JOHN SKYE – RRD SAIL DESIGNER
This year has been amazing for Jacopo Testa. He has always shown a lot of talent the last few years, but was so chilled and relaxed I had the feeling he didn’t have enough drive to really step up so high. Clearly I was very wrong!!! This year he showed his skills in a huge variety of conditions and more importantly performed really well under pressure. He came back from last to first in Lanzarote in the double Elimination of the EFPT, beating a load of really top riders in the process. I think that really built his confidence up, because since that moment he was right at the top in both EFPT and PWA. To me this is all the more impressive since I think he is actually better with wind from the other direction, especially his aerial jumping freestyle. Most of the freestyle was with wind from the left, but I think he would be even more amazing with wind from the right. This year in Maui during our photoshoot he blew me away with his level. We were shooting at Baby beach, which is the classic small wave jumping spot where lots of the best brochure shots come from. He was sailing so impressively that at one point I actually just dropped my sail on the inside, sat on my board and watched him! Everything in the air was high, controlled and clean. I would like to claim it is the sail that makes it all possible, but when I use the sail it doesn’t do the same thing ha ha ha.