:(
Forecast was almost identical to yesterday ... but didn't live up to expectations. I took the SA2 and the Flydoor and Flyradical to the lake beach just in case the wind got up, but I think I jinxed it.
I got maybe two tacks upwind, the rest I spent walking and standing on sharp things like fish skeletons, weird caltrop seeds and glass. Didn't get much riding in, got even fewer jumps and even though we waited and waited, nothing eventuated.
Sigh. Still, the water was cool after a blistering hot day in the "office" with no air-con at all ... 36 degrees outside, I hate to think what it was inside ...!
Windspeed was reported as 4 to 5 knots between 4 and 8pm. I think we got a touch more, albeit briefly. 2.0 to 2.6 m/s ...
Moment of the Day was riding upwind past Soh, waving in a stately manner :D
What I learned today ...
• Balance on the board can have a big effect on low-wind boardspeed ... and thus, how well you go upwind.
• Gusts as the wind shifts direction can still upset the Silberpfeil and ...
• You can't ride through the gusts!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Sweet Soul Session
Finally, some northerlies! Forecast looked weak - 10 knots - but I headed to the lake anyway.
Dragged the Silberpfeil and the 16m Crossbow over to the lake (in case the actual wind went either way) and tucked the Flydoor under my arm ... wind was bad when I got on the beach - about 4:45pm - and looking out at the lake, the 5pm 10-knot front didn't look like it was coming so I unpacked the SA2. Put it in the air and hit the water straight away ... may as well get wet and cool!
Was riding, but not going upwind. Tack out, back in, walk it up, get back in the water, oh hello the wind is up! We all start riding it out, but only the little guy on the Slingshot RPM 14 and I are going upwind.
I proceed to have a great time, riding toe-side, monster load'n'pops and working hard on timing the jumps properly. Finally getting it sorted! Boost from the SA in this low wind is impressive ...! I go down the other end of the 'bay' to show-off to the windsurfers but end up looping around and splashing down ... but the kite is still waiting for me when I surface! Boy-oh-boy it's so much better behaved since I got it all tuned up! I manage to get upwind enough to get back across the river mouth and onto 'our' side of the beach ...
LEIs out were the 2011 SS RPM 14, Best Waroo 14 and directional, Cab Switchblade 12 x2, Naish Park 14, LF Havoc 14 ... Poor old Master of Disaster on the Park couldn't even get up on a plane :o he's one of the bigger locals though - Auntie and Taki on the SB's are probably less than 60kg each! Soh on the Havoc was riding but only downwind ... he's no lightweight either though, I think he said 75kg.
A very enjoyable evening - just the mellow, satisfying experience I've been needing. I pack it in as the sun sets and the wind dies off again ...
Windspeed was recorded as 3.2 to 4.3 m/s (6 to 9 knots) from 5 to 8pm. Seems about right - I'm riding downwind at 6, upwind easily at 8 ...
Moment of the Day was finally getting the timing right jumping the SA2 in light winds, sending it from 2 o'clock and kicking a hole in the sky! Enough time up there to think "Holy crap! I'm up high!" and balanced correctly so I could take one hand off the bar, make the 'rock on!' horns hand sign thingy and scream "WOO HOO!" at Soh - just as I reached the zenith of the jump :D
What I learned today ...
• Cost for tune-up at powerzonekitesports.com - well worth the money! Including shipping :) the stability when I mess things up now is just awesome!
• Timing for jumping the slow ol' bus - bear-off downwind a bit, pull the bar back the other way, start loading the edge again as the kite goes up, pop the edge and pull on the bar when you feel the lift ... redirect HARD as you just start to drop.
• Don't show-off :D
• Sheeting in on a load'n'pop increases the height and extends the hang-time ... a lot!
• Riding toe-side ... slowly getting there.
• You don't necessarily need white-caps to ride the Silberpfeil successfully - but it's a very fine line at the bottom end ...
Dragged the Silberpfeil and the 16m Crossbow over to the lake (in case the actual wind went either way) and tucked the Flydoor under my arm ... wind was bad when I got on the beach - about 4:45pm - and looking out at the lake, the 5pm 10-knot front didn't look like it was coming so I unpacked the SA2. Put it in the air and hit the water straight away ... may as well get wet and cool!
