In 2023, a delegation of FWPR windsurfers travelled to Pacasmayo, Peru to compete in the IWT Tournament. It was an unforgettable trip. Read more about what it’s like windsurfing in this part of the world.

August 2023 – It was an exciting day when the director of the International Windsurfing Tour asked if our local tournament wanted to be included in the new unified IWT/PWA world tour. However, what was even more exciting was when we finished our local tournament, and realized that our winning athletes had been invited to the next event in Pacasmayo, Peru.

Pacasmayo is in a remote desert region of Peru. It’s far from the throngs of tourist in Machu Picchu and Lima. It’s a cool dry seaside town with traditional fisherman, cactus, charming plazas, colonial boardwalk, and in the distance timeless ancient ruins.

We heard rumblings of a fabled wave. The town claims to have the longest sailable wave in the world! Ocean currents in the Pacific travel over underwater sand dunes and polished pebbles to form, what is in fact, a perfect kilometer-long wave!

We surfed, windsurfed, and practiced SUP everyday for 3 weeks. We shared the bay with marine life such as sea lions, sea birds, and stingrays. Among the desert cliffs and rustic South American coastline, we trained for what would be an epic event.

Shortly after arrival, we started to meet people from around the world who would be competing in the tournament with us.

We met windsurfers from Japan, Israel, Peru, France, Guadalupe, Australia, Switzerland, Russia, Denmark, Argentina, Canada, Belgium, Gran Canaria, New Caledonia, Chile, Hawaii, Cyprus, England, Germany, and Brazil.

The conditions ranged from light wind to moderate (8 – 19 knots) and waves ranging from 3 feet to more than mast-high during our stay. The light wind and port-tack sailing was part of the challenge of this tournament.

The windsurf community was kind and open. It was a cultural exchange, as well as an opportunity to learn how to sail better. Each morning we shared breakfast together. Many tournament participants reconnected while others met for the first time.

At the commencement of the event, we were invited to the beach for an opening ceremony. We proudly held our sails at sunset. The event organizers performed a ceremony. Several participants rowed an outrigger canoe, while the master of ceremony blew a ceremonial horn. We watched until the sunset turned a vibrant red on the western horizon. It was the beginning of an experience that will never be forgotten.