Category Archives: Blog Posts

The Return of The Final Beat

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Hello again.

Sorry it has been so long. The website has had some major issues. Things have been, in modern sporting vernacular, sub-optimal.

In fact, if this website were a leeward mark rounding, it would have looked a little like this clip (well worth a click if you haven’t seen it before – but maybe turn your volume down – the commentary is kind of loud):

But all these technical issues are behind us now (I hope).

My entire IT department (which comprises of my dad – who, at his age, should be relaxing in front of an open fire in slippers and smoking a pipe) has sorted everything out and I’m trying my very best to not break it again.

As I put everything back together I will upload the pages – this is already happening on a daily basis. For this reason, you might click on a link you want to view and find there is nothing there. All it means is that that particular page is not ready just yet, but you can check back in a week or two and it should be there.

If there is something you want to see urgently then comment below, or contact me via Twitter or Facebook and I will try to bring it to the top of the list for you. You can also email me on damian (at) thefinalbeat dot com.

You can keep up-to-date with all the new additions (including brand new posts and pages) by signing up to the email newsletter. It goes out around once a month, and lists all the latest bits on the site.

Wind Strategy by David Houghton and Fiona Campbell

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I feel it is important to state very early in this review that I consider Wind Strategy to be a Very Important Book for sailors.

The reason I feel the need to state this is because I know what I am about to write, and it may come across that I actually think otherwise. So, in order to be clear on the matter, let me state it again:

Wind Strategy is a Very Important Book.

Wind Strategy by Houghton and Campbell - A Very Important Book

Wind Strategy by Houghton and Campbell – A Very Important Book

United States
UK & Ireland

I know this for three reasons. Continue reading →

Golden Lily by Lijia Xu

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I received an advanced copy of Golden Lily by Lijia Xu in the post a couple of months ago – I suppose because I reviewed a couple of Fernhurst’s books late last year. It came as a very welcome surprise, and I immediately dropped the book I was reading, and got stuck in.

I intended to post a review straight away, but I had difficulty writing it. You see, Golden Lily is an unusual autobiography, and it has taken a while to get my thoughts straight on the book. Continue reading →

I Am Pilgrim

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I like to read books.

And not even books with pictures – books with just words!

Reading this blog, I can understand that you find that hard to believe. But there it is, it’s a fact.

People that know me know that I like to read books. They’ll often buy, lend or recommend books to me – almost always literary tomes to make me think. Which is good for two reasons:

  1. Sometimes it works, and I do actually think about things
  2. It makes me look good when I read them in public

However, I’m not above admitting that I like a good old page-turning thriller. And a month or so ago my wife took a break from buying me obscure South American literature (which she really buys so that she can read them and then moan at me that I never read the books that she buys me) and she bought me a thriller. It was called I Am Pilgrim. Continue reading →

Coach Yourself to Win by Jon Emmett

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In my last post I depressed everyone enough by listing Nick Craig’s achievements. So I decided that I wouldn’t mention the fact that Jon Emmett has coached a Laser Radial sailor to an Olympic Gold Medal as well as winning 3 World Championships, 3 European Championships, 6 National Championships and a bunch of other important events. It’s best that you don’t know about all that, or you’ll just have to go through the whole depression cycle again.

Coach Yourself to Win

There’s a good chance that many who read this will already have one or both of Jon’s previous books – Be Your Own Sailing Coach and Be Your Own Tactics Coach. If you’ve read the former (as I have) you’ll already be familiar with many of the ideas in his new book, but this new publication has much to offer. If you haven’t read Be Your Own Sailing Coach then Coach Yourself to Win will really help you develop your sailing and improve your results. Continue reading →

Helming to Win by Nick Craig

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Prepare to feel bad about yourself. If you have a fragile ego, or are prone to bouts of depression then I strongly suggest that you DO NOT read on.

I finally got my hands on a book that I’ve wanted to see since I heard it was coming out early this year. Helming to Win by Nick Craig landed on my mat last week, and I immediately got stuck in to reading it.

Helming-to-Win

I was excited because Nick Craig is a name I’ve come across time and again reading about dinghy sailing. He’s probably not very well known outside of the UK because he’s not a professional sailor on the Olympic circuit. But his record is unbelievable.

Which brings us to the depressing part. Continue reading →