Full power!

Quick splash-n-dash session in what has to be said are not my favoured conditions - Super windy!

Paul even spotted a couple of water spouts (wtf - mini tornados?!) flying across the bay!

 

Amroth

Heading out:

Alfie looking good on his 4.1  - but became overpowered:

Me on my new 4.7...way too big, but wanted to get it wet:

Ahhh...new sails!

After quite a few years with Ezzys, I decided to try something new - and at last got both the time and the lack of rain (its Wales, right!) to get my new 2011 Simmer Icons (5.3  & 4.7) out of their bag.

Rolled out, first time:

Padded foot, and built in pulley, with elasticated cord for wrapping it up:

Batten end protection,  and Simmer badge on boom cut-out to keep mast sleeve open:

Button on the batten pocket  - presumably to provide some minor protection when rigging:

Radial stitching around the clew

Lots of protection on the top of the mast sleeve

5.3 all rigged up:

Then the 4.7:

Nice!

Double Nice!

 

First impressions (albeit from the garden) are good:

• They seem well made (perhaps not quite as solid as my Ezzys...but feel lighter)
• Some good little features (eg a "cleaner" mast pad rather than all the straps im used to on the SEs, the elasticated bungy, the badge to keep the mast sleeve open, very good protection at top of the mast sleeve)
• The new material in the head of the sail feels incredibly light when you're rolling it up (hope it lasts)  

 
Of course, the real tests will be on the water...hope to get them wet very soon, and report back!

(FYI - rigged on a Ezzy 400 RDM).

Waay off Tuesday!

Whilst some of us were enjoying the delights of London transport, others (skivers!) enjoyed a waaay offshore session at Newgale.

Words from Jim, Pura Vida:

"Got in early to find it was too offshore, but battled it out anyway and the odd ride was amazing, holding up for ages and well worth the effort!  After a break for lunch it went more cross and was sweet, packed in just before dark..."

The scene

Alfie

Dave

Jim

Lewis

 

Me

Local boy done good!

Hats off to Pembs local ripper Lewis for entering the BWA PuraVida Cornwall Wave Classic  held last weekend, driving down to the event @ 5am in the morning, after coming back that evening from his Honeymoon!

Not only was Lewis in the winning Amateur team (with brothers Rob & Duncan Sheldon) but he also had the balls (read: Stupidity) to venture out on 'Big Friday' at the other end of the beach along with the likes of UKs keenest windsurfer Steve Thorpe.  Lewis reckons they were the biggest waves he's ever sailed in the UK - "mast and a quarter plus"!

A quick sample pic of Lewis from later in the comp:

From all reports it was an truly awesome event  - check out Alfie's  Day1 video on Boardseeker, with more footage to come.

PS
Back to local sessions:  
Unfortunately I missed big-n-clean cross-off Broadhaven in the SE, but managed to score a really fun cross-on shore sail @ Amroth (as the wind turned more SW) with Paul.

OK, so we didn't get a lot of wind (5.2m) but did manage to catch some of that giant swell that was hammering Cornwall - providing a much better than expected session in pretty easy-going, but still sizable (head high) waves. 

Oh, and as usual - the Mistral Twinny 84 just keeps on giving  - it really is so good in these kinda conditions...its like having a down-the-line autopilot!