Klaas Voget

Windsurf legend and Duotone Foiling Division Manager (Ep 73) — brought on to “set the story straight” after the hosts had ribbed the brand.

What Ep 73 (S - Ep 073 Klaas Voget Duotone) adds:

• Based in Kiel, northern Germany on the Baltic Sea. Windsurfed from age 12-13 on a lake, later on Norderney; competed on the windsurf World Tour for ~20 years (first-ever heat opponent: Robbie Nash), sailing alongside Keith Teboul in Maui. Studied medicine on the side of a full pro windsurfing career.
• Joined Fanatic (part of the umbrella company Boards and More) around 2005-06 as head of windsurf R&D, later added marketing while still competing.
• One of the earliest people to get a wing in his hands, at a Boards and More dealer meeting in Tenerife in early 2019, when Duotone’s wing/kite designer “Ken” (Ken Winner, per the transcript) brought early wing prototypes. That same trip, working with Sky Solbach’s sub-foil board shapes, he and colleagues cut a board down into what became the first Fanatic “Skywing” wingboard.
• Introduced to surf foiling by Sky Solbach on a ski-tow session in Maui; became “addicted” after riding a wave for two minutes on his first go.
• Now co-manages Duotone/Fanatic’s combined foiling and wing-foiling division with Craig Gürtenbach (a 25-year Fanatic veteran) — Klaas on product/development/marketing, Craig on sales.
• Explains the Fanatic-to-Duotone rebrand for foiling/wing gear as a pragmatic fix (two brands doing one job, e.g. duplicate front wings under different prints for wingers and kitefoilers) but personally a “heavy heart” given his own history on Fanatic since 1992; notes backlash on windsurfing forums at the time.
• Recently got into downwind foiling himself (self-deprecating about the learning curve) and is coaching his son, who started windsurfing at 5, winging at 6 on a small board with a large-for-him front wing, and now downwinding too — part of a small local kids’ group at his home spot.
• On gear: describes Duotone’s two-part carbon mast construction (bonded top plate on a hollow carbon shaft, D-Lab full-carbon vs quick-mount alloy-foot versions) as a stiffness/weight optimisation; on the Whiz front wing, says the brief (with designer Jerome and simulation engineer “Polo”) was deliberately loose roll, a good pump and a low stall speed for prone/wave riding, achieved by turning the wingtips up rather than down — visually close to but aerodynamically distinct from the Spitfire. Confirms rear wings meaningfully change character: the Whiz’s stock stabiliser is low-power/efficient for pumping, while the higher-aspect “Car” wing pairs with the more powerful “P” stabiliser for higher-speed front-foot pressure.