Red Letter Day: DIALED IN

Just after 1pm, I had wrapped things up at the office and was free to shift gears. I left Muizenberg and headed towards Kommetjie to meet Mitchell at Witsands, one of my all-time favorite surf foil spots. It’s a stretch of coastline that, under the right conditions, delivers long, running waves and a level of solitude that's becoming harder to find.

“The conditions were raw. The loose kelp constantly tangled around my mast and wing, dragging me down mid-ride or throwing off my balance.”

When I arrived, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The waves were absolutely cooking – clean, powerful lines rolling in like they had been custom-ordered for a foil session. And best of all, there wasn’t another person in sight. It looked like paradise. But as always, there was a catch. The water was freezing, colder than usual even by Cape standards. Thick clumps of loose kelp drifted through the lineup, left behind by the big swell that had passed through earlier in the week. And, to top it all off, there were jellyfish – tons of them, drifting just beneath the surface like a minefield waiting to be dodged.

But that’s the nature of the ocean. It rarely hands you perfection on a silver platter. There’s always something to work around – be it cold, wind, or marine surprises. Still, the allure of empty, pumping waves was impossible to resist. I quickly rigged up my gear and paddled out, chasing that quiet kind of magic that only an untouched lineup can provide.

For this session, I was running the new AK Plasma 700 front wing, paired with the Rhythm 160 Monocoque stabilizer, and mounted to my trusted 36L Phazer foilboard. This setup had been feeling really dialed lately, but today would be a true test. The Plasma 700 in particular was designed for fast, progressive foiling – tight carving, clean acceleration, and solid glide through drawn-out turns. Witsands, with its punchy peaks and smooth shoulders, was the perfect playground to see what it could do.

The conditions were raw. The loose kelp constantly tangled around my mast and wing, dragging me down mid-ride or throwing off my balance. Every wave became a negotiation between the pursuit of flow and the unpredictability of nature. But when things lined up – when the foil lifted clean, the kelp cleared, and the line opened up – it was pure bliss. I linked turn after turn, carving tight S-curves and flying silently down the line.

Mitchell and I spent the next few hours alternating between shooting water, land, and drone – trying to capture not just the performance of the gear, but the essence of what makes foiling in these conditions so unique. It's hard to put into words the combination of isolation and freedom that comes from being alone in the lineup, especially when the gear under your feet is dialed to perfection.

By 6pm, after nearly three hours in the water, I finally paddled in. My arms were shot, my legs ached, and I was chilled to the bone – but it was all worth it! We had bagged some amazing content, put the new Plasma 700 through its paces, and ridden some of the best waves I’ve seen at Witsands in months. The kind of session you chase for weeks, sometimes months, and hope lines up with the right gear and the right people.

Of course, anyone who’s surfed Kommetjie knows the mission isn’t over until you’ve made it back through the late afternoon traffic. The roads out of the area are notorious for congestion, especially as day-trippers and locals alike all funnel out at the same time. Rather than sit in the jam, Mitch and I made a strategic detour and pulled into Imhoff Farm for a post-session debrief over a cold craft beer.

Sitting outside in the late autumn sun, wrapped in jackets but still salty and smiling, we looked back on the day. We talked about the session, reviewed some clips, and laughed at the close calls with the jellyfish. These are the moments that stitch the lifestyle together – not just the rides themselves, but everything that surrounds them. The early mornings, the gear tinkering, the challenges, the victories, and the wind-downs with good company.