Was riding, but not going upwind. Tack out, back in, walk it up, get back in the water, oh hello the wind is up! We all start riding it out, but only the little guy on the Slingshot RPM 14 and I are going upwind.
I proceed to have a great time, riding toe-side, monster load'n'pops and working hard on timing the jumps properly. Finally getting it sorted! Boost from the SA in this low wind is impressive ...! I go down the other end of the 'bay' to show-off to the windsurfers but end up looping around and splashing down ... but the kite is still waiting for me when I surface! Boy-oh-boy it's so much better behaved since I got it all tuned up! I manage to get upwind enough to get back across the river mouth and onto 'our' side of the beach ...
LEIs out were the 2011 SS RPM 14, Best Waroo 14 and directional, Cab Switchblade 12 x2, Naish Park 14, LF Havoc 14 ... Poor old Master of Disaster on the Park couldn't even get up on a plane :o he's one of the bigger locals though - Auntie and Taki on the SB's are probably less than 60kg each! Soh on the Havoc was riding but only downwind ... he's no lightweight either though, I think he said 75kg.
A very enjoyable evening - just the mellow, satisfying experience I've been needing. I pack it in as the sun sets and the wind dies off again ...
Windspeed was recorded as 3.2 to 4.3 m/s (6 to 9 knots) from 5 to 8pm. Seems about right - I'm riding downwind at 6, upwind easily at 8 ...
Moment of the Day was finally getting the timing right jumping the SA2 in light winds, sending it from 2 o'clock and kicking a hole in the sky! Enough time up there to think "Holy crap! I'm up high!" and balanced correctly so I could take one hand off the bar, make the 'rock on!' horns hand sign thingy and scream "WOO HOO!" at Soh - just as I reached the zenith of the jump :D
What I learned today ...
• Cost for tune-up at powerzonekitesports.com - well worth the money! Including shipping :) the stability when I mess things up now is just awesome!
• Timing for jumping the slow ol' bus - bear-off downwind a bit, pull the bar back the other way, start loading the edge again as the kite goes up, pop the edge and pull on the bar when you feel the lift ... redirect HARD as you just start to drop.
• Don't show-off :D
• Sheeting in on a load'n'pop increases the height and extends the hang-time ... a lot!
• Riding toe-side ... slowly getting there.
• You don't necessarily need white-caps to ride the Silberpfeil successfully - but it's a very fine line at the bottom end ...
Sunday, June 26, 2011
South Seas
More southerlies, but this time including a little bit of east which puts it onshore at Machiya Beach, near Tsu city in Mie. Hummed and harred for a while - have a very stiff left thigh from Thursday's efforts at Hamamatsu - but decided to suck it up and just do it!
Left home at 12pm, aiming to be there and on the water in time for peak wind at 2pm. Almost worked out that way but we stopped for a bit of lunch on the way so it was about 1:45 when we arrived.
Checked the wind (6 - 10 m/s) and checked what others were riding. Good turn out, probably half the people were Locus locals! Bunch of windsurfers too ... is it just them or do they not go upwind very well?
Most people were on 9 to 11m kites but were on directionals so I put up the 13m Crossbow and the Flydoor. I was nicely powered for most of the next 2 and a half hours on the water, only really getting spanked by the gusts in the last 1/2 hour.
Wife had her camera - and a tripod, for all the difference that made - so I started playing silly buggers. Still having a hard time with the timing of the jumps but got a few good ones in and on film ... kinda. Had to land a few toe-side (going to starboard) cos I messed them up but I was either too tired or lazy to do that going to port so I just splashed down a lot.
Had a great time playing with wave riding, actually riding the board & using the kite rather than being pulled along by the whim of the kite. Pretty tough to do anything really on the Flydoor which got me thinking about the Mako again - as did bouncing off all the chop too!
So it was a lot of just riding around and trying to jump or ride waves. Glad I went though, and didn't let a stiff leg (just one?) turn me off ...
Wind picked up right at the end, as I began to get tired and got some good spankings. Trimming the kite to cope was unsuccessful as it was too hard to hold a fast tack, so I needed instant power from the kite; but cock it up, and it whacked me.
Windspeed was recorded as 14 to 20 knots, max gust 27 knots, from JMA. I measured 14 to 20 when I arrived but the wind picked up towards 4 unclock which wasn't recorded on the website.
