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82-404: The residents are divided over three settlement areas, the principal one being Santa Margalida, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) inland from the coast. The other areas are primarily Tourist resorts, Can Picafort and Son Serra de Marina on the coast at the bay of Alcúdia . The non-national population stands at 23.6% (2,413). The municipality of Santa Margalida lies about 45 kilometres (28 mi) from

164-581: A daggerboard , mast , mast foot, triangular sail and fin. Interestingly, because Drake always envisioned in his mind the sailor standing on the board with the sail in their hands, he originally forgot to include a rope, now called an uphaul, which allows the sailor to pull the sail from the water. His first day on the water was made more difficult without this essential item, but by the second day he had invented that part as well. On May 21, 1967, Jim Drake , along with his wife Wendy and daughter Stephanie, went to Marina del Rey 's Jamaica Bay to make history with

246-577: A "straight boom" that became curved in use. The courts found that the Schweitzer windsurfer boom was "merely an obvious extension". This court case set a precedent for patent law in the United Kingdom, in terms of inventive step and non-obviousness ; the court upheld the defendant's claim that the Schweitzer patent was invalid, based on film footage of Chilvers. Schweitzer then sued the company in Canada, where

328-420: A businessman, Schweitzer imagined the profit potential and encouraged Drake to build a functional prototype for product testing. Later, when Drake's prototype worked, he helped Drake to patent the idea. From the outset, the two men were motivated by different forces. Drake conceptualized, engineered, built and tested the first windsurfer. Schweitzer, while not directly involved in the invention, helped by organizing

410-477: A capacity of 1,750. Windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind-propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing . It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the Californian aerospace and surf culture. Windsurfing gained a popular following across Europe and North America by the late 1970s and had achieved significant global popularity by

492-656: A composite sandwich shell, that can include carbon fiber , kevlar , or fiberglass in a matrix of epoxy and sometimes plywood and thermoplastics . Racing and wave boards are usually very light (5 to 7 kg), and are made out of carbon sandwich. Such boards are very stiff, and veneer is sometimes used to make them more shock-resistant. Boards aimed at the beginners are heavier (8 to 15 kg) and more robust, containing more fiberglass. Sails Modern windsurfing sails are often made of monofilm (clear polyester film), dacron (woven polyester ) and mylar . Areas under high load may be reinforced with kevlar . Two designs of

574-477: A conventional stayed sloop rig sail arrangement made it more stable than the one built in 1948. S. Newman Darby created his first product for a wider market in 1964 that he called the "Darby sailboard" on the Susquehanna River , Pennsylvania , United States. While Darby's "sailboard" incorporated a pivoting rig, it was " square rigged " or "kite rigged" and was subject to the associated limitations. Unlike

656-444: A host of predating windsurfer-like devices being presented to courts around the world by companies disputing Windsurfing International's rights to the invention. In 1979, Schweitzer licensed Brittany , France-based company Dufour Wing, which was later merged with Tabur Marine – the precursor of Bic Sport . Europe was now the largest growing market for windsurfers, and the sub-licensed companies – Tabur, F2, Mistral – wanted to find

738-416: A marketable framework for the new sport. Drake and Schweitzer collaborated informally as friends rather than legally bound business partners, as no formal business partnership was ever signed between them. Unexpectedly, Drake was temporarily relocated 2000 miles away to design innovative rocket planes at The Pentagon . Around this same time, Schweitzer lost his job as a computer software salesman. While Drake

820-529: A new town at a more protected location. This town became Pollença and the area where Pollentia stood was left to ruins. Alcúdia's name derives from al-kudja, Arabic for "on the hill"; referring to a Moorish farmstead created very close to where the ancient village of Pollentia had been. In 1229, the Moors were attacked by the King James I of Aragon , who occupied the area. In 1298, King James II of Aragon bought

