As I look out the window, my environment couldn't more the complete opposite of this...
Monday 6 December 2010
New Addition to the Family
I am pleased to announce the latest addition to the family :) A 9'6" Gulf Stream Saunton Foil. Firstly sorry for the really rubbish pictures! It's so cold outside, there's just no way I was taking it out there to photo it. I will have to do some more when I take it out for a sesh.
This is the best one and this is the one I took in the shop with my phone. It's a mustard yellow with black and white pin stripes. Here's a another couple..
And if you look closely (again - rubbish pic sorry!), it says "For Rob by Jools" - sweet :)
This is hopefully going to be a life long relationship and I'm sure we will have our ups and downs. But right now, I need some nice small to medium clean waves so we can get to know each other a little better...
Big thanks to Skelly at Gulf Stream for being a great help in helping get what I wanted and helping Nic work out what design to have on it and a big thumbs to Jools for the shaping magic :)
Once we've settled in, I'll give Finshack a shout to line up some alternative fin action as well :)
Tuesday 30 November 2010
I Am of Box!
Finally! I have a new Xbox 360 :) After having fixed it from the RROD, it gave up again :( So with Xmas quickly approaching it seemed like a perfect present.
I will no doubt be giving it some major stick tonight :)
I will no doubt be giving it some major stick tonight :)
Thursday 25 November 2010
Saltmotion - Sydney
I came across Saltmotion in Sydney. Not because I was in Sydney unfortunately :( They have some great surf pictures in their galleries and I'm particularly loving this one from the longboarding gallery:
Picture courtesy of Saltmotion
Tuesday 23 November 2010
Wednesday 10 November 2010
T5 Interior - Part 1
Not a lot has been happening in the SuperGypo world recently - well apart from some retard smacking into the back of me new T5 the other week. That was obviously great news and needless to say, he thinks it's 50/50, even though he ran into the back of me - hey ho!
On a more positive front, we have started putting the new interior into the T5 :) In case you can't remember the old layout, here's a couple of piccies:
The keen eye will see that where the buggy is tied up, there is another flap that is anchored to the side. This drops down (when the buggy is moved of course!) to make another base along side the base that is currently down. Then a box makes up the open section where the side door is. We then have somewhere to kip on and it all folds up to still give us the complete van if we need it - happy days! There's also a rack that runs from side to side (see it up by the back window and buggy wheel and just by the left side top of the side door). The surf boards get put on there. These are supported by wooden legs screwed to the top and bottom of the side panel.
We had that layout for a few years and as the time went by, thought of a few more pimps we could do to make it more comfortable and practical. So, with the new van comes a new interior. We (me and Nic's dad, Pete) set to work last Saturday doing part 1 of the installation.
Needless to say, as the time has gone by, the board quiver has grown. The kite quiver has remained pretty static so no requirement changes needed there. The new vision was to do pretty much the same sort of layout again, but with improved seating, better (safer!) side access and a bit more convenience for cooking. Where possible, we're trying to re-use as much as we can from the old interior. As it was, Nic was known, quite regularly, to dismount the side door in a very ungraceful and un-ladylike fashion. The was mostly to do with the restricted access because of the section partly blocking the side door. So that section will be shortened to not infringe on the side door.
The other side (where the buggy is pictured), we planned to add a box sort of affair to slide a surfboard inside of. This would mean all 3 boards are safe inside the van. The board running down the side would also be protected from us leaning on it in the evenings. We also use that side to sit on in the evenings and have the other side tied up out the way. Because of the depth of wood, it became a little uncomfortable after time. So the board box has been made with an incline for improved comfort and the wood panel will not be quite so deep for easier leg hanging over :)
Check out the hinged door on the end of the board box. This is to give me easier access when pulling the board in and out of the box.
On a more positive front, we have started putting the new interior into the T5 :) In case you can't remember the old layout, here's a couple of piccies:
The keen eye will see that where the buggy is tied up, there is another flap that is anchored to the side. This drops down (when the buggy is moved of course!) to make another base along side the base that is currently down. Then a box makes up the open section where the side door is. We then have somewhere to kip on and it all folds up to still give us the complete van if we need it - happy days! There's also a rack that runs from side to side (see it up by the back window and buggy wheel and just by the left side top of the side door). The surf boards get put on there. These are supported by wooden legs screwed to the top and bottom of the side panel.
