The Rock

Big swell running (see previous post) so I was hoping my sheltered local was going to be on. Sadly not so drove steadily eastwards till I found some waves. Looked small so went in on the log. First 30 mins was smallish and occasionally peeling and very consistent…niceeee. I was either paddling or surfing, Just me and a seal underneath the castle walls. Got joined by another and the swell jumped in size, catching me momentarily on the inside. It was then closing out though so caught the set waves for the fun of it and tried to look for a barrel on the inside. End result being getting planted two or three times with no sign of a cover up. Felt quite beaten up the following morning.

Good surf in amazing location.

Car needs a wash and not quite long enough for my longboard.

Maxed out

Went for a surf check, below is not a small headland!

 

The Ghost

Nice wee wave at a local

Who says Minis are inpractical?

Christmas Tree fits.

A day in the Pyranees

Working in France again so we took a chance to spend the day in the Pyrenees  after a pleasent few days noses to the grindstone and running my rental 208 along the fantastic D625 between Mazerres and Mirepoix.

First we drove down to Foix and got onto the excellent D17 up the col du Marrous. Awesome run up the col and the 208 with tiny steering wheel was actually quite good fun, no grunt but decent turn in and nicely balanced. I kept it sensible has I had a colleague on board but still tipped it into a few before easing off when it got narrow as the snow encroached on the road.

After a steady twisty climb the route became inpassable and we had to turn round, stopping briefly to admire the depth of the snow, whip out the iPhones for some snaps and other things for a wee.

So back down the col and along to Terascon and a run up the next one, the  Col du Port (D618) Yay, the sign said it was open (albeit with a worrying snow chain sign) so we had another fantastic run which was clear to the top and, it has to be said, quite good fun in the 208. It would be superb in an Elise. Stopped at the auberge at the top for a beer and a smile and once again to admire the simply stunning view and exercise our camera phones. 

As we watched, a lone snowboarder set off up the mountain to take advantage of the powder - what a way to spend a friday afternoon eh! almost as good as getting in the north sea. 

We then headed down towards St. Girons, and discovered the other side was a bit more sketchy but passable. 

We got to the bottom no probs and followed the excellent road down the gorge which included a cool one way run  (D3) through some tunnels (oh for a sports exhaust).

Finally we pointed the nose of the Pug at Toulouse airport and got the hammer down on some more quality cross country roads (D627 being excellent out of St Girons) taking a wide route into the eastern side of the city.

This should be the end of this post but we hit terrible traffic on the Toulouse peripheric, got lost trying to avoid that traffic and very nearly missed our flight. The day was saved by some inspired google maps navigation on my part, the violation of a few traffic laws (starting with ignoring red lights), some insane 'french style' driving, rental car abandonment, 3mins to spare at check in and the tail end of the final call to board. The sting in the tail being that we were meant to be presenting our findings for the week to a guy from the venture capital company for the company we were working for. Queue lame jokes as we boarded about lead times, being Lean and just in time delivery.

Not yet finished I had another airport sprint to my 767 to Edinburgh connection which BA initially told me I had missed!

Now sat sitting sweating in 23k fully expecting my luggage to still be sat in Heathrow. The end to another mad week of 2013.

Crazy day at Bellhaven

It had been a good forecast all week and all over the east coast meetings got cancelled, wives got abandoned, output deminished and and those that liked riding waves made excuses.

Naturally the forecast shrunk as it firmed up but it was still running at 14 seconds period so good waves were coming and i had a window. Got to the beach 6.4 in hand and surf was certainly up, well up and very clean.

Starting my paddle out I watched a guy catch one on the outside and although he was ahead of it he was being chased by a healthy sized barrel...

Things went downhill from there, I wasn't getting out, in fact fifteen minutes later, and feeling flogged I was back on the beach. I moved along and had another go and finally made it out having taken an absolute hammering.

I got one early and it was a big old lump, made it to the bottom before as it closed out and I ejected and faced that paddle again. I followed this up with 30 minutes of dodging some big dark sets and losing the feeling in my right hand due to a hole in my glove. 

After some mincing around I talked myself into another one and just kept telling myself to paddle hard and that I would have loads of time to make the drop..just keep calm. So I paddled hard for a big one and it went down hill from there. I made it to my feet but got caught and pitched by the lip - tried to hold on which seemed to make the situation worse and finally went over with the wave and took an absolute battering. Found the surface, sat outside for a while and called it a day, soundly beaten and kicking myself for being such a kook. 

