COAST | TIREE

EVERY WINDSURFER HAS TO GO

This episode of COAST takes us on a special trip down memory lane with a look back over two and a half decades of The Tiree Wave Classic. Words and Photos John Carter

(Some of the images in this feature are unseen from the story that originally appeared in the October 2012 issue of Windsurf Magazine. Print and digital subscriptions for readers worldwide are available HERE.) 

With its remote location and reputation for extreme conditions, Tiree has lured hundreds of wave sailors to its sacred shores to compete for the prestigious Title since the very first competition way back in 1986. 

John Carter has loyally joined battalions of regulars to this Hebridean  Mecca for the past twenty years and has compiled a gallery of images and words that sum up his relationship with this unique Scottish island and her magical secrets.

THE PILGRIMAGE

With autumn already descending upon us it is that time of year where a few like-minded folk start thinking about their annual migration to Tiree. Every October I join a dedicated legion of pilgrims heading to the Classic, but it is difficult to put my finger on the exact reason why. Obviously life during the week of the classic revolves around the competition, but there is so much more to Tiree than the hours when we are all huddled around a trailer on the beach waiting for the next set of results.Tiree is not all about the good times either; there have been plenty of days I’ve been up to my knees in mud in the driving rain cursing the place. Or those relentless hangovers every bloody morning, what the hell did we all do to deserve them? So yes, there are inevitably bad times when the wind doesn’t blow and it’s drizzling with foggy rain outside but even so, some strange force seems to take over during these hours of downtime when your spirit remains calm and relaxed and you just go with the flow of the Tiree pace of life.

My Tiree baptism was way back in 1993 and if my memory serves me correct, Nigel Howell won the final against Danny Seales at The Green in bitter conditions. I even remember Nigel was sailing on a Ken Black wave sail and pink and white Critical Section Board, while Danny was on an Orange Ezzy and yellow Strapper wave board with big wings as graphics featured on the deck.I stayed in a tin shack – belonging to Willy Angus’ Granddad – with an electric meter that ate up fifty pence pieces at a hideous rate with any form of heating turned on. Then there was the wild party in the village hall where Tristan Boxford nearly died of alcohol poisoning (and so did half the rest of us) but it was a whole lot of fun and I came away from Tiree with a bunch of new friends and acquaintances.

The next year I was back for more and this time the competition was hit by a fat low pressure system which served up monster waves at Balevullin where Niels Larson rode to victory in epic conditions. After these first two years I guess you can say that I was hooked on Tiree, the wind, the weather, the pub, the competition (both on and off the water) but most importantly it was the people. It was the feeling of camaraderie, that special friendship of sharing genuine good times in a special place that made me want to go back for more. Every year it is like one big reunion, you can count on plenty of familiar faces, and of course some welcome new ones but Tiree is all about like-minded folk sharing the same passion for UK windsurfing and the unique spirit that our sport ignites.

THE JOURNEY

Now before any Tiree visitor is lucky enough to benefit from the Islands rich tapestry of offerings; they must first endure the arduous task of traveling to the godforsaken outpost. For mortal wave sailors and their gear, there is only one way in, by boat. And that usually means you have arrive at Oban at ‘silly o’clock’ on the Saturday morning of the competition for the Cal Mac ferry. That in turn means driving through the night, or the day before, and sleeping in your van at the ferry port. After you have been checked in by the most miserable looking ferry stewards on the planet, it is then time for the world greasiest breakfast before you churn it up after two hours of being rocked around as the ferry hits open water. Stomach empty and feeling like you have travelled halfway around the world the ferry finally attempts to dock at Tiree (yes it has been known to turn back on storm force days) and then the next minute you are following a convoy of vans along a tiny maze of single track roads. Now you have officially arrived ready for a week of utter madness and tribulations. Like I said, getting there is never easy but if you do it with the right frame of mind and a little planning the journey is all part of the fun. Anticipating an epic week, sharing stories on the road, a night on the booze in Oban and that valuable four-hour kip on the ferry before you hit the beach. Yes, it’s a bitch of a trek, but I assure you that when you commit you won’t regret it.

