Saturday 21 November 2015

Top 10 Sandboarding Countries of 2015

Welcome readers!

Last year, I conducted a sort-of chart for the Top 10 countries to do Sandboarding in 2014, now it is 2015's turn to do the same thing. Here's the top 10 countries to sandboard this year (potentially the next) and we shall see if there are any position climbers, fallers, non-movers or new entries to the table!

I have conducted these results upon the World Happiness Report, Homicide rate, costs of living, internet speeds and nominal GDP for the best results, including a bit of personal opinion too!
Now, here's the Sandboarding Nation Top 10 countries of the year!

10. United Kingdom (Great Britain) (last year's: no. 7)

This might seem unpatriotic of me but the UK has fell 3 places to last year's top 10. The reason is that the UK has lost interest in the Sandboarding scene due to new competitors (competitors we will get to shortly) the coast is the only main location of dunes but the rates of homicide are decreasing as is the happiness of the UK compared to last year. Britain is losing interest in sandboarding whilst at the same time, becoming a more known sport.
Courtesy of: Zorba the Geek License: CC BY-SA 2.0

9. Egypt (last year's: no. 2)

Falling 7 places, Egypt is still a prominent location for Sandboarding but has lost its presence in the top places due to it's political situation and safety at the moment in regards to threats of terrorism and shootings in rural regions. The cost of living is very low and Egypt does have some very popular and renowned sandboarding clubs but internet speeds are low, murder rate is average, GDP is average and the country does have a booming tourism sector! Egypt stays in the Top 10 because of its sandboarding clubs and tourism!
Courtesy of: Roland Unger License: CC BY-SA 2.0

8. Namibia (last year's: no. 6)

Namibia doesn't have home to many sandboarding clubs but what Namibia does have is plenty of Sandboarding tour agencies which will happily take you on tours to the top of dunes to take part in Sandboarding and also dune riding in a 4x4 vehicle. Namibia's safety is improving but the reason that Namibia falls 2 places, is that the country suffers from a slow internet speed and that Namibia does have a low GDP compared to last year's poll where Namibia was better off. The tourism sector is slightly improving but transport links are good as you can take an overnight train, 40 minute flight or a 4 hour drive from Windhoek to the prominent sandboarding areas of Swakopmund and Walvis Bay.
Courtesy of: Katie Hunt License: CC BY-SA 2.0

7. Qatar (New Entry)

Qatar is a new entry this year! This country has the 2nd highest nominal GDP in the world, the murder rates here are surprisingly low for a country in this region and the cost of living is acceptable, providing the country's position with finances! Qatar also is home to some well known sandboarding clubs and more associations which can take you on desert tours along with their dune buggies. Qatar is an slightly pricey country in a dangerous region of the world by its surrounding countries but Qatar is slowly opening up to the world of sandboarding!

Courtesy of: Peter Dowley License: CC BY-SA 2.0

6. USA (New Entry)

When I found out that the USA didn't make the chart last year, I was surprised to find that the United States had a lot to offer shortly after I published the original 2014 Top 10 countries. You can discover many sandboarding locations in the United States of America such as: Glamis in California, Sand Master Park in Oregon, Little Sahara in Utah, St. Anthony Dunes in Idaho and many more in the majority of the Western States. The cost of living in the USA is average, the internet speed in the USA is very fast and America does have a lot to offer in terms of sandboarding clubs and opportunities to explore this big country!

Courtesy of: Rebecca Kennison License: CC BY-SA 3.0

5. France (New Entry)

Aside from the media hype of the tragic events that have recently occurred here, France is the occupant of the 'Dune du Pilat' which is the highest sand dune in Europe. The 'Dune du Pilat' or Dune of Pilat complex is the only significant sand dune complex in the country but on the west, north and south coasts; France does have quite a number of small low lying dunes which aren't entirely best for sandboarding purposes but the main reason why France comes so high in this list, is the fact that France's GDP, happiness and homicide rate (excluding the recent attacks, which don't alter the result) are outstanding for the region! The internet rate is a tad slower than the UK average speed and the cost of living is a bit lower than the UK as well so still bit pricey to spend money in but all in all, it's a fair economy.

Courtesy of: Hagen de Merak License: CC BY-SA 2.5

4. Germany (last year's: no. 8)

For a country which is mostly landlocked, Germany has impressed me very much with the sand dune that is Monte Kaolino. That's it. There are a few other dunes in Germany and some short ones on the coastline but most of these dunes are protected and are nature reserves, so the exclusivity of the public sliding on these dunes is quite understandable. Germany's economy is said to be the 'best in the EU', the internet connection speeds overtake the next 3 countries on this list, the buying power and costs of goods are average but the good wages and fair economy (a bit like France) sums up for Germany's strong economic position. Germany has one of the lowest homicide rates in the world which is another good reason that Monte Kaolino (a holiday park with the only dune in the nation that is accessible) is a good place to go! The other best reason why Germany's sand dune gets a positive review is that it's the only sand dune in the world with a lift system which can take you up a dune.

Courtesy of: Zonk43 (no link available) License: Public Domain

3. Spain (non-mover)

Spain hasn't moved since last year, mainly because it's economy is improving since the financial fiasco back in 2008, the homicide rate is one of the lowest (like Germany), the cost of living and purchase power of the Euro in Spain is excellent (I've been there and it's just amazing value), people in Spain are happy and the internet speed is higher than the next 2 countries on this list (not as fast as France, however.) Spain comes like a second Germany in this list but one key advantage is that Spain has far more dunes than Germany and a warmer climate unlike its northern neighbour.

