In Bavaria, an inventor is often referred to as "oida Diftla", which means "old inventor" in High German Ernstfried Prade's entire life is actually made up of inventions; the 74-year-old holds almost 50 patents. Most of them are related to windsurfing and SUP. Everyone knows one of them, the m with the red dot, the Red Dot from Mistral. A designer's life in a nutshell.
"How many pages will the interview be?" Ernstfried Prade wants to know when we make an appointment for the interview. "Seven to eight, I reckon," was my answer. "Will that be enough?" I hear the questioning look in his eyes. "Must be," I reply, "so let's keep it short." Easy to say when you have to give a time-lapse account of the life's work of a man who has significantly influenced windsurfing and stand-up paddling since 1973 as a regatta surfer, photographer, graphic artist, book author, board designer, product manager and inventor.
From zero to master
You were originally a mechanical engineer, then switched to graphic design. How did you get into windsurfing?
At the end of 1972, I read an article about an American's windsurfing board in one of DuPont's in-house magazines. As an active sailor, I was very surprised and couldn't imagine that it would work. I then bought one of these boards in the spring of 1973.
There were no surf schools back then. So who gave you tips?
I travelled to Biarritz on the Atlantic with the windsurfer for three weeks and first practised standing up and holding myself on the board. With the swell there, that involved a lot of swimming.
Did you ever get down to business with the rig?
I first swam through the surf with the furled sail, then hung outside with a line to a pontoon where oil tankers normally moor and spent a few hours watching the waves rise and fall. Then, still hanging on to the line, I started to work with the sail. After a few days I was screaming with joy because I had the board and sail under control.
You've hardly been back when you became Bavarian champion at Lake Starnberg. Were you that much better than the others?
Sure, after three weeks of training on the Atlantic I was able to surf on one leg.
The very first German Windsurfing Championship followed on Lake Chiemsee in autumn. The next title?
Yes, the DM was not that easy to win. It was a large field of participants, all close together, very little wind, and I had to concentrate hard to win the necessary races.
Two weeks later, Sylt followed with the European Championships. The next legendary competition.
On Sylt it was straight down to business with six wind forces and 130 participants from all over Europe. After a tough battle with the young Dutchman Derk Thijs and Thor Bakke from Norway, I was crowned European vice-champion. The strange thing was that we, the first three, were also the lightest. I remember how we passed the heavy muscle packs at lightning speed on the downwind course. Immediately after the European Championships, weight classes were introduced.
And there was supposed to be a great prize on offer?
Four weeks in the USA with the family of windsurfer producer Hoyle Schweitzer with interesting discussions, where I also suggested the first improvements to him. But Schweitzer didn't want to, the windsurfer was to remain unchanged as a One Design Class.
The next DM 1974 in Kiel, in strong winds, was also your prey.
I surfed a lot in those early years. Regattas appealed to me, so I was also able to win this championship. Immediately afterwards, however, I turned my attention to training and education and opened my own surf school on Lake Starnberg.
Windsurfing magazine and surf schools
Through Dirk Brockhaus you got in touch with Peter Brockhaus, who immediately became involved in the sport as an importer and founded Windsurfing Magazine. Together with you?
I was photographer, editor and graphic designer all in one. I created the layout at my kitchen table in Münsing, still spartanly in black and white. It wasn't until mid-1975 that the magazine went into colour.
At the same time, you also founded a network of surf schools?
Sure, the sport gradually took off. Everyone wanted to learn windsurfing. Ludwig Graf von Seyssel was the windsurfing importer for Bavaria at the time. Together with him, we founded the Bavarian windsurfing schools: Starnberger See, Ammersee, Chiemsee, Hopfensee, Waginger See.
So the road to founding the VDWS wasn't that far away, was it?
The next logical step was the foundation of a Germany-wide school association, which was launched by a small group of Gerd Falk, Dagobert Benz and myself. In my first two years as second chairman, I then spent 15 successful years as president, working with great, committed colleagues to form the largest water sports school association in the world. I am still proud of that today.
