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Tuesday 15^th May 2012 – windsurfing **** sunny

Mag didn’t sleep very well so she got up early and despite it blowing a gale walked round the etang leaving me in bed.  It was very bracing she said! After breakfast we drove to the shop at Sigean then to the beach at La Franqui  – it was absolutely ridiculously windy so after watching the few who were out bouncing about on choppy water we drove to La Franqui village for a cuppa and to pinch the internet, loads of freeride sailors rigging up 4/5m sails but wind very up and down:( even talked to an old boy windsurfer who I have met 3 years running!!! Drove back to La Palme and had lunch then and I decided it was flat enough to have a go, rigging up was abit of a battle but I made it out by 3:30. There was really too much north in it making the course really bumpy  -like Kirbys killer chop:( Did 5 runs and was pleased with the speeds for me in the difficult condition with the wind gusting over 40kts!!! I was starting okay and even managing to sail back I was pleased to get 38 knots and wanted to have a go with a bag of sand stuffed up the back of his life jacket (!) to make it a weight jacket so we did that and I went back to have another run, just got going and it dropped out!  I did find a proper weight jacket so we now have that in the van and don’t quite know how to reunite it with its owner???  I would like to have a go with it first to see if it makes any difference.  It was another usual day on that beach – blowing a hooly, people getting stuck in the sand, windsurfers standing in shorts and hoodies scratching their heads and debating a lot, not being able to carry your gear up the beach because the wind was too strong etc..  Mag didn’t even get out of the van, just read all the time.  I shoved all the gear in the back of the van and we drove off about 5.30.  Mag expected to go towards La Franqui because we were going to try La Cassoulles for the night – there was lots of free parking for camper vans there last time we looked and thought we might be able to pinch the internet we had at lunch time because that came from a camp site.  But I wanted to wash all his gear off so headed back to Peyraic to a spot we found on our walk yesterday on the other side of Peyraic, overlooking Bages on a different etang.  It is a very nice spot but I got covered in etang mud washing my gear and despite having a shower I stunk!  Then went for a walk along the etang as the sunset and it’s still windy but dropping off tomorrow so heading farther down the coast :)

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38.52 kts :) best this year:)

Fanatic falcon speed and Tushingham 5.2