Malahide Sunday 14th March

After checking the wind forcast, the only wind for Sunday was up in Malahide so i decided to drive up for the day so i could get some time on the water. There was going to be some of the Slalom and Speed sailors heading out on the water at Malahide as well so it was also a good opportunity to see how the new sails were performing. I left Kerry at 7.30am and arrived up in Malahide at 11am so made pretty good time.

The was a bit of wind but as usual at Malahide it was very gusty with winds around 8-10 knots's gusting up to 15 knots. I decided to rig up my 9.0m KA Race with my Starboard I Sonic 144 and 50cm Vector Maui Canefire Fin and got out on the water. Wasn't really a great session as i spent most of the time slogging around but i am getting more used to the I Sonic 144 with every session and it is going to be a great light wind slalom board for this years slalom racing.

I got a 21.3 knot max speed and 19.9 knot 10 second average, not great speeds i know but i was underpowered and hardly moving so can't complain. Need to work on my overall fitness now as the enforced layoff from windsurfing this winter because of the baltic weather and lack of wind hasn't done me any favours in terms of my fitness so got to get more water time to work on this.

I couldn't get anywhere to stay so started back on the long journey back home and finally arrived back at 10pm after my 400 mile round trip. Good to get wet and hoping this is now the start of many sessions on the water this year.

Can't wait for Newtonards which is just under 2 weeks away

Update On How My Diet Is Going

Still on my diet and sticking to it but after using the bathroom scales i bought over the past few weeks the have turned out to be faulty. I would measure myself one day and the the next be 10 kg lighter. Now if i knew how to do that i could become a millionaire and there was no way that that was a true reading so i took the scales back and got a more expensive set. You get what you pay for i suppose. So with these new scales i weighed myself again and i hope these can be true readings so it gives me a better idea of how my training and diet is going. I am also going to be taking these as my first weight measurement as i am unsure as to how true the last reading from the old bathroom scales were.

These are my weight measurements from my new bathroom scales:-

Weight - 101.8kg

Body Fat % - 36.9 %

Body Water % - 44.5 %

Muscle Mass % - 32.9 %

Body Mass Index % - 33.6%

Basal Metablic Rate - 2085 Kcal (Calories i burn at rest)

Well i knew before these readings i was overweight but it looks like i am a bit more overweight than i thought so gonna work at it and get my weight down to 80-85kg and get that new sail from the KA Importer

Now its getting warmer i can get on the water aswell as going to the gym so hopefully i will get to see a difference in my weight in a few months time.

A friend of mine is upgrading his Giant road bike to a carbon fiber version so as soon as he gets his new bike i will get his old one and put in some miles on the road to help with my fitness.

Keep checking back as to how i am getting on

New Sails

2009 KA Race 9.0m

My new KA Sails arrived last week. I decided to keep my 2008 4.4m and 5.0m KA Koncepts as the small sails hardly get used so i ordered 2010 5.7m, 6.4m, 7.3m, 8.3m KA Koncepts (in black) to replace my 5.8m, 6.6m, 7.5m which were my most used sail sizes and a 2009 9.0m KA Race (in yellow) to replace my 9.0m KA Koncept as i wanted a sail more suited to slalom in this larger size. Check out the pictures of my 9.0m KA Race and 7.3m KA Koncept above and below

2010 7.3m KA Koncept

On Saturday i went down to Garrylucas in County Cork for the Slalom clinic that Pearse Geaney from Irish Slalom Series (http://www.irishslalom.ie/) had organised as it would be the perfect first opportunity to get my sails tuned up for the first time before the Speed and Slalom season kicks off. When i got to Garrylucas there wasn't much wind, about 7-12 knots so i rigged up my new 9.0m KA Race with my Starboard I Sonic 144 and 50cm Vector Maui Canefire Fin and as the wind was forcast to pick up i also rigged my new 7.3m KA Koncept with my I Sonic 111 and 42cm Vector Maui Canefire Fin.

The wind didn't pick up any more so i went out on the water with the 9.0m KA Race and I Sonic 144 and had a great couple of hours on the water. The 9.0m KA Race is a great sail, a little bit heavier than the 9.0m Koncept which i expected with 2 extra cams and extra batten but it's definetly more stable, feels a little more powerful and has better performance upwind which is perfect for the slalom racing i will be doing this year. The 7.3m KA Koncept, looks great also and i can't wait to get to try it.

Was great to see everyone and get back on the water after the freezing weather and lack of wind for the past few months. Really looking forward to the first round of the Slalom Series in Newtownards at the end of the month.