Father Ed a gifted shaper on Maui, big brother Mark still an icon of wave surfing today: what was little Josh supposed to become? A windsurfing pro, of course! However, Josh's early career was not only characterised by success, but also by a lot of trouble. It was only after he moved to Cape Verde, got married, became a father and won two world championship titles in the waves that something like calm returned to his life. Josh ended his professional career abruptly at a slalom contest in Portugal. As the organiser of the first PWA Wave World Cup after a corona break of over two years, the 47-year-old Cape Verdean by choice returned to the surfing stage. And that's not all: as a participant, he also spanked some established worldcuppers at his home spot Ponta Preta. World Cup photographer and surf author John Carter met Josh there and asked him to talk about his eventful life.
Josh Angulo: among the best
Everyone wanted to be the best! At the peak of our careers, that was the most important thing for us, we were all the same. But the best wasn't always the one who smashed the waves the hardest. Before 2003, the Europeans often surpassed themselves. They undoubtedly had a lot of talent, but they multiplied their victories by simply working very hard. When I watched Patrice Belbéoch'h, Björn Dunkerbeck and other Europeans, I had the feeling that they were achieving more than their talent could actually deliver - and I realised why.
That was the point at which I started to no longer just do this one "move of the day", but to simply repeat a jump or a cut-back under certain conditions over and over again to create a solid base for myself. I had to let go of the Hawaii ripping hookipa mentality, even though it was ingrained in my mind. I started tuning my equipment and taking the competitions more seriously. Suddenly I realised that I could win. Once you get a taste for it, you always want more. Unfortunately, you also become a bit egotistical, which put some people off - and everyone deals with it differently. I've seen that this year here in Cape Verde with some of the guys. They deal with it differently to me. There is no perfect formula for success.
I won the Wave titles in 2003 and 2009 - that's what counted for me. I did it and I'm happy about it. There were six years in between, so it was quite a big gap. When I won in 2003, I almost had the feeling that my time was over. It was a now-or-never year for me. I really forced myself to win and didn't feel like I had dominated. We only had the events in Pozo and on Sylt - two contests with conditions that are not my strength. No Maui, no Portugal and no Cape Verde where I could have shone. But somehow I managed it.
The next year I came back super motivated, but my equipment wasn't as perfect as I would have liked. I think I thought too much in some areas and put too much pressure on myself. So things tended to go backwards. Before the 2009 title, I had the feeling again that I was finished. I was fed up and didn't want to compete anymore. I was in my mid-30s and already had the Dunkerbeck and Naish generation behind me. Then there was the Polakow, Baker and Goya generation - and then what I would call the Kauli generation. And now the Philip Köster and Brawzinho generation. I was able to celebrate success in all these phases. My first title was a duel between me and Björn - and now I've suddenly made it into the top ten here in Cape Verde and beaten people like Ricardo Campello and Camille Juban. But in Pozo I wouldn't even make it past the first round.
SLALOM
I retired from wave surfing in 2009 after winning my second world title. I was 34 and said to myself: That's it! I don't need to keep riding this dead horse, the horse has run enough, it's over! I had a few wooden sails (PWA trophies) in my house and was ready to call it a day. At that time, however, I decided to ride slalom - it appealed to me and I thought I could still achieve something in the discipline. So I started racing and it went quite well. I had some great races, decent results and didn't do too badly everywhere.
The end of Josh Angulo as a professional
This stage of my life came when I became a father. I was trying to compete while raising my kids, having a marriage and trying to build a few businesses. Everything kind of suffered in the end.
We started building a hotel some time ago. Everything came to a head when I was in Portugal at a slalom contest. I wasn't feeling well at all. My wife said to me: "You've got this, that, that and the other thing going on. You have to eliminate something, make a decision! After one run, I rolled up all my sails, packed the car and drove back to Cascais, where my family was, and that was it! I just left in the middle of the event. I'd spoken to my wife on the phone the night before and I knew everything was escalating. I said to myself: You know what, she's right! Even though we men may not want to admit that our wives are right, there are times when we just have to suck it up and accept it. Basically, it was about choosing between professional windsurfing, our life and business in Cape Verde and my family! I couldn't juggle it all anymore. I will not give up my family!
