Finisterre...

I have to admit to loving a spot of Finisterre clothing (apart from their unethical years when they outsourced to India and China) but I'm starting to lose faith in the business. I realise the balancing act between ethics and profit is a difficult one and is faced by many of those in the surf industry (a key reason why Kelly Slater has moved away from Quiksilver etc) but  I can't help but feel that the actual surfer is being lost in a sea of middle-class pretenders.

OK, the Finisterre clothing range is expensive but it does do a good job and the team at the front end do a  fab customer care job but they are slowly turning into a fashion brand for those who like to pretend to be 'cold water surfers'. If you check out their website, as well as the usual clothing and expensive undercrackers, they now stock a range of fashion accessories that will beautifully coordinate with your iPhone 6S and iMac. So not to put off this market, the items are equally overpriced. A waterproof torch for £90, which apart from the logo seems below the spec of any aluminium diving watch for almost half the price. A pen-knife that for all the packaging and wooden handle isn't a patch on the original British Army folding-knife that sells for a third of the £90 they're asking. Just don't get me started on the duffle bag (£150 ..... what?!) and hand planes!

All-in-all, I fear that my friends and I are turning away from the brand (remember Howies when they were bought out by Timberland) and looking for a real brand that reflects the surfing image and not just those that live in London (have I said that their main store is in London).

As a surfer, I look to buy as many items as possible direct from Surfers Against Sewage and luckily, many of the gifts available from Finisterre are also available in a SAS version (drinking bottles, towels etc).

I'm not anti-profit but price-skimming at the wealthy market segment seems to go completely against the surfing-grain (have you seen the price of their upcoming wetties?).

For me, I'm going to have to be shopping elsewhere as prices are increasingly prohibitive and the products themselves are becoming irrelevant to me as a water sportsman and cyclist. Howies is looking like a far better option (especially since they are now an ethically minded and independent company) and even though a high price (like Patagonia) seems to give me something Finisterre just isn't - VALUE FOR MONEY!

Sorry but this has been bugging me for a while.

Don't lose who you are Finisterre!

Had a birthday...

So, I've managed to survive another year and I'm now a wee bit older but none the wiser. For the celebrations I (we) headed down to Woolly for the weekend. The plan was to drink, be merry and surf. The sun came out a treat and I can happily say that we managed to do all three (tick, tick, tick!) Arrived on the Friday night and promptly headed to the Barn for a few pints (the slurring began very quickly).

Up and at it on the Saturday to make the most of the sunshine (the surf was flat and so a pasty was the action for the day). The day came and went far too quickly but it was OK as Bar Electric was calling. Before the sun had even thought about going down, we were at the bar and downing the first of many pints (and then of course the compulsory rum). Anyway, the long and short of it was that I drank, made merry with friends and then danced my arse off until we were politely expelled from the bar....at which point we all went back to the girls van and continued on the vodka jelly and other drinks (not too sure what it was). It has to be said.....it was an excellent birthday! 

Sunday was a slightly tired one but again the sun was out and the surf had picked up. It was a complete close-out and the guys surfing in the comp by the rocks were getting quite a beating but we opted to head in. A few waves were caught but on a longboard it was a tad freaky and so after feeling as though I'd got myself caught out back, I paddled back in and grabbed another pasty.

I arrive at the Barn and ready to drink.

I get my b'day card and the promise of a gift inside make my year (I'll tell you about it in July).

Bromance.

My beloved (and slightly crazy Carla).

Little sis (aka Spud).

Cold weather and wakeboarding....

A slight delay in remembering the publish this post (possibly an age or even lifestyle thing). Should I have posted this at the start of April I would have been saying that it is almost my birthday. Infact, i has now been my birthday and what a weekend it was (I'll post about that later).

So, what have I been up to this winter.....mostly freezing my arse off at Liquid Leisure in the hope that my wakeboarding will actually improve. With water temps just about freezing that guys having to crack the ice in the pool gap, things definitely got a little frigid in the cold months. So cold in fact, that on a number of occasions I was the only one on the water. There is a downside to such temperatures however. The reluctance to try a new trick is always at the back of your mind, as you know that when you get it wrong, the swim to shore is going to be a very cold one. Still, I might not have nailed anything beyond the occasional 360 off the kickers but the water time has helped with technique (a little) and confidence. Thankfully, with the sun starting to come out, the boat lake is now open and so wake-to-wake spins in now the focus.