Was there a motto back then?
"Learn first, then buy". Everyone should learn the basics in five hours, get their basic licence and only then buy a board.
Books, books, books
You then put your ideas on paper.
Through my work in the association and as a dedicated photographer and graphic designer, I managed to write my first comprehensive training book as early as 1975. "Windsurfing - the wind in your hands" was the title. The book sold like hotcakes and was translated into several languages, even Russian. I was even able to make a good living from the royalties for a while.
How many more books followed?
During these years, I made surfing my profession. As a constructor and designer of surf and windsurf boards, I spent many months doing basic research and writing several other books on both surfboard construction and advanced windsurfing training.
The first plank test
In the summer of 1976, Windsurfing magazine, together with the sailing magazine Yacht, organised the first sailboard test on Lake Garda. Were you the test leader?
Together with Dr Richard Hämmerle, who scientifically supervised the test. In addition to myself and Peter Brockhaus, Karl-Heinz Stickl, Malte Simmer, Uli Stanciu and Sigi Hofmann also surfed as testers.
What findings were put on paper?
In addition to riding criteria such as levelling, directional stability and undercutting, speed comparisons were also carried out with the seven boards. In addition, there were also assessments such as handling during transport, slip resistance of the board surface, arrangement of the sail windows and grip of the boom.
And the test winner was?
Speedy, a lightweight GRP replica of the Windsurfer from Switzerland, was just ahead of the Windsurfer and Windglider, who were equal on points. More important, however, were our insights into what could be improved on boards and rigs.
Mistral revolutionises the market
How did Mistral come to be founded?
Heinz G. Bader, who owned a plastics production facility in Switzerland and had been making boards with the Scobalit Windrider since 1975, approached Brockhaus and me outside the Hotel Lido Blu on Lake Garda to see if we would be interested in working together on a new brand.
Brockhaus was still a windsurfer importer at the time. How did that go together?
We were all enthusiastic fans of the original Windsurfer in the early years, but of course the chance to launch our own board and also realise our own wishes attracted us, so Brockhaus and I immediately agreed to Mr Bader.
Who came up with the name, who created the m logo with the red dot?
Both the name and the logo are mine, even though Peter Brockhaus once claimed the opposite. One of my first tasks as a professional designer was to develop the company name and logo. I had previously designed a storm sail that was made in Germany and had the name Mistral printed on it. It was obvious for me to choose this name of one of the most beautiful winds for our new company. The logo was much more difficult. It was only after a whole series of drafts that I came up with the idea of placing the "i" dot on the initial letter "m". Simple and striking, the "m" with the red dot was born.
You did your first photo shoot during the 1976 Windsurfing World Championships in the Bahamas. Right in front of Hoyle Schweitzer's nose. Wasn't that a bit cheeky?
At that time, there was already a whole range of surfboards alongside the windsurfer. Another one was to be added by us. Of course, we also took photos of our boards on the Bahamas World Cup trip.
How were the tasks distributed at Mistral?
Bader was in charge of production, Brockhaus was responsible for marketing and I was the product manager for the development and design of boards, rigs and accessories. Even before we founded the company, I had already put extensive plans for a new surfboard on paper. That was my contribution to the founding of Mistral. A completely new type of boom, with a handle at the front, which also cushioned the board during the frequent skidding falls. A folding fin, for which I got the idea on Sylt when Helmut Kirner had half an ear cut off by a fixed fin. A folding centreboard that made the course of the space sheet easier. But the crowning glory of my inventions was a lockable mast foot that could be separated from the board by an adjustable force. This patent has brought millions into the Mistral coffers worldwide. For 20 years, every sailboard brand had to pay licence fees for it.
But Peter Brockhaus always appeared to the outside world as the big Mistral boss. Was he really?
