Im gonna get on it at the usual Aberdovey massive spot at about 8.30. Theres a few others heading for the same time as well. Any others coming down?

not out this week Shem ; things to do.

Sorry, no show. fitting my 19" screen and xbox into the van. It's looking mint now.

shem ill see you on the water. sounding windy now.

Wind meter just hit 44 knots! and theres North in it so its probably under reading. I recon all the crews staying away this weekend cos them is scared, hehe.

48knots now, according to the beaufort scale:-Seldom experienced inlland, trees uprooted; considerable structural damage occurs.

Oo er!!

That'll be 7m weather then

on me way - see y'all later

yep last night at around 10:30 a squal came in and boy was it windy. sounding ok now. it looks as if the swell is only gonna come in later and tomorrow.

see you on the water.

Well I'm gaining some points this weekend plus I don't have a kite small enough.

I drove up on Friday night and the road through the valleys was like a river..my winscreen wipers couldn't cope even on the highest setting. Pareked at Ynyslas golfcourse carpark and the spray was landing on the dunes. Wind and rain hitting the van sounded like I was being pelted with rocks. I went rount to the disabled parking by the estury and was blown over trying to put my silver screens on. Wind must have been 50kts+ when the squals came through.

Sat morning was well gusty so after about 20 mins, decided to leave it to settle till after high tide. In all, 9 kitesurfers pumped up but only 7 of us went out. The reason for this was that Dave got lofted and broke his arm in two places..would have been much worse but for his helmet and some quick thinking by a few of the massif. Loxly decided to pack down after seing the carnage.

Best Wishes Dave..hope you get back on the water soon.

The rest of us donned gimp suits and most of us had an excellent sail...It was pretty big though

best wishes to dave. my wife did the same thing a few years ago.

epic day. maybe too mental for tomorrow

not good new there Jon; which Dave? whoever, sorry to hear the bad news and get well soon.

Cant remember his second name but he drives a blue Galaxy and flies Cabrinha Switchblades, usually comes up with Col and John from PKS.

Im sure Spooks will provide us with a comprehensive overview of todays events..once he gets his creative juices flowing.

I have to admit i didnt feel comfortable going out in those conditions with 'borrowed' kites.

I was really looking forward to having a go with the waroos i had been lent for the weekend. But having never flown them before and although the smallest was a 9m I didnt relish the idea of taking them home in a bad condition.

Also, as the gate padlock has been changed and no one had the new keys, I wasnt able to get the van into the carpark.

I felt a bit cheeky asking Debs to sit out on the road while i spent time on the water and although she was happy to come and stand and watch for the morning, I thought it was pushing the bounds of 'pay back' that was likely to be expected ! LOL

We drove down to the estuary mouth and parked on the hard standing for lunch, then had a walk over the dunes.

In between the hail storms it did seem to calm down quite a bit so wish i had gone out.

There were 2-3 people in the estuary on the dyfi side who seemed to be having a great session on the flat.

See you all again in a few weeks, hopefully by then we will have keys to the gate again and will be able to park by the beach.

Mark

As Jon’s account was a little brief – permit me to fill in the gaps….

When I arrived at the beach the scene was well gnarly. Massively gusty winds – 7 to 30 knots in one brief period – it was nearly bang onshore and the tide was in. There were maybe 5 or 6 kites lying on a thin strip of sand, everyone laying out lines and going to launch in an attempt to get off the beach before it disappeared completely. AJ was standing surveying the chaos and asked what I thought. I said I thought that this was an accident waiting to happen – prophetic words as it turned out.

Darren and I think Chris were out and then Jon d Hat was off out to join them. Within 10 minutes he was back on the beach. “It’s the worst f***ing wind I’ve ever sailed in – its f****** ****, I’d rather be b****** ** ********* than out in this ****” – or (deleted) expletives to that effect. Roughly translated Jon believed that the conditions were a little less than perfect for him.

Then things started to go wrong. Loxley went to launch Woosh, a gust knocked the kite out of his hand and it bulleted straight through the window to come to rest bouncing threateningly on the dunes directly downwind of the hapless Woosh, if that kite caught the wind….. I only saw that out of the corner of my eye, what held my attention was Woosh himself.

He remained frozen - bent slightly forwards in a Johnny Wilkinson style crouch, his eyes bulging as big as saucers, his bar thrown onto the sand, as far as possible, as if he was trying to distance himself from the reality that he was still attached by 4 lengths of 300kg-proven Dyneema to his impending doom.

