NORTH SHORE - SUPER STORM

Cancelled flights, closed roads, landslides and snow, are not normally events you associate with the Canary Islands, but the havoc of Storm Emma extended well into the southern flank of Europe. While Lanzarote, Tenerife and Gran Canaria battled the storm’s effects, windsurfers on Fuerteventura saw the unusual weather pattern bring strong winds and one of the best swells in years. A crew of locals and visiting pros tell us more about the epic conditions that lit up the island’s infamous North Shore.

Words Leon Jamaer, Iballa Moreno, Thomas Traversa, Julien Taboulet, Yannick Anton // Photos Gwen Marche / Fuerteluz Project, Sophia Regerbis, Moncho Gil, Alfredo Vera Perez, Lucas Ruggirello, Tof & JB.

This feature originally appeared in the May 2018 issue of Windsurf Magazine

THOMAS TRAVERSA
I stayed in France all winter but we had a plan to go on a family trip at some point. A good forecast for the Canary Islands came at the right time and I knew it was going to be epic in Fuerteventura, so it was an easy call. I have spent a lot of time on that island in the past and there are different spots that can deliver amazing conditions with westerly winds and a decent swell.

I did not expect the wind to be that strong, I had never used a smaller sail than 4.0 in Fuerteventura prior to this trip, so I only brought sails from 4.0 up to 4.7. I was on my medium / big board, 220 x 55 cms and 70 litres, with my normal fin setup, 15 and 10 cm thrusters, just my normal equipment. I like to feel good with my board when conditions are big so I prefer to use a board I know, with the settings I am used to.

On the first day the wind was howling, 30 to 40 knots I think, so I was really overpowered on a 4.2, but the waves were so clean that it was still very fun to sail. I had 2 sessions that first day but ended up having a bad crash and tweaked my ankle so I missed the biggest waves on the second day. On that first day I had a couple of airs, even though I was more trying to link solid turns together on most of my waves. This spot only has 2 different sections to hit, the outside bigger section and the inside bowl. Because the wind was so strong, the outside section was hard to play with, so I was only trying to hit the inside bowl, which is very hollow and runs really quickly down the line. The wind was very offshore and on one of my attempts a strong gust lifted me after hitting the lip with a lot of speed. I knew from the beginning that the wind was going to blow me out the back of the wave, but the feeling of going up in the air so quickly was truly amazing! Technically it wasn’t anything special, but was still a very fun moment!

We were fortunate enough to get more wind later in the week, and with the swell staying solid I could sail 2 more times with over mast high waves.

The vibe is really nice in Fuerteventura when there are good conditions; it is heavy and mellow at the same time. Sunny, warm and picture perfect, it is kind of unreal. Because the waves are so clean when it’s on, it makes it very fun to sail, even though the waves can be massive and have a lot of power. Back in 2004 or 2005 I had a memorable session at the same spot with similar conditions, big swell and strong wind, so I really enjoyed coming back more than 10 years later and scoring several days in a row with a few friends on the water.

^{“ I was really overpowered on a 4.2, but the waves were so clean that it was still very fun to sail. ”}

YANNICK ANTON
I live in Fuerteventura and winter is the time of year to enjoy windsurfing with the best swells on the island. The locals and I could sail many days every week, but as we all have jobs (for me it is with the windsurfing school Sailsense), we normally only sail on the best days and work the others. Like other windsurfers I check windguru once a day, which gives us a good idea of what’s coming. The forecast was very nice for a week of waveriding on the north shore. One day especially stood out with big swell like we can have a few times during winter. The nice thing of being in Fuerteventura is that every day of windsurfing is special, because it changes a lot. We all know where to go depending on the conditions, and on the type of wave we want to sail. There are many possibilities, so we go to the coast, check one or two spots and go where we like the most.

The Witchcraft Haka 74 is my go-to board for most conditions together with a set of Witchcraft Slayer sails, which are powerful with a lot of drive and not twitchy, so they don’t do weird things. When the swell gets heavier on the island, all I change is put a bigger centre fin in to hold more pressure on the top turn, but other than that the stock fins work really well on the Haka. During this week I took time off for 3 sessions, 3 good sessions, exceptional sessions I would say if I were not living here! The first day I went to Caleta, it was mast high, side-offshore wind grooming the waves and turquoise water – perfect. Guys in the water were going fast down the line, carving on some sweet sections. I had to coach two guys there before going for it myself. When I was free, I went to the big wave spot because the orientation of the swell meant it was getting in there a bit better with some sections a bit punchier then Caleta. I got some very nice waves there, trying to surf clean lines and attack just when a good opportunity set up.

The second day had heavy waves and strong winds forecast. So I went directly to the big wave spot to meet some friends that were about to launch from there. There was a lot of whitewater, strong currents and outside there were some very heavy sets with good wind but not too strong. These sort of days I like to check from the land before going in because I really need to understand how it works, even though I know the place well because I’ve spent lots of time windsurfing and surfing there. But it’s important to check it to have plans in case of issues. After seeing what my friends were doing in the water, I decided to launch further down where there is a channel with no waves to go out, so very easy. It was 15 minutes to get upwind, but during that time the wind conditions got stronger and more offshore. I was overpowered with a 3.7. I tried two waves, completely out of control, too much wind, too choppy; I could not even get down the wave. When conditions get so difficult like that for me I prefer to leave it for another day, there are plenty of other nice sessions to enjoy here. And in fact, next day was for sure a lot smaller, but still some nice sets, and within one hour I got so many nice waves with extra clean bottom turns that I forgot about the previous day where I couldn’t enjoy any!

