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        <title>Steve Thorp (Latest News)</title>
        <description><![CDATA[Steve Thorp Windsurfing]]></description>
        <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk</link>
        <lastBuildDate>Mon, 06 Sep 2010 18:14:07 +0100</lastBuildDate>
        <generator>FeedCreator 1.7</generator>
        <item>
            <title>Sick September Swell!</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=300</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Just had an amazing weekend of surfing for early September. It was my 'Bro-in-law to be' John's stag do..Arrived Friday and went straight down to PoTo. Bumped into PWA judge Duncan Coombes.GoPro pics..Quik GoPro SloMo (http://vimeo.com/14733053)Tried desperately to get a decent barrel, but never really happened not helped by it being high tide. Then went to Fistral without the GoPro and it was a different story. Fistral was amazing!...Slotted on his foamie at South!Used the Olympus waterproof cameraAwwriiight!!Stag John Spent the rest of the weekend surfing, quad biking and boozing around Bude, top weekend. Good crowd of loons.Random Izzy shot..]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Mon, 06 Sep 2010 10:10:00 +0100</pubDate>
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            <title>Crastor</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=299</link>
            <description><![CDATA[The bank holiday weekend was bit of a disaster for me!On
Saturday morning after a busy week at work and a few late nights I
dragged myself out of bed and headed down to Worthing for the BSA
slalom. Trouble was I didn't get out of bed quite early enough and had
to sit through 3 seperate traffic jams (two were caravan crashes..) and
didn't arrive 'til lunchtime. There was no wind either. The
rest of the family were down too for my sister's hen do in Brighton and
so whilst they did their thing, the other halves that had tagged along
(to provide the usual transport and accomodation) went for a few beers
too. Nice day for it with the sun shining and lots going on. I
checked the forecast for Sunday and decided it looked a whole lot
better ooop north (super windy and a good 10ft) and didn't know if I'd
get a late entry to the slalom anyway which I figured would be light
wind stuff..So dragged myself out of bed early again Sunday
morning and drove to Fraisethorpe, then changed my mind and drove on to
Newcastle!First stop was Hartley reef (see pic at top). Been on
my list of  'to do' for a while and I'm sure it goes off on it's day,
but it was just a blown out mess. The wind too Northerly now and the
waves much smaller than expected.A report from Boulmer said it
was bigger up there, so off I trundled again. After a few beach checks
time was getting on, so decided Crastor would be my final stop. It
looked ok, fully windy, but still a bit small and the reef looked a bit
sketchy to say the least not to mention the launch or lack of it.View upwind to Embleton.It
looks ok in the pics I guess, but sections of it were definitely pretty
shallow even though it was high tide and it was peeling 20ft at a time
in places. I figured I could sail up close and check it out before
going for it but was feeling a bit apprehensive with it being howling
3.7 weather and with no one else around. Then a chap from the RNLI came
past who said he'd highly recommend I don't go out and that no one ever
surfed here, there was no where safe to come in for miles and that
maybe I should try the sheltered bay at Newton..Once I was out
it was a lot bigger than it looked. About logo high on the sets and
breaking pretty ferociously on the first bit of reef, sucking the water
mirror smooth infront of it (pretty cool considering it was 3.7 weather
and generally very lumpy and confused) and boiling up. I was fully
stacked on my 4m. It was super hard to ride though as it would suck up
instantly then back off before hitting another shallow bit and wasn't
really lining up with the it being so windy. It was really hard to
guage the depth too, not a very flat reef I reckon. I ended up chasing
a lot of close outs then turning on a fat shoulder.. maybe on a clean
swell it goes off though?! (in parts atleast..)Here's a few pics anyway with the new GoPro mount...Liking the new mount! honestly still makes the waves look tiny though and you never really get a view of the the wave peeling.Quick slo-mo vidSailed
until it was getting dark, then drove back down to Fraisethorpe
