Big up the boy

Billyman's been selected to represent the SW at the London Marathon - looks like they run the last three miles crossing the finish line just before the main runners get home (unless they have a slow day and get caught by Gerbreselassie!). Should be a fantastic experience. At his age, twelve, you can be the fastest at both short and long distance, but as the body moves onto the next growth phase, you have to choose one or the other - all to do with training the slow or fast twitch muscles apparently! At the Football Academy, they monitor growth religiously and fast twitch is where it's at, so this will probably be his last race over this distance. His footie's going really well and they have spoken - they really want for the best for them! Janey's off with him for a match at Bournemouth today, Findog plays them at home (all home matches are played at Tavistock). One day in the not too distant future I'm sure we'll have a day where we're all together!

Is that a record?

This beauty popped through the letterbox this morning! What do you know.... the old certificate from the Guinness World Records!! Five years I've waited for this (I've been keeping busy otherwise)... five years! Do you think that's a record? I reckon they print them, then leave them to settle. As you can see there's a good head on it! I'm not complaining about the tardiness, in fact I'm really rather stoked. I'm gonna get it framed and hang it on a wall (which wall, to be discussed with Janey)!

It seems a long time ago, that paddle. I trained hard for it, was super fit. Now as I look down upon the balcony above the toy shop (ie Belly.. credit Alfie Moon), I can see deterioration in a once supreme being. The six pack is now a big one pack. The pecs... moobs. Age catches up with us all in the end. What am I now - 45? Forty-five! It's the little things I notice, like yesterday I left the confines of our part-time accommodation in Ivybridge and ventured into Exeter. It was hard enough walking past the winter weight cotton rich flat front corduroy trousers in the formal section of the Marks and Sparks menswear department, (dark blue obviously, one shake is rarely enough these days), without being lured by The Edinburgh Woollen Mill. I'm not going into that City again! I might come back looking like my Dad, and he's a champion lawn bowler. It's a look, but not the one I'm after.

Here's a photo taken last week of the Harvster, one of the original Boardriders. He's just come back from NZ. He ripped before he went, he rips even harder now! Found working in TJ's at Polzeath (under new management). There's a lot of Boardriders who now work on the beach, either with us, in the cafe's, in the surf shops. I'd like to think that we had a little hand in encouraging them to live the dream.

Easter just around the corner. Let us know if you need some lessons or hire (07760 126225), it's shaping up to be a busy one. And if you need somewhere to stay, don't forget the Beach House - few dates left. Oh and what I should announce is that we have a whole new range of kid and adult hoodies coming in for April! No need to go shopping in the City!

ps thanks for all your book suggestions - awesome!

Don't call me Helen

Last night I went to bed as a man, this morning I woke as a woman. My name is Helen. This isn't the first time this has happened, it's happening more regularly. Friends, I think I might be 'an Bookwormic'.

You can't beat a good book. The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue .... is right up there. I was reading it until 'lights off'. As I entered the land of nod, the story must have lodged itself in my subconscious. Waking up as Helen was one thing. It was waking up in a courtroom that really threw me. I did some quick physical checks. Phew! For one awful moment I thought I was going to have to get up, do the dishes and get the kids ready for school! Instead I was able to just lie there and vent under the duvet!

It's all this living part-time in Ivybridge that's doing it and the lure of the Waterstone/Costa combo. It's indulgent but a joy. Anyone with me on this? A skinny medio Mocha followed by a browse in the fiction section... it's good for the soul. Of course, it's Janey that has form. She's always been one to enjoy a good read, always something on the go. It's a more recent thing for me. We've arrived at the stage where we've even started reading the same novels (not at the same time obviously) - and then we discuss. A sort of Craskie Book Club. She finds me frustrating though. She reads the first word to the last, revelling in the detail of every speech mark and comma. Whereas I'm a skimmer. She'll ask what I think about a certain passage in the book and I'll give her a blank look in reply. I'm a plot man. Although to be fair I forget the plots too sometimes. Characters with similar names, that really throws me. But I do love a book, it has to be a book. A page to turn. A page to feel and smell. I'm not a Kindle man. With high street shops closing at an alarming rate, I really, really hope Waterstones can whether the storm.

It's in the real world that myself and Janey show similar form. I'm the big picture man, whilst Janey immerses herself in the detail. Not by choice it would seem. "If I don't do it, it wouldn't get done". The words cut deep and I battle daily to reach the dagger plunged deep between my shoulder blades. You see what I have to put up with! But like the Waterstone/ Costa combo, it works well. Surf's Up! - Eighteen years and counting.

Right, let me get these stockings off and then we can crack on! In truth I have very little to say... whitter, whitter, whitter. Ah yes, now then this photo below - average one at best, and this purely down to the skill of the workman not the tools nor the elements, they were all perfect. No I choose this photo because I noticed something educational in it. Something to do with the line up of the waves... any ideas?