Brockhaus was a gifted marketing man. He was responsible for the rapid expansion of windsurfing, which is rightly known as the mother of all fun sports. But as with all geniuses, Brockhaus also had his share of misfires. In his incredible forward momentum, he often overtook himself. Everything was too sluggish and slow for him, which is why he left Mistral early on to go his own way with F2.
The first Mistral board, the Allround, had too little volume, but was a revolution with the improvements. However, the black moulding over the glued edges of the two half-shells soon caused a lot of trouble because it fell off. It was called the mourning edge?
That is correct. As is so often the case with a new type of production, a thermoforming process was chosen in which there was a sharp outer edge on the boards. This had to be concealed. In addition, this first Mistral board was very heavy.
Did your second board design, the Mistral Competition, with more volume then ensure the desired success?
We recognised the problem at an early stage and created the legendary Competition with a huge amount of work in a very short space of time. Over the winter, I rented an empty pub room on Lake Starnberg and built the Competition prototypes there, which then became a hit. With 270,000 boards sold worldwide in three technologies, you can already speak of success, can't you? We sold 6000 units in the first year.
In addition to boards, Mistral has also attracted attention with innovations in accessories such as neoprene?
We were only familiar with the black suits worn by divers, which were misused for windsurfing with far too little freedom of movement. That was the end: colour-laminated neoprene was the order of the day at Mistral. Our shiny dark blue long-sleeved Neo 600 had a green dot on the right upper arm and a red dot on the left - another one of my patents. If the arm with the green dot was at the front of the boom, the surfer knew immediately: I had the right of way. The suit was sold out in no time. We also invented the thin Lycra suits for the summer, which immediately became a worldwide hit.
Teamrider Robby Naish
In 1979 Robby Naish and his father Rick Naish were brought into the Mistral team. Who had the idea?
We learnt about the boy wonder Robby Naish early on and when Peter Brockhaus visited him in Hawaii, he signed him up. This was probably one of the luckiest Mistral decisions of the early years. Robby Naish, whose charisma is still unrivalled worldwide in windsurfing, kitesurfing, SUPing and now also in foiling, gave Gaastra, our sailmaker, and Mistral the necessary impetus to become the world market leader in a very short time.
Rick Naish and Harold Iggy were soon active as shapers? The designs came from you, didn't they?
Robby owes his meteoric rise and sporting success to his parents, as his mum Carol raised him with love and determination. And his father Rick Naish and his shaper Iggy made sure that Robby had the world's best boardshapes under his feet right from the start. It was therefore almost a matter of course that Rick Naish was also offered a contract, which he accepted, in order to offer his original Naish shapes Mistral. My job as product manager was to pass on the necessary market data to Rick Naish so that he was able to produce the shapes that the market had been waiting for. In a unique symbiosis between Robby, Rick and Iggy, the legendary Mistral boards of the 80s were created.
The first Hawaii designs followed with Kailua and Naish, later followed by top sellers such as Hookipa, Screamer and Equipe.
The legendary Naish board was given a special "triple plus" rating by surf magazine because its speed far exceeded anything else on the market. Hookipa, Screamer and other boards also achieved remarkable sales figures
The meetings were first on Oahu, later on Maui when Robby moved. How often were you there?
We mostly worked in the small town of Kailua, where Rick had his shaper rooms and ran a windsurfing shop with Carol.
I heard you once met US President Jimmy Carter on Oahu? How did that go?
On a stopover in Japan, Jimmy Carter wanted to spend a day relaxing undisturbed in one of Hawaii's most beautiful houses. The White House in Washington had written to Miss Mac Shane, who owned the house, to reserve it for the President for a day. At that time, I had been living there for several weeks - I had been there over 30 times. However, Mac Shane had completely forgotten about this reservation and had flown to her daughter in Maui. So I spent several hours on the terrace by the sea with Jimmy Carter and was probably one of the best-guarded people on this unforgettable day. If the President hadn't suffered from a broken collarbone, I could have taught him how to windsurf.
The M1 as a displacer was the complete opposite of the Funboards. Who supported you in the team?