arriving at midnight ready for the Monday morning forecast of 20mph
dropping off after lunch.It looked absolutely mint. Went out on
the 4m but was underpowered, then went out on the 5m and was
underpowered again. Had an hour of useless gopro footage already.. It
was looking windy but the drift here saps all your power in the wavey
bit. Figured if I rigged the 5.6 the wind would go completely anyway so
persevered with the 5m. As it happened it stayed fairly windy for most
of the day. Should have rigged the 5.6..It was disappointing for
me, I had a bad day thinking I was on for much better, but I guess you
can't complain for August with shoulder high, sun and windy'ish. For
the 5% of the time when a gust and a wave coincided it was great.Rich
Jones was out ripping all day on his 5.4 and freestyle wave as it was
the only kit he had with him but probably the perfect combo. He'd also
been down to the slalom and told me it had been really windy with lots
of racing on Sunday..  arse..]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:03:18 +0100</pubDate>
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            <title>Fin testing and SUP fireworks</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=296</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Ben and Dave Friday at RhosniegrIt was a classic Rossi day! logo high out the back, 4m weather and the two local Pro's Phil and Ben training at home....PhilBen Backie..Phil one handed sequence...  nice.I was on bit of a testing mission -seeing how the new Mini Tuttle K4FINS (http://k4fins.blogspot.com/) performed in various boards... (they'll be available in a few weeks time)   Managed to sail 5 different boards with different fin set-ups (including the originals). A great day to get a feel for what the fins and configs actually do with 6hrs of full power 4m weather. My hands were ruined by 4pm when the wind finally eased. Top day! Saturday/SundayWent down to Cornwall. Checked Gwithian for a windsurf but looked proper limp (and I was aching and blistered), so took the dog for a walk up around Watergate bay. Someone was out sailing.? looked pretty good.Had a decent surf on Sunday (head high and glassy but got lazy with the camera. Steve King turned up, then Dan Linton), much better than forecast and put the Firewire Dominator to the test. Love it. Only have it set up as a quad at the moment, it flies (and turns), I'm well impressed. Have some 'Robber' Merrick Fcs Twinzers on the way for the small days. May have finally found 'the one' for small wave joy.MondayIt was our first wedding anniversary. We had 2 nights pimping it up for free in the Imperial Hotel Torquay where we were married last year.Had a top evening out on the SUP* exploring the bay, watching the sun go down, having a picnic with champers, then watching the regatta week firework display from the best vantage point possible..(sorry there's so many pics)That last pic is not cropped! We were right underneath them and had a couple bounce off the side of the SUP* when they landed. Almost made it back to dry land without incident, but were collared by the harbour police for not having a light on 100yards from home.Finished off with the fair. Brill.Finally...  after watching Bens amazing Cape Town (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kxuue-rz_2o) video, I was inspired to knock this up ready for the next bit of wind..Should be good for the next WaveJam (http://www.wavejam.co.uk) if the wind ever sorts itself out. (yes, we are intending to still run them if we ever get another decent low pressure system hit the British Isles on a weekend..)*Sit Up Paddleboat (../../../index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=284&Itemid=38). By the way, NOBLES (http://www.nobleboards.co.uk/) are now running real SUP (http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Loughborough-United-Kingdom/Dave-Nobles/123545421012336?ref=ts) sessions..]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Wed, 25 Aug 2010 17:08:31 +0100</pubDate>
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        <item>
