SILVER SURFERS

Windsurfing enthusiast Peter Rosenthal hones his sailboard skills on a campervan break by East Anglia’s beautiful Rutland Water

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When people reach a certain age, a tipping point occurs when they develop the need to try to recapture their lost youth. This is sometimes described as a mid-life crisis.

Some see it as a last chance to be reckless before they relapse into a comfortable life of afternoon tea, antique fairs and driving the Jag to the golf course.

I’ve always fancied myself as a watersports enthusiast and over the years, have tried all sorts of things, such as jet skiing (easy, but expensive, and you’re viewed as a social pariah), water skiing (cheaper, more painful offs) and dinghy sailing (baffling lingo, trailer hassle, but sociable).

Wind and water 

By far my favourite aquatic adventures have been windsurfing. It’s basically all of the good bits of sailing, without the misery of trailers and having to learn strange jargon.

Why sailing boats need 25 different ropes with mysterious names like ‘sheets’ and ‘halyards’ is beyond me. There’s only one rope to worry about on a windsurf board and if you pull that in error, the sail falls off. It’s much easier to remember.

Another big plus point about windsurfing is that it will generally hurt less when you fall in.

However, I did once fall off a board in Greece and managed to slide my legs either side of the mast, with predictably painful results.