Hit the lake beach this afternoon to try to get the Synergy to bow-tie and film a recovery and test out the Ozone Access SB harness and finally fly the Flysurfer Outlaw 10m I've had for AGES but have yet to take out of the bag.
Partial success with the Synergy bow-tie thing - try as I might, it wouldn't bow tie or even misbehave too much, despite the iffy wind ... gusty norwester and turbulent near the trees but the Synergy was stable. Got one bow-tie, but as it propellered down, it bounced of the ground and straight back into the air :D
Set a jump and sent the kite across much faster than I intended and went soaring - thoughts of the tragedy in NZ recently flashed through my mind and as I hovered over the safety release, I started going down and relaxed - foot slide to bum landing ...
Had a nightmare with a line tangle as I packed up, dunno WTF that was about. Set up the Outlaw and had a play with that ...
What I learned today ...
• The Ozone harness is nice, feel the pull fairly equally between waist and leg straps unlike the Fusion - the leg straps only seem to be there on the Dakine to stop the harness riding up ... ha!
• One size fits all only just fits :( over ski-pants it'll be tight. Back on the diet!
• The Outlaw feels like a fixed bridle flying on the Ozone Turbo bar - not so much depower effect through the bar.
• Not as lifty as I thought it would be, but it is a small kite. Will be good for landboarding.
• Likes to collapse like a F.B. as I guess it has much less internal pressure when it's not flying.
• I'm a chronic mouth breather :( you can hear "huh-huh-huh" on the video and it's not like I can even blame having a cold ...!
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Christmas Quickee - The Movie!
A short blast with the Synergy 19 in over-powered conditions :D
I went to the lake with the intention of filming my de-bowtie technique (should I have managed to pull it off again) but the wind was just too full on. I also didn't have the right shoes on for scudding so I just played around a bit ...
Didn't get the camera angle right either :(
I went to the lake with the intention of filming my de-bowtie technique (should I have managed to pull it off again) but the wind was just too full on. I also didn't have the right shoes on for scudding so I just played around a bit ...
Didn't get the camera angle right either :(
Thursday, December 23, 2010
I am the Bow-tie freakin' Master!
Toddled off to the lake today to have a play with the Psycho3 13 ... why not, it's holidays and I've got nothing better to do! Didn't take board or togs cos I figured it was too cold, but it was actually quite nice down there and no colder than the last time I was on the lake. Oh well.
Wind was supposed to be good but was shifty as hell, going all the from east to west at one stage! Gusty too.
Checked out the Psycho and put it up. Bridle had a little tangle so I had to put it down. Sorted that out and up she goes - much easier in the very light wind than the S2 19 (or even what I remember of the S1 17) but that's to be expected with a smaller kite. Got a good feel for it in light to moderate wind and it certainly will be a fun tractor! Need to tidy up the bar ... packed up, started to head back to the car but then stood around for a while shooting the breeze with Miyachi. The wind picked up so I thought, "Why not haul out the Synergy 19?" which I did.
At first the wind was good but then it dropped off, and I thought the wind would be too light to even fill let alone launch. Picked up again and I got a good fill. As I tried to launch the wind shifted so I struggled to get the kite in the air - was running around from north to west and back again to stay upwind of the kite.
Note this well - got it into the air despite not being 100% inflated on the ground AS ALWAYS and managed to get it filled on the way up to the zenith but then the wind dropped and I lost control.
Bow-tie. Managed to untangle it from the bar though - can't remember exactly what I did, but noticed that I might be able to get it LE down so pulled a rear line to do that, that just relaunched by the standard method. That worked the other 2 times I bow-tied :D who says you can't bow-tie a Synergy?
Wind came back with a vengeance - HOLY FUCK what a difference pulling the straps up and shifting the VPC makes! Had everything set at 1/2 for so long ... all tight and it's a mighty beast! Had to watch the jumps cos they were getting silly high and the landings were rattling my teeth! Massive long scuds took me from one end of the beach to the other until I hit a bank thing and got lobbed over it!
Wind died off, but by working the kite I kept it in the air while the guys out on the water with the LEIs were swimming in.
Excellent CarlTB stall landing and after switching the VPC lines to the opposite position (don't like it) a painless relaunch was enjoyed.
Great afternoon, now worn out and have sand in mysterious places ... and am thinking about Chargers now!
Wind was supposed to be good but was shifty as hell, going all the from east to west at one stage! Gusty too.
Checked out the Psycho and put it up. Bridle had a little tangle so I had to put it down. Sorted that out and up she goes - much easier in the very light wind than the S2 19 (or even what I remember of the S1 17) but that's to be expected with a smaller kite. Got a good feel for it in light to moderate wind and it certainly will be a fun tractor! Need to tidy up the bar ... packed up, started to head back to the car but then stood around for a while shooting the breeze with Miyachi. The wind picked up so I thought, "Why not haul out the Synergy 19?" which I did.
At first the wind was good but then it dropped off, and I thought the wind would be too light to even fill let alone launch. Picked up again and I got a good fill. As I tried to launch the wind shifted so I struggled to get the kite in the air - was running around from north to west and back again to stay upwind of the kite.
Note this well - got it into the air despite not being 100% inflated on the ground AS ALWAYS and managed to get it filled on the way up to the zenith but then the wind dropped and I lost control.
Bow-tie. Managed to untangle it from the bar though - can't remember exactly what I did, but noticed that I might be able to get it LE down so pulled a rear line to do that, that just relaunched by the standard method. That worked the other 2 times I bow-tied :D who says you can't bow-tie a Synergy?
Wind came back with a vengeance - HOLY FUCK what a difference pulling the straps up and shifting the VPC makes! Had everything set at 1/2 for so long ... all tight and it's a mighty beast! Had to watch the jumps cos they were getting silly high and the landings were rattling my teeth! Massive long scuds took me from one end of the beach to the other until I hit a bank thing and got lobbed over it!
Wind died off, but by working the kite I kept it in the air while the guys out on the water with the LEIs were swimming in.
Excellent CarlTB stall landing and after switching the VPC lines to the opposite position (don't like it) a painless relaunch was enjoyed.
Great afternoon, now worn out and have sand in mysterious places ... and am thinking about Chargers now!
Thursday, December 16, 2010
There's a Psycho in my closet!
The Flysurfer Psycho3 13 I bought used from an Italian in the navy arrived yesterday ... unrolled it today to pack it up nice. Bar needs a bit of attention but for the price, the kite is in great condition! Enjoy the pics :)
Friday, November 26, 2010
Rebble, Rebble! - The Movie!
Old movie I thought I'd uploaded from March, 2010.
End of winter ride in the park on the ol' landboard, earlier this year, filmed with a helmet mounted GoPro.
You'll notice around 3:28 the very, very good reason for wearing kite killers! Also note that the back strap in no way affected my ability to ditch the kite when the gust hit ...
End of winter ride in the park on the ol' landboard, earlier this year, filmed with a helmet mounted GoPro.