            <title>John Smalleys kit for sale</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=294</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Here's some pics and more info on John Smalley's kit for Sale...Naish production speed board..Board with fin only, not bag. Excellent condition. Very fast board (I think Martin Van Muers touched 50knots on one of these) &pound;35028 finNaish Hybrid109ltr, 65wide. Comes with bag shown and fin and the front straps! &pound;250Naish Vector114ltr. Board and fin only, no bag. &pound;250Northshore 26 and 24 fins&pound;50Techtonics fins&pound;90 for the first, &pound;80 after that. 21,23,24,25,26. These are all specials for Johns ditch speed attempt. Similer to regular Techtonics F1 Falcons but slightly thinner for higher top speed. Now have a 28 also.Some new fin additions just in:28 Techtonics Falcon30 MFC Goya Freestyle28 ish carbon prototype, possibly debochete?Stix 28 wildthangprices, info and pics when i have them.Naish Stealth 4.2Pretty sure this hasn't been wet yet. &pound;150Naish Stealth 4.6 canal job!&pound;150Naish Stealth 4.6&pound;150All this kit is in great condition with very little use. It's also selling fast..All prices are 'open to near offers'stevethorp(@)hotmail(dot)com.]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Fri, 13 Aug 2010 14:52:19 +0100</pubDate>
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        <item>
            <title>Portugal and K4FIN blog</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=292</link>
            <description><![CDATA[Just returned from a quick four day break in Portugal, down on the Algarve. My good friend Martin has a place out there where he now spends most of his time (he's a keen freestyler and just taking up surfing..)I only took the surfboard out with me as we weren't really expecting any wind but managed to scrounge a go on the freestyle kit for the first two afternoons (turned out to be good 6m weather) whilst the other lads learnt to windsurf. Both Meia Praia (http://www.windsurfpoint.com/) and Martinel hire windsurf kit and are great for blasting/freestyle. Martinel seemed the better of the 2 spots for learning, blasting and freestyle.I'm really not sure about any wavesailing spots. The South coast is generally flat and windy in summer, the West coast less windy with a cross on N-NE breeze, very wavey, but the beaches are generally fairly cliffy. Winter may proove a different story, I'll have to go back to check it out.. The best summer spot is obviously up near Guincho.Surf wise virtually all the West coast gets good surf. Our favourite spot was Amado where we surfed everyday (see top pic), a good peaky beach break. There's a good point break at Arrifana but we didn't get a big enough swell to see it work (needs 2m, summer generally 3-4ft I think)Other than the surfing there's great food, nights out in Lagos and proper karting at Portimao (http://autodromoalgarve.com.pt/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=146&lang=english) next to the race track. Apparently bike track days are only 120euro! The karts are tame in comparison but only 17euro for 20minutes and as good as any I've been on before (we had the place to ourselves and didn't get told off once!)  Armado and the blood bath flip flop.  The lads and the kart track in the backgroundI was going to take all my pics of Portugal with the Hipstamatic App on the Iphone, it usually takes cool shots but let me down a bit this time...  Martin and Jager time  Typical Algarve coastline and the road to Tonel (good but fickel surf spot)Looking forward to going back on a big winter swell forecast!  Finally check out the new K4FIN BLOG (http://k4fins.blogspot.com/) for latest news on the fins. The new quad fin US box will be in the shops shortly follwed by the mini tutts in a month or so...]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:00:49 +0100</pubDate>
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        <item>
            <title>43Knots and sunny</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=291</link>
            <description><![CDATA[

The RAY, Southend
On the one hand a great days windsurfing, on the other hand a bit frustrating.
-Great because we were doing well over 40knots in July with our summer suits on, powered up at times on 6m's.
-Frustrating because it could have easily been so much better!

We all arrived for an early start as the Ray (the speedstrip) was going
to be sailable from 7am until lunch time when the tide would cover it
up. I rigged the 6.2 and Moo with 20 Moo fin. Out on the water it
wasn't as windy as expected as the cloud and rain hadn't cleared
through. For the first hour or two we were doing around 39knots -the
water was flat but it just wasn't windy enough. We were using the West
course as the SW wind meant the East course was too square (previous 
fastest times are East course).

