Two weeks ago I returned from my holiday to Tenerife. It was the first holiday in two and a half years for me and my girlfriend, so we wanted it to have 'something of everything'. Hence, apart from the golden beaches and busy boulevards, we booked activities such as snorkeling/diving, a boat-and-open water swim trip and a daytour across Tenerife's national parc El Teide. Having not left the Netherlands for such a long period of time, I was, rather laughable, at a loss on which watch to bring with me. I would not dare scathing my Seamaster, my Seiko was too precious to have something happen to it, and my Rolex was, for obvious reasons, out of the question as well. Hence remained, my Tudor Black Bay Black, reference 79230n.
Although not entirely new, it was still in mint condition, which usually causes me to baby a watch. However, I realized the Black Bay was actually a tool watch first and a luxury watch second (or so I came to think of it). Thus, as of that moment, I declared my Black Bay my 'experience watch'; a watch I would bring with me on all the trips, experiences and adventures I would come to undertake in my life. That definition had a nice ring to it in my head… so come the morning our flight left, I slapped the BB on the Tudor fabric strap and put it securely on my wrist; ready to go.
To make a long story short: I then proceeded to put the Black Bay through everything on this holiday. I wore it 24/7, only taking it off to rinse it after it had come into contact with salt water. It endured the Atlantic while swimming and snorkeling, bumping it into rocks and being scathed by harsh sand from all sides. The Black Bay was worn while hiking through El Teide's national parc in the blistering sun, while swimming in the middle of the Atlantic only 10 meters away from dolphins and whales and while crossing the narrow canyons around the remote village of Masca. All this might not sound like a lot of abuse, especially to some of the veteran members around here, but do believe me when I say that I put the watch through some intense conditions! (not counting the dinners of course, which did present the best photo opportunities unfortunately!)
The result? Its case looks quite scathed, its bezel a little bumped up and the strap a bit aged… but I adore this! Over the course of 10 days, the watch deviated only 5 seconds and functioned perfectly. I am really happy with the decision I made to actually wear one of my watches and put it through everything I went through as well; it creates a real bond with the piece. Frankly, I can't wait to take the Black Bay with me on my future endeavors (and beat it up some more!). Even though I rotate my watches regularly, the BB now carries that little extra character and tells a special story when compared to my other watches; the story of adventure… and aren't stories the things we all do it for after all? ?
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Although not entirely new, it was still in mint condition, which usually causes me to baby a watch. However, I realized the Black Bay was actually a tool watch first and a luxury watch second (or so I came to think of it). Thus, as of that moment, I declared my Black Bay my 'experience watch'; a watch I would bring with me on all the trips, experiences and adventures I would come to undertake in my life. That definition had a nice ring to it in my head… so come the morning our flight left, I slapped the BB on the Tudor fabric strap and put it securely on my wrist; ready to go.
To make a long story short: I then proceeded to put the Black Bay through everything on this holiday. I wore it 24/7, only taking it off to rinse it after it had come into contact with salt water. It endured the Atlantic while swimming and snorkeling, bumping it into rocks and being scathed by harsh sand from all sides. The Black Bay was worn while hiking through El Teide's national parc in the blistering sun, while swimming in the middle of the Atlantic only 10 meters away from dolphins and whales and while crossing the narrow canyons around the remote village of Masca. All this might not sound like a lot of abuse, especially to some of the veteran members around here, but do believe me when I say that I put the watch through some intense conditions! (not counting the dinners of course, which did present the best photo opportunities unfortunately!)
The result? Its case looks quite scathed, its bezel a little bumped up and the strap a bit aged… but I adore this! Over the course of 10 days, the watch deviated only 5 seconds and functioned perfectly. I am really happy with the decision I made to actually wear one of my watches and put it through everything I went through as well; it creates a real bond with the piece. Frankly, I can't wait to take the Black Bay with me on my future endeavors (and beat it up some more!). Even though I rotate my watches regularly, the BB now carries that little extra character and tells a special story when compared to my other watches; the story of adventure… and aren't stories the things we all do it for after all? ?
View attachment splashphoto-07426.jpg