You'll notice around 3:28 the very, very good reason for wearing kite killers! Also note that the back strap in no way affected my ability to ditch the kite when the gust hit ...
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Learning to Fly - The Movie!
a.k.a. 37 going on 13. Usually it's years old, not degrees Celsius although the parallel is striking! Between summer and today. Ok not so interesting, shutting up ...
Forecast looked kickin' and it coincided with a holiday! Awesome :) so despite it being 13°C I headed out to the lake at 10-ish with my Crossbows and Synergy 19 in the boot.
Pumped up the new 2011 13 cos I wanted to get some GoPro of big jumps before the end of this season :D on reflection, I probably would have had more fun on the Synergy. Oh well.
Got on the water about 11 and while it was a bit of a cold shock to the body, it wasn't that bad. I started out the Rip Plus but I just wasn't feeling it in the chop (waves!) so went and got my trusty Flydoor from the beach. Much better!
The 13 'bow is a bit twitchy ... really gotta keep the speed in it and the board to get a constant pull - not as tractor-tastic as the 16, strangely enough. Took a bit to get used to but I got it after a while. So with the camera rolling I got stuck in ...
Wind was muy gusty ... was a touch over-powered in the gusts, just powered in the lulls (didn't lose much ground downwind) and generally was just about right. Had a great time trying to go as big as I could and got slammed good many times - obviously I'm trying then according to Law of Carl :D
Had a great 3 hours or so on the water but my thighs were started to give up - literally - so I headed back into shore in the next lull. My emergence from the water was greeted with guffaws from those standing watching - they're all in full length wetsuits and I'm in t-shirt (and rash guard) and shorts; but I wasn't cold until I got off the water and was just standing around trying to pack up!
What I learned today ...
• Don't spit into the wind.
• Miyachi said, point your board downwind more when you land the big jumps!
• Still got a few degrees C more to go until it's too cold :D
• The line mount on the GoPro - don't push the camera back against the base, it points too far down. And I really need a 16Gb-er. The Rain-Xing worked good though.
• I need more time on the Rip Plus but it's hard to invest that time when the Flydoor is so much easier to ride!
• Don't breathe out on the way down, underwater ... sometimes, you don't float back up so good.
• You can (and should) direct your body by turning and looking where you want to go - you can drive your body around much easier.
• When in doubt - stomp on the rear foot!
And here's the footage ...
Probably the only one worth watching so far. Artist merit - zero. Skillful tricks - zero. Big splashes - many. I like making the big splashes.
Learning to Fly from Kevin Henry on Vimeo.
Forecast looked kickin' and it coincided with a holiday! Awesome :) so despite it being 13°C I headed out to the lake at 10-ish with my Crossbows and Synergy 19 in the boot.
Pumped up the new 2011 13 cos I wanted to get some GoPro of big jumps before the end of this season :D on reflection, I probably would have had more fun on the Synergy. Oh well.
Got on the water about 11 and while it was a bit of a cold shock to the body, it wasn't that bad. I started out the Rip Plus but I just wasn't feeling it in the chop (waves!) so went and got my trusty Flydoor from the beach. Much better!
The 13 'bow is a bit twitchy ... really gotta keep the speed in it and the board to get a constant pull - not as tractor-tastic as the 16, strangely enough. Took a bit to get used to but I got it after a while. So with the camera rolling I got stuck in ...
Wind was muy gusty ... was a touch over-powered in the gusts, just powered in the lulls (didn't lose much ground downwind) and generally was just about right. Had a great time trying to go as big as I could and got slammed good many times - obviously I'm trying then according to Law of Carl :D
Had a great 3 hours or so on the water but my thighs were started to give up - literally - so I headed back into shore in the next lull. My emergence from the water was greeted with guffaws from those standing watching - they're all in full length wetsuits and I'm in t-shirt (and rash guard) and shorts; but I wasn't cold until I got off the water and was just standing around trying to pack up!
What I learned today ...
• Don't spit into the wind.
• Miyachi said, point your board downwind more when you land the big jumps!
• Still got a few degrees C more to go until it's too cold :D
• The line mount on the GoPro - don't push the camera back against the base, it points too far down. And I really need a 16Gb-er. The Rain-Xing worked good though.
• I need more time on the Rip Plus but it's hard to invest that time when the Flydoor is so much easier to ride!
• Don't breathe out on the way down, underwater ... sometimes, you don't float back up so good.
• You can (and should) direct your body by turning and looking where you want to go - you can drive your body around much easier.
• When in doubt - stomp on the rear foot!
And here's the footage ...
Probably the only one worth watching so far. Artist merit - zero. Skillful tricks - zero. Big splashes - many. I like making the big splashes.
Learning to Fly from Kevin Henry on Vimeo.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Some pics!
Finally we have a yard big enough to lay out a kite in flat and still be able to walk around it! This yard is bigger than our last house, and THAT yard was considered frivolously enormous! It was the largest in the neighborhood by a long shot ... ah, Japan - better to build your house right out to the borders of your tiny bit of land than it is to have a bit o' lawn you can dig your toes in, keeping you away from getting intimate with the audio track of the neighbor's bodily functions :o
Click for big ones :)
My 2010 Cabrinha Crossbow 16 ... plenty of room to spare!
Synergy 19 ... the Sea Blue actually looks much nicer in the flesh - the Synergy's are truly pretty kites! Which makes it equally hard to shift to Chargers ...!
Synergy 15 has little use but also is a beautiful colour!
A completely unused Synergy 12 ... still so brand new it hurts :( just don't have the wind for it here!
Click for big ones :)
My 2010 Cabrinha Crossbow 16 ... plenty of room to spare!
Synergy 19 ... the Sea Blue actually looks much nicer in the flesh - the Synergy's are truly pretty kites! Which makes it equally hard to shift to Chargers ...!
Synergy 15 has little use but also is a beautiful colour!
A completely unused Synergy 12 ... still so brand new it hurts :( just don't have the wind for it here!
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Night kiting
... by Feyd a.k.a Hardwater Kiter. Just in case he doesn't upload anything to his blog (har!) here's a pic of his night rig in a Charger.
Quote from PKF ...
"Changed my lighting system. Put the Million in and Superflashes on tips.
I'm so gonna get arrested for causing a disturbance.
...
All lights together weigh less than a pound. Gonna have to call the authorities before I go out to give them a heads up :D"
The last, was a comment about how people have called the cops after seeing night-lighted kites and mistaking them for UFOs :/
If I can get more details or pics, I'll add them at a later date.
Quote from PKF ...
"Changed my lighting system. Put the Million in and Superflashes on tips.
I'm so gonna get arrested for causing a disturbance.
...
All lights together weigh less than a pound. Gonna have to call the authorities before I go out to give them a heads up :D"
The last, was a comment about how people have called the cops after seeing night-lighted kites and mistaking them for UFOs :/
If I can get more details or pics, I'll add them at a later date.