Moment of the Day was riding up the face of a wave, popping a little jump (more of a hover) just before the top then skimming my bum on the peaks of the launch and the landing wave, riding down the back of the second one!
What I learned today ...
• Might need that Mako King after all ...
• Water was warm, wind was cool, glasses didn't fog at all. Hurrah Sharks!
• Licking the lenses isn't a successful way of cleaning them though :(
• As with the 16m, the 13m gets twitchy at the upper end of it's actually flying limits - which I think is about 30 knots - as opposed to the limit to where it can be used by fatties.
• I'd say that 15 to 20 knots, give or take a few knots, is the butter zone for the 13 - I had great fun on it till the wind picked up at the end of my session.
• Need to work on adjusting the fit of the harness - I'm getting massive sperlunking again :(
• Charlie Chaplin! Heels close, toes out! Best edge control.
Left home at 12pm, aiming to be there and on the water in time for peak wind at 2pm. Almost worked out that way but we stopped for a bit of lunch on the way so it was about 1:45 when we arrived.
Checked the wind (6 - 10 m/s) and checked what others were riding. Good turn out, probably half the people were Locus locals! Bunch of windsurfers too ... is it just them or do they not go upwind very well?
Most people were on 9 to 11m kites but were on directionals so I put up the 13m Crossbow and the Flydoor. I was nicely powered for most of the next 2 and a half hours on the water, only really getting spanked by the gusts in the last 1/2 hour.
Wife had her camera - and a tripod, for all the difference that made - so I started playing silly buggers. Still having a hard time with the timing of the jumps but got a few good ones in and on film ... kinda. Had to land a few toe-side (going to starboard) cos I messed them up but I was either too tired or lazy to do that going to port so I just splashed down a lot.
Had a great time playing with wave riding, actually riding the board & using the kite rather than being pulled along by the whim of the kite. Pretty tough to do anything really on the Flydoor which got me thinking about the Mako again - as did bouncing off all the chop too!
So it was a lot of just riding around and trying to jump or ride waves. Glad I went though, and didn't let a stiff leg (just one?) turn me off ...
Wind picked up right at the end, as I began to get tired and got some good spankings. Trimming the kite to cope was unsuccessful as it was too hard to hold a fast tack, so I needed instant power from the kite; but cock it up, and it whacked me.
Windspeed was recorded as 14 to 20 knots, max gust 27 knots, from JMA. I measured 14 to 20 when I arrived but the wind picked up towards 4 unclock which wasn't recorded on the website.
Moment of the Day was riding up the face of a wave, popping a little jump (more of a hover) just before the top then skimming my bum on the peaks of the launch and the landing wave, riding down the back of the second one!
What I learned today ...
• Might need that Mako King after all ...
• Water was warm, wind was cool, glasses didn't fog at all. Hurrah Sharks!
• Licking the lenses isn't a successful way of cleaning them though :(
• As with the 16m, the 13m gets twitchy at the upper end of it's actually flying limits - which I think is about 30 knots - as opposed to the limit to where it can be used by fatties.
• I'd say that 15 to 20 knots, give or take a few knots, is the butter zone for the 13 - I had great fun on it till the wind picked up at the end of my session.
• Need to work on adjusting the fit of the harness - I'm getting massive sperlunking again :(
• Charlie Chaplin! Heels close, toes out! Best edge control.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Sorry Boss can't work cos (insert excuse)
Got up, got ready to go to work but there was a good stiff breeze out there ... I thought about the impending heavy workload today - after 3 days solid of heavy work loads with no air-con in 35-degree-C classrooms - and then I thought "The hell with that!" I got a Starbucks coffee, called the boss and supplied my pre-suggested excuse. "I gotta go to the Immigration office - just like I warned I might need to last week."
Went home, hit the interweb and looked for the best wind. Looked like Hamamatsu so I loaded up the K-wagon and hit the highway ...
Got to Maisaka about 12:30pm and was glad to see other kites in the sky. Good wind blowing and I got a burst of butterflies as I got out of the car ... checked the wind with anemometer and it was reading 12-18 knots cross on-shore. Checked what the locals were riding - 9's to 12's - so I decided on the 13m Crossbow and my big board cos the surf looked a bit big.
