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Today I’m in trouble……

I couldn’t help it, I went for a little wander while no-one was looking, but they saw me coming back. So that was it, a smack round legs for me and a big telling off.  If only they hadn’t seen me sneaking back……

It’s not my fault really, but I’m getting a little bored.  The summer was great, there was loads of activity, loads of people and I got to spend all my days blasting about in rescue boats, or lazing in the sun on the sail boats.  I must say I’m happy that I don’t have to go kayaking any more, that was a bit too wobbly for me!  But now there’s nothing really going on for me.  I get to sit at the shop door and watch the world go by, including all the pretty girl dogs going in and out of the vets across the road.  It’s just not fair, I only wanted a bit of doggy company and some excitement……..

I guess next summer is a long way off.  Maybe I should look for a girlfriend to keep me company over the winter?

Living with Jon, Smeg & Jen is great but I doooooo miss my friends from the farm. Even if they did pick on me and even though I wasn’t allowed to play with them often, they said they had to work & I was no good at working.  Work? What’s that all about? All I wanted to do was play.  But now I just sit…… sit and watch the world go by.

Roll on summer, I need some entertainment…….. people or doggy visitors always welcome at any time………

howies autumn stock now in!

After several weeks of waiting the howies autumn range is finally here!

We’ve got a great selection of mens & womens jumpers, trousers and T-shirts.  Also the howies New Zealand Merino wool thermal base and mid-layers essential gear for any outdoor sports and activities over the winter.

Along with the howies range we’ve also got a stock of bodyboards & surf wax in preparation for the winter waves and of course we’ve got 5mm wetsuits to keep you warm while you’re out there.

Coming soon: 7th Wave gift vouchers available for clothing, courses and hire sessions – an ideal Christmas gift.

Scaffolding……

Just to let you all know the shop will be closed from tomorrow (Monday 16th October) for one week.  We’ve got scaffolding and work going on outside at the mo so avoid any risk of stuff landing on our heads – and to keep the dust out we are going to close for the week.

We will be open as usual from Saturday 21st October and the howies winter range will be available from Saturday.

Winter opening hours: Tuesday to Friday 12pm to 6pm & Saturdays 11am until 6pm.

Youth Powerboat Courses at Half Term

We still have a few spaces left on the RYA Level 1 Powerboat courses during half term.  Courses are 1 day in duration, for kids aged 12 to 18, price £99.

No previous experience is required for the Level 1 course, it is an introduction to powerboating. The course gives people the opportunity to take the helm of a powerboat, whilst teaching them how to use the boat in a safe responsible manner.  Kids will be supervised at all times whilst on the water and will always have an instructor on board the boat with them.

Powerboat courses can be used to form part of the Duke of Edinburgh Award.

Please contact us for further information and bookings.

Topper Challenge 2006

The Isle of Man Topper Challenge will be held on the 5th November at the Mooragh Park, Ramsey.  The Topper Challenge began a good few years ago (when Davey, Baggie, Hannah, Alexa, Jammie and me we still young enough to sail in it!) and was originally a team racing event contested between teams from the Isle of Man Yacht Club and the Manx Sailing and Cruising Club.  King Williams College were invited to enter a team a few years ago and have been winning it ever since!  This year 7th Wave will also be entering a team.

Each Club / Centre / School can enter one or two teams of three people, the event is for those aged 16 and under.  All the teams will get the chance to race every other team and the overall winner is the team who scores the least points over the series.  The aim in each race is to get as may of your own boats over the finish line ahead of boats from the other team.  Team racing is tactically challenging and great for spectators, the races are just a few minutes in length, with teams switching over between races.  All the scores are kept up to date ashore so that teams can see who they need to beat to gain places.  The beauty of it being on the Mooragh Park is that spectators can see everything that is going on and for the sailors – having an audience to cheer them on makes the event really competitive!
“Team Broken” will be turning up to do the race officer duties as usual (Jack I hope you’ve remembered?) Where are we going the night before and is Mum cooking dinner for us all after?

The Topper Challenge is always a good fun event whether you’re racing or spectating, so get your picnics and passports and have a day out in Ramsey on 5th November.  Start time will be 12.30pm

October Sailing Sessions

For all of you who have enjoyed our summer sailing courses and would like to spend some more time on the water before the winter really sets in, we will be running supervised sailing sessions on Sunday afternoons from 2pm until 4pm throughout October.  These sessions are not a formal course but the opportunity for you to get on the water with our instructors on hand to give advice and organise activities.

We will be running a total of five sessions with a fee of £20 per person per session.  You can attend as many or as few as you like, if you book for all five in advance we’ll give you the fifth session free!  Places are limited for these sessions so advance booking is essential, please book early to avoid disappointment.

First session @ 2pm Sunday 1st October, please note these sessions are for juniors only (ages 8 to 16)

Don’t miss this great opportunity to consolidate all the skills you have learned over the summer and to start working towards your next RYA level.