Luckily the Internet made me feel better with reports of others who had struggled and suffered a similar fate.

Average day at the local

Good few hours in the water, bit of a small tight crowd on a small peak but a nice enough session, especially when people went in.

This post is dull so i have included some barbie pics

Late run on the Devils Beef Tub

Quick update on the cooper d as I am at a loose end enjoying one of easyjet's a320s out of Southend.

Story so far has been that the cooper handles nicely but I have been struggling to get to grips with breaking and downshifts approaching corners all just a bit grabby.

So I found my self again late at night rolling onto a deserted devils beeftub, a glorious stretch of road heading up out of Moffat and all the way to Edinburgh.

The first ten miles are arguably the best, The road winds up the hills, initially throwing in some hairy tightening bends before loosening up into a supurb run of sweepers which can be taken as rapidly as you dare or the headlights allow.

setting off on full beam plus fogs revealed far improved vision in standard evening weather and i coupled that with pre-planned theme of heal and toe for downshifts to third or second and standard shifts when coming down to fourth of fifth. 

The result was I got the car properly hooked up for the first time and it started to deliver on its early promise. The surface was damp which lessened the grip levels and bought the car alive, no slides or craziness well within the limits of the car, but it really 'got down the road nicely', as Brewer might say.

Only on catching and passing a lonesome x5 did I realise the speed we were carrying, sweeping by as if it was stationary. I did the same again to a chavvy rover a few minutes later and At around this point I also realised that the car was staking a place in my top ten night drives list, genuinely giving me a bit of a 'driving moment'.

Despite the relative lack of power it was delivering where my Leon fr failed, enjoyment and chuck it down the road type fun. Its not brilliant, too heavy and underpowered for that, but very very good.

Downsides, the quoted mpg is a pipe dream at the best of times but when you push on, boy does it like a drink!

Other than that 4,000 miles in and I am warming to the clubman, it does most things I want out of a company car, and is working well as a surf vehicle.

I wouldn't be surprised if the SD does not give similar economy and if so, with the extra shove from the engine, it must be a cracking car.

Landing in 25 mins.....

Nice start to the day

East coast line, checking all the reef potential from seat 58a

Loads of untapped reef potential around this place my old place of work.

Mum's new toy

Hook a Brian James to the back with the Elise on, fill the garage with boards and head south to Europe. Do you think I would be missed.

"please pull me to the alps"

The Wall

Sometime there is far more depth to a good wave

its about:

waiting

monitoring the forecast

reviewing the diary and lining it up

good warm up sessions and being ready

shuffling work into the evenings to cover the time

getting up and out in the middle of the night

getting to the beach at the right time

and knowing the tides and the nature of the wave

its about

talking yourself into going out

the cold change in the wet car park

pushing your limits a bit

getting into the spot in the line up

and when the time comes and the big one approaches

its about having the nuts to turn and go for it

to give the extra paddle

and then you are up and in the moment

that big drop

that wall

the turns

the escape or the fall

that sensory overload on your brain

and the way it captures snapshots of the moment for later

then its over

just a bloke in a wetsuit

sitting

smiling

waiting again

 

 Left home 3.30 am and was in Yorkshire before sun up, called it to perfection and they were rolling in. Last wave was on one of the larger sets of the day - we figured after it was maybe the best we had seen through- what a fricken drop, the biggest thing I have caught on the east coast no question - I made it no question too, I think that's what I am so stoked about. I'll not forget that wall for a long time either. funny thing was the shear drama of the moment eclipsed the wave before which was right up there in my all time list of waves. when the big ones drew the water off the reef it got so f*cking good.

what a run, if I went for bath now i'd probably find waves.

what a fricken surf - magic.

40 Mins in at the Shallow End

Called it perfect, low tide home in Scotland and had 40mins of heaven before the swell lost the bottom. Head high at best and a-framing to allow two or three good turns before hitting the channel, which conveyed me back to the line up perfect.
 Just me and a seal too, it went to crap just as the next guy paddled out. felt a bit smug.

Oops I got in again.

