Boards:  Who are your biggest rivals this year? Do you think Phil could take the top spot again in Rhossy? Who else do you need to watch out for there, and in Ireland?

Proffitt: After winning the tour the last two years I’m sure everyone’s going to be gunning for me! So I think I’ve got a really hard fight again this year.

Skyeboy will be really pumped to get even after I came back to beat him in Tiree last year. Phil, as you mentioned won Rhossy last year and not only has a new sponsor in Tabou, but like myself is a Rhossy local, so he will certainly be one to watch there. As will Adam Lewis. His home ground, El Medano has been firing this winter and as mentioned with the similarities in conditions I am sure he’ll bring some big moves to Rhossy too. Jamie Hancock, Bubble and Andy King always perform well, no matter what the conditions, so are ones to watch out for too. It’s going to be tough for sure! I think it’s safe to say you can’t write anyone off!

Boards: What equipment are you currently using? How are they working?

Will you use a different set up at each location/for different conditions?

Proffitt: Using Simmer everything now, I swapped from Quatro at the end of 2011 and a lot of people thought this might have hindered my performance, but obviously this hasn’t been the case. As I think my results have proven. So a real big thumbs up to Ola (Simmer shaper) for designing some great boards.

My main boards I’ll use this year will be the 75 Flywave and 85 Quantum. This combination seems to fit me perfectly and is the same set up I used last year in Tiree and Cornwall. The Flywave is the more full on wave board and the Quantum is more for when you need to get the most out of the conditions. I obviously have more sizes but these boys seem to do the job.

Boards: Have you had any involvement in the R+D for Simmer this year?

Proffitt: Definitely. The Simmer boards are out now, and we will stick with the same shape for probably two years, but myself, and the other riders constantly give feedback to Ola (shaper). But there will be some new editions to the range very soon.

We are also working on a new sail called the Halo, this is still in the development stage but will be released with all the new 2013 range.

Boards:  How important is a BWA win to you?

Proffitt: As, if not more, important than the PWA definitely. Doing well in competitions is not only a great confidence booster, but also one of the best ways of proving to a sponsor how well you’re sailing. The BWA has a really strong fleet (four sailors from the top 16 PWA rankings) four awesome venues, which on their day can be world class. So it is a proper tour and to win it is quite a big deal as we also have some really good coverage. Plus, it’s always good to get one up on the boys!

Boards:  What are the best aspects of the BWA tour? And how/why should others get involved?

Proffitt: Anyone who hasn’t been to a BWA event before should definitely check one out. I’m not sure what the image of the pro fleet is to most people, but we’re honestly all really friendly and approachable! Just coming up, to watch and hang out I am sure you could learn a lot.

But, competition is even better, it will really push your sailing and you will learn and go for more than you thought you could. It’s not about the results, more gaining the knowledge and motivation to push your windsurfing to the next level. That is why most people come to events I am sure, as well as chilling out after a great windsurf with loads of mates and having a beer. We honestly have one of the best national tours, and the more people involved the better.

Boards:  Any chance of giving the freestyle tour a go again this year?

Proffitt:  Hahahaha NOT ON YOUR LIFE! There are a few moves I can still bust out, and especially if there are a few waves about I might not do too bad. But most of the new school tricks are just ridiculous and my ankles hurt just thinking about them!! haha

But, I am pretty tempted to get back into the racing scene. I’ve been following it a bit recently, Simmer are bringing out a freerace board, and there’s talk of a slalom board on the horizon too. I’ve never been that fast, but I do love racing and I am pretty good at the tactics side of thing so hopefully I would manage to hold my own.

Boards: So, we will see you on the PWA slalom tour later this year then?

Proffitt: Haha.. one step at a time! There’s a tough enough fleet in the UK with Ant Baker, Kevin Greenslade, Si Cofield etc.  They’re all the guys I looked up to as a youngster and now they’re back sailing and doing the full BSA tour, so it would be pretty fun to see how I would manage against them after so long off the race course.

All the latest BWA event info will be available on Boards, check out the event preview here.