Tales from a down-shifted family
- Making the most of modest means
You’ve got to love Ynyslas, and its pre-work windsurf opportunities, thanks to its crazy katabatic wind that we call Ivor! This time of year it can really do its thing, funnelling cold air from the mountains down through the valley and blasting the estuary with storm-force winds. This morning was a case in point. The...
Windsurf sessions have been few and far between lately, but with Alastair visiting on holiday with his family, a weekend sail had been on the cards for a while. Fortunately, the wind gods were on our side, delivering a solid north-westerly forecast for Saturday. I rallied the troops and we gathered on the beach —...
With a decent forecast for wind, Steve and I planned a windsurf session on Sunday once again. I therefore didn’t go for my usual Sunday morning run — I didn’t think my joints were quite up to that before a windsurf session. I had at least managed a nice mountain bike ride on Saturday afternoon,...
You’d think that buying a new windsurf sail would be simple. Decide what size you need, find it online, buy now, done! Not so simple though, when you consider all the idiosyncrasies and requirements. Many tabs later, lots of emails and calculations, and still there’s no parcel on my doorstep. A Sad Farewell to the...
Despite having recently upgraded from my wheelbarrow to a new trolley as my windsurf transport of choice, I did something a little different on Sunday — time for a road trip. The winds were SSW and the seas were large and angry. Too large and angry to sail on my own off the seafront at...
Over the past 20+ years, various trusty wheelbarrows have served me well for getting my windsurf kit to the beach. Loaded up with two boards, 2–3 sails, two masts, two booms, a whole host of fins, extensions, tools and accessories — not to mention a harness, helmet and some spare parts — they’ve done the...
You can’t beat sunny days with a decent wind. Not if you’re a windsurfer — and since I’ve been out a few times lately, I think I can once again call myself one. Friday was a little more full-on than expected, with a solid 30-knot wind gusting up to 40 knots at times. There wasn’t much...
I finally got to try out one of my new windsurf boards on Sunday. The forecast looked perfect — warm temperatures, a warm sea, and a solid wind that would gradually build throughout the day. The really hot days were behind us, and the sun was shy, but that didn’t matter. The wind was set...
Windsurfing kit doesn’t come cheap. I rarely — if ever — buy brand-new gear, and some of my boards, sails, and accessories are probably more than 20 years old. But it’s still nice to keep up with the times where I can. The relatively new 2021 Severne Nano 87 that I bought a few years...
Various factors had conspired to keep me off the water lately. A lack of wind—or, on occasion, too much wind—weekends away, and work were the usual culprits. Adding to the delay, the construction of a new shed, which is now almost finished, had left my windsurfing kit inaccessible for over a month. One Last Hoorah...
Fitness / Technology / Triathlon
Fixing the Altimeter on my Garmin Forerunner 910XT
Monday, March 17th, 2014
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