Monday, November 15, 2010
No joy
Went to the lake. The wind wasn't really there. Got in the water, got on the water for a bit, splashed around, got out, went home. Tits.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Yo turbo'd my Core man!
No work this weekend so we trotted down to Hamamatsu. Forecast was ass but I took a full load of kite gear and lobbed my Core 6.7 and new Ozone Turbo bar in the boot too ...
Arrived at Maisaka Beach about 4pm with a touch of wind, so I unpacked the Core and Ozone and had a play while the wife went walkies.
There was hardly any wind so set up was no problem - walked the lines out of the bag, had a quick fly so I remembered what flying on handles was like (it's been a few months!) then landed and swapped to the Turbo bar ...
Compared to my homemade thing, it's much smaller and nicer :D the amount of "depower" throw is much less, as is the trim and the leader lines are much shorter. Something to work on for the rest DIY version ...
Launched and had some play time ...
Works real nice! Strangely enough :D
Brake input is enough for turning but a bit limited for actually stopping the kite but you can trim in more.
Kite turns lovely - tight enough to turn almost on a wingtip yet not lose too much speed - and is super-stable, easily recoverable in the light winds when it luffed - quick tug on the center lines.
Tested the various safety releases ... red hat above the bar is the best without a doubt, but I'd need to train my instincts for that one. Chicken loop release with a leash to the landing handle is probably easier to do but the leash doesn't spin with the bar and that lead to tangles.
Also played unhooked and the bar could be trimmed to fly nicely like that but DAMN the whole point is to take the strain through the harness!
Compared to my Version 1.0 DIY crossober bar, I had too much depower and the leaders were too long, but they handled pretty much the same ... although being able to stall the kite with the bar on my version was handy. Probably unnecessary too :)
So I think in the end, the landboarders will love it but the buggy guys will probably stick with handles. There's a little loss of fine control that you have with handles but you gain more consistent power and a much longer ride!
Arrived at Maisaka Beach about 4pm with a touch of wind, so I unpacked the Core and Ozone and had a play while the wife went walkies.
There was hardly any wind so set up was no problem - walked the lines out of the bag, had a quick fly so I remembered what flying on handles was like (it's been a few months!) then landed and swapped to the Turbo bar ...
Compared to my homemade thing, it's much smaller and nicer :D the amount of "depower" throw is much less, as is the trim and the leader lines are much shorter. Something to work on for the rest DIY version ...
Launched and had some play time ...
Works real nice! Strangely enough :D
Brake input is enough for turning but a bit limited for actually stopping the kite but you can trim in more.
Kite turns lovely - tight enough to turn almost on a wingtip yet not lose too much speed - and is super-stable, easily recoverable in the light winds when it luffed - quick tug on the center lines.
Tested the various safety releases ... red hat above the bar is the best without a doubt, but I'd need to train my instincts for that one. Chicken loop release with a leash to the landing handle is probably easier to do but the leash doesn't spin with the bar and that lead to tangles.
Also played unhooked and the bar could be trimmed to fly nicely like that but DAMN the whole point is to take the strain through the harness!
Compared to my Version 1.0 DIY crossober bar, I had too much depower and the leaders were too long, but they handled pretty much the same ... although being able to stall the kite with the bar on my version was handy. Probably unnecessary too :)
So I think in the end, the landboarders will love it but the buggy guys will probably stick with handles. There's a little loss of fine control that you have with handles but you gain more consistent power and a much longer ride!
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Brass monkeys come to mind ...
Didn't sleep well last night cos the wife was thrashing around like a spastic and talking in her sleep, waking me up non-stop and when I finally woke up, my guts were griping so I stayed home and sat on the crapper for a while.
Got bored so drove to the lake to check the wind. It was ridable but was offshore - westerly and a little southerly - so I drove over to the Pacific coast and checked out a beach there, called Rinku Beach. Maybe - it might also be called Centrair Artificial Beach. Westerly was driving onshore around 40 knots I reckon :o I had to lean into the wind, the car was bouncing around in the carpark like an elephant was humping its leg and opening my mouth made those "blowing over the top of a bottle" noises ...! Nice little beach though, enclosed by water breaks but you could get outside them easy enough and there's enough sand and grass to setup and launch foils or arcs. Headed back to Shiga and went to Locus again. Had a chat with Miyachi and impressed him with my splicing skills then the wind kicked up and a couple of the uncles were going to the lake so I changed and charged over too ...
Dead-on cross-shore wind, a first for me at Locus or indeed anywhere - must be coming in exactly west. Bit worried about fucking up and drifting off up the lake! Wind isn't up to much by the looks of the whitecaps - I really want to use my new 13m Crossbow (in the limited edition Color 001 :D ) but decide on the 16. Yahoo! weather informs me it was 12 knots ...! Don't believe it.
Launch the Crossbow and jump on the water ... whee! bit fresh :o Noticeably cold but not take your breath away ...
Blast out, blast back it's ok, I'm making ground upwind just fine. Throw down a few jumps, get some nice floaty ones. The uncles are watching, haven't launched their kites yet ... the wind is just enough then after 10 minutes it dies right off ... the 'bow Hindenburgs on me just at the shore and I actually catch it and carry it ashore, wrap the lines up to get them out of the water then lay it all out again.
We wait a bit, and the wind picks up good again and the horizon promises more, so I launch and hit the water. Bit iffy but I'm riding and holding ground. Uncles finally launch their kites and the wind picks up more! It's a touch off-shore (eep!) and it's creating a bit of a hole nearer the shore, with a strong band way out but I don't want to get stuck all the way out there ... gradually, I dip further and further into the jet stream. It comes and goes but I keep riding for another 90 minutes till about 5pm.
Nicely powered, a little too much in the gusts but that just makes the jumps more fun :D I'm loving the Recoil upgrade to the Cab bar, doing some nice hop/toe-heel carving turns with a downloop and then unspinning the bar like a cool guy :D Also love sheeting right out or dropping the bar and then not having a tangle of balls and trim ropes! Definite must for 2010 Cab bars and freeriders!
What I learned today ...
• Recoil is the shit!
• I'm fine ON the water, warm up IN the water but once the sun goes under the horizon and I'm OFF the water, I'm freezing my nuts off. Better to change out of wet clothes and THEN pack up the kite!
• Downloop on the carve toe to heelside is sweet!
• Cross-shore is a bit scary, especially when it shifts to cross-off :o I'm less inclined to play silly buggers when I'm faced with a 3-hour walk if I get blown off downwind ...!
Got bored so drove to the lake to check the wind. It was ridable but was offshore - westerly and a little southerly - so I drove over to the Pacific coast and checked out a beach there, called Rinku Beach. Maybe - it might also be called Centrair Artificial Beach. Westerly was driving onshore around 40 knots I reckon :o I had to lean into the wind, the car was bouncing around in the carpark like an elephant was humping its leg and opening my mouth made those "blowing over the top of a bottle" noises ...! Nice little beach though, enclosed by water breaks but you could get outside them easy enough and there's enough sand and grass to setup and launch foils or arcs. Headed back to Shiga and went to Locus again. Had a chat with Miyachi and impressed him with my splicing skills then the wind kicked up and a couple of the uncles were going to the lake so I changed and charged over too ...
