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When Lukas Walton-Keim boarded a plane to Europe for his first competitive race in seven months following knee surgery, he knew he would face obstacles on the water.
What the 26-year-old kitefoiler couldn’t quite prepare for were the challenges he would have to overcome before even getting on his board.
Walton-Keim has just finished 30th overall at the Allianz Regatta in Almere, Netherlands - his first competition since October, having gone under the knife in November to repair a torn right meniscus he had been battling for more than two years.
His preparation was hampered when a bag with passports, a laptop, cash, medication, electronic equipment chargers and clothing was stolen from his car in Marseille.
“I stopped in Marseille for 10 minutes and they stole my bag from the front seat while I was at the back of the car,” Walton-Keim said.
“I only noticed it when I needed to charge my phone but by then I was already two hours out of Marseille. I was completely shocked.”
French police apprehended a suspect days later and Walton-Keim’s laptop and passports have since been returned - but the theft “added insult to injury”.
“The knee was pretty sore coming into the competition. The travelling seems to be the killer and it turned out to be a long and stressful journey in the end,” he said.
Since his operation, Walton-Keim has had “only about 15 hours” on the board in New Zealand.
“When I lined up with the top guys, I was surprised that the knee didn’t affect me as much as I expected but that might have been partly because the rest of my body was protesting pretty hard and masked my symptoms."
He made the decision to sit out the second day’s racing, scuppering any chance of qualifying for the gold fleet, but ended the event with five top-three finishes in the silver fleet and an overall 30th place from 54 boards.
“The first day felt like I had to learn how to race again but at the end of it I was still quite confident that I could make it into the top 25," Walton-Keim said.
“Deciding not to race on day two to recover was a test of my self-control but on days three and four I had some epic battles with the top of the silver fleet. It was probably better practice for me than racing in the gold fleet during my first regatta back as I could start where I thought was best, make decisions around the course and play with my modes. I also spent time leading races."
Lukas Walton-Keim finished 30th in his first regatta in seven months following knee surgery. Photos / Sailing Energy
The quality of the international fleet has improved since he was last a part of it at the world championships in Cagliari in October, Walton-Keim said.
“The top half of the fleet has become so condensed – the difference between finishing first and 30th is so small now.
“The top guys are the same people as last year, but the rest of the fleet is nipping at their heels. In previous years it felt like it was 90 per cent about speed and 10 per cent sailing about tactics, but now everyone is fast and those numbers have been flipped.”
He will next compete in a smaller regatta at Lake Garda, Italy that features only a handful of the world’s top kitefoilers.
“Lake Garda is paradise, both on the water and off, and although it spoils you with easy conditions, I think it’s the perfect place for me at the moment - I can get my confidence and conditioning back before moving on to more serious events later in the year.
“[The Allianz Regatta] showed me how much I have to improve but skipping four races and still managing to finish as high as I did was a positive sign that I can get back near the top by the end of the season.”
Fellow Kiwi Luke Deegan was also in action in Almere, claiming seventh place overall in the ILCA 7 fleet.
For full results from the Allianz Regatta in Almere, click here.
