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Vinnaren i fototävlingen för årets forsbild 2010 var, som vi presenterade i rapporten från forsgalan, en kille vid namn Lauri Kuuskoski. De flesta av de som röstade och säkerligen de flesta av er som läser detta har ingen aning om vem Lauri Kuuskoski är. Många som paddlade i Sverige i slutet av 90-talet och början av 2000-talet har dock stött på Lauris pappa Petteri (som är paddlaren på det vinnande bidraget). Petteri var då en av Finlands absolut bästa paddlare (understatement of the decade ;-) och han imponerade stort på oss nybörjare som var med på den första Norrlandsturen 2000. Här får vi med Petteris egna ord läsa historien bakom bilden.

About the photo:

My son Lauri took it 30th Dec. 2010 in a break called Punta Salinas. Salinas is a reef-right, situated near the southernmost tip of Fuerteventura island. I have visited this wave few times over 3 separate trips and seen it nonexistent, surfable and too scary depending on the swell and wind conditions.

We arrived around 10 am to this spot which was empty at the time, except few guys on the beach. My son was with bodyboard and fins and I towed him out and around to the lineup to take a look. After some time he decided, that waves were too heavy, so I took him back to beach told him just to take photos, which he did.

Soon a french surfer paddled out and in no time was surfing allover the place. He could take the wave earlier and make sections constantly (not the case with a plastic freestyle kayak). So he snaked, but since I was on it allready, I thought not. I tried to gain speed the best I could - no surrender this time I thought. For a  second it looked like a collision and that´s the photo. In the end no one got hurt.

// Petteri