Aquatic Allies.. K4 Fins...

Ive had sessions on these K4 fins the last few weeks that have blown me away. Its not often that ill try a piece of equpment and it work as i pictured it too. Ive driven these things into mast size and some, scored perfect down the line, i don't think i've ever felt something hook up quite like it.

Ive long surfed with a G10 alternative and often mused over the pros of their attributes. I could preach their performance all day, quad and twin but thats not what this blog is all about so ill keep it brief.

Stored energy?

Ability to over power them at will?

A few ideas ive heard talked about.

I dont know. Just feel right works for me.

Surfboard set up..

Longboard K4 Flex rear.

Twin K4 Stubbies.

Happy cat..

Sunset mist..

Cheers K4.

Top job.

Ireland...

Pic. Dave White BWA

'Ireland is the best wavesailing destination in Europe'...  A bold statement..


The rolling green hills of Brandon Bay paint a pretty perfect back drop. Combine that with a horse shoe bay, a variety of reef and beach break options, unhindered Atlantic swell and wind and you have all the ingredients of a windsurf/surf wonderland. Europe has many good destinations but where else can offer the variety and quality with in a 10 minute drive that you can get on the shores of Brandon. This not even taking the North West Coast reefs into account.

To have conditions of that caliber on our home shores just a short ferry ride away makes this a place far too convenient to miss for the British windsurfer.

I need little excuse to go on a trip out there, the Irish stop on the BWA tour is a annual fixture in the diary. This year http://www.stenaline.co.uk/ferry/  stepped up and put some incredible support into the tour. They have backed not only the Wave Tour but have also come aboard on the Racing Circuit to. Its great to see a company such as Stena putting their faith into our passion. They treated us like kings. Stena Plus is a level of comfort that I'm not accustomed to on surf trips or any trip come to think of it. Good food, comfortable seats, quiet and relaxed atmosphere made the trip feel far to short. A escorted trip to the bridge to see the Capitan, i was like a 10 year old kid all over again.

Meeting the Capitan

So..

Myself and good friends James Cox and Alfie Hart decided that we would do abit of a video diary of the trip for them. Now Alf is a first rate camera man, Capitan Cox and my self however are a duo that have issues with focus.. How Alf made any sense of the hours of footage is beyond me. I don't think I've laughed that much for a long time. Road trips like this are like gold to me. 

Ireland never fails to inspire me. Six out of six days on the water. Its a destination that offers something a little different from your average windsurf holiday.

A place that ill be returning to.

Ear He Isn't...

Deafness is an experience that id prefer to be brief.

I've just had my second and hopefully final operation on my ears to eradicate the bone growth that is the result of years of excessive use of the cold Pembrokeshire waters.

The first ear had some sort of reaction and the second ear is now full of packing after the Op and therefore my hearing is at an all time low.

Out of commission.

I always remember someone saying to me 'You should wear plugs' but at the time i thought the plugs effected my balance (they don't but they do take some getting accustomed too). 8 years of infection, uncomfort, time off the water and just general awkwardness before the Operations. And now with infection, skin grafts, stitches and the procedure it self, its not that pleasant to be fair. I wish id taken that advice.

So what else has been happening,

Team www.puravidaboardriders.co.uk continue to dominate the British competition scene.

British Wave Tour, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Ams and current Womans Champion on Puravida custom boards. British Racing Tour 4 of the top 5 on Team Puravida kit. So good to see the returns coming on all the effort thats gone in.. Well done Jim and Tanya..

Ben Proffits web casts from Pozo.. Why has it taken so long for someone to do this.. Im sick of seeing high light reels of the same old boring shit that every one seems to do.. Hats off to Ben for getting off his arse and doing something alittle different. Id go as far as saying its the most important thing to happen in windsurf scene in the last few years, i loves it...

See link... Proffit Gold..


The endless spell of summer wind and swell.... Thats definitely been happening..

Phil and Dave Horrocks came down with a few friends last week to do some filming with Alf. See link..

Phil Horrocks Out West Video..http://mpora.com/videos/AA68VeATenZ

Phil is standout at the national level at the minute, style and power is a difficult marriage that Phil has dialled.

Alf Hart, what can i say. Jules and me scored the first 30 minutes that they sailed at Freshwest last week and he was smashing it. He cant put a foot wrong it seems, first Am on the British Wave Tour and a full page shot in Windsurf.. Ripping mate..

Phil Horrocks

Phil....Wolll-appp...

Alf Hart..

 On the surf side of things....


Local man Al Morris is probably one of the most committed surfers down here. His water time is paying off with a 3rd place in the Welsh last weekend. Good work mate.

On the bike side of things..

Nothing much as ive been rough.. Changed over to 9 speed on the mtb. Saved just over a pound in weight which is canceled out by the 5 that ive put on..

On the wife side of things...

Big thanks to Jules for looking after the grumpiest patient ever at 7 months pregnant too.. Your a star..

Surfers Ear...Drilled...

20 years of cold water has taken its toll, my ears have given up the fight and closed them selves off from any more of it. The inevitable date with a surgeon has long loomed.

