Fair wind from France

"Fair Stood The Wind From France" - (with apologies to H E Bates!) and so we welcome Shirley Morgenroth from France who will be working at Harbour Sports Paignton for the next five weeks. I've asked Shirley to say a little about herself in English and French..............." Hello, my name is Shirley Morgenroth and I am French. My school is Carrel (a business school in Lyon) and I am here with the Training Partnership (Torquay). I had one week of English lessons and now I am working at Harbour Sports Paignton on Paignton Harbour for the next five weeks. Bonjour, je m'appel Shirley Morgenroth jes suis francaise, je vis a Lyon. Jes suis en angeleterre pour 6 semaines pour ameleiorer mois anlais. Mon ecole est Carrel (ecole de commerce a Lyon) je suis venu ici avec le Training Partnership de Torquay. J'ai eu une de cours d'anglais et maitenant je travail dans le magasin harbour sports de paignton pour le cinq semaines prochaines. J'aime skier, faire du wakeboard et j'aimerais apprendre le surf mais l'eau est vraiment trop froide pour moi!"

SNOW IN SOUTH DEVON

This made me smile! Chris Beardsmore and Jess Renshaw took this clever photograph on the day we had harbour snow in Paignton for the first time in twenty odd years. The photograph was then 'tagged' on Face book with the snowman tagged as 'Frank Sobey'. You have to laugh. Please note the rather nice customer parking sign outside Harbour Sports Paignton.

We've always had lots of snow kit in all three of our shops and sales as you might imagine have been very good with this icy blast. Of course some snow kit also works in the summer. How can that be you ask? It's those 'sheepskin' style boots which work really well in the snow but also good look (Pamela Anderson set the trend) on a sunny day in the summer whilst wandering around in a skimpy bikini......

Noticed this morning that the daylight hours have already started to grow as we once again stagger toward summer. I was at Harbour Sports Plymouth last evening with Andy Partridge and Barny Davies. Andy managed to break a finger whilst sliding down a snowy hill on a bodyboard last Sunday. Bodyboards make great sledges - no sharp edges, plus of course you then have a watercraft for the summer! It's a win win. Barney is just back from a week of skiing in France with the University of Plymouth Snowboarding/ Ski Club. 120 of them on a coach - scary.

Saturday morning I was in the Exeter shop with Marc Wood, Chris Beardsmore (who is half way through his M.Sc at Exeter University), Rachel Harrison and Georgia Gold. Great team and full of energy.

This afternoon it's the Paignton shop with Guy Shepherd, Al Glenning and new man Grant Clarey. Annual floor painting tonight (back of the shop) and next Saturday evening (front of the shop). Another sign that the new season is on the way.....