In the words of a much respected head lifeguard, "The sea is unpredictable. There's no such thing as a rogue wave!" Wise words indeed. Although I feel I should counter this with... many years ago the Royal Navy were passing in a Destroyer and had picked up on the radio that there was a mass rescue taking place on the beach. They radioed the very same head lifeguard. "Is there anything we can do to help?" they asked. "Send me everything you've got!" came the reply! Really? Can you imagine....!

Picture the scene, I'm walking the dog along the coast path, camera in hand. I'm observing the waves, probably five in a set (group) and then a lull. With the light offshore breeze, the waves are nicely lined up across the beach, a corduroy sea. And then this set comes along where one of the waves is sat nearly on top of another, very little space between the two. You can see in the photo above the two broken waves are much closer together than either the one nearer the beach or the one just breaking further out. I wish I'd had the camera out earlier to take a snap before they'd broken. Anyway, it was very noticeable. So what's that all about, any ideas?

Although there are many theories about how and why waves sort themselves into neat lines, it's widely recognised that there's still research to be done in this area. However, we know enough to make educated guesses. In this particular photo, the waves hitting the beach today haven't come from just one pressure system, but two. In other words you could have a swell originating from a storm in the north Atlantic and you could have one originating from the south. If the two swells meet close to shore, there's no time for them to sync, hence you get waves out of sync with the general pattern. We surmise that one pressure system, therefore one swell, will be the dominant party.

Would you notice this if you were surfing? In the white water, probably not. Once the circular motion of the waves touches the ocean floor, they slow and bunch together. You might get a double up, but you can get them anyway. Out the back, in the line-up? Most definitely. I remember some twelve years ago when there was a huge swell forecast for the evening, I was surfing with a few locals. Before the big stuff really came in, the pattern of the waves changed. You could feel that something was happening. Every now and again a few bigger waves would roll in nearly on top of one another. It was pretty freaky!

In summary, I don't think this is a rogue wave as such, more of two things coming together. No need to send in the landing craft and Apaches, not this time around thanks Captain.

Oh dear, I just came over all surf school owneryish! All that stuff about waves, swell and pressure systems.. what was I thinking of! Sorry.

Now here's a thing. This is Max Payne. He's been with the Surf's Up! Boardriders Club since he was eighteen inches tall - boy and man. Over the past few years, under the watchful eye of our elite coach, Kelly 'Snoop Dog' O'Toole, he's put in some real water time and trained hard. And what do you know, he's just been selected to represent the British Team U 16's at the Worlds in Panama. Representin' - sweet! We wish him sucky lefts and high scores. Nice work.

Finisterre

Three of my favourite people on the planet- from the left, Ernie, Tom and me! Ernie and Tom run Finisterre, the outdoor clothing company down in St. Agnes. I wear their stuff all the time! They deserve all the success they get, top boys. I went to see them yesterday, both on fine form, with so much banter going on it's a wonder they get any work done. They're coming up here tomorrow to do a sale at Tubestation. Hope it goes well for them.

Big Tide

My morning beach dog walk has become a ritual. I've seen most sea states. But even I was surprised by how low the tide was this morning. Super low. The lowest I can remember for a long time. Being impulsive (!) I made the decision to walk along the sand all the way to Daymer, which you can sort of do with some minor scrambling on the Moules. Not really one for Gramps. What was a stroll became a mission when I remembered the stacks of my fishing tackle claimed by the rocks at Greenawayover the past three years. This was my best chance of recovery I felt. Alas, all I found in the kelp was some line! No Rapala's. When I do hook that Bass it'll be the most expensive ever landed... about £200 worth! The golf ball I found was of little consolation.

iSurf training, that I mentioned last week has gone down a bit too well. Looks like I'm going to have to do some work! We've come up with two options - D of E, or Work Experience - residential or non-residential. If you want some course dates, don't forget it's petecraske@hotmail.co.uk. It will go up on the web shortly, but you can get ahead of the game by coming back to me directly.

If you're down here over the half-term, let's do lunch!

This is not surf related!

Family news!!! There's no reason this should be interesting to anyone else, but as a proud Dad, I'm going to report it anyway! So there! Parent first, business owner second!

Our Billy lined up against the best U13s from Wiltshire, Avon, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Gloucestershire in the South-West Cross Country Championships at Exeter over a tough two mile fast and icy course (oh the stress of it all) on Saturday.

What a race it turned out to be! Billy went side by side with Robert Howarth (the big gun from Team Bath or 'the whippet' as we called him). In the end, despite a heroic last 100 metres, one yard and less than a second was all that separated them. Having to take the long way around the final bend, was his undoing ('the whippet' showing a bit more race experience). Third place crossed the line 20 seconds later and Millfield's top runner came in 30th, a minute later.