The wind gradually started to build but as it did so the chop became
much worse with the tide having turned. Ian Richards and myself managed
to get in a 43.5 knot peak before the water covered the Ray. Lance
Newbury managed to break 40 and there were plenty of other PB's. I somehow managed to do a 26.7Knot Alpha (includes a gybe and getting back to where you started) on my 40 wide needle with a weight jacket on, might have to try and up that next time! (the world record is 29.2)It was a good day for tuning up too -did some fin testing and played around with the sail settings, the 6.2 is feeling really fast for a 'big' sail.Big news was Whitey's return after over a 2 yr break and poor Darren breaking his foot in the first ten minutes of sailing after driving down from York and sleeping in his car (hope you're mended soon mate)Now for the frustrating part! We couldn't sail from 1 untl 7 and this was when the sun came out and the wind nuked! Everyone cleared off home but I stayed hoping the forecast for the wind to drop at 6pm was wrong (and I find it impossible to drive away from a windy sunny beach!) Come 6 o clock and it was still windy so rigged up rubbing my hands together. Managed to walk half way out to the Ray, and that's when the wind switched off. The forecasters were fairly spot on for a change.. bum.So just the mediocre morning counted.SPORTSTRACKLIVE (http://www.sportstracklive.com/track/map#stevethorp/Windsurfing/southend/gps/34239/full)GPS-SPEEDSURFING (http://www.gps-speedsurfing.com/default.aspx?mnu=forum&forum=2&val=22388)Ian RichardsLance NewburyWhitey about to show off!Biggest bummer for me though, is being knocked off the top spot of the 2010 ranking and into second place by the Dutch guys who had a great day at the Brace. Those boys have been pushing hard for a while and getting close quite a few times. Hopefully we'll get a good autumn and a chance to have another crack at the top spot before the years out.Check out the latest issue of WINDSURFER INTERNATIONAL (http://beachtelegraph.typepad.com/windsurferinternational/) if you haven't already!   .]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Fri, 16 Jul 2010 12:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
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        <item>
            <title>BSA 6 HUNSTANTON</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=290</link>
            <description><![CDATA[HUNSTANTON SLALOM BSA ROUND 6Saturday was a gorgeous hot sunny day with no competition. The pics from that are at the end as I want to get straight onto the windsurfing so as hopefully not to bore you all to death..BSA (http://www.windsurf-bsa.com/index.html) and UKWA (http://ukwindsurfing.com/) for the season so far.I missed round 5 at Hove where they had 14 rounds of slalom (14 rounds!! is that a record?). I thought it would just cost me a result, but it seems like all that practice has upped everybody's game too (except maybe Cofield!..) and it's me who could do with the practice..We had an early start to catch the best wind and the tide, first race was about 9am on Sunday I think?RACE 1: Used the 95ltr, 35fin and 7m. Had an amazing start (I honestly thought I was over way early), but soon realised I wasn't very quick. I've used this set-up before on flattish water and seemed to be going quick on my own, but in big chop and with fast sailors around me I soon realised it wasn't. Bigger board better I think.RACE 2: Changed down to the 6.2m whilst everyone else changed up! (most on 7.5-8.0) Got my start sequence wrong and thought we had another minute.. gybed across the start as everyone else disappeared down the first reach. Kit was working well though and I was catching up!Repeat to self; heat board - 3 minutes, red flag - 2 minutes, yellow flag - 1 minute, green flag - GO...RACE 3: Had an amazing start again, but there was a general recall. The next start counted and mine was rubbish again..RACE 4: Got my act together a little better and finished 4th.All this can be seen on my HEADCAM FOOTAGE (http://www.vimeo.com/13277619) . Minus all the long reaches... so start, 3 gybes, finish. The wind then started to drop and the tide was leaving everywhere pretty shallow, but with much flatter water..They called 2 more races. I rushed around like a lunatic rigging my big kit, swapping fin bolts, etc, ran through the crowds with my kit, ran down the half mile of sand, splashed the half mile out to knee deep water, sailed fin first for the next half mile... and misssed the start by 30 seconds..  30 bloody seconds...  