82COACHING FUNDAMENTALS
OVER THE YEARS I HAVE OWNED LOADS OF KIT OF ALL BRANDS, AGES AND CONDITIONS FROM HALF-BUSTED SCRAP-HEAP STUFF TO BRAND NEW GEAR. CHOOSE YOUR KIT WISELY AND GET THE BEST ADVICE YOU CAN FROM FRIENDS, WEBSITES, FORUMS AND TRUSTED SHOPS. MY FIRST EVER SAILS WERE END-OF- SEASON TUSHINGHAM SELL-OFFS FROM A HOLIDAY COMPANY AND THEY WERE PERFECT. Then I foolishly bought a slippery 106-litre Bic Adagio slalom board for £ 100 from a rogue trader. I should have been enjoying loads of healthy progression at that stage on a 150-litre board. Instead I spent a month falling in and nearly went mad before getting rid of it. Avoid impulse buys, try before you buy wherever possible and make sure that the kit will serve you well.
Right now I am very lucky to have access to an incredible range of equipment yet – not being the sort of person who takes things for granted, it gets looked after meticulously( in use and in storage) and, consequently, is sold on later in first-rate condition. Whatever kit you have it needs to be relied upon when you need it – so it needs plenty of TLC. Ensure that it is always rinsed off after a dunking in the sea and dried as soon as possible before checking for damage then storing it with care. A seized boom, for example, is no fun at all on the day when you know that you meant to rinse out the salt water last time yet never got around to it. Or that sail with a small tear in it? Get it fixed before it goes out of control and the whole panel needs replacing.
uk
WIND SURFING