We had that layout for a few years and as the time went by, thought of a few more pimps we could do to make it more comfortable and practical. So, with the new van comes a new interior. We (me and Nic's dad, Pete) set to work last Saturday doing part 1 of the installation.
Needless to say, as the time has gone by, the board quiver has grown. The kite quiver has remained pretty static so no requirement changes needed there. The new vision was to do pretty much the same sort of layout again, but with improved seating, better (safer!) side access and a bit more convenience for cooking. Where possible, we're trying to re-use as much as we can from the old interior. As it was, Nic was known, quite regularly, to dismount the side door in a very ungraceful and un-ladylike fashion. The was mostly to do with the restricted access because of the section partly blocking the side door. So that section will be shortened to not infringe on the side door.
The other side (where the buggy is pictured), we planned to add a box sort of affair to slide a surfboard inside of. This would mean all 3 boards are safe inside the van. The board running down the side would also be protected from us leaning on it in the evenings. We also use that side to sit on in the evenings and have the other side tied up out the way. Because of the depth of wood, it became a little uncomfortable after time. So the board box has been made with an incline for improved comfort and the wood panel will not be quite so deep for easier leg hanging over :)
Check out the hinged door on the end of the board box. This is to give me easier access when pulling the board in and out of the box.
There are a couple of other plans, but I'll let you know about these as we get to do them ;)
Tuesday 9 November 2010
Pictures of Rossi on a Ducati - Valencia 2010 Testing
I thought I'd kill a bit of time this morning and watch the Valencia testing. So far, not a lot has really happened. But what everybody was waiting for has just happened! After 7 years with the Yamaha MotoGP racing team, Rossi has finally ridden the Ducati!
Here's a couple of screen grabs courtesy of the BBC (in no particular order):
Here's a couple of screen grabs courtesy of the BBC (in no particular order):
And of course a quick one of Cal ;)
Tuesday 2 November 2010
Moving On With Snowboarding
We're officially saying goodbye to the summer now, what with the clocks going back. Here I am sat looking out the window and seeing a dull, rainy and dark 4 o'clock in the afternoon.
This isn't all bad. For sure, I'll be missing the sun and light evenings, but this darkness does mean that the snowy season is finally getting here :)
Having been on Twitter now for a few months now I thought I'd follow the whitelines snowboard mag. They've not long put up an article saying Terje Haakonsen might be pushing to have slopstyle added to the 2014 winter Olympics.
I can't believe how snowboarding has changed over the years. When I was a lad, snowboarding being in the Olympics encompassed everything that snowboarding was not about. Couple that with it being managed and controlled by the FIS - outright offensive.
Oh how things change...
This isn't all bad. For sure, I'll be missing the sun and light evenings, but this darkness does mean that the snowy season is finally getting here :)
Having been on Twitter now for a few months now I thought I'd follow the whitelines snowboard mag. They've not long put up an article saying Terje Haakonsen might be pushing to have slopstyle added to the 2014 winter Olympics.
I can't believe how snowboarding has changed over the years. When I was a lad, snowboarding being in the Olympics encompassed everything that snowboarding was not about. Couple that with it being managed and controlled by the FIS - outright offensive.
Oh how things change...
Thursday 28 October 2010
Sunday 24 October 2010
Busfreeze - Stafford 2010
We went up to Busfreeze at the County Showground in Stafford today. It's only it's second year and although it wasn't as busy as it's sister show, Dubfreeze, it was none the less popular with the vans :)
We thought we'd buy the T5 a couple of treats as he's a bit sad at the moment (he needs a new bumper and and some work done on the rear wheel arch when somebody ran into him the other day). So he's now sporting a new swivel passenger seat and some wind deflectors - he's got a little smile back on his face now :)
We thought we'd buy the T5 a couple of treats as he's a bit sad at the moment (he needs a new bumper and and some work done on the rear wheel arch when somebody ran into him the other day). So he's now sporting a new swivel passenger seat and some wind deflectors - he's got a little smile back on his face now :)
Jesus! This bad boy was proper slammed!
Was loving a bit of this hell wagon :)
The show & shine had some real sweeties...
What the...???
