Epic session at Ryde
24th May 2008
Just got back from an amaaaazing and crazy session at Ryde! Was working most the day but managed to escape at 4pm. Was out on my 7m, must have been gusting over 30knots cos I know that is my limit on my 7, and I was soooo over powered at times, infact most the time towards the end of the session! think I did my biggest jumps ever today, I admit I was a bit scared at times, those gusts really catch you out! sometimes there is a fine line between enjoyment and fear! I LOVE IT!
Loving the light, warm evenings!
13th May 2008
Just realised how long it has been since I last went kiting - 10 days! there hasn't been a lot of wind recently - nice sunny weather but no wind! (I know what I prefer if I had to choose...and it would most definitely be the wind and not the sun! but it has been wicked to see the sun again!) I did try to get out last week, 3 trips to the beach and no kiting!! two days I spent all day looking at the forecast then when we got to the beach it has died off completely! the other day it was pumping but the sky was doing crazy things! big black crazy looking clouds and rain was coming in so it was a bit unnerving really and I didn't want to get caught out in a squall so that day didn't happen either!! but ANYWAY!! the wind is coming back now - today was a cool evening, really light and didn't get out for long but I was just really appreciating the warm evening - no booties or gloves - nice. My 'mate' :-) Kev thought it would be really funny to hide my board at the end, I really thought i had let it drift away or something, then he pointed out a big mount in the middle of the beach, and I realised my board had somehow found its way to one foot underneath the surface of the beach. The wind tomorrow is looking better than today - fingers crossed!
Summer is coming...
3rd May 2008
Today was sooo good!! Wind was E-SE. Quite a light session and we were all on our biggest kites but it was just so nice to be on the beach and kiting and not feel cold!! I was out at Seaview with my mates Humphrey and Ben, who owns Island Surf shop in Ryde. (He has some awesome stuff in his shop - check out his site http://www.islandsurf.co.uk !! warning - it will be hard not to spend money!!) When we arrived it was high tide and by the time we left the tide was nearly out so we were there for a while! It was pretty desperate to start with, lots of walking upwind, but then later on it picked up and as the tide went out the shingle bank appeared creating a sweet lagoon with flat flat water!! it was so wicked! With a bit of help from Ben, I tried unhooking for the first time. He gave me a few tips and it was not as scary as I thought. I tried going for a railey but apart from that didn't try any tricks - but I definitely will now it doesn't feel so alien. Still feels a little strange but I'll get used to it! It was just cool to finally have a go at it, after chickening out for so long! Today, in the flat water, it was a perfect day for learning new things - always knee deep, wind not too strong and big kites which aren't so sensitive on the bar, if you accidentally pull on the wrong end or something! It was sunny all day and only the three of us were kiting, apart from another mate Stu that turned up towards the end. The beach was pretty deserted too which was cool. Seaview and Ryde are such cool spots. Wish I could take that beach to the south side of the island so it could work in a SW which it is most the time! Brook on the SW coast of the island is cool, just a bit more rugged and no lagoons/sandbanks to play around and inbetween! reeeally hope it is windy tomorrow, there may be a bit in the morning, if not I'll hit the gym and maybe go out on my bike (gotta fix my puncture first) and I'll wait patiently for Tuesday which looks like the next day of wind. For now though I am happy, such a wicked day :-)
Not always fun and games...
28th April 2008
After a weekend of no wind (but a very cool bbq with my girls on Sat night!), I was really hoping for a good session after work today. I spent the day looking at Bramblemet.co.uk and outside the window where I work, and it was looking good! and it was sunny which is always a bonus! It was SW so we headed to Brook, Bramblemet was showing about 18knots so it looked promising. When I got to the beach, it seemed quite light but just about enough! Kev got to the beach just after me and got ready and pumped up. Kev launched me and I got up ok, but didn't have a lot of power. I cruised around for about 15mins probably, didn't really feel like I had enough for tricks though - too underpowered. Then wind seemed to drop, and I decided to head back to the beach in case it dropped completely and I would have to swim in! as i came in my kite just fell out of the sky and in to the waves!! (Nooooo!) I have heard quite a few stories about kites getting trashed in waves so I'm always a bit worried about my kite when it happens! Anyway, the waves had weighed my kite downed (without destroying it luckily) so it wasn't going anywhere! I made a quick dash and grabbed my kite - and that was the end of my session! short and not particularly sweet! and had to spend some time untangling my lines which is always a real test of patience and a great pleasure...!! but was still cool to be on the beach and on days like today, as I think I have said before in a previous blog, I always have a quiet word with myself and remind myself I'm on the beach, it's a sunny day and there are MUCH worse places to be - it is so true! it's a good thing to try and remember when a session is quite frustrating or not going as planned, which we all know can happen! So after packing up and heading home, and after cleaning out my wetsuit etc, I decided to do a quick half hour in the gym - with the Rocky soundtrack playing, there are some killer tunes on that!! perfect for working out to - love it. The forecast for tomorrow is look a lot better than today, so hoping it will come through. I'll let you know how I get one! bye for now!
Sweet evening session
24th April 2008
Had a wicked session this evening on my 9m down at Bembridge, it was gusty but pretty flat. Wind was SW so although it was offshore, it was low tide and was shallow so if anything happens you can get stand up and it's all ok! My mates Dave, Kev and Ben were out too. Ben showed me this move called a nose press, looks pretty sweet - think I'll have another go at that next time it's flat - looks like a real wakestyle move. Was chatting to Ben, and he and Chris Burke are going to build a slider out of some wood and piping they 'acquired' :-) Chris is no stranger to sliders so it will be cool to see the guys on that! I'd love to have a go too but I'd need some serious body armour - me and hard objects don't get on very well! Tonight was so wicked - it wasn't the best kiting session for pulling off good tricks and learning stuff, as it was really gusty, but the beach in Bembridge has such a cool vibe, and tonight it was really tranquil down there. It was a pretty warm evening and just really cool kiting with mates. Some good sessions, no matter what the conditions are like, are made by who you're kiting with and where you are. Wind is looking good for weekend. Off to a mates on Saturday but back on Sunday to enjoy the nice south-westerlies on their way :-)