Dead-on cross-shore wind, a first for me at Locus or indeed anywhere - must be coming in exactly west. Bit worried about fucking up and drifting off up the lake! Wind isn't up to much by the looks of the whitecaps - I really want to use my new 13m Crossbow (in the limited edition Color 001 :D ) but decide on the 16. Yahoo! weather informs me it was 12 knots ...! Don't believe it.
Launch the Crossbow and jump on the water ... whee! bit fresh :o Noticeably cold but not take your breath away ...
Blast out, blast back it's ok, I'm making ground upwind just fine. Throw down a few jumps, get some nice floaty ones. The uncles are watching, haven't launched their kites yet ... the wind is just enough then after 10 minutes it dies right off ... the 'bow Hindenburgs on me just at the shore and I actually catch it and carry it ashore, wrap the lines up to get them out of the water then lay it all out again.
We wait a bit, and the wind picks up good again and the horizon promises more, so I launch and hit the water. Bit iffy but I'm riding and holding ground. Uncles finally launch their kites and the wind picks up more! It's a touch off-shore (eep!) and it's creating a bit of a hole nearer the shore, with a strong band way out but I don't want to get stuck all the way out there ... gradually, I dip further and further into the jet stream. It comes and goes but I keep riding for another 90 minutes till about 5pm.
Nicely powered, a little too much in the gusts but that just makes the jumps more fun :D I'm loving the Recoil upgrade to the Cab bar, doing some nice hop/toe-heel carving turns with a downloop and then unspinning the bar like a cool guy :D Also love sheeting right out or dropping the bar and then not having a tangle of balls and trim ropes! Definite must for 2010 Cab bars and freeriders!
What I learned today ...
• Recoil is the shit!
• I'm fine ON the water, warm up IN the water but once the sun goes under the horizon and I'm OFF the water, I'm freezing my nuts off. Better to change out of wet clothes and THEN pack up the kite!
• Downloop on the carve toe to heelside is sweet!
• Cross-shore is a bit scary, especially when it shifts to cross-off :o I'm less inclined to play silly buggers when I'm faced with a 3-hour walk if I get blown off downwind ...!
Friday, November 5, 2010
I'm the man! - The Movie!
At long bloody last! OMG I'm not wasting any more time meddling with that damned Sony Vegas again, trying to straighten out horizons frame by frame!
This was one of my first sessions of actually riding around, doing stuff and having fun like a REAL kiteboarder ... instead of just trying to stay on the board or battling to go upwind.
I was feeling rather impressed with myself so yes I'm trying to be tongue-in-cheek with the title ...!
Get more details of the original event here ...
This was one of my first sessions of actually riding around, doing stuff and having fun like a REAL kiteboarder ... instead of just trying to stay on the board or battling to go upwind.
I was feeling rather impressed with myself so yes I'm trying to be tongue-in-cheek with the title ...!
Get more details of the original event here ...
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
2 kites, 1 session - no cups!
Careful observation of the weather witchcraft website gpv-weather.info lead me down to the lake at 11am. Started out nicely powered on the Crossbow, but soon was wa-aaay overpowered - 8m/s was forecast but it felt like 10+. Packed it up, went back to the car and got my 15m Synergy.
Man, I'm glad I did! Had an epic session of hard riding, hard landings and a few big jumps though not as many as I'd have liked. Was much more in tune with the little arc and had a great ol' time throwing it around and going easy on the bar :)
I was the only person on the lake for about 90 minutes! The wind dropped of as others were starting to show up - I guessed they'd turned up for the afternoon blow that I guessed wasn't coming - so I slogged into shore and self-landed.
Waited around for the wind and it didn't seem to be coming. Picked up a bit, so I unpacked and re-pumped the 'bow ... faaaark!
Got about 30 minutes of noodling around before I muffed a jump and the kite inverted WTF!!! How about that, the LEI inverted and the arc didn't. Horseshit. Recovered the inverted LEI with arc technique but the right steering line was wrapped around the power lines. Unhooked and sorted that out then spent about 10 minutes body dragging around trying to find my board ... found it then noticed the wind had died so I slogged into shore again ...
The rest of the afternoon was spent telling people "No seriously I'm not cold at all in my shorts and t-shirt/rash guard. Yes I know you're wearing a full-length semi-dry suit but I'm still not cold!" and waiting for the wind. There was a gust around 4pm that got us all excited but it didn't pan out so I called it a day ... apparently the wind picked up as I left the beach but by then I was actually starting to feel cold. And very hungry!
What I learned today ...
• An LEI can invert. It sucks.
• Stopper ball on the Navigator bar is the best idea ever!
• Landings seemed much harsher today, maybe it was the smaller kite. Certainly need to send the kite more to launch.
• The wind in winter is a fickle bitch, but when it's on - it's ALL on! Should have taken the smaller board with me too!
• I need more constant wind so I can start trying aerial transitions etc again ...
• Lazy turns (big radius) up the top, tight turns down the bottom keeps the kite speed and pull constant.
• I'm becoming an expert at packing the very large Crossbow in to the very small Cabrinha bag ... deflate, lay out, roll wingtips into center in flat folds, fold the kite LE to TE in thirds and here's the important bit : put the end with the wing tips into the bottom of the bag and pull the bag edges up over the kite, then zip the flap up and stuff the folded end into the bag ... it should almost fit perfectly.
Man, I'm glad I did! Had an epic session of hard riding, hard landings and a few big jumps though not as many as I'd have liked. Was much more in tune with the little arc and had a great ol' time throwing it around and going easy on the bar :)
I was the only person on the lake for about 90 minutes! The wind dropped of as others were starting to show up - I guessed they'd turned up for the afternoon blow that I guessed wasn't coming - so I slogged into shore and self-landed.
Waited around for the wind and it didn't seem to be coming. Picked up a bit, so I unpacked and re-pumped the 'bow ... faaaark!
Got about 30 minutes of noodling around before I muffed a jump and the kite inverted WTF!!! How about that, the LEI inverted and the arc didn't. Horseshit. Recovered the inverted LEI with arc technique but the right steering line was wrapped around the power lines. Unhooked and sorted that out then spent about 10 minutes body dragging around trying to find my board ... found it then noticed the wind had died so I slogged into shore again ...
The rest of the afternoon was spent telling people "No seriously I'm not cold at all in my shorts and t-shirt/rash guard. Yes I know you're wearing a full-length semi-dry suit but I'm still not cold!" and waiting for the wind. There was a gust around 4pm that got us all excited but it didn't pan out so I called it a day ... apparently the wind picked up as I left the beach but by then I was actually starting to feel cold. And very hungry!
What I learned today ...
• An LEI can invert. It sucks.
• Stopper ball on the Navigator bar is the best idea ever!