Thankfully the kite remained partially in the lee of the shingle bank, and Loxley managed to retrieve it without further drama. Woosh had already decided that he’d had enough excitement and decided to sit this one out while he counted his blessings.

Then I launched Dave, which involved stepping over and round (oops – and on!) various kites and lines. No sooner than I had released him and turned away I heard a shout, and turning I saw Dave suspended in mid-air, his kite diving though the power zone. I can only describe his flight as cross between a very clumsy superman and a goony bird coming into land (sorry Dave). He hit the shingle bank hard, scattering some sizeable stones a good few yards.

Everything seemed to stop for a split second, then the Massif sprung into action. Jon d Hat leaped onto Dave to prevent him being dragged further and released him from the kite. Loxley bounding over the dunes like a spring lamb on speed secured the kite. We gathered round as Dave, clearly stunned, lay motionless. Jon told him to lie still, he spoke and said that he could feel all his fingers and toes. Trying to reassure him I remarked that both his feet were pointing in the same direction – which was surely a good sign? We slowly got him sitting up and AJ inspected him – he seemed to know what he was doing – though he was a bit vague about his medical background.

After a few minutes Dave found his feet, and we got him back to his car. I put the kettle on and we managed to get him out of his wetsuit. He was complaining about a very sore elbow, but we all agreed that he wasn’t in enough pain for a break it was just badly bruised. Larry added his own sage-like advice “if you’d broken it laddie you’d be on the floor in tears right now”. Encouraged by the care the Massif had shown and our collective and obvious knowledge on the effects of impact injuries, Dave was buoyed up, and after a cup of tea and some pain killers said he felt well enough to drive home.

Imagine my surprise then later in the evening when a cheerful Dave called, and announced he was in Telford hospital about to be treated for a double break to his arm! The man is a rock!

SO, on a more serious note, no matter how experienced you are –and Dave has been flying kites longer than almost all of us, and how well you know your own beach, you can still get spanked – especially in conditions like yesterday, so a salutary lesson for us all. A speedy recovery to Dave, and he passes his thanks on to everyone, especially Jon d Hat, Loxley and AJ

just had an amazing session in the estuary with mike. plenty of waist to head high waves perfectly setup to catch then hack back up wind. wasn't as windy as forecast and the sun popped out. yet again the surfboard was the business. happy to relax with a cuppa and starwars on the telly.

Beautifull words spooks! At least I dont feel like a opiker for only staying on the water an hour now on sat morning.

glad i'm at home with the lurgy, sounded a bit mental.


for those that don't know Dave is Dave stratton, the guy that designed the flexifoil mountain boards, usually comes up with wife annie, and flys crossbows..

one of those days to miss i think

Think I made the right choice and now have a tidy garage to boot.

My best to dave. Glad I stayed at home, would have not want to damage my new edge!!!!

loved this bit spooks very articulate!

Darren and I think Chris were out and then Jon d Hat was off out to join them. Within 10 minutes he was back on the beach. “It’s the worst f***ing wind I’ve ever sailed in – its f****** ****, I’d rather be b****** ** ********* than out in this ****” – or (deleted) expletives to that effect. Roughly translated Jon believed that the conditions were a little less than perfect for him.

I can just imagine john coming off the water after your description. We've all been there in the past I've uttered the similar expletives many times! Excellent stuff!

[Edited on 2-12-2007 by bucski]

[Edited on 2-12-2007 by bucski]

Thought I would keep my version of events brief as I knew only too well that the lyrical poet (Spooker) would be the man to paint a colourful picture of the days events. Besides, I doubt if I could write that many paragraphs without cursing.

Anyways, seems that my verbal attack on the wind gods did the trick as it cleaned up for the afternoon and the sun even came out for a while.

oooer, I didn't miss much then.

I would of been down, but I had to spend the weekend pulling sailors out of the water! The highlight was pulling a Dart 18 catamaran off the rocks (Dam wall) in 35 + knts.

Get well soon Dave, you should be right for the spring and warmer weather.

Dave is due out of hospital today after 2 operations to put the 5 pieces of his arm back together - OUCH

He'll have to learn to drink with his left hand for a while!

Pass on our best wishes for a quick recovery then.

5 broken pieces sound painful.

A sobering lesson for all though, that even an experienced kite can get a painful spanking at times.

Ive never liked that stone bank!