Andrew's blog

Sunday 24th January was the day and Gun Bay up at East End was the location for the 2010 Captain Leroy Watson Sailing Regatta (aka East End Regatta). This year for the the first time a windsurfing class was added and managed by Red Sail Sports in conjunction with the Cayman Islands Sailing Club.

It seemed the wind gods were on our side, because we were greeted with a decent 18 knots coming from the South-East on arrival. The course was a figure-of-eight slalom setup with 2 jibe markers.

Course Details

We had a LeMans style start with competitors standing on the beach and the starter (James) running past us with a flag to signify we could go. There were six competitors in total with a total of six races.

Race about to start

LeMans style start

Competitors Racing

After some tight races with close finishes, the final results were as follows:

1st Andrew Cousins
2nd Nick Grieff
3rd Stuart Jennings
4th Frankie Grainger
5th Santiago Campo
6th Ronan Jennings

The competitors

Overall it was a very successful day and one we hope to repeat soon. Thanks very much to the Sailing Club and Red Sail Sports for organizing!

More photos in the gallery here.

First of all, Happy New Year! It's difficult to believe it is 2010 already. New Years Eve was spent on the beach with a cooler full of champagne, rum and Savanna whilst watching the fireworks all along Seven Mile Beach.

As a result, we only ventured outside after lunchtime on New Years Day. The wind had dropped off completely, but the last few days had brought in some swell. It was time to check out the surf break at Bodden Town on the SUP. Managed to paddle out and get some nice rides, but decided to cut it short when I saw what looked like a shark in the water. Then it was down to Beach Bay where the rides were ok, but not nearly as consistent as Bodden Town break.

Looks like a cold front is on the way now and should be kicking in around lunchtime today. Hoping for an afternoon at Starfish it all goes to plan!

Last Sunday the wind was coming in at NNE around 20 knots, and as we had friends in town, Rum Point made the perfect launch spot. Perfect for those who want to chill on the beach sheltered from the wind, and perfect for those who wanted to go out and blast around in the nice breeze (i.e. me). Unfortunately most other windsurfers were away for Christmas, so it was a lone mission. Hoping next time to get some of the others out there and head for the Sandbar. Oh, and Happy Christmas!!!

Launching by the dock

Having a blast

A little chop-hop

Jibe time

A few more photos over here.

After the long range forecast last weekend showed a solid NE in excess of 25 knots to blow all Saturday, it was rather disappointing to notice in the week it had completely disappeared. There ended up being almost zero wind and the SE during the week had generated a bit of wind swell, so the perfect time to take out the SUP (Kona 11'5) for a surf. It turned out conditions were perfect and with the lack of wind the water was completely glassy. There were some great sets coming in - mainly 2-3ft, but some bigger ones now and then. I had the best SUP wave-riding I've had yet. Took a few good wipeouts and getting out of the impact zone was a bit of a mission, but all in all great fun and a good alternative to windsurfing when the wind is down.

One thing I would like is 3 fins on my SUP. I find the single fin does not give as much stability on the wave face and you have to work it a bit more to stay under control. Next time I'll take the GoPro out and have some pics.

With the lack of wind here at the moment I've been chomping at the bit. Luckily the 3rd edition of Windsurfer International online magazine it out, which should keep me going in the meantime. Check it out!