Surgery went well, not too painful. Bit disorientated when i came round. I remember my wife ringing and giving her morphine induced ramblings down the line. I do remember a text to see if i was coming sailing in the morning, that perked me up no end. Cheers Stubbs. Not really looking forward to getting the other done but hopefully these Ops will set up another 30 years in the water.

Post surgery thumbs up.

Ive been delaying this day for a long time. There never seems to be a good time to get your ears drilled out so 6 months back I decided that the usual flat summer period was the time to go for. However.

Day one laid up. Logo high plus cross off down the line Fresh and Newgale. Sounds like Alf, Neil and Northy cleaned up. The pain of the operation i can cope with, missing good days drives me crazy.


The whole month has been insane surf wise so cant really complain, some of the best surfing I've had for along time. I tried to use this month to get my fill and but i think its just made me more hungry for it. How can you resist this?

More N. Bier.

Wear your ear plugs..

3 Weeks..

Getting back to life at home.  

Photo Nick Bier.

More Nick Bier Gold.

Fun size 3 Peaks, Ireland.

 

 

14 from 20 days in the water, 2 trips to Brechfa, one to Betws-Y-Coed on the bike and work in there somewhere..

3 weeks doesn't get much better.

The Freedom Of Isolation..

Competition was never really a place where i wanted to take my sailing. I sail to bang waves where and when conditions are to my liking, where the only timing i need is to hit the section in such position as not to get consumed or project into a new direction.  

Last year chance, luck, skulduggery and a small hand full of skills i got myself into a position of promotion from the Am fleet into the Pro side of the draw on the 4 stop cyclone that is the British Wave Tour.

Scribe bending one round.

As the 2012 season rolled in i was starting to question why id put the pressure of competition back into my life. Competition sailing can be a pretty humbling experience, half the year i sail in my little west wales bubble pushing turns into what i believe is perfection. 8 minute heats in 2 foot hack tend to send a pretty big needle deep into that bubble.

However......

When Jim at Puravida suggested i join his British escapade as a team sailor and tour around competing the 4 corners of the country my mind reverted back to the 13 year old reading tales of Coomes, Farrel and Seals battling it out. They were heros to me at the time, pictures lined my room walls. Tiree was my Hawaii, Ireland my Indo.

Competition has turned into something a little different this year. Last season confirmed to me that the UK has the potential to rival wavesailing anywhere in the world. This year im keen to experience that amongst good friends.

Certain characters stand out to me. My travel partners Alf Hart and Coxy, i dont think ive talked more bollocks or laughed so hard for a long time, travel with personalities of this calibre is like gold to me. Rob Jones living a dream existence on the shores of Brandon. Jack Hunt a style i can appreciate, Tom Bennit coming through, Jeff Scott, Ian 'Chucky' Ross, Nigel Tracy all in it for the love as well as the world tour elite such as Proffit who treat each man as a friend.

Alf Hart Eagle King..

The whole Ireland trip this year was a classic. Stena Lines hooked us up with a faultless travel experience so a huge thank you to them. Some times i forget how close west coast Ireland and its conditions is. If you have never been.... GO....... Ive fallen in love with that place.

As i rolled away from Rd2 i think im sitting 11th and pretty happy with that as a fresh man to the Pro field. A big thanks to all the crew who helped me out. Puravida, No Limitz, Simmer, Fanatic, Patagonia and Stena Line.. Couldn't do it without you. Diolch.

Line this up...

Rise of the Egomaniac...

Strange few weeks, there has been good surf and pretty good wind but i just seem to either miss it with work or not really get on it when its there.. Not sure whats going on with the sailing but i just havent been feeling it. I think it might have been something to do with a day at the races on a stag with a bus full of social hand grenades where i seem to have sacrificed my brain. Alf has had his magic camera out working on a project so that made me link a few things together but something wasnt right. One week latter and she seems to have rebooted abit and I'm starting to feel the fire again.


Water wise a couple of things have stood out.

No Limitz Masts. Im not one for yelling 'this the best bit of kit ever' but I was put onto these by Jim at Puravida after a heavy few sessions that were hammering my bank account. I know i have some affiliation with these carbon pole manufactures but i  tell you. These new Sumo series are something else. I swear down i bent one of those things in half last week on a slight miss timing on a rather hefty lump. I dont know what they are doing with these modern masts but they are pretty special.

Sumo convert.

Steve Stubbs on his kite has been on fire. Full rail gauges knocking waves flat. Hats off to you Stubbs, taking the kites to the next level there sir. Even made me think of getting the old strings out again. Another man who is on the charge is Gareth Mogsy Morgan. He can lay down the power on tap. One of the most committed water men down here.

Mogs on one.

To windsurf waves with style is a hard thing to do Angulo brothers Levi, Kauli and Pat Redman are a few that stand out to me. Campello can do it all but he looks ugly with it. Alfie Hart is a man you associate being the land side of the camera however put him in good conditions and the man can ride with effortless style. At  Newgale he was pretty faultless last week. BWA Ams title this year?

Alf at work.

Steve North is also back on the radar. All over it mate. Check him out. http://pembswindsurfing.blogspot.co.uk/





To finish i saw this video the other night.. Kauli is in a different league..

edit embed not working.. ? Here she is http://t.co/PkpuoXzr

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