• Landings seemed much harsher today, maybe it was the smaller kite. Certainly need to send the kite more to launch.
• The wind in winter is a fickle bitch, but when it's on - it's ALL on! Should have taken the smaller board with me too!
• I need more constant wind so I can start trying aerial transitions etc again ...
• Lazy turns (big radius) up the top, tight turns down the bottom keeps the kite speed and pull constant.
• I'm becoming an expert at packing the very large Crossbow in to the very small Cabrinha bag ... deflate, lay out, roll wingtips into center in flat folds, fold the kite LE to TE in thirds and here's the important bit : put the end with the wing tips into the bottom of the bag and pull the bag edges up over the kite, then zip the flap up and stuff the folded end into the bag ... it should almost fit perfectly.
Monday, November 1, 2010
This is ...
... snowkiting! A classic moive! Hoping to get me a piece of that action this year too ...
snowkite "the way" 2010 from simoneborgi on Vimeo.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Typhoon-powered Synergy
I did sneaked out of work at 10:15am and headed for the lake :D
Day 2 of the typhoon in the Pacific south of here, throwing up big wind but today the rain had cleared and the wind had eased off. A little. Got to the lake about 10:45am and checked the wind. Nukin' somewhat and probably way too much for the 16m Crossbow although I notice erm That Guy is out on his 15m Bandit.
I decide on a Synergy and as the wind was forecast to die off, chose the 19m ... you should have seen Auntie's eyes when I told her it was a 19!
Unpack, inflate, attach lines, try to launch and - Bowtie City, population me. WTF have I left the deflate zipper open or something? I manage to untangle bowties a couple of times, but it just won't open the wingtips when it gets into the air and now it's losing pressure and has done multiple twists. Leash the bar to a sand bag and untangle, check the lines. Meanwhile That Guy has landed his 15 cos he's over-powered ...
Trim in 1/2 way then try again - no worries to be launching! Ah, so that was the problem. Kite feels muy powered on the beach, should be a good session. Air temp on the roadside signs is 15 degrees C and of course the wind chill is healthy but the water still feels warm! Away we go, working the kite to get out from the shore - wind is directly onshore. Head out to the K-zone and start playing ...
Synergy is nicely powered; as I think it bloody should be, it's 19m of sail up in a large amount of wind! I guess but obviously I'm spoiled by the Cabrinha - bar pressure is ... substantial :D maybe I should stop trying to fly it like a Crossbow, muscling the bar in and hauling it around. I try to get into foil mode, turning the kite without sheeting in. Better. The arc was a good choice cos it's gusty as a mofo out here!
I'm not really feeling having to work the kite almost the whole time to make power and thoughts run through my head of selling all 3 Synergys :( Also, much harder to go upwind and keep the kite powered ... requires a lot of finesse on the bar and to not be choking it and keep the speed in it. Work it like you hate it goes through my head ...
Despite my struggles, I'm having fun - although I can't seem to jump as easy as I can on the 'bow. A few jumps are great but most are let-downs. One feels like about 5m or what I seem to remember as 5m from the view off the QEII diving board to the water ... but then the water at QEII was not rolling with whitecaps! One jump I guess I sent the kite properly and I went up like a fucking rocket WHEE! pity I didn't land it :D
Synergy on the Navigator bar flies nicely, and although it stills jelly-fishes when I "ride waves" or toddle off downwind, it's not as severe as with the Zero7 bar and there seems to be no chance of inverts.
The grip is grippy when wet although gets squeaky (WTF?) and I still prefer the Zero7 bar grip.
Depower on the cam-cleat is nice, that's a good change. I use it a little till I get used to the gusts and just ride them out, leaving the kite trimmed in just a smidge.
Spinning rotorhead thing is good too for the OCD in me to keep the safety line untwisted and clear.
Probably not related to the Navigator, but the kite went down at the edge of the window after I muffed another jump ... I'd just let go the bar totally. After get dragged a bit, my head popped above the water in time to watch the Synergy hit the water LE into the wind, tips clap together then literally bounce right back up into the air :D neat!
So, I got 2 and a half hours on the water in what GPV-weather.info tells me was 10-12m/s aka 20 to 24 knots but it had to be gusting over 30. Talking to Miyachi, he thought it was 15m/s gusting to 20 (30 gusting to 40 knots :o ) and he was looking at the live weather station feed from the windsurf club down the road. Most of the time, the Synergy 19 was powered fine but often required more board speed than I was comfy with in the conditions to really park'n'ride and I'm too lazy to work the kite that much ...
... mind you, with all that bar pressure and having to work the kite, it probably wasn't a bad thing cos it kept me warm. Once I got off the water and convinced Auntie to land the kite for me, I realized that my arms were cold as the rashguard was holding water in it's sleeves. Got back to the club house and had a quick shower and put my clothes back on and noticed how unbelievably cold my nuts were ... yikes.
What I learned today ...
• Trim in about 1/2 way when you try to launch the Synergy on the Navigator bar.
• Keep the Synergy moving and don't choke it by sheeting in hard when you want to go across wind.
• Don't sheet in when you want to turn the kite; just pull on that side and let the kite zoom through the turn.
• Be real aggressive with the Synergy when changing direction, flying lower across the window than you normally would with the 'bow or Silberpfeil.
• I guess like a C-kite you really have to work the board direction up- and downwind to keep speed up, you can't just sheet in and accelerate away ...
• Wear bloody sunblock you numpty! Ow.
Day 2 of the typhoon in the Pacific south of here, throwing up big wind but today the rain had cleared and the wind had eased off. A little. Got to the lake about 10:45am and checked the wind. Nukin' somewhat and probably way too much for the 16m Crossbow although I notice erm That Guy is out on his 15m Bandit.
I decide on a Synergy and as the wind was forecast to die off, chose the 19m ... you should have seen Auntie's eyes when I told her it was a 19!
Unpack, inflate, attach lines, try to launch and - Bowtie City, population me. WTF have I left the deflate zipper open or something? I manage to untangle bowties a couple of times, but it just won't open the wingtips when it gets into the air and now it's losing pressure and has done multiple twists. Leash the bar to a sand bag and untangle, check the lines. Meanwhile That Guy has landed his 15 cos he's over-powered ...
Trim in 1/2 way then try again - no worries to be launching! Ah, so that was the problem. Kite feels muy powered on the beach, should be a good session. Air temp on the roadside signs is 15 degrees C and of course the wind chill is healthy but the water still feels warm! Away we go, working the kite to get out from the shore - wind is directly onshore. Head out to the K-zone and start playing ...
Synergy is nicely powered; as I think it bloody should be, it's 19m of sail up in a large amount of wind! I guess but obviously I'm spoiled by the Cabrinha - bar pressure is ... substantial :D maybe I should stop trying to fly it like a Crossbow, muscling the bar in and hauling it around. I try to get into foil mode, turning the kite without sheeting in. Better. The arc was a good choice cos it's gusty as a mofo out here!