902-459: A patent case: Windsurfing International Inc & Anor v Petit & Anor (also part reported in 3 IPR 449 or [1984] 2 NSWLR 196), which attributed the first legally accepted use of a split boom to an Australian boy, Richard Eastaugh. Between the ages of ten and thirteen, from 1946 to 1949, aided by his younger brothers, he built around 20 galvanized iron canoes and hill trolleys which he equipped with sails with split bamboo booms. He sailed these in

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984-425: A person to steer by shifting his or her weight in order to tilt the sail fore and aft . Darby filed for a patent but lacked the funds to resubmit. However, he is widely recognized as its inventor as well as the first to conceive, design, and build a sailboard with a universal joint. In his own words, Darby experimented throughout much of the 1950s and 1960s and it was not until 1963 that an improved sailboard with

1066-583: A retractable daggerboard , and are optimized for lighter winds or course racing. Shortboards are less than 3 meters long and are designed for planing conditions. While windsurfing is possible under a wide range of wind conditions, most intermediate and advanced recreational windsurfers prefer to sail in conditions that allow for consistent planing with multi-purpose, not overly specialized, free-ride equipment. Larger (100 to 140 liters) free-ride boards are capable of planing at wind speeds as low as 12 kn (6 m/s) if rigged with an adequate, well-tuned sail in

1148-427: A sail are predominant: camber induced and rotational. Cambered sails have 1–5 camber inducers - plastic devices at the ends of battens which cup against the mast. They help create a rigid aerofoil shape for faster speed and stability, but at the cost of maneuverability and how light the sail feels. The trend is that racier sails have camber inducers while wave sails and most recreational sails do not. The rigidity of

1230-503: A sitting position and not as a windsurfer standing up, near his home on the Swan River in Perth . The judge noted that, "Mr Eastaugh greatly exaggerated the capacity of his galvanised iron canoes to sail to windward" and that, "There is no corroboration of Mr Eastaugh's experiences by any other witness. Neither of his brothers or his father was called" . It is acknowledged in the courts that

1312-404: A small " Flipper " racing dingy rig. To gather the needed materials, Drake carefully instructed Schweitzer what raw materials to purchase such as an extra large foam blank to build the board and a hollow fiberglass mast for the sail. Drake completed construction of the prototype in his own garage during his spare time within a few months. Drake's question came down to simple operation of how

1394-450: A solid board with a vertical sail. In the early 19th century, people in logging communities around western Lake Michigan were purportedly fixing sails to logs as part of log float control and for recreation. In 1948, 20-year-old Newman Darby was the first to conceive the idea of using a handheld sail and rig mounted on a universal joint so that he could control his small catamaran —the first rudderless sailboard ever built that allowed

1476-407: A standing person could control both the power of the sail as well as the direction of the craft without a rudder. Drake discovered that one's ability to rotate the sail's position relative to the board could allow control of both power and direction. Experimenting with a rotational design, he invented the concept for the universal joint . Drake completed his engineering concept with a wishbone boom ,

1558-524: A triangular Bermuda rig . The custom board Drake engineered required a greater amount of displacement volume for floatation than was found in a traditional surfboard so an extra large custom built foam blank was constructed by Gordon "Grubby" Clark of Clark foam and shaped by Jim Drake and Gary Seaman at the Con Surfboard factory in Santa Monica, California. A repurposed hollow fiberglass mast was taken from

1640-543: A way to remove or reduce their royalty payments to Windsurfing International. Tabur lawyers found prior art, in a local English newspaper which had published a story with a picture about Peter Chilvers , who as a young boy on Hayling Island on the south coast of England, assembled his first board combined with a sail, in 1958. This board used a universal joint, one of the key parts of the Windsurfing International's patent. They also found stories published about

1722-612: Is a municipality and township of the Spanish autonomous community of the Balearic Islands . It is the main tourist centre in the North of Majorca on the eastern coast. It is a large resort popular with tourists. Most of the hotels are located in Port d'Alcúdia and Platja d'Alcúdia, along the 14 km-long (8.7 mi) beach that stretches all the way to Ca'n Picafort. In Alcúdia, the old town

