CONDITIONS
For speed, it’s essential that you follow the line of the retaining wall down the lake, this can give you a run of 500-550 metres in a perfectly straight line. The closer you get to the wall, the flatter it is, however for the less foolhardy it’s still pretty flat 4 or 5 metres out from the edge. Speed sailable directions are anything from south west to west north west. The south west sailing direction is port tack, it’s ‘super-duper’ flat, however as the wind comes over the hills in the distance it can be a little gusty. In westerly winds the speed course is on starboard tack and the wind can howl uninterrupted from the open estuary, this wind is much much more constant, producing a sailing angle of approximately 120 degrees off the wind, a ‘broadish’ reach, which starts to get very interesting speed wise. The modern world of speedsailing now revolves around speeds that were unthinkable even 10 years ago. With this in mind the speed junkies are looking for broader, deeper angles as they chase the holy grail. In WNW winds, the sailing direction is around 140 degreess, at this it can be very quick indeed …50 knot peak speeds have been seen in strong WNW winds here by notable’s like Steve Thorp.
In this direction it’s a fine line in the strong winds on how flat the water surface is – it can get ‘rock n’ roll’ choppy – and defiantly not for the faint hearted!! If you live a long way away and want to have a go at going fast, the safest, always flat, always steady direction is west … it will not disappoint. For starting a speed board, it’s one of the easiest spots in the world, it’s uber flat and you can get a speed board going very easily, yet still get very respectable speeds and that magic speed sensation even on recreational kit. West Kirby attracts on any given day on the right forecast, speedsailors from all over the UK and Europe; but they and the super friendly locals, like Alan Cross, Paul Burges, Neil Hardwick ,Stu Trunkfield and Mark Hayford to name a few…are all super approachable people. What they don’t know about West Kirby ain’t worth knowing. Overall West Kirby is certainly not a place with any intimidation. On big tides the sea can breach the retaining sea wall making the speed strip ‘unsailable’ – this is pretty rare, but can be accentuated by strong winds. So be prepared for a couple of hours off the water during the super high tides.
