Calendar Guys

Nice to see that Gareth Davies was voted Mr January in the Fotoboat 2012 Calendar!
http://www.fotoboat.com/fotoboat%20calendar%202012/index.html

Here's hoping that Mr August staring down at us will be a good omen too...

Hayling Island Training Weekend

I think that I speak for all in saying that we had a first class weekend at Hayling.  There must have been 20 or so of us out over the weekend, enjoying 15kt breezes with the odd spell at 20 to test us all.  There was something for everyone, for champions and Olympians through to novices. It's not up to me to recount the tales from the races, spending all my time in the intermediate coaching group.  The organisation of the coaching was superb.  I'm tremendously grateful to Jason, Olivier, Chris and Phil for their help off and on the water, as well as Ricky and others in helping set up my boat better on land.

As my first journey down south with LC, it was well worth the 440 miles round trip.  It was great to meet friends from way back (old!) as well as new.  I guess those that have strayed accidentally onto my blog might recognise my yellow peril without too much trouble: the "you must be..." welcome was warm.

For those of us on the learning curve in relative isolation - and there most be a fair number of us - I can now vouch  for the tremendous value of shore drills and being yelled at by Someone Who Knows from a following RIB.  Whilst it may seem to take a lot of effort to get to a training event, it is really worthwhile, considering the clear dedication of the organisers.  The HISC recipe certainly worked for me and the class.

Time to do what I do better - dissect and try to put back together again - but this time the footage from my DogCam Bullet.  It'll take me a while to sift through and see if I can find a lurking Money Shot... to prove that my first - and witnessed - foiling gybes will be the first of many.

All I want for Christmas, for Ninja fans everywhere...

I hope my 7 year old son will be delighted to receive this for Christmas...  Apparently it's one of the top 12 toys for Christmas, according to the BBC website.

Fotoboat Foiler?

Struggling to identify who has made it to the final round of the Fotoboat 2012 calendar competition...

Depending on who it is (looks like a Bladerider X8) , you might like to place a vote...

Full Fat Foils, Skinny Foils - or both sets?

With the advent of the successsful Elite 2011 Ninja foils (Ninja Death Squad were 1,3,5 9 at the Euros , of course...) and now the skinny mainfoil for the Mach 2, several questions are posed. 

How will the skinny foils perform in the light stuff?  Will lift off remain the same or not?  Will we see some proper two boat tuning data?  Taking Si Payne's comments further, will it be the vogue to have both sets of foils at an event, using full fat when it's light and skinny when the breeze is up? 

The cost of a single mast, sail and set of foils is near enough 40% of the cost of a new Moth.  The hull is simply the bit that holds the important bits together, but it's not on to swap the hull mid-regatta.  Should there be any limitation of masts/sails/foils for an event, or are we seeing the advent of "mix and match" according to the conditions?

Chasing seagulls...

It’s been a hectic day in St Tudwal’s Roads.  Bank Holidays bring out the worst in the Scouser Jet Skiers, whizzing round in decreasing circles with no regard to us more permanent residents.  Periodically the tourist fishing boats brought in scraps of fish, causing a scrum amongst the following gulls.  The last one came in for the day.  The heavens opened with little warning and the bay cleared early, leaving just a few sailing boats enjoying the stronger squalls in now flatter water off Abersoch beach.

Just like cows lie down in the rain and sheep seek shelter behind dry stone walls, we seagulls don’t like flying in the rain.  We far prefer settling on a moored boat, perhaps a mast-top if the gusts aren’t too strong.  But I am young – I haven’t yet finessed the knack of banging still an anemometer with one foot, stopping it whizzing around, as I land on a mast-top with the other.  So I settled in the water amongst the moorings with my five fledgling siblings, waiting for the rain to pass.

Out of the gloom looms a bright yellow winged monster flying high above the water – a Mountain Banshee, perhaps?  Certainly, it was screaming along at 20 knots or more.  On its wing balanced a black-suited rider, who had captured The Beast and commanded it in such harmony.  The Beast was, perhaps, more like the mythical Great Leonopteryx – such a challenging ride mastered only by The Few.

The Yellow Beast screamed out of the gloom at us – we took to the air in an instant.  We looped left, the Beast followed.  We accelerated to top speed, but still the winged beast kept our pace.  We swooped left, right, left, far off downwind, but still the monster chased every move.  It was thirty seconds or more that we darted around the moorings, the winged flying monster in pursuit, until we split six ways, the yellow beast flying off once more into the gloom.

As it vanished I caught the name on the bow – Limbic Candy.  The dark rider clearly in tune with the emotions of The Beast as it flew so fast and silently above the waves...

Dear Floppy..

Dear Floppy,

I hope that seeing the pictures of a winged young pretender haven't upset you too much.  Perhaps it has set your foils twitching at the possibility of flying past your Antipodean cousin and showing who's REALLY the boss?

Did you see your photo on The Daily Sail?

Perhaps Daddy might lend you his wing?

http://www.aardvarkracing.co.uk/2009/12/floppy-takes-to-the-skies/

http://www.thedailysail.com/dinghy/11/58582/0/oracle-racing-wing-rig-an-oppie

http://www.oracleracing.com/blog/wing-technology-trickles-down-to-youth-sailors_706

Gives you wings...

I passed the Red Bull milk float on the way home down the M1 last night.  Yeah, it was on a trailer, not trundling along at low-rider speeds.

How come Red Bull haven't thrown a wad of sponsorship dosh at a major Moth championships?  Surprisingly, it says on the Australian site that they were "not keen" to sponsor Belmont.  Yet they must be spending tens, if not hundreds, of thousands supporting their Extreme 40.  The overall budget must be enormous across all their sports sponsorships.

Surely the return from a Moths champs would be worth the investment?  Forget a few decals from the Italian state car manufacturer - a fully branded RB Moth or three would look awesome.  The Moth class would certainly give Red Bull wings!