arse.RACE 6: My best result of the weekend -a 3rd. I think everyone else had given up caring by now though! the wind was super light and they probably had discards to spare..Pro Fleet results.So yet again Matt Pearch thrashed everyone. If he doesn't slow down I think he'll be the only one turning up before too long! Simon Cofield has given him a run for his money before but had bit of a shocker this time.Rich Jones was on fire though! Sailing ten times better than he did back at Tenby and finishing 2nd with 2 bullets in the light winds. James Dinsmore also seems to have found his form and was only just pushed back to 3rd.I finished in 6th. I'm starting to realise I need to seriously up my game if I'm going to get anywhere near the front. Time to decide what I'm playing at..  (get the missing slalom boards, buy some decent fins, start doing some tuning with someone quick, practice my starts, rig all my kit every race day regardless of forecast, put on some weight.. go to the gym.. eerrww, I draw the line at that one.)Another great event though, sponsored this time by the guys at Quayside Windsurfers (http://www.quayside-windsurfers.com/). Thanks as usual to all the race team in the boats and the organisors, much appreciated. And special thanks to Alistair for rescuing my kit when the tide came back in a bit quicker than expected.Unfortunately I missed all the Freestyle, guess they were out whilst we were racing and must have had a good time.One for the speedies! That's the strip out back, it's a long walk!Faces West Hunstanton!SkillsThese kids were well impressive, respect!..Izzy cooling offFinally in case you've missed it check out all the latest event footage from the legendary Pozo (http://www.pwaworldtour.com/) which didn't fail to disappoint yet again. Massive respect to Proffitt (http://www.thewetdream.co.uk/) for taking down Kauli and almost the wonder kid Koster too.Don't forget to Bookmark the upcoming ASP J-Bay (http://www.billabongpro.com/jbay10/) contest!.]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Mon, 12 Jul 2010 21:30:28 +0100</pubDate>
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        <item>
            <title>West Ireland road trip</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=289</link>
            <description><![CDATA[  I've just spent the weekend on a mega Irish road trip with Muzzer Saunders and Stevie King.I had bit of a dilema as I was supposed to be doing the slalom event at Hove. Looked like they might get some wind, but as much as I love a bit of slalom, the waves were definitetly calling... (see above!)So we missioned it over on the 2.30 am ferry on Friday morning and scored 3 days of wind and waves!Friday We hit Bellmullet. Russ 'Crazy Horse' Tetlow and his mate Rich Jayes were also there. Check out Russ' PICS (http://www.stinknuggetproductions.co.uk/picture%20gallery/Photo_Albums/2010/Ireland%20June%202010/index.html)It was 4.5 weather and head high waves, not so clean but good fun.After a massive session there, we headed round the coast to check some other spots. One looked perfect except for one minor problem...  40 odd surfers. So I launched up the coast a bit, sailed 40 yrds off the beach and the wind disappeared, but it was now 8pm. Thought I'd get in a quick surf, 3 hrs later and I was still surfing, it was still daylight..  weird!SaturdayWe hit the North West. Arrived to find Mikey Clancy (http://www.mikeyclancy.com/) was already on it. Then Oisin Van Gelderen (http://ir777.blogspot.com/) (happy big birthday mate!), then Timo, Jamie Hawkins and Dan Macaulay (so I wasn't the only one missing 14 rounds of slalom!!), plus a host of other local rippers.This was the best day; at times it was perfect 5 0, logo high, sunny, warm and down the line!MikeyHad another late surf at the end of the day, 'til about 10pm.SundaySuper windy! And I'll be honest by this point I was completely shattered already! didn't really want 3 7 weather on my 4 0!Ended up at the same spot as Saturday but super powered up. This day was originally meant to be 18ft. Unfortunately it was only head high but still great fun..OisinI used the Mistral Twinzer 82 the whole time with 15 and 16cm k4fins, all doing their job beautifully. Oisin was testing the new K4quad fins in his Jp -I think deciding the 14s were best in the back. Left at 4pm to scrape last boarding for the 9pm ferry and back home to blighty for 5am. Job done -completely, utterly, totally, absolutely f*cked..Loads more pics and craic, but this is all for now..My wife Trudie is an Artist and now has a blog too... TRUDIE SCRUMPTIOUS (http://trudiescrumptious.blogspot.com)So check that out for more dog pictures!.]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Wed, 07 Jul 2010 13:33:10 +0100</pubDate>
