Been 'lurking' round this site for ages, but thought it was time to add my support.

Great site Al, keep up the good work.

Have started adding my diary entries to the new section as I am interestd to see how it works in the future. I created my own Word based diary for the first two seasons of sailing and it helped my wife and I understand what conditions suited us and our kit.

Big hello and happy sailing to you all!

SeanBo

PS to Al. Saw some comments on the forum about having to log on everytime you changed sections on this web page. I don't know if this info will help or hinder, but the first time I registered and tried to add info I was having this problem, but the next time I logged on (1 hour later) one log on was sufficient to gain access to all member areas.

Hi SeanBo

Always good to have new members here, especially ones that will help keep the community alive.

Glad you like the site and have starting using the diaries... Its got to be more fun sharing your experiences with everyone else rather than just keeping them in a Word document on your own computer. I think seeing what everyone else is up to also encourages everyone to get out on the water more too (maybe).

quote:

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PS to Al. Saw some comments on the forum about having to log on everytime you changed sections on this web page. I don't know if this info will help or hinder, but the first time I registered and tried to add info I was having this problem, but the next time I logged on (1 hour later) one log on was sufficient to gain access to all member areas.

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I noticed that you had a diary entry for Poole yesterday and that also prompted me to register. I guess it is a well known destination, but would be happy to try and produce a location report if you think it would be of value

I could also knock up some basic info for Portland, although there are lots opf changes going on/planned at present.

SeanBo

PS - How do I set my mood?

I've sailed at Poole a few times, and I've Sailed at Portland loads... I was supposed to be doing fieldwork on the Isle of Portland for my PhD... But it always seemed to be windy!

What are the changes planned there then?

Don't rush too much with the location reports as it'll probably take me a while to get around to updating the Beach Guide and getting around to the South Coast... Although I guess I should just knuckle down and do it. Or at least get the basic framework in place so that adding new location entries will be easy... So much to do.

To set your mood go to your 'Control Panel / Options' From the front page of the forums, then 'Edit Profile' and theres a field right at the bottom for you to enter a 'mood'.

Al.

Changes at Portland....To Summarise;

Kitesurfing has been introduced and a Kitesurf school has been started.

The old boat-yard has been sold and seems to be undergoing a major refurb.

The car park has been made much larger by the removal of a lot of old boats.

Male and Female changing rooms (in a portacabin) and wash down facilities (just outside the portacabin) are now avaialable FOC to anyone parking in the boatyard.

The 'snack bar' has been moved into a porta-cabin and renamed the 'Luff-shack' (silly, bit suits my sense of humour!)

The Luff-shack has a digital windspeed/direction indicator installed (very usefull while drinking coffee and wondering if you should go back out)

The parking charge has been increased (to £5 per day summer and winter I think), but what did you expect with this kind of improvement :-~

There is also talk of a small marina and a pier/jetty. Both are aimed at 'BOATS!' and may have a huge impact on the quality of windsurfing etc, but I guess only time will tell

Progress can be a funny animal, but so far it has all been positive for me (except for the increase in charges but then so far it has been justified)

Why does it say "Kook" underneath SeanBo on the lefthand side of the screen?

Are you trying to tell me something?

everyones a Kook until they prove otherwise!!

But don't worry, not only are you in good company, but you're pretty close already to being promoted. Another post or two and you'll be there.

Not many people have made it to the ranks of Hot Shot or Pro yet though.

I also noticed that your 'mood' text has been cut short.... I'll see what I can do about that.

Al.

I guess the 'improvements' at Portland are pretty subjective. Some people might say its just 'money-grabbing'...

Make the car park bigger so that they can get more cars in and make more money.
Put the prices up to make yet more money.
Add a snack bar to make money.

And after all the changes...The sailing remains just the same, but it costs more and its more crowded.

Personally I think it probably IS a good thing for Portland, but I wouldn't want to see it happening everywhere. Parking was always a problem, the addition of a snack bar is good (you can still take you own sarnies if you prefer) and changing rooms may be seen by the hard-core as 'cheating', but its a luxury that I'd certainly use if given the opportunity (are there showers in them?).

I'd be pretty annoyed if I was a local and had to pay £5 every evening for a quick hours session after work though. And for travelling windsurfers, adding an extra £5 on top of petrol can make for an expensive day out...especially if the wind doesn't cooperate.

I suppose Portland was always a bit of a cross between lake sailing and coastal sailing and all they're doing is bringing some of the facilites associated with inland sailing to the coast.... Along with the charges.

