An experiment

Supposed to be pretty good wind tonight and when I got to the lake, it looked like it was cranking so I thought I'd try out the 19m Charger, figuring it'd be about like my 16m Crossbow. Kinda.

Naturally, the wind fell away just as I arrived at the beach 0_o Mr Fujii was on his 10m SB but he was floudering, same with Soh on his 12m Havoc. Nuts.
Inflate the Charger easily, then launch ... huh. No tip clapping but it lurks about halfway up the window until I trim the front lines. Guess it needs more then ...

I try to ride in what I know is too light wind ... I reckon it's maybe 10-12 knots. I struggle to get up, slog downwind and walk back. Repeat ...
Everyone else gives up. Gusts are getting more on and off, they come through stronger though and finally I'm riding them out, throwing a few jumps and even a couple of back-rolls.

Daylight is fading but the wind is right up and I'm riding upwind ok, parking and riding some too. Charger works real nice when it's powered but for a 19 and me, that seems to be 16 knots plus. I'm betting the butter zone will be 18 to 26 knots.

I had a nice time, got to try the Charger finally and was happy enough with that!

Thoughts on bar pressure ...
This has been coming for a while.
I find that my 2011 Crossbow 13m is just right - not too heavy, not too light and I don't have stiff elbows or forearms at the end of a big session. Taking that as a base line ... add in some arbitrary numbers! :D
Let's consider the 2010 Xbow 16m which is a frightful thing. Bar pressure for turning is very light compared to sheeting in - it always reminds me of balancing a broom upright in the palm of your hand ... as soon as it's off-center, it's going. The kite happily whips around a turn but doesn't take much bar pressure to do so. Sheeting in when riding though - sweet baby Jesus wrapped in bacon strips! Forearm pumps, blisters, callouses ... like a teenager boy's palms! Let's call it sheeting pressure +7 and turning pressure +1 versus the 13. I can ride it for hours but I'm hurting the follow the day/week.
The Charger 19 has only slightly higher pressure for sheeting in but is easily held with one hand when trimmed right; even when it's not trimmed well, it's still pretty easy to hold. There's more pressure when initiating turns (naturally), kind of a springy feel and the amount of time you need to hold it is short - Charger turns faster than my Crossbows - but it would wear on you, if you had to work it all day. Let's say sheeting pressure +2 and turning pressure +3, compared to the very comfy 13m Xbow. I seem to remember the 15 being the same ... but the Synergy series having say, sheeting pressure +2 and turning pressure +4.
Flysurfer Speed3 21 is a big kite with a big bar that pulls like a big bad thing. But it's surprisingly nippy unless you insist on muscling it around like a over-steroided post-lobotomy rugby-player (is there any other type of rubgy player?). Bar pressure for sheeting is not too bad and neither is turning, although you have to hold it in the turn longer which gets tiring ... I'll assign sheeting pressure +1 and turning pressure +2 so long as you don't fight the kite - and yes, both the Charger and the Speed can be flown one-handed while riding. Speed2 19 I remember being just a touch more than the Speed3 - say +0.5 for each. Unity 12 I found to be the same as the big Speed3.
Ok nerd-fest over ...

Moment of the Day was simply parking and riding then launching jumps. And not getting pissed when I had to walk ... guess I was just in the right mood!

Wind strength was recorded as 10 to 12 knots with gusts to 20 - I guess that was when I was having fun with the park'n'ride ...

What I learned today ...
• Charger needs a lot of wind to pull easily :(
• You can whip it around but it doesn't help much if you're sinking.
• You CAN whip it around really fast but it's better to be smoother with it.
• The tendency for arcs to "flare" at the bottom of a tight turn is reduced with the Charger and Navigator combo but still occurs. It's more exaggerated on the side with the safety on it too, as the line slips through the ring ...
• Makes best power on the down stroke, close to the water and with pressure on the rear lines. Flies most consistently when levered around on the stopper ball.
• Jumps are more floaty than I remember with the Synergy, but that might just be that my technique has improved. The first one dropped me but the rest I redirected sooner and the landings were feather like. Only a couple of meters though :o

Taking a spin in the light wind

Damned blogger has lost my entire post :( not impressed again.

In summary ...
Went to lake at 1pm. Played with Charger 19 for an hour - good kite, launched with less than full inflation fairly easily, flies nice in light wind so long as it's moving.
Wind picks up, ride with the Silberpfeil.
Chase off a jet-ski asshole from the swimming area.
Not enough wind to make the big jumps, I see Uncle Pyro doing back rolls so I decide to give rotations a go too.
Start with spinning under the kite during transitions - easy enough. Try with bigger and bigger jumps until I'm either landing or getting close to landing.
Big fun!
Pack up after sunset. Wife was worried cos it was so late.


Moment of the Day was landing my first back roll! The one that felt totally under control, smooth and that I rode away from easily!

Wind speed was recorded as 5 knots when I had the Charger up, 6 knots when I first put up the Silberpfeil and 7 to 14 knots when I was riding with a gust of 20 knots around 3pm. That all seems to fit nicely ...

What I learned today ...
• When going for the BFJs, get your knees up and your weight back - it seems to just point you right at the kite making it VERY easy to control the ride ...!
• Rotations aren't too hard - you have to commit to a solid jump/pop and rotation though. All this was done with the Flydoor - maybe the 'radical will be easier ...?
• SA is nice and slow so doesn't spank me when I mess up the handling ... but so much lift, THAT gives you time to spin around.