At the conclusion of our beautiful three-day trip to the seaside, the Spiaggia d'Oro (Golden Beach) of Imperia, on November 5th 2019, gave us the classic icing on the cake: a beautiful windsurfing session, with Libeccio (SW), challenging conditions, but not exaggerated, ideal for ensuring a high rate of entertainment!

Windsurfing, report: Imperia, Spiaggia d'Oro, 5/11/2019. A playground!

Yesterday morning, for the last day of this three days at the seaside, we still woke up in our room at the Hotel Croce di Malta, right on the spot (and which turned out to be an excellent solution). Opening the window of our room, we were able to admire, once again, the enchanting panorama of the sun just risen over the sea of ​​Imperia, on Porto Maurizio, and of the hills of the city. With my roommate Pasquale, we had a hearty breakfast to accumulate precious energy for the day.

The forecasts of the Arome model, in fact, predicted a beautiful SW wind day, starting from late morning, with the added value of a still pleasant climate.

The sea of ​​the Golden Beach, Tuesday morning was quite calm, after Monday's storm. But we know that at the Golden Beach the waves mounts quickly ....

And in fact, around 11.30 am the first signs that the spot was going to work were seized. Indeed, looking at the sea offshore, and still impressed by the intensity of the wind of the day before, I started to rig the Ezzy Elite 4.2 2017. As for the board, I went on the safe side, and I prepared the Tabou Da Curve TE 80 2016, with thruster fins set up. Meanwhile, the spot got populated by many well known faces, belonging to the windsurfing circus of northern Italy, which is always nice to meet. I also saw with pleasure several of the companions of the trip to Oman, during last July (read report).

The first to enter the water around 12.00 was Corrado Avagnina, with Simmer Blacktip 4.5, which immediately took advantage of a good moment when the wind entered discreetly even near the shore (about 25 knots offshore). The waves, meanwhile, continued to grow in size, with some nice sets, good to be surfed, already almost 2 meters high. Progressively, many others entered the water.

Well positioned, with the car right in front of the beach, with my friend Pasquale we had a lingering moment, as we noticed that some of first riders in the water made a bit of a struggle to get on the plane, while the first waves on the shore were already significant. In the end, we both opted for a 4.7 sail. I was very happy to be able to use the 4.7, having to complete the test of the Goya Guru X Pro 2020/21, which I had already happily tested at the Prà in the exit a few weeks ago. Pasquale entered the water with a Gaastra Manic 4.7, and with an envied Fanatic Grip 82.

At 12.30 we entered the water too.

The entry into the water, yesterday, was ultimately the most complicated thing of the day. As soon as you came out from the shelter of the short breakwater cliffs, you were hit by a very strong current, coming from the same direction of the wind, which tended to orient the board in the wind, while, to quickly acquire speed, it was necessary to bear away as soon as possible. Taking speed was fundamental, so as not to be stopped in front of the first breakers of more than one meter. Helping myself with my front foot, pushing very hard on the bow of the board, and, taking advantage of a moment when the sea appeared to be almost flat, I managed to leave. The feeling of being in the middle of the sea in front of the Spiaggia d'Oro is always thrilling!

The first sensations were immediately positive. First, those ones received from the equipment. The Tabou da Curve proved to be a confirmation (read review): it found itself perfectly at home in the sea of ​​Imperia, and, in fact, in the spot I saw two others models like mine, always of 80 liters. But the beautiful confirmation also came from the Goya Guru. Feeling a slight initial overpowering offshore, I came to the beach and rigged the sail by fixing the boom end to the lower clew ring. With this trimming the sail was adequately powerful on the shore, to overcome the breakers, but madly neutral and stable offshore, where the wind was stronger, especially when you were on a wave lip. Sailing safely and in control, I felt quite at ease, managing to keep myself at a safe distance from the infamous Imperia harbor cliff. But the pleasure increased further when I sailed back, when I realized the beautiful waves to ride and surf, approaching the shore. Already on the first return, I found myself on one of those beautiful long slopes, which reminded me of the trips to Kashiit, in Oman. I immediately took one, and I surfed it discreetly to the shore, without doing too many bottoms so as not to drift too much, and approach the cliff.

I admit that yesterday, at the Spiaggia d'Oro, I paid a little for the not yet adequate knowledge of the spot, in which, unfortunately, due to the lack of serious SW wind, I had little chance to surf this year. The waves at the Spiaggia d'Oro must be taken upwind, in front of the cliffs further west (see video), and then you go downwind during surfing, coming to find yourself in the middle, and not at the end of the bay, towards the harbour clif. And instead, I have lured too many times by the waves intercepted in the middle of the bay. And thinking about it, I also sailed a little with the handbrake on, fearing that the spot could explode at any moment, like the day before (Arome gave strong wind for the first afternoon)

I entered into the water several times, remedying some wipes out, and surfing other waves. In short, sometime I won and sometime I lost, but the smile was drawn markedly on my face at the end of my session, as on that of the others met around.

After an hour I took a break, to make videos and photos and admire the show in the water, which always give us the best riders.

After the photos, I did another part of the session until about 2.30 pm, when an unexpected and annoying clouds, in addition to storms in the hinterland, dampened the wind on the shore for a while, keeping it strong only offshore. I made an attempt to start, but, given the greater difficulty (the waves remained big), and, my poor patience, I gave up. We had been observing the situation for a while, starting to put away some of the equipment, hoping for a new stabilization of the wind even on the beach.

But the sky cleared up well only after 3.30 pm, when the offshore wind became really strong, and even on the shore it started to blow hard again, with waves that increased in height even further. In the water, three-four riders remained, including Matteo Iachino - Ita140, who always shows to be good and to have fun also in waveriding. We take this opportunity to wish him good luck for the imminent and decisive last event of the PWA slalom championship in New Caledonia.

At about 17.00, we left Imperia, fully satisfied, but with the desire to return soon, to exploit the spot even better, daring a little more.

Aloha. Fabio

Below, a selection of photos of the day. Click here, for the complete slidegallery of the day.

The video of the day