When the wind calls, Maui’s Robby Naish answers

If there is any one name that is synonymous with any one sport, it’s Robby Naish and windsurfing.

Since winning his first world title in 1976 barely into his teenage years, Naish has unquestionably become the most recognized athlete in the sport worldwide. It’s not only because of the additional 22 world titles that followed, and the films of him ripping up surf breaks around the world, and the Naish Surfing brand he created which now markets a variety of water sports gear, but ultimately because of a flowing, elegant style on and off the water.

“I really believed in being an ambassador for the sport,” he said in a phone call from Maui.

At age 57 he’s still getting his stoke, rocketing past other sailors at Kanaha Beach Park on Maui, slicing up waves at the famous Hookipa break or even venturing into the monster swell at Jaws. You can recognize him by his distinctive pink sail — chosen to commemorate the birth of his daughter and because it photographs well, with “US 1111” on it (the number was easy to make with sail tape). If you’re not on the Valley Isle, you can see at all on the YouTube videos he’s been posting regularly during the pandemic.

He credits karma and a single- minded dedication to the craft for his longevity.

“I’ve been really, really lucky over the years — right place, right time, right body size and the right sort of mentality for longevity,” he said. “I’ve been kind of stubborn. I think I’m more focused than most people, in terms of distractions, but I’ve always had a real appreciation for how good my life is.”

While he admits to “eating more at Taco Bell than at Whole Foods,” he takes care of himself in other ways by keeping it simple.

“I don’t drink alcohol, I don’t smoke, I’ve never done drugs,” he said. “I’m not one of these crazy guys who takes 500 pills and power milkshakes and growth hormones. I just try to be smart and try to sail every day, stay as active as I can.”

Good genes have helped as well. Naish’s father, Rick, who shaped boards for him early on, still windsurfs and snowboards at age 81, while his mother, Carol, 80, was a ballet dancer who now teaches Pilates. “She would teach me how to stretch,” Naish said.

Naish has been at the epicenter of recreational water sports over the past 40-plus years. Though the basics of windsurfing began in the 1960s, in the mid-’70s the sport went from racing on longboards to shortboard wave sailing in major surf.

Naish has been involved in the development of kiteboarding, SUP surfing and foiling since then.

“Surf always changes,” said Naish, who was inducted into the Hawaii Waterman Hall of Fame in 2019. “Wind is always changing, and especially when the gear is evolving and the sport is changing, it keeps it exciting.”

He has encountered some obstacles in recent years, with two major injuries kitesurfing: a broken pelvis in 2016 and multiple fractures to his foot a year later.

“I’ve kind of pulled back on the kiting,” he said. “I don’t boost the big jumps anymore. I turn 58 next month, and as much as the ability is there and the passion is there — but the injury healing process? Forget it. I don’t want to do it anymore.”

He remembers the early days pioneering windsurfing at Jaws, which to him is nothing more than a “heavy but playful wave,” even on its biggest days.

“There was no boat, no (Jet) Skis, no cameras, other than a guy shooting from up the hill,” he said. “The first time I launched, I jumped off the cliff at the lighthouse and sailed up.”

“Social media has changed the dynamic considerably,” he said. “You’re not out there with two or three guys in board shorts anymore. … You’re out there with 50 guys all with crews of water safety, and everybody’s got an inflatable vest, so it’s really changed the dynamic. It’s still fun, but it’s certainly a different playing field.”

He also remembers his Oahu session on a barreling Pipeline, a rarity for windsurfers.

“That was 100% being in the right place at the right time,” he said, noting that he arrived just as a strong Kona wind was shifting to the right direction, giving him about 45 minutes on the water.

“It was awesome,” he said. “It hasn’t happened since. I never rode it again, and that was 1987.”

With travel restrictions keeping him home, Naish had been working with his sponsor Red Bull and his company to promote water sports online. But beyond promoting himself, Naish is known for supporting and mentoring water sports athletes whether they’re part of his company or not. Many, such as Kai Lenny, have been part of his team for years before going on to other, better- financed companies, with his blessing.

“I still see myself as a rider, not a businessman,” he said. “My friends — I don’t care whether they ride for Naish or not.”

One up-and-coming waterman he’s working with now is 17-year-old Zachary “Z” Schettewi, a kitesurfer, foiler and competitive windsurfer who wrote a fan letter to Naish at age 9. Naish wrote him back and got him working with his kitesurfing team and eventually got him into windsurfing.

“He’d come up to me at Hookipa and say hi, and he’d ask how I was doing,” said Schettewi, a junior at Seabury Hall in Makawao, Maui. “When we started going out winging to take photos, he’d show me the ropes and give me tips.

“He’s been a great role model. He’s taught me to have the right attitude to have not only on the water, but off the water, to have good sportsmanship and be humble and create that experience for everyone else you meet.”