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1804-556: Is a long tradition of agriculture and handicrafts in the region. The historically proven founding of a municipality took place soon after the Reconquista . Old inscriptions and tombstones bear witness though of the place being inhabited already in Roman times, then called Hero . Later, during the Arab reign, the great estate of Abenmaaxbar was located here. The location itself and St. Margalida are

1886-456: Is home to S'Albufera ; a natural park that is very popular with birders . Alcúdia celebrates the festival of St. Jaume every summer. It goes on for nine days at the beginning of July. Before the festival starts, the town is decorated and each street picks out a theme for that year's look. During the festival, several traditional evening festivities are arranged in the old town, such as the Night of

1968-562: Is one of the largest cart racing tracks in Majorca. After a restructuring in 2004, the track features a total length of 1,325 metres (4,347 ft). It is divided into two courses, with 725 metres (2,379 ft) acting as a professional race course and 825 metres (2,707 ft) for cart rentals. Every year an international 24 hour race takes places alongside several national races. This tourist resort 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) south of Can Picafort extends for about 1,400 metres (4,600 ft) along

2050-507: Is well preserved with houses dating back to the 13th century. The old town is surrounded by a medieval wall. The area where Alcúdia is located has been inhabited since the Bronze Age, but it is with the arrival of the Romans that the city makes its entry into the history books. The Romans used the beaches of Alcúdia bay when they captured the island in 123 B.C. Shortly after this, the capital Palma

2132-403: Is well set up for tourism and the beach's promenade offers many Bars and Restaurants. Can Picafort isn't just popular during peak season. Off-peak is however considerably quieter and many of the businesses close. In the 1990s, the population here exceeded that of the main town Santa Margalida and the town has become an important residence. Major items of infrastructure can also be found here. From

2214-451: The "sailboard": a hand-held square rigged "kite" sail on a floating platform for recreational use. Eventually US courts recognized the Schweitzer windsurfer as an obvious step from Darby's prior art. Schweitzer had to reapply for a patent under severely limited terms, and finally it expired in 1987. Shortly thereafter, having lost its license royalty income, Windsurfing International ceased operations. In 1984, Australian courts determined

2296-442: The 16th century, pirates attacked the city several times. The population shrank, and there was from time to time a risk that the city would be abandoned totally. In 1779, a decision was taken to support the city by constructing a harbour. This really improved the economy of Alcúdia and the village was saved. But it remained a rather small and poor village. In the 1920s, the first tourists began to visit Mallorca and also Alcúdia. This

2378-454: The 1948 invention of the sailboard by Newman Darby and his wife Naomi in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania . In Windsurfing International Inc. v Tabur Marine (GB) Ltd. 1985 RPC 59 with Tabur backed financially by French sailing fan Baron Marcel Bich , British courts recognized the prior art of Peter Chilvers. It did not incorporate the curved wishbone booms of the modern windsurfer, but rather

2460-581: The 1970s and 1980s. Initially in Europe, then in North America. The sport began to take off in popularity around 1972 and by the end of the 1970s it was the fastest growing sport in the world. Originally, all windsurfing boards were "long boards". This type of board went relatively slower through the water, but worked well in low wind conditions. Light air, long board windsurfing was enjoyed by a wide range of participants including families with young children. During

2542-428: The 1980s a global community consisting of equipment designers, manufacturers, athletes, travel professionals and journalists worked together to propel windsurfing forward. Innovation allowed for the development of high quality lighter and stiffer planing short boards, introducing foot straps, harnesses and more stable sails. These innovations further expanded the sport by making it faster, more radical and more exciting for

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2624-515: The 1980s. Windsurfing became an Olympic sport in 1984. Newer variants include windfoiling , kiteboarding and wingfoiling . Hydrofoil fins under the board allow the boards to safely lift out of the water and fly silently and smoothly above the surface even in lighter winds. Windsurfing is a recreational, family friendly sport, most popular at flat water locations around the world that offer safety and accessibility for beginner and intermediate participants. Technique and equipment have evolved over

