Finally on the water

A lot of stuff going on down the club today. I got down the club early to get my new foils fitted and this took a whole lot more faffing than intended but I got there in the end.

While messing around with my boat, I found time to sort out Secret Squirrel and her new owner Paul Rigg. He's a Queen Mary mothy but about to move up to Scotland so we might not see the Squirrel for a while. There was a good breeze blowing so Paul took her for a spin and quickly got a handle on things.
Leo was back out in the Pimp Ninja and after a few tuning mods he was flying around merrily.

New foils were really good and while they were barely finished and in need of some polish initial impressions are good - flys earlier and stalls later... No GPS as I couldn't find it though. Will go into more detail in a new post soon.

Ship shape and Bristol fashion

Well, almost anyway...

The last two weeks have been pretty busy for me with getting my new foil tooling up and running and I've just finished putting the last coat of gloss on my new set of Ninja foils. With all being well I might actually get out onto the water again. It will be a good chance to test out my shiny new sail which arrived last week with my funky ninja logo in the corner.


All has been quiet on the Bristol Mothing front lately. Martin has been pretty busy with work and not been able to get out lately and while Emma is mumbling that it might be warm enough to go sailing again it has left Alan the only Mothie getting out on the lake. Leo managed to get out in his freshly converted Pimp Ninja on Sunday and while it needs a few tuning tweaks was all good.

However our numbers are about to be bolstered again as former lowrider Chris Bishop has seen the light and is selling his 700 and getting a Ninja lined up...

Hayling and Beyond

After my manic CnC mission on Friday I wasn't expecting much out of this weekend other than to enjoy the sunshine and get some more hours in on the Ninja.
A great turnout of 22 boats made the trip to Hayling including some new faces in new boats.
Saturdays racing was pretty hard work, in marginal shifty conditions leading to some big gains and losses to be had on the course. Simon was head of the pack as you would expect, but I found it interesting that he wasn't as far ahead as I would have thought he'd be in his old Prowler - I think the M2 foils are pretty heavily targeted at the high winds of the Gorge and Aus and it remains to be seen as to how well it will find a home in the lighter breezes in the UK.
The Ninja seemed at ease in what I feel are her ideal conditions, and I posted two thirds and a fourth. The 4th was a proper lottery, with Simon, Mike Lennon and myself all in the running going down the final run until we all parked up and Andrew Friend used his Norfolk punt club skills to foil round the lot of us! I called it a day at that point as my arms were cramping up. A sure sign that I haven't been sailing enough...



Hayling put on some good grub for the few Mothies that stuck around for the evening - It's a really nice place to chill out for a weekend - maybe we should have a worlds there?

I felt pretty rubbish come sunday, with a few aches and still not really enough sleep but I made my way out to the start anyway as the RO informed us that it was a nice force three out in the bay. It wasn't really, and with a nasty confused chop there were a few scattered Moths about so I made the call to head back in and find a gym to join. Sailed around the harbour for a bit with Phil from the Worthing Moth crew and he seems pretty well sorted.

Some interesting new kit on display too, with the usual array of wand paddles flying around the dinghy park. Mike Lennon's latest offering from Hyde is pretty sweet and I can't wait to get my hands on mine.

Ninja's new foil moulds look sweet. Kevin has put a lot of time into the design of the new foils and I'm keen to get the first set of the water - especially now the Squirrel has sold and I can't use the foils from her anymore!

A Weekend Under The Influence

Any weekend that starts at 5.45am with a can of red bull doesn't usually end well. The fact that 4 hours earlier I was packing my foil moulds into my car in Nottingham makes this one even more unusual!

I'm currently in a services on route to Hayling, on my second caffeine fix of the day and just hoping I get there in time for a nap...

Posted with LifeCast

Rise of the Ninja - part 2

Good 15-20 knot breeze on at BCYC yesterday allowing me another chance to get the Ninja sea trials underway. After taking her home on Wednesday to sort some bits and pieces out I was keen to get back out and see what she was capable of.
It was pretty blustery and bearing in mind I still haven't got my control lines anywhere near the right lengths the Ninja posted just shy of 24 knots!
Back in the workshop for a few pimps (still need to add a wand paddle amongst other things) before a mad mission to Nottingham for new foil moulds followed by training at HISC next weekend...

Photos by Laura Hitchcock.

Rise of the Ninja

Finally got out for a brief sail in the Ninja today in a sunny but light 6-8 knot breeze. Felt like everything a good Moth should be especially in what should be her ideal conditions. Very quick to foil, fast in lowriding mode and particularly useful in the corners. Usual first boat teething troubles but otherwise very, very pleased.
Alan and Martin were both out practicing on the first Wednesday afternoon sail of the year - just great to be on the water.

Should be out again on Saturday, hopefully with someone to take piccies this time!