Windsurfer of the Month

Just like those expensive windsurfing magazines you keep buying, once a month I'll be doing a profile on a windsurfer. This month, and just to kick things off, I will be profiling Stuart Blake, a long term sailor at Hayling Beach, and also, my instructor. I hope he has patience.

If you would like to nominate a local windsurfer of note then please let me know and I'll get them on the list for inclusion. I'm interested in all kinds of windsurfers, not just the best at your club / sailing location but also interested in people with a slightly different angle. For example I've met a few disabled windsurfers, female windsurfers, charity windsurfers and so on. You never know, I might get a few tips once I get beyond the wobbling stage!

As I say always interested in meeting new people here, so get in touch if you think you have an interesting windsurfer or windsurfing story.

Hayling Island Windsurfing Forecast

Very little wind for windsurfing during the week, increasing during the weekend.

Today: E Max 11kts
Wed:  Variable mostly S Max 7kts
Thurs: WSW Max 13kts
Fri: WSW Max 16kts
Sat: S Max 10kts
Sun SSW Max 17kts

Giving up Smoking - So I can Windsurf

Nasty unpleasent cough in the morning, a burning in the chest, £6 per day on it and I don't enjoy it! This smoking really is horrible and I can't say how much I am looking forward to doing it. Its an awful addiction, with no benefits. Of course the benefits of giving up smoking are huge - health, wallet, ability to do things, feeling better in the morning and so on.

I will be giving up using patches. I have used these before and managed to give up for 4 months.

Started smoking again at an evening work event. By one o'clock in the morning, I had given in and was smoking again. That was four years ago.

But giving up is paramount, if I am to be able to windsurf or even cycle. Years of smoking abuse have slowed me down and deterred me from exercise. Lets see how this works.


I'm  going to start my give up on Monday next week. I wonder if people will be able to detect the dreaded 'Day 3' of giving up in my posts!

Planning a trip to the Caribbean

Slightly off topic, but planning our next trip to the Caribbean. We're going to be sailing our 46' catamaran, Tallulah from St Lucia down to the Grenadines. There are a couple of locations to try windsurfing out here. I think than I am probably going to try Cas-En-Base in St Lucia, because being on the windward side of the island means that I will always blow back to the beach! I cannot come to any harm!

This will be a great place to get started though as the water is warm so if I can get enough falling in done here, it will make it much easier when I come back to the UK at the end of April. Will I then be able to windsurf? How long will it take?

I will also be looking at the practicalities of setting up 'windsurfing cruises' in the Caribbean. We are looking to take 6 or so people off on 14 day cruises to great windsurfing locations in the Caribbean.

I will be out in the Caribbean from 28th March - 25 April. Thank god. Back to warmer, cheerier climes again. Only been back here a month but already I feel that I have adapted 'well' to the miserable nature of the population of the UK!

Points of sail

This is the start of it, understanding sailing theory.Luckily, I understand this in some depth from the dinghy and yacht sailing that I have done.

There are basically four key points of sail

Closehauled - This is sailing as close to the wind as possible (an angle of around 45 degrees). You make a series of zig zags in order to make progress upwind. The turn between this zig zags is called tacking

Beam Reaching - This is sailing across the wind. Here you can point at exactly where you want to go and it is one of the faster points of sailing. The sail works providing huge amounts of lift, taking you faster.

Broad Reaching - This is almost going downind except for the fact that the sail is still working as an aerofoil. This in stronger winds particularly is the fastest point of sail.

Running - This is going dead before the wind. You can point at where you want to go, but it is the slowest point of sailing as you are simply being blown along like a leaf.

You have to set the sails angle to the wind according to the point of sail that you are on. This is all very dependent upon something called Apparent Wind something that I will be examining later in this blog!

Got a Bike - Now I can start windsurfing

Got myself a lovely new bike. Well, it's not new. It was bought by a mate of mine about a year ago to go on a cycling trip to the Isle of Wight. It has sat in the garden ever since and consequently has gone a bit rusty. It is blue and yellow with suspension.

So here we go, the fitness campaign starts here. Just got to fix the bike up and soak the rusty bits in oil for a day or so. Then I can get riding. Unfortunately, I can't start this until next week as I have to go away with my chldren for a few days.

I'll need to spend the next few days thinking about 'goals', fitness goals. This is what fit people tell me I need to do. So I'll put some thought into that.

I think I'll set my goals around time cycled. So I'll go for 20-30 minutes cycling a day to start with.

Any advice?

By the way - I apologise for the lack of photos so far but will have some on this site shortly.

This will be me in a few months!

No doubt! Just a few of those wobbly moments and out into the big stuff like this!

I expect it might take a little more time than this, but wow, this could be me at some point! Quite scary really but I do look forward to establishing a decent level of fitness and being able to go fast.

The more today has gone on, the more excited I have become and I think that the need to now let people know how I am doing through this blog is a great motivator!

First off though, it's the bike, a decent diet, stop smoking and lose a bit of weight. Should be a doddle!