2706-406: The 2000s, the sport has seen a steady revival, first through the explosion of foiling., and more recently with global consolidation, restructuring, and an exciting new unified World Tour. Modern windsurfing, as a sport and recreational activity, did not emerge until the latter half of the 20th century. The earliest version of a sailboard design utilizing a freely articulating sail on top of a board

2788-606: The Artà municipality and almost extends to Colonia de Sant Pere 's neighbourhood of S'Estanyol. To the west, slightly offside the settlement is the beach of Son Real. A hiking trail along the coast leads to Can Picafort. Beaches and bays in the municipality of Santa Margalida include Platja de Can Picafort , Platja de son Bauló , s'Arenal d'en Casat , Cala Serralot , Platja de son Real , Platja de es Dolç and Platja de son Serra de Marina . Alc%C3%BAdia Alcúdia ( Catalan pronunciation: [əlˈku.ði(ə)] )

2870-454: The Bay of Alcúdia. It is built exclusively of two-storied houses, most of which have been constructed as secondary residences for locals. Streetlife there is accordingly quiet. Only during the holiday seasons will the owners come here from Palma or the mainland. In contrast to Can Picafort, mass tourism has not yet reached this place. Son Serra de Marina features a small marina on its western beach. In

2952-425: The Port d'Alcudia in the north of the bay and Can Picafort, there is a five-kilometre (3.1 mi) long sandy beach lined with hotels. The protected Albufera swamp borders about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) of the bay and prevents the two tourist resorts from joining. The 8 square kilometres (3.1 sq mi) wilderness is a good alternative to the tourist resorts and can be explored by renting bikes. Can Picafort

3034-450: The Romans where the streets are full of locals dressed in traditional ancient Roman dresses. There are also outdoor theatres, sport tournaments, exhibitions and the traditional bullfight. The fiesta is finished with La Noche de Sant Jaume, a fireworks display and a philharmonic concert by the old walls. Alcúdia also hosts many other fairs and festivals throughout the year. During the summer, there are al fresco events, with dramatised tours of

3116-472: The boards Drake had invented. Observers close to the situation believe it was always Schweitzer's plan to keep Drake uniformed of the large profit potential long enough to misrepresent and under value the real worth of the patent so that Schweitzer could buy out Drake's half of the patent for as little as possible. When Drake later discovered Schweitzer's unethical and dishonest actions he was deeply confused and angered. Drake, who trusted Schweitzer and his family,

3198-681: The business details of patenting, marketing and selling Drake's new craft. As a partnership, Drake came up with the original concept and Schweitzer marketed and sold it. Both men's names appear on the patent. Years later, in 2002, when the Professional Windsurfing Association (PWA) inducted both Drake and Schweitzer into the Windsurfing Hall of Fame, they called Drake "The Father of Windsurfing" for his role as inventor and egalitarian figure head throughout his lifetime, and called Schweitzer "the man who brought windsurfing to

3280-568: The company Windsurfing International. The details of Jim Drake's original windsurfing concept were published in 1969 by Drake's employer at the time, the RAND Corporation, in a technical paper written and presented by him titled Windsurfing - A New Concept in Sailing ." Further details can be read in published interviews . Despite forty years of subsequent development, the design is still remarkably similar to today's windsurfing equipment, and

3362-497: The cuttlefish. Taking place every three years is the Triennial of Sant Crist, a religious procession where the population walks barefoot through the town in silence, for several hours. The origin of this procession dates back to 1507. According to tradition, the image of Sant Crist sweated blood and water, thus putting an end to a drought. Alcúdia is home to football club UD Alcúdia , which plays at Estadi Municipal Els Arcs, which has