I'm not really feeling having to work the kite almost the whole time to make power and thoughts run through my head of selling all 3 Synergys :( Also, much harder to go upwind and keep the kite powered ... requires a lot of finesse on the bar and to not be choking it and keep the speed in it. Work it like you hate it goes through my head ...
Despite my struggles, I'm having fun - although I can't seem to jump as easy as I can on the 'bow. A few jumps are great but most are let-downs. One feels like about 5m or what I seem to remember as 5m from the view off the QEII diving board to the water ... but then the water at QEII was not rolling with whitecaps! One jump I guess I sent the kite properly and I went up like a fucking rocket WHEE! pity I didn't land it :D
Synergy on the Navigator bar flies nicely, and although it stills jelly-fishes when I "ride waves" or toddle off downwind, it's not as severe as with the Zero7 bar and there seems to be no chance of inverts.
The grip is grippy when wet although gets squeaky (WTF?) and I still prefer the Zero7 bar grip.
Depower on the cam-cleat is nice, that's a good change. I use it a little till I get used to the gusts and just ride them out, leaving the kite trimmed in just a smidge.
Spinning rotorhead thing is good too for the OCD in me to keep the safety line untwisted and clear.
Probably not related to the Navigator, but the kite went down at the edge of the window after I muffed another jump ... I'd just let go the bar totally. After get dragged a bit, my head popped above the water in time to watch the Synergy hit the water LE into the wind, tips clap together then literally bounce right back up into the air :D neat!
So, I got 2 and a half hours on the water in what GPV-weather.info tells me was 10-12m/s aka 20 to 24 knots but it had to be gusting over 30. Talking to Miyachi, he thought it was 15m/s gusting to 20 (30 gusting to 40 knots :o ) and he was looking at the live weather station feed from the windsurf club down the road. Most of the time, the Synergy 19 was powered fine but often required more board speed than I was comfy with in the conditions to really park'n'ride and I'm too lazy to work the kite that much ...
... mind you, with all that bar pressure and having to work the kite, it probably wasn't a bad thing cos it kept me warm. Once I got off the water and convinced Auntie to land the kite for me, I realized that my arms were cold as the rashguard was holding water in it's sleeves. Got back to the club house and had a quick shower and put my clothes back on and noticed how unbelievably cold my nuts were ... yikes.
What I learned today ...
• Trim in about 1/2 way when you try to launch the Synergy on the Navigator bar.
• Keep the Synergy moving and don't choke it by sheeting in hard when you want to go across wind.
• Don't sheet in when you want to turn the kite; just pull on that side and let the kite zoom through the turn.
• Be real aggressive with the Synergy when changing direction, flying lower across the window than you normally would with the 'bow or Silberpfeil.
• I guess like a C-kite you really have to work the board direction up- and downwind to keep speed up, you can't just sheet in and accelerate away ...
• Wear bloody sunblock you numpty! Ow.
Monday, October 25, 2010
The Royal Skunkage
Checked out the live cam at Locus and thought it might be worth a drive-by. Drove-by, thought it might be worth getting out of the car and having a closer look. Had a closer look and thought it might be worth unpacking the kite. Unpacked the kite and AH-HAHAHAHA says the God of Wind, here have this big skunk to go with your zebra pants.
:-/
Packed up and went home.
:-/
Packed up and went home.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Epic, gusting to Stupid
Well from my point of view anyway ...!
Wind forecast was 5m/s on one site, 10m/s on the other - we got the latter, at the very least!
I'd wrangled a day off work and had headed down to the lake about 1:30pm. Got set up (gah! pumping) and ready to go just as the wind arrived around 2pm and two tacks saw me right upwind into the K-zone - out past the 100m markers from the beach. Aah, nicely powered so far! Oh but wait - here comes some more wind ...!
Initially, I seriously contemplated going home and getting my 15m Synergy as I ended up with the Crossbow trimmed right in and was fighting hard to keep an edge and go upwind but after the first jump, all thoughts of less power were yoinked from my mind!
What a rush! Straight up into the air higher than I'd ever been before and as I dangled there, I could feel the kite surging up even further but I sheeted out a little and gently lowered myself back to the water ... and so the tone was set for the next 3 hours or so! Massive jumps and long hangtimes with power enough for riding toe-side, carving the 'waves' on the lake and sliding turns miles downwind! Even landed a jump blind, by mistake and rode along for a bit thinking "WTF do I do now?" until I fell over, saving myself the hassle of trying to figure out how to turn around :D
Kept riding till just before dark, about 5:30pm now :( last one off the water and packed up on my own. The wind was still blowing good and I was jumping every chance I could but I was getting tired and was ending up on my ass more often ... still, what an epic days riding!
What I learned today ...
• My initial success at aerial transitions must have been Beginners Luck.
• Straps get loose too easy and my feet are fond of slipping out, leaving the board dangling from one foot :(
• Without my fooling around on the shore with the kites "jumping", I wouldn't have been quite so prepared to completely relax and enjoy the honking big air time I got today!
• It's much easier to land a jump you muff the launch up of, when you have time to move the kite or swing yourself around.
• Which is good, cos either the angle the waves were coming in on my 'goofy' side were messing up my take-offs or I'm not as ambidextrous as I thought I was! Totally fouled up jumping that way and it got worse as the day went on ...
• Watch the chicken loop! Somehow, mine had unhooked and I don't know for how long but I'd been riding around attached to the kite by nothing but the donkey dick :o
• Board speed + power in the kite + good carve to load the kite = mega-WHEE! so don't be a pussy and ride hard!
Wind forecast was 5m/s on one site, 10m/s on the other - we got the latter, at the very least!
I'd wrangled a day off work and had headed down to the lake about 1:30pm. Got set up (gah! pumping) and ready to go just as the wind arrived around 2pm and two tacks saw me right upwind into the K-zone - out past the 100m markers from the beach. Aah, nicely powered so far! Oh but wait - here comes some more wind ...!
Initially, I seriously contemplated going home and getting my 15m Synergy as I ended up with the Crossbow trimmed right in and was fighting hard to keep an edge and go upwind but after the first jump, all thoughts of less power were yoinked from my mind!
What a rush! Straight up into the air higher than I'd ever been before and as I dangled there, I could feel the kite surging up even further but I sheeted out a little and gently lowered myself back to the water ... and so the tone was set for the next 3 hours or so! Massive jumps and long hangtimes with power enough for riding toe-side, carving the 'waves' on the lake and sliding turns miles downwind! Even landed a jump blind, by mistake and rode along for a bit thinking "WTF do I do now?" until I fell over, saving myself the hassle of trying to figure out how to turn around :D
Kept riding till just before dark, about 5:30pm now :( last one off the water and packed up on my own. The wind was still blowing good and I was jumping every chance I could but I was getting tired and was ending up on my ass more often ... still, what an epic days riding!
What I learned today ...
• My initial success at aerial transitions must have been Beginners Luck.
