Thomas Traversa has just started his own YouTube channel where he is launching a new series called “Guided tour” which will share stories about his trips and special sessions. As you might guess with Thomas Traversa, we will most likely be seeing a lot of epic breaks, big waves and storm chasing involved. His first video documents a trip to Reunion Island last year where he spent a week shooting the new Gaastra and Tabou 2021 equipment in epic conditions!
Thomas Traversa
“For this first episode, I take you to Reunion Island and the spot of Pointe au Sel”
THOMAS TRAVERSA: GUIDED TOUR REUNION ISLAND (PART 2)
Gaastra / Tabou rider Thomas Traversa, continues his Guided Tour series with his second insight into Reunion Island and in particular, the iconic and spots of Etang-Salé and Saint-Leu! Sharks have been a problem here so the line ups are pretty quiet! As usual there is no holding back when Thomas rides these gnarly reef breaks!
From our October 2020 issue of Windsurf Magazine we caught up with Peter Munzlinger who is the man behind the designs at GA Sails. He tells us about his work, the new requirements that foiling brings, and how he got started in the windsurfing industry.
Words Peter Munzlinger // Photos John Carter.
To read more features like this first, Print and Digital subscriptions are available. Prices include delivery globally for 10 x issues a year!
BACKGROUND
I was a passionate windsurfer from the age of 16 back in the 1980s. While most of the guys I sailed with were interested in building their own boards, I was into making and adjusting my own sails. This part of windsurfing fascinated me. I remember the first thing I did when funboard equipment first arrived on the scene was to take some Division 2 sails and modify them with a shorter boom to make them into funboard sails. I had seen pictures of guys in Hawaii and was inspired to make the changes so I could have similar equipment. Before windsurfing I was also into sailing, my parents had a sailing boat and I had a catamaran. Somehow I was attracted more by the sails in windsurfing than the boards.
LAKE GARDA
After school I went to university to study engineering, but my first job was in Lake Garda. I grew up in Tuscany in Italy on the coast, and after the summer holidays I had an opportunity to go to Lake Garda to work in a windsurfing shop. It helped that I knew how to speak Italian and German perfectly. I took the job and that is where I met the guys who were doing the North Sails distribution for Italy. They noticed my passion for sails and luckily they offered me a job. After that I made the decision to move to Lake Garda, which at the time was one of the big centres of windsurfing in the world. In Tuscany I would never have had any opportunities; I had to move. With North Sails, I worked hard and started doing sail repairs, which was the real beginning of my sail design career. Within a few years I made some sails for myself and at the distributor meeting for North Sails in Garda, the guys tried my designs and they were performing better than some of the North Sails at the meeting. After this I was invited to start designing one simple sail in the range, that is how it all started.
After North sails, I had a spell where I worked for Dakine who wanted to make windsurfing sails, then I had a spell with Yes Sails who were in Lake Garda and were quite successful as a small brand. I sponsored Andrea Cucchi back then and we were also great friends. When he decided he wanted to start his business with Point-7, he called me and then I worked with him for many years on the ‘Black Sails’! We were very successful with racing with the late Alberto Menegatti and won many races at European and world level; it was a cool period working with Andrea.
GAASTRA
One day Knut Budig from Gaastra called me and offered me the chance to be their designer. It didn’t take me long to make the decision to take the job as this was a very good opportunity for me to work with a bigger established brand. This was the end of 2010. I started with Gaastra and I am still here ten years later. My first job was to work on The Vapor race sail as it was at the end of the season and it was not finalised. Basically I started from zero and didn’t have the Gaastra design software at the time, so made the sails my way. Arnon Dagan and Alberto came to my place in Sardinia where I had moved to and we worked non-stop on the prototypes. We were lucky because we had a month of wind every day. It somehow all came together, even though it was a lot of hard work. After this initial period I started using the Gaastra software and getting to work on the rest of the range over the following years. After the first season I could gradually start introducing my own ideas into the designs. When a company makes over one hundred sails in the range in all the sizes, it is not like you can make changes overnight.
In the past two years foil windsurfing has exploded into the market. For this project it meant completely new designs; something I was very excited about and it has been a real passion project producing the GA foil sail.
GOALS
I still windsurf a lot myself, so one goal for sure is to meet the intended purpose of the sail and the needs of the customer who are going to buy it and their expectations. As I am a sailor myself, what I am looking for is a sail that is easy and user friendly. I don’t want to have sails that I am fighting with, but at the same time I also want a good performance. You have to find a compromise between power to get planing early, the range of use and how comfortable it is. Some ranges I can test myself or use guys where I live, but with the race and wave ranges I need the input from the pro riders. Our team is vital here for their feedback. For the development of the Vapor I work in close contact with Cedric Bordes and Ross Williams, I have to filter the information and try to understand and translate it into my reality of what is possible. For the wave sails I work mostly with Ross Williams and Thomas Traversa. Lately for the foil specific Vapor Air I worked closely with Sebastian Kordel and Nico Goyard who are among the best foil racers in the world.
It is great to work with such a talented team, those guys are such awesome sailors and give me precious feedback.
MOTIVATION
I still love windsurfing. Every time it is windy I want to go sailing and that usually involves testing. After all these years the fact I have to test my sails is a good motivation. If the conditions are not that great but I have some new prototypes, I can still get excited about going sailing. I want to see as soon as possible how they perform. The foil explosion was a huge motivation for me. I was very interested as everything was totally new and exciting. It was a challenge, making new sails for a new concept and trying to work out how everything works.
THE OTHERS
With the Internet we can always see what the other brands are doing with their designs. I am always interested to see what is happening with other designers. Sometimes I have ideas before others, but then I see they have had the same concept. Anything new is interesting to me. All the designers are doing a great job. There is a mutual respect between all the brands and a lot of fantastic designs on the market.
BEST AND WORST
The best part of the job is that I can go windsurfing as part of my duties when I am testing. Being on Maui at the GA photo shoots are like a dream come true for me. On the other side there is a lot of stress with deadlines and making sure all the ranges are ready. I have to travel to China several times a year to make sure everything is ok with the production process. It looks like a dream life and job, but at the end of the day there is still a lot of hard work to do.
RIGGING ERRORS!
Definitely the most common errors are not enough downhaul and way too much outhaul! That is a great classic. That way you get a super tensioned leech and a loose luff, the opposite of what is desired. You want a nice tensioned leading edge of the sail and a free twisting leech to get performance and stability. So downhaul to the specs. to get a nice and loose head, then start at the outhaul with a neutral tension, if it’s windy and you are overpowered you add 1 or 2 cm more, if it’s light and you need power, release 1 or 2 cm. Another issue is the boom height. Standing on the board it should be around chin height, and again if you are overpowered and need control, lower it a few cm, and do the opposite in light winds and if you need power.
RESULTS
With Gaastra we have won a wave title with Thomas Traversa and we have won and been on the podium at many PWA events. This is very satisfying for me to see these results. We were also very successful with foil racing results. What we are missing is the PWA slalom overall title, but that is very difficult to achieve. At the moment Albeau, Iachino and Mortefon are dominating, so it pretty difficult for any other riders to challenge these guys.
FOIL SAILS
Foiling requirements are very different than normal windsurfing, you completely eliminate all the chop and impact situations, so you can concentrate more on the performance and aerodynamic aspects. The outlines are different as you sail more upright, so to close the gap on the board you need a lower foot outline. Then you need less back hand pressure as the power comes mainly from the foil and you want easy control, so in general I design a shorter boom and something stiffer and more stable in the sail (not too stiff as you still need some flexibility to pump onto a plane in super light winds). For the aerodynamics a higher aspect design (longer and more narrow) help too, it does not work so good for traditional windsurfing as it puts you more out of balance, but for foiling it makes you faster and pointing higher. On foiling race sails in particular you also have a flatter entry profile for more performance, on a normal windsurfing sail you would not like that too much as it is more critical to sail and less forgiving in chop.
NEW IDEAS
What is interesting when you try something new in a sail line is that this concept can suddenly adapt to other sails in other ranges. With the foil sails I experimented a lot and it brought quite a few new ideas which I could use in our slalom sails. Slalom sails must be able to handle chop and the rig must be flexible to spill the excess power out. On a foil sail you are out of the water and the sail is very stable and smooth. The rig does not move at all because you have no impact. However some features can work for both types of sail. On the foil sails the emphasis was about the control and less back hand, so during the development progress I put in more and more concepts to improve this. Other performance and aerodynamic oriented features of the foil sails were not really applicable, but I took over some shaping ideas and the way I structure the panels to the other sails when I was looking for increasing the control and overpowered handling. In particular using negative shaping and the positioning of it.
