All things are bright and beautiful..  but why does it have to be so cold! Brrr… that’s all I can say about the latter part of this week but things are about to change, as it’s the weekend! 

And the talking point of today.. apart from North (part of the Actionsports Group) having closed their New Zealand Research and Development centre, that was responsible for those new North kite kit designs when Boards and More dropped the name for Duotone, due to a re-organisation of the company and centralizing everything within Europe..  is the cement lorry that turned turtle going round the beach roundabout early this morning, which then created absolute gridlock due to the Police closing the road. Many, including an overseas delivery driver, who was absolutely brilliant by queuing for an hour to get a board to us, asked the question ‘why’ not bollard the two lanes on the clear side of the roundabout to keep traffic moving both ways and save people wasting their lives.  I guess that could be classed as a moan, so I’d better move on…

Black Friday, which surprising as it may seem, is still a week away (as is Chri…… no, I can’t say it.. which is still about a month away but who would guess by the number of adverts for ‘it’ )  has for once been shunned by many of the watersports companies, as they are aware that we all have plenty of clearance offers already running and why discount those current products, which still have a good shelf life.. or sell by date! It’s likely not to ‘hold’ though, so if you do see something in a BF Sale, please do drop us a line or call, as we may be able to match it!  

I’ve been tidying up the windsurfing fin bin and have put a band of K4’s onto clearance, as they are oddities.. but it or they may be an oddity you require. Fronts can be found at https://www.surfladle.com/windsurf-accessories/windsurfing-fins/k4-shark-thruster-fins and rears are .. https://www.surfladle.com/windsurf-accessories/windsurfing-fins/k4-flexy-incinerator-leon-ss-rear-fins-on-offer

The Luderitz speed challenge is ongoing and good to see that Jim Crossley is holding 6th place, but with a Mr Dunkerbeck closing in. The last ‘runs’ took place on Wednesday, so it could be that the winds are not blowing or they all need a rest! If you have not seen this video clip of how things ‘are’ at Luderitz, it gives you a good idea of just how windy it can be.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3K_eY-q8sbk

Ok, talking of wind, let’s see what the weather is up to this weekend..

Saturday, wet, very wet if they are right but also windy and by the last couple of days standards, it should feel warmer. Wind re. Guru is Sou’Sou’West 23-35kt during the morning, swinging more to the South after lunch and increasing 28 – 38kt during the afternoon. The Met agree and both show the rain to be at its wettest from 11am to dusk, so put the wetsuit on at home, if you don’t have a van. Top temp is now shown as 9°C. Guru have been constantly forecasting this for the last week, so I hope they are right with the wind and wrong with the rain. High is at 12.01hrs on a 5.9m (some say 5.6m?) which given the wind direction would mean early doors or after 3pm for Shoreham, if you don’t want to be super brave. Saying that, the River will be usable for foiling but it could be short runs. Please try to limit disturbance around the banks.

Sunday, better regarding the wetter part of the forecast, as any rainfall should finish by 10am. The wind will still be Sou’Sou’West 13-27kt during the morning but by midday it will swing West 13-27kt and slowly decrease as the afternoon moves on.  High tide is at 12.30hrs on a 5.8m, so again an early start to sail at Shoreham or risk a dropping Westerly wind in the afternoon. Top temp is 10°C with sunny spells, so if the wind is slightly better than the forecast, it could be a good day… but hey, any day on the water is a Good Day! 

And that’s it for another week. Today being the 21st of November, means that we only have another month to go before the Winter equinox and we will then head back towards the sun..  slowly but surely. Have a great weekend, whatever you do,  and I will be back..  in the morning, with what I expect will be a very quick beach video, if the rain forecast is correct! 

Tally’ho .. which normally would relate to a Cheerio but in this case relates to a boat called the Tally Ho built in Shoreham in 1910 and won the Fastnet in 1927 and somehow ended up in the Pacific .. https://www.youtube.com/c/SampsonBoatCo )