Press

Taken from The Observer Magazine:

Take to the water with the huge range of watersports on offer by X-train, based at West Wittering beach. Top-of-therange kit, expert tuition and complete safety cover, for all ages, is provided.
Windsurfing
Modern wide-style equipment makes learning this exciting sport easy. West Wittering is a great place to learn, with a shallow tidal lagoon ideal for beginners. Wide-style windsurf boards and
miniature rigs mean kids as young as five can try a Ripper course. This three day course costs £175 with junior wetsuits and buoyancy aids included. A Learn to Windsurf course for teenagers and adults, including wetsuits and equipment, costs £120.
West Wittering windsurfing club, run by X-train, is the oldest and largest in the country, with great tuition, rescue boat cover, excellent equipment hire packages, new showers and changing rooms. The club offers a wide variety of membership packages with a family paying £350 for the year. To find out more tel 01243 512552.
Kite surfing
After a two-day introductory course, using small kites and big boards, you should have the hang of the basics. Once again the lagoon is a perfect place to start as surrounding sand bars will stop you reaching the Isle of Wight!
Stand up paddleboarding (SUP)
This is the latest craze to hit the world of watersports. Instead of lying on a surfboard, you stand on it and paddle. A challenging fun sport, good for core strength and balance. Courses cost £45 for two hours including wetsuits and equipment.
Surfing
Surfing is physically challenging and heaps of fun for all ages. Beginner’s lessons are on soft deck long boards with a real emphasis on learning to stand up to get that initial buzz. A Saturday surf club for kids offers a mix of sports according to conditions for £25. For more information call 01243 513077, email info@x-train.co.uk or visit www.x-train.co.uk An alternative location for surfing is Wittering Surf School, affiliated to Wittering Surf Shop at East Wittering. The school runs surf lessons using qualified BSA instructors with beach lifeguards on hand. A lesson costs £25, including board and wetsuit, starting off with a beach-based session, running through technique and safety with time to get on the water and practise. Lessons are for complete beginners or for more advanced surfers who want to brush up on their
skills. Tel Nick or Lizzie on 01243 672292. Shore Surf Club is one of the longest-running surf clubs in the UK, also based at East Wittering and welcomes new members. Visit www.shoresurfclub.co.uk
Kayaking and canoeing
A variety of courses are run at Cobnor Activity Centre at Chidham and the adjoining Christian
Sailing Centre, both recognised by the British Canoe Union. This year Cobnor has introduced
informal kayaking sessions on Saturday mornings for beginners and others, with relaxed, goodquality coaching. Sessions are for 12-year-olds upwards. To reserve a place tel 01243 572791 by the previous Wednesday.
Waterskiing and wakeboarding
Chichester Watersports Centre, based at Westhampnett on a 40-acre lake, offers waterskiing and wakeboarding for all abilities. A half-hour beginner water-ski lesson costs £40, or if you can do it already the cost per tow, including buoyancy aid, is £20. Just for fun you can have a banana ride or ringo ride starting from £15 for one. Contact Toby Stalard on tel 01243 776439 or visit www.chichesterwatersports.co.uk

Taken from www.thetraveleditor.com

A new way to work out... Paddle Surfing

As a watersports enthusiast, always keen to discover a new rush, I was intrigued by the latest craze of Stand-up Paddle Surfing or SUP to the uninitiated. This once pastime of Polynesian royalty, will be debuting at the Honda US Open of Surfing this year, show cased by some of the world's top surfers.

As I stepped on to the flat, golden sands, the sun beating down I could have quite easily been in Hawaii but this was West Wittering, West Sussex, home to 2XS.

SUP is currently riding the waves across the South West of England, popularized by celebs such as Jennifer Aniston. The basics of SUP are quick to learn and before long I was paddling proficiently across the calm lagoon of West Wittering beach, with only a thin sand bar between me and open sea.

SUP has many benefits, it's easier than surfing and of course far more versatile. What's more it gives you a great upper body work out, as I found out. Undoubtedly why Ms. Aniston and friends have jumped on board.

“You don't need waves, so any piece of flat water with do but catching waves is also easier with paddle surfing than with surfing.” said Simon Bassett owner of 2XS. “We take groups inland up the estuaries, where you can get amazingly close to the wild life.” continued Simon in between advising on ways to improve my technique.

