French Waterman

Arthur Arutkin

Team Wing Foiling: Meet our French Watermen Arthur Arutkin!

 

Arthur is our French Waterman that you'll see ripping in all different watersports. Born to a windsurfing family, he is truly addicted to ride, and his multisport skills are just unreal! He is as comfortable winning SUP World Titles as he is landing massive double forwards windsurfing! No matter the conditions, no matter what sport, you'll find Arthur pushing his limits in the ocean because that is what makes him feel alive.

 

Read more hereafter!

 

 

Despite the strange times and travel restrictions, you have been able to maintain a complete and very strong training season. Where have you been training these last months?

I haven’t been locked down anywhere really, it was a bit difficult to go to Maui though, that’s why I ended up going to Mexico with Marc Pare for 2 weeks before continuing to Maui! But I can’t complain, I’ve been going in the water all the time!

I’ve been training as usual and was lucky enough to travel a bit: Tenerife, Mexico, Maui for a while and lately back home in Brittany, France. We did a few Stand Up Paddle races in Europe and my latest trip was to Gran Canaria, in July.

 

How do you organize your trainings when the sports overlap in terms of wind conditions?

It is not easy. When they overlap I just try to do both! Or I look at the forecast to see what will be happening the next few days and I choose the one I won’t be able to do then. So, I mostly go with the conditions unless I have an event coming up soon, in which case I’ll focus on that sport.

 

How do you keep so fit?

I mostly do water sports a couple of hours every day, and sometimes, I try to mix it with some workouts. Running or biking mostly, depending on the weather. I also try to listen to my body to not overdo it either.

 

Competing in different sports and on different tours, you spend a big part of the year traveling…

Yes, the travel organization is the most tiring. Dealing with all the gear when travelling is not easy. I usually travel alone but I’m always meeting with friends and competitors, so it’s quite fun. I’ve been doing it for a while and I have gotten used to it. But for sure it is nice to see family and friends after a long trip :)

 

Foiling is becoming more and more popular! In your opinion, why is everyone getting so addicted to it?

It’s just a bigger range of utilization than the regular sport and you can do it almost everywhere. Most spots in the world look like 30 cm waves and 10-15knots, rather than mast-high waves and 25-30 knots, so I think it fits more places and people are sure to hit the water with this kind of gear. And best of all, you get a crazy sensation in those poor conditions!

 

What is the best about foiling?

It sure is super fun and it opens up a lot of opportunities to go in the water and it makes average and poor conditions become epic. The downwinds are definitely my favorite in the foil stuff, gliding for hours is so fun and it’s an epic workout too!

 

Especially Wing Foiling is evolving so quickly and the riders are raising the level every day. It feels like this sport has adopted riders from all different watersports into one and the growth is crazy. How do you see the future in this sport?

Yes, it’s amazing to see so many riders from different sports getting into it and pushing the limits. It looks like it’s already turning into a professional sport in race and freestyle so let’s see how far it will go!

 

Are you planning on competing in Wing Foiling as well?

I love to compete, so if I have the opportunity and the time, I’ll definitely do some events!

 

Your favorite set up?

I usually use the 1500 High Aspect Fanatic Foil with 75cm mast and 68cm fuselage, it fits most of the conditions and disciplines for me.

 

The place to foil?

I think the Maliko run on Maui is my favorite one, it’s a long SUP foil downwinder where you get to surf the big waves on the reef, a ton of good sensations on that run!

 

Your Foiling buddy?

Gregory Closier is the one who taught me the surf foil and we had a lot of fun sessions in California.

 

In these last two years of pandemic, what lessons have you learned?

I guess to enjoy what we have and to take advantage of the opportunities we have for practicing sports, being healthy and traveling to beautiful places.

 

Short term plans?

Some SUP training at home and races in Europe, hopefully with some good windsurf conditions mixed in, and then to focus on the APP World Tour to hopefully go back on top.

 

Long term plans?

I think with these times I’ve learnt to not expect much and kind of go with the flow. Hopefully everything will get better and better for everyone and that’s what is most important.

 

A dream for you?

I’d love to make more amazing windsurf trips to crazy locations and with waves, hopefully it will be easier to do all that soon!

 

More info: arthur-arutkin

Photo Credits: Fish Bowl Diaries, Craig Kolesky