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3444-485: The east, the town is limited by the Torrent de na Borges . The beach there is a resort for wind and kite surfers . The town has three moderately frequented beaches. The local one west of the Torrent de na Borges , approximately 450 metres (1,480 ft) long and 130 metres (430 ft) wide, is mostly visited by local residents. East of the town lies the 1,800-metre (5,900 ft) long beach of Sa Canova, which belongs to

3526-545: The farmstead Alcúdia and founded the new town. A church, a graveyard, a house for priests, and a square were created in the same year. The construction of the walls was also initiated at the same time and finished in 1362. The city plan that was made at the time remains the same for Alcúdia today. During the Renaissance, walls were reconstructed, and a second wall was constructed outside the first one. This wall has since been torn down and only details show where it once was. During

3608-433: The invention, he was "probably no better than third," behind mid-west based Newman Darby and Englishman Peter Chilvers . The battle over the origin story of the sport would go on to cause much legal grief for the global sporting phenomenon for much of the 1980s. In 1983, Schweitzer sued. Swiss board manufacturer Mistral and lost. Mistral's defense hinged on the work of US inventor Newman Darby , who by 1965 conceived

3690-413: The island's capital, Palma . It is part of the region ( Comarca ) Plà de Mallorca or Es Plà, the great central plain of the island. The municipality is one of the flattest on Majorca at very little more than 100 metres (330 ft) above sea level. The area is drained by a few streams which flow towards the sea in the northeast. In the northwest, Santa Margalida is bordered by a fresh-water swamp. Along

3772-482: The masses" based on his efforts to promote the Windsurfer brand's popularity. It was a brief but productive collaboration between a talented engineer and a motivated businessman that together created the modern sport of windsurfing. Drake has stated in various interviews that he recognizes Darby and Chilvers as early sailboard pioneers and sees himself as the sports "re-inventor". Drake is known historically as one of

3854-526: The medieval town walls, in front of the Church of St. Jaume , belonging to the ancient city of Pollentia (see also the Italian Pollentia ). There is also a small Roman theatre . North of the town is a bullring dating back to the 19th century. The old town also hosts a market both on Sundays and Tuesdays all year round. Inside the walls, there are several restaurants and bistros. In Port d'Alcúdia, most of

3936-491: The modern windsurfer design, Darby's sailboard was operated "back winded", with the sailor's back to the lee side of a kite-shaped sail . This is a much less efficient and less dynamic sailing position and opposite of how a modern windsurfer is operated. Darby's article stated that "you can learn to master a type of maneuvering that's been dead since the age of the picturesque square riggers". He began selling his sailboards in 1964. The main focus of his company, Darby Industries,

4018-453: The most visited villages in Majorca . The Port of Alcudia is a small port facility for handling primarily passenger ferries , but it also caters for bulk and breakbulk cargo and a dolphin berth for LPG carriers . The old town has a 14th-century wall and it is possible to step up on the wall and follow it almost all around the village. There are remains of a Roman town just outside

4100-513: The neighbourhood of Son Bauló one can reach the necropoles of Son Real , and situated on a nearby island, S'Illa d'en Porros . Both are the remains of the Talaiot culture from the early history of Majorca. From there a shore hiking path leads to Son Serra de Marina. The Bay of Alcudia offers some of the best sailing conditions in the Mediterranean. With the exception of just a handful of days along

4182-415: The northeastern coast, there are obelisks at regular intervals of 1,250 metres (4,100 ft). These, along with corresponding twin towers 200 metres (660 ft) inland, were used in the 19th century as navigational points of reference for seafarers. In the northwest, Santa Margalida is bordered by Muro and Llubí . Both of which belong to Es Plà , along with Maria de la Salut , Ariany and Petra to

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4264-500: The old town, and theatre productions in the old Roman amphitheatre. The Alcúdia Jazz Festival starts at the end of August and runs for a month. International sporting events are held down the road at the port, with an Ironman Triathlon twice a year, beach volleyball and beach rugby. There is an agricultural fair in the Autumn at the beginning of October and a nautical fair in April, which features

