They were almost like the famous Kommune 1 under Rainer Langhans and Uschi Obermeier," says a contemporary. The Berlin surfing troupe had already earned a legendary reputation with their hilarious hustle and bustle, which ensured a good atmosphere at the windsurfing ranking list regattas from 1973 onwards. Showing the establishment a different attitude to life in the 70s - this new sport of windsurfing, which is now known as the mother of all fun sports, brought that alone with it. Wherever the buoys were surfed in Germany at the time, on Lake Starnberg, Lake Constance or Lake Bigge, on Sylt or the Möhne, on the Dümmer and of course on the Havel at the Great Window in Berlin: the WSV crew was often at the centre of the action - and on the winners' podium.
1972 - 1980: The beginnings - five men and one lady
In the spring of 1972, an American craze reached Europe - in a report in Yacht magazine. The subject was a new water sport: windsurfing. In Berlin, isolated from the GDR, Peter Raatz, known there as the forefather of windsurfing, made his first attempts at windsurfing on the Havel at the Great Window. His various friends and acquaintances emulated him, and so, on 18 August 1972, the world's first pure windsurfing club was founded out of various motivations: the WSV an der Havel. The founders were Peter Raatz, Karl-Heinz and Barbara Schombara, Wille Schalge, Werner Komm, Lutz Oppermann and Peter Czada. At the first general meeting, the purpose of the new association was stated in paragraph two as follows: "The WSV Berlin aims to make sailing accessible to the general public. This is to be achieved by means of a new type of sailing device, the windsurfer."
Werner Komm was elected 1st chairman, Peter Raatz 2nd chairman, Wille Schalge secretary and Karl-Heinz (Hein) Schombara sports director of the Berlin Windsurfing Club - and the membership fee was fixed at five marks per month.
As a corsair sailor, I saw a surfer at the Big Window, that's how I came to the club. (Wolf Zins, regatta keeper and (almost) a man of the first hour)
It was not only the social component that was anchored here. The motto of the association (which later added the small "e" to the WSeV logo to distinguish it from the Wander Segler Verein) was also clear: "From competition to social play" - the quote from the founding father was described in the WSV newspaper 1/74 as follows: "The Windsurfing Verein Berlin endeavours not only to prepare individuals for the regattas, to promote young people and train beginners, but also to make it possible for family members to take part."
So that was the plan: people kissed and kissed each other, behaved and behaved casually with their numerous friends, did a lot together, were never lonely - a hard core quickly formed that did almost everything together as a surfing community.
In 1973, the first regattas from the Irmgard boathouse and back took place, from which the two traditional regattas, the Havel Cup and the Berlin Bear Cup, developed. But the members and their equipment still had no home. Thus began the domicile story, which was to last 18 long years, but then came to a happy end. The details of the tough battle against the Berlin authorities would fill books, but this much can be said: "Without the dedication and financial commitment of some club members, including former presidents Peter Raatz and Karl-Heinz Pumpi Fiedler in particular, there would be no WINDANNA swimming today," says Konni Weise, who joined the club in November 1972 after becoming fascinated by windsurfing at the water sports fair.
It's not easy to find the balance between top-class and recreational sport. (Boris von Maydell, old and new 1st chairman of the Windsurfing Verein Berlin)
Initially, the surfers found shelter at the Great Window, in the 60 metre long and six metre wide disused restaurant ship "Blankenburg". It was rented, cleared out and cleaned by volunteers within a week - and from then on was called WINDANNA. No sooner had everything been made cosy, curtains had even been sewn and the construction of a toilet had been sealed with a cheerful "Anscheißen" when the WSV members were hit with a hard blow: the authorities didn't like the fact that the association was independent. The water authorities unceremoniously refused the mooring permit "due to urgent danger to Berlin's water supply" and towed the WINDANNA to Spandau's southern harbour. Naturally, the surfers did not put up with this. They captured the ship and brought it back to its original berth.
A few days later, however, the WINDANNA was moved again under police protection - this time deep into the Berlin canal system. The leaseholder and the Berlin Windsurfing Association appealed to the administrative court - with success! The decision stipulated that the WSV be provided with a "suitable place to practise the sport". In the meantime, the club had become a registered association, which in turn obliged the authorities to find a suitable place for the boat.
The old WINDANNA was anchored off Schwanenwerder - in the quiet hope that Zehlendorf would grant the surfers access via its district property, but this did not happen. The WINDANNA sank in a winter storm. The Senate had to salvage and scrap the ship at its own expense, as it had failed to secure the vessel properly to piles, as had been agreed in court. The surfers were left homeless and the press reported on the events under the title "Little Sea War". The sea war was followed by a paper war. The club members themselves were looking for a permanent home.
New difficulties arose on 1 April 1977 (no joke!) when the Federal Ministry of Transport issued a decree "generally prohibiting sailing with sailboards on inland waterways and only allowing it on certain routes." Thanks to the commitment of Peter Raatz and the then Chairman of the Windsurfing Class Association, Prof. Dr Heinrich Schoop, this nonsense was averted together with the DSV. But from 1 January 1978, the "Berlin sailing boat licence for boats/boards with sails over five square metres" was compulsory. "Training was now provided at the club or the sails were reduced to 4.999 square metres," says Wolf Zins, who set up the first shop in Berlin.
1981 - 1990: A grand plan - the new WINDANNA is born
The search continued. Although the extension of the contract by the Senate did not completely rule out the use of the Großes Fenster area for water sports even after 1982, this statement was not enough to sit back and wait.