The racing action in Europe inspired us all. And of course the open class, in which corporate teams such as Sailboard, Windglider, HiFly and others established themselves. Mistral could not stand aside. I designed the M1, which was then shaped by my close colleague Hansi Fichtner. The very first test rides were successful. Production started immediately and it was possible to win one race after another. Starting with Charly Messmer, the Mistral test pilot of the first few years, whom I sent to Guadeloupe as a one-man team, who won the world championship with the M1 against a phalanx of 300 competitors. The M1 also competed in other legendary championships, such as in Israel, where we took the top three places in all categories.
The Challenge Flex, developed together with Jürgen Hönscheid, did not sell. Was the time not ripe for this concept?
For a short time, I was able to inspire Jürgen Hönscheid to join the Mistral Development Team. He had just spent the winter on Oahu. During one of my trips to Hawaii, I had met Mike Tinkler, who had been granted a patent for a flex tail. Mistral secured it and started producing a flex tail, which Jürgen tested in Hawaii. Unfortunately, the market was not yet ready for such a design.
In contrast, the Mistral One Design, the long raceboard, was a blast. Your greatest design success?
Who has had their board nominated for the Olympic Games three times in a row? (the ed.: NeilPryde four times with the RS:X) More than 50,000 units were sold worldwide. The board was still successful in the regatta results lists in the first decade of 2000.
Mistral is sold several times
Mistral as a sales object. First he went to the temporary employment agency Adia, then to Jacobs, then to Boards and More. New bosses all the time, was that promising for the future?
In fact, Mistral has lost a lot of ground over the years. Constantly new ideas have replaced the successful continuity of the brand. This could not go well. Robby Naish and I, as well as other important employees, left the brand at the end of the 1990s.
Mistral under the umbrella of Boards and More, together with Fanatic and F2, could that work?
In Germany, there was a deliberate and healthy competitive behaviour between the brands. Neither the retailers nor the end consumers were able to cope with the fact that three previously competing brands suddenly came from one company.
Suddenly, nothing more was heard from you. No more desire?
By this time, I had built up my advertising agency, but was still working in the water sports sector. From 2003, I worked again for Mistral, which was now based in Munich. Among other things, I also created the exhibition "30 Years of Windsurfing", which was shown from Lake Garda in Germany and France.
A new start with SUP
Ado Huisman in Holland took over Mistral, but handed over the windsurfing division under licence to ex-worldcupper Anders Bringdal in 2009. From then on, Mistral hardly played a role in windsurfing. What are the reasons for this?
Windsurfing was generally under severe pressure in those years. Sales figures declined. It is therefore all the more pleasing that today we can once again speak of hearty growth, to which SUP is also making its contribution.
Bringdal is supposed to be completely out of Mistral now? What will Anders do now?
Anders is now working on a successful electric water taxi.
Huismann focussed heavily on fashion from the outset and issued licences, but the new start in 2010 only succeeded with SUP. And with you back as Product Manager. Luck or skill?
Ado Huisman used his businessman's foresight to steer Mistral to where he saw good growth rates. And that was SUP at the time. We first built fine wooden boards, then the first inflatables. I favoured long boards, which was new at the time. My M1 in 12'6'' was the world's first race board. In the same year, it was copied almost to the centimetre by 20 companies. I immediately followed it up with a 14-footer. These two boards brought Mistral back into the race. Today, Mistral has twelve SUP hardboards and 13 SUP inflatables as well as four windsurfing hardboards and several with a windsurfing option.
But the quality of our boards has also caught up with the old Mistral days, like my lightweight board, which was voted the best board by dealers and consumers in the USA.
The general public first came into contact with the brand again through the sale of SUP boards at the discounter LiDL. How did it come about that the luxury brand Mistral was suddenly found on the shelves of a budget supermarket?