4346-514: The opposition team again financially backed by Bic included Chilvers and Jim Drake, and Schweitzer lost again. After the cases, no longer obliged to pay Windsurfing International any royalty payments, the now renamed Bic Sport became one of the world's larger producers of windsurfing equipment, with an annual production of 15,000 boards. There is no evidence that Schweitzer or Drake had knowledge of any prior inventions similar to theirs. Drake accepted in retrospect that, although he can be credited with

4428-399: The restaurants are located around the marina. Most of these restaurants are only open in the tourist season. Further north and west are some coves and beaches ideal for sunbathing , swimming or snorkeling , like the one facing the islet of S'Illot . The beach at Alcúdia is c. 14 km (8.7 mi) long and stretches as far as Ca'n Picafort . Alcúdia joins onto Playa de Muro , which

4510-410: The rotation in the name. Rotational sails have an aerofoil shape on the leeward side when powered, but are nearly flat when sheeted out (unpowered). In comparison with cambered sails, rotational designs offer less power and stability when sailing straight, but are easier to handle when maneuvering. Rotational sails are usually lighter and easier to rig. A windsurfing sail is tensioned at two points: at

4592-421: The sail is also determined by a number of battens . Beginners' sails often do not have battens , so they are lighter and easier to use in light winds. However, as the sailor improves, a battened sail will provide greater stability in stronger winds. Rotational sails have battens which protrude beyond the back aspect of the mast. They flip or "rotate" to the other side of the mast when tacking or jibing, hence

4674-461: The sailboard. Twelve-year-old Peter Chilvers is also cited for inventing a kind of sailboard in England in 1958. Stanford educated aeronautical engineer Jim Drake and fellow aeronautical engineer Fred Payne conceived and designed a sail powered surfboard in 1962. Their version differed from Darby's in many significant ways. The sailor stood upright on a large surfboard while holding directly onto

4756-536: The season, the wind caused by the sun heating the earth's surface in the interior of the Island is a stable ten to fifteen knots onshore push that delivers small waves and just the right amount of freshness. This wind starts around 10 am and goes strong until right after 5 pm. When storms from the North hit the bay, the most experienced sailors can fight the elements in the relative safety of the Bay, but waves can reach up to twelve feet (3.7 m) high. In Can Picafort, there

4838-649: The separate Eastaugh (1946–1949), Darby (1965) and Chilvers (1958) inventions pre-dated the Schweitzer/Drake patent (1968). By the late 1980s the sport was massive and in the midst of a full-blown marketing and legal battle between the original market in the US, and the exploding European markets. This epic legal battle laid the ground for a still running rivalry between the European and American hemispheres. Windsurfing International briefly claimed trademark rights with respect to

4920-560: The six to eight square meter range. The pursuit of planing in lower winds has driven the popularity of wider and shorter boards, with which planing is possible in wind as low as 8 kn (4 m/s), if sails in the 10 to 12 square meter range are used. Modern windsurfing boards can be classified into many categories: The original Windsurfer board had a body made out of polyethylene filled with PVC foam. Later, hollow glass-reinforced epoxy designs were used. Most boards produced today have an expanded polystyrene foam core reinforced with

5002-523: The south. In the east, the Torrent de na Borges - the longest stream in Mallorca- forms the border to Artà in the Llevant region. The municipality of Santa Margalida has three towns. The population following figures date from 1 January 2005, and don't include the population outside these settlements, hence the sum of the figures does not add up to the total population of the municipality (Source: INE ). There

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5084-509: The sport was launched. Originally Drake and Schweitzer wanted to name their new sailboard concept "Skate" (SK8), however changed the name to "Baja Board" in early 1968. Schweitzer was marketing a prototype of the Baja Board in Seattle , when Bert Salisbury stopped his car to have a look, and commented: "Gee I have the perfect name for it! Windsurfing!" The name was soon changed to Windsurfer, sold by

