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Known for its rugged coastline, rain, leeks, sheep, rain, Gareth Bale, castles, rain, Tom Jones and of course its beloved sport of rugby, Wales has also been a location that has formed a love hate relationship for our resident shooter, John Carter. After a previous washout mission to some mysto Welsh reefs, he headed back (in pre-Covid times we should add) for some redemption to the stunning location of Newgale and from our March 2021 issue of Windsurf Magazine he recounts the ensuing scrumdown against 30 knot north-easterlies and a thumping long period west swell.

Words – Timo Mullen // John Carter // Alfie Hart // Lewis Merrony. Photos – John Carter.

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PUNT

“It’s 6:30 a.m. on a chilly November morning and I am sat beside Timo Mullen in his van driving through a snowstorm as we cross the Severn Bridge headed to Wales, ready to tackle some crazy conditions. I am starting to question our sanity embarking on this wintery mission where chances are, we could be driving ten hours for nothing. This whole debacle kicked off yesterday morning when Timo called with news that there was a huge swell about to hit the coast of Ireland with a rare northeast wind combination. This giant red blob on the charts was already triggering big wave warnings for Nazaré in Portugal so I knew there was some substance to the call, and it could be worth a punt.

WRAP

The same storm was forecast to bring northeast winds to the Cornwall, Wales and the south coast of England, along with a long period west swell. Timo had eyeballed Newgale as a potential target as it could offer cross-off starboard tack if the swell wrapped in enough. As normal I had my doubts, especially after we trekked up to Wales a few months before for a fruitless expedition where we were literally blown off the water by 70-knot winds. This time we had a more reasonable 25-35 knot northeasterly forecast, but as for the swell, I seriously wondered if the waves were going to make it into Wales looking at the trajectory of the low pressure working its way down the coast of Ireland. Magicseaweed was giving 3-4 feet at 16 seconds, so we had to trust in the forecast and hope some powerful long period swell would find its way to Newgale. To confirm we were not totally insane, I sent a message to local cameraman and sailor Alfie Hart, who replied immediately that it could be awesome and he was already planning to head to the beach for 9 a.m. to catch the best tide.

IT’S ON!

We made it through heavy traffic around Cardiff and Swansea, spurned on by a screen shot from Alfie showing corduroy lines of swell marching into the bay at Newgale and the fact he was rigging a 4.2m. Local ripper, Lewis Merrony, had also been eying up this forecast and was on the case too. By 9:30 a.m. we finally made it over the hill that looks down on Newgale. I’d been expecting head high swell at best, but on first impression there was some serious logo high, maybe bigger sets, pluming across the bay. I actually felt nervous when I first saw it; Newgale was definitely firing on all cylinders. There were some crazy conditions on offer and without doubt some awesome photos to be shot.

The moment we arrived in the car park we could see the orange GA sail belonging to Alfie about to hit the water. The sets were easily logo high and the 25-knot plus offshore winds were sending another 20 feet of spray pluming into the air. As he headed out, he was faced by a logo high wave crashing in front of him with plumes of spray firing 20 feet higher into the air. It was almost Storm Chase material the way the waves were stacking up, along with the wild offshore gusts…bring it on!

NEWGALE

This two-mile long sandy bay faces southwest and when you check the map is pretty much open to the same swells as Cornwall. Slightly off the radar for most of us, this stunning beach can offer some of the best wave riding conditions the UK has to offer when it’s firing and works in south winds as well as the rare north winds for down-the-line sailing. There is plenty of parking on offer with walkways through the dunes to access the shingle and then down to the sandy beach. The bank of shingle was formed by a huge storm in 1859, which now acts as a natural defence against further storms, although it is often breached by the biggest storms of the winter, which wash the shingle up onto the A487 main road. Watch out for high tide as there can be a dumping shorebreak when the swell is pumping that can make mincemeat of your kit. Once the tide recedes off the shingle then it is game on, although locals reckon the best period of sailing is low to mid tide. Northerly winds are known to accelerate due to a venturi effect, so don’t be surprised to find a few more knots than the forecast is calling. When the waves are firing this beach is best left to advanced sailors due to the strong currents and ferocious waves.

