ITW: THE BIG AIR CHAMP ON CLOUD NINE!

Joining the GONG team only 3 weeks ago, Julien Rattotti had his new quiver dailed in in no time, taking it higher than any other competitor on the Wing Foil World Tour during the the Big Air event which took place in Pozo Izquierdo from July 11 to 16!

A remarkable performance by Julien, making him the first ever Big Air world champion in wing foiling. A result obtained with style as Julien who had to go through the qualification round to join the who’s who of high flying wing foilers. Among the favorites for the Big Air title, you had obviously to count the Surf-Freestyle champion in, Malo Guénolé, the American Chris McDonald and Titouan Galea. However, it is a Race specialist who had his hands on the trophy at the end of the day. The new champion gives us his first impressions and keys to success!

How do you feel after this historic event in Pozo?

“I’m super proud of what I’ve accomplished at this event. To be honest, I didn’t expect it at all. I wasn’t even qualified for the Big Air comp. It’s really crazy to win the title with the level of the guys in the heat draw!”

How did qualifying go?

“There were 8 places left to take to participate in the event. Favorites like Malo and Chris who lead the Surf-Freestyle Championship were automatically qualified. I won my qualifying heat and ended up in the main event. Everyone was pumped up and pushing hard but the atmosphere in between two heats was really friendly and cool with all the competitors. So I was quite relaxed. I had no pressure on my shoulders which played in my favor. I approached the heats with the intention of having fun and come what may.”

What gear were you riding in your heats?

“I did all the comp on my Lethal FSP Pro. Under the board I had the HM 85 mast, a Ypra S and a Fluid H 38 stab. For the size of the wing, most competitors were on 4m2 wings despite the nuking 40 knots and more. This was also my case with the Neutra UPE. The UPE wings of the range really allow for outstanding control in this kind of conditions. It doesn’t flinch. You can go high with speed and take advantage of the lift on your way down as the structure retains its shape perfectly.”

Speaking of going down, how bad were the crashes?

“Haha, well I didn’t really have huge wipeouts, luckily! I tried to be very clean in my jumps and the landings were mostly kind of smooth. I did see some solid wipeouts though but thankfully without consequences for the riders. Falling is also an art haha.”

What was your strategy going into each heat?

“The rules of the contest were quite simple. We had to go high. We could boost our score by performing a more technical jump like a front flip for example. An approach adopted by quite a few riders like Malo who did send some spectacular front flips. The ratio was about 80% for the height, 20% for the technicality of the jump. So the first objective was clearly height. To go high you have to go fast and find a nice ramp. What we call a kicker. The most beautiful kickers were very close to the beach so you had to be on point when accelerating out of the jibe. In the air I tried to go for a very straight line and take full advantage of the lift of the Wing.”

In the semifinals you had to face Malo. How friendly was the atmosphere before and especially after the heat? 😉

“Haha very good! Before and after. We waited for the start of our heat together, sitting offshore on our boards. Our goal was to have fun. I got really lucky with the kickers. That’s what made the difference.”

What was your highest jump?

“During the final. My GPS read 11.1 and 11.2 meters for my last jumps. Beyond the title which is a dream come true, I am really happy to have been able to show with others what’s possible in wing foiling. The progression of the sport is really crazy. And we are only getting started!”