Anders Ansar always carries a camera and some means to take notes. Mainly producing extreme sports articles for magazines. E.g. about ice and land sailing in the US. Picking up and selling material while he is traveling - some four round the world trips. He has visited some 60 countries.

With a Master of Science in Physics from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden, he sometimes ads a technical touch to the articles.

He was probably first to show that skate sailing on ice (that is with skates on the feet) standing inside a wing, see photo left, was much faster than the traditional design with the sailor standing on the leeward side of a single layer sail.

Up till then the rules for skate sailing in Sweden were free: "Sail and skates of any design." When Ansar turned up on the racing and championship courses sailing some 30 % faster the design was banned. Now these wing sails sails in a new all free class.

Anders is also an inventor with several patents, mainly tactical compasses for racing sail boats. See compasses at right.

He has raced several different sail boats. Sailing Canoe (a Swedish national class), Star Boat, 2 man Elvstroem Trapeze Dinghy, Tornado Catamaran and Laser Dinghy. He has sailed with a friend in his boat from Sweden to Island, via west England and south Norway. "A very rewarding three months trip, half of the time at sea."

A memorable USA land sail race

"One of the more memorable sail races I participated in was in western USA. I was taking photos at a land yacht regatta. Famous land sailor and land yacht builder and designer Nord Embroden was kind to take me there.

One of the race officials said I could take part in the race with his Freedom Yacht.

This was my first land yacht race. Wind was very light at the start. I leaned out to leeward checking the sail telltales which indicated the all important air flow over the leeward side of the sail. I adjusted the sail and course too keep the air flow going.

I sailed with full concentration for several minutes before checking the competitors. When I looked they were well behind. Probably because they were very heavy guys.

We rounded a mark and sailed down wind. The wind was picking up. I turned the leeward mark cautiously - it was my first turn at speed in a land yacht.

The wind was getting strong and the other guys now had a speed advantage because of their weight. They were closing in very fast. Just before the finish line I tacked upon the nearest competitor throwing the turbulent wind from my sail onto his - slowing him down enough for me to finish first."

Ice skate sails

Tactical compasses for racing sail boats

An article about this sport is available together with building and sailing instructions.

Reprint from Yachting Magazine USA

Ansar stupefied ice sailors in the New York-New Jersey area when he raced a fleet of DN-class boats at Peach Lake, N.Y., in moderate winds and easily beat them. This was quite a feat, since Ice-Wing has less than half the sail area of a DN. Says George Blair, of Red Bank, N.J., who is the first buyer in the U.S.:

"I am absolutely enthralled at the beauty and simplicity of this thing. We should ask ourself why we didn't think of this before Ansar did. It's very forward, basic and simple."

"On this occasion, after I beat the DN ice boats, it was suggested I should race the present Skeeter ice boats. I did, and beat them too. The sailor of the fastest Skeeter then wanted a two lap race because he felt he needed some time to get his heavy boat going. We sailed a two lap race and I won again.

The Skeeter is a quite large ice boat: length 9 m, 30 ft, width 6 m, 20 ft, and height 7 m, 23 ft. The wing skate sail is a dwarf in comparison.

The wing sail I used on this occasion is much slower than today's best wing sails, which are made with a larger stiff forward part.

Also there were several constraints on the design as I carried it in pieces as checked luggage across the Atlantic and as it had to be easily assembled with simple tools when in the USA. The front. e.g. was rolled tight into a small diameter cylinder - resembling skies, which could be checked without extra charges."