These Fair Isles

Over the last few seasons I have set myself the task to really start to explore places slightly closer to home. Home for me is the Isle of Wight, a small island on Britain’s south coast that is naturally graced with some for the best water sports conditions that this part of the world has to offer. If there is one thing that the era of Covid taught us, it is there is more than meets the eye at your home spots. Now with the added addition of ‘foil goggles’ and the never-ending thrill of the storm chase, there are so many more spots that are open to us… and with the right tools for the job, nothing that can’t be shredded… After a period of seemingly strange goings on in the world, as soon as the coastlines started to open up again, it set me to wonder what conditions, beaches, breaks and Big Air spots existed right on our doorsteps here in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland – the lesser explored shores. Fueling that curiosity, the #freeridekingdoms project began. My aim: to explore the British Isles to find the best spots for freeriding and discover more of this un-shredded land that I am blessed to live on, to open up more possibilities that don’t rely on international travel, while finding a new love for my homeland and putting to good use all the latest equipment that I am blessed to have.

When you start to really look into the plethora of amazing places, huge stretches of untouched coastline, it’s hard to know where to start. From the highlands of Scotland and its lochs and lineups that grace the furthest northern shores battered by North Sea low pressure systems, to the west coast of Ireland and the Wild Atlantic Way, there are hundreds of miles of undulating coastline, cliffs and exposed point breaks, slabs, massive beaches and un-surfed waves. That’s without even considering the west coast of Wales, tucked in the Irish Sea, graced by the prevailing southwesterly storms that can deliver some of the most insane high wind strengths and focused swell, or the Cornish coastlines, iconic for surfing but with beaches like Gwithian or Exmouth being known for massive storm sessions. Even the east coast of England and Norfolk or the northern beaches of Blackpool… Where, when and for how long?! This is now my mission to explore and find those epic conditions, what works best and when, and then execute the adventure to ride those spots. So far, we have scored two of the best freeride trips of the year in Scotland and Ireland.

When you are planning any kite trip, the hardest part is often deciding what gear to take, especially when you need to be prepared for anything, any sport, any conditions and any weather. Be it cold rain, snow, sunshine or 70+ knots, you need to choose the quiver wisely! From surfboards to e-foils and everything in between, every option enables us to make the most of our time. Also most importantly, every good trip needs a good crew. So we selected carefully those dedicated to the shred. It’s all about maximum water time, high energy, maximum stoke and the ability to make the most of what ever Mother Nature can throw at us. The crew included pro windsurfer Ross William, who moved back from Hawaii to open a cafe on the Isle of Wight, enticed back by the turquoise water and barreling waves… oh no wait… that was Hawaii. Now forced to make the most of the brown water and riding foils on the big days, he was ready to get the shred missions underway. With a full lineup of skills, he’s a true waterman. Next to make the cut was Dougie Newell, a ride-or-die homie with a natural hand at any sport he touches. Prone foiling, wingfoiling, surfing and skating are on his list, so he’s prepared for anything. Sam Scadgell, a photographer with a passion for water sports, and one of the best surfers in the group but with a decent grasp for anything he puts his hand to, also joined the crew. Finally there was myself, the instigator, the glue of the crew, always ‘ready for a shreddy’ whatever the weather.

With kites, wings, foils, surfboards, Fliteboards and skateboard in the back of the van, this was going to be an epic mission by which we would reset the standards for exploring this wind and wave-graced land upon which we live. One bonus of the ‘staycation’ missions is having the ability to drive and filling the van with all the toys. That is a massive advantage if you want to schedule the mission as it means that the weather forecast is less sensitive. If you get wind there are kiteloops, if you get waves there is surf or wave riding, if you can’t surf, you can foil… if that fails then there is Fliteboard. And after all that, there is always Guinness to warm the soul…

Mission 1 – Scotland

This epic saga of shred started as far north as we could go. It has always been a dream to hit Thurso in northern Scotland. The NC500 is a famous road that runs along the coast there, covering some of the most beautiful coastline on earth. Ross drove his van, the 15 hours it took from home, with the equipment, whilst Sam and myself flew into Thurso in classic lazy style. We rented a cheap off-season Airbnb – who wants to be in Scotland with -3 degrees Celsius and a raging storm – it’s far from a holiday spot… unless you are us! The weather systems were rolling in as we drove from the airport – 50+ knots, 3m swell at 15 seconds period and a week of varying wind directions set the scene for a non-stop shred fest with early mornings and even earlier nights that spanned the length of the north coast. We scored one of the best wave sessions that I have ever had in this country: double overhead, reeling down-the-line left handers. Heavy sections with multiple turns, reminiscent of a cold, rainy One Eye in Mauritius, the main difference being we were the only ones there.