• Straps get loose too easy and my feet are fond of slipping out, leaving the board dangling from one foot :(
• Without my fooling around on the shore with the kites "jumping", I wouldn't have been quite so prepared to completely relax and enjoy the honking big air time I got today!
• It's much easier to land a jump you muff the launch up of, when you have time to move the kite or swing yourself around.
• Which is good, cos either the angle the waves were coming in on my 'goofy' side were messing up my take-offs or I'm not as ambidextrous as I thought I was! Totally fouled up jumping that way and it got worse as the day went on ...
• Watch the chicken loop! Somehow, mine had unhooked and I don't know for how long but I'd been riding around attached to the kite by nothing but the donkey dick :o
• Board speed + power in the kite + good carve to load the kite = mega-WHEE! so don't be a pussy and ride hard!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Sunday Slog
Everyone was telling me on Friday about how great Saturday was going to be, but I had to work and couldn't find a sub ... Sunday was supposed to be ok though so went out for lunch with the wife and she came down to the lake with me.
We sat around waiting for the wind which was due at 3pm. Hiro-chan did his homework, the wife poured over the shopping catalog (we need curtains), people sat around talking or watching DVDs in someone's car. I was productive and tested some ideas for a depower line with core ... looks like I've got a working prototype! Wind finally started to pick up around 3:30pm so there was a mass migration from the carpark to the beach.
The wind was picking up so I pumped like a schoolboy on his first hot date and rigged quickly, only to join everyone else in standing looking at the horizon like the Moai statues of Easter Island ...! Finally, someone hit the water. They were slogging so we all waited. And waited ...
... finally the wind picked up enough that I wanted to give it a shot. Fail. Back on shore, more waiting with the kite parked at the edge of the window. Finally, people were looking powered. Damn, if I'd had the Speed 2.5 I'd have been riding already!
Finally get on the water! Nicely powered on the Crossbow so I throw some jumps to show off to the wife :D Later, she tells me that the best ones were over my head in height and the rest were above waist height ... she was impressed with my progress since the last time she saw me ride - my ego is suitably massaged ;) despite my laughable attempts!
Fight my way upwind away from the pack and proceed to play. Enjoy some toeside riding and carving turns, still can't nail the aerial transition ... pushing way out past the beach to make the most of the wind but it's dropping again and I don't want to get out here with a downed kite, drifting into the trees like Mr Helix did on Friday.
Slog back onto the shore in the falling wind and check the time - sun is just brushing the top of the hills, must have had about 90 minutes on the water. Hmm, may be time to call it a day. Wife has headed back to the car cos the wind is cold. I land the kite and start to pack up ... naturally, as soon as I empty the LE bladder the wind picks up :/
I'm walking to pick up my board before heading back to the car when So comes in and drops his kite - it looks like he's in a paddy, but as I get closer I see he's opened a cut above his eye and is bleeding. Turns out he smacked himself in the head with his board! He goes back to his car and calls around for a hospital (long story, it's how things are done here ...!) and I pack his kite up for him - I owed him one for packing up the Phantom when I busted my wrist!
So not a bad day, but I would've had another hour on the Silberpfeil ...
What I learned today ...
• Getting my boost-thing down with the 'bow ... nowhere near as much hangtime as ol' Relentless but it's pretty good. Use kite speed to lift, not sheeting in hard ...
• Much easier to ride toeside as the 'bow is more inclined to keep pulling downwind. I think a lot of that is to do with the Speed - when I switch the board around, the increased drag shoots the Speed forward in the window and I lose power, trying to ride downwind with a kite that is trying to go as far upwind as it can ...!
• I really must start jumping on flat water - or stop boosting up the face of waves - cos I'm sure it's reinforcing bad habits :D
• My "lifting the leg" muscles have finally developed - I can swing my legs up without feeling like an old man :D
We sat around waiting for the wind which was due at 3pm. Hiro-chan did his homework, the wife poured over the shopping catalog (we need curtains), people sat around talking or watching DVDs in someone's car. I was productive and tested some ideas for a depower line with core ... looks like I've got a working prototype! Wind finally started to pick up around 3:30pm so there was a mass migration from the carpark to the beach.
The wind was picking up so I pumped like a schoolboy on his first hot date and rigged quickly, only to join everyone else in standing looking at the horizon like the Moai statues of Easter Island ...! Finally, someone hit the water. They were slogging so we all waited. And waited ...
... finally the wind picked up enough that I wanted to give it a shot. Fail. Back on shore, more waiting with the kite parked at the edge of the window. Finally, people were looking powered. Damn, if I'd had the Speed 2.5 I'd have been riding already!
Finally get on the water! Nicely powered on the Crossbow so I throw some jumps to show off to the wife :D Later, she tells me that the best ones were over my head in height and the rest were above waist height ... she was impressed with my progress since the last time she saw me ride - my ego is suitably massaged ;) despite my laughable attempts!
Fight my way upwind away from the pack and proceed to play. Enjoy some toeside riding and carving turns, still can't nail the aerial transition ... pushing way out past the beach to make the most of the wind but it's dropping again and I don't want to get out here with a downed kite, drifting into the trees like Mr Helix did on Friday.
Slog back onto the shore in the falling wind and check the time - sun is just brushing the top of the hills, must have had about 90 minutes on the water. Hmm, may be time to call it a day. Wife has headed back to the car cos the wind is cold. I land the kite and start to pack up ... naturally, as soon as I empty the LE bladder the wind picks up :/
I'm walking to pick up my board before heading back to the car when So comes in and drops his kite - it looks like he's in a paddy, but as I get closer I see he's opened a cut above his eye and is bleeding. Turns out he smacked himself in the head with his board! He goes back to his car and calls around for a hospital (long story, it's how things are done here ...!) and I pack his kite up for him - I owed him one for packing up the Phantom when I busted my wrist!
So not a bad day, but I would've had another hour on the Silberpfeil ...
What I learned today ...
• Getting my boost-thing down with the 'bow ... nowhere near as much hangtime as ol' Relentless but it's pretty good. Use kite speed to lift, not sheeting in hard ...
• Much easier to ride toeside as the 'bow is more inclined to keep pulling downwind. I think a lot of that is to do with the Speed - when I switch the board around, the increased drag shoots the Speed forward in the window and I lose power, trying to ride downwind with a kite that is trying to go as far upwind as it can ...!
• I really must start jumping on flat water - or stop boosting up the face of waves - cos I'm sure it's reinforcing bad habits :D
• My "lifting the leg" muscles have finally developed - I can swing my legs up without feeling like an old man :D
Friday, October 15, 2010
Friday Frash
Hmm, doesn't work as well as a title like "Thursday Thrash" does ...
Skipped out on work early and hit the lake, arriving about 3:30pm. Had to pump up the Crossbow cos the Silberpfeil is out of action. The wind up for sure, and I would have thought twice about launching ol' Relentless ... but probably would have anyway :D wind was forecast to drop off as sunset approached.