THE FOUNDATIONS

This stunning Scottish Island was first nailed on the map as a windsurfing jewel by the inimitable Andy Groom and his friend Joe Kelly in the mid-eighties. For some obscure reason they decided to adopt the concept of a competition on an isolated Island; a project surely destined for failure. But never doubt the determination and ambition of a certain Mr Groom, who set his goals high and never faltered in the quest to achieve his dreams. Some might say that Andy had illusions of grandeur, by spending the funding on TV crews, helicopters, photography and special guests, but his thrifty investments built a platform that made Tiree an extremely Professional event and one that everybody wanted to partake in. His aspirations culminated with the visit of the PWA World Tour back in 2007 that Crowned Kauli Seadi as World Champion after a tense and dramatic week.If memory serves me correct, casks of a unique blend of maturing whisky, awarded as prizes to Kauli, Josh Angulo and Victor Fernandez must, by now, soon be ready for collection! There was a brief period of hibernation between 1998 and 2001 when Tiree failed to materialize but the event came back with a vengeance in 2002 and seems to gather momentum every year.

THE CHAMPIONS
Over the years I have witnessed plenty of wave classic Champions, all of which have stood proud to have their names penned into the history books of Tiree windsurfing folk law. Of course many of us head up to Scotland for the fun and frolics that inevitably take place every year but the serious Pros, some of the Amateurs and even the Masters are ‘in it to win it’ and take the competition extremely seriously.Back in the day, winning Tiree was a fundamental British stepping stone towards a career on the fame and glory of the PWA World Tour. It was almost like, if you had not won Tiree, then you were not good enough to move up and do well to the next level. As a result the standard at Tiree has always been off-the-scale.

The level of British sailing these days now means that even making a final in Tiree dictates that you are ready for the World Tour. Current PWA Head Judge, Duncan Coombs was fittingly the first sailor to have his name engraved upon the prestigious trophy, which launched his career and provided a gateway to a life revolving around windsurfing competition. A few years later, a young and extremely talented Nik Baker arrive on the scene and demolished the fleet with his powerful and radical sailing style. Back in those days, names like Farrell O’Shea, Jamie Knox, Scott Poulter, Nigel Howell and Stuart Sawyer graced the shores of Tiree and over the years the fleet has seen faces come and go as British wave sailing has evolved. In the late nineties, the likes of Timo Mullen, Tristan Boxford, Danny Seales, Jamie Hawkins and Corky Kirkham were among the warriors who made the journey to do battle. In recent years more legends etched their names into history – Phil Horrocks, Ben Proffitt, Jamie Hancock and John Skye have all proudly hoisted trophies, shields and swords at the community centre prize-giving on the final Friday night and then gone on to duly celebrate in traditional Tiree fashion.

AMATEURS

It’s important to remember Tiree is not all about the shiny Pros. Each year the number of Amateurs, Women, Youths and masters easily outweighs the size of the Pro fleet. For the ambitious among the Amateurs, their competition is a stepping stone to the next level. In fact the winner each year is automatically promoted into the Premier Fleet by virtue, to make afairer playing field for next year’s new generation. Not every sailor is there to win however and the competition openly welcomes entrants who are just in it for the experience. John Skye is a great example here of how the system works; his first ever trip to Tiree was as an Amateur in 1997 and it was not until 2004 that he went on to win his first Crown.

Cast out in the Atlantic Ocean at the very end of the chain of the Inner Hebrides,Tiree is a remote unspoilt Island mostly inhabited by crofters, which also has many stunning beaches facing just about every angle to the wind and waves. With only 750 inhabitants who are scattered across the low-lying terrain, don’t expect a welcoming fanfare when you roll off the ferry. Most of these folk live here for the peace and freedom the island has to offer and the contest organizers always make sure that all entrants are aware and respectful of their tranquility. There are only three sizable hills on the island which means the land is mostly flat allowing the wind to hit all of its beaches unperturbed.

