Being out of touch of the windsurfing scene for a few years resulted in me not knowing what happened to some of the personalities I knew through windsurfing magazines in the 80s and 90s.
What do they get up to now?
People I'm thinking of are Bruce Wylie, Phil McGain, Melanie Braund, Hedgie Peterson,b Jessic Crisp, Rohan Cudmore, Tom Ludekie and so forth . There were a fair few of them who were ripping.
Are they all in real estate sales nowdays?
Phil McGain has been in Maui for years. Use to be a Gaastra guru, but now a Maui Sails Guru.
As fas as I know Bruce Wylie is still living on Maui and was doing some shaping with Mark Nelson of Mistral fame. Lives on Lahaina side.
Phil is THE man at Maui Sails, works incredibly hard and sails the same.
Dont know about Melanie B.
Hedgie is back over in WA and doing his thing. Had moved up FNQ and was teaching kiting. Then over to the mines and now back around Perth. Went to his wedding quite a few years back now.
Rohan C is still sailing around here on the northern beaches, has his own business.
Tom lived in Avalon for years with his wife, dont really know now.
Josh Adams is still around and ripping just as hard.
Scotty O'cnnor is living the hard life on Namotu, enjoying that Fiji Bitter!!
Anyone else??????
Hedgie is living over in W.A just getting back wavesailing down with some regular trips down to Margaret's. The last I spoke to him he was having a ball but is still hanging on to his kite gear for Perth.
MP lived overlooking Long Reef since day one, I think he did a stint in WA and is now running his own eco company.
Sheeny is probably still doing stunt work for Tom Burlinson and helping make Windrider 27
Ask 25??
I did some sails for Tom L's sportsboat a couple of years ago on Pittwater but haven't seen him for a while.
So what sort of businesses are Mark Paul and Rohan Cudmore running? I think I owed Mark Paul because I once owned a Bombora proto and it was the best board ever.
While on the subject of Aussie windsurfing legends, can someone tell me what happened to Bombora?
Does anyone recall a Brad Benett? I was mates with him ages ago in Airlie Beach, and he said he used to be a top slalom sailor, plus a top motorbike rider. With the bikes he said he was on Barry Sheen's team, and he had obviously made a fair bit of money from it as he used to have a bit of a mansion at some marina in Queensland. He said his ex wife has it (and all his money) now. His neighbouring house was owned by David Letterman. I always wondered about his claims to fame, but one day he let me listen to a message Letterman had left on his mobile. So I'd like to know if he was actually a top slalmon sailor, and if anyone knows his whereabouts these days.
Jessica Crisp is still sailing and just recently missed out on selection for the Olympics.
Phil also designs some slalom boards for carbonart. I think the proto was after my time. I stopped in 91 but started again in 07.
Spoke to Jim Wylie the other day and Bruce Wylie just before xmas, both great sailors, and Newcastle boys as well as Phil McGain, Bruce now runs the cobra factory in Thialand, last time i seen Hedgie he was doing kitesurfing lessons and fishing heaps, he moved up to some islands in Qld to work up there last summer, Rohan Cudmore still rips in the waves and kite surfs a little too, seen him sail in Gerroa last summer.
Last I heard Dave Sheen had a converted pearling lugger and was running a boat charter business at Broome, Shark Bay and Ningaloo and other pristine bits of the WA coast.
I heard that Bruce Wylie was a big wheel in the windsurf divison at Cobra!
What about guys like
Brendon Morgan, Authur Brett, Maris Naish, Byron Marsh, and the sea skip kid ( can't remember is first name???maybe Jason Wombley.
The Esperance footage of Josh adams in "summers a breeze" video 1988 is still red hot today 20 years on. soggy sail , glass mast and 6 foot board and doing guscrews.
Hedgie has dusted his sailing gear off once again. I will ask him to relay some stories of the old days and post it in seabreeze soon.
Jessica Crisp IS going to the Olympics. She's the only windsurfing rep as Australia isn't sending a men's rep despite Steve Allen qualifying the country to compete.
She's sitting right next to me at the RS:X Nationals in Adelaide right now. Its blowing about 1 knot.
Arther Brett is in a coaching role for the YA these days. Think he coaches 470's in WA (off the top of my head). Doubt he still windsurfs...
my mistake, I wish Jessica all the best 
Oh and it was Jason Wombey. He actually graduated to big boards and lost the seak skip
Another classic aussie sailor is/was Scotty O'Connor. Last I heard he'd bought an island near Fiji... ???
There is also Kai Hopf, now head designer at North Sails and maker of some pretty fast fins too.
seems aussies are responsible for some of the best design out there.
what's going to happen when they all retire..
WARNING RANT
i know it's a different topic. but i think this is why australia needs some kind of windsurfing publication (i know it's very hard and oz windsurfing is doing a great job with the online stuff)
cause with out media how do you know who rips and who doesn't.
I mean i know about some one from the UK like finn and timo mullen or guy crib but why they don't really do anything that i think is awesome. It's because of the uk windsurf mags. (which i stoped buying because they are full of the same articles writen from the photographers perspective, and wave board reviews conducted at some place with a 1 foot wave.
Yeah we have talked about an Aussie windsurfing magazine in another thread. Its doubtful there is the readership to support it.
The only real alternative is an ezine such as Ozwindsurf. I agree magazines were the best way to let people about the personalities in the windsurfing world. The reason why I recognise all these names is I used to read Freesail, Sailboard Extra and that quarterly mag.
However I don't think there is any reason why an online publication or Seabreeze itself cannot fulfill the same role. Fact is 20 years ago if I had the chance as a teenager to read about windsurfing on my computer, I would have.
Its good to hear people are doing fine and some have achieved so much in the industry.
Polakow never went anywhere. He's still doing PWA events and sailing better than ever.
And PC Simpson?
(btw on imdb it has "Plot Keywords: Surfing / Nudity / Female Nudity / Independent Film"
Can't think of his name but another legend that I remember used to wave sail Hookipa without a harness 
. Same vintage as Angus Chater (RIP 
). He started Hi-Tec I think?
Anyone remember his name?
EDIT: oops sorry, not exactly an aussie legend!
"Can't think of his name but another legend that I remember used to wave sail Hookipa without a harness"
Craig Masonville - best bottom turn in the business, maybe someone will have a classic image of him bottom turning at Hookipa
There was also a girl who used to sail without a harness although I can't remember her name.
arthur brett won the contender worlds at black rock, victoria a couple of years ago (contender = a highly competitive class of single handed dinghy with trapeze). i think he may be a full time olympic coach now.
"Craig Masonville - best bottom turn in the business, maybe someone will have a classic image of him bottom turning at Hookipa"
No images but I still have a copy of the Aloha Classic II - one of the best videos ever made, one of the stars is Craig Masonville. It's the commentary by David Stanfield that makes it, can still recite it " to the outside Rich Myers" A bit of a google, looks like Rich is living in WA now.
saw mark paul on gardening australia a few months ago on the abc
looked like he was enjoying his eco waterfalls! 
