For the endless hours of work Boujmaa Guilloul put into bringing a PWA event to Moulay, Morocco, there was a bittersweet reward with conditions for the event. A huge swell maxed out Moulay during the holding period, making it unsuitable for competition but the perfect stage for Boujmaa to show his incredible skills in XXL surf. Boujmaa, John Carter and Duncan Coombs tell us more about a very special session.

Words  John Carter, Boujmaa Guillol, Duncan Coombs //  Photos  John Carter

Originally published within the June ’18 edition.

John Carter
I had been excited about the Wednesday forecast before I even left home, especially after we missed a really good day while we travelled to Morocco. The forecast was promising between 3.6 and 4.2 metres at 17 seconds and winds 20-30 knots from the north east for the PWA women’s competition. Come the day, when we drove over the hill coming into Moulay, it was quite disappointing since the swell had not really kicked in and the wind was light offshore. By mid-morning however the swell had kicked in rapidly and was building by the hour. The conditions were way too extreme for the PWA women’s competition and too much for a jet ski to stay on the water safely. At low tide a few of the girls ventured out and could play around on the inside reforms with little risk. By 2pm it seemed like it was all over.
The competition was called off and everybody had come in from sailing because it was so extreme. I was actually about to leave back for our hotel when I thought I better check with Boujmaa in case he had plans to sail elsewhere. I found him rigging his sail at his centre and he was planning to go out and try along with Antoine Martin. As soon as he hit the water I realized how big the waves out the back were breaking. Somehow he scored a lucky break and found a way through the mountains of whitewater and disappeared way out on the horizon. Even with all the people on the hill watching it was hard to keep track where he was miles out in all the chaos. What if he went down out there? How would he make it back in? After making it upwind we suddenly saw a mast tip drop down a monster right out the back which must have been three or four times mast high. Weirdly the wave rumbled into a surge of whitewater and he stayed in front of it until it started to reform into a clean right-hander on the inside. The next thing we know Boujmaa was laying it down and headed towards a huge bowling lip. Everyone on the hill was cheering as he smacked a huge aerial and landed in the flats. Meanwhile poor Antoine Martin was still stuck on the inside and heading in with his mast broken in several pieces and gear in tatters. It was not long before ‘Bouj’ was racing back out and headed towards a monster ramp! Would he make it over or was it going to close out on him. Once again the hill was applauding as he flew up into the air above the ridiculous ramp. After catching two or three more monsters and making it back out unscathed I think he realized that he had used up all of his lives and sailed back into the beach to a standing ovation. Now that was some session. Later in the evening we headed into Essaouira where he tried to sail a slab off the harbour wall but the tide was too high and the sea so chaotic that the wave was not really working. I had never expected Moulay to be so extreme and to witness such an amazing session. After all the behind the scenes efforts Boujmaa had put into bringing the PWA, IWT and windsurfing into Morocco it was now his moment to shine and just reward for all his hard work.

Boujmaa Guilloul
I had only seen big waves in Moulay a couple of times before, but only with whitewater out to the horizon, stormy and not sailable. This time, although it was huge it was just about ‘doable’, but too risky for the girls without safety cover on the water, the seas were way too hectic for a rescue jet ski to be out there. It was the biggest windsurfing session I have ever had in Moulay. When I was trying to organize this event I was dreaming of a day like this.

I was on my big board, my Starboard UltraKode 86 litre Kevin Pritchard pro model that I normally use in light wind conditions and a 4.5m prototype Severne. I was very lucky to make it out the back. There was a tiny window between the waves and once I was past the inside bowl I could sneak over the reforms to make it right out to the horizon. I was really far out the back and it was still double mast high or bigger out there. I caught one monster set that brought me right into the inside where it was sketchy. I was not sure if I could make it back out. I felt I could lose everything if I were to be wiped out. I just scratched over a huge wall of whitewater and made it back out again. Out the back I tried to keep my emotions neutral, not freak out and not think about any consequences or worst-case scenarios. I was thinking more about where to line up on the wave and be in the water. I know how Moulay works so I knew where to be.

I think there was some kind of sandbank right out the back that was making the huge swells break. It was massive out the back, I was about two miles offshore and it was still over double mast high or bigger. When I took off I was way under gunned. I needed a heavy big board; the speed that was generated dropping down the wave was ridiculous. I had to trust my fins! Luckily my rear thruster 19cm MFC fin was gripping very well, I had changed to it just before I went out. I needed it to get back outside! The best sets were upwind and after the big drop they broke and then reformed on the inside sandbar where they broke again into a nice peeling right. When you kick out of the inside, it is what I would call a ‘quiet spot’, well not quiet but less hectic. There was tonnes of current and huge sets coming at me so I was very lucky.
When I headed back out there was a vertical solid double mast high wave. I was about to gybe and then I just decided to jump it. I went for it and was just trying to get over the wave but it took me up. It took me so far out behind the wave I was already like eight metres high and then behind the wave it felt another eight to come back down, it was insane! It was a huge descent and the wave was sheltering the wind; I was just floating in the air and came down really heavily. The session lasted about an hour and I got to the point where I felt I was safe, had ridden a few waves and then I sailed in rather than risk everything. I did not want to break my gear, I want it to last another year. Swimming two hours would not be a problem but losing my gear was my main fear.

It was very humbling and at the same time exciting to be out there. I didn’t know what to expect but somehow I felt like I was in the right place at the right time. I know how the currents work and so I said to myself if it goes wrong I just have to surrender and let things be. It was an amazing experience and I hope I can have this sort of session every now and then. Jaws is scary, but this was beyond fear. I enjoyed the session for sure. I was pushing my limits and felt like it was one step further than I had ever been before and I had achieved a new high. That was as extreme as Moulay gets and history was made. Big Wednesday, the 4th of the 4th 2018. I will never forget that day.
Duncan Coombs
Big Wednesday in Moulay we saw Boujmaa go out on the high tide when the swell was maxed out and the biggest. It was so impressive to see him handle those conditions. He knows the spot so well that he was able to pick off waves that were not closing out. He had the balls to actually hit the lip and be out there amongst it. It was incredible to see. The waves were breaking all the way to the horizon, maybe two or three miles out, we could not really tell if he was ever out the back! I am not sure if there even was an ‘out the back’! It looked like he was risking his life. There was no ski or rescue. If he went down out there he would have probably been swimming for one or two hours. We saw him hit 30 foot ramps out the back and jump another 30 foot in the air. He must have been sixty feet up on the other side of the wave. That was equal to watching Traversa, Brawzinho or Leon Jamaer at the Red Bull Storm Chase. Boujmaa has been on the ‘Storm Chase’ so he is used to those extreme conditions. It was a little bit trickier in Moulay I think, the wind was comparatively light and there was no channel at all. He had to punch his way through double mast high sets just to be amongst it. The hill on the top of Moulay was packed with tourists and all the crew from the PWA and IWT. It was truly a spectacle to behold. It was something I will always remember; some of those walls of whitewater were double mast high! I don’t think I have seen seas like that apart from at the Red Bull Storm Chase, but he was out there on his own without safety.

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