TRENDS
Theoretically we could have a lot of new technologies to build superior sails, but the main factor limiting this is the cost. A windsurf sail cannot cost 3000 euros! Nobody would buy it. If you look at the America’s Cup, they have unlimited budget and those sails cost tens of thousands. You cannot compare it. I would say construction is the area where big changes could be made! We are still using the old method of sewing the panels together in an ancient way. It depends on the cost efficiency, but it will come for sure. Potentially we could be sticking the panels together (glue) or even moulding them in one piece. Theoretically for the performance of the sail we could become super light with the modern materials, but on the other hand if they are getting too thin we will have big issues with chafing and durability. The trend in the past years, which I think will continue into the future, is more performance, but at the same time having sails that are easier to use with a bigger range. That is the main goal. In the past you had a very narrow range of use with a sail, but now you don’t need that much equipment to go sailing. If you don’t have specific needs as a super specialized sailor, I would say one square metre between sizes is fine for recreational sailing in light winds. For wave sailing or stronger winds you need a smaller spacing, as when the wind gets stronger the forces increase exponentially.
SIZE MATTERS
Basically the only difference between big and small sailors is the size they choose for a given condition. I have sailed a lot with bigger guys than me (75 kg) like PWA slalom sailors, who are mostly 90 kg +, and I was just using their smaller stuff. I didn’t have to change the settings except boom height (as they are also taller than me) and for the same reason shortening a little the harness lines.
SAIL SOFTWARE
I use specific software for sail design. It is not about simulation or 3D stuff, but more about efficient designing. It is parametric and I can easily change one or more parameters and then push a button and the software generates the panels. As I have to design more than 100 sails each season that’s the only way to make it possible. As an example, if you would design a sail by hand, and only change one aspect, let us say boom length for example, you would have to redesign the whole sail.
SAIL CARE
First and most important thing is keep the sail out of the sun as much as possible, so when not sailing, try to put it in the shade. The UV rays of the sun literally destroy the materials the sail is made of and shorten dramatically the life span of a sail. At Gaastra we try to minimize that using UV inhibitors in our laminates and also the metallic flakes in our X-Ply help reflect the harmful rays, but still you have to take care of that. The materials the sails are made of have no problem with salt water, but if you rinse your sail frequently with fresh water you wash the salt crystals and the dirt away, which over time scratch the monofilm and reduce the visibility of the sail window. Also avoid sharp objects, rigging on rocks and creasing your sails, these things are more common sense, just take care!
AMBITION
My ambition is to try and make the most successful sails on the market and one day win the PWA slalom title with our sails. Now with foiling we have a great chance for success, we are already on the podium and I am confident we can have great results.
Earlier this year, Ross Williams ventured deep into surfer territory and became the first person to windsurf the famous surf break of Freshwater Bay on the Isle of Wight. It’s a rocky right-hander, sheltered from the wind beneath huge chalk cliffs and a tricky place to sail. Luckily for us, John Carter was there to capture the action and tell the tale of how it all went down!
Words Ross Williams // Photos John Carter
This feature was published in our November / December 2020 issue.
OFF LIMITS
Some breaks are simply off the cards for windsurfing and Freshwater Bay on the Isle of Wight would certainly fit that criteria. It is similar to Honolua Bay in Maui, a quality surf break pretty much sheltered by headlands and usually packed with surfers. A few years ago, Maui all-round waterman, Zane Schweitzer, sailed Honolua on a rare set of conditions, so I guess using that as inspiration you could not completely wipe the possibility of windsurfing Freshwater Bay off the cards. Having said that, I have never seen anybody windsurf the bay or even consider it during my thirty year windsurf photography career and time living on the Isle of Wight. In a west or west-southwest wind, the go-to spot is Niton, which holds a good wave and boasts side to side-offshore wind. In most wind directions, ‘Freshie Bay’ as we locals call it, would either be very onshore and horrific, or sheltered by the huge cliffs that block the wind.
As surf breaks go, Freshwater Bay is the jewel in the crown of the Isle of Wight’s surf breaks and boasts a peeling right-hander beneath the scenic chalk cliffs of Tennyson Downs. Even for surfing, Freshwater Bay ideally needs north winds, a solid groundswell, a low tide and when those conditions all line up it can get pretty busy, if it is not too big. To be fair, I rarely head over to Freshwater when it’s windy, it simply is not on the radar or a spot you would normally consider.
Over the past year or so Ross has been in a Whatsapp group with local kitesurfer Tom Court who rides for Duotone. Tom was brought up in a house that overlooks Freshwater Bay, so he usually knows when it’s firing. Reportedly Tom has kited the bay a few times, but as for whether it would be possible for windsurfing was another matter. One thing is for sure, it would need to be howling windy to even consider sailing the bay. Light winds would mean a tonne of surfers and unless it was blowing at least a force 7 or over, I very much doubted any wind would get in under those huge cliffs.
SUMMER STORM
After the lockdown was over for watersports, it did not take long for Mother Nature to reward the patient sailors who had admirably stayed off the water for nearly two months with a rare summer storm. Gales and a decent swell were set to provide firing out of season conditions right across the country. With that insane forecast, I knew Ross would be frothing to get back on the water and most likely would be camped out all day at Niton, so I sent a message the night before, to see if he was up for getting some shots.
LET DOWN
His plan was to start early to catch the outgoing tide at first light, which was around 5 a.m., and he was setting his alarm for 3:30 a.m. I was not quite sure if I was keen to go that early, but made sure my gear was packed and ready to go if I got an early message in the morning. At 5:30 a.m. my phone beeped with a message to say Niton was not good and Ross would try again later and message me if it turned on. I waited patiently for the call, but heard nothing by 1 p.m. in the afternoon. Then a message came through that Ross had scored Niton but had forgotten to take his phone…doh! It seemed like the day was done and dusted for me and I might as well make other plans. Then at 4:30 p.m. I had another message to say Ross was heading back to Niton for a second session. I was on the verge of not bothering, but decided I had nothing to lose and re-packed the car and headed over. By the time I was at Niton at the bottom tip of our diamond shaped island, Ross had already been and gone!
THE BAY
The next message was a bit weird – “Niton looked good but I am going to try and sail Freshwater Bay for something different!’ I have known Ross for probably twenty years, but never heard him mention sailing Freshwater Bay once, so this was certainly a first. I was actually not sure if this was some kind of joke or stitch up, but decided to continue driving all the way to the very western tip of the island. As I drove up ‘Military Road’ on the west side of the island, I could see it was howling windy with plenty of swell, but looked pretty onshore as I worked my way towards Freshwater. By this stage I had no expectations at all that I would be shooting any shots and that this rare summer storm had slipped through the net.
FRESHWATER
The town of Freshwater and its bay are one of the most picturesque beaches on the Isle of Wight. At the bottom of the chalk cliffs are caves which are exposed at low tide, which according to local history smugglers used to use. There also used to be an arched rock on the left-hand side of the bay, but it collapsed during a big storm in 1992. The downs to the right of the bay are named after the landscape poet Alfred Lord Tennyson, a famous British poet from the Victorian era who lived in Freshwater and roamed the downs for his inspiration.
IT’S ON!
‘Military Road’ takes you past popular surf beach Compton, before working its way up and over the white chalk cliffs that approach the tiny village of Freshwater. Up over this hill you get an amazing panoramic vista of the sea and down below I could see solid lines of swell marching towards the rugged coastline. marching towards the rugged coastline. A few minutes later I was at the reveal where you got to see Freshwater from the top of the hill as you descend down into the narrow bay. I could see Ross’s van stationed at the front of the small parking lot in front of the Albion Hotel, but more importantly I could see his bright red sail heading out through the water towards the waves. The first two things that struck me were that it was a very low tide, and also the wind looked just slightly side-onshore, and despite being a bit light on the inside, Ross had plenty of power once he was just behind the waves outside the bay.