Set up on the beach near the carpark and then walked to the water. Excellent beach, miles of space! There were about 6 or 7 other kiters there, a couple of windsurfers and a few surfers.
The waves ... they are big. Oh crap. There's about 5m of very shallow water to the first breaker, maybe a half meter, that floods the shallow bit ... I put board on feet just after the breaker washes through, dive the kite and ride out through the waves. Oh wow that was easy I must've gotten the hang of dealing with waves, thinks I.
Head out through the breakers and WOW the swells are big too! I'm disappearing down the troughs and then riding up the faces of swells that are over my head :o big fun is popping off the top and floating downwind :D
Man what a battering I'm taking ... I'll never complain about chop on the lake again! The kite feels like I should be over-powered but I'm having to sine the kite just to get some board speed - then the chop kills it all. Having an impossible time setting up jumps so they all suck :( there's no flat water and the waves are at the wrong angle to boost off good. I throw some weakness into the air but it isn't cool ... load'n'pops result in large-ish jumps and long floats downwind, so there must be some power in the kite! Frustrating.
I'm holding ground and going upwind though, which is a first for Maisaka. In fact, everyone else seems to be going downwind ...??? I've got the ocean to myself. Mostly - have to take care the windsurfers aren't in my way before I try jumping ...
Flydoor works good in the "gusty" conditions and kind of surfs down the waves too :D
Wind drops off, I head back in to the beach before I'm too underpowered to get back without walking ... and I need a drink. Take some water, chat to the guy who used to live in Kyoto and we decide that the wind is going to pick up when that there front comes in and the total lack of wind now is temporary. He sets up his 14, I set up my 16.
I launch and to try it out. I'm guessing 8 knots at best. At the water's edge, I get the beat-down by the waves and have a hell of a time getting the board on my feet and out from the breakers ... would've made a good film but the wife was working fnar fnar! I'm out on "flat" water but there's no wind to be had so I turn back in ... finally get a burst of board speed and ride in for a few minutes and it's just when I look back and around me that I realize I've been riding in on a wave! Awesome!
OMG it's the shore - whaddoIdo? WhaddoIdo? Ah, fall over, ditch the board and struggle to get on my feet, chase the board as it floats down the in the rip tide ... then walk back to carpark base camp.
Stand around with the kite up and wait for the NEXT front to roll in. It brings white-caps with it, this one does. Neat-o. Starting to feel the wind now so I head back out.
Again, I get smacked around, spun around trying to get the board on. Get up and moving but Lassie the Freestyler has decided she'll enter the water 10m downwind of me so I've got to be careful getting biffed around by waves so I don't wrap my lines around hers ... FFS I'd be trying to get board on for 5 minutes - did she not notice me thrashing around?
"Safety in Japan - it's ok, everyone else is looking out for me."
Finally get rolling - the waves are bigger, the swells are bigger holy fuck! The wind is the same gusty punchy crap though ... I'm holding ground though so I work hard on the big purple monster. The heavy bar pressure is a drag ... hmm time for a Zephyr? Still can't get the jumps right ... do a lot of low long floats downwind. Play with riding waves - what fun! Go in to shore too far and have to do some fancy (for me) riding to avoid being sloshed by the breakers - what fun! Legs are starting to burn - what fu... no, time to call it a day - got a 3 hour drive if there're no traffic jams on the way home ...
Head in, pack it up, start the drive home about 4:45 and get home about 7:45. Great day! Much better than working :D
What I learned today ...
• Riding in the ocean - much harder than on the lake!
• Need to be more powered on the ocean. Bollocks to float, it doesn't help at all.
• Surface conditions (massive swells) meant there was no wind low down - better to gently sine the kite near the top of the window.
• Chop. It's not what we have on the lake!
• There's no real point in driving all the way to Maisaka unless you're desperate - it's not that good really.
• If I went to the ocean more, I'd get a directional or a Mako. I won't so I can now forget about the Mako :D
• Don't forget to take your own fresh water for washing stuff :-/ that's why you bought the 20L tank innit?
Went home, hit the interweb and looked for the best wind. Looked like Hamamatsu so I loaded up the K-wagon and hit the highway ...
