Yahoo, after months of nothing, I finally got a decent sail in on Tuesday. Gusting to the low 20's but not really gusting as it can, more like just the wind increasing and decreasing if you know what I mean.
Tried a new spot, the sea scouts on St Helen's Point Road for those who know the area. Good sailing reaches for I would guess up to about 4k right across the bay. Not as much weed in this section of the bay and the swell and chop smaller so more enjoyable ride. This location is more in the public's eye than where I usually go and I noticed a couple of cars that pulled up for a look. Not that I really like the attention but it must be good to at least advertise the sport in this area. Who knows, it may even lead to some new riders this way.
I made great use of the new 5mm wetsuit which was far warmer than the 3mm one from QLD that I had been using. Feet and hands still went numb but it took longer and my body wasn't really cold, just the extremities.
Russ, if you read this, the new Mistral went like a dream. Not really up in the high 20's that I bought it for but it handled the conditions well. Predictable but manouverable, cut through the chop well, held onto the speed better than my other boards when gybing and even seemed to me to be faster on the blast. All in all a sweet board.
Looking forward to more sailing this season and hopefully catching up with other riders when I can.

Nice...definitely requires dedication to be on the water at this time of year but very satisfying too.

Nice read Iceman. I think that spot is where we used to do slalom racing from at St Helens (probably 10 years ago now). Less weed and the wind funnels through quite nice. Good little sand bar up toward the town centre as well if you can make your way upwind.