OUTSTANDING BEAUTY
With Ross flying around catching waves, I scrambled to organize my equipment, knowing this was something pretty rare and that I would probably not get the chance to shoot a session like this for years to come. Not only is Freshwater Bay an iconic surfing wave, it is also in an area of outstanding natural beauty, nestled in a bay between the huge cliffs of Tennyson Downs. So, to capture the session, I was already thinking that the shots needed to show the location just as much as the action. Obviously with the cross-onshore wind blowing in the bay, the wave was not looking beautiful like it does on a classic surf day, but still with blue skies above and the incredible backgrounds it was still looking very special.
FIRST TIME
I decided to shoot from the rocks on the right-hand side of the bay to kick off with, and a plan to dash over to the cliffs on the left-hand side to grab some wider scenic images later on. Tom Court was also on hand with his kite and joined Ross on the water to grab a few waves. The tide was on its way in as the session developed and I could tell it was becoming trickier for Ross to navigate out of the bay with the wind shielded by the cliffs. Out the back there was still loads of wind and Ross was able to catch plenty of waves on this inaugural windsurf session in the bay. Meanwhile I was charging around like a man possessed trying to capture as may angles as possible of the windsurf session in this awesome location.
Finally, Ross was done after a sweet session in this new spot, having clocked up plenty of waves and discovering the potential of this right-hand surf break as a windsurf option. An outgoing low tide would be ideal if we ever get another chance and of course a bigger swell, but for now we settled for the opportunity we got, especially after all the frustration of lockdown!
ROSS WILLIAMS
“I thought the bay was sailable, but suspected the angle of the wind would be too onshore. In a west wind, Niton at the bottom of the island is my ‘go-to’ spot! I knew Freshwater would be nice for photos, but it would be difficult to sail. On this day, the wind was dead west, so it was coming perfectly down the cliffs. It was actually consistently windy, but a little onshore so not the ideal direction for perfect wave riding. It was a wind swell really, so who knows with a proper groundswell. It is a place where you need to dial in your timing and maybe sail it on the dropping tide to make the wave punchier. It was still surprisingly good fun. I am fairly sure I am the first person to wave sail there. I definitely will be back there if I see that forecast again. It is a nice option to have on that forecast. The scenery there is amazing. The white cliffs are really dramatic and there are so many angles to shoot from. The sailing is quite technical as you are quite close to the rocks. I was on an 88 litre Tabou Da Curve and a 5.2m IQ Wave, but I would have preferred the 96 litre Da Curve to keep me going through the lighter patches.”
Thomas tour continues his awesome guided tour series with his take of the wave sailing in Galicia, one of the most remote stretches of the Spanish coastline!
Thomas Traversa: “Let me take you on a little ego-trip to Galicia, one of the most remote part of the spanish coastline. It is a place that I just kept going to during the last 20 years and it really has a special energy : the nature, the wind, the waves, the space… every trip there is a return to a part of myself”
Japanese young gun, Takuma Sugi has been hard at work training in a wide variety of conditions at home in Japan! Check out this action packed clip filmed from water, land and drone in anything from zero to fifty knots!
For those looking for constant power, the Manic has plenty of direct feedback, along with a strong bottom end and impressive tuning ability. A great sail for those looking a sharper feeling 4 batten sail.
THE LOWDOWN
The Manic is billed as their “hardcore” wave sail by GA, “powerful and controllable in all conditions”, sitting alongside the IQ model, which they describe as their “new school” and “smooth neutral wave riding” sail. The construction is aimed around keeping the sail light but stable, with the use of GA’s 2-ply scrim in the upper panels to reduce swing weight. This year sees 4 battens in all sizes, with extra focus given to the bottom end of the larger sizes to make these better in onshore conditions. The clew layout has been redesigned to include clew patches to protect the stitching and stabilise the clew. This is alongside a new radial panel layout with carbon radial tapes out of all three corners of the sail to improve overall stability, especially in windier conditions. The Manic is packed with nice features, including an integrated batten system. silicon patch to open the mast sleeve, a cleaner redesigned tack fairing and abrasion strips in all key load areas. The Manic also comes in an HD edition, which uses x-ply scrims across the entire sail.
BRAND CLAIM
“The right choice for riders that need a sailoffering the perfect blend of power, stability and handling in different kinds of conditions – the Manic is equipped with inimitable versatility.”
PERFORMANCE
Once rigged on the GA C100 RDM, the Manic was one of the lower aspect sails on test with both the shortest luff length and also longest boom length. There is plenty of shape in the profile and whilst Dacron along the luff gives the sail some stretch, there is already plenty of profile before this happens. Unsurprisingly there was plenty of bottom end power on the Manic, and it had a direct feel to it, with plenty of grunt. The centre of effort is relatively high and back, drawing you easily onto the plane. This power helped give the Manic a great top end speed, powering not only into turns, but also into jumps on the way out. It also responded best to positive rider input to make the most of the power and drive through turns. Whilst there was plenty of bottom end grunt, if you tweaked the controls there is also plenty of top end control and the stability of the Manic is maintained throughout its impressive wind range. As you pull on the downhaul the pull stays relatively high and slightly back, meaning there is always a constant pull to the Manic, rather than a neutral feel, the drive always feeling locked rather than moving around in the sail’s profile.
When Thomas Traversa admits a session was frightening, you know it must have been seriously heavy conditions! Buckle up for his story on how he windsurfed and survived huge scary Nazaré, followed by what he describes as one of his best ever sessions in Portugal at pumping Peniche. This big wave feature was originally published in our January / February 2021 issue.
To read more features like this first, Print and Digital subscriptions are available. Prices include delivery globally for 10 x issues a year!
PORTUGAL BOUND
I had a plan to go to Portugal for two or three weeks in November for several months. When they announced the lockdown was going to happen in France, we were still in Brittany! We wasted no time and drove home, and the next day packed everything into our camper van and drove to Portugal. We did not want to be stuck in France in case they would close the borders! I saw that the forecast was looking good, solid waves and strong north winds for a couple of days… but we were going anyway. So, I guess that was kind of lucky to get there just in time for the swell!
THE PLAN
My friend, Mat Pelikan, had been on the water at Nazaré the previous week, taking pictures of the surfers during that huge swell episode from hurricane Epsilon. While driving to Portugal, I called him and told him that I wanted to try to sail Nazaré again. He helped me to organize jet ski safety and, in a few hours, everything was set, one jet ski for safety, another ski for him to shoot video from the water, and another friend filming from the cliff.
Usually I like to keep my sailing plans simple and spontaneous, but for Nazaré it is a different story, you need to be prepared. The conditions looked really promising with strong cross-off winds and a reasonable swell. Nothing too big! Riding Nazare when it is really big is something I am not sure I want to do, so one of the challenges for me is to be there with waves big enough so the spot works, but not too big either! I also called Alex Mussolini to ask if he wanted to join me for 2/3 days of epic sailing. He was up for it, but did not want to sail at Nazaré so we planned to go to Peniche once I was done in Nazaré.
UNDER PRESSURE
Of course, all this preparation and anticipation adds extra pressure! Once the jet ski guys were there as well as the video crew, I kind of had to go no matter what the conditions would be! In the morning, the wind was already howling, but the waves did not look that big. I thought it might be kind of too small to really work. But we prepared at the harbour anyway, and I sailed upwind from there, with the two skis by my side. As we were getting closer to the cliff, I quickly realized that the swell was much bigger than what it looked like from the beach!
I decided to keep sailing upwind to the north of the cliff, to start the session as far as possible from that scary chaos happening at the bottom of the lighthouse! I think I took at least 10 to 15 minutes before committing to my first ride. With the low tide the waves were breaking far outside, so I was extremely nervous. With the waves coming from everywhere and without any real pause between sets, it felt scary to finally drop into the first one. After a quick turn on the shoulder, I kicked out and got out the back as quick as I could!
The wind was very strong, probably 25/30 knots on the outside, making everything even more crazy with the big chop, but once in the inside I was glad I could plane to go back out in no time! There wasn’t a moment when I felt comfortable during that session, I kept dropping into waves not knowing what was going to happen, but at the same time I wanted to place myself as deep as I could and really use the steepest part of the waves.
CRAZY TIME
At one point I was in position to catch a big wave on the outside, it had a soft section to roll in on, and then a large wall down the line waiting to transform into a heavy section; but the softer part of the wave broke earlier than what I thought it would and a huge lump of whitewater suddenly came very fast towards me and hit me from the side! I found myself holding onto my sail thinking I just dropped into the most stupid and dangerous section ever! Somehow, I did not fall and managed to emerge from the whitewater after a few seconds, only to find myself going down an 8 metre wall that was about to throw a giant lip on me! I just managed to clear the section and kicked out feeling like I just escaped the worst wipeout of my life, my heart was beating to the max, I even felt my legs shaking!