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            <title>BSA 4 ABERDOVEY</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=288</link>
            <description><![CDATA[We've just spent the weekend in Aberdovey (mid Wales) for the BSA (http://www.windsurf-bsa.com/) round 4 slalom comp.To be honest I was far from impressed with the forecast and really a bit gutted that I was going!Not because we were only forecast 15mph, but because the East Coast was about to be blessed with the best forecast of the year! 25mph NNW and 13ft waves ...  Aaaaarrrgghhhhh, not fair!On the bright side we were due two days of scorching sunshine, some great entertainment, top company, and if we were lucky some wind and a result.Things got off to a pretty bad start though..Didn't finish work 'til 8pm. Rushed home and crammed the van full with windsurf kit, leaving just enough room for Trudie and Izzy. Left about 9..  not too bad. Then hit traffic, then found the M6 was closed, aaarrgh. Major detour later and we arrived at 1am hoping to roll into bed at a pimp house over looking the event site. Only no one had any phone reception, we couldn't find the house and we spent the night sleeping on the windsurf kit in the back of the van. Sorry Trude!Woke up to a georgeous day of sun and no wind, so it was time for the Sit Up Paddleboats maiden voyage!Top fun with Trudie, Izzy, sandwiches and 4 cans of Stella. Soon forgot what I was missing! We were like Littliest Hobo in a Dinghy, helping stranded yachties get to the pub and rescuing kids crab buckets!Mid afternoon it looked windy enough to take the big kit for a spin. Sailed out the estuary to the open sea and it was actually pretty windy. Far windier infact than the championship racing at Weymouth!, so headed back in to see what was hap'nin. Soon it was announced we were on for some official racing, first start as soon as poss, yeeehooo. Now, I have a bad habit of missing the first race so I wasn't going to faff about this time! Jumped back on the kit and headed out to the start. Pretty stacked on the 8.6 now and struggling to keep it under control through the breaking chop (which was churning up on the sandbar what with the tide and all), but figured I didn't have time to change kit. So sailed around for 40 minutes whilst everyone else had stayed ashore faffing about re-rigging.. brilliant.Eventually everyone turned up, some on 7m! I guess with all the waiting my mind had started to wander and the first thing I knew of the start was when I suddenly noticed everyone gunning for it with 30 seconds to go and I'm heading in the opposite direction...    Quick gybe and it wasn't a total disaster, but as usual the leaders were half way down the first leg before I'd started. I was now kinda glad of the 8.6 and with a bit of anger just pinned the motha down pedal to the metal fanging.. Crossed the line in 5th.Race 2 and I'm fully sync'd in with the start sequence this time but somehow still manage to be late, big hole in the wind or something as I struggle to be there on time. I'm not the only one, but as usual the top 3  hit the line flat out smack bang on the buzzer (or what my brain seems to think is over early :~) The 8.6 is now feeling perfect though and I make my way up to 4th, holding off Alan Jackson for a change and catching the leaders with all my extra sail.The wind continues to drop and of course now the boys that changed down can't plane so they sail back in and racing is abandoned.And that was it for the weekend.Matt Pearch won, James Dinsmore flew upto second (also still holding onto his big kit) and Simon Cofield was 3rd. I finished on equal points to Si, but ended up 4th (with Si getting a 3rd and 6th over my 4th and 5th). Cribby came second in the first race but had boom issues for race 2 so DNSd.Really enjoyed the racing again, but as usual I left wanting more, feeling like I was just getting warmed up and wondering how the hell to sort my starts out..  Top night on Saturday night with a great band and too many beers, followed by a nice lie in in a comfy bed and slow breakfast with MotoGP on the box. Sweet.The wind filled in enough for some blasting on the big kit but not enough to race. Used the Mistral 140 for the first time, great bit of kit, I want one! Then tried a formula board again, yuck, no thank you, can't believe I used to race those things back in the day -sure they plane early, but horribly slowly  and only 1knot sooner..The event was wrapped up at 4pm and the prize giving held with an &pound;800 prize fund! Huge thanks to everyone for running the event; Boardwise (http://www.boardwise.co.uk/), the race crew, organisors and sponsors. Safe to say it was a great weekend and a huge success.We hit the road for home, but stopped off at one of the world's most beautiful spots for our Sunday Dinner - The George III Inn, next to the Toll road on the Dolgellau Estuary....]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Mon, 21 Jun 2010 15:00:00 +0100</pubDate>