Autumn Powerboat Courses

RYA Powerboat Level 1

Dates: Saturday 7th October
Monday 30th October (Youth Course for ages 12 to 18)
Tuesday 31st October (Youth Course for ages 12 to 18)
Wednesday 1st November (Youth Course for ages 12 to 18)

RYA Powerboat Level 2

Dates: Saturday 30th September & Sunday 1st October
Sunday 8th & Monday 9th October
Saturday 14th & Saturday 21st October
Sunday 15th & Sunday 22nd October

International Certificate of Competence (Power)

Dates: Saturday 4th November, 10.30am Theory Prep Session (optional)
Saturday 4th November, 1.30pm I.C.C. Assessment

Jon is here full time, so if you want to do a course but cannot make any of the above dates please contact us and we will try and arrange a course at times to suit you.

Full course details can be found in the ‘Activities’ area of this site. If you require any further information about our courses please call us on 450801.


Boats for sale………

It’s the end of the season and we’ve decided to put the RS Teras on sale (don’t worry – we intend to replace them next year!)
For full details of the boats please follow this link: http://www.rssailing.com/fleets.asp?fleet=RS%20Tera

The boats are ideal kids boats, the perfect step up from an Oppie, lighter and more managable than a Pico and way cooler than a Topper!

We have a fleet of six at 7th Wave in Port Erin, full retail price is £995 inc VAT we’re selling ours, fully rigged and ready to go, with trolleys and top covers at £600, plus the boats are already on the Island so there’s no need to worry about transporting them over here.  The boats are all in good condition having only had one season’s use.  We will definately be replacing them with the same next season.

The boats are great for beginners, intermediate and advanced sailors – they have been tested in a Force 6 to 7, survived in tact and proved to be great fun!  Dave has the photies to prove it! They should also rate really well on handicap, a fine race boat for those of you too small to progress in to the Laser 4.7.

Boats are available to view at any time, please contact us.

New Powerboat Instructor!

CONGRATULATIONS TO JQ!!!!  JQ has just spent the past week down in Southampton doing his powerboat instructor course – which he passed with flying colours, well done Jon we’re all very pleased for you.  Now you’re really gonna have to earn your keep – full time powerboat courses until the end of November methinks – I’ve even got a scutch of kids lined up to do a course or three with you!!!!

Well done you, i’m proud of you!  Me and jack haven’t missed you (much), that’s not really true we’ve missed you loads (especially when we had to try and get the lid off the jerry can!!) Good job we’ve got some hardcore strong girls working here and we coped in your absence, didn’t get the landy or any boats stuck on the beach, didn’t break much that we couldn’t fix and don’t think we had too many blonde incidents and the ones we did have will be well and truly covered up by the time you get home!!!!

Another windy day in Port Erin

That’s it, the end of our first summer is rapidly approaching! The kids are all going back to school, the wind is blowing (lots), it’s september & it might even rain…….. So we’re having a bit of a slow day today, but that’s ok, it’s quite a welcome break from the place being packed with kids on sailing courses as we have been for the past six weeks non stop!
Yep, Port Erin bay has proved to be a fine location for our sailing school, generally the weather has been kind to us.  We have lost a few days sailing, but only in the strong westerly winds, which still leave the bay perfect for bodyboarding and kayaking in the waves – great fun!

So far this season we have issued twenty RYA Level 1 (adult sailing scheme) Dinghy Sailing Certificates and one Level 2 Dinghy Sailing Certificate.

On the Youth Sailing Scheme we have awarded twenty four ‘Start Sailing’ Stage 1 certificates, six Stage 2 certs and five Stage 3 certificates.  Congratulations to all of you who have participated on our courses and earned your certificates!  We look forward to seeing you all again in the future.

Many thanks to our team of dinghy instructors; Alexa, Rob & Breeshey and  Safety boat drivers; JQ, Baggie, Bacon Boy & Rudi (I think some of them have real names?).
We have also issued two Assistant Instructor certs to Hannah Eales and Ali Hinds, congratulations to you both and thank you for all your help over the season.

Thanks must also go to the shop team for turning up when needed & often at short notice! Stef, Greg, Bill, Mums and everyone else who said yes to the question ‘could you just keep and eye on the place for a few minutes……’

Powerboat training has also been sucessful & we have issued nine RYA Level 2 certs & four RYA Safety Boat certs.  We can proudly say that three of the Level 2 certs went to IOM Coastguard members – thanks to Gordy for running this course (any excuse to play with a fast boat!!! – wish we all got a go!)  Thanks also to Dave, Pete and Baggie for running some excellent powerboat courses over the summer – all the feedback we got was excellent!

It’s been a great season for sailing and powerboating at 7th Wave.  We will be doing more over the winter, particularly powerboating…… And sailing courses will be starting from Easter 2007.  In the meantime we’ve still got body boards & kayaks, a few 5mm wetsuits for the winter! And of course the howies autumn range should be with us in a few weeks (there’s some lovely jumpers etc in the preview catalogue!!)

Hope this winds dies down for the courses we’re running tomorrow & tuesday?