SESSION ONE

By the time Timo was rigged and ready, Alfie was already headed back from his first maul in the waves looking like he had just been bulldozed by the All Blacks front line! The wind was extremely offshore, and it looked like gnarly work ploughing out through the waves and then, once on the wave, he looked totally overpowered. He did have a smile on his face though, more by the fact he had survived some pretty wild conditions and was about to watch Timo and Lewis have to do the same.

Now it was Timo’s turn to let loose on the water. With the outgoing tide, the waves were still pumping through at solid logo high and the wind was now nuking perhaps over 30 knots. I was expecting fireworks for the first few rides, but this type of sailing in wild conditions was even tougher than it looked. For once, Timo seemed to be struggling, even though he loves cross-offshore beach break conditions.

The sail was getting ripped out of his hands and timing looked insanely difficult. From my point of view it was almost impossible to shoot through all the spray from the waves at low level close to the shoreline. After a frustrating hour at the mercy of the waves, we decided to regroup, take a break and plan a second attack on the incoming tide. So far, I felt like I had barely taken any decent shots and the clock was ticking. It was proving a difficult day all round for both of us and we only had a few hours of daylight left to make amends.”

TIMO MULLEN

“I had always seen amazing photos from my friends, Alfie and Lewis, of epic sessions in West Wales in north and northeast winds at Newgale. Basically it looked like a reverse starboard type version of Gwithian. For the first session I was on my 4.2m but to be honest, I could have been on a 3.5m, it was so windy and really cross-offshore. It looked pretty gnarly when we pulled up. I remember watching Alfie heading out when we arrived and he just got eaten alive by a logo high set!”

ALFIE HART

“Lewis Merrony and I have been sailing Newgale for over 20 years, it is a consistent all-round spot.  S-SE is the standard direction we sail it in and it can be good like that, but in northerly winds something special can happen. You get very flat water as the wind drops down through the valley and there is no fetch for chop to build up, and if the weather is sunny the wind usually accelerates significantly, so much so that even just 10 knots on the forecast can easily be 20 knots!! You do need a groundswell though for there to be a wave and quite often northerly Newgale is a flat water blasting session, but this day was special.

I arrived first and saw it was windy and pretty offshore, but thought it looked sailable. I rigged a 4.0 GA IQ and was trying out a brand new 2020 Simmer Flywave 85.  First run out was fine, I thought this is going to be epic. I caught a wave and it was on the edge of being too offshore, but you could get out in front of the wave enough to ride it. I had a nice first wave, not too stacked and a couple of turns and a little air on the inside. Then I tried heading out again and the wind started to crank and there were a few more challenging sets. In a NE direction it can be very gusty, so I was negotiating wobbling for a few moments and then it would be 40 knots! It would occasionally line up without a gust and have a nice peeling wave, but mostly I was wildly out of control! Obviously with the wind that strong it did chop up the face a bit more than normal. Usually I associate northerly Newgale sessions with awesome aerial sections and long rides, but not this day! I had to get back to the sustainable farm I own, so missed the afternoon pushing tide session, but I think Timo scored that pretty good as the most favourable tide is probably around mid-tide on the push. Northerly winds usually make it pretty freezing in the winter, so I’ll be keeping an eye out for those forecasts with some groundswell and light north winds come next spring when it warms up!”

SECOND HALF

John Carter – “Both Alfie and Lewis by this time had both called a time-out! Both locals had scored some awesome rides, but now family and work duties were calling and it was time for them to head to the dressing room. After an hour or so to rest and prepare for the next round of battle, we patiently waited for the tide to start pushing in for our second half kick-off. A few glimmers of sun burst through the clouds and the sea came alive as it was bathed in light. According to the UK satellite image there was one huge band of clouds dissecting the UK and we were right on the edge of its coverage. We were going to hold back a bit longer, but maybe this was the only sun we were going to see all day, so Timo headed back to the water for session number two, hoping to overturn the results from session one.