After that intense moment, I had some more solid drops, but I felt like I didn’t want to risk too much! I told the guy on the ski that I had enough and I was going to stop. I decided to drop into a final wave closer to the cliff, a mean one! But as I was going down the face, I realized that it was closing out on me, and just chickened out in front of the wave, trying to go as fast as possible so as to not get caught by the whitewater. I finally reached the beach and felt really blessed to be in one piece!
PENICHE
Alex came down to help me carry my equipment to the camper, where Sophia was casually having lunch with our two daughters. I was really happy that nothing bad happened, I did not go crazy and hit a giant lip but I felt like I did my best! We then went to Peniche as planned and we were hoping Supertubos was going to be good. When we arrived, we could not believe how epic it was! Heavy mast-high barrelling ‘A’ frame waves, 25 knots side-off, not one surfer in the water, it was simply perfect!
The waves were so clean, glassy, fast and heavy at the same time. It was one of my best sessions ever in Portugal, and after sailing Nazaré in the morning, I was in the right mind to enjoy and commit to hit the lip on some bombs. It was so good that we sailed until it got completely dark.
So much happened in one day, it was one of the scariest and then one of the best sessions ever – heaven and hell, but I was over the moon to have scored.
Thomas Traversa continues his excellent guided tour series with a family road trip highlights clip from trips to Barcelona and Portugal in 2017 and 2019.
Thomas Traversa “Let me take you on a little journey through time : first to Barcelona back in 2017, and to Portugal early 2019. This guided tour is about traveling in winter with my family, and the big step we made when we bought our own camper-van! In 2017 we went to Barcelona on a East-wind storm, together with Julien taboulet and his family, as well as our friend Fred who took us in his camper-van for that trip. a couple of years later we had our own camper-van, a second kid, and drove to Portugal for this first family trip for the four of us! I was lucky enough to score two amazing days on the water at Peniche, supertubos!” Images by : Sophia Traversa and Mathieu Pelikan / SIAM images
Despite the lack of professional windsurfing competition, Ross Williams has been a busy man of late with a new business and baby. From our April edition of Windsurf Magazine, Ross tells us more about his last 12 months spent at home on the Isle of Wight and his solo storm sessions.
Words Ross Williams // Photos John Carter
2021 PLANS
I have opted out of the tour this year. I have told Gaastra that I can’t commit to doing a tour that is not a hundred per cent going to happen. I can’t rely on income from doing that and then events get cancelled like last year. I have got to be realistic with my plans. If it was going to be a normal year then yes, I would be committing to training and going to events. I don’t want to put all that time effort and money into something that might not happen. I am not twenty any longer! I have responsibilities with my family now.
So, I could not commit to the tour in 2021. But I have negotiated a small contract this year to do the things I want to do. I still want to be able to go on the water and represent the brand in different ways. I hope to do some travel if possible and obviously sail at home when the conditions are good. Maybe I will be UK based only again this year, who knows! I was sick of going away spending all that time and money at events and ending up sitting around on the beach half the time not even sailing. I was also missing the good days of sailing which I normally enjoy. This way I can enjoy my watersports more. I will be wave sailing, winging and kiting as well. I think I can offer more value to my sponsors this way than maybe potentially just training for a few events that are uncertain. The equipment these days is so specialized you must be completely dialled in or you won’t do well anyway.
The door is still open for me to go back to events in 2022 when hopefully everything will be more settled down. My daughter will be a bit older as well and I will be more inclined to spend longer away. This year I could not justify the tour.
I feel like that in 2021 I can do some more videos, like I did last year with my Island Life episodes. It is nice to be able to show people all the watersports we can do here on the island and around the UK. I want to inspire people and show that you don’t have to be the best in the world to enjoy these sports. I hope that I can enjoy my windsurfing whenever I can get on the water and providing these clips will enable me to do that. Gaastra and Tabou have stuck by me and they are going to continue to support me which has been awesome. So, my plan basically is to stay home in 2021 and hopefully inspire others to get out on the water as well!
2020
In 2020 I had made the decision to just partially do the tour. I was going to do four events but they were all cancelled. The big four events were the plan if the tour had gone ahead, but then the world changed! I knew we had a baby coming, so that is why I wanted to plan my year that way. I wanted to be at home and in hindsight it turned out to be the perfect decision and I really enjoyed the time with my family.
I was able to see my daughter grow up and not miss any of those little moments. I would have missed so much if I had been away so I was happy to be at home. It felt right and I was incredibly lucky. I had devoted twenty odd years to saying yes to everything to do with my career, and the first time I made my own call to step back and say no…it worked out well for me. This is my life and it was important for me to have this year on my terms.
TRADEWINDS
It was quite a difficult season at our café, ‘Trade Winds’, but also rewarding. I hadn’t had too much experience in catering and then to be slung in at the deep end was difficult. I knew I was going to be spending a lot of my time being in the kitchen. I actually enjoy cooking and working in the café was fun as well as stressful. It is satisfying presenting good food and also seeing contented customers. It is nice to see people enjoying the atmosphere in an environment you have created. There were always new customers to talk to and I almost became like an ‘agony aunt’! Some people were just coming down for some nice food, good coffee and somebody to talk to! I felt like we did a decent job and it was extremely rewarding in that way. There was a lot of stress as well. I oversaw all the shopping, the accounting and opening up every morning. Everything was on my shoulders, not to mention the chopping and changing of the regulations with Covid rules, lockdown and whatever. It was a never-ending challenge! It definitely felt like a real job, but it is my own business so the effort was worth it.
ADAPTING
I used some of the skills I have learned through windsurfing to help run the business. I had to be prepared each day the same as when I was at a race. What you put in usually equates to what you get out. If you go the extra mile with your effort, then you will see the direct benefits. At PWA events I was always one of the first at the beach rigging up and being prepared on a race day which helped me a lot. It was the same with the café, I knew what was expected and made sure I was ready for the day. The day might be longer, but getting there an hour or two earlier made everything so much less stressful. I was working on the beach so it was not really a problem. I could enjoy those moments. The sun rises on the water and it is always very mellow in the mornings. I could get everything ready at my own pace and make my day easier. I could slowly wind up, bake the cakes and be ready for those first customers without being stressed. We were open seven days a week right through the summer and up until Christmas. It was a lot of work and a lot of hours.
WATER TIME
Even though I was busy in the café, I was very conscious to try and score as much water time as possible. I still had obligations to my sponsors that had supported me for 2020. I had to do quite a lot of wing testing and then I also naturally wanted to be on the water as much as possible because that is my passion. I have been a full-time windsurfer for twenty years and that is something you can’t just turn off. Every time I saw the wind blowing or knew that there were waves, I naturally wanted to be out there. I had to really plan ahead to be able to secure that time on the water, especially with my wife and our baby to consider as well. Again, my windsurf planning helped me. I would see a forecast from four or five days out and start making a game plan. I would check the tides, wind and all the factors and then work out what my best window would be. I would have to work out if it would be possible to get a few hours off work logistically and how it could be done. I would arrange staff, make sure food was prepared and everything else possible taken care of, all well in advance. Then I could go sailing or surfing. It took a lot of organizing and I had to make sure the people I asked to help me were capable of doing the jobs. I had to work harder to have those times, but I would always do that over missing a good session.
I hate missing good forecasts! I did miss a couple of sessions as I had to stay at the café when they needed me. But for the most part I did not miss too many epic days and scored those good moments. On the island, we have plenty of decent days so it was a great break from all those hours at the café. Plan ahead, go sailing and then go back to work, that was my regime!
SCORING
For hard-core wave sailing on the island there is not such a massive scene. There are plenty of guys windsurfing, but the likelihood would be, that I would be out sailing alone during most of the stormy days. It would be just myself windsurfing at Niton, especially last year with the pandemic. Windsurfing was my chance to escape from all that was going on in the world and score my own slice of normality. On the water I was away from all the news and stress. I could switch off and just enjoy myself. It was almost therapeutic for me to go wave sailing in 2020.