This woody style looked nice and I've not seen anyone do this before
He'd used a vinyl for the finish
It was mostly all vans, but this mk1 golf was really nicely done
Um...
Thursday 21 October 2010
Smelly Wetsuit Boots
If any of you are suffering from smelly wetsuit boot syndrome (which I have been up until recently - and in fact Nic's were particularly potent!!), then a trick we have come across is to fill them with clean water and leave them overnight. If they are a bit more overwhelmingly strong, then leave them longer and top up as needed.
Hopefully you can say goodbye to throwing up stentch of stinky boots :)
Hopefully you can say goodbye to throwing up stentch of stinky boots :)
Quiksiler Pro - Portugal 2010
So there I was quietly finishing up a nice cup of tea and turned on the live web coverage of the Quiksilver Pro in Portugal (this link may not be available if you read this once the event is over).
Anyway...
I had to take a double look when there are two dudes out surfing with their dogs! The dogs were proper loving it :) I did my best to get some screenshots - which aren't too great, but worthy none the less!
Anyway...
I had to take a double look when there are two dudes out surfing with their dogs! The dogs were proper loving it :) I did my best to get some screenshots - which aren't too great, but worthy none the less!
I'm guessing one of the dogs was a seasoned pro - he grabbed the leash as he jumped off after making it all the way to the shore on a super clean wave!
Move over Kelly Slater - make room for Rex!
Tuesday 19 October 2010
Goof Board
Now given I have a carpenter in the family, I'm sure he could knock me something up as although I am sure it's worth it, $139 is a bit too spenny for me...
Retro Board Challenge - East Wittering
The Retro Board Challenge is on again this year. We went last year and spent some good time with Danny. It's a fancy dress surf comp - what more could you ask for!!
T5 Windows - Tinting
So following on from having windows added to the T5. I went, today, to get extra tinting added. They just weren't dark enough! Although the windows are blacked, they were just way too see-through. There's no way the Nicster would be jumping in and out of the wetsuit in there.
I phoned around a bit and everybody was asking silly money for it - in excess of £200! The reality was that I just wasn't going to get it done. Me man Steve suggested I give the chap who did his a call (Mark @ Stadium Sunroof Centre). He quoted a much more sensible price. In the end, I went to Russ in Bilston @ Kustom Tints. Nice lad and again has charged sensible money. He knew what he was doing and the finish looks real good.
Took probably no more than an hour and they are proper black now! So, I now need to leave it alone for 5 days and can then give them a wipe over. The tints are added with a life guarantee - so no issues (if there are any) in the future :)
I phoned around a bit and everybody was asking silly money for it - in excess of £200! The reality was that I just wasn't going to get it done. Me man Steve suggested I give the chap who did his a call (Mark @ Stadium Sunroof Centre). He quoted a much more sensible price. In the end, I went to Russ in Bilston @ Kustom Tints. Nice lad and again has charged sensible money. He knew what he was doing and the finish looks real good.
Took probably no more than an hour and they are proper black now! So, I now need to leave it alone for 5 days and can then give them a wipe over. The tints are added with a life guarantee - so no issues (if there are any) in the future :)
Friday 15 October 2010
Tuesday 12 October 2010
Roctober North Devon Session
Just back from another great weekend in Devon. The weather and waves were great.
In fact, I can't believe how good the weather was. We were shorts and t-shirts and sat out in the evening. Now we all know how chilly Nic gets - well, she was even out and only had a normal number of layers on - not the usual 4,400!
Nic & I arrived Friday morning, a bit ahead of Craig and Kerry. They had had an "alarm clock issue" and didn't quite get up at the right time - oops! We messed about a bit and then watched the Saunton waves peeling down the beach. C&K rocked up in what sounded like a B52 bomber. There had been exhaust issues. These issues raised their head again on the way home and they didn't get to leave Barnstaple until 5 in the evening when they set off at 1 in the afternoon.
Friday, Saturday and Sunday were all great sea days (Monday was flat - checked Woolacombe area but still no joy). I think Magicseaweed must have been bigging up the conditions as it was packed! It was like a summers day out there. We ended up leaving it later and later each day. Fewer people about and to be honest the conditions were nicer.
Croyde was pretty big a couple of the days. Far too big for me! None the less, Craig and I went in very early on Sunday morning (or was it Saturday - can't remember). It was a bit boisterous so it was only a quick one...