^{“During this week I took time off for 3 sessions, 3 good sessions, exceptional sessions I would say if I were not living here!”}

IBALLA MORENO
With this forecast there was only a few options. I sailed a spot next to this one before the big session. The wind was gusty and difficult, so then I drove to this spot and Stephane Etienne went in the water, so I didn’t think twice about it! I rigged and jumped in. It’s a difficult spot to launch from, but I managed to make it out safely by waiting for a lull in the sets. Thomas Traversa got injured this day but he was ripping! I went in the water just after him. I used a 3.7 sail and I was totally overpowered! It was hard to do a bottom turn even….but it was fun to experience a new challenge! We normally don’t see such strong winds in the north shore of Fuerteventura.

I will always remember this day as I went in the water and shared some waves with Stephane and a local friend Bob Remarks…who is always happy to join in some sessions! This winter has been good in Fuerteventura. I was travelling between islands a lot and searching always for the best waves. November and December were difficult months as our Dad passed away, but In January we got back on track and started training and getting our lives back together.

^{“We normally don’t see such strong}^{winds in the north shore of Fuerteventura”}

LEON JAMAER
I was in Fuerte’ with just a surfboard some years ago and surfed this wave on the north shore. It wasn’t big, but on the sets I could see the potential of this left-hander and set a goal to come back one day to windsurf it. From Google earth I knew which wind direction is side-off, so I basically just had to wait for the right forecast. It got really cold at home in Germany towards the end of February and we were playing ice hockey on the frozen lakes and I knew this big high pressure system would stir low pressures further south. I monitored this particular low pressure for some time and eventually saw the wind would be just perfect for three to five days in a row with plenty of swell. Thomas Traversa and I were in contact and he gave me the final nod that it should be really good, so we both booked our flights. I arrived a day before the big swell. From the airport I drove straight to the spot, met Thomas and had a good warm up session in over mast high waves. Unfortunately Thomas tweaked his ankle on a bad crash and couldn’t join me the next day. I went to the same spot and watched for more than an hour, not sure to go out or not because it looked huge, stormy and the channel was small. Finally, I decided to give it a try with a local photographer on the rocks watching me in case something would go wrong. Being by myself between mountains of water was unreal and it reminded me of those huge and fast open ocean swells in Hawaii. I was fully powered up on a 4.2 and my 88 litre board felt good, especially with a really forgiving and control oriented K4 fins quad setup. I used a 10cm asymmetric prototype with 2 degree angle and 70/30 (outside/inside) foil. For rear fins I used 15cm Scorchers on the big days and a 15cm Leon when it was around mast high and smaller.

I had lots of waves, but at the same time tried to not crash and destroy my only small rig on the rocks. When I came back to shore, happy and already completely exhausted, Julien Taboulet and Stephane Etienne were just getting ready. After a quick break I couldn’t resist to join them for a second session. This time I wanted to risk more and really hit the lip. Eventually, I found a wave that looked good for an air. Everything went as anticipated until the wind took me so far up into the air I completely lost orientation and let go. The waves behind cleaned me up and sent me straight back to shore. That evening we had a big dinner with Thomas and his family, Julien and the rest of the French gang and relived the day. There wasn’t much time for rest because the following days were still windy. Thomas’s foot felt better again and we had a lot more sessions, often having the waves to ourselves or, once in a while, being accompanied by one of the locals. After four days we were completely surfed out and our bodies aching for rest. We weren’t sad when the wind stopped as we then had some great days surfing. Fuerte’s north shore has a different spot every few hundred metres for all possible wind directions. I definitely want to come back as I think I have a good feeling for the wave now and can start pushing things a bit more, especially when it’s big. Sailing with Thomas and seeing his fearless yet safe and experienced approach in big waves is really inspiring and motivates me to sail more critically in big waves!

^{“Being by myself between mountains of water was unreal and it reminded me of those huge and fast open ocean swells in Hawaii”}

JULIEN TABOULET
I had been busy with my family at my watersports business, the Wesh Center crew, preparing for the new season as we are opening on the 1st of April. On Saturday, as I was knee deep between screws and pieces of wood, my friends Jean-Baptiste Caste and Thomas Traversa called and motivated me to come for a big swell arriving in Fuerteventura! I was rushing to get all my work done, look after my kids (3 ha ha ha), the business and organization of the Mondial du Vent… but Caroline and my friends in Leucate just told me: “Wesh just go, it’s your job, big waves, you love that!!!!” I was on the plane Tuesday afternoon, and in a good restaurant Tuesday night in Corralejo! I have known this place for a long time; I broke my first mast in Cotillo beach in 1990 when I was 10 years old!

Crazy story, crazy session! When I arrived on the spot, another friend (Christophe, I didn’t know that he was here) from the south of France was there, and he told me: “Wesh, the wind is too strong and the waves are way too big, I don’t want to die, take your board and give me your camera!” Yes, one year before I sold him my Goya 79 litre and I was just here with my new 85 litre, so it was perfect timing, just unbelievable!

4.0 sail and my small custom quad from Keith Teboul, I was ready to start the fight with this ocean on fire! The launch was just crazy, Stephane Etienne, the chief of the spot, showed Leon Jaemer and I the way out, but I still nearly wiped out on big rocks just 5 metres away. This is the kind of wave where the only way to ride is to go at it 150%! If you stay on the shoulder, the wind just blows you out the side. So you need to go deep if you really want to ride the beast. So scary but so intense, big adrenaline, just awesome! I got one big crash, I made a barrel with all my stuff, that was mad, big washing machine I can tell you!!!! These kind of days you are reminded how nature can be so powerful and how windsurfing can be one of the most radical sports in the world. These are the sort of waves I like riding! This session was for sure one of the best of my life, and the beer was two times better that night, I slept like a baby!