I had some great sessions at Niton. One of the best sessions I had there was late one afternoon after I had been working at the café. It was genuine wave riding and I was out on my own. The wind had switched a little more offshore than normal and I sailed up towards the lighthouse. The tide was low and the swell was not massive, but the waves were peeling nicely and were super clean. It was super fun conditions. I could just line up and take my pick of the waves. I only had an 82-litre board, which was a little small, but it was still an amazing session to score. It was the Isle of Wight at its best. I was working in the morning, but I knew the tide would be going out and that slot would be the premium. I love the shots from that evening session. I had worked hard not to miss out and when I got in the water and scored such sick waves, I was stoked.
STAYING IN TOUCH
I took part in zoom calls last year to stay in touch with PWA sailors, Gonzalo Costa Hoevel, Finian Maynard, Ben van der Steen and Arnon Dagan. I have been travelling around the world with most of these guys for over a decade so this was our way of communicating. We had these calls three or four times during last summer. It was nice because we were not competing. At events there was always a bit of rivalry going on, but this was just chatting purely as mates. On tour at events, even with your friends you have known for years, there is still that air of competition in the background. They want to beat you and you want to beat them. But last year it was different. We were genuinely checking everyone was ok and talking about old stories. It was just a really nice interaction. It felt like what we would maybe do if we were not windsurfing anymore. It was great to check in and have a good laugh. The banter was next level as you might imagine. A podcast of some of those conversations would have been gold, but maybe also censored!
WATERSPORTS BOOM
Through my contacts as the agent for Gaastra in the UK, I quickly became aware there was a surge in people wanting to get out on the water last year. A lot of new gear was sold, as well as guys dusting off old gear from their shed. There were also a lot of new people coming into watersports, which was awesome. There was definitely an increase in the windsurfing market as well as SUP and wings. The pandemic has made people kind of realize the beauty of being able to get out on the water. It is good for you physically, but also helps your mental health too. We all need a bit of a break from what is going on around us and the best way for me is always to hit the water. If I was feeling a bit down, depressed or whatever, getting out on the water would always make me feel better. I don’t think it even matters what level you are at, water time is very therapeutic. It helped a lot of people in little ways!
WING FOILING
I took up wing foiling at the end of the summer in 2019. I just saw it as a way of getting out on the water on the days when the conditions were not good for wave sailing with small waves and light winds. I could go out and use my wing as a tool to catch waves and ride swells that I would never have previously imagined getting excited about. I saw the potential straight away after seeing the guys in Maui doing those downwinders on foils, riding swell for miles. I could see the potential for it on the Isle of Wight, to have some fun days when I would not normally even go out and do anything.
I could go slalom sailing or foiling, but my idea of slalom is doing it on a racecourse against other guys; by myself, I am not so interested. It is difficult for me to find the motivation to slalom sail alone. The wing filled that void for me. I could pump up a wing, grab my foil and be out there riding swells within five minutes. I could catch loads of waves that I could not catch surfing or windsurfing and have way more fun on my wing in marginal conditions. As it has developed there are now guys doing crazy loops and other moves on the wing. I can do a bit of that, but my main thing is riding waves. I want to get a group of my friends who are surfers, kiters or windsurfers and introduce them to winging, it’s something that we can do as a group and have fun. Coast runs, riding swells and the unlimited options are what appeals to me. It feels like you are flying and floating on an endless wave, so it really appeals to me. Wing foiling has sung to the surfer side of me and that is what I love about it.
Bracklesham Bay on the south coast of England, close to West Wittering, has long held a reputation as being a special spot on its day. John Carter was lucky enough to score such a day in the company of Paul Hunt, Emile Kott and local sailor Mark Perry; and from our March issue of Windsurf they reflect on a stormy evening on the south coast that served up some classic ‘Brack Magic’!
WORDS – John Carter, Paul Hunt, Emile Kott, Mark Perry.
PHOTOS – John Carter.
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JOHN CARTER
“In the sport of windsurfing we are all at the mercy of the elements. The wind and waves make their own rules in the UK and we have to go with the flow of what nature decides to deliver. One thing I do know is that my favourite session to photograph, given the choice, is the late session. I think this resonates with many sailors who work.
I’m not adverse to early mornings, don’t get me wrong, but how often do sailors score an awesome early session, but then have go back to their day jobs. At least with early mornings you have something under your belt I suppose, but that high of windsurfing can soon be wiped out with work problems or other stresses and by the end of the day, the session is a distant memory.
When the conditions fire up for an evening session at least you can focus purely on having fun and not having to get back to the grind! You can put work worries aside and escape from reality for a few hours. The late session is a time to immerse yourself in the water, cleanse your mind any of worries and share your passion with a few friends. Especially after a year like 2020! The clock can be ticking as darkness sets in, but as long as you have rammed in a few hours sailing, that is usually be plenty to finish your day on a high! Plus, a morning session can only be realistically rewarded with a coffee and a full English breakfast, whereas what can be better than finishing with an icy cold beer after a shred session at your favourite break.
I was lucky enough to experience one of those evenings when unexpectedly, the stars all lined up at Bracklesham on the south coast. My original plan for the day was to head down to Shoreham with Paul Hunt to shoot with Nik Baker on the low tide in the morning. The forecast was for a strong westerly up to 35 knots, but there was no real mention of any proper groundswell. Despite the wind being not quite as strong as expected, it was actually quite a fun session with Nik Baker, who is a master of making pretty average conditions look far better than they actually are. As the tide pushed up in the mid-morning, the real wind started kicking in, but Shoreham turned into a nasty shorebreak and would not be sailable for another 4-5 hours. I was ready to head home, but Hunty had other plans.
Apparently Hunty had a mate, Mark Perry, better known to his windsurfing compatriots as ‘Pezza’, who has a beachfront house at Bracklesham where we were welcome to come and park for a possible late session on the way home. I guess it sounded like a plan, so I went along with the flow. I didn’t really have a choice I suppose, especially as my current diary was not overloaded with windsurfing photo shoots! There was no rush since we were waiting for the tides to go down, so we ended up eating at an Italian restaurant with Nik Baker before heading off towards Bracks! Nik very kindly picked up the tab…maybe this day wasn’t working out so bad after all!
PEZZA’S PLACE
Around 3 p.m. we pulled up into the driveway of Pezza’s place and now I figured why Hunty was so keen to make this our base camp for the afternoon. I guess you could say the gods have been kind to Pezza, but no doubt he has grafted for many years in the real estate business to live in this location with such an amazing house. All I can say is that Pezza’s house is a windsurfer’s dream pad. Aptly name Storm Chase and located right on the beachfront, it was like something out of Grand Designs! Three elegant stories, with a huge open plan lounge in the middle overlooking the water. In the driveway there was a separate games room where I even spotted a table tennis table, sparking memories of my many wins at the Tiree Wave Classic Hynish Centre table tennis championships…with one noteworthy victory against Peter Hart who claimed to be a former UK schoolboy champion or something; this really was my dream house! (Editor’s note – JC’s claims of multiple table tennis wins on Tiree are still the subject of dispute from fellow competitors and tournament organisers with claims of over zealous celebrations of dubious point wins still being investigated.) We were cordially invited in for a cup of tea while we waited for the pesky tide to go down. It was still howling outside, so it looked game on for the evening. I was too busy drooling over this house to be too bothered about the upcoming windsurfing session, but the boys seemed quite excited that the conditions could turn on.
By about 4:30 p.m. the tide started to drop, revealing some decent banks that were throwing up head to logo high ramps. Hunty was referring to this as a windsurfing skate park and was genuinely excited as he rigged his 4.2m on Pezza’s immaculate lawn, ready to go session some ramps. Frustratingly, the moment the boys hit the water the wind dropped. Such is UK windsurfing. It had been blowing all day long and then puff, gone. The boys were floating around barely able to ride the waves. Jamie Hancock turned up about five and saw the boys grovelling but decided to chance it and rigged up. By 6 p.m. the wind had returned, a quick look at the Chimet weather buoy showed it had dropped to 18 knots but now was back with a bang and gusting over 30 knots!
THE GOLDEN HOUR
2020 has been a strange year that is for sure. For many of us our lives have been turned upside down, including myself, with most of my regular work being cancelled. But you have to soldier on and live your life. I always enjoy photographing UK storms, so personally it was nice to be back behind the camera, doing what I enjoy the most and things feeling a bit more like the old normal. The wind kicked in, the crew were having an awesome session and the evening light made it even more special. I could tell all the guys were enjoying themselves by the shrieks and hollers I could hear from the water. The late session of course had to draw to a close, but I think we were all happy to have shared this one. And of course, Pezza even had a beer fridge full of icy cold beer! Now we are talking!”