The conditions looked epic to me. It was time to scrum down and charge these conditions. Clean waves, side-off wind and only one rider left on the water. I had just returned from Maui, where a quiet day on the water consists of around forty guys, so it seemed crazy we were here alone despite the cold. This time around it felt like everything was starting to click together.

Timo was finding his rhythm with the conditions and I felt like I was starting to score a few shots that were worthy of the day. With some translucent walls standing up in the flickering sunlight, Timo was tackling these waves with confidence, throwing goitas, big hacks and converting some runs into huge back loops and push loops. Right downwind he clocked into some peeling sets and was able to drive his Severne Mako ‘up and under’ some meaty sections. It felt like we had the momentum at last and the match was swinging our way.”

TIMO MULLEN

“After battling for two hours I came in for a quick break. I was looking forward to the second session with a better tide and a better wind direction! I had a bit of time to re-evaluate and sort my gear out. The wave was very fast and quite hollow, so I changed from my side-shore/side-on board to my dream board, which is my 79 litre Mako. That is when everything came together. As it was quite windy, you needed to be in full control and my 79-litre Mako is the most controllable amazing board I’ve ever owned. The wind direction changed to a little bit more side-shore, which made it a lot easier to hit the lip. And for that second session the sun came out, the water colours started to really come to life and it made the whole trip worthwhile.”

HOMEWARD BOUND

John Carter – “By 4 p.m. the light was fading fast and it was time to start heading home. As Timo was derigging the tide was over the midway point and the waves were really starting to pump, but by this time, we were both cooked. Timo had sailed around 5 hours, while according to my Fitbit watch I had covered 17,000 steps trudging around with the camera, but it felt like more, I was definitely lacking match fitness. Before rushing off to join the traffic home we did make a point of just watching Mother Nature in all her glory with constant sets rifling into the bay as the sun disappeared behind the clouds.”

LEWIS MERRONY

“When I spot a message on the phone from ‘Alf’ I know there’s usually something interesting on the cards! This time it was one of the forecasts that we wait patiently for all year. Newgale in a north wind and long period swell is as good as it gets at the local, long glassy clean swell stacked up for as far as you can see.

Working shifts in operations for Valero refinery I get a fair amount of free time, the flexibility is ideal for the keen windsurfer, but couple it with a young family and a house build and time is pretty tight these days, so I was keen to make the most of the morning. Alf and Timo were already at the beach as I rolled over the brow of the hill above Newgale. It was clear that the swell was looking good for a fun session, logo plus sets peeling along the wide expanse of golden sand. The wind was looking fierce for down-the-line wave riding, howling and a shade too much east pushing the direction a touch too offshore. Alf was picking off some long running logo high waves between the nuclear offshore gusts. That meant there was decent waves to be had if you could time it. A fresh new Simmer Black Tip 4.7 and my trusty Quatro Pyramid 92 is the dream setup for days like this, so I rigged as fast as my ice-cold hands could handle and skipped across the rocks and fired out the back. First run out I was just in time to see Timo get a vertical turn under a hanging mast high section only to get launched into orbit by the gusting wind as he smashed off the top.

Dropping into the first wave was like being whipped into warp drive, conditions made for some intensive riding. Full speed bottom turns all looked perfect to tuck under the feathering sections, only to get hung up off the top and take a late drop or get ejected skyward and out the back. After two big swims I changed plan and waited in the lineup for the lulls, this proved to be the best approach as there were some quality waves coming in. The handful of waves that opened up and allowed you to ride were a glimpse of what this place is all about, full power down-the-line riding.

Timo and JC always seem to score Newgale when it’s on the more extreme end of the spectrum, never quite getting the quality me, Alf and the other locals preach about. Newgale predominantly works in a south to southeast wind, but ten or so days a year when the conditions are from the north, Newgale serves up truly world-class conditions. In summer the thermal effect strengthens the wind, couple it with any hint of swell and it makes for the most fun sailing we get here. Big thanks to Simmer and Puravida for keeping me on the water!”