Courtesy of: Efotosadis (no link available) License: CC BY-SA 3.0

2. Australia (last year's: no. 1)

Last year's number 1, Australia still holds on to its key aspects on why it was so high in this Top 10 last year, the GDP is excellent and its cost of living is still high compared to last year's. Homicide rate in Australia is incredibly low and risks of foreign interference is very low because of Australia's tough foreign and customs policies. Australia is the 10th happiest country in the world, passing Israel and just behind the number 1 country. The internet is faster than Spain but not quite as fast as the country at number 1.

Courtesy of: Adam J.W.C. License: CC BY-SA 3.0


So you're guessing what's the country at number 1?

It's this one.

1. New Zealand (New Entry)

New Zealand takes the top spot for Number 1 country to go Sandboarding in the year! Due to its close factors and proximity to Australia, it takes the top spot but only just! Mainly because New Zealand has an internet speed just faster than Australia (New Zealand has a speed of 7.0 Megabits per second on average whilst Australia has an average of 6.9). New Zealand is the 9th happiest country (compared to Australia's 10th rank) and is the happiest in this top 10! The cost of living and purchasing power in New Zealand is very good with its good GDP in that part of the world, the homicide rate is low and overall, New Zealand is just a hub for sport! You can go bungee jumping, diving, skydiving, zip wiring, mountain biking and even rock climbing! Another thing on that list too is Sandboarding as New Zealand has a very unique and diverse collection of dunes ranging from the tall, steep, curvy and long-winding. That's why New Zealand managed to be number 1 this year.

Courtesy of: Michal Klajban License: CC BY-SA 4.0 Modified: No

Break for a while

I've come to a decision that I've observed that the sandboarding season is fading away for this year and will come back as soon as it gets more warmer in the northern hemisphere, I understand that in prominent places such as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Namibia, etc... where sandboarding is commonplace, it'll be a slight distress but I'm getting a new job, new education, new car and hopefully a new laptop so blogging can be easier because right now, it's distributed by nights and locations ranging from my bulky desktop to the library to other people's laptops.

I was a little late posting this today just because I broke the midnight barrier! The next post will be up on New Years' Eve (December 31st 2015) and it will be a year in review of what's gone on during this year including some news stories and or photos!

See you before the new year and keep checking here so often for some updates!

Sunday 1 November 2015

Make your own sandboard wax

Headnote: This article is outdated, for more up-to-date information on using certain waxes and to find out which ones are best; look out for my "Wax-Off" posts. (Posted: 14th October 2019)


Hello fellow sandboarders!

Now, sandboarding wax is a great way to pick up some speed and make your ride more adventurous on the dunes but nothing is free in this world so I will be hoping to find the best and most effective 'do-it-yourself' or replacement waxes.

Now, sandboarding wax is beneficial to a good ride; However, it can cost a fortune over time (depending on how often you go down the dunes) and it is NOT universal for every complex you ride on. For example: sand, gradient, moisture and friction can all contribute to how good your ride can be.

I've done research on alternatives to waxes which you could use at home and on the dunes!

Vaseline


Since sandboarding wax which is sold on markets is a paraffin based wax, it's created from petroleum so your first potential answer could be Vaseline.

Vaseline is cheap, good quality and durable. It is slippery when it is applied to a board (wood or plastic) and is a lubricant so can prevent against moisture if it somehow hits your board. Vaseline is also good for minor cuts so if you hit yourself on that rock or cut on that bit of wood, you'll be covered!

Crayon Wax


Sandboarding Nation likes to be creative, so this is where I'd introduce Crayon Wax because, it has a low melting point, since some crayons are made of charcoal, oil and chalk; the chalk could be used as a sort-of 'brake' on slippery sand as the chalk will cause surface tension on the sand. Buying crayons may get you some weird looks at the checkout but most crayons are greasy and can be slippery in moments!

Another advantage of crayons, you can choose the colour of your wax (possibly scent too!) Talking of scent...

Edam Cheese

You won't get a cheesy scent from this method but the red casing of wax on a piece of Edam Cheese (when cut) can be used as a good method to make your ride a bit more fast! I'll say that this kind of wax is very difficult to melt and not that greasy at all but in your own home, if you add a little bit of something which might help (I don't know I'm not an alchemist) preferably something a bit like Vegetable Oil, you could get the best ride of your life!

Maybe not vegetable oil on the board along with Edam Cheese wax but maybe another cooking oil could do? Right?

Cooking Oils/Fats

Cooking Oils such as Olive, Sunflower, Rapeseed, Corn, etc... can be very difficult to use mainly because they're not a solid at room temperature. You can imagine that these very slippery oils could potentially be resistant to the sand particles and create no friction (or maybe reduce friction to a minimum) Could that happen?

Final Thoughts


Maybe I'm wrong. In this post, there's not meant to be right or wrong answers! I'm giving potential suggestions to things that you should really buy! I'd like to class myself as a regular sandboarder but in all my 8 to 9 years of sandboarding, I have only used wax once and that was car wax. It made a slight difference but could that be down to the altitude? weather? acceleration? etc... I'm not the expert on waxes, I got a science qualification from school but that's about it.

If you want to know more about sandboarding wax from people who know what they're on about, try and have a look at Doctor Dune's Sandboarding Waxes, it gives good advice and tips if you're doing ANYTHING on the dunes! Take a look at: http://www.sandboard.com/drdune/ask/ask5.htm

My conclusion from this post is that you could make your own, but it might not work, might cost more money instead of save but most of all, it doesn't give credit to the people who make sandboarding waxes for us. I'd take the safe bet and buy sandboarding wax from a local, professional or online dealer who knows what they're talking about.

