I've been Ozone-ated...

What a great day! I worked last night, and got up today around noon-ish... to blue skies and 25km/hr winds. I really wanted to re-acquaint myself with our foil kites (my last experience with one was less than fun) and today the conditions were perfect. So off to Slack Slough we went! Todd gave me a quick refresher course and then I spent about two hours flying the 8m Ozone Access. He's a friendly little guy I must say! The lack of bar pressure (compared to the Slingshot T2's) takes a bit of getting used to, but it launches easily and overall handles very nicely. Todd flew the 13m Ozone Frenzy, which I think is his new favorite kite. The snow cover on the pond is still awesome and we had the place to ourselves. It was so much fun! Maybe tomorrow I'll be lucky enough for a repeat?!
Cheers!

Let it snow!

Who knew??!! that there'd be sooooo much snow, this late in March! We got another pile of it last night, but at least the temps are decent. I can handle tons of the white stuff, but I do prefer to see the thermometer stay above minus 10C... and so far with this recent snowfall, it has been fantastically warm!

We've been out snowkiting at Spray Lakes and also at Slack Slough these past four days. Todd got a new snowboard - built by DeCosse Customs (http://www.decossecustoms.com/) - and I'd say he's got the hang of the whole 'boarding' thing. Check out some of his airtime! I'm still on skiis... I'm a diehard and likely won't deviate from what I'm comfortable with! But I am trying to get the nerve up to attempt a small jump... At any rate, the snowpack is thick and deep and sticks to the skiis and boards like crazy! It's been alot of fun, especially since Spray Lakes was empty all weekend - except for a couple of ice fishermen. It was like our very own playground!

Anyhow, back to work tomorrow... perhaps we'll get some sessions in this week, in between nightshifts. Let the countdown, to my next stretch of days off, begin!

Cheers!

Ahhhhh, the desert!

Well I just spent 10 days in the western Arizona desert. Saying it like that doesn't make it sound all that glamorous, but let me tell you, it was non-stop action and adventure! This year, there has been an unusually large amount of moisture, thus the normally dry, brown landscape is flourishing. The copper-rich soil grows some massive saguaros, and many plants which I've not seen with flowers before are healthy looking and in bloom. I stayed with my parents, who are avid quadders... and I sure learned a thing or two from them and their friends! The trails they explore cut through some amazing desert landscape, and I can definitely see how easy it is to get hooked. It was a great trip - we had something planned every day - the time flew by!
Now I'm back in Alberta, just in time for one last blast of winter. Oh well, at least there should be snowkiting for a few more weeks!!
Cheers!

Gypsy Blood

Oh dear, I've done it again! Dog-gone went and booked me a plane ticket... I can't seem to help myself!! This time, I'm going to Phoenix, to visit the family. My sister and her husband live on a golf course in beautiful Mesa, and my parents (retired) spend their time in a small desert town called Bouse. It will be two weeks of quadding and hiking and all sorts of fun stuff - maybe even a round of golf?! I can hardly wait! Having a trip to look forward to always makes showing up for work just that much easier... 16 more sleeps...!
Cheers!

Buh bye Barbados...

We're at the airport right now, waiting to get on the plane to come back to... WINTER!! Oh well. It's been a fantastic trip; the weather was really the most unbelievable part about it... every day was hot and sunny and of course windy - but windy in a good way, not just for the kitesurfing, but because without it, the heat would be unbearable! My friend Toni needs to travel here, the temps are perfect for her! Honestly we spent the entire time in bathing suits, only putting on a shirt and shorts when we went out to eat. No long sleeves needed! We met some awesome people too, a few folks from Canada and a great group from the UK. Friday night we all went into Oistins to the 'fish fry'... what an experience! There was music and dancing and food and drinks, it was super fun. Then on Saturday I went snorkelling with sea turtles, which was way cooler than I ever imagined. They are such gentle creatures, and they're LARGE, so beautiful! This morning we lazed around, went for a stroll along the beach, got soaked in the daily tropical rain shower (very refreshing!), and then packed up our stuff and took the most calm bus ride of the vacation - the taxi/bus drivers here are mostly crazy - to the airport. It's nice and air-conditioned in here, plus there is free wireless internet to help pass the time.
Anyhow, I'm going to make one last trip around the shops here to burn off the Barbados dollars we have left... then north we go. See you soon!
Cheers.

Testing, testing, 1..2..3..

Ha ha! I've read that the true test of a relationship is travelling together... well, I'm now sure that the TRUEST test is driving together in a car, in a foreign country, where the roads are super narrow, shoulder-less, and you're on the opposite side of the road as in Canada! We rented a car last week, and the first few hours in it were scary to say the least! But we did manage to get used to it and we did not kill (or even maim) each other...!! We spent a couple of days and drove around the entire island, which is interesting and beautiful. The north coast is rugged, with huge cliffs and no beaches. The east side is less populated, and the south and west coasts are definitely where the action is. We went to pretty much the middle of the island and saw Harrison's Cave, and we also went to Ocean Park which is a small aquarium-type place. Other than that, we've been hanging at the resort, Todd's been kitesurfing, and I've been frolicking in the sea! No, I haven't got up the guts to try my new board out yet... the swells are large (no flat water here!) and I've witnessed a few too many epics thus far - tangled kites, people slammed up on the shore, ripped kites requiring rescue (Todd!!), people carried downwind and by the tide out to sea - and I just can't bring myself to do it. Oh well. The white sand and rum is enough for me!

Cheers.