Got to Maisaka about 12:30pm and was glad to see other kites in the sky. Good wind blowing and I got a burst of butterflies as I got out of the car ... checked the wind with anemometer and it was reading 12-18 knots cross on-shore. Checked what the locals were riding - 9's to 12's - so I decided on the 13m Crossbow and my big board cos the surf looked a bit big.
Set up on the beach near the carpark and then walked to the water. Excellent beach, miles of space! There were about 6 or 7 other kiters there, a couple of windsurfers and a few surfers.
The waves ... they are big. Oh crap. There's about 5m of very shallow water to the first breaker, maybe a half meter, that floods the shallow bit ... I put board on feet just after the breaker washes through, dive the kite and ride out through the waves. Oh wow that was easy I must've gotten the hang of dealing with waves, thinks I.
Head out through the breakers and WOW the swells are big too! I'm disappearing down the troughs and then riding up the faces of swells that are over my head :o big fun is popping off the top and floating downwind :D
Man what a battering I'm taking ... I'll never complain about chop on the lake again! The kite feels like I should be over-powered but I'm having to sine the kite just to get some board speed - then the chop kills it all. Having an impossible time setting up jumps so they all suck :( there's no flat water and the waves are at the wrong angle to boost off good. I throw some weakness into the air but it isn't cool ... load'n'pops result in large-ish jumps and long floats downwind, so there must be some power in the kite! Frustrating.
I'm holding ground and going upwind though, which is a first for Maisaka. In fact, everyone else seems to be going downwind ...??? I've got the ocean to myself. Mostly - have to take care the windsurfers aren't in my way before I try jumping ...
Flydoor works good in the "gusty" conditions and kind of surfs down the waves too :D
Wind drops off, I head back in to the beach before I'm too underpowered to get back without walking ... and I need a drink. Take some water, chat to the guy who used to live in Kyoto and we decide that the wind is going to pick up when that there front comes in and the total lack of wind now is temporary. He sets up his 14, I set up my 16.
I launch and to try it out. I'm guessing 8 knots at best. At the water's edge, I get the beat-down by the waves and have a hell of a time getting the board on my feet and out from the breakers ... would've made a good film but the wife was working fnar fnar! I'm out on "flat" water but there's no wind to be had so I turn back in ... finally get a burst of board speed and ride in for a few minutes and it's just when I look back and around me that I realize I've been riding in on a wave! Awesome!
OMG it's the shore - whaddoIdo? WhaddoIdo? Ah, fall over, ditch the board and struggle to get on my feet, chase the board as it floats down the in the rip tide ... then walk back to carpark base camp.
Stand around with the kite up and wait for the NEXT front to roll in. It brings white-caps with it, this one does. Neat-o. Starting to feel the wind now so I head back out.
Again, I get smacked around, spun around trying to get the board on. Get up and moving but Lassie the Freestyler has decided she'll enter the water 10m downwind of me so I've got to be careful getting biffed around by waves so I don't wrap my lines around hers ... FFS I'd be trying to get board on for 5 minutes - did she not notice me thrashing around?
"Safety in Japan - it's ok, everyone else is looking out for me."
Finally get rolling - the waves are bigger, the swells are bigger holy fuck! The wind is the same gusty punchy crap though ... I'm holding ground though so I work hard on the big purple monster. The heavy bar pressure is a drag ... hmm time for a Zephyr? Still can't get the jumps right ... do a lot of low long floats downwind. Play with riding waves - what fun! Go in to shore too far and have to do some fancy (for me) riding to avoid being sloshed by the breakers - what fun! Legs are starting to burn - what fu... no, time to call it a day - got a 3 hour drive if there're no traffic jams on the way home ...
Head in, pack it up, start the drive home about 4:45 and get home about 7:45. Great day! Much better than working :D
What I learned today ...
• Riding in the ocean - much harder than on the lake!
• Need to be more powered on the ocean. Bollocks to float, it doesn't help at all.
• Surface conditions (massive swells) meant there was no wind low down - better to gently sine the kite near the top of the window.
• Chop. It's not what we have on the lake!
• There's no real point in driving all the way to Maisaka unless you're desperate - it's not that good really.
• If I went to the ocean more, I'd get a directional or a Mako. I won't so I can now forget about the Mako :D
• Don't forget to take your own fresh water for washing stuff :-/ that's why you bought the 20L tank innit?
