REACH FOR THE SKY
We finally made it onto the 27th Floor of block C, where the second True Wind picture would be set and captured. Vienna’s Skyline is spread across the horizon. The sight is as breathtaking as I remember. The thought of sailing here is beyond mind blowing. Full of anticipation, we exchange one last reassuring handshake. I can’t wait to get the project up and running. But there is a drawback. The pool is only 25 m long – or short! To gain enough speed for a trick and also land on the water I would need at least 40 m. The pool had to get extended somehow.
Did I go too far telling my sponsors that I had the permission from the building management?
‘If my ambition has brought me here, there is nothing that can hold me back now’, I told myself. I was fixated on finding a solution. I found myself brainstorming during restless nights, asking for advice from friends and family. The craziest of ideas came up: gaining speed on wheels outside the pool, using an extra built-up pool, water soaked mats typically used for summer training in ski-jumping… but where and when would I test it first…? ‘If I can’t make it happen I am doomed’, I thought. But I still had an ace up my sleeve – Flo Schertler, the man who built a windsurf kicker for my first True Wind project set in Vienna’s underground. He is seen as an extreme sport MacGyver, who also happens to own a wood and iron/tin workshop and is also familiar with my crazy ideas. Oh, and he also lives at a pond!
“Dude, 25 m is really, really short. Even with an artificial approach. Even 40-50 knots of nuking wind won’t be enough to gain the speed needed in order to pull a move within that distance… lest have sufficient space to land the move without a crash. Alright – come over to my place – we will find a way to make it happen!”