3 categories

Back to reality today, sailed early with Binny, wind was light and gear too small, never really pick up, when it steadied later I was exhausted, still sum fun was had!!!!  Manta 54 TR7 6.3m Decrepit 22cm weed

Novara Beach, WA, AU. F2 Axxis 85L, 5.8

First speed sail for the season. Lots of fun and great to catch up with the crew.

Fun day out at Novara. I learned all sorts of stuff today. One, Kitesurfing in the shallows badly can get you a ride in the rescue helicopter, two, SaltyNuts is a frustrated aborist but does have a interesting technique for pruning lower branches with a rigged sail - he then follows this with some Feng Shui type chants to calm the tree after pruning is complete with the sail.And finally I do not have the skill to really go fast in chop with the little Delta. So Sunday was just a little bit of pottering around over in the Western suburbs of the estuary.

This is my post for yesterday and because I indulge myself with a bit of waffle, here is the short version for those who look at the post and instantly decide they have better things to do. I tried out my Xmas pressie,6.6 KA Koncept. It was awesome. OK what follows now is just waffle so look away now if you do have better things to do.

Admittedly I am comparing it to 15 year old wave sail, but the only comparison I can make is like when I went from Microsoft xp to Apple Macs. It is faster,easier, better,cooler ...it just works, to steal a marketing slogan.

Saturday lunch time the Poms are where they should be in the Ashes and I waiting down at Nairns for the sea breeze to wander across to my side. I slide the Koncept out of the bag. It's all black and red. Yep I am going to continue my fall into the Dark Side of windsurfing with this bit of kit rigged up. 

I take my time but even when I have finished there is still not enough wind, but I am too excited to pay any attention to minor details like that. I wander across the sand and assume the position for the inaugural sail. At this point I realise there really isnt enough wind. But I didn't realise that this sail pulls like Silvio Berlusconi with a coffee table covered in white powder. A couple of pumps and I am planing, even with the 20.5 delta. I take it easy for a while, then the wind does starts to fill in and the plans I had for just a few blasts down the weed bank are gone. I am off like a bride's nightie to the other side of the estuary.

Now usually the Delta is hopeless in chop, but the sail is so stable I am just cruising along not loading the fin erratically and the world is good, very good.....for a while... The sea breeze continues to fill in and the noise in my helmet starts to take on a Darth Vader type rasping noise. I look up at the sail, still absolutely stoked at how good it is and I hear Darth " Fangy,, I am your father.." With my super tuned reflexes I promptly bury the lee side rail into the back of a bigger piece of chop and launch myself  into the sail in a desperate attempt to fend off this final descent to the dark side. 

Why do these things like this always happen just as the Peel Princess with its usual bucket load of tourists with cameras is motoring past?

I roll off my sail and desperately check that I haven't damaged it. It's all good, phew. I am still seeing stars, and weirdly they all look like Ewoks and they are all called Elmo. 

Too weird.

First deep water start with new toy. Easier than a  lap dancer at  Silvio's party after the coffee table is snorted clean. Brilliant! I am back in business. Over to South Yunderup and surprise a jet ski who of course takes up the challenge. I have my delta 20.5 on and I don't know how much water a jetski needs but let's play chicken with the spoil island sand bank. Disappointingly the other guy must know about the sand and pulls out a the last moment. I didn't. True sphincter moment. But I am not being sensible when there is a jet ski to embarrass. The Dark side is strong with this sail. Straight across the island like a hovercraft, fin is now a 20 but, jet ski dude, you lose...go home. Which he did.

Hmmm what's next. Back across to the lee of boundary island. Nice flat water, but decide its time for the nauti down the foreshore weed bank. 

I timed it magnificently, ..for a lull. I bear away and just gently cruise down the mile, cracked open the esky and swapped  out my  coffee cup holder for the stubby, mixed a few cocktails and folded a few umbrellas before arriving refreshed at Nairns.