Kerry had a few goes as well. This was her first time in quite a few years. The last time involved an incident with a board and her nose - ouch! But with a bit more time, she'll get the burn back ;)
Nic successfully managed to negotiate using my longboard again. She's getting on really well with it. Looks like I may be loosing that one in the near future - Gulfstream here I come :)
We had a nice surprise on Saturday when Steve & Nick (we met in Newquoi in September) popped by to say hello. They were at Oktoberfest near Cheddar. So cups of tea and a walk down to the pumping break at Croyde made for a relaxing afternoon.
The splitty ran well! hoohah! Having done a couple more tweaks, the overheating has stopped - finally! He's going to get tucked up now for winter, but he'll have a few Christmas presents to be added in the new year :)
So, yet another nice break :)
In fact, I can't believe how good the weather was. We were shorts and t-shirts and sat out in the evening. Now we all know how chilly Nic gets - well, she was even out and only had a normal number of layers on - not the usual 4,400!
Nic & I arrived Friday morning, a bit ahead of Craig and Kerry. They had had an "alarm clock issue" and didn't quite get up at the right time - oops! We messed about a bit and then watched the Saunton waves peeling down the beach. C&K rocked up in what sounded like a B52 bomber. There had been exhaust issues. These issues raised their head again on the way home and they didn't get to leave Barnstaple until 5 in the evening when they set off at 1 in the afternoon.
Croyde was pretty big a couple of the days. Far too big for me! None the less, Craig and I went in very early on Sunday morning (or was it Saturday - can't remember). It was a bit boisterous so it was only a quick one...
Kerry had a few goes as well. This was her first time in quite a few years. The last time involved an incident with a board and her nose - ouch! But with a bit more time, she'll get the burn back ;)
Nic successfully managed to negotiate using my longboard again. She's getting on really well with it. Looks like I may be loosing that one in the near future - Gulfstream here I come :)
We had a nice surprise on Saturday when Steve & Nick (we met in Newquoi in September) popped by to say hello. They were at Oktoberfest near Cheddar. So cups of tea and a walk down to the pumping break at Croyde made for a relaxing afternoon.
The splitty ran well! hoohah! Having done a couple more tweaks, the overheating has stopped - finally! He's going to get tucked up now for winter, but he'll have a few Christmas presents to be added in the new year :)
Thursday 7 October 2010
Being Comfortable with Yourself
Long story, but I was in Birmingham yesterday. So after having spent some time watching the world go by outside the Conservative party conference at the ICC, I had a cup of Chai tea in Starbucks and headed back to the train station via China Town (sort of).
Now you can rest assured that usually I am not to be found anywhere near adult shops, but I was lucky enough to walk past one - I took the opportunity to take a quick shot...
Hang on a minute???
What a dude! As the title suggests - he is indeed comfortable with himself :)
Now you can rest assured that usually I am not to be found anywhere near adult shops, but I was lucky enough to walk past one - I took the opportunity to take a quick shot...
Hang on a minute???
What a dude! As the title suggests - he is indeed comfortable with himself :)
Tuesday 28 September 2010
World's Scariest Job?
This is flipping crazy! Now I'm not too bad with heights, but there's only a few people in the world who can do this sort of thing - surely?
Corduroy Lines: Issue 12
Issue 12 of Corduroy Lines is out! It's a limited edition print run this time round. Needless to say, mine was ordered sometime ago ;)
Tuesday 21 September 2010
Monday 20 September 2010
Sunny September in the South West
Not long back from our regular September run to Cornwall.Two weeks this time, as opposed to the usual one week. It was great doing the extra week and we managed to relax and chill out (I believe the new word on the streets is chillax - real hip!).
The week started off well with our visit to see Gavin at Finshack and the purchase of a sneaky new fin. What a beaut! I tried it out at Polzeath and wow what a difference it made :) Honestly, I didn't think I would notice the difference - but the first wave and the board felt completely different - really nice and very happy :) That was one of the few times I got to use my board - more on that later...
Polzeath was busy, so after a major rain storm we moved on and ended up in the dizzy heights of Newquoi. We'd planned to stay near Constantine, but we got major demotivated with the horrific weather, leaking van windows, soaked awning and the red flags at the beach (especially after having the sea so nice in Polzeath). So Newquoi it was.
