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sabato, marzo 24, 2012

Our Waves

ONDE NOSTRE | A 16MM LIFE STYLE DOCUMENTARY from BLOCK10 on Vimeo.


Beautiful surf documentary about surfing in Italy.

mercoledì, marzo 21, 2012

Sailing in Ereaga


Ereaga when North Westerly winds are blowing strong. Killing shore wave.

Two days of wind and waves during the weekend in the Basque Country. We sailed in Ereaga, a urban beach near Gexto Town which uses to grant us some decent condition when the wind blows from NW direction. Usually everything depends on the tide, so timing here is crucial. At high tides waves are reflected by the big pier you see on the left (looking to the sea), creating so much chops that sailing becomes really challenging. You legs and knees are asked to do some extra work and you'd probably have some pain (like I have right now - at the end I'm almost 40 year old guy :) ) at the end of the day. Plus, there's a dangerous killing shore break so you'd probably have to watch out when getting in (and out) the water.

At low tide things are getting easier since there's almost no chop and no shore break.  But if the tide is too low rocks start putting their faces out of the water... even a hundred meters far from the shore line! When I was windsurfing there I destroyed one or two fins because I did't see that semi submerged rock in front of me when sailing at full planning condition. Most of windsurfers know what I'm talking about... and the cost in fixing you gear this represent. It is true that kite board fins are smaller than a windsurf boards ones, that's why we can sail in shallow water a 15-20 cm deep water but... Imagine jumping and then landing on a rock... ;)

The best conditions in Ereaga are during mid tides. The best of both worlds, so "almost" no chop, waves (if there's a big sell hitting the coast) and wind (have to be strong by the way, not too much from the west, not too much from the north...) - yeah, and the moon phase should be the right one, you don't have to work, attend your wife/child needs... :)

lunedì, marzo 12, 2012

Guincho



Wordless

Muskiz Wave Session



I'm not saying that's *NOT* a good start for this season, but 6 kite sessions since the beginning of 2012 are definitely not too much. Reasons are different: lack of time, work (yes, we have to pay our bills), lack of wind... and a few other excuses. So as it is today, getting into the water actually means that almost all of the following factors  happens almost at the same time: waves not too big, wind not too strong or too light - and blowing during the daylight of course - the tide is ok, you are not on a business trip and your boss is not calling you, your wife hasn't ask you to get her to the mall... and if you have children, well... you know better than me. Put this all together and you could easily forget about kitesurfing.

Well, last saturday I managed somehow to have almost everything in shape. The wind forecasts promised some strong wind blowing from NW during the afternoon, perfect timing for me since I had some commitments during the morning in Bilbao. I arrived in Muskiz at 2:30 and went into the water as soon as possible. Good conditions: the wind was blowing up to 25knots (or more), low tide and 1 to 1.5m mushy waves. Perfect for my 10m Rebel and the surf board. Unfortunately we also had some rain showers but - hey! - this is the Basque Country, and it's winter time... what do you expect, 25°C and sun shining?

Check the video above!