MARK PERRY
“Ever since I first planed on a windsurfer I have craved to feel that same feeling each time I arrive at the beach for a new session, hoping that it won’t be just one run before the wind goes! Such is our sport, you learn new things, maybe a trick here and there, but the pure sensation of flying off the beach is still the feeling I crave the most! Windsurfing and good sessions as we all know is not something we can take for granted, Mother Nature is too fickle for that, a session can be 5 minutes or two hours of joy!
As we continually monitor forecasts, juggle work and family commitments; there are sessions that inevitably stand out. If all the pieces of the jigsaw fit together, it becomes a ‘late session’ to remember! This Bracklesham evening was particularly special, it had been windy from the west all day, but had only produced short bone jarring chop in the morning! I went out but it was a nightmare session, so back to work.
The tide was full for the majority of the afternoon. Hunty calls in, ‘What do you reckon Pezza, is it looking alright?’ I was hesitant to call it on the drop, there were however the occasional swell lines coming through, enough to be hopeful! ‘If you don’t go, you don’t know!’ I said, ‘get over here!’ I put the call out to a few local friends, Hunty calls Jamie Hancock and all of a sudden we have the boys all twitching and crossing their fingers! The daylight hours are slipping away, the tide is falling and as it can, Bracklesham absolutely turned on. We had cross-shore wind, on 4.2 and 4.5’s, swell lines rolling through and this incredible light as the sun was falling. We sailed non-stop! Each of us carrying the mirrored reflection of our mate’s smiles from ear to ear! As ever with a late session you feel slightly like it’s a race against time, you know you only have so long, so each run just feels that bit more special.
We sailed until we could not see the waves anymore, cracked open some beers and looked over the sea as darkness came in. We would have loved to keep sailing, but with ‘late sessions’ they end when they end! I think along with all the other factors of course, that is what makes them stand out.
As we roll on through these bizarre times, keep well and healthy, keep searching for those special moments on the water, it has to be the best health tonic for us windsurfers! Wishing one and all a windy and healthy 2021!”
EMILLE KOTT
“Windsurfing is all about timing. For a great late session a lot of things have to fall into place: strong wind, fun waves, the right tide, not too cold, no rain or hail, a bit of sunshine and everything happening before it gets too dark! Add to that, the boys turning up to join you at your home spot just as everything turns on, a few well timed smacks followed directly by a nice cold beer… that sort of session is hard to beat.
It’s these little moments of magic that keep us all driving to wet and windy beaches in the rain, obsessing over forecasts and dropping family plans at the last second (sorry!) An on fire Bracklesham is just so much fun, the waves line up just that little bit better and have a bit more punch to give that taste of ‘Brack magic!’
PAUL HUNT
“Pezza’s place is becoming my local spot these days! We had sailed in Shoreham early doors and I was always planning on Bracklesham for the late session. With JC in tow, we arrived just before the tide started to run, but there was time for a quick cup of tea overlooking the break through the huge glass aspect of Peeza’s first floor kitchen before sailing. Carter was already making jokes about moving into the little summer house on the lawn. Actually, I think he was probably serious!
I hit the water on my 4.2 and flew out towards a good ramp, but upon landing the wind dropped and I had to spend the next 20 minutes dogging upwind to get back to shore and change up.
After a re-rig to a 4.7 the conditions really lit up, over head high waves, side-shore, and with an angry looking sky that the sun still shined through. It reminded me of some of the sunsets you see in Sylt. With only 4-5 of us out and no kitesurfers, this was my kind of sailing! All the boys were ripping and egging each other to go for it. The wind came back with a vengeance and blew its socks off until dark. When I finally collapsed in the garden after climbing the shingle mountain, I was pretty much broken. Pezza then rocks up and thrusts an ice-cold beer in my hand, I could have cried with happiness! We could have easily been sat on the hill at Ho’okipa or Margaret River, that beer really tasted just as good!
When Thomas Traversa drops a video of winter highlights you know it is all going to be about either huge or perfect waves. Never a dull moment in this clip where Thomas takes on some epic storms without ever holding back…even at Nazare!
The weather may have been poor, making photography difficult, but that didn’t stop Thomas Traversa becoming the first person to windsurf Nazaré at size in port tack conditions. From our April 2021 edition of Windsurf Magazine Thomas tells us more about the groundbreaking session.
WORDS – THOMAS TRAVERSA // PHOTOS – @siam_images / @charlie-paris.com, Heidi Hansen and Martial Jacquet
As I already had scored a session at Nazaré last November, I did not really have any plans to go back this winter… until ‘Charlie-Paris’, a watch company, got in touch with me around Christmas. They were keen on shooting a video with me there for the release of a new watch later in 2021. Honestly I was not sure we would get a good forecast, but we agreed on a budget and started to organize things, just in case.
GOING SOUTH
I had always been hoping to windsurf Nazaré with south winds, so that I could actually ride the big waves in front of the lighthouse. South winds are port tack, I thought it would be perfect to start on the main peak and ride down the line towards the north end of the beach. On my two first sessions there the wind was coming from the north, that is to say from the right… and on each wave ride I was looking down the line at this terrifying cliff, where the biggest waves were waiting to crush me if I could not find a quick exit.
LOGISTICS
In early February Windguru forecasted what I had been waiting for: strong south/southeast winds and a proper swell. It was an opportunity that I could not miss, so I got in touch with my friend Mat in Portugal and we started to organize the session. He would take care of filming with the help of a local crew, and it did not take long to convince Lourenco Katzenstein, a talented Portuguese big wave surfer to do the safety for me. Lourenco had driven the ski for me last November, so he knew what the mission was about and I totally trusted him. This time though it was a bit different as we had to ask for all kinds of authorizations because of the Covid-19 situation. Getting to Portugal was not a problem for me, but once we were there the vibe was so different from the usual Nazaré madness. Nobody is allowed on the water and on the weekends the country is under a strict lockdown, which means that there is no crowd allowed on the cliff, or even in town.
WEATHER
On the Saturday morning the swell looked solid and the wind was blowing at 20/25 knots cross-offshore. Unfortunately it started raining as soon as the sun rose, and it only got worse as the day went on. The forecast was for the wind to switch more onshore and to drop around midday, so we were ready super early and we left the harbour around 8 a.m. I was very excited, but a bit concerned by the conditions. During the morning check I noticed that the waves had a tendency to close out along the entire beach. It was not as peaky as it usually is; it looked more like very clean, but extremely long walls without much space to escape.
ACTION
As I arrived to the peak, sailing downwind from the harbour well powered on my 4.2, I got the feeling that it was going to be really tricky to get a wave without getting stuck inside, all the sets seemed to be closing out. I waited a few minutes until I decided it was time to roll the dice. I had a nice setup turn and was going for a second one when I realized that the wave was peeling way too fast. I had no choice but to go straight, and when the whitewater finally caught me, my mast snapped… and with it my hopes of having a dream session. I made it to the beach with the help of the jet ski, got another mast and tried to sail from the beach, even though I knew I had no realistic chance to make it through the 10 metre-high closeouts. I hurt myself on the first wave I tried to sail over, and after drifting for at least 20 minutes inside, without enough wind to do anything, I gave up and swam towards the beach. As a result I got smashed in the shorebreak, broke another mast, and then walked 20 minutes to get back to the car park in front of the main peak. I was literally broken, my arm was hurting, I had lost 2 masts already and to cap it all the film crew told me that they missed my first and only wave!
RESTART
The only option was to stay in my wetsuit, jump in a car, drive back to the harbour and restart everything from zero. I was very concerned with the pain in my arm but I decided to give it a try. This time I went with a 4.4 because I knew that the wind was extremely light on the inside and I approached the session with a different strategy. I noticed that the only place where the waves were not closing out was in front of the lighthouse at the south end of the beach. So I stayed there and waited for a set, with Lourenco next to me on his ski. I was feeling so much tension, so I focussed on breathing deeply, trying to relax a bit…and after a while I took my chance and went on the 3rd or 4th wave of the set.