In summary, the boy done good! What does it mean? Very little in the big scheme of things! But in the meantime, 2nd in the South-West? He'll take that and walk a few inches taller for a few days because of it.

Okay, you can open your eyes again now. Report all over! (ps You'll be pleased to know that this is the edited version! My first one was much, much longer!).

Dilemma

You guys think I have it easy. You try choosing between these two benches to sit and contemplate from! There, not as simple as you might think! Walking the dog, always a pleasure, never a chore.

Now these beauties are on the other side of the beach hanging from the cliffs at Tristram. Six footers don't you know.

Great response to the iSurf training - well beyond our expectations. Time for me to do some work!

Best Seat in the House

Is this the best seat in the house?

Fresh down here on the beach this morning. Slippy too, little icy patches catching out the unaware. Fortunately I'm like a mountain goat, nothing there to trouble me (no-one was watching were they?). We've got a couple of foot on the sets, looks lovely. As long as you've got your thermals on, it's a day from the top drawer. Hey, how cold was it last night?!!! My woolly socks managed a complete 24hr without removal, that's how cold!

Surf's Up! Pipeline:

Our new surf school booking system will go on-line next week. Just running through the final checks as we speak. Really happy with it. What it'll mean is that you can Fast Track - book the lesson time, fill in a few details, tick the disclaimer box, make a payment, then when you arrive, you'll be up and away. No hanging around, sweet as. Use the system and you'll get the best offers too and reminds of your lesson time the day before. We really are that good.

The big new development that we're very excited about is iSurf Training. For 'young adults' who are doing D of E, work experience or about to look for full-time employment we're offering a skills / education / employment based course. This is my bag and run by me - with so much experience, pioneering and humour to share, it would be a crime to keep it all in!! Personal surf coaching sessions (hoorah!) combined with relevant work related training (boo!). It'll be fun, but it'll also be hard work. I'll put you through your paces. I'll also be sending you on your way with a much improved CV and a resolve to hit the next phase of life, with confidence and a steely resolve. You can stay in our flat, 5 mins from the beach, so I can keep an eye on you!! - (previous hamster cage cleaning experience not necessary).

If you want to rub shoulders with genius then just give me a shout on

petecraske@hotmail.co.uk!!

5 day (weekday) - £250 including accommodation

2 day (weekend) - £180 including accommodation

I think that will do for now. We're open for Feb Half term and there are a few dates available for the Beach House this year (07760 126225). Looking forward to 2012 what with the Olympics and the Queens Diamond Jubilee.

Larry Grayson

I can't lie... it's all gone a bit Larry Grayson out there today! So here's a couple of shots from last week down at Rock. It is a beautiful part of the world down here, make no mistake! Pinch, pinch, pinch.

Now did I mention that I've been flexing my reading muscles? I don't think I did, but I have. A little book worm is what I've become. I like a mystery, thriller style. So exercised are my muscles that I'm even contemplating a revisit to Middlemarch. A book that I studied and got good grades in at 'A' level. I said 'studied'. I meant 'never read'. I said 'good grades'. I meant a 'D'. It's in the top ten of my life's greatest achievements - passing an 'A' level on a book I'd never read. My parents took a completely different view. Time's a great healer!

Ten years ago in WHSmith (Heathrow) as I waited to board a plane to South Africa, Middlemarch stared up at me from the 'two for one' display. I bought it and one page in realised why I'd never got through it the first time. I deposited it in the sick bag, an appropriate place I felt. I'm going to tickle through this Isabel Allende first and then I'm going to take it on. Put a big tick in that box once and for all.

Reflecting on my blog yesterday, it might have seemed that I was a bit down on current living arrangements. It's not all bad. I get to spend some one on one time with the boys - I've become a domestic goddess (God) don't you know... cleaning, washing, ironing and cooking. I've done my bit in the past but now there's no escape. The responsibility falls squarely on my shoulders. I had no idea quite how much Billy ate! In my estimation, just slightly more than a small horse (that would be a medium horse then!). And I don't mean the equivalent of what the horse would eat, but the size of the actual horse. ( I like horses but I could never eat a whole one). Really, I don't know where he puts it. And Findog, (at home today for the third day in a row off school sick.... we don't do sick in the Craskie household, but we'll cut him some slack for this nasty, pesky bug)... is surprisingly conscientious with his homework. Doesn't get that from me (please see - Middlemarch). Fin has informed me just now that he'll be going to school tomorrow (hm, footie training tonight). He has also informed me that when he was lying in front the of the telly last night and I lay next to him, I snored very loudly! Nasty bug playing tricks on the mind.

