German freestyle windsurfer and teacher Mathias Genkel travelled to Ireland in October 2018. He liked the offshore wave conditions and promised to return for a longer trip. It’s definitely a dream destination for wave windsurfers, who are motivated to drive around, like to sail in a wetsuit, don’t care about rain, can handle different tacks and are ready for powerful swell.
“More than ten years ago, I spent a year studying at UCC in Cork/ Ireland. I have always wanted to go back there, remembering those perfect sessions in cross offshore winds and clean waves. I finally managed to get a week off from work and travel to Kerry in October 2018. I just brought one waveboard and two sails. Of course, you can not squeeze a whole year of windsurfing into one week. Conditions were different every day and there was a lot of driving involved. We were based near Brandon bay but found ourselves checking out different spots down the coast.
I sailed this one reefbreak all by myself: glassy waves accompanied by strong offshore winds were on the menu. It just felt great windsurfing at this spot after more than ten years. Things haven’t changed that much in the rural areas. Roads are still narrow but now you find these “Wild Atlantic Way” signs every 5 kilometres or so, adding to the adventorous character of the trip. Towns seem to have become a lot busier though. All in all, the trip was a great experience and made me want to go back to Ireland for a longer trip.” Mathias Genkel
One week in Kerry, Ireland featuring German freestyle windsurfer Mathias Genkel