I played on the reef, got lost in the swell

Oh baby, baby

Oops!...I think I'm in love

When the swell gives a shove

I'm not that innocent

...Small reef nothing too exiting surfed quite badly but got the exercise. No photos taken so here is bass rock last week.

Stick a fork in me

I am done:)

Another day another dollar, some lovely fast ones on the reef. Straight off shore and Single fin loving all the way. Just a quick one as its a work day so was being made up at 6am!!!

I did a sort of floater too, could have stayed out forever.

Hell in a kelp bed

Got up for a dawny down on one of the local reefs. One out, me, and it looked very good. Decided to take my short board which turned out to be a big mistake, The wave was running fast and I was just struggling to find the spot back hand so decided to go in for my single fin which would be more forgiving on the take-off and give me time to get into the excellent waves that were coming though.

About 1/4 of a mile away

Got back out in the line-up and caught a couple but it was getting really low as was my mood. The kelp was showing in the line-up which was not helping.

The next reef over had been looking big all morning and I talked myself into paddling over just for a quick look before coming in. A right too so front side for me, looked like big lumps hitting the reef and running into the channel.

I sat in the channel and had a look for a while and most were coming in big n fat but a few had real picture postcard 1.5 to 2 overhead shape and were running down the point – East Coast goes Indo – wtf! If I could just get one. I pushed in to the peak a bit and chased around for a while not wanting to get mown down by a big one, the inside on the rocks did not look a nice place to be. It was deep and nice on the shoulder. I sniffed at one and pulled back – what lay below was not in my comfort zone.

Then a wide one with my name on rolled in, I was in position, now or never, time to turn a shit surf around, paddle hard. The take-off was easy but the view on the drop was from hell, the impact zone was a field of kelp heads and that reef did look rather close. Coming off the bottom and heading for that friendly shoulder became a growing concern as I realised that I was too deep, way to bloody deep - how the fuck did I catch the only wave I wasn’t going to make. Drove ahead of the lip and ejected arse first to the bottom as my world exploded. Somewhere mid tumble the leash snapped (enjoy the swim sunshine) which at least took my mind off hitting the reef.

Surfaced near my board and was given a respite to retrieve it and get back the channel, where I sat, laughed, shook and giggled my adrenaline levels back to normal – then went in for a coffee knowing sleep would be harder to find that night.

My Biggest wave? Maybe - I once surfed third reef runny on a silly day. Ugliest and most critical? No doubt. I want more.

Some fat ones at Saltburn

Nipped over to salty on my way home and caught a nice swell before lights out.

Was getting a bit fat at high tide but got some good lumpy ones on the single fin. Despite being north of the pier I managed to have to avoid two others on my best waves :( other than that a nice evening and the wind held off till getting out time. 

Got a good working on a dumper too.

 

Clubman works well as a surf car too.

Midnight on the A708 - first test of the Mini..

Its 12:30am and I am rolling out of Moffatt onto one of the best roads in the country, a personal top five road, thirty perfect miles, the A702 St Mary’s Loch special. My Elise and I know this road very well indeed. In fact one summer evening a few years ago I had my perfect night drive along here, roof down and in the pitch black I got absorbed in giving it everything. But I am not in the Lotus tonight, no between here and Selkirk it is judgement time for my new company car, my little ugly/girls/gay (delete as appropriate) Mini Clubman D.

I chose this car against everyone else’s better judgement. Since ordering it my sexuality and my eyesight have both been brought into question and some think I have lost my mind, but my criteria for this latest choice was simple, It had to be cheap to run, spec’d nicely (leather, nav etc.) and I wanted something to make me smile on nights like this, i.e. at midnight, when the roads are empty and its just me and the car. So I chose a mini, rumour had it they handled quite nicely.

Back to the present, mood lighting is set to blue, sat nav is glowing, full beam is on, sport button is pushed, time to put some rubber on the road and find out if I have gone crazy…

Well the next thirty miles gets split into four parts, 1) the first few miles are very poorly surfaced, undulating and quite narrow. The mini struggles with the surface and I have to hold on tight, we are airborne on a couple of occasions but the narrowness of the car and the fact it is dark means I can push on a bit, any enjoyment being countered by misery if I am in the wrong gear exiting a corner – as expected there is not enough power to be lazy.

the run up to the county line.