Cotty is now on-track for his next big-wave adventure (I also have a nice t-shirt & cap)

Colder than it looks.

Tilly chewing , while Ted does a sneak attack.

Back in March I was a little reluctant to take my woolly hat off!

Even the dogs are thinking twice about jumping in.

Xmas blues...

So....that's xmas and New Year out of the way. Now it's just about January and getting back into the routine of the real world again.

I tweeted my New Year Resolution the other day and it seemed to amuse a shed-load of folk. I plan to ride a lot more in 2015. I guess the amusement was due to the number of dirty and twisted friends I have 😀 Ignoring those filthy fools, I plan to get on my bikes more, surf more and hit the cable park/lake as often as possible. I also need to get back to the old running and gym as Xmas and being ill for the best part of a month hasn't been good.

Managed to get a surf in on New Years Eve. Popped over to Woolly, grabbed a surf and then had some scram at Bar Electric (tre-yummy burger).

Anyway, this update it just to let you all know I'm still alive and still very much fighting the ageing process.

Sniffles....

Well, I'm hoping that's me done for the season but I'm just about getting over a bug that has been loitering around the house (and work) for the last few weeks. It first appeared as what I thought was a disproportionate hangover from a few glasses of wine on a Friday night, while having a quiet night in (watching The Arrow). I'd say I'm about 80% back to normal but I unfortunately have the Great West Run (a half marathon through Exeter) on Sunday and I can't say I'm feeling completely up for the challenge but as I've paid for it, I am going to run (man logic for you there).

In other news....the end of the boat wakeboarding season has hit. I missed the last day as I had to cancel my session due to this bloody bug. So, it looks as though I'll be hitting Liquid Leisure again from now until April 2015 (wow, that sounds like a long way off!). At home, we're getting a log stove fitted (once Lisa can decide on the one we she wants), so it's lucky that the weather is a tad mild as we're pretty limited for heating in the house since the original fire was condemned after being removed.

Oh yeh. I've kinda accepted that next year I will be getting older and have started organising something to celebrate ....I might be getting older but there's no way I'm going to be growing up.

Anyway, hopefully the sun will stay out over the weekend and I'll be able to Strava my run to see how pathetic I really was......aChooOOOoo!

Summer has gone (already)...

Summer seems to have vanished already and I've managed to avoid going for a surf the entire time. I have been finding the time for a spot of wakeboarding (quite a bit actually) and while on our summer hols we did a spot of white water rafting, some horse riding, a cracking boat trip and 3 scuba-diving days (2 dives per day and all day on the boat). So, I can't really complain.....I spent a lot of time in the water.

In other news, I competed in my first Olympic Distance Tri. Flipping heck, it was hard work. I've rather got use to competitions that take me about 1hr 40min (half marathons, Sprint Tri). Nothing left in the calendar but I think I'll do a few Sprints again next year (including the Blenheim Tri) and might even give the South Coast Olympic another go????

Imagine ... 5 years today!

Imagine there's no heaven, it's easy if you try.
No hell below us, above us only sky.
Imagine all the people, living for today.
Imagine there's no countries, it isn't hard to do.
Nothing to kill or die for, and no religion too.
Imagine all the people, living life in peace.
You may say that I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one.
I hope someday you'll join us and the world will live as one.
Imagine no possessions.
I wonder if you can.
No need for greed or hunger, or brotherhood of man.
Imagine all the people, sharing all the world.
You may say that I'm a dreamer but I'm not the only one.
I hope some day you'll join us and the world will live as one!

Today is the 5th anniversary of the day dad died. I guess I've got use to the idea of not having him around but it is days like today that I really miss Big-Town (his real name is Granville but my mates gave him his nick-name). I know I have a blog, facebook, twitter and instagram but I only tend to share the fluff of my life. Today I'm feeling a tad flat. Not necessarily sad but definitely as though something is missing.