Lets hope that they also try to improve the sailing experience there a little by organising some events like slalom or freestyle. Or by having a selection of free demo kit. Otherwise I'd expect to see some of the better sailors start going elsewhere to avoid the parking charges.

And I thought paying £1 in the summer at Borth (usually weekends only) was bad... And what do we get for that? A dirty smelly portaloo if you're lucky.... Oh, and some pretty good sailing conditions, often all on your own.

Al.

P.S. I made it so that you can enter a few more characters to you mood.

I think you are right about the money. If all the rumours are true thier aim is to get Yaughties and Gin palaces in, at which point windsurfers will either be 'frozen out' or priced out. In the meantime, they have only increased the charges by about a £1 and the increased facilities easily justify that.

With respect to the parking spaces there wads also the problems with a lot more people arriving with trailors and/or large campavans. This effectively reduced the ammount of parking available.

On the freedom part of things it is still possible to park on the other side of the road for less, and if you are only down for a short session they do 1, 2 etc hour tickets on that side. OK you have to negotiatte the road with your kit, but thats just more excitement.....

In terms of the hardcore crew....I don't think Portland could be described as hardcore....if it was I would probably sail elsewhere (wimp!)

SeanBo...
Do you live on the South Coast??
Where else do you sail other than Poole and Portland?

I travel to those two localities a fair bit, but have started getting itchy feet and feel like trying somewhere else.

Hi Stevievee

To be fair I am a bit of a coward at trying new locations because Poole and Portland suit my wife and I so well. However we have sailed at Ryde on the Isle of Wight which was a nice location for a first foray into the 'real sea'.

We have also been down to look at the facilities at Hayling Island and Calshot spit. Hayling looked a bit wild (but then it was a stormy day) and Calshot looked a bit industrial (huge Chimneys, a massive powerstation and huge container ships).

Christchurch is another possible, but is essentially a smaller version of Poole inside the harbour and out of our league on the 'real sea' side.

Finally we went to watch the 'big boys' sailing at Kimmeridge during the storms last year. Very impressive, but more than a couple of years away for us.

I don't know if this is any help?!? What level sailing are you looking for? I have a very good guide to the Isle of Wight sailing spots if it is of any interest.

SeanBo

Thanks for that...

I guess I'm looking to get out on the sea really rather than the usual Poole and Portland Harbours, but as you say nothing too extreme like Kimmeridge.

A Synopsis of the Isle of Wight sailing spots would be good if you could post it here. I assume the little area at the bottom of the page for entering a post to these forums saying 'Attachment' means you could post it as an attachment???

However, really I'm looking to stay on the mainland.

Come on Al.... get on with the Beach Guides and give us the low down on South Coast sailing spots.


[Edited on 14-2-2003 by Stevievee]

Stevievee.... How about Overcombe at the Eastern end of Weymouth??

Fairly mellow waves / swell, usually quite a few people sailing there so plenty of people to ask for advice and tips on your first forays onto the sea. Theres also a windsurf shop (Second Wind) and a little cafe. And a small car park right by the beach.... Sound good??

Oh and SeanBo... Have you noticed you're no longer a Kook!!!

Al.

P.S. Yeah Yeah Yeah...I'll get on with the Beach Guides soon... As soon as I've tied up a few loose ends in the diaries and toyboxes (nothing major just a few little extras), written some more video reviews and my computer starts working properly!!!... I WILL do it soon.

This is turning into a full-time job Al!

Pity you don't get paid for it!

Stevievee, have you tried sailing on the real sea at Poole. I forgot a quick session in 2001 where we braved a go in onshore conditions.

Sadly there was not enough wind to really get going, but it did make me look longingly at the possible 3mile + broad reach to Boscombe pier!

I wish I could easily post a copy of the Isle of wight guide, but it is a foldable A0 sized poster and I only have a Fax machine style black and white scanner, not a colour flatbed, however I will start trying to rattle the keyboard over the coming weeks ready for when Al has sorted the site guide section! (now I'm a Grommet I can start getting more demanding

Watch It SeanBo... I can easily downgrade you.....Grommet!!!

I will get to work on it soon though. I think instead of trying to fully research all the areas I'll just put in place the basic framework with the most obvious locations for North Cornwall, South Cornwall South Devon, Dorset and the rest of the South Coast ASAP then when people submit info on the locations I can add them one at a time.

It looks as though a new swell has arrived this evening thoughm, so I might be out surfing tomorrow... I might be able to make a start on it next week though, we'll see.

Al.