Forecast looked ok - as good as the last time I was out there anyway - so I hit the lake.
Got on the water about 5 I think, nicely powered on the Flyradical and the 21 ... doing jumps and rotations, trying to stick the ball under the guidance block again but the wind is dropping. Having to concentrate on the riding to hold ground so I give up on the 'radical and get the 'door.
Still easily riding upwind, but the jumps are getting lame and I'm only just getting around on the back-rolls. Then my jumps are all turning into down-loop transitions cos there's just no wind to ride the landing out, without looping the kite.
By now, there's only me and a couple of directional riders on the water and I'm the only one not going downwind. I'm feeling pretty impressed with myself and my gear ... I should have known better :D
Fall over being silly bugger and lose the board, so I drag back to it. Not really paying attention, just enjoying the cool water and the warm evening, the glow of the sun behind the fog when ... the wind just DIES.
The kite stalls at the edge, and I wait for it to drop so I can pull a steering line but instead, it flies FORWARDS and almost lands on me. I swim backwards from it but there's literally NO WIND to relaunch it. I float around for a bit, check the horizon 'upwind' but there's nothing coming ... sigh, another swim I guess 0_o
I wrap my lines up carefully this time, properly at the bar, a hitch near the kite then wind on as much of the bridle as I dare and hitch that too. Swim to the board - it's not gone far - and head for the shore ...
Of course, I'm way the hell down the other end again and have set myself up for the longest possible swim. Again. Murphy screws me again.
Drag the kite in, push the board ahead of me ... probably a 30-minute-swim but it feels like an hour. The kite has got water in it again, but cos I've wrapped the lines and bridles up well, it's easier to deal with on the beach, soggy. Drains easily and I roll it up, start walking out ... then Miyachi turns up with the van! I get a nice ride back to the club house and someones brought my bag and other board back :) that's nice!
Lay the kite out, shake off the sand. There's only one inconsequential tangle in the bridle that's soon shaken out so otherwise, I'm good! There has to be a better way of getting the kite in though ...
It'll all learn me for crowing over everyone else's having to walk upwind eh!
Mood of the Session is happy, smug, humble-pie.
Moment of the Day was popping a big jump right in front of Mr Fujii, turning around to look down at him and STILL riding further upwind :D
Weather was recorded as 8 knots, 19°C (ZOMG!) 61% at 5pm falling to ... 1 knot LOL gusts to 14 knots at 4pm. Water was nice and flat again too.
What I learned today...
• If the wind is dropping and you don't want to quit riding, taking a long-ass tack all the way out towards Otsu is not the best idea - stay closer to shore with shorter tacks. Better to walk than swim!!!
• The Speed3 21 is a dangerous kite because it WILL fly in sweet-fuck-all wind ... so I've become overly cocky about just how little wind I will actually try to ride in, and how far away from the beach I'll push it.
• And if you're up and moving with apparent wind, you don't notice if you're scarily out of wind ... so you don't stay on top of keeping the kite loading and - well, you know the rest.
• Wrapping the lines up properly AND as far up to the bridle as you can is the way to do it.
• Get the kite over onto it's trailing edge while it's still full of air.
• I'm gonna have fun trying to dry this big white monster ...
No comments:
Post a Comment