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RRD, Windsurfing Marketing & Team manager Matteo Guazzoni brings us this update from South Africa and how RRD are dealing with the current Corona crises.

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WS: Tell us what a typical day for you is since the Corona Virus lock down?

When the crisis of the Covid 19 started we were having the RRD distributor meeting in Cape Town. It was around the 8th of March. At that time, I had to decide if to travel back to Italy or if to remain in Cape Town and I decided to stay.

My biggest concern was my family as they are living in north of Italy where the virus hit violently. I decided to remain in Cape Town as in Italy everyone was already in lockdown and isolated at home with no chance to work and also because my partner couldn’t leave South Africa. So here I am still in Cape Town. Some days after, the lockdown rules have been applied in South Africa and everyone is forced to stay at home. The biggest risk in South Africa is that the virus would spread rapidly through the townships where majority of the poor community are living next to each other with no chance of isolation. If that happens it can become a disaster which the health system will not be able to manage. Fortunately, at the moment the virus seems to be quite under control as there are not many positive cases presently compared to Europe and the United States.

WS: How are you keeping fit mentally and physically?

I spend most of my time working for RRD. Even though we are not fully operational, we are still busy in the marketing department and planning the actions to put in place in order to face the crisis. Having a consistent routine has become important during this challenging time as it keeps me focused. Thankfully I try to keep my day as close to my normal routine. I prefer to wake up quite early in the morning and spend time working during the day. As we live in a house on the coast, we have some outdoor space where we can still have a short walk, run or just breath some fresh air.

WS: How has your day job changed for RRD while this has been happening?

We are obviously facing a challenging time and we trying to manage it in the best way possible. As said my routine has not really changed, what has changed is how we deal with the crisis. In RRD we are obviously forecasting some scenarios and the impacts due to the lockdown. We are busy re-planning all the activities for next few months in order to support our business and the ones of our clients.

WS: Are you already dreaming of your next epic wave session?’

Of course, I am dreaming about epic sessions but most of all I’m dreaming about going back to normal life as soon as possible. There are people around losing their jobs and others suffering serious health issues. It is crazy how this virus has impacted everyone and had such a heavy and direct impact on people’s lives. The sooner we can get through all this the better. Everybody is just waiting to go back in the water as soon as possible as the water always gives us a good and positive energy.

WS: What is happening with all the RRD team riders?

We are asking our riders to help us with the marketing. There are still many things we can continue to do while staying at home. We all need to stay positive and keep busy. As all events and competitions have been cancelled nearly all of the riders were forced to cancel their trips and make changes. It is tough for everybody.

WS: How do you think everything will change in windsurfing once this is all behind us?

Difficult to say. We might appreciate more what we have taken for granted before. I tend to think positive therefore I imagine that there will be a greater motivation and push for recovery.  I think that as we were hit so strongly and having a direct impact on all our lives, we might come back with greater energy then before. The most important thing now is to try to keep the motivation while we are forced to stay at home and get ready for when the lockdown will be over.