Over the last three years, it has become clear that discounters are playing an increasingly important role in the SUP sector. Well over 100,000 boards have come onto the market, but without optimum quality. I wanted to change that. I am one of the seven members of the SUP commission in the International Canoe Federation (ICF). As a designer and constructor, I see my main task there as working to bring suitable products onto the market that are available to a broad section of the population. The ICF not only stands for racing, but also wants to promote SUP in its entirety. I have been in contact with the TÜV for several years to bring boards with a second air chamber onto the market. With the LiDL deal, we have succeeded in bringing the first TÜV-approved SUP board to the market in large numbers at a favourable entry-level price.
Isn't that a massive and lasting damage to your image? How are you ever going to sell boards at a commercial price again?
On the contrary, we are certain that these beginners have created a group that promotes popular sport and wants to continue to grow in their sport, thus representing a large group of buyers for the products designed for the beginner segment.
Competitors in the SUP sector fear that the LiDL campaign will cause lasting damage to the entire industry. How do you personally and the brand feel about these accusations?
For over 40 years, I have personally been in favour of exceptionally good products that promote the sport, whether windsurfing, SUP or, more recently, kayaking. With the high-quality LiDL boards, Mistral is doing something for the sustainable, healthy development of SUP as a popular sport. We have not brought air mattress-like boards onto the market, but a TÜV-certified board with a safety chamber. The industry would be very short-sighted if it only saw a lost market segment and not the extremely good opportunities to offer its fantastic, higher-quality products to this large SUP growth. I therefore say that someone has to do something for the broad base of SUP sport, namely to offer good products at a favourable price that inspire many sports enthusiasts so that they stay with our sport, and that is exactly what Mistral has done.
With the Carbowing, Mistral also attracted a lot of attention at boot Düsseldorf 2020? How much Prade is in the revolutionary rig?
The idea came from Robert Frank, who I worked with back in the early Mistral years. For example, he built the outstanding mast rails for all Mistral boards. I'm helping him and working with him and his son Levin to develop his patented carbowing rig. Once again, Mistral is breaking completely new ground here. The first rig in 50 years to abandon the round mast in favour of a profile mast. The initial test results are very encouraging. This is also because it is a product "made in Germany" that is built entirely using high-tech carbon fibre.
When will it go into series production?
As with many things, the coronavirus pandemic has brought us to a brutal halt. We are slowly getting back on track. But the first production is now scheduled for autumn. The market launch has not yet been finalised.
You are still active and close to the sport, what are you working on now?
We are on the threshold of a new decade for inflatables. New materials are making the boards lighter and yet stiffer. I have been working on a fundamentally new technology for inflatables for three years and have now obtained a worldwide patent. This idea is about anchoring stringers and components such as fin and centreboard boxes and mast foot mounts inside the inflated SUP board, i.e. not simply glued on the outside or inserted into a hole that has to be cut out of the board body, but using a new technique. That's what I'm focussing on now, because it allows us to produce very light, absolutely stiff and easy-to-transport raceboards. I'm also able to build inflatable foil boards that are also light and stiff. But I also want to launch my paddle energiser system next year, where a horizontal paddle floats weightlessly in the air for the athlete, removing all the weight of the paddle. And also a very interesting fitness system that is recommended by sports doctors and aims to move strength exercises from the studio to the great outdoors on the water during the warm season in order to train 400 micro-muscles for bicep training, which only works on the SUP board.
One of your last inventions was the inflatable TAMI dog crate? You narrowly missed out on the final and 100,000 euros in the Pro Sieben "Thing of the Year" competition? Is the thing selling?
Yes, it was my wife's idea. I was one of the first to succeed in three-dimensionally moulding the flat dropstitch material of SUP boards. I was granted an international patent for it. We are very happy with the sales. Several thousand dogs are happy about their dog crate with a built-in air bag effect that protects dogs and people in the car, as confirmed by one of the most renowned crash test laboratories. In the event of a rear-end collision, the box wraps itself almost protectively around the animal.
This interview first appeared in surf 8/2020