One thing lead to another and all our plans of cruising around and going to different places never happened and we stayed at trusty old Trencreek the entire time. To be honest, the waves in Newquoi were really nice, so we didn't want to risk moving and not have suxh good conditions. We ventured to Crantock and Gwithian (saw Jo & Andy while we were there of course) and both times convinced us that staying was the way to go!
We met Steve and Nick, who are from Manchester, at the campsite. They had a nice pimped out T4 and a puck (which fared well on a couple of the cooler nights - especially with heating and what have ya!). We had a great time with them, several beverages and a couple of bad heads (mainly me!). No doubt we will be catching up with them very soon :)
Nic spent most of the fortnight on my longboard and made some really good progress. There's no excuse now, she has to come out with me next time we go in. So she had better use out of the new fin than I did. But I can hand on heart say that I got my first real good controlled nose ride! I think that was on the Monday night of the second week. I was made up. The board locked in on the wave, I moved forward and was about 15 cm from the end, held it for a good few seconds and then moved back as the board became a little unstable. Poetry in motion ;)
How did the van go? Up and down really. Still having overheating problems, but we at least managed to get down and back at around 60mph. Which is good, but not good enough! So there's still some work to do there. That aside, he ran around town really well and served us excellently for the whole 2 weeks. Can't grumble.
As we are now getting to be creatures of habit, we did the usual of going via Devon on the way home. So managed to grab a sneaky session on Saturday evening at Saunton (I got on my longboard this time!) and Nic managed a good few waves at Puts, on Sunday, before heading home (on our wedding anniversary).
An excellent two weeks, surfing, sunning and meeting great people :) Roll on next September...
Some other piccies I took...
The week started off well with our visit to see Gavin at Finshack and the purchase of a sneaky new fin. What a beaut! I tried it out at Polzeath and wow what a difference it made :) Honestly, I didn't think I would notice the difference - but the first wave and the board felt completely different - really nice and very happy :) That was one of the few times I got to use my board - more on that later...
Polzeath was busy, so after a major rain storm we moved on and ended up in the dizzy heights of Newquoi. We'd planned to stay near Constantine, but we got major demotivated with the horrific weather, leaking van windows, soaked awning and the red flags at the beach (especially after having the sea so nice in Polzeath). So Newquoi it was.
One thing lead to another and all our plans of cruising around and going to different places never happened and we stayed at trusty old Trencreek the entire time. To be honest, the waves in Newquoi were really nice, so we didn't want to risk moving and not have suxh good conditions. We ventured to Crantock and Gwithian (saw Jo & Andy while we were there of course) and both times convinced us that staying was the way to go!
We met Steve and Nick, who are from Manchester, at the campsite. They had a nice pimped out T4 and a puck (which fared well on a couple of the cooler nights - especially with heating and what have ya!). We had a great time with them, several beverages and a couple of bad heads (mainly me!). No doubt we will be catching up with them very soon :)
(Nick is sporting a slight toe injury in this picture - no more said about that hey Steve!)
Nic spent most of the fortnight on my longboard and made some really good progress. There's no excuse now, she has to come out with me next time we go in. So she had better use out of the new fin than I did. But I can hand on heart say that I got my first real good controlled nose ride! I think that was on the Monday night of the second week. I was made up. The board locked in on the wave, I moved forward and was about 15 cm from the end, held it for a good few seconds and then moved back as the board became a little unstable. Poetry in motion ;)
How did the van go? Up and down really. Still having overheating problems, but we at least managed to get down and back at around 60mph. Which is good, but not good enough! So there's still some work to do there. That aside, he ran around town really well and served us excellently for the whole 2 weeks. Can't grumble.
As we are now getting to be creatures of habit, we did the usual of going via Devon on the way home. So managed to grab a sneaky session on Saturday evening at Saunton (I got on my longboard this time!) and Nic managed a good few waves at Puts, on Sunday, before heading home (on our wedding anniversary).
An excellent two weeks, surfing, sunning and meeting great people :) Roll on next September...
Some other piccies I took...
What a difference the angle made - Nic preparing
A couple there of Nic coming back up the beach - the sky was amazing that night!
Some rare footage of me in the sea - paddling out at Fistral
Spot Steve's T4 and our Split parked up at Pentire
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