5166-601: The term "Windsurfer" as a trademark at the United States Patent and Trademark Office in 1970. Windsurfing International Inc. created a popular one-design racing class, which was influenced by the desire to provide a fleet of racers with a uniformly constructed "boat," so that rider skill, rather than equipment choice, would determine competitive results. The first Windsurfer Class World Championship regatta took place in San Diego, California in 1973. The Windsurfer Class fleet

5248-748: The top end, and significantly more accessible at the entry level with lighter easier equipment. Windsurfing shattered the world speed sailing record, entered the Olympics and became lauded as, "The fastest growing sport in the world." The radical growth curve had to level out eventually and Windsurfing's retail momentum plateaued with the arrival of newer action sports in 90's. Closely related action sports such as mountain biking, snowboarding, stand up paddle boarding (SUP) and kite boarding all directly competed for popularity with windsurfing. Many windsurfing schools closed, or switched to teaching kite boarding and currently teach mostly wing foiling. After some lean years in

5330-452: The topics of many myths and tales which eventually the municipalities namesake. Testament to the wealth is the large parish church of Santa Margalida, this was built in 1232 and renovated in the 17th or 18th century. From the church there is a good view over the countryside. The inside the church is well fitted out. Can Picafort (or Ca'n Picafort) is a tourist resort on the Bay of Alcúdia . Between

5412-419: The windward side of a small triangular sail. Originally, they designed it to be propelled by a hand held wing rather than an attached, masted sail. Soon they decided a universal joint attaching a movable sail was more practical. After learning of Drake's revolutionary sailing concept , one of Drake's family friends, a businessman named Hoyle Schweitzer, became interested in marketing Drake's new invention. As

5494-474: The wishbone boom, daggerboard and mast foot from laminated strips of teak wood. He custom designed and built a wood press jig for shaping the curve into the wishbone boom. The universal joint was built by reconfiguring a commercially available sailboat swivel joint constructed from heavy duty marine stainless steel with additional teflon components. Drake engineered the custom sail, which was made from Dacron sail cloth and cut and sewn by sail maker Bob Broussard into

5576-514: The word "windsurfer" has become synonymous with the sport itself. Jim Drake and Hoyle Schweitzer together started the sport's first company, Windsurfing International, in late 1968 out of Drake's Santa Monica, California home. Both men were employed full time outside of their startup windsurfing business and so windsurfing was little more than an experimental hobby for them at that time. Drake and his wife Wendy, along with Schweitzer and his wife Diane worked closely together in their spare time to create

5658-521: The word "windsurfer". While this was registered in the United States for some years, it was not accepted for registration in many jurisdictions as the word was considered too descriptive. Registration was ultimately lost in the United States for the same reason. Eventually the sport became known widely as either sailboarding or windsurfing. Windsurfers are often classified as either shortboards or longboards. Longboards are usually longer than 3 meters, with

5740-437: The world's first modern sailboard. Returning to Marina del Rey one week later, this time with the skeg and uphaul, Drake succeeded at sailing the board the way he designed it to be used. With his confidence buoyed from multiple days of practice in the protected bay, Drake next took his sailboard onto the open ocean at Will Rogers State Beach in Santa Monica, California. Drake subsequently taught Schweitzer how to windsurf and soon

5822-481: The world's top aeronautical engineers. He was also an expert craftsman in his spare time. He combined both skills to conceive and build the world's first windsurfer prototype. First, he carefully engineered a mathematical simulation of his concept based on the physics of windsurfing . He then crafted nearly all of the windsurfer prototype components by hand in his Santa Monica, California home garage in January 1967. He built

5904-620: The years. Major competitive disciplines on unified World Tour include Slalom, Wave and Freestyle. Increasingly, new technology "foiling" with high speed foil racing is replacing traditional 'fin' racing events and the IQfoil class is the new Olympic windsurfing racing class for France in 2024. Jim Drake invented and co-patented windsurfing in California between 1967 and 1970. Alternative concepts by Englishman Peter Chilvers and American Newman Darby are recognized as earlier sailboards. Drake

