct direction of travel and get himself
going with some serious momentum. Over
the course of a few months Tom’s skills
have continued to improve.
There are no shortage of kids windsurfing at Hayling Island
Sailing Club – it’s a spot that encourages youthful
participation. Tom, however, is one of the youngest.
Especially if you consider his skills are pretty advanced. On
that note it was fun to see his first runs on a foil where he
put most adults to shame by getting up on foil and flying
almost straight away. With his natural ability it wasn’t long
before he was happily cruising back and forth, the odd touch
down occurring infrequently. Since that session you can
pretty much say Tom is addicted to foiling!
Over to Tom’s dad for some more info:
‘Tom is eight, lives in West London and first started to
windsurf at age two. He started on a lake in SW France
(Sanguinet) on holiday and since 2016 has been windsurfing
from Hayling Island Sailing Club (HISC) regularly. He has
been taught to windsurf by me a keen south coast wave
sailor and this has been complemented with some coaching
from Simon Bornhoft and Ant Baker. Tom got his first
harness for his seventh birthday and has been planing
upwind in the straps since.
uk
WIND
SURFING