Hot and sweaty, How to know the SSZ Rule, Paddles for SUP and Foil, Lessons for some and Tony's been out.
On a hot and sweaty Friday evening, after a day down at the beach with the sun worshippers, I am glad to say that it is once again the Weekend!
Here’s to the weather holding for all of those that have had to work the week who were unfortunate enough to come to the beach on Wednesday, when it was wet and truly a British Summers Day...it was a bit grim.
It’s looking to be a nice weekend with a light'ish breeze, which will suit wind powered craft, foil drives and also swimmers, so I will just mention something that I thought was straight forward but I've been informed by a reputable source, that it’s not.
Safe Swim Zones at Shoreham.. where are they and how to stay out of them when on a wind or powered craft? Well, you would have hoped that the Safe Swim Zone marker buoys would be the answer but to be honest and as I mentioned three weeks ago, it started well but the boundary buoys are all a bit hap hazard now. So how do you know where they are, without the aid of visual boundary markers or someone shouting at you through a loud hailer? The best way is Do not use the area in front of the beach huts, either at Widewater or at Beach Green (in the centre of the beach). If you are in front of the beach huts and ‘inside’ the outer 8kt Buoys, you are in the safe swim zone. If you are outside the 8kt markers you are no longer in the swim zone and perfectly in your rights to whiz about and have fun. but please do be vigilant, especially on Spring low tides, as some swimmers still think they can go ‘out’ as far as they like. If you are not in front of the beach huts, then you are outside the swim zones and have ‘no worries. That must be an easy enough guide to follow… please say Yes! ;)
Paddles. SUP paddles to start with. If you are looking for a very nice priced 2-part carbon shaft with reliable ‘composite’ nylon blade, these Red Paddle Midi’s should fit the bill and at £69.00 you will be getting a top-notch product at a cheap paddle price. https://www.surfladle.com/red-paddle-midi-adjustable
And if you are more into the specialised world of foil paddling, then Starboard have produced a Lima Carbon Paddle that should enhance your ‘strokes’, Vicar. These paddles are available in Fixed F40 or 2 Part F35, with Medium or Large Blade sizes and in Carbon and Pre-Preg Carbon. If you know Adam Humphrey, he’s just bought one of the Carbons (should you want a customer testimonial). Prices are £235.00 for either F35 or F40 and the Pre-Preg versions are £399.00 for fixed and £425.00 for the 2-part. More info at .. https://star-board.com/products/2025-foil-blade-carbon-paddle?variant=49714529861927
No idea about paddleboarding but would like to give it a go? Hove Lagoon can help you with that and they currently have 6 spaces on this Sunday afternoons Taster Session, which is all you should need to know the basics.. then you go and buy a board! Price is £60.00 but that includes all the kit.
I’m sure there was something else I was supposed to mention but it will have to wait until the Saturday morning post, that’s if I make it through this evening and I remember what it was! Must be time for my crack at what the weather will be doing this weekend… a mix of Met Office and Windguru.
Saturday, the wind will be East’Nor’East 10-20kt pretty much all day, which is no good for the river, should you be thinking of a wing foil session but the sea state should be ‘reasonably flat’ as the wind direction will be verging dead cross to cross off, which is not generally associated with waves. It’s possible that the wind may be strong enough for kite and slalom windsurf, so worth checking the anemometers during the early afternoon. Overcast at times with a top temp of 26°C. No rain mentioned. Tide is High at 17.00hrs on a 5.6m, so low at around midday ( sand available, should you have a skim-board!). As a side note, the weather was so nice this morning that Tony Gilder was at the beach trying out one of his latest foil drive boards and is definitely in love with the super trenched (channelled out) design, as when the rather large foil battery and mast stack are tucked up into the hull, the board releases much earlier (saves battery power) and you do not get the ‘catching’ associated with the foil drive ‘lump’ when the board touches down. Also, it’s a known fact that you do have a far more direct ‘feel’, with the foil head closer to the deck. If you are interested in these types of boards, message us and we can put you in touch with Tony (Tony is a ‘local’ board constructer).
Sunday, wind is East 8-16kt during the morning and then swings Sou’East 14 -20kt for the afternoon, so once again, kites and windsurfers may get out. Sea breezes are not generally associated with this direction but it will be interesting to see if the clear skies and 23°C does increase it. High is at 18.05hrs on a 5.2m Neap, so Low at around midday, which will not be that Low. River paddling will be possible but you will need shallow water fins, if going on a trek inland with the tide.
And that’s it for this Friday evening. Next Friday I am attending a funeral, so this is it for a couple of weeks. Here’s to a cracking Friday evening and I will post the infamous shaky Paradise Beach vid in the morning. Isn’t life great..