Why the lyrics at the top of the post? This is one of 2 tracks that I listened to over and over pretty much as dad passed from this place. Eva Cassidy isn't usually one of my listened to artists but when I want to remember dad, she's there. Oddly enough so is a Clint Eastwood Dirty Harry film! And incase you're wondering, IZ and Somewhere over the Rainbow is the other track.

I miss dad and he was/is my hero.....

Wakeboarding...

The summer is now trying to make itself known again and last weekend I headed to Liquid Leisure and had my first session of the year in just boardies and an impact vest. The water was almost warm and apart from the occasional cloud cover, it was a great ol' session. A tad busy (it got busier as the day progressed) and so limited to 3-laps but once I mellowed into it, I hit a few nice rails, took some decent air (completely forgot how to do a 360 off the kicker at the moment), and owned the pool gap on several occasions. Hoping to exit the pool gap on a rail by the end of the year and if I can get my head around it, try a raley on one of the corners without bottling it or face slapping.

Aerial view of Liquid Leisure

Not me!

Off to ExeWake on Sunday with the not so short man Mark (nephew) as his b-day present from his Aunty Nick and Uncle Lisa. Looks as though it could be thunder and lightening over the weekend and so it's going to be an interesting session.  No Lisa this time, so it'll just be the men together. If the guys will allow, I might treat myself to a pint before they take us back to the harbour (Mark can have a Pepsi).

ExeWake

There is definitely something special about wakeboarding behind a boat. I love a good cablepark session but there is so much more soul is being in the water with a proper actual wake. Also, the locations can be pretty flipping special.

A quick clip from one of my last sessions at Hardwick Park.

Seriously, where did the summer go...

We were spoilt with the summer last year and I'm seriously missing the warm afternoons with only the need for a pair of shorts and an impact vest at the lake. Winter hasn't been a particularly cold one but bugger me, it's been wet. The far side of the park by the river Thames hasn't been under less than 2ft of water since the end of 2013. Out for a walk with Ted & Tilly (we now have 2 dogs) and the Thames has increased in size again. Most of the O-Shire seems to be underwater if you're even just in site of a river - link

As I said a second ago, we now have another dog. This is Ted. I'm informed that he is a Cavachon. Unlike Tilly who is an accidental Sprolly (a rescue Spaniel/Collie), Ted is an on purpose mix between a King Charles spaniel and a Bichon Frise. Ted and Tilly get on most of the time now but the initial meeting wasn't a complete success.

In prep for the 2014 wakeboarding season to start, I set-up my new board and bindings. Bindings are bleddy tight but will loosen up after a couple of sessions. The only problem is (a rather large problem) that WMSki aren't opening fully this year. They have moved location but due to some cock-up they're only going to be running a 2.0 system and not the full 5-system. It means no hanging about for the day on a membership but having to book slots and Pay As You Ride....not going to be as easy to sneak a session in after work this time. Think I might even head back for a spot of boat action.

New LF board and old O'B board. Going to lend my O'B board to a friend, so he can give wakeboarding a crack (it just needs a spot of tlc and a repair or two).

Think next week I might give Quayside a go and after that me and a few guys might head over to Liquid Leisure if they ever reappear from the flood water (poor guys).

Summer has almost gone...

Wow, where has the summer gone?

We’ve had a good one to be fair. Since the beginning of June, the lake has been warm enough for boardies and an impact vest, so it’s going to be a shock to the system when temps start to drop and I’ll have to put a wetty on.

Our trip north of the border was a good one. 
Edinburgh was bonkers but I should have realised that as the Fringe was on. Theatrics freak me out at the best of times and so being at the Fringe in August was absolutely mental - Thespians all over the place; each one trying to out-ham the next.
Fort William was more my scene, with more space and some great places to explore. No mountainbiking (as planned) but a brilliantly bonkers hotel and some good walks.
Dumfries was the final destination. Not as mountainous as Fort William but some amazing sights. The place we stayed was a tad weird. Love a spot of caravanning but a friend had arranged for us all to stay on a holiday park and sadly it had no soul….in fact it seemed to have destroyed the village in which it was set. Away from the site and there was a some brilliant mountainbiking, cycling, castles, abbeys and even a spot of wakeboarding at Loch Ken - this setting was just beautiful (the red coloured water did freak me out a bit to start).

Would I go back to Scotland - hell, yes! I just know a few places to avoid now.