Speaking of horses, I used to ride horses when I lived in Bristol. The centre was a mile away from where Janey lived, and I never knew her then. Anyway, I went riding one day wearing a pair of boxer shorts. Walking was comfortable. Trotting brought a tear to the eye. True story. Never went back. I was quite a brave rider, jumping ascending Oxer's on the second lesson. The instructor was brilliant and just let me go for it. I rode on a 17 yr old white who, when I was on saddle, came alive. "Could I race this horse?" I asked the owner. "Yes, and you'd probably beat it." And I joked when we first met, "There's a whisky named after you!" "What, Hector?" he replied. Oh happy days. Anyway, when I was on site, there was none of this walking around in a circle with a small child on board. He remembered his glory days when I mounted. No more long face. (Enough, enough. My sides.) I think in the end I probably brought his life to an earlier close than the equestrian centre might have been hoping for! But he passed away with a contented whinny.

Janey has just driven back from Plymouth. Nursey is here to take care of the fallen soldier. A miraculous recovery from the Findog could now be on the cards. I've done my very best, but there's nothing quite like a Mum's cuddle. We're going to be out of sync now as I'll head to Plymouth to sort out Billyman. It's life, but not as we know it! Janey has just announced that we're going to make pancakes!! Back of the net! Oh and Fin's just thrown up! Great timing mate. Oh and now I've missed out on a pancake.

Watching Pat's funeral on Eastenders, Fin remarked

"I've been to a funeral!"

"Have you?" I enquired, I couldn't remember that he had.

"Yes", he said "Great Nan's....."

"That was a memorial Findog, but yes I suppose it's a similar thing. And the other one?" I asked.

"I went to one with Mum, but it wasn't who we thought it was!"

It's been long enough to recount this true story. A local old man passed away just over a year ago, we knew he'd been ill and we were sad about it because he'd always been really nice to the boys. Janey went to the funeral with Fin to show her appreciation, it seemed appropriate. After the service Janey said a few words of support to the widow and close family members, then left, heads bowed.

Imagine her surprise when two months later at a local event, that very same man that we thought had died, came over to say hello, looking fit and healthy. This was a turn up for the books. A case of mistaken identity it transpired. The upshot being that Janey and Fin had sat through a funeral of someone random geezer! Makes me laugh every time I think of it!

Back and Forth

I can't deny, it's all a bit odd at the moment. Billy's move to Ivybridge has been the right move at the right time for him - and he's thriving in the super competitive sports environment.

Last weekend he took the start line in Exeter to compete in the Devon County Cross Country

Championships and won by some margin. He gatecrashed the party! There would have been local favourites. 'Knowns'. And then this fluff head from Cornwall steals the show. After the race, others gathered around to take a look at the new kid on the block, where's he from, what's his story? Unbeaten, that's his story. He'll represent Devon at the South West Championships in two weeks time where he'll line up against the likes of the best from Millfield, that'll be super tough. And on the football pitch (his very reason for being there), his team are through to the last 16 in the English Schools Cup, a final beckons at Anfield. And Manchester United representatives make there third visit to Ivybridge today, in as many weeks, to take another look at the squad and set-up. So there's lots of amazing stuff going on, doors to open and he's in his element. When he's being challenged, he's alive. We're incredibly proud of him and he's doing himself proud.

The flip side is that myself and Janey are having to work hard to deal with the change. Twenty years we've spent side by side, growing with the family and the business, day in day out, joined at the hip. For many couples, it'd be no mean feat to still be talking to be honest!! But the truth is, time apart doesn't suit us. Not having the whole family together, doesn't suit us. So there's a lot of thinking to be done. We've rented a place in Ivybridge until the end of the summer, and at the moment one of us stays up there with Billy, the other staying at home in Polzeath with Findog. We swap over mid week when the boys meet for Argyle training. At weekends we're all together unless they have matches in different parts of the country. So yes it's a bit odd. Lots and lots of positives, just a few challenges along the way - but no-one said it was going to be easy! Short term pain for long term gain, that's the way we see it.

On the Surf's Up! front there are a few exciting things happening behind the scenes. The most notable is the new booking system that's going on line in two weeks. It's a fast tack option if you want to avoid the queues in the summer. Book on-line, do you disclaimers, payment etc before you get to us and when you get to the trailer, it's wetsuit on and away we go. No need to wait for late arrivals to fill in their paperwork etc. I think that's big step in the right direction.

Other news - Wailin is currently sunning and surfing himself to oblivion in Bali, he's back for the Feb half term (when we're having a huge Swellboard sale - time to replenish our own stocks with new kit). Pretty big swell coming in on Thursday with a big tide, so trailer's off the beach, the transit started first time (huge sigh of relief). Erm, I think that's it for the moment... I know it's been a while since my last update, that's just the winter lull. I'm back on it now. Hello again.

My hotmail account was hacked into over the weekend, not so bad as I don't really use it that much. Turns out the hackers sent e-mails out to all my contacts, in alphabetical order offering either a job, discounted viagra, a gimp mask made of the finest bovine skin or indeed all three. Strangely, there were no complaints!