A quick check of the sundial, yep I can squeeze out a run into delta land before I need to be put on the glad rags and party. 

Lots of snot and 1 foot deep, what could possibly go wrong?(Now if I was a furry muppet with poor eyesight things would now turn bad). But for me: Nothing as it turned out. It fantastic fun, very difficult to gybe because of the depth, but the water was mirror smooth.

 I was obviously epically good too because the  burkas on the shoreline every so shyly glanced in my direction before being overcome with infidel desire and covering up or maybe it was just it was the kiter girlfriends getting caught up launching their  boyfriends kite?

 The  crabbers were also out and it is still a favourite pastime of mine to go charging through them. But wait, hot chick crabbing at 130 degrees!..,quick,bear way and go and check her out. Hmm she looks pretty good but she must have really big feet cause the water is only just past her ankles. Of course logic brain is not working when testosterone brain has the bridge. But as I said before, the dark side Is strong in this sail and I hammer past having just got my max speed for the day when I carved off down toward her. I smoke on past and I can tell she is super impressed with my form by the way she doesn't lift her eyes for one second from staring at her really big feet.

 What a day, awesome sail, don't really need water with my now 19.8 delta, and the Poms are in deeper poo that Bondi Beach in the 80’s.

Brilliant.Now I just have to put the sail bag under the Xmas tree before anyone notices it's gone. The puddle of water coming from it might be a little bit of a giveaway :-)

5 categories

Tabou Manta 54 & choco Mach 1 28cm, Tabou Thunder 70 cm & LE 36cm, NP RSR Eiii 7.0m

What a difference a day makes, woke this morning with hay fever thinking someone had smashed my face with a snot mallet, a claratine later the snot starts to abate but in it's place comes a screaming headache, half a pack of nuerofen later the head aches a dull roar, so I head out with my beloved wife for a spot of lunch and shopping, my day is improving already. On the eway back did a drive by on Novara to see a nice liberal coating of white caps.

A short while later I'm back and attempted to sail with the little Manta with a pointer which I haven't tried before which wasn't to bad but the wind wasn't consistent enough so went back in and got out the Thunder.

First run, yeah baby, this is the biz, lotsa fun. back at the sand bar, Rocket Rod turns up aftyer a play over in Claudesville, he was happy to go back over there again so we set of for a nice blast over.

spent a bit of time over there on the edge of Boombas trying alphas which was a whole lotta fun, with some good face plants by both of us eventually had enough and decided to go the blast back as the wind was picking up, unfortunately we couldn't spot the platform from our take off spot so we head of straight away up to speed and flying after a couple of mins I spot that we are heading waaaaay upwind of the platform and bear of, Yeeeeaaaahhhhhaaarrrrgggghhh the start of one of my best runs ever heading back 9+km of butt clenching power peak speeds just shy of 29knots slowest sped 21 average around 26knots one near stack where I got lauched out of the harness after launching from 3 bits of chop, just great fun to be on the limit for so long.

Once back decided to have a go at a Naughty or 2 first run was good but collected some weed towards the end which set up some monster vibration and harmonics in the board. on the way back hit a weedberg which brought us to a rapid halt. Next run was a lot better as I was further out, the flats past the rock garden were awesome.

Great way to finish of the day, Huge thanks to Rod for the trip over to Claudesville, pretty stoked to get my 3rd fastest Alpha ever, woo hoo

What a great session

Congrats to Hammer on the PB

2 categories

Thought I'd spoiled my day, rigged the 5.0 on the 48 with 19.5 woody weedy, had 2 planning runs, hit 29s bothe times, in the flat behind the rockgarden, then wind dropped off and it was a float back to base.

Couldn't be bothered changing up, so sat around and hopped for a wind increase.

After about an hour, looked like my small stuff might get going. Took of my 3l camel pack, let off a cm of downhaul and crossed my fingers. Something worked, because I had a ball, no great speeds, but it was so nice to have an effertless sail, totally in control.