GPS Team Challenge - Lake Macquarie (NSW, Australia)

The session was 2 bits with a rest inbetween. I didn't feel like sailing so I wasn't in the best mood anyway. It looked like a long walk out but I tested it and it was hard sandy mud so I thought the 100m would be ok.I didn't realise theree was an extra 100m filled with swan moguls ..

Hardwork One second it would be ankle deep then knee deep and a bit soft. Too risky to try and sail till 250m because of the high bits of the hollows.

Well I pretty well stuffed by the time I'd staggered out and finally got deep enough to start ( after several attempts bouncing off swan ridges).

Set up for gybing with small sail , medium board and solid fin.

I decided to put the Go Pro on for the first time and put it on the mast above the boom.It kept drooping and it was dodgy trying to reach up and fix it before a gust got me.

My aim was to do alphas. First gybe across the other side I flew into the gybe , the board stopped and I flew spreadeagled into the water in front of it..By now I was seething ..

Anyhow I hated the first half of the session.I was just gybing and couldn't get a decent alpha. The wind was too patchy and Id rarely have good wind in and out or I'd go too wide..The Go pro was getting in the way of grabbing the boom which wasn't helping..

In hindsight I should have realised it was highlighting my bad habit of grabbing the boom with overhand grip on port gybes..I'll have to fix that..lots of F's and screaming "come on give me some wind! 'as I tried to exit. No real bearaways and everyone else seemed to be having a ball..

Came back. Left the rig out at the 250m mark planning to get the 80ltre later.I staggered in to see a photographer..Did you get any of me gybing? "No I just setup."Typical..

Stuffed my face and watched. It seemed to be dying so rather than going down to the 80 I put a faster fin in.

I decided to just have fun, the wind had evened out a bit and I started to enjoy things. Got the alpha then. I know I can do better so I hope I get another chance. Still patchy in the speed run. I only got one good gust to get the 2 sec.

I'm happy with the gybes just not the alphas.. I really need to have a session on the WT57 to see if I can do planing gybes on it and get it together before I hit the chop again.

Only Nic , Andrew and one other out and I was the last one in. I thought about trying for 100kms but I was aching and the wind was dying.

Only nm I tried was at the end of the day of course I didn't get any wind. Top speed 30kts and most of it I was barely planing with one foot out of the strap..

I've yet to get a powered nm. I need to concentrate on some.

I came in at the watermark as I couldn't face carrying the gear in at my launch. i won't launch there again. Very cold walking back up to my van ( I took the half a km off the distance). Glad to get into warm clothes.. rush home and out to the pub for a lovely meal.