With zero pollution, on a clear day, the visibility is insane and because it is so flat you can always see the weather approaching over its finely-cropped grass known as Machair. Like the rest of western Scotland the Island bathes in the warm Gulf Stream, although the prevailing south-westerly winds from the Atlantic bring successions of storms through the autumn and winter months. Around the coast are miles of sandy bays and stunning rocky coves. As the light dips to the west on a windless day, there is a beautiful transformation as the clouds turn crimson and the land below gleams in golden light. Occasionally, on a still morning the land is shrouded in fog where only the spooky outlines of crofters’ farm houses rising through the ghostly mist are visible. On a windy day it’s a completely different story, where anything can happen, from fast-moving clouds, to rainbows against jet-black skies and torrential rain from clouds almost touching the ground. The weather is an ever-changing picture in Tiree, so always be ready for a pleasant surprise as the light dalliances its way across the rocky hillsides and peaks through the black clouds beyond.

AFTER DARK

Every year the pub at The Lodge is the focal point of the nightly activities and for some weird and wonderful reason the parties become wilder and raunchier. Dancing on tables, moshing and even stripping are common occurrences in this tiny bar and usually there is a Big Tuesday, which is the official live music night, where the level of rowdiness goes up another notch or three. Some nights the antics have extended into the dingy corridors of the Lodge as parties shift to rooms upstairs but it’s all good clean fun and hilarious to boot.

There have been many after-dark parties on Tiree but many of the sordid tales are best left untold and part of the legendary status of the Wave Classic nightlife. There are rumours in the early years of one of the sailor’s mum’s car being driven off the jetty, with certain sailors floating high on magic mushrooms from Happy Valley and vans being jacked-up and left on bricks, but once again the culprits involved best stay unnamed. Either way there have been way too many classic nights to single out any in particular but one thing is for sure, if you rock up this year and head to The Lodge, the party will be thumping with the crowd letting their hair down in no uncertain terms.

EPIC SESSIONS

The Neils Larson year in 1994 was definitely one to remember but it was not without its controversy. On the very same day there was also wind and waves at Crossapol on the other coast, which favoured south coast sailors who wanted to compete in the comfort of starboard tack. In the end the Judges’ decision to stick with the bigger waves proved correct when the swell kicked in big-time towards the final. Back in 2008 we saw the outer reefs come to life on the North Coast and the likes of Phil Horrocks, Ben Proffitt and John Skye came into their own during an epic big wave session the day before the competition.

Over the years there have been lots of unreal down-the-line sessions at the Maze, although there is one awkward farmer who likes to charge the BWA £500 for the privilege of using his beach access. Balephuil is no doubt one of the island’s most scenic beaches and, when the wind turns North West and the swell is pumping, this beach has served up some awesome conditions in its turquoise feathering waves. Balevullin is perhaps the island’s heaviest beach break and once again is an awesome scenic wave spot. Along with the infamous event of 1994.

There were also marathon contests in 2004 and that dramatic final day of the PWA tour in 2007. It’s the variety of sailing that is perhaps Tiree’s biggest attraction and with beaches facing so many directions, the competition is able to rove around until it finds that magical bay facing the sweet spot for side/side offshore jumping and riding. With its low-lying landscape ideal for all shores there is rarely a day when there is wind and waves around that you can’t find decent, clean down-the-line sailing conditions – not to forget the added daylight that its northern and western situation deliver – remember, stormy weather aside, the island regularly records the highest amount of annual sunshine hours in the entire UK!

Tiree isn’t epic every single day, but the diversity and amount of hours scored on the water make it without doubt one of the most consistent spots in the UK!  The dates for the 2013 competition are October 12th-18th so head over to britishwavesailingassociation.com to sign up for some of the fun!

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