Whats going on with the wind??!!!

Here in S Pembs we have had the strangest of summers - with NO (normally predominant) SW winds and loads of NW (offshore at local beach) or light NE's (rubbish).

The forecast yesterday was SW 4/5 - 5/6 later. I got to the beach at 12pm and rigged both 6.4 and 5.7 and put the kit ready to go....and waited.....and waited....and waited.
By 6pm still nothing!

A similar situation was had last weekend - ie no wind.

Spking to a guy at the beach last night he said (after 20 yrs windssurfing / kitesurfing) that this is the worst year he can recall.

We have had NO SW winds since may/june??!!

To make matters worse this is the end of my first week (of 2) of holiday - and still not got a proper sesh in....

C'mon winds - play fair!
Steve

It has been a slightly unusual year... Most people seem to agree thats its been quite a bit warmer than usual, and that we've had a 'nice' summer. We've been dominated by high pressure most of the time and the usual low pressure systems that generate our winds have passed us by.

I wouldn't say its been a complete washout wind-wise though. I managed to get out windsufing quite a bit during the summer. I've just had a look through my stats in the diaries on this site and it says:

May 16 times
June 10 times
July 17 times
August 12 times

Not too bad for the summer really, some of those were in SW's as well.

Did you not have any wind in Pembs last weds morning?? It was 25 knots here in West Wales.

It looks at the moment as though you may get some for Thursday though... fingers crossed.

Al.

Al

Really dont know whats happend - but SW just havent materialised here (Tenby).

The folks on the beach (kite and windsurfers) have experience here from 2 to 20 years and no one can recall a period like the last few months where we have had no SW winds and no sea breazes but light NE/NW winds - that are killed by any afternoon thermal affect anyway.

I have been getting up early and getting to the beach every afternoon for the last 9 days - and nothing. The folk here are beginning to suspect me as a jinx since i moved back here in June/July!

Oh well - looks like we might get something in the next few days (though i did sit on the beach with others for 6hrs last week assuming that!).

Thursday does look good - but going to Newport (Pembs) with the wife for a romantic (ie non windsurfing) break.....so i can almost assure you it will be windy!!

Hoping for a better weekend (need to come northward i think?)

Steve

OK - calmed down now - just had a great two hr surf sesh with hot sun, blue skies and clean 2ft conditions (perfect intermediete conditions fro me and my minimal) and a friendly seal at FWest!

Steve

You're right, there has been quite a lot of NE's and NW's here as well...

Luckily for us though, NE's are accelerated down the Dovey Valley, and early in the morning we get the opposite effect to a sea-breeze (Katabatic winds), where cold mountain air sinks down through the valley and channels out to sea where it rises over the relatively warm sea... This means we have had lots of early morning NE sessions in the estuary.

As far as the NW's go, sea-breezes here tend to be in a NW direction, so if theres a NW wind then it tends to pick up considerably in the afternoons anyway... I just guess we are slightly better placed for such wind directions than you are in Tenby... Of course SW's are good too, but SE's aren't!!

Al.