This was a king’s welcome and the days that followed didn’t disappoint. As the weather systems rolled through, we scored epic kiting, wingfoiling, insane empty surfing waves and some secret spots that reminded me of the mythical G-Land in Indonesia, but in our 6/5 hooded suits. The weather changed so fast it was almost pointless looking at the forecast, teaching you to be present, right there, right then… and to take every opportunity to get on the water that presented itself. These were the days that we had all dreamed about, the dreams that had got us through those long months of being trapped at home; the reason why we have invested in the best equipment for the job, so that we can be the only ones out, scoring nature’s bounty in its purest form. We hit world-class left-hand point breaks, rode some of the best waves in the world, kited across the most northern loch in the British Isles, experienced rainbow days and cracks of sunshine between the clouds that made you believe you were somewhere warm, even if it was only for a few minutes…

Trip 2 – Ireland 

After the Scotland adventure, the trip series was really kicked off and motivation was high to start planning the next mission. As we took to the pub for a few warming pints, plans started to take shape and our next focus was the impending storms that regularly hit the west coast of the Emerald Isle and the Wild Atlantic Way. We found ourselves on the ferry from Wales heading across the Irish Sea toward Rosslare in the south of Ireland. As we approached this not-so distant shore, we could already see that the conditions were on. The ferry struggling to dock in the 60+ knot gusts of wind as we came into port only meant one thing – let’s go get it! Driving across Ireland on country roads, we arrived at Lahinch, in the middle of the west coast. Our thinking was that this would give us the best opportunity to explore, either north or south depending on the weather. The reality was that as soon as we arrived in the area the shred was on, and even in our seven-day trip we hardly got time to leave Lahinch bay or go further north than the Cliffs of Mohar as the conditions were just so good.

Pulling up to the first reeling left point break that we had scoped out, using the trifecta of Windy.app, Windguru and Google Maps to plan the assault, the nail was hit on the head for the day one – sessioning the first spot that we came to just before sunset set the tone for the whole week, afterwards retreating to the closest watering hole that served the black creamy liquid that would power us through the week’s cold weather. Over the seven days that we shared in Ireland, it is hard to say how many epic moments there were. From the first hours to the last seconds, we were on the water. With secluded bays, open reeling reef breaks, to Big Air opportunities, this place is a playground for the avid shredder. Day two saw us discover a secluded reef that delivered various personalities – as it wrapped down the northern side of Lahinch bay it worked perfectly for whatever flavor of shred you fancied. I was on my 6m Dice SLS and D/LAB Pro Fish, whilst Ross took his windsurfing gear and Dougie wingfoiled, and we had the best three way that any of us had had in years… head-and-a-half high, peeling right handers that delivered all afternoon, sunshine, steady wind and warm weather. We weren’t sure what was happening, but this was not the Ireland that we were expecting… and the best part about it was, we didn’t see another person all day!

As we progressed through the week, we got slammed with 60+ knot storms that we used to send it big in front of Lahinch town, while one day it was three knots offshore with a 3m, 13 second ground swell so that surfboards came out, foils were in the water and we spent the day making the most of the respite from the wind. Kited out, surfed out and downright tired, we had time to score a few last shots of kiting up some epic river mouths and visiting a few iconic landmarks to make sure we had not wasted a moment as our second leg of the Freeride Kingdoms tour was coming to an end. That was how to truly make the most of what the seasons deliver in this amazing part of the world, utilizing each moment, each change in the wind, waves and weather to its greatest advantage… throwing stoke on the shred fire as we wait patiently for summer to be over so that we can continue our mission to explore this un-ridden land that lays at our feet…