Azz, that could well have been the slalom board with the blue flames - that was a ripper.
One great thing about Robby - when he knocked you out of a wave heat (like he did to me in the second round of the Sony at Long Reef in '84 or '85) you had a good excuse when you got back to your home beach. He was a bit late off the beach (he knew he was up against a turkey) so I actually lead him on points for a few seconds - until he hit the water and I got smashed and spent the rest of the heat trying to get going. At least when Robby was out, no one looked at you so you didn't get too embarrassed!
Bjorn D was just a little kid when he was 16, with lots of talent but no indication that he'd grow to be as big as he is. F2 allocated him as my training partner at the worlds in Lake Garda, but he was miles ahead in the racing despite being too small to use the real F2 raceboard (Mk2 Lightning). It's strange how people go on about him being a hulking humourless Terminator now, he was a happy go lucky kid then.
I still reckon Robby is the ultimate windsurfer, and possibly the ultimate sailor. He was more versatile than Bjorn, or two of his rivals (IMHO) as the world's greatest sailor overall (Ainslie and Schiedt). Only Elvstrom is his equal (or superior) in that respect.
The other thing about Robby was his professionalism. On a filthy freezing sleety day in Germany, he'd stand on the beach between wave heats, holding his rig up so everyone could always see the sponsor's logoes, and he always had time for we reptiles of the windsurfing press.
Randy was a real character - Greenleader also sailed against him that season. Every now and then you could see signs that he could also kick ass, but it would have been hard to be Robby's big brother (chronologically at least).
