REboard

as there's an ice age going on outside and i've only made it onto the water once so far this scottish winter, i have begun a project to try to reshape and repair my old freestyle board. i bought it in greece about 4 year ago for very little and had to keep repairing the nose as it was already a bit damaged and i kept hitting the mast off it during falls. since then she has suffered minor dings and one major softness problem around the foot pad area. so far i have stripped most of the outer layer and reshaped the nose - giving it a more compact front.
i had ideas of various retro and geometric visuals for it but at the moment as i strip it down, the wood and carbon is looking really interesting, possibly good enough itself. as for the shape - the new nose is a bit extreme / stubby and i will take elements of the starboard flare into remodeling the tail.

aeroplane

having just flown back from hurghada, egypt, i made a few observations :

- it feels like you are cattle being herded.

- we waited until 10 minutes before we were due to depart in the grim airport before being hurried (literally "come on come on hurry").

- i am short and i even felt crammed. it is not comfy or pleasant. and at one point there was a stench of piss from the toilets wafting through the plane.

- an air hostess on the plane said "i'm ready to kill myself"

there are reasons for some of these thing, ok. but it makes me want to fly first class or not bother at all. i will windsurf within the uk for now thanks. baaa.

underwater photos

I've always been interested in photos of windsurfing from the water. Taking it to the extreme and sinking kit to do a sea-bed photo shoot in Teos was one idea and with the help of Rusty and Beer (from the Dive Shack) we did it. It was trial and error, and the main problem was that we underestimated the volume of the board – even just 86 litres was too much to pull down fully using ropes. The floating feeling, interesting colour, light and abstract angles made it a good first attempt. Photo by Beer.

alacati

just spent a day in alacati to see the first day of the pwa slalom event. there was an amazing atmosphere, especially with so many big names there and freestyle to watch. i spent the afternoon on a 4.2m but it was fairly choppy and crowded, so i didnt manage much. it was great to meet josh angulo and see ross williams lead. windsurfing with bjorn dunkerbeck just upwind was great fun...

flat water, forwards and fluck gybes

last week i spent a few evenings with other staff at an island for sunset sessions. alex was taking great photos which i put together to make these sequences. landed my first forward loop last week which was a massive relief, such a great feeling. i was teaching light wind freestyle today and put the two moves of the day together, flare and duck gybe. decided to call it the fluck gybe.
photos by alex green, merged / edited in photoshop

teos wind

i had a week off and unfortunately the meltemi wind hadn't kicked in. the wind conditions seem to dictate my mood, so was grumpy. did manage one afternoon with on shore storm conditions, making it very tricky to get out of the little bay. went out on a 6.5 overpowered so settled on a 5.5 with 94 l kode. enjoyed the rough water, bit of waveriding, pleased just to be on the water again.

arrived in teos

after a petrol leak in the car and a delayed flight, nearly missing connection, I arrived in teos and the new resort looks stunning. it's not finished yet, but the kit and scenery is awesome. this is a pic of me on a BA flight, and yes, with windsurf kit (banned, meaning i coiuldn't take my new sail or board).

scotland march 2009

i've had a few weeks in the uk now - and there's been a very cold spell in scotland. i managed to get out a few times at newburgh... even through a winter suit with gloves and hood it was bloody tough to bear the cold. many coffee breaks were needed to keep circulation but fully powered on a 4.5m it was well worth it.
saturday 28th march was the best day : i headed up to st combs with my 75 litre, 4.5m and most importantly my camera. i was shivering on the beach but it was great to watch the other guys out there. without a drysuit and nothing smaller than 4.5m i decided that it wasn't worth braving the sowy gale. after lunch i went to newburgh where it was busy and surprisingly non gusty. i had a great session and was amazed to land a vulcan on 75l. there was massive chop in the channel - good for jumping. i am always stoked after being on the f2 style - it gets air effortlessly and feels so good.
just got my flight details for my next stop - turkey. unfortunately the flight is with BA which means i can't take my windsurf kit with me. having just bought a new 5m sail, i'm hoping to get my rig out to the neilson resort in teos another way.