Above photo from cesabauer.com
2010 Dropknee World Champion Cesar Bauer, of Peru, holds a narrow lead over versatile South African shredder Sacha Specker, with two DK events left on the tour. One of those is the Bodyboard Pro Festival Venezuela, which starts Tomorrow. We thought we’d speak to Cesar about the World Tour, the land of llamas and Machu Picchu, and why the hell his countrymen are dropkneeing so well – there are currently four Peruvians in the top ten, three of those in the top five.
RT: Why do you think the Peruvians are doing so well at the moment?
Cesar: Peru is a special country. We have waves all year, all kinds of waves perfect for bodyboarding, and that includes DK. Peru has been really under the radar for many years but we have a history in the sport. We’ve had bodyboarders since the sport started and DK was always there. It was only a matter of time that the Peruvians appeared in the Tour. Also we are very motivated, we want to push the sport as far as we can here in Peru and Latin America.
How confident are you going in to Venezuela? Can you win another World Title this year?
Venezuela is a hard DK event for me, the wave is not easy and the locals are very talented. For sure I’ll do my best, I’m really focused on another title.
Tell me about the bodyboarding scene in Peru.
There are a lot of bodyboarders. The capital of Peru, Lima, is part of the central coast, so that makes it easier for everybody to learn and be part of our sport. It’s growing really fast and they are really motivated with the past results of the Peruvians on tour. I think that with more support for the underdogs, the tour scene may change little bit. We have to keep pushing!
What are the waves like in Peru?
The north of Peru is really special. We have the best lefts over there, long barrels, reef, sand, etc. It’s uncrowded so it’s epic for us. The south of Peru is more similar to Chile, we have a lot of reefs and slabs but the water is a little bit colder. The capital Lima, is a mixture of both. At the end of the day I can´t complain, we have all kind of waves with epic food!
How hard is it to get sponsorship and support to follow the World Tour, as a Peruvian bodyboarder? How do you fund your travels and getting to all the events?
It’s really hard compared to the rest of the globe. The difference is that here we don’t have the international bodyboarding brands’ support that Australia or Europe have, so we depend on local support only. For me it was difficult to reach enough funds to travel, but right now I have some good sponsors that trust me and I’m a kind of an example for the rest of the Peruvians in many different sports so that at the end motivated everyone.
What are your thoughts on the current Dropknee World Tour?
Each year I think it’s getting a little bit better. The prize money is increasing and the venues are getting better, but there is still a lot of work to do. We need everybody to get involved, from the riders to the media, the IBA, sponsors, etc. It’s a group job and doesn’t depend in just one entity.
What are your thoughts on the current state of dropknee, in general?
In the local (Peruvian) scene it’s huge! Globally I think we need more exposure, to recover the place that DK had years ago, because at the end of the day that is the key to make the sport get bigger. We need more people to follow us.
Cesar shredding around his home.
To find out how Cesar and the rest of the dropknee guys go in Venezuela, stay tuned to the IBA website for all the results.
