If only I had a 4m mast, 5m sail, boom and I didn't have to work, or it didn't get dark so early!!

The conditons here at Borth today were epic. 25-30 knot SE winds and 3 foot surf. Perfect cross-offshore wave-riding conditions. Its not often we get such good frontside wave-riding conditions here, but today was just as good as anyone could wish for. Even though I wasn't able to get out there, just watching the waves and imagining being on them was cool...Perfect head-high walls of water, holding up forever and peeling both left and right with huge plumes of spray coming off them!!! Lovely.

I did manage to get out for a surf this morning though before the wind had picked up properly and in the shelter of the cliffs at the Lifeboat Station.

Al.

Similar situation with the mast. Got my 4m RDM mast and extension well and truly welded together when I was sailing at Skegness a few months ago, forgot all about it and am now paying the price.

Have clamped it in a boom clamp, next to the ferrule, and locked it to a solid upright. Sprayed plenty of WD40 then, using a screwdriver through the adjustment holes, applied the maximum torque I could muster. The result was a small amount of twisting movement and about 3cm removed from the mast (still leaving 15cm in the mast).

End result is my favourite mast is now unusable as the extension will not move out or in

If I could only win the lottery, leave it all behind in search of waves...

...one can dream!