Part two starts around the Great mare’s tail car park with the great section of road up the narrow valley (think hill on one side and Armco on the other) to the country line. I fly up here and over the top to the long winding section down to and by the loch itself. Done mainly in 4^th and 5^th the car feels really good along here, excellent steering and nicely balanced through the long corners, and the engine is keeping up no probs.

Then into the more twisty section (part three) and I start to get frustrated, I am struggling to make smooth progress and corner entry to exit is not done in one fluid motion – I am struggling to put my finger on the issue.. so I start to push on harder and really hustle the car. Things now get really entertaining and it feels like it can handle the abuse, standing it on its nose, launching it into tight forested bends, and burying the engine down the next straight. Huge fun but this isn’t turning in to a top ten night drive of my life scenario.

Part four, I reach the last few miles into Selkirk and there are a few properties around so I ease down and suddenly realise how tired I am, I have been presenting at work all day, been to an evening do in Liverpool and am on the arse end of a 200mile drive.. –there’s a dodgy humpback bridge up ahead somewhere and I can’t quite remember where - a foggy mind has arrived. The roads are also wet and leafy so I cruise and consider what I have learned about this car. Handling is great, steering is great, but those downshifts need something.. hmm perhaps heal and toe is required. Next week in Wales should give some answers.

New Mini arrives at last

Clubman Cooper D with Chilli Leather and Nav

End of Term for the I30

I figured that seeing as I am giving it back soon after 3 months and as I have become quite fond of the thing I would write a quick review of my latest rental car, one of Enterprise’s finest, the Hyundai I30.

Let’s start with road presence - probably the most anonymous car I have ever driven. When you are driving some cars people look in to have a peak at the driver as they pass. Ladies glance across at the lights having mentally played the “hot or not” game prior to pulling up. Not so the I30, it is a car so totally ordinary it feels like it is fitted with a cloaking device. It’s a grandad’s car… or a pervert’s car.. indeed you can people watch as much as you like and they are totally oblivious, what a great attribute for a car to have. Rolf Harris might drive an I30 (allegedly).

Really not a car for ones ego then, when caught outside the car, at a service station for example, I found myself hoping people had seen the green “e” on the back telling them that it is in fact a rental, and that at home I may have a huge penis of a car..or maybe a sorn’d Elise.

Despite these failings it is actually not that bad looking from some angles. Jelly from the side yes, but there is a sniff of sporty from the back and a mild stench of aero at the front, and inside it’s pretty cool in a Jap sort of way. The dash is good and who can complain about a 17button steering wheel, including one switch that when pressed seems to say “norks”. The amusement of that alone once kept me amused from Wetherby to Scotch Corner. It is a better place to sit than the Focus for sure.

Camping with En-Synk

It drives ok too, it’s not quick but at 110bhp the diesel engine can keep up when given the nudge on the motorway, and on weekly overtaking duties on the A1 between Newcastle and Edinburgh it never let me down, occasionally sailing past whole lines of traffic like only a hire car can.

Bends, it’s seen a few, which sadly revealed it’s not as sharp as the Focus it replaced, but did reveal a chassis that became mildly entertaining when pushed a bit. My biggest issue with my old Leon FR was that when pushed it all became a bit ragged, not enough feel plus a front end that was trying and failing to do all the work. But you can really hustle the I30 along and if you really set it at a corner, it takes on a stance that is actually quite satisfying, working all four tyres rather than the two at the front. Don’t be deceived though, this car is light years behind the new focus which remains one of the better hatchbacks I have driven.

Early start in the Focus. Bass Rock.

The I30’s greatest asset though is the ability to cover miles, I regularly did 250mile stints in it and it never felt happier than sitting in the outside lane, doing 85 whilst sucking tunes out of my iphone.

I actually had two I30s the first one gave me the best moment. En-sync (reg was EN62 SNC) and I were approaching the great stretch of twisty between Gullane and Aberlady when some clever sod rocketed by on a superbike. Game on.. the I30 owned the bike all the way to Aberlady’s 30 signs, proving it is true what they say, “there is nothing faster than a rental.” I almost felt sorry for him – done by a Hyundai!

So should you buy one? No, but if you are on the blower to the rental company and a focus is not available, then don’t be too depressed if you get an I30. Unless it is En-Synk which I handed back with an Electrical problem!

Camping with EJ-UJO