THE BIG ONE
I was sailing towards the cliff waiting for the wall to stand up in front of me and dropped into a big choppy one. I made it safely to the shoulder without even really trying to do a turn, gybed out of the wave and managed to sail safely back to the outside; what a relief! After that first wave I got more confidence, the adrenaline kicked in and I had maybe 3 or 4 other waves, until I went on a big one that Lourenco signalled to me to go on. I was about to catch the one in front, but I’m glad I didn’t as this one was particularly big and very glassy, so I could set up a mid face bottom turn and do a top turn right under the section… that felt amazing, so much power and such a wild atmosphere. There had been much frustration at the start of the day, but finally I had my moment, definitely the biggest wave I have ever ridden out there, a real Nazaré wave.
ALL DONE
I knew it was time to head back to the beach after that, I had done my best. My brain took over the situation and I rode one last wave to the inside, feeling blessed to be relatively unharmed and to have ridden such a beast of a wave. I had to pay some dues though, my arm got badly bruised after getting it stuck in the boom while being punished in the whitewater earlier. Once the session was over, when I took off my wetsuit I saw had a deep cut behind my elbow so I had to go to the hospital to get stitches. It wasn’t a big deal, but one week later it still hurts above and below my elbow.
Sailing port tack Nazaré was even scarier and harder than what I thought, but now I know what it feels like, I definitely want to come back again with southerly winds and try to catch an even bigger one… it’s a lot of work, but it’s definitely worth it.
With a sharper graphical appearance, the GA Sail Hybrid HD continues to deliver easy progressive and useable power over an excellent wind range. Well priced, it is perfectly suited for covering distance whilst asking little of the rider, whatever the terrain.
OVERVIEW
GA Sails class their Hybrid as the “ultimate all-rounder”, stretching over eleven sizes and morphing from a user-friendly wave sail in the smaller sizes (3.7 to 4.7m) to an easy freemove motor in the mid sizes (5.2 to 6.4m) and onto a freeride engine in the largest sizes (6.7 to 8.2m). Sporting the same dimensions and panel layout as the 6.0m Hybrid tested last year, its design remains unchanged for 2021 … yet the visual appearance has been sharpened with a colour-coded tack fairing and the graphical printing standing out more. Rigged on a C100 RDM mast, the Hybrid is also compatible with SDMs … an attribute that’s becoming increasingly rare in this size sail. It sets with a progressive amount of looseness extending along its leech, with a moderate amount of luff curve and only a subtle degree of shaping evident in the lower panels at rest. The bottom two battens retain rotation around the mast, even on maximum tension, and there are two closely located eyelets to choose from in the clew.
BRAND CLAIM
“Enjoy the performance and ease of use of the Hybrid everywhere you rig it!”
PERFORMANCE
Light and neutral in the hands at idle, the Hybrid soon makes its presence known as the wind increases, its long boom length generating a good deal of useful feedback and pressure through the back hand. Power delivery is smooth and progressive instead of punchy or electric, the movement and give in the large luff sleeve complimented with the stretch in the tapered Dacron luff panel. Couple this with a centre of effort that is located low and forward in the draft and the Hybrid’s energy is both soft and accommodating, sweet-talking the board onto the plane and asking for little from the rider. Balanced and easy, the low down pull helps to pin the board to the water and encourages the rider into a naturally locked in stance, the sail feeling every square centimetre its quoted size. As the wind increases, the feedback continues to build through the back hand, really providing something to harness and counter through the hands – ideal for the novice pilot learning to understand the nuances of planing technique … or the power hungry. And if the pressure begins to get too much, a quick practical re-tuning method is to keep the same boom length, but switch from the top to bottom clew eyelet. The extra little outhaul applied (and the increased boom rake) might be just enough to help settle the sail’s stability. If not, a quick trip to the beach and increase in downhaul tension helped to demonstrate the Hybrid’s excellent tuning range. A soft and flexible sail, the Hybrid’s easy sympathetic character is also a real benefit to the progressing rider during transition, the profile of the sail contracting as it is eased out, making it more manageable to reposition, before the power returns gradually once sheeted in on the new tack. More straight-line and freeride focussed than others here, the Hybrid remains an easy practical choice whatever the sailing location, and at this price is well worth consideration
Big, bold and powerful, the Matrix is a master at making the most of light variable winds, providing constant useable feedback through the back hand for accessible performance. And as the wind increases, the tuning range is there to help maintain balance and control.
OVERVIEW
The Matrix is the high performance no-cam freeride sail from GA Sails, sitting between the crossover Hybrid (tested last month) and twin-cam Cosmic in their lineup. Completely revised for the 2020 season, there have reportedly been some additional updates for this year, including a slight increase in luff curve for improved tension and stability, a concentration of the sail’s profile further forward to reduce backhand pressure, and a change in the foot outline to make it more race oriented. Available in two distinct colourways, using 5-mil coloured monofilm in its upper panels, it was tested here on a 100 SDM and sets with a moderate to high amount of luff curve, the three lowest battens retaining plenty of rotation around the mast at rest. There are two luff panels – an outer x-ply panel extending the length of the sail and an inner tapered one, made of what GA are calling Elite Dacron, said to be “ultra flexible, keeping the draft forward”. There are no visual tuning gauges provided, yet there’s plenty of tuning range to play with, the leech falling away progressively to batten five yet remaining relatively tight in the panel above the clew.
BRAND CLAIM
“Reaching pure performance without any cambers – the Matrix combines a locked-in racing feeling with ease of use.”
PERFORMANCE
Comparing the Matrix to others in the group, it boasts some of the largest dimensions here, and is a quality that becomes clear as soon as you take it to the water. Set for marginal winds, the Matrix generates plenty of bottom end grunt, feeling solid and powerful through the back hand and transferring its energy efficiently to the board. It accelerates smoothly and feels useful throughout, pulling through the lulls and providing an extra gear in the gusts. It is certainly one of the top performers of the group in these conditions, helping to ignite the board and get it flying efficiently on its fin on all points of sail.
The centre of effort is focussed low down and around the rider, the pull feeling constant yet balanced in both hands. As the wind increases the Matrix can be re-tuned with more tension, helping the upper panels to twist off evenly and keep the draft locked forward. Using the lower clew eyelet, there is no getting away from the Matrix’s size, feeling big in the hands and becoming even more noticeable in transition. In these conditions, it may lose out in the high-end slippery stakes to others, yet its stability is impressive, remaining manageable and balanced long after we envisaged it becoming a handful. And in choppy, turbulent seas, the movement and softness through the Dacron luff panel became a real asset, allowing the rider to maintain a locked-in, committed stance as the sail moved around them.
From our May 2021 issue our test team review the 2021 GA Sails Hybrid Foil 1200 2021.
THEY SAY
“The Hybrid Foil offers all-round performance and the freedom to customize the foil to your individual requirements.”
WE SAY
The GA Sails Hybrid foil lineup has been revised for 2021, with two distinct foil sets now available – one specifically targeted towards wing foiling, and the other for wind foiling. The wing foiling version comes with a 2000 cm2 front wing and plate head piece; the wind foiling option tested here with a 1200 cm2 front wing and Deep Tuttle head adaptor. The good news though is that both Hybrid sets are fully modular, meaning you can mix and match fixings, front wing sizes and fuselage lengths to suit your preference. There is a 900 cm2 front wing for the stronger winds or lighter riders (akin to last season’s Hybrid) or topping the stats is the 2500 cm2 for those light airs. Both kits are presented well in a compartmentalised canvas bag, making it an attractive and cost-effective proposition for foiling in both sports. We got on really well with the Hybrid last year, so it would be good to see how this second-generation offering faired.
The first thing to note is that as foiling matures and beds down in our sport, it’s only natural that some design parameters become more standardised. It’s not surprising therefore that the new Hybrid sports longer mast and fuselage lengths than its predecessor, its predictability and riding comfort all the better for it. Getting going smoothly, the Hybrid gathers pace progressively, feeling balanced through both feet and easy to control. It can be sailed tentatively, with a more measured, sedate riding style, capable of gliding at low speeds and continuing to generate lift without stalling – a great attribute for the novice foiler. For the more experienced rider, there is plenty of performance to explore though, the Hybrid thriving on being loaded and reaching an impressive speed on all points of sail. It drives well upwind, cutting a high angle and accelerates wonderfully off the wind, albeit requiring engagement and concentration from the pilot. Best described as a freerace foil, it has the ease and practicality to really endear itself to the recreational sailor, with the performance range and comfort to even enter into some recreational races without any hint of embarrassment.