Although the WSeV was already the fourth largest sailing club in Berlin and the largest surfing club in Germany in 1978 with over 400 members, it was still looking for a permanent home. The Hamburg boathouse was in a very precarious state - after all, demolition was imminent. Nevertheless, efforts were made to keep it in a reasonably respectable condition - but "that's just Berlin".
The Berlin Windsurfing Association and its domicile committee did not give up and launched another major offensive in 1985. The result was a positive decision by the authorities in December in favour of the Großes Fenster site, possibly between the other boathouses.
I'm still very happy at the club, just like I was on the first day. (Konni Weise, with the club since November 1972 and current groundsman)
Peter Raatz designed a 40 x 9 metre club boat for 400 members; the planned location was between the Hamburg boathouse and the Irmgard boathouse. The construction plan, including all target concepts, was submitted by Klaus-Jürgen Fiedler as a building application to the approval authorities. Nobody could believe it when the Senator for Urban Development and Environmental Protection actually granted permission to build a domicile on 13 May 1987. But scepticism was warranted: after the piles had already been driven and cost estimates and shipyard offers had been obtained and compared, the approval was simply revoked by the CDU Senate in spring 1988. In 1990, the tireless endeavours were finally crowned with success. Events came thick and fast: on 1 May, the association received the lease for 31 square metres of land and 681 square metres of Havel water area, initially for ten years - with the option of a further ten. The annual rent of 450 marks was considerably less than the estimated sum. In the meantime, the location and licence had been clarified and even the financing plan had been approved by the sports authorities.
As soon as the financing had been agreed, Pumpi Fiedler and Rolf Gaa hurried to Hamburg on 29 May 1990. It had long been clear that Heinrich Grube Werft would be awarded the construction contract. "My hands were shaking when I signed the 16-page contract, initially for 1.3 million marks," says Pumpi Fiedler.
A ship with three storeys, the holding tank in the basement, storage for 300 boards above, the harbour master's flat on the middle deck, technical equipment, toilets with showers, a kitchen, space to relax or party under the awning, open space at the top - and storage space for the club boats in winter. Of course, the whole thing could not just be paid for out of the club's coffers, there was a lot of funding from the Senate.
Now all that was missing was the WINDANNA itself. She was due to be delivered in Berlin by 30 September 1990. Of course, there were WSeV members who wanted to witness the moment when the decorated WINDANNA was launched from the Grube shipyard in Hamburg at high tide. The champagne that Peter Raatz poured onto the ship had been given to him years earlier by a retiring board member - with the proviso that if there should ever be a WSeV domicile, she should be decapitated at a worthy moment.
Lowered by around 1.5 metres, the WINDANNA reached her current berth, as there was not much space left above the shallows of the Elbe and under the bridges. The railings were installed, the crane set up and the WINDANNA trimmed by placing around five tonnes of stones over the platform and right-hand corner of the water. Water and electrical connections were put into operation and many small items were purchased or moved, so that the first meeting was held in their own home on 3 November 1990. The members couldn't quite believe it, some of them couldn't believe it at all: over 200 left at the end of the 90s due to the financial risk, and the association slid into crisis.
From 1991: Into the future with SUP and Foil
In the meantime, the members are enthusiastic again and the clubhouse is full. For some years now, there has been an admission ban for members of 450 or more, and there is also a waiting list of almost 200 people who want to join. There is a lot going on in terms of sport - around the new WINDANNA.
An additional boost came from stand-up paddling - the motor behind it is Colori Schilling. "Thanks to the regular training, we were able to attract many young people to the club," says the successful SUP racer, who is also active as a windsurfing coach.
In 2015, the German Sailing Association (DSV) awarded the Windsurfing Club Berlin the right to organise the final of the German Surfing League. It also organised the German Raceboard Championship and the German SUP Championship in cooperation with the Berlin Canoe Association in Spandau and all two Berlin championships in SUP and windsurfing. With up to 100 participants, this almost exceeded the capacity of the WINDANNA. "It was exhausting, but simply fantastic," enthuses former President Dirk Meyer to this day.
Or 2018, when the Windsurfing Verein Berlin, as the organiser of the German Youth Championships in the Techno 293 class, generated a sensational success story: of the 15 medals to be won in places 1 to 3, the WSeV's youngsters and teenagers won eleven and took all the titles.
The Olympics is my dream. My father made it twice - in 1984 and 1988.Sophia Meyer, surfer in the DSV youth national team)
Successes that were repeated at Dümmer in 2019 and became the basis for a new youth team. Almost all of the youngsters in the new Olympic class are now surfing on the iQFOiL. With 17-year-old Sophia Meyer, who was accepted into the newly established DSV squad (national youth team), the next regatta jewel is growing up. Other WSeV youngsters are close to being nominated. But it's not just top-class sport that is being pursued - the Havel Cup and the Berlin Bear Cup have been two events on the annual calendar since 1973 that also appeal to amateur longboard athletes.
The diverse club life at the Windsurfing Verein Berlin is evidenced by a host of activities: Rock on Board, cinema, Day of the Bay, wild boar dinner, the old cook for the new, children's Olympics, Inter-CLUBtinentel with the neighbouring sailing club SV03, the SchlappStick Race, jazz concert, sailing picnic, surfing on and off - and, and, and, and. There's always something going on - after all, the WSeV is a participatory club! The highlight was in August 2022: the 50th anniversary celebrations.
May we not run out of ideas in the next five decades!
