It’s been a good couple of days for wind :) but after yesterday’s struggle against the tide at Felixstowe in a NE, today we had a little more wind but it had gone NNE making it a bit off at Felixstowe. Neil Hurrell rang early saying he was off to Hunstanton as they live about the same distance from there as Felixstowe and ended up having a great day on 6m and 115lts :) That was too far for me to drive so when Peter Cutts rang to say he was heading for the River Stour near Bradfield we were on for an away day in sunny Essex :)
After collecting a spare tyre for my trailer, a quick trip up the town for a plant for Peter and Sally Ling – we are having a meal with them later and a picnic packed by Mag we set off at 12:30, not being a a particular hurry as it was not high water until 5ish but Peter was already rigging his 7.8 saying the sun was out, there was loads of water and it was windy!!! Arriving some 45 minutes later with Point Clear sailor Keith Farmer to see Peter flying all by himself in the river!!! At this point the wind seemed to drop a bit but I took a chance with my 7.8 and 133 and by the time I had a quick snack and walked to the water’s edge the wind had filled in to the perfect direction coming from Holbrook school making it possible to plane down the middle of the river from Bradfield to Wrabness.
The 7.8 was perfect most of the time a bit over in the gusts and under in the lulls but that’s river windsurfing, the sail need more downhaul but I had a job doing this with a broken cleat on my extension :( It was great fun sailing for mile and a half runs trying for fast miles but it was a job to keep it flat out and I seemed to always get a lull and going fast was not easy as the tide came in the river chopped up in the middle perhaps I should have tried closer to the bank where Peter and Keith sailed ??? I had a couple of beats through the moorings past the Wrabness beach huts and had some flat runs back getting my fastest peak just past the moored boats!
After a couple of hours, I called it a day especially after yesterday’s 61 km session! Then when packing up the river was full of windsurfers when Whitey’s gang turned up 4/5 windsurfers and a kiter having fun in if anything even stronger winds. Perhaps I should have stayed awhile longer but it had clouded up and get cooler and we were out for dinner.
Mag and I had a quick walk to the Nature Reserve but it was windy and cold so after taking a few pics we headed back to the van and then got lost looking for Peter and Sally’s house! We were glad to find it in the end as we had a top meal in their lovely cottage in the middle of nowhere!!!
I was well beaten today by Pete on an old F2 I gave him – well done Pete :)
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