Also, if you've tried to make your own waxes and if you know which ones work and which ones don't. Drop me a line at the Sandboarding Nation Twitter and Facebook pages, I'd like to read your findings!

My next post shall be published on the 20th November and it will concern the Top 10 countries for 2015 (a bit like last year's Top 10 countries for 2014) I hope to see you then!

Tuesday 20 October 2015

Sandboarding National and Local Teams

Hello! Welcome to the newest post and edition of Sandboarding Nation where this week I will give my ideas and/or reason for why there should be local and national sandboarding teams and how they may work. I'm going to be talking about ideas for teams which are competitive and can win competitions for single person racing against the clock, stunts disciplines, freestyle performances and racing where all people go down together for which teams for which the players can get points for a league table or a trophy to win! Social clubs where sandboarding is a past time won't count in this post.

Starting your own local or regional sandboarding team


If you're thinking of starting a team, you need some competitors to do the racing & performing for or alongside you. For basic set up of a sandboarding team you will need at least 7 basic things:


  1. Competition: You're gonna be bored on your own and with your peers if you can't challenge your racing speed & performance tricks and skills with anyone else. Along with your opposing team, you're gonna need independent and unbiased judges & referees to help decide the outcome of a Sandboarding contest between 2 local or national sides to see who's team is better in racing and or tricks
  2. Players: You can't have a team without the right people. Since sandboarding is a sport without a proper institutionalised governing body, there isn't a set amount of players required to fulfil a team. What you need are people who have good speed, stamina, endurance, balance, co-ordination and/or strength, treat them well and make them feel proud to be on your team!
  3. Name: You need to make your team stand out and you can do that with a name! You might not be able to call yourself 'Manchester United 2.0' but if you pick a good sandboarding related name and something that will make you be the best and win, then you could be the equivalent of Manchester United in the sandboarding world!
  4. Crest: Give yourself a picture to distinguish your team. Choose a logo that shows your true colours and what your team is like, if your team is hoping to be the fastest and most agile, try a Panther on a coloured background with a weapon or something. You don't even need to be an artist, you could even start on Microsoft Paint or Photoshop. Go wild!
  5. Constitution: Not the U.S. constitution but write down a passage of writing that outlines your team's goals and vision for the future, come up with an introduction, original team, what skills your team have, what you aspire for, what you hope to win and how you're going to be a good and effective team.
  6. Presence: In order to function, build fans, gain popularity and maybe gain more reputation as a team, you should try to make a Facebook page, twitter account, website, public group and/or advert for your team to try and recruit members or even to just gain support at your next match.
  7. Money: To fund your equipment, meetings, players (if you'd want to pay them but it would make players more loyal to you), web presence and potential advertising; you need to get money somehow. You could either start from scratch or you could sell merchandise if you get successful to a certain extent in order to gain money.

For local teams, that would be your way of sandboarding against each other but you'd need at least another 8 teams at least to get a good league going (which could be funded by a local sports authority, council, sponsorship or by a pot funded by all of the clubs in your area) in order to win a cash prize, trophy, new prize, etc... I think even if there is only 2 local teams you know about, then you can still go against each other over a prize a bit like 'El Clásico' in Spanish football. Since local teams are less serious than national sides playing, I believe local teams are easier to form and play with because national sides can be unregulated since there is no power or world sandboarding organisation.

Starting a national side (Why we can't have them yet)



This will be more difficult as your country could be home to many teams and/or sandboarders. You would need to be democratic and stand your ground in order to determine if you are capable to manage a country in an event of sport. I'm about to give a quote which will sum up why we can't have national sides.
"I do this blog as like my second occupation and I live in the UK, due to me not being in touch with many sandboarders because I see so few in this country, I could easily proclaim myself as the new manager of the UK Sandboarding Association or the manager of the UK or England Sandboarding Racing or Stunt Team; However, I would need to gain popular approval of the people and the approval of a world sandboarding body, since there is no world governing body for sandboarding (like FIFA for football or soccer) then I honestly believe that this sport is currently stuck in a limbo. We need an organisation to oversee sandboarding, regulate, recognise teams and players but not let it get in the way of leisurely activities and non-competitive sandboarding."

If our sport was introduced in the Olympic and Paralympic games, it would provide a world of benefits and advantages to unregulated sandboarding which include:
  • Greater understanding of rules under the olympic code
  • A bigger sense of national pride for the competing countries
  • More potential popularity and reach
  • People to represent and captain their country or territory

My conclusion


People power can make up local teams, those teams can make a league and a national tournament. If teams in a league can debate to make their rules and policies (which I looked upon on my blog post dating 7th December 2014 about a points system) Local teams with enthusiasm and time can make a real desire for sandboarding in the community, but in terms of national sides and international competition; there needs to be a regulated body to ensure non-bias, fair play and real determination for the sport.

Next time


Catch me on here where I will schedule my next post for the 1st November and I will be discussing about a DIY or homemade wax which could save you money and time; I won't know how making a homemade wax would go so I will be testing items which might give your board just a bit of an edge whilst on the dunes! In the meantime, always stick to Facebook and Twitter for the latest updates! See you on the dawn of the next month.

Monday 12 October 2015

Sandboarding Nation: 1 year on

A year ago today, an idea came out of my head and went into practise. A post was put on here for the first time (It was a post saying what would be on next week) but the blogging began there! I'm really happy about this blog, it's my second job in a way! I'd like to thank each and every one of you for reading my blog and for spreading the word on Sandboarding and staying loyal to the blog since the start! I'm gonna hit you with some blog statistics data, ideas for the future and what I think will happen to the blog soon.