While I paddle surfed around the lagoon, working on my abs and navigating around the occasional, struggling wind surfers, Simon turned his attention to my two boys aged 7 and 5. They were fully kitted out to try wind surfing for the first time.  Both a little apprehensive around the water, Simon's expertise showed as he quickly gave them the taste of success and the experience of wind surfing in complete safety. Simon's contagious enthusiasm quickly lead to the boys progressing from nervously sitting on the board to windsurfing independently across the lagoon. Their smiles at their achievements were only eclipsed by the reward of sweeties Simon had stashed in his wetsuit.

With burning abs and a sense of achievement, we returned to the clubhouse and warm showers, secretly planning our next trip to 2XS, to brush up on my power kiting skills and try my hand at kitesurfing. The excitement even had Mummy musing about a beginners windsurfing lesson.....

Windsurfing - an activity for the whole family!

When you think about family days out probably the last thing you'd consider is windsurfing, but Simon Bassett, owner of 2XS seems to have come up with the perfect solution. “Many of my friends, keen surfers themselves, almost had to give up the sport when they had young families so when I saw a prototype windsurf for children in Hawaii, I just had to buy some” said Simon.

Simon now runs X-Train Ripper courses for kids at West Wittering beach, covering kayaking to power kiting and everything in between. You can imagine my boys excitement when I asked them whether they wanted to go wind surfing, having previously been confined to the sand. Neither are  particularly confident swimmers but obviously the thought of riding the waves with the wind in their hair was enough to get over any fears. By the way did I mention my boys are just 5 and 7?

West Wittering is the perfect place to learn a new water sport, whatever your age, or fine tune your carve gybe. The Blue Flag beach and golden sands offer shallow waist-deep lagoons, at low tide, protected from the open sea by sand bars and waves at high tide, without the crowds. However, for children, learning a new sport with Simon takes on a whole new meaning.

“We try to avoid all the technical jargon with children.  All they want to do is get on and have go. Everyone is used to kids whizzing down the mountain, fearless at the age of 3. Technique and finesse comes later. That's what we do here, we let them pick up the basics in a safe environment and without the pressure. We then start introducing the terms and help them develop an understanding” continued Simon.   However,  this isn't a sport where you can drop your children off and go for latte.  Simon encourages everyone to get involved to help boost confidence and for additional safety so don't be surprised when you get handed a wet suit.

Fully kitted with wet suits, buoyancy aids and bright yellow 2XS bibs, we headed out across the flat sands at West Wittering to try our hand.  The boys were bubbling with excitement although I was still slightly concerned that they'd bail out. However, with encouragement and the prospect of  sweet rewards, Simon soon had my first boy up and surfing, grinning like a Cheshire cat, really looking the part. Gone was the fear, replaced by the thrill of doing a grown ups sport.

Number two was slightly more reluctant but after an hour, a water fight and a ride on the back of the paddle surf, he too was up and  away. A real achievement and testament to Simon's teaching style. In my son's own words “It was really fun and easy”.  Now how many adults would you expect to say that after 1 hour of windsurfing?

Taken from the Chichester Observer:

Paddles at the ready for new national event
Paddle boarder Simon Basset

Stand-Up paddle boarding is coming to West Sussex. It is a new sport that can be practised at the beach in surf conditions or as an endurance event over a distance, or just enjoyed as a way to paddle round, improve fitness and explore at sea or on inland waters and rivers.

The BSUPA have been set up to promote the sport, provide training, organise contests and provide member services and during 2008, the group are running a series of contests that will end in a UK national champion.

The first national event will be held at West Wittering beach, hosted by 2XS, on May 17 and 18. This will be a surf and distance event.

There will also be a SUP distance race from Brighton Pier to Worthing Pier this year, while the Isle of Wight Air Festival on September 20 and 21 will include a surf and distance event.

There will be two others events later in the year to be announced.

Alongside these will be a number of distance events for individuals.

BSUPA will also be working with other organisations to promote SUP riding, safety conduct and deal with any access issues on certain locations.

BSUPA membership provides third-party insurance, a free T-shirt, a car sticker, membership card and e-zine.

Members are able to enter any BSUPA competition.

Prices are £50 for a family membership, £37 for an adult, £25 for under-18s.

You can join online – follow the links to www.bsupa.org from this story in the sport section of www.chichester.co.uk –or call our membership hotline on 07752 398933, or email grant.winter@bsupa.org

BSUPA has two key men and SUP enthusiasts living on the Manhood peninsula.

Matt Argyle is the secretary and deals with marketing and PR and can be contacted at matt.argyle@bsupa.org while Simon Bassett is the director of training and events (simon.bassett@bsupa.org)