78 AUGUST 2019
WATER ACADEMY
THE MAGIC OF CARRO!
Windguru was not wrong, the south coast of France was going off and
Carro was cooking - 2.5m waves and 35 knots of northwest wind. Perfect to
progress smoothly and for our young guns to discover the joys of swimming
for their gear, also part of learning how to windsurf in waves! Being the most
experienced, Tom is by far the most comfortable. He has already travelled
quite a bit and has had the privilege of sailing at Ho’okipa. Esteban and
Caesar spend a lot of time in the water and their size is a real asset for dealing
with the lack of wind at the launching area. This is a bit of a problem at
Carro. Depending on the wind’s direction, the launch can be very technical.
Wave after wave, there’s a healthy competition going on between the kids. It
is the one who goes fastest, surfs the most vertical, and of course, who jumps
the highest! In the jumping game, Edgar and his kite easily take the lead,
even though he kites strapless. The windsurfers are a bit frustrated until the
waves get bigger and then they take centre stage, enjoying some really nice
ramps. It was an epic day and the topic of all the kids conversations come
evening time as we relived the session.
In the following days, the wind turned west, a little more onshore,
forcing everyone closer to the rocks - really technical conditions and quite
dangerous. The 2.8m sails are out for our little riders and it’s pretty funny
to see these small sails zooming around at the same speed as bigger ones.
When I say bigger, I am sailing with a 4.0m fully powered, so it’s all relative!
The most difficult part for Manu and I is not the conditions at sea, it is
after the sessions, organising rinsing the equipment, derigging, showers and
clothes for everyone! As far as food is concerned, we opted for cassoulet,
a slow-cooked casserole containing meat, pork skin and white beans,
originating in southern France. Après cassoulet always ended up in a “fart
challenge” party; a game all kids love playing!
TIME’S UP
After the wind ended we spent a few days exploring by SUP the beautiful
scenery of France’s ‘Blue Coast’, the section of coastline running west from
Marseille as far as Étang de Berre lake. After that, luckily the surf spots in
front of our house started to work, much to the pleasure of Caesar and
Esteban who enjoyed the offshore wind, sneaking into some mini tubes!
We heard all about it again that evening, just as if John John Florence was
locked into a cavernous wave in Tahiti!
Between cuts from rocks and sea urchin spines in feet, injuries were
beginning to take their toll on the kids and it was time for our academy to
end! We spent the last few days healing our wounds and doing homework,
a mandatory activity even for young rippers!“THE SOUTH COAST OF FRANCE
WAS GOING OFF.”
César off the top in Carro.
Morning classes at Les Estagnots.