Will Boscombe rule the waves? (From Bournemouth Echo)

Will Boscombe rule the waves?

7:00am Tuesday 3rd November 2009 in

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SOMETIMES it's not enough just to put a cautious toe in the water and shiver like a sheep. You have to take the plunge.

You can pussyfoot about, paddling on the edge like a member of the Timid Club, but, to be special, sometimes you have to show courage.

That’s why, right now, I commend Bournemouth council for having the chutzpah to do something exciting by creating a surf reef.

For decades I’ve heard Moaning Minnies, including me, going on at them for not doing enough to attract visitors to the town. (Not counting the Imax.) And now not only have we got the Air Festival but a surf reef to boot.

What I know about surf could be written on a washing powder packet and I haven’t a clue how big the Boscombe breakers should be.

But I do know that, whatever any Dismal Dicks may say, right now Boscombe by the beach is looking a mighty sight better than it used to.

So let’s not expect miracles and just hope the reef does a much better job at controlling waves than King Canute managed years ago.

If it ever turns out that optimism over the £3 million investment, despite whatever advice the council was given, was ill-founded, so be it. That’s the time for choppy questions to break.

But right now, let’s just remember that Bournemouth not only had a good idea but also the bottle to go for it.

And with a bit of luck and a fair (or strong) wind, it won’t be long before we hear the surfers singing that old Cole Porter song.

What a swell party this is.