Viewing Statistics


On the 11th October 2015 (1 day prior to the 1 year operation of the blog, I observed that there had been a total of 1,955 visits to this very blog, by next year I want that number to double. That is my mission!

The most popular post in terms of visits is the first ever one (on the 19th October 2014) about the history of Sandboarding, it clocked 64 views as of the 11th October 2015. The most popular post in comment terms is the one about 'Sand Master Park' back in August 2015 that had a grand total of 1 comment (I know 1 doesn't seem like a lot but when newspapers started in the 16 & 17th centuries you didn't get many comments back then). I don't have a target for the number of comments as it's your blog and you give the feedback.

My top 5 countries from people who have viewed this blog the most hail from the United States, United Kingdom, Israel, Brazil and Namibia.

My Future Ideas


I'm gonna tell you my ideas for upcoming posts which I were going to surprise you with but I couldn't wait any longer and I felt that I better prepare you for what I would have in store.

Now some urgent posts that need to be up soon are the Top 10 countries for this year! You notice I did this exact same list last year, I hope to continue that and hopefully since I've observed and blogged for a full year, I can make a 'Year in Review' which will be long but will take various months and seasons into account.

Now my not so urgent but posts in my queue are regarding my ideas for a physical book to be released maybe about Sandboarding itself, this blog, my love for sandboarding, a certain place (I don't know yet) but hopefully it'll take off; publish the top 10 sandboarding complexes in a certain country (U.S.A. for example), what the best homemade sandboard wax is if you're a little tight on money, A potential business idea or plan for my own sandboarding park, if there should be a world governing body for Sandboarding (a bit like a non-corrupt FIFA) and if there should be national and local sandboarding teams.

I also have ideas for posts but aren't relevant to a particular sub-topic. I am thinking of giving this blog a new layout or structure, putting a podcast in addition to the blog and also thinking of getting new e-mails especially for this blog so if anyone is willing to contact me.


Competition Time!


I have a competition where I will be giving away a FREE Sandboarding Nation T-Shirt but I haven't made any moves on it yet since I'm taking driving lessons, paying for food, funding for a car, etc... So if I decide to make a move on a competition or if a lot of you appreciate the idea, I'll start it up; after all, the blog is written for you!

Final Thought


I'm really happy I've managed to maintain and keep this blog for a year, it doesn't feel like a year but I can remember publishing the first posts in college, with no job and nothing in my spare time; now that's changed and time can be a bit of a struggle, I still try to keep the blog going to report if there's anything in the Sandboarding world! At times I wanted to stop for good (as I did for a few months) but I couldn't let you down and I am very passionate about sandboarding so I'm gonna carry on. I'd like to thank everyone this past year and I wish everyone a happy and safe time as I move into the second year of Sandboarding Nation!

The next post will be published on the 20th October and it will concern my thoughts and ideas to implement National and Local teams for Sandboarding! I'll see when the next post is published and be sure to stay on the Sandboarding Nation Facebook and Twitter pages! Take care of yourself people!

Friday 25 September 2015

Immunisations Abroad (Part 2)

Welcome once again readers to the Part 2 of the previous post regarding travel immunisations! Let's jump straight in and kick off with some more useful advice (shortest introduction in the blog's history).

Tuberculosis

In order to be protected against tuberculosis, you should need 1 injection which should last for 15 years. You would need a tuberculosis injection if you are travelling to an area with high incidence or come into contact with an infected person or un-immunised people with a high risk factor (i.e. a health care worker or a person who has been in contact with a patient of tuberculosis) High risk areas are usually deprived places with low sanitation.

Typhoid

If you are travelling to an area with poor sanitation or come into contact with someone who may have Typhoid then it is advised that you take precautions against Typhoid, you can choose 1 injection or an oral course of 3 tablets (each oral dose on an alternate day). The Typhoid injection becomes effective after 2 weeks and the oral dose is effective 7 to 10 days after the last dose, the period of protection against Typhoid is 3 years to ongoing exposure and 1 year to occasional exposure.

Cholera

Cholera immunisation is one that does NOT provide full protection. Cholera immunisation should be 2 oral doses (no injection required) one to six weeks apart, protection will be effective a week after the second dose, the period of the protection is up to 2 years but like I mentioned it does not provide full protection against Cholera. If you are immunised fully against Cholera in an area where Cholera is an epidemic or endemic also pay thorough attention to water, food and personal hygiene.

Malaria 

Malaria is very similar to yellow fever as it is a parasitic disease also transmitted by mosquitoes, injections for malaria can be given and so can oral drugs; however there can be different drugs available for the part of the world you are in as some Malaria strains are resistant to a specific drug, since this particular kind of disease is subject to a lot of change in the form of mutations and resistance, in this case prevention is the answer and not cure; take plenty of shelter, use repellent wherever possible and ask your doctor for any temporary solution to the prevention, treatment or radical cure of Malaria, please don't leave it too late!


Tetanus

Commonly known as 'Lockjaw', Tetanus is a bacteria that lasts a long time outside the human body, if you have an open wound or if there is any possible way the bacterium can enter your body, then you should seek medical advice immediately. Tetanus should have been given to you in your younger years (well, that's what the NHS in the UK recommend) but it is not compulsory. The Tetanus vaccine is cheap, safe and affordable but since Tetanus is also found globally, it is encouraged you're immune.


That's the 2 parted post over! 

