Picked up a 7'2 Bing Swee' Pea today, and took it out for it's inaugural surf. It was 2-3 and pretty messy, and all was good till I sliced my toe. Water is still so warm and great to be in just shorts, so it was a shame to cut it short. I really wanted to review this and get some idea of its performance, but first impressions were still positive. At 7'2 it was not really the length I wanted, but  I love anything Matt Calvani shapes, and this wasn't any different. On the odd peaks I managed to catch, it flew and was very drivey and felt pretty much as Tom described (the guy who sold me it). The plan will be to template this and make a 5'8/5'10 with a slight difference, but this will remain to be seen, as I am not sure that I actually want to get rid of it just yet.

If you get the chance or know of anyone wanting to learn SUP (apologies) or just wanting to try it (for some unknown reason), Carl at Go Watersports is the guy to speak to. He is friendly, professional and he kindly snapped me with my Iphone in our pre work dawnie.

What an amazing day ! Its been great to come home, see so many friendly faces and then get to surf twice in the same day, and yes even a windsurf (although the wind disappeared temporarily when I rigged). This guy,was ripping on a quad fin and it was pretty inspiring to see everyone out in what appeared like 3/4 mast high waves and cross shore southerly. Good times, and great to see so many smiles from effectively a miserable day. 

Its been a couple of months since getting the RRD Wave Cult Quad fin, and I have recently decided to take the brave decision as using it as my one board (at least for long journeys and travelling with kids).  So with car space at a premium I made the seemingly bizarre decision to pack this 92 ltr board (AKA the 'big board'). I hate being underpowered probably more than anything, so having a slightly bigger board seemed like a sensible option. Now the law of averages would suggest that as soon as you agree to leaving the other boards behind, you can bet that they would be what you actually need in your time away. I of course always try to remind myself of this , but its of little solice as Tarifa is a very windy city in August !
Hence you could have brought any board and it would have been right on certain days.
Winds of 40knots one day, then dropping down to single digits the next means you have plenty of down time, but it also can potentially mean limited time for sailing.
In our own circumstances, this trip was a family holiday not a windsurf trip, but that said I still had clearance for the kit.
So turning up at the beach to sail in 18 knots one day and then 30 the next, has been a real joy considering its been on one board. Speed and control has been the key, and even when conditions were light it was still very throw around and you can really slide the fins out too in an attempt to freestyle. I even scored some rare summer wave conditions and the board of course comes alive in this. Essentially the board never seemed to overpower even when my sail did, and the edge of quads over a single fin is far too apparent to be ignored. In Tarifa I noticed a lot of thrusters coming through which seems to be a Naish/Mistral thing, and they no doubt work. However  nothing is quite like a quad, as they still seem to retain the looseness of a twin fin, as opposed to a thruster which seems to be more like a single fin. If you are in any way tempted by a Quad, then I suggest you just buy one. I certainly have been amazed by the RRD wave cult.

I read this on a friend's blog and had to share - http://www.surfertoday.com/surfing/9108-windsurfing-world-mourns-the-loss-of-andre-paskowski

Took the kids bodyboarding this morning in the mellow shore break of El Palmar. Most locals don't hit the beach till two, so we enjoyed some relatively quiet beach time, whilst most people slept. By the time they were done, I even managed to score some much needed chest high action in relative tranquility and just a pair of shorts.

Its day three of the windy season here in Tarifa. Levante has been blowing up to 35 knts, and its been fun, certainly more fun than I ever remember. Years ago, this place had a special feel and it still seems to retain a lot of its charm despite being well and truly discovered. Windsurfing in just a pair of shorts in 26 degrees at 10 am is a pretty nice feeling, and whilst some say this is boring due to its lack of waves, they need to take a good look around at all its attributes. Both its unique position next to Europe's largest forest and some of the most stunning beaches more akin to the Caribbean will always keep me coming back.

Having sold the Bing, it was nice to get back to this old board with a little more chunk and possibly more compatibility with the dying swell. Its strange how such an amazing shape produced by Matt Calvani seems to make such a difference, only to return to your own hand shape and somehow still find it relevant and very effective. This morning's dropping swell was still an awful lot of fun with only one other in the line up.