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Lessons Learned
Oh joy! Kick-ass forecast for today and the whole day, the wind was rockin'! Webcam looks awesome - so awesome in fact, that I go home at lunchtime to pick up the 10m Crossbow, dump the Silberpfeil and even consider the 7m Core :o
Chaffing at the bit; finally, work finishes and I race down to the lake and ... 10-12 knots!!! Oh give me a break :(
I unpack the Psycho4 15 and the Flydoor and hit the water ... hmm. This kite's a bit different. Back-stall central :( I pull the trim in a bunch and finally get up on a plane. Kite is very sensitive to sheeting in - something's gonna need a look at it! Manage to get some nice jumps in but then the wind has dropped more and I'm riding downwind. Walk up the beach - the P4 is real stable - and land, pack up and pump up the 16m Crossbow.
Pah! Just enough wind to get moving now and it's dropping even more :( Slog around on the 16 but this is not fun! Give up and land the kite. Stand around talking with Soh and Hironobu waiting for the wind, but give up about 6:30.
Could have been better, but at least I got some time on the Psycho4 - now I need to tune it a bit!
Windspeed was reported at 10-12 knots on the beach and 8 to 10 knots on the web. Pah!
What I learned today ...
• When The Fattest Kiteboarder in Japan also has The Most Powerful Kite in Japan, then you're a total jackass to leave it at home - EVER! The Silberpfeil is about to take up permanent residence in my boot!
• P4 15 - somehow, the jumps are just smoother when you're in the air, than the LEIs are ... feels more like flying rather than erm hanging under a kite :o
• P4 15 again - pulls like a 13 (so far) but also turns just as fast. VERY easy to jump with, it's just like the LEIs except smoother YOINK and longer AAH!
• Might need to Seal'n'Glide the P4 - seemed to deflate fast when I landed it on the beach. Faster than the SA2 and I thought THAT needed treatments!
Chaffing at the bit; finally, work finishes and I race down to the lake and ... 10-12 knots!!! Oh give me a break :(
I unpack the Psycho4 15 and the Flydoor and hit the water ... hmm. This kite's a bit different. Back-stall central :( I pull the trim in a bunch and finally get up on a plane. Kite is very sensitive to sheeting in - something's gonna need a look at it! Manage to get some nice jumps in but then the wind has dropped more and I'm riding downwind. Walk up the beach - the P4 is real stable - and land, pack up and pump up the 16m Crossbow.
Pah! Just enough wind to get moving now and it's dropping even more :( Slog around on the 16 but this is not fun! Give up and land the kite. Stand around talking with Soh and Hironobu waiting for the wind, but give up about 6:30.
Could have been better, but at least I got some time on the Psycho4 - now I need to tune it a bit!
Windspeed was reported at 10-12 knots on the beach and 8 to 10 knots on the web. Pah!
What I learned today ...
• When The Fattest Kiteboarder in Japan also has The Most Powerful Kite in Japan, then you're a total jackass to leave it at home - EVER! The Silberpfeil is about to take up permanent residence in my boot!
• P4 15 - somehow, the jumps are just smoother when you're in the air, than the LEIs are ... feels more like flying rather than erm hanging under a kite :o
• P4 15 again - pulls like a 13 (so far) but also turns just as fast. VERY easy to jump with, it's just like the LEIs except smoother YOINK and longer AAH!
• Might need to Seal'n'Glide the P4 - seemed to deflate fast when I landed it on the beach. Faster than the SA2 and I thought THAT needed treatments!
Monday, June 13, 2011
"Optimism, Captain!"
We had a nice wind blowing all day at work, about 10km further north up the lake from Locus. First time I check the webcam in the afternoon - there's freakin' nothing at the Locus beach ...! I keep an eye on it till knock-off time but no change at all! Decide to head down anyway.
Sit on the lake beach with all the other junkies waiting for something to change. It slowly picks up by about 5:30pm and so I decide to unpack "that white thing" as the locals call it ... it launches and kinda flies so I noodle around on the beach. Wind picks up a tiny bit more, so I try the board out ...
... I can get up on a plane but when I have to work the kite again on an upstroke, I'm sinking. I walk back up the beach. Keep playing around for a bit then suddenly, the wind starts making an impression on the back of my head!