I didn't expect myself to be doing 2 parts to this post but lately I have been concentrating on my steady job outside of blogging that I'm building up cash for in order to buy a laptop (this desktop is rubbish) and to help pay for my driving lessons so I can hopefully do my own holidays, commute, joyriding, etc... So if it seems to you that I'm somewhat slacking lately then I apologise for that; but the next post will be about this blog! No, really. Sandboarding Nation becomes a year old on the 12th October (19th October was the real first post) where I announced that the blog came to life! To celebrate, I have a surprise in store where someone will be able to win a prize. Join me on the 12th October for the anniversary post on Sandboarding Nation, it'll be short and a basic message of thanks to everyone in the past 12 months! See you on the twelfth.

Monday 21 September 2015

Immunisations Abroad (Part 1)



Hello readers, welcome for another edition of Sandboarding Nation! Today, I'm gonna go deep into a subject which I mainly do not know, I will mainly be giving advice, precautions and stuff that is fact as well. I'm gonna be talking about how to take care of yourself abroad in terms of health care and if anything goes wrong with you, diseases, potential hazards, etc...




It is important to not at this time that I am NOT a doctor so my words from my mouth may not be recommended or even advisory to you. I will be giving basic tips and common sense on how to make sure you don't get anything bad or essentially not die when you are abroad sandboarding or not.



Medicines & Drugs



I'm talking the legal pharmaceuticals and not the hard life crashers, it is essential to look up what drugs you should take on what part of the world you are travelling to. I read a book called 'Concise Guide To Medicines & Drugs' issued by the British Medical Association; this book is often revised and updated to keep on top of the world of health care and to make sure everyone is healthy and happy.




When you go to certain destinations you will need the appropriate vaccinations and treatment abroad so if you're travelling within Europe, North America, Australia or Japan then you won't need to worry to much but if you are crossing continents or going to an unknown area then take note of these tips:

 

Hepatitis A


For the prevention of Hepatitis A, which is prevalent in high risk areas outside of Western & Northern Europe, North America, Japan, Australia & New Zealand; it is recommended that you have 2 injections that are 6 to 12 months apart which will start to become effective 2 to 4 weeks after the initial dose, the 1st immunisation protects you for up to a year and the 2nd immunisation for up to 20 years.

 

Hepatitis B


If you are travelling to a location where Hepatitis B is prevalent and who may require medical or dental treatment and/or may be likely to have unprotected sex should be protected by having 3 injections, a month between the first and second doses and 5 months between the second and third doses, the protection against Hepatitis B will be effective after the third dose and will give you protection for up to 5 years.

 

Rabies


Known for giving horrific symptoms then eventually killing you, Rabies is a nasty but preventable disease which is present in a surprising amount of countries around the world; 3 injections are required, a week wait is needed between the first and second doses and 2 or 3 weeks between the second and third doses, the doses are effective after the third dose and the period of protection lasts from 2 to 5 years.

 

Yellow Fever


Yellow fever is a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes. South America and Sub-Saharan Africa are areas at most risk from infection of yellow fever, this immunisation programme is easy: 1 injection is effective after 10 days and can protect you for up to 10 years. Simple.

 

Japanese Encephalitis


If you are staying for a long or extended period of time in and around India, China, Southeast Asia and the Far East, it is recommended you are immunised. To be immunised against Japanese Encephalitis, you would require 2 injections that are 28 days apart, it will be effective about a week after the second injection from which you will be given protection for a year. Sandboarding Nation likes to help but there are sand dunes in these places so it's worth that I gave you this tip.

 

Meningitis


In this section, I will be referring to certain but not all strains of Meningitis (check with a doctor or medical practitioner for confirmation) but for strains Meningitis A, C, W135 and Y; you would need 1 injection which will become effective after 2-3 weeks of injection and the protection period is 5 years, this immunisation is encouraged for people travelling to Sub-Saharan Africa and if you are doing certain Islamic pilgrimages in Saudi Arabia, an immunisation certificate is compulsory.



Next time (Part 2 to this post):


I didn't expect to do a big post like this one (because it is big by my standards), so to cover all of the appropriate diseases plus to do this in an appropriate time & non-rushing manner, I will need to do a part 2 to this post. I will schedule this for Friday 25th September where I will be continuing my travel immunisation advice and recommendations for the diseases of Tuberculosis, Typhoid, Cholera, Malaria and Tetanus. I will await your presence for the next post. I would like to thank information derived from the World Health Organisation and the British Medical Association which I have inferred information from in order to write this post. See you on Friday!

Saturday 19 September 2015

Facebook Page problem resolved

If you saw the previous post a few hours ago regarding that the Facebook page was inactive, this post is to update that the page is back online and is active once again!

The blog post due for the 21st September will still be published and is still in progress.

Facebook Page Problems

Due to my main Facebook account having problems and me being unable to log in, the Facebook page for Sandboarding Nation will be inactive for hopefully a couple of hours (maybe days) until further notice on this blog.

The Twitter feed for updates and the blog posts (and progress of the current one being published on Monday) will not be affected. I apologise for any inconvenience caused.

The reason the page isn't gone temporarily along with my personal account is that I put my mother as a moderator on the page so in the event of this happening, the page will remain online (even though she would get the notifications and no posts can be made).

So even though I'm down, the blog remains! Hopefully this situation will be resolved as soon as possible and I will keep you updated via Twitter (@sandboardblog) and the blog until further notice.


Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Wednesday 9 September 2015

Sports camera

Welcome back readers! This post is gonna be a short one and it will only have a few bits and not much knowledge of sandboarding included in this one but it will have some news that's relevant to the blog and for some resources to the blog for time to come!

