Monday, March 31, 2014

Feb waves

Fun waves from last month

Monday, March 24, 2014

Waves on standby didn't last long

Putting the wave gear on standby didn't last long, the weather has turned colder but the waves started again. Here is a short clip from yesterday, sunny windy and wavey.

https://vimeo.com/89901565




Saturday, March 15, 2014

Change in the Weather

It's time for the wave kit to go back on standby and tune up for slalom and speed.

From November to mid March I find it very difficult to get on a slalom or speed board over here in Guernsey. When it's 8 degrees air temp or less the thought of sailing up and down the coast on big slalom kit doesn't do much for me. Even the odd good speed day in those temps isn't great.

Wave sailing definitely takes over when its that cold. Wave sailing in 8 degrees for a couple of hours is no problem.

The weather is changing however and it was time to unload the wave kit, put it on standby for any exceptional conditions and tune up the slalom kit.


I have finned up my PD 110 with a Black Project Fins 37.7 for big sails. Usually I like the BPF 35 in this board but my new Evo 6's should be here soon and I have gone big this year, right up to 9.5 sq m. My PD speed 53 has been finned up with a BPF RS 28. More for 7 and 7.8 sailing in tight conditions. With the first speed contest of the year at the Mondial du Vent is just around the corner I have a feeling I will be using this fin / board combo a lot.


Speed contests are a different beast to free sailing or record attempts. You have to sail as many runs as possible so that you don't miss the best conditions, this means sailing back up wind needs to be quick and easy. That's when the RS will come into it's own compared to a asymmetric record fin.


Sails ready to come out of storage and into the van.

Monday, March 10, 2014

Speed tails

Just going through some old bits and pieces for a project that's in the pipeline. Found my old event bibs.

Great memories from back then, Brest speed week and my first podium finish in 1993.

Fuerteventura 1993 and having the Great Britain flag and name on the bib, top 10 only had that. It didn't go down well with a fellow competitor who will remain nameless who couldn't believe I had a named bib and he didn't. He even complained to the organisers but it was down to year ranking and I was placed higher than him.

Tarifa speed week, party town!

St Marie de la Mer, Mistral winds.




Friday, March 7, 2014

GYM SESSIONS

The hard work continues.

The wind has taken a back step and we have a couple of weeks forecast of very light winds. Hopefully the swell may pick up and we'll get a few SUP sessions in.

In the meantime it's flat out at the gym most days. The main aim is to lighten up a bit but also tone up. Finally it seems to be working, still a way to go yet. I started seriously in the gym at the end of November, since then 3 kg have gone.



November 2013 and March 2014 photo's