Despite a slight chance of swell this week, its been really rather flat. So with all the heat, I have had my latest inspiration from the BBQ grill. Jamie cooked the best lobster this weekend, and has been scuttling about the reefs in search of our red clawed friends. It might seem a touch cruel, but not when you taste that little lobster claw with chilli butter and a sense of pride that it was caught with your own bare hands.

Dived in the clearest water today with an old friend from Scotland, hence nothing but a rash vest and shorts. Things were all good, until Bear (top right) would find us, and try and rescue with determined doggy paddle and quick succession of barking to sound the alarm. I have never known a dog so infatuated with water, and needing to be so close when swimming. A true friend, and literally hounding you every stroke of the way!

The early saturday morning session was probably my best for months. Paddled out on the CC slider into the cleanest small swell and saw so many faces it was just perfect. The social aspect and sharing waves with nice people has to be my most favourite thing about surfing other than the actual sport itself. Both Johnny and Simon seemed to reinforce the fact that summer was indeed upon us, with Simon even feeling the need to peel down his suit halfway. I think this must have somehow been an hommage to the late great Rob who moved off to the channel islands. If he'd been out today it would have just been shorts and a baseball cap.  Hope you are getting some wherever you may be.

Finally a summer worthy of staying home. Westerly was a little stronger than hoped today but I got out early enough in the blue skies and head high sets. Last day of swell for a while now and looks like the heat wave is going to continue for the forseeable.

Forecast looks set to be pretty perfect over the next couple of days, particularly if the backyard starts working as it should. Its not often enough that tide, swell and weather aligns as to warrant not going anywhere, especially to work. Soon enough El Palmar (above) will be the summer trip, and a much deserved sojourn to warmer climes.

Many thanks to the kind folks at surfdome.com who sent me the above fin, which is out of the Dolphin natural glass flex series.  You can literally twist the tip to almost 45 degrees, so I am curious of how this will feel. This is the second fin out of the series I have used, and whilst it almost looks plastic, the 9" version was amazing. Its hard to know how much drive comes from the fin, until you put the wrong one in. Hopefully I can get some success with testing this 8" version in the Andreini Hull I have my eye on. Update to follow, but right now its flat and raining !

Its been an amazing couple of days fully powered and charging around on a 4.5, I even took the quad fin out in what should have been overpowered conditions and it still seemed amazingly responsive. After a drunken pact late last night Matt and I agreed to sail early, as the wind had gone onshore, and family commitments would prevent us from making the trek to our local point break. So even after a great sail yesterday, it was a real surprise when I went out to GS last night for a stroll with the kids.

Family life is definitely rewarding in so many ways, but it has made me forget about all the conditions that make certain places work locally.  As I strolled over the ridge towards the sea, I watched Alex literally bottom/top turn down a wave almost 100 meters long, and flying at faster speeds than I have seen anyone sail there. His attitude to just get out and kite some of these spots is nothing short of inspiring, and after seeing all the familiar faces (including the elusive Neil Randall) I felt a touch sad to have not seen so many of the gang for so long.

It has to be said I love living here all the more after recent travels, as it makes you appreciate what you do have, but sometimes taking a stroll when one of these spots is going off, can just be way too distracting. Suffice to say I'm keeping off the coast path today - Alex Bird officially makes kiting look way too easy and the heir apparent to wind assisted surfing, 

Its been a great week with sun, and as Laura left me with the kids we capitalised just in time, before the rain came.  Shortly after this shot, I managed to push Hector fully standing into some waist high (his waist) waves, and his smile on his face said it all.  It was one of those moments when I had more fun than actually surfing, and hopefully he did to.

I finally made myself get off the Bing, my go-to board all too often. It kind of makes me lazy, and paddling so much easier, so I opted for my second best thing the Seedhouse fish. It was a little under finned with the Rasta Future Keels, but it still flew and felt really loose in the turns. This board is an absolute gem, so I have decided the only way for me to surf this more, is to let go of the Bing Mini simmons. Its in great condition so if you know anyone who may be interested please get in touch.