5986-406: Was away for two years immersed in engineering work on the other side of the country, Schweitzer began manufacturing and selling Windsurfers, as well as incorporating the company Windsurfing International and collected licensing fees on over 100,000 boards in Europe without ever informing or including Drake. Schweitzer concealed from Drake the somewhat large profits he was beginning to make from selling

6068-501: Was based the success of the Laser and Hobie Cat classes. Each Windsurfer had an identical computer-cut sail, a technology new at that time and pioneered by Ian Bruce. On March 27, 1968, Jim Drake, an aeronautical engineer, and Hoyle Schweitzer, a businessman filed the very first windsurfing patent, which was granted by the USPTO in 1970. Through the seventies, and early eighties windsurfing

6150-558: Was created in 1962 by American Newman Darby. Independently, engineer Jim Drake invented and co-patented the version we all know today and called it Windsurfing- a new new concept in sailing . Long before this modern moment, there were small scale sailing craft that have used wind as the driving force, many of them sourced to the Polynesians who have been riding the wind and waves for centuries. Early accounts suggest island peoples were undertaking day trips over oceans standing upright on

6232-532: Was educated and trained as an aeronautical engineer at Stanford University. He spent his early years surfing, sailing and skiing. He conceived windsurfing to combine the simplicity of skiing with the pleasures of sailing. Drake is known historically as "The Father of Windsurfing." Drake's patented invention was marketed and sold under the brand name "Windsurfer" for over 20 years by a company he cofounded with businessman Hoyle Schweitzer called Windsurfing International. Windsurfing's popularity saw explosive growth in

6314-465: Was founded and then the city of Pollentia . From Pollentia, it was possible to view both the bay of Pollença and the bay of Alcúdia. Pollentia served as a guard against other invaders. After Rome lost its position as the dominant power in the western Mediterranean, Pollentia was attacked by pirates and several times by the Vandals . Finally, the city was abandoned, and the remaining population left to create

6396-479: Was in a very limited scale and the economy of the village stayed weak. In the early 1970s, it started to be clear that the future of Alcúdia would rely upon tourism. 15 years later, the old harbour of Puerto de Alcúdia had developed into a major resort for European tourism. In the 1990s, the construction boom calmed down and several regulations were put in place to secure the quality of the resort. The old town has been preserved and pedestrianised. It has now become one of

6478-423: Was shocked that his friend would deceive him in this unkind way. Drake originally was not interested in forfeiting his half of the patent. However, Schweitzer and his attorneys would continue for 5 years to aggressively pressure Drake to sell his half of the patent to Windsurfing International in order for Schweitzer to secure a lucrative monopoly on all future royalties. Windsurfing International registered

6560-404: Was the fastest growing sport on earth. Schweitzer aggressively protected his patent around the world through Sub-licensing the rights to anyone who wanted to manufacture and sell sailboards. Windsurfing International's usurious royalty fee charges, which its competitors were forced to pay, were so high that many observers felt it needlessly limited the growth of the sport. Mr. Schweitzer claimed this

6642-586: Was to promote his brand and the Windsurfer One Design racing class, but most believed it was so he could maximize his own profits. [1] The sport underwent very rapid growth however, particularly in Europe after the sale of a sub-license sold to Ten Cate Sports in the Netherlands. In 1975 Ten Cate Sports sold 45,000 boards in Europe. At the same time, Schweitzer also sought to defend his patent rights vigorously against unauthorized manufacturers. This led to

6724-480: Was to sell plans such that any school-age child could build one for under $ 50. Rather than building personal wealth, his focus was to introduce youth to the sport of sailing in even very shallow water. A promotional article by Darby was published in the August 1965 edition of Popular Science magazine. Darby died in 2016 reportedly feeling pleased with the recognition he received for having created an early version of

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