Sports Camera

You would have seen its first pictures and full capability on the 2015 Session: Holywell Bay post where I had a set of 9 photos of the sand dunes at Holywell Bay. According to the smart technology on the photos that tell me the model of the camera when I upload the photo, the sports camera is an SP5K Series Digital Camera, exposure time is 1/2,000 seconds (0.0005), F-number is f/2.8, photos taken are up to 12 mega pixels and the ISO speed rating is 50. I personally have no clue what those numbers mean but my mind works in the form that if I can see the photo clearly, it looks good to me.

For the video aspect of the camera, it's a powerful toy! The camera can record up to 60fps in 720p HD or 30fps in 1080p HD. On the maximum (32GB) storage card the camera can take, just over 6 hours of film can be captured in 720p and it's just over 5 and a half hours in 1080p.

If you're familiar with the video of me on Holywell Bay on a couple of posts back, then you would have noticed that I captured that video whilst I was on the dune and I done it with the new sports camera itself! The video above was shot in the 60fps in 720p mode and it made good quality despite being in a hard shell case made of plastic, covered in sand & in mid session.

Also, the many photos which you can see on the blog that I've taken and made creative commons for re-use can be taken on this very 'small but mighty' sports camera too! It's more of a fun toy than a sophisticated camera!

Personal Endorsement

On this part of the post in particular, I'd like to remind you that I'm an independent blogger and for this camera I have not personally been asked or requested to use this camera for the purposes of advertising or publicity. I bought this camera for my personal use and I genuinely believe this is the 'one toy in the box' that you need with you wherever you go! Plus, when you buy this camera you don't get a HD camera with a protective shell & a power lead with the instruction manual in a box; You get whole array of stands, switch support, ribbon, tape, adaptor for computer transfer, plug charger, camera lens wipe and much more packed in the little box of fun! Did I mention this camera supports WiFi connectivity? Yeah, because uploading sports clips to the Internet became a whole lot easier; forget the use and cost of cyber cafes, mobile data where you can just upload over a WiFi connection!

How much will it cost & how can I buy it?


The link to buy the camera will be included here, the camera cost me £45 ($68 rounded to the nearest dollar as of 6th September 2015) plus shipping to the UK (which will vary depending on location) that took an extra £5 to get to me.

This camera may vary in cost depending on which colour you want to buy, the 3 prices for the 6 available colours (White, Black, Blue, Pink, Yellow & Gold) and the prices varied from £45 to £47 (as of 7th September 2015).

It's important to note that the maximum data memory card that this camera will accept is only 32GB so if you have a 64 or 128 gigabyte SD card, they will not be compatible. Since I believe this is the camera that may suit your needs (It certainly fitted my needs and ticked all my boxes) Let it be your camera by clicking on the link below!


https://www.wish.com/c/54ddbf39d55e5d18c6affd3d


Maybe in the future when this blog does get a decent following and/or money starts to come in, I may start a competition where a new and boxed version of this camera can be won, but this is still an idea.

Next time on the blog!


Thanks again for always reading my latest blog post, also a warm welcome to those who I've recently recruited via my Facebook advertising campaign for the blog and the Sandboarding Nation Facebook page! Please like the Facebook page if you haven't already, also follow the blog on twitter! See the next blog post be published here on the 21st September 2015 when it will be concerning Medical aspects, essential safety and well being when you're in very rural, exotic, tropical and unknown locations; it'll be about taking the correct medicines, vaccines if you want to travel, precautions to health, etc... It'll become more clear when I publish the post on the agreed date and stick to the Facebook and Twitter feeds for some clues about the next post. As always; sandboard safely, sandboard legally and take care of yourselves my blog readers, see you on the 21st.

Thursday 3 September 2015

Holywell Bay, England

Welcome readers! I'd like to say hello to the new readers and followers which I've managed to recruit via my facebook advertising campaign and twitter account! I haven't managed to blog, update or do many edits at all due to one main problem; WiFi. I've been on holiday and have lived on my phone's internet for the past couple of weeks and now that period of time has had to be extended because my home's internet has been cut, However; let's disregard that and just give you some information about this lovely sandboarding location!

As you know, I did my first ever sandboarding 'session' here as you saw it in my previous blog post

Holywell Bay sits on the north coast of the British county of Cornwall, it is a 10 minute drive from the seaside town of 'Newquay', the nearest train station is roughly the same and the nearest airport is only a 20 minute drive from the dune complex. South of the dunes there lies a popular beach, the small but seasonal village called 'Holywell' and an active military camp, to the west of the dunes you will see the sea, that's all, sea. East of the Holywell dunes you will end up on a golf course near the dunes as there's a golf course, small amusement park and a long village road not far from the dunes and village itself; Finally, if you go north from the dunes you will not find much there at all apart from a big field and maybe a path that'll take you the next beach above the coast as Holywell Bay's beach and dunes are separated by England's 'South West Coast Path' which will take you to another beach. 

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0 (This is the top of the highest dune, looking to the South-East)


When I came here in August 2015, I cut my foot and toes in the sand to pieces of barbed wire and going down into ditches, the barbed wire is because that many years ago the beach was used as a training ground by the military camp in order to stave off Nazi invasion; some of the pieces of barbed wire are still in the sand today so be very careful!


