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Only a few weeks until the best winter windsurf event happens on Green Island!
Cant wait for the 20+ knot trade winds and beautiful clear water, perfect conditions for freestyle and blasting in the butter flat water behind the reef on low tides and ultimate slalom/freerace battlegrounds once the tide fills in over the reef and sea grass beds.
Registration is open for the Freestyle, Slalom and Freerace National titles, and by the looks of the entry list it looks like another hotly contested year at Green Island.
Follow the link here for online rego: greenislandnats.org/
QLD Freestyle entrants are still pretty low and we need to give those WA and NSW crew a run for their money so its not too late to book a cheap flight and get involved.
Other than competing, the focus of the week is on having an awesome time on and off the water, and its a really good way to learn new moves and get tips from the best sailors in Aus to help your sailing improve in perfect conditions.
Here is a clip from the 2013 comp to get everyone psyched and keen to make it to Green!
So pumped after watching that...reminded me how special this event is....See you there.
- Smoke on the water - Just in case it all looks too easy - Billy Craig Photography
- YO, man ! - WA's Paul Yeomans in the frame for another year of action - Billy Craig Photography
- Mid Winter, somewhere in Australia - That's all real, right there. How's your week looking ? - Billy Craig Photography
Cheers stroppo, It should be a tad warmer than the usual westerly cold fronts we normally sail in this time of year! You should come to, there's also a good speed strip there.
- Attn : Windsurfing TAS President Anthony HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM !!!
TASMANIAN powerhouse and dual Australian Freerace Champion, Kaleb Smith recovering tonite after surgery today to remove welding flash debris embedded in his eyeball. Does not "look" (sorry Kaleb...) good, a disastrous additional new setback after a 2015 season dogged with bad luck and injury recoveries.
Eye-ther way, his determination won't quit, and sailing - or not- he's on that plane North next week anyway. TAS team will be a serious setback without you.
Please avoid any one-eyed humor, no matter how clever, never nice to be the butt of someone else's jokes ;)
Jokes aside (and we have his consent !) this is an incredible run of bad luck, and we all wish him a solid and speedy recovery.
Wow that looks serious
So unlucky Kaleb, hope you recover quickly and your eye is ok. Hopefully soon you can put these injuries behind you and get back on the water ASAP.
My amazingly tough husband (who I am trying to confine to eliminate any more injuries) is not letting any number of set backs stop him from getting to GI and into the water. Aren't things only meant to come in threes? I am hoping that number 6 injury (being stabbed just below the eyebrow by the eye surgeon) is his fare share and he will get to take part doing what he loves best.
Goes to show the true dedication by Buzzy (Kaleb), all this happening to him and he's still on the plane next week with all his gear. Just as well he's got a nice Starboard beanie to make himself feel better. We breed em tough down here in Tassie
, anyone that sails down here in snow must have something special about them.
Looking at the current forecast for GI so far, I think I'll be taking my 5.1 this year.
No arms, missing eye..
Little troll guy on my iSonic always looked a bit Tasmanian..
If his sailboard trailer project wasn't as big as a
Large caravan then production line,manufacturing injurys could be reduced
- Flat out fast - Better days...Doing it like he does it best. Keeps on keeping on...he'll be back. Guaranteed.
hope ya recover quickly.
Kaleb, no doubt you'll still be the force in the free race - bastard!! Good luck with the recovery....but why don't you just use your eyes from your 'other' head, isn't that using the Tassie advantage??? See you at sunset drinks (hopefully you'll be able to see us).
Wish I could be there 
Some photos could be good wallpaper. i really want fly back Cairns to watch the competition. Lucky Cairns people .
- In your face !! - The other Bentley. Nick deciding which side of the boat to take out - Billy Craig Photography
- Missing in action - This UFO was believed to be launched by uni student from WA, who hasn't been seen in a while. - Billy Craig Photography
- Speed Selfie - Spotti still got time to smile, laying it down ripping out of the end of Luderitz ditch.
Craig "Spotti" Spottiswood is the latest to add his name to the "fly" list for Cairns this week. Certainly no fly-weight, with potentially the 2015 event's biggest competitor also being the first Victorian representative to compete in the GI Nats Slalom and Freerace events. With a super reputation as a fast man of the speed sailing circuit, many will be expecting Spotti to indeed fly at Green Island.
Meantime, last year's runner up in the Open Slalom Championship, WA's Rowan Law also booked his slot in the starting gates for the competition which gets underway from next Sunday. Hot from some sensational mass start racing in France's epic Defi Wind challenge, WA's Isaac de Vries is another new face on the GI scene and will be in fine form to challenge for outright honors.
Former Aus Champion Jesper Orth and PWA racer expat Cairns local Ben Newson just add further strength to Team WA for 2015.
Meantime, fresh off the plane just 12 hours back from Europe, defending 2013 and 2014 Champion Sean O'Brien made an early start getting valuable tuning time out on the Island yesterday, backing it up with another early session again today. Game on.
Conditions are forecast 20-25 kts of solid performance conditions on Sunday, moderating into almost "ideal" 15-20 for the remainder of the 5 day competition schedule.
Needless to say, Cairns air and water temperature forecast around 25C on all days won't deter many either.
Flew in yesterday midday, perfect weather to enjoy some refreshment at the Pier after the flight and await Newson, Rowy, PJ, and Izac's return from GI. Another couple of refreshment's and it was back to base to get ready for a tour of Cairns local haunts and more refreshment cause it quite warm up here and you need to keep hydrated up for the next days sailing. Jesper got in around 830pm fully amped and joined the tour which was in full swing by then, adding to the WA contingent in great form using there time zone to there advantage for an early night
Been non stop action on and off the water!!!!!
