All dressed up no where to go!

I must be cursed or something. Since the last post I managed to get on the water as often as I can but failed to catch a great windy day. I had one day where I enjoyed take off winds for an hour or so and thats it! Everyone promises me winter will bring winds so hopefully my next post will be more cheery.

So far I learned how to rig, un-rig, launch & recover the boat. Modest learning in trimming and tuning. Some airtime to boot as well but need more to develop the skills. Who knows, maybe all this low-riding time is for a reason and I will appreciate it later on. It surely gave me a good chance to work on my boat balance & sail setting.

Launch Party

Its been a crazy month and half. Broke my back, got hospitalized, #188 arrived Japan, hated self, fixed back, waited, waited, kicked self for breaking back, waited, fixed back some more and finally took her for a spin. Well it was more like she took me for a spin but nevertheless it was great! Can't wait for the next time.

Limited Daruma Express

Its been a little while since I last posted. Perhaps this is a good opportunity to introduce Daruma and explain why he sits on my banner.

Daruma dolls are pretty popular here in Japan. You can read all about the idea behind them thought this link if you like but in essence its a reminder of your goals & challenges that lie ahead. You get one when you commit to a new challenge and color its right eye. You place it somewhere prominent so that you see it all the time. The left eye remains blank reminding you of your goal. Theory has it, the more you see it the more you are motivated to work hard for your goal. If you really want to get the ones that work it is said that you need to get it from the temple and bring it back there when you're done.

Learning to sail the moth is obviously a major challenge for me. When I decided to go for it my kids gave me a Daruma doll as a present and then the whole idea grew from there. My BladeRider X8 will be called the "Limited Daruma Express" and it will be adorned by one-eyed Daruma decals if I can find them. When I can eventually sail the boat its other eye will be colored shiny black as well.

I am afraid mine will have to peek through its single eye for a long long time...

Where's my 08 Worlds edition Bladerider???

Its ironic. My Bladerider X8 #188 was to be shipped July 7th. The first day of the 2008 CST Composites Moth Worlds in Weymouth. Well, if you followed the first few days of the event you will get the irony. In short my Bladerider is yet to leave the factory. Worlds finally got off the ground so I hope my "Worlds Edition" X8 also gets going as well.

Few months ago I ordered #188 through the Japanese reseller Naomi Tachibana. Tachibana-san is the current Japanese Nationals champion in addition to being the class association president. He is a true gentleman and a passionate Moth sailor. I have no clue how much the margins are on a Bladerider but I can frankly tell the support Tachibana-san has provided me is well beyond any margin he might be making. I look forward to receiving my boat and sailing it with Tachibana-san and his buddies. More on the location in the next post...

Who, what, where & why ...

Ok. A little bit about me. I lived in Singapore with my family for a long time and now I am based in Japan. I sailed a little when I was a youngster and didn't for a long long time. About 20 years to be exact. Well, one thing led to another and I started sailing again.

Got some basic sailing done to refresh my memory and then got myself a 29erXX. I enjoyed learning how to sail it while getting whipped back into shape! Lost about 20 kgs along the way and feeling much better now at 85kgs.

Coming to Japan I decided to up the ante and continue with my journey of discovery, adrenalin rush, occasional self-mutilation so I ordered myself a Bladerider X8. My ultimate goal is three-fold;

a) Loose another 10 kg and get moth sailing fit...
b) Learn how to sail a foiling moth and complete a few races...
c) Have super fun along the way!

Inaugural Post - What I am doing here?

I am humbled by all the great Moth sailors who happen to be great scribes as well. Wow! Talk about talent here. I am not a blogger. It does not come naturally for me to write about myself or things that I do. Having said that, coming into the Moth class require me to compromise so compromise I shall.

I will try to keep this light. Capture little bits & pieces here & there, some milestones etc on my foiling Moth journey in Japan. Learning my ways as a sailor in Japan will also be part of my focus and might be of interest to others who are heading this way.

Hope some find it remotely interesting and somewhat useful. Occasionally.