We tried it in a number of different boards, from foil-specific to hybrid platforms and also some compact freeride options. Fixing the GA in place was relatively uncomplicated, the play in the barrel nuts of the foil’s head helping to line the screws up with a little fine-tuning and patience. And once in place the GA is as straight forward and plug-and-play as they come; there are four shims to fine-tune the ride if required … yet neutral without any shim seemed to work well for most setups. It complimented all the boards we charged it with, asking few questions and simply getting on with its task. In transition, its stability and ability to provide lift at varying speeds was once again noticeable, making it feel quite playful and dependable through the carve. Drive in hard or prescribe a more drawn-out arc, the GA will simply go with the flow and offer every chance of coming out of the turn in full flight. A real all-rounder, the new generation Hybrid builds upon the solid foundations of its predecessor, championing it with even more range, versatility and rider appeal.
February 2021 saw the UK’s lowest temperature since 1995 being recorded in Braemar, Scotland, where it got down to -23.0 °C! But alongside the freezing temperatures, the month brought a rare combo of east winds and a monster south swell, which was enough to tempt Ross Williams and Timo Mullen to brave the elements at Kimmeridge and the Isle of Wight; From our May 2021 Issue they tell us more about their sub-zero sessions.
WORDS JOHN CARTER // ROSS WILLIAMS // TIMO MULLEN
PHOTOS JOHN CARTER // HOWARD SHEP
KIMMERIDGE
Timo Mullen – “Windsurfing and surfing during lockdown has been a bit like pushing blocks of ice up an icy hill! We moved to a new house last year to live closer to Kimmeridge Bay, but one week after moving the UK went into a full lockdown. Since then, access to Kimmeridge has been quite restricted. The access to Kimmeridge is on private land so the estate that owns the land closed the toll road to all vehicles to help protect the small local community who live at Kimmeridge. This meant the only way to access the breaks at Kimmeridge was to either come in by foot, bike or by boat, all these options involve a big effort, especially with windsurfing gear. Throw into the mix it has been a pretty cold winter and going windsurfing has suddenly become all but impossible!
GET ON YOUR BIKE
I have never been one to let obstacles get in my way and like to rise to a challenge! Kimmeridge is a special place and the fact it is now only fourteen minutes from our house makes it my closest beach, so I had to think outside of the box if I was to windsurf there this winter! A few years ago, I joined the e-bike revolution, yup I hear all the die-hard cyclists tut tutting, but truth be told I hate cycling! I find it boring and my Lycra fetish is equal to my sticking nettles down my pants fetish, so yeah anything to make cycling more appealing then sign me up! But I have hardly used the thing and until recently has made an amazing wetsuit rack! But with a bit of searching on ebay I found an inexpensive bike trailer that looked sturdy enough for all my gear and paired with my e-bike I now had a new Kimmeridge taxi! My first attempts at riding the bike with trailer were all good. It was easy thanks to the electric motor on the hills; it did take a while to load up securely, but once loaded it was fine. The only drawback, which is something you wouldn’t normally moan about, was there was nobody else down at the bay!
Fortunately, there has not been too many epic Kimmeridge forecasts during this lockdown so despite having the means to get to the beach I was not exactly rushing to sail on my own, for safety and social reasons! I decided that if I was going to go there, it would have to be an epic forecast to warrant the hassle involved.
PUMPING
And sure enough, an epic forecast came up for Kimmeridge – a pumping SW groundswell and rare port tack cross-off winds; the sort of forecast you wait all year for! There was only one slight downside, east winds in winter in the UK usually mean extremely low temperatures and this day was looking freezing; -5.0 °C plus the wind chill on top! As these days are so rare I had to put the temperature out of my mind and focus on the epic surf and wind!
On arrival it looked like it was pumping. I had packed everything to make the cold more bearable – my Dryrobe, my 6/4 wetsuit, a fleece, gloves, my hot portable shower (check my Instagram for more on that!) and of course a massive dose of “Man the f*** up!” I was already freezing from the cycle ride in, so when I arrived at the beach I was already struggling. Plus, it was only 9 a.m. as the wind was forecast to drop later in the day, so I was heading out at the coldest time of day! But seeing the first logo high sets explode on the reef soon warmed me up mentally, even though I was rigging up beside ice-covered puddles!
FREEZING
I opted for gloves obviously, but as normal with gloves after ten minutes my arms were cramping up and my hands were still freezing! So I stuffed them down my wetsuit and just got stuck in! There is a point of pain that you just must go through in winter that once surpassed, the cold burning pain goes away! After going through that threshold I was fine with no gloves for the two hours I was windsurfing.
The conditions were firing – logo high and I was on my Severne Blade 4.7m and Severne Mako 91, but the weird thing was my brain was working in slow motion because of the cold. It was hard for my mind to focus. Sailing in these extreme low temperatures is not only a physical extreme but also a mental one! After a few hours of blasting airs and carves, the cold got the better of me and it was time to head in to what I already knew would be the worst part of the day – the thawing out of my hands!
Yep, we have all been there, the torture chamber called the reheats, when the warm blood starts to creep back into the tips of your frostbitten fingers! It is hell and I would say this was the worst I have ever felt. I will give it a score of 10/10 for pain!
So, was it all worth it? Obviously, I would say yes! The satisfaction and sense of achievement in sailing such weather extremes is the same as any other extreme windsurfing challenge like sailing big waves or taking on nuclear winds! Battling the elements brings out the ‘Scott of the Antarctic’ in us all, but this day in particular with all the elements and the bike ride surely made it one to remember!”
VENTNOR
Ross Williams – “It was close to the limit of what I would go out in temperature wise at Ventnor, but the conditions were too good to let go and it was sunny with this amazing wintery low light. Two days of howling east winds had kicked up a solid swell and it was firing but extremely cold.
I have not experimented with many types of gloves, so I just use the palmless ones as they still give me a decent grip on the boom and a degree of protection from the cold. Every time I have used proper gloves, they have pumped up my arms so much I can’t even sail. It was bitterly cold and on the limits of what I could endure. I didn’t waste any time rigging and figured the quicker I just rig and not procrastinate the better. Keep active…keep warm! After a short time sailing my little finger and index finger had gone completely numb and I could not even feel them; it was verging on frostbite! When I came in they started to warm back up, and when the blood started to pump back in I was in agony with the reheats!
It was a challenge to even consider going out, but the conditions were enough to warrant the pain. Ventnor in an easterly can be epic sailing and I knew it was firing. Once you are out there sailing and moving around then you naturally warm up with the adrenaline. You forget about the cold a little bit. It is also quite a nice feeling when you have come in that you have conquered sailing in these conditions and survived that battle with the elements. I found coming out of the water gradually is best for warming up. If you rush out and immediately try and heat up then you can heat up too fast and get those awful reheats!
At Ventnor as I waded through the shallows on the way in I was dipping my hands in and out of the water and blowing on them. I was slowly bringing my hands back to life! I felt like that saved me a little bit. Even so, I still had some pain in my hands. Obviously standard for me these days is having a dry wetsuit, boots, gloves and hood before I go out. I try and stay warm while I am rigging and get changed in the warmth of the van. It is easy for your hands to go numb while you are getting changed if you have wet icy gloves and are outside – that is no fun, believe me. I have three or four winter wetsuits ready to go on a good day. I look ahead and make sure I am prepared.
COMPTON
I think I sailed a little bit more conservative to begin with. I knew I was only going to be able to sail for an hour, perhaps an hour and a half so I didn’t want to go for a ‘Hail Mary’ 360 on the first wave and break everything! If I had to come in, most likely I would get cold and maybe not want to go back out. I think you have to build up your bank of moves in the cold the same as in a competition. The cold does limit your ability a little bit.
Both sessions were fun, but Compton was a bit bigger with a few big airs to hit. The waves were clean and smooth so I would say that was one of my better sessions of the winter. Port tack is probably my more favourable riding tack because I am a goofy foot surfer. It was just nice to score a few rides with multiple sections. Luckily I landed some nice big aerials, that felt great. It was a rare set of conditions for the island. The conditions were epic with solid swell and good wind. It was just about manageable and worth the burn.
My top tips are go to the beach warm, have a warm drink with you if possible, make sure your wetsuit and hood etc. are all dry before you leave home and don’t hang around too much before you go in. You need to stay active on the water and don’t just sail back and forwards.
Make sure you catch some waves to help move your body around. When you are physically riding you warm up quick. If you are plodding around you can definitely get cold!”
Fearless French rider, Thomas Traversa was the first person to windsurf Nazaré at size in port tack conditions and here is the insane video of the session.
