downwind

"That was… the best fun I've had in years," said Dawid Mocke as he watched the rest of the paddlers riding the surf into the beach. "It doesn't matter who you are, you're all in with an equal chance."

"The Europeans have caught on," laughed Jasper Mocke. "We used to be much quicker than them at the start, but we had six or seven boats dicing in a sprint to the first turn buoy!"

"Fortunately the camera died for the last 5km, because I was cursing..." said Oscar Chalupsky. "It was flat, hot, headwind… and I was blown!"

"Why go all the way to Guadeloupe?" I asked Nelo Surfski CEO Oscar Chalupsky.  "We sold a lot of skis there," he replied, "and it's a lot warmer than Porto!"  Oscar Chalupsky leaves his home Portugal on Saturday to fly, via Paris, to the Caribbean to take part in one of the longest downwind races in the world, Ze Race in Guadeloupe. 

And I suspect it's the "downwind" part that's the deciding factor that's attracting him there!

As he fell off his ski yet again, Tim Wightman felt panic starting to well up.  If he didn’t get back on and paddling in the next few moments, the gale-force wind and breaking waves would drive him onto the jagged rocks of Miller’s Point.  “Calm down!” he yelled to himself.  “Take it slowly!”  “This time, stay in the f%#$ing boat!”

I missed out on a cracking Miller’s Run on Sunday.  It wasn’t a total loss – I had fun photographing the paddlers who did go – but it made me reflect on how we make decisions, especially when there’s ego or peer pressure involved.

Trees blown down on powerlines, roofs ripped off buildings, yachts blown ashore...  Downwind time in Sydney, Australia!

This is a great little video from the Epic training centre in Tarifa, Spain.  What stands out for me is the look of the conditions - beautifully shaped, big waves, cracking downwind...  

I recently bought one of the new HD GoPro Hero cameras...  It’s been a learning curve but I’m finally getting the hang of it.

To quote the distinguished and celebrated sage Jerry Seinfeld:  "The sea, that day was angry my friends, like an old man returning soup."

What happens when you lose your ski on the beach!