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            <title>7 mile broad reach</title>
            <link>http://www.stevethorp.co.uk/index.php?option=content&amp;task=view&amp;id=287</link>
            <description><![CDATA[The Kent coast has been getting more than it's fair share of wind this week! Whilst everywhere else has been becalmed they've had 4.5 weather every day..I filled the van up with all the toys and made the trip down yesterday.Arranged to meet Mark Bell at St Mary's and arrived to find Ian black was there too (from St Ives, Cornwall!). Guess it's been pretty desperate in Kernow lately. Both were getting their share of decent stunts. Mark seemed well dialled to the conditions and able to boost some big backies off the soft 2ft ramps.St Mary's with Dungeness in the backgroundHad a fun sail for a couple of hours, finding the occasional decent vertical ramp on the way out and even managed a couple of half decent airs on the way in! (came as a shock to me too -I have a witness!)Billyboy and King Shingly from Boards forum were out playing too. Tide soon stopped play though, so after a natter it was time to head round the corner.I had my eye on the South coast for some slalom blasting/speed so went to check it out at high tide..Google map (http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?client=firefox-a&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=50.953885,0.859337&spn=0.157881,0.308647&t=h&z=12)That corner of land from Dungeness to Camber sands is super flat. The shingle beach itself is the highest land mass (except for the power station on the point). See the pic at the top of the page! It's a bit like Portland Harbour only the course is 7 miles long! The wind was North East.View leftView rightOf course the big problem is, if you break anything you'll end up in France :oHad some fun blasting along the whole strip nicely powered on my 7m and 95 slalom with 34 fin. Managed a 32knot peak and a 28.5knot mile, but probably not far off that for the whole 7 mile..Fortunately I could sail straight back upwind along the coast without having to tack out to sea.Unfortunately I can't retrieve my sbn file so can't do a google map overlay. No big numbers and sounds pretty dull I'm sure, but take my word for it, it was quite a decent laugh. I think you could do some serious speeds here in a real blow but you'd need a rescue boat for sure. Halfway up towards Dungeness the wind is almost uninterupted as the shingle bank drops to almost nothing and there's no groynes for miles.With arms and legs well and truly pumped I headed back to St Mary's for another hour or two of wavey stuff and more forumites sailing, namely the big guns Graemef and Basher ripping it up.Didn't enjoy the first half hour at all (underpowered on the inside), and was all set to go home but went for 'one last blast'. Which turned into an hour and was actually pretty good after all.It's very tide dependant down this way. Low and high are no good, and in between doesn't stay the same for long due to the sand bars. But you can get a good couple of hours of decent ramps if you're at the right spot on the right tide. (somewhere between Greatstone and Dymchurch)Obviously used my new Mistral 82 Twinzer! (combined with 4.5 and 5m Missions and 15cm k4fins) Oh yes!Felt really good, very spritely underfoot and easy to sail. It did everything I asked of it with finesse -which is good because changing brands is always bit of a worry! It feels fairly similer to the 09 DaCurve which was definitely my favourite board of recent years so that can't be bad, I felt at home straight away. It's almost certainly a bit quicker and livelier though. I'm more than happy, bring on some big waves!All in all a top day, well worth the drive and good to get a solid 6hrs on the water powered up. Would be nice to get a Big down the line day soon, why can't the wind and waves coincide for once?.]]></description>
            <author>mail@stevethorp.co.uk</author>
            <pubDate>Thu, 17 Jun 2010 13:30:25 +0100</pubDate>
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