PHILIP KOESTER - THE INTERVIEW

PHILIP KOESTER – THE INTERVIEW

For those of you that don’t know Philip Koester, I would describe him as laid back, funny, humble and a young man who just loves to windsurf. There’s a quiet determination about him, nothing is in your face with Philip, he’s just like any other surf loving kid down the beach, except he’s extremely talented and gifted at what he does – which just happens to be the most extreme windsurfing jumps in the world. He’s way more than a one trick pony though; on a photo shoot with him in Western Oz a few years ago, it was cross off beach break perfection, Koester was putting on a wave riding show that would leave any pro blushing, when I asked how often he got to sail in these sort of conditions, he said never!. Yes he is that freakishly, naturally talented! After an emphatic victory at Pozo, JC and I sat down with the young champion for a must read interview. “Two recorders?” Koester questions. “Is it that important?” Minutes tick by while I fumble with my phone to find the voice recorder as JC shakes his head in embarrassment. “Ok Koester; are you ready?”

(This feature originally appeared in the September 2015 issue of Windsurf Magazine. To read more features like this first, Print and Digital subscriptions are available. Prices include delivery globally for 10 x issues a year!)

Words FINN MULLEN // Photos JOHN CARTER

FM: So Philip, what’s your favourite magazine? (everyone laughs)
JC: Did you see our Wild West story in Windsurf magazine?
PK: Yeah that was very funny.
FM: Do you read any sports or windsurfing magazines?
PK: Yeah but I never really get them.
FM: Sounds like you are fishing for a free subscription?
PK: That would be nice! If I am at the airport I’ll buy a magazine, snowboarding, skateboarding any radical action sports.
FM: Football?
PK: Football! (said with a voice of distain) nah not really!

FM: A lot of sailors have training partners like Swifty and Brawzinho for example, but you mostly sail alone, is that because you are at such a high level there is nobody around to push you?
PK: I am self-motivating but the only guy I really sail with is Skyeboy (John Skye) at Vargas!
JC: He must pull your level way down, I bet you have to sail worse just to make him not sack it all in!
PK: (Laughs) Nah I just like sailing with good friends. I always sail with Skye, that is where he sails.
JC: Every time you sail, do you go balls to the wall? Like jump as high as you can possibly go?
PK: Yes that is just the way I sail. After the competition obviously I will take it a bit easy before Tenerife and I won’t do as many doubles. Of course when I compete again I will do doubles but I don’t need to do them free sailing.
JC: So what jumps do you normally do when you are free sailing on your own at Vargas?
PK: Well I jump, like push loop forwards and big back loops, just normal jumps! I just really like wave riding so I stick to that mostly. When I do jump I go as high as I can! (later Ben Severne tells us about a free sailing session he had with Philip at Vargas during the week, it was an average day but Ben said Philip was doing stuff that he had never seen before, yet alone could begin to describe or name!)
JC: You are not worried about breaking boards?
PK: No, no, no. I don’t think about that. If I would think about breaking equipment when I sail, it would be very bad for me. I would not improve that much I don’t think. I would care too much about the gear. Every time I sail it is flat out!
FM: Do you still get the same buzz as the first time you made a planning double forward?
PK: There is almost no emotion anymore! It is almost robotic! It is not that I land every double perfect but after training twenty or thirty everyday it just kills the emotions. I don’t know how many I have done; hundreds. When I land a very good one I am still happy and if I land one in a heat it is even better. If I land a planning one straight off the bat in a final I can say to myself now I have a decent jump and that allows me to focus on the waves. It helps boost my confidence!
FM: Do you have a heat plan?
PK: Normally all I do is try to nail my jumps at the beginning and then just focus on wave riding but in the last final I did my second jump right at the end of the heat. Sometimes the ramps don’t come or you feel you could have gone higher. It was fine because Duncan gives us plenty of time in the heats.
FM: Rumour has it you landed a push double forward in Margaret River?
PK: Did Ben Severne tell you that?
FM: I can’t disclose that information!
PK: (Laughing) Yes I did a push double forward but it is like nothing really happened because no camera was there. It does not count without evidence! If it is not on tape or camera it does not count. Nobody will believe it so I did not post anything about it.
JC: Did you go for it?
PK: No I just wanted to do a push forward but I was too high so I did a double!

(Everyone laughing)

FM: As you do!
PK: I was just surprised, I did not really claim it or clench my fist, I don’t really do that! But I did do it and it was at South Point, Margaret River.
FM: Did you think about going for one in Pozo?
PK: Nah, not really. I was very high on the one in the first final, I could have done a double but I played it safe with the single. It might have ruined the jump and at that moment my focus was on winning. I wanted to have a safe score.
FM: Do you enjoy doing expression sessions?
PK: When the conditions are firing they are fun. I don’t like it when it is light wind and not that much waves. Then I have to go for no handed back loops or no handed one footed back loops, moves like that.
JC: No handed, one footed back loops?
PK: Yes, I have done them!
FM: How do you train to make new moves?
PK: I have not done many new moves! I just think about them in my head a lot and then just go for it.
FM: What about slalom, do you ever think about competing in that?
PK: Yes I will do slalom but when I’m older (laughing)..when I’m done with the doubles and jumping. I have slalom gear and sometimes I go for a slalom session but to compete there’s so much testing, rigging right, fins..but in the future yes I would like to race maybe.
FM: Are you fast?..you are certainly fast on your wave gear!
PK: Well I’m fat so yes (everyone laughs)..sometimes yes I’m fast..I’m not afraid to go fast.

“ During the double I was in control but when I passed beyond that I just did not know where I was ”

TRIPLE LOOP

JC: Did you plan to do the triple in the final or was it spontaneous?
PK: I was just doing the final and playing it safe! But I knew everyone wanted to see the triple and it had been talked about for years now. I just wanted to get it over with. I knew there were cameras on the beach so it was the right time. I just said to myself why not try it. I already knew I had great scores with the jumps, I had a perfect double and a huge push loop so my scores were safe. I was feeling confident, even my wave riding was in the bag so I was feeling in the right mood for it. I had two minutes left in the heat to try one, so I spent the time looking for the right ramp and making my way a bit more upwind. The moment came ten seconds from the end of the heat. It was not a big ramp, definitely not the perfect one. I just wanted to try it and it was then or never. I had great power in the sail on my 4m with my 82 litre board so I just tried it to see what would happen.
FM: Did you know it was 10 seconds to the buzzer?
PK: Yeah, I’d looked at my watch and saw time was running out. I had to go over a wave to get to the ramp so I lost a little bit of speed but it was fine.
JC: When you hit that ramp what went through your mind?
PK: During the double I was in control but when I passed beyond that I just did not know where I was. It was a totally new feeling! It was like starting a normal forward when you are a beginner. I just had that feeling that I did not know where I was or what to do even! Coming down it did not feel like I had that much wind in the sail as I was coming down behind the wave.

JC: How was the impact when you landed?
PK: The impact was terrible. It was horrible, I hit the water very, very hard. I was not wearing any vest or helmet. I still can’t remember things clearly, it made me dizzy. When I came back to the beach I knew I had won because everyone was cheering but that was also for the triple! When I made it back to the beach I still wasn’t sure if I had done a triple. I had hit my head really hard!
JC: Have you tried them before?
PK: I tried them a little bit but more just perfecting planning doubles to get them ready