I have seen many of my colleagues end their careers in one way or another. Björn did it his way, Micah Buzianis did it his way. Robby did it his way, and I did it my way! Everyone did it differently. Some stuck it out and took advantage of everything, hoping they were still relevant - good for them. If this is your life.... great! Some are like me - a little fatted calf sitting at a table set in front of the blue sea eating tuna tartare! It's all good. But one thing we all had in common was that we were all blessed with a super lifestyle. I had a few of the young riders over for dinner last night and advised them: Make the most of it for as long as you can. Participating in the PWA Tour is not the end all be all. Enjoy it! Once it's over, it's over. At least as far as the competition is concerned. But it's not quite over yet. Björn is still here and he's still very excited. Yesterday we were sitting here and saw Bernd Flessner and Björn coming towards us. I looked at Swifty (Robby Swift) and Brawzinho (Marcilio Browne) and said, 'That'll be you in 15 years' time. They laughed. Björn has Liam now and he surfs with him. I surf with my son Noah. Life isn't over yet, it's just new stages.
Under the radar
I wasn't on the radar for a while, partly because I'm not on social media. To know how to do that, I'll have to ask my son. Most of the time I was here in Cape Verde and we were very involved in building this small hotel. Then Covid came along. That meant we were completely out of the picture for two years. Nobody saw anyone. Four years ago, I became a father again, but it all got lost because so many things were happening at the same time. I've stopped windsurfing professionally, but I'm still at it and have been on the water almost every day. Not too long ago I was in contact with Craig Gertenbach from Fanatic to get some wings for my son. Then they helped me out with some sails for the contest. I called Nik Baker from Duotone and he sent me some sails. It was great to talk to all the guys I grew up with on the tour.
Cape Verde World Cup
It was just great to have the PWA World Cup here again. The PWA managers spoke to me last year and I immediately called the Minister of Tourism, who is a good acquaintance. He agreed, but then the project stalled because the PWA organised a Grand Slam in France with the sponsor SOMWR. But there was almost no wind there, so the whole Cape Verde concept got rolling again. They called me again, but this time I wanted to know for sure whether the project would actually materialise before I called the ministers. I didn't want to get my knickers in a twist. Everything sounded solid. Many thanks to SOMWR and the PWA for joining forces: That's how we got it done.
We already had the infrastructure here after organising kite events and the old PWA events. I was able to get everything up and running with new people in all areas and be a bit more relaxed. I guess that was the reward for all the hard work that had been done in the past. It's a really good feeling to realise that you don't have to control everything anymore - let the mistakes happen! The livestream crew would get frantic if the power generator wasn't on at seven in the morning. But you know what? That's fine, because I know it's on before the competition starts. We try hard, they try hard and we make it - and succeed in the end.
The return of Josh Angulo
I hadn't planned to take part in the World Cup at all. My plan was to organise the crew, sit in the tent and oversee everything. I wanted to watch and have a good time. I called all the good windsurfers on the island to organise a wildcard for them to take part. But some of them are now kite world champions or run their own businesses. But we needed a representative from Cape Verde. The Cape Verdeans are very passionate about sport and proud to represent the Cape Verdean flag. I knew that I had what it takes to represent the country properly. So I set to work. I have some new sails, but the boards I have are old. But I know them very well, to put it that way. I know how to catch a wave in Ponta Preta and how best to ride it. So I had a good feeling about it. There are about ten people in the starting field who I knew would be ripping in Ponta Preta and about 20 people who will probably find it very difficult because it's a completely new spot for them. I didn't want to look at that and think, 'Why am I not out there? That fear of regretting not being in it was bigger than my fear of embarrassment. So I eventually started surfing more and training regularly in the weeks leading up to the event.
Josh Angulo takes (interim) stock
I still feel like I'm in a transitional phase. I'm currently living entirely in Cape Verde - but that can't be all, I still want to realise new projects. I'm involved in a few companies here that I still have to look after until they reach a level where I can step back a lot more. Then I can dedicate myself to other goals again. As far as the spiritual, emotional and mental areas are concerned, I feel that I'm in a pretty good position. Of course, you can always improve. You have to constantly work on getting better. My relationship with my wife is still developing, which is very important. Happy wife, happy life! (laughs) A perfect scenario for me would definitely be a spring and summer in North America and a winter in Cape Verde. That would be the perfect situation - let's see if it works out at some point. Especially because of the whole Covid situation. During the pandemic, Cape Verde was a great place to live. It was quiet, it was warm, we could surf and it felt good to spend that time in such a great place.