Back on the Crossbow was a bit of a shock! Felt like zero bar pressure after the Silberpfeil and turned a bunch faster - kite was all over the sky will I got my LEI touch back. Despite all the whitecaps though, there wasn't much excitement on shore with the 'bow ... hmm. Oh well into the water.
Got up and riding ok although it was a hard bloody slog trying to go upwind. Got a couple of line lengths off shore and just started riding beam tacks, playing around.
My jumping was off - different feel to the Speed, different technique too. I think a lot of my 'jumps' involved me just standing up and jumping off the water by myself, without the kite :D started to get the hang of using the kite after a while and had some nice floaty poppy jumps. Yes, very different to the Flysurfer! Gotta actually send the kite rather than just pulling in the bar! One great thing about the 'bow though ... I intentionally overflew it several times, swinging underneath it like a pendulum and of course it didn't collapse and didn't fall out of the sky too much either. Nice.
Tried some aerial transitions but couldn't get anything - best I got was not sinking as the kite changed directions. MUST have been beginners luck, that other day! Did manage to lob myself downwind at one point, ralley-esque with the board flying off my feet towards my head :o Also landed on my back hard too which was unpleasant but not painful - but I can see how people break ribs!
The wind died off and I had to slog to get back to shore, narrowly avoided having to walk! Oh how I do miss the Speed - I would have had another 30 minutes riding if I'd had the Silberpfeil in the air! Still, beats the ass off sitting in front of TV ;)
What I learned today ...
• I love my Flysurfer.
• I hate pumping.
• Need a helmet.
• Open your eyes when body-dragging - dragging headfirst into the board hurts.
• The 'bow is very fussy about body position or stance relative to making power.
Skipped out on work early and hit the lake, arriving about 3:30pm. Had to pump up the Crossbow cos the Silberpfeil is out of action. The wind up for sure, and I would have thought twice about launching ol' Relentless ... but probably would have anyway :D wind was forecast to drop off as sunset approached.
Back on the Crossbow was a bit of a shock! Felt like zero bar pressure after the Silberpfeil and turned a bunch faster - kite was all over the sky will I got my LEI touch back. Despite all the whitecaps though, there wasn't much excitement on shore with the 'bow ... hmm. Oh well into the water.
Got up and riding ok although it was a hard bloody slog trying to go upwind. Got a couple of line lengths off shore and just started riding beam tacks, playing around.
My jumping was off - different feel to the Speed, different technique too. I think a lot of my 'jumps' involved me just standing up and jumping off the water by myself, without the kite :D started to get the hang of using the kite after a while and had some nice floaty poppy jumps. Yes, very different to the Flysurfer! Gotta actually send the kite rather than just pulling in the bar! One great thing about the 'bow though ... I intentionally overflew it several times, swinging underneath it like a pendulum and of course it didn't collapse and didn't fall out of the sky too much either. Nice.
Tried some aerial transitions but couldn't get anything - best I got was not sinking as the kite changed directions. MUST have been beginners luck, that other day! Did manage to lob myself downwind at one point, ralley-esque with the board flying off my feet towards my head :o Also landed on my back hard too which was unpleasant but not painful - but I can see how people break ribs!
The wind died off and I had to slog to get back to shore, narrowly avoided having to walk! Oh how I do miss the Speed - I would have had another 30 minutes riding if I'd had the Silberpfeil in the air! Still, beats the ass off sitting in front of TV ;)
What I learned today ...
• I love my Flysurfer.
• I hate pumping.
• Need a helmet.
• Open your eyes when body-dragging - dragging headfirst into the board hurts.
• The 'bow is very fussy about body position or stance relative to making power.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
A session too far
Skivved off work and went to the lake. Got there about 3:30pm and unpacked the Silberpfeil and got on the water; just me and Auntie were there.
Tough slog to get upwind in the light breeze but I got a few line lengths off the beach in the direct onshore wind, then started playing. Wind picked up and I forced myself to try toeside both directions and toe- to heelside carving turns. Tried to jump higher and higher with the kite, which lead to a mixed bag of results :D A couple of times I collapsed the kite, once I dropped it and got it a little tangled but relaunched it fine. Several times I screwed up and slammed the kite LE down :(
Kept riding after the sun slipped behind the hills in the west and kept trying to jump ever higher ... guess I pushed it too far cos I ended up with my head underwater, ass in the air and must have slammed the kite LE down again real hard. Relaunched the kite and noticed it flew a bit odd and looked a bit odd so I recovered my board and rode back to the beach.
Landed the kite and found an A bridle line had ripped the knot off a LCL so I replaced that but when I relaunched, noticed that a rib on one side looked funny. Landed the kite again and checked it out - yikes, ripped it through the middle, LE to TE! Time to pack up ... just as well I did cos that was when I discovered that the Spare Parts line had be shredded - only the core was keeping a 40cm section together :o
Piss. So I got to send it away for repairs ... and will be forced to pump up my Xbow if I want to ride any more :(
What I learned today ...
• The Silberpfeil is not indestructable :D
• I need to figure out how to avoid nosediving the kite at full power ...
• Don't land jumps with your knees straight ...!
• Really tighten down the lower straps on my harness so it sits snug under my butt cheeks, then the leg straps tight then upper straps tight-ish ... eases the wedgie effect.
• Don't trust the stick in the ground to backstall land the kite - especially if it gets wrapped up into the safety release! Borntofli's method is much better ... walk down the FLS line.
Tough slog to get upwind in the light breeze but I got a few line lengths off the beach in the direct onshore wind, then started playing. Wind picked up and I forced myself to try toeside both directions and toe- to heelside carving turns. Tried to jump higher and higher with the kite, which lead to a mixed bag of results :D A couple of times I collapsed the kite, once I dropped it and got it a little tangled but relaunched it fine. Several times I screwed up and slammed the kite LE down :(
Kept riding after the sun slipped behind the hills in the west and kept trying to jump ever higher ... guess I pushed it too far cos I ended up with my head underwater, ass in the air and must have slammed the kite LE down again real hard. Relaunched the kite and noticed it flew a bit odd and looked a bit odd so I recovered my board and rode back to the beach.
Landed the kite and found an A bridle line had ripped the knot off a LCL so I replaced that but when I relaunched, noticed that a rib on one side looked funny. Landed the kite again and checked it out - yikes, ripped it through the middle, LE to TE! Time to pack up ... just as well I did cos that was when I discovered that the Spare Parts line had be shredded - only the core was keeping a 40cm section together :o
Piss. So I got to send it away for repairs ... and will be forced to pump up my Xbow if I want to ride any more :(
What I learned today ...
• The Silberpfeil is not indestructable :D
• I need to figure out how to avoid nosediving the kite at full power ...
• Don't land jumps with your knees straight ...!
• Really tighten down the lower straps on my harness so it sits snug under my butt cheeks, then the leg straps tight then upper straps tight-ish ... eases the wedgie effect.
• Don't trust the stick in the ground to backstall land the kite - especially if it gets wrapped up into the safety release! Borntofli's method is much better ... walk down the FLS line.
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