On the other hand, the complex is not very big on a map and even though the dunes don't go on a network they make pretty good fun for tourists coming to the beach; unlike the Sand Master Park in Oregon, Holywell Bay does not have slopes based on difficulty level, it's more of a natural arrangement of dunes close to a seaside with a good view rather than a serious contender in the contest for 'Best sand dune complex in the universe'. On entrance via a little path towards the dune and a slightly longer one for the beach, there are 2 shops which sell general holiday and seaside souvenir goods, they both sell sandboards but one of which sells both round (sit on them and slide down) boards and also the most commonly known and more fun (stand up and ride down) boards, there are no more sandboarding related products as this sport isn't as well-known in the UK and the demand isn't high.


Final Thought:


Holywell Bay's beach or dunes are not on Tripadvisor, but if it were I personally think it wouldn't gain much credit due to not many people knowing about sandboarding itself. As a blog writer I'll explain why Holywell Bay should need some attention for its dunes as I feel there needs to be improvement in sandboarding as a whole, there should be an authority on the sport and in this particular 'final thought' I'll address why Holywell Bay needs an attraction for its sand dunes:


There isn't a dedicated park, site, reserve, attraction or even a fenced off area for a dune complex to even begin there, there needs to be a business or a public space recognised by local power so that the public and that people who want to come here can experience how sandboarding can be a thing to do and how it can become more than just a holiday hobby, there needs to be that creativity or flair that someone has in order to turn some natural lumps sand dunes into a hot tourism spot and leisure park, the risk could be high but with the right promotion and the correct management, sandboarding could be coming to the UK; it might not be the proper way or even the right way to promote a sport but I think in this exceptional case, it's an opportunity that shouldn't fade away.

I understand that this post may have been longer than others and the quantity of writing may be inconsistent among posts but I try to do them based on content, personal knowledge and the availability of outside sources such as social media, photograph sites, maps, etc... I have come up with more ideas for post and I keep these ideas on my cork board at home so I can easily refer to them if there are any writers' blocks. This post has just added some more ideas (I won't reveal them as they're gonna be future posts) but soon they'll come from an idea to a proper post!

Next time on Sandboarding Nation:

 

In order to make up for lost time and a few delays, meet me on this blog (your blog & our blog) on the 9th September for a post on the new camera which I've ordered and you may see me use more often, the post will be short but it's an idea to take off the list and content for you to receive! Hope you have a good week to come.

Wednesday 19 August 2015

2015 Session: Holywell Bay

Hello everyone, welcome yet again to another edition of Sandboarding Nation!

I promised I was going to blog about my holiday whilst I was on holiday, here in Cornwall! I think the Penhale Sand Dunes at Holywell Bay in the county of Cornwall are the best ones in the UK just because of its location, really high dunes and sands that just never seem to end, I could be wrong just because I've never been to any other UK sand dune complexes and I'll report on Holywell Bay soon since that has been my prominent sandboarding location for over 8 years. On the 12th August 2015, I done my annual sandboarding session at Holywell Bay and when I got home I felt refreshed, reborn and rejuvenated; I also fell asleep for an hour when I got back so it proves I did work really well but I did encounter some problems which was a shame.

Here are some of my pictures which are Creative Commons so reuse will be allowed. I haven't licensed all of the photos yet and I will post on the Twitter & Facebook page when I will have this done, so don't try and use all of the photos yet as the license may not be ready; it may take a short while as I'm on holiday still and the Internet is not too good.


Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

Courtesy of: Ganymede81 License: CC BY 3.0

(All the above photos are under my name on Wikimedia Commons which is Ganymede81 and will be issued under license CC BY 3.0)

The all round review this year has been a good one, apart from a few issues on which I blame myself for, one of my main concerns with my performance was my lack of stamina as I was only on the dunes for about 45 minutes and usually I would be lasting much longer in duration and I would be doing more individual descents on the dunes but the main reason why I was put off was because the climb just seems to get bigger each year and it was a sweat filled day followed by some dry and sandy air so I had to carry extra water. Sandy hair was also an issue as when I fell down at one stage the sand grains just didn't want to let go. I fell into quite a few ditches, nearly went forward into a wire fence and I cut my feet and did a bit of damage to them.


I will be publishing a video after all the footage I managed to capture has been edited and produced and I will do this in a later blog post; However, in the meantime I will provide this video of me going down the highest dune in Holywell Bay and making a fool of myself. The above video will not be Creative Commons until 1st January 2016.

I understand this blog post isn't the best but every year, half year or whenever I go Sandboarding, I will make a post with this sort of structure, put 'Session' in the title and include my new label for this blog which will be named 'session'. 


What I want to end with and next week's expectations.

I feel as the main editor, head blogger, principal journalist (whatever you want to call me) I need to spectate and participate in this sport if I want to do more posts like this, film, take photos and not just make a post about Sandboarding on the internet but also to inform you.

Before I conclude, I would like to introduce all the potential new readers that I recruited from this blog's Facebook advertising campaign which resulted in a spike of page likes and Twitter account followers. If you haven't already please like my Facebook page and follow my Twitter page for my blog: 'Sandboarding Nation'.

Please join me for my next blog post which I will be writing about Holywell Bay in Cornwall where I had this session, expect it to be published on the 3rd September.

Saturday 8 August 2015

Spraying a sandboard

Welcome back to another edition of Sandboarding Nation! This time we will look at how to spray a sandboard.

There are 2 problems with my method which probably won't relate to an actual sandboard itself; Firstly: my board is made of hardened plastic so it is a different material, application will vary differently and a different kind of spray paint may be required depending on the surface your aerosol paint supports; Secondly: I remember putting a poll ages ago asking which colour my board should be and the majority answer was 'Flourescent Yellow' but the only colours in stock that were Fluorescent were Green, Pink and Blue, So I had to go for the closest colour on the spectrum. Green.


First step: You are presented with your board, and 2 other simple materials (Three depending on the material of the board). The two main things you need are masking tape and an aerosol spray paint can with the colour of your choice. 
You can apply tape and spray the front of your board too and you can also use an array of colours, but just be careful that you let the paint dry first to avoid colour mixing whilst it's wet, ALWAYS apply tape if you're hoping to do stripes and if you want to paint the front of your board (which I didn't this time) watch your footing so that you don't manage to scratch the paint off.

Step 2: Apply the masking tape onto the back of the board making sure it covers the areas you do NOT want covered in paint. The masking tape I used was 25 millimetres thick and the roll was 25 metres long, the price for 1 roll was 80 pence and throughout the entire project I used probably only about 8 metres worth of board; I purchased 2 rolls because I underestimated how much I would need but now I know, the small width of the tape ensured I had to overlap existing tape marks so you may see I've done it twice, where actually I have extended the width.

Time for a bit of maths:

8 metres in a 25 metre roll of tape. 

8 divided by 25 is 0.32
0.32 multiplied by 100 is 32%
32% of 80 pence is 25.6 (26 rounded)

So the cost of the tape for my board cost me 26 pence (£1.06 if you count the other tape I never used) which is fantastically cheap!


Double tape your board if necessary but don't do it too little as you don't want paint to leak through (which is very unlikely)

Also don't do it too much as you might make the tape residue stay (to remove it may involve scratching)


Step 3: This should be the fun part! Just spray your board; for mine it took me 2 ordinary 200ml cans which swallowed £3.49 each out of my wallet (£6.98 for 2 cans) and gave it a nice finish. My board is 104 centimetres in length and 24 centimetres by width and that roughly used 400ml of paint (notice I'm not using cubic measurements which might be unhelpful to some but please forgive me as I didn't get cubic measurements back in school).



If you got it to this far in the post, I want to give you a warning to not try and do what I did and tear off the tape too early as it left some paint bleed and some paint even came off the board itself! Give it a good 30 minutes or hour to wait for the paint to dry. I couldn't wait to take the masking tape off to show the patterns in the paint, so DON'T DO THE MISTAKE I DID and be too eager, people!


That is how you paint a Sandboard yourself without a professional or trader and in your own home! The paint would cost roughly £7 and the tape no less than a pound so it is a cheap project and a good investment of your style & reputation! 

Quick note on last post!

Before I conclude, I want to thank the real Doctor Dune from Sand Master Park for commenting on last week's post and giving me more information and knowledge about their place! Not many people know this but those guys are also home of the largest maker of sandboards on the planet, so I'm privileged for them to even comment on my blog so that's a small step!

Join me for the next blog post scheduled for the 19th AUGUST where I'll be telling you about my holiday, whilst I'm on holiday!

Friday 24 July 2015

Sand Master Park, Oregon

Hello followers!

There won't be many blog posts lately due to the winter in the northern hemisphere not being a peak season and the fact that I haven't got any ideas for blog posts on a weekly basis, so the posts will be rather limited in the cold season. Today I wanted to talk about a well known spot in North America that most sandboarders (and certainly Mr. Tenge himself) will know about.

Now I will be honest, I don't live in North America so I won't know all of the features but I will give you a simplified and medium summary on this wonderful place!


Sand Master Park - Oregon



Taken by: Unknown, License: CC BY-SA 2.0
As this picture depicts sandboarding expert and well-known name; Josh Tenge performs a backflip in Sand Master Park, Oregon. Located in Florence and not a short drive from the city name that contradicts itself: 'Dunes City'. The complex is surrounded by 200 acres of public and 40 acres of private dunes for riders to use. The park is open 7 days a week from 1st June to 1st October and 6 days a week (closed Wednesday) from 1st October to 1st June. There is a shop which presumably sells protection, kit, sandboard maintenence goods (wax, paraffin, thinner, paint, etc...) and that's closed from January 10th till March 1st every year. Luckily, this place does have a range of Beginner, Intermediate and Expert/Advanced slopes, this does have rails which gives it a huge advantage but a common but sad truth is this place does not have a lift; yet again not many places do.


I have not been on a trip to Oregon or even in the USA but however most sandboarders will be able to tell you that Sand Master Park is one of the most notable sites in the world for families as well as lone or group adventurers. In fact, according to Tripadvisor UK in July 2015; Sand Master Park was ranked #1 best thing to do in Florence, Oregon and 10th out of 305th in the whole Oregon Coast and has received the Tripadvisor 'Certificate of Excellence'.



You're probably wondering why I've took so long to post, well the last paragraph was done during July 2015 and this post started in February 2015 at some point? That's how far I've been behind on this blog. I knew it wasn't forgotten but I'm not gonna switch to blogging. I have been adding little excerpts on this blog ever since this post was first written but that's all I've managed due to the impending burden of a second year at college and now I've got a nice steady job so time is extremely uncommon and truth be told, I haven't been putting much time into this as I should have been; I will most probably turn this blog into a monthly/fortnightly rather than a weekly.

What a long week this was! Next post WILL be up on the 8th August.

Wednesday 28 January 2015

Where have I been?

Hello followers!


I'm really sorry for not blogging as often as I should be, but the reason behind the lack of posts lately is that college is just a heavy bore and I got a job now working in a sweet shop! But anyhoo, I haven't forgot about the blog and if an idea sparks up in my head, I get a suggestion or if any major news in the sandboarding scene has popped up then I'm sure to make a blog post about it.

In the meantime check out the Sandboarding Nation facebook and Twitter page @sandboardblog