Jump in the water and lo! I'm up and riding! Sure I'm going downwind but I'm riding :D by the time I've made a few tacks and run down the beach, started the walk back up Hironobu has hit the water with his Naish Park 14, Uncle Pyro has launched his Best Waroo 14 and that other guy is pumping up his Cult 12 like a madman. Brother Chubby gets his 15m Bandit up in a hurry too.
I get back on the butter-smooth water behind Hironobu but I'm making better ground upwind than him! Hail the Silberpfeil! Same vein; we continue to ride downwind a lot but the wind eventually picks up enough that I can make a couple of tacks upwind :o do some silly small jumps - I'm underpowered but happy to be riding. I'm still making more ground upwind than the other though - gotta love the SA2 and the Flydoor! They're the only reason I'm riding, I'm sure.
Wind finally dies right as the sun slips behind the hills; Hironobu had landed his kite already but the other guys all hindenburg like erm the Hindenburg although Uncle Pyro manages to keep his Waroo up by running backwards on the beach - but it too eventually hits the floor. I walk upwind with "that white thing" in the air.
Well, it was better than watching TV.
JMA reported the windspeed as 6 knots. I dunno what to believe cos reported 10 knots at 3pm when there was NOTHING on the webcam - not even a flag twitch.
What I learned today ...
• bottom end for riding on the SA - pretty freakin' low!
• I'm a sad junkie :D
Sit on the lake beach with all the other junkies waiting for something to change. It slowly picks up by about 5:30pm and so I decide to unpack "that white thing" as the locals call it ... it launches and kinda flies so I noodle around on the beach. Wind picks up a tiny bit more, so I try the board out ...
... I can get up on a plane but when I have to work the kite again on an upstroke, I'm sinking. I walk back up the beach. Keep playing around for a bit then suddenly, the wind starts making an impression on the back of my head!
Jump in the water and lo! I'm up and riding! Sure I'm going downwind but I'm riding :D by the time I've made a few tacks and run down the beach, started the walk back up Hironobu has hit the water with his Naish Park 14, Uncle Pyro has launched his Best Waroo 14 and that other guy is pumping up his Cult 12 like a madman. Brother Chubby gets his 15m Bandit up in a hurry too.
I get back on the butter-smooth water behind Hironobu but I'm making better ground upwind than him! Hail the Silberpfeil! Same vein; we continue to ride downwind a lot but the wind eventually picks up enough that I can make a couple of tacks upwind :o do some silly small jumps - I'm underpowered but happy to be riding. I'm still making more ground upwind than the other though - gotta love the SA2 and the Flydoor! They're the only reason I'm riding, I'm sure.
Wind finally dies right as the sun slips behind the hills; Hironobu had landed his kite already but the other guys all hindenburg like erm the Hindenburg although Uncle Pyro manages to keep his Waroo up by running backwards on the beach - but it too eventually hits the floor. I walk upwind with "that white thing" in the air.
Well, it was better than watching TV.
JMA reported the windspeed as 6 knots. I dunno what to believe cos reported 10 knots at 3pm when there was NOTHING on the webcam - not even a flag twitch.
What I learned today ...
• bottom end for riding on the SA - pretty freakin' low!
• I'm a sad junkie :D
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Post-work mad-dash
Feckin' work ... if it didn't pay for toys, I just wouldn't even bother eh. Forecast was iffy - conflicting reports on all weather sites so I hoped for the best and rushed down when I finished work at 5pm ...
... got to the lake at 5:30 and tried to figure out what kite I needed. I erred on the side of caution and took the Crossbow 13 to the beach, with the Flyradical & the Flydoor ... I really wanted to take the Psycho4 15 or the Crossbow 16 but chickened out. Should have banked on the wind dropping towards sunset, like it usually does though :(
So I pumped up the kite (damned pressure gauge I bought doesn't work on the Cab Sprint cos of the one way valve!) and hit the water with the Flyrad. Just powered enough for some fun but soon I'm working the kite hard. Back to shore, swap for the 'door. Better.
Cruising around, going upwind, doing some jumps, testing the Sharks 2.0, having some fun!
I'm landing more jumps now - like, all of them :D it's the post-landing ride away that I screw up most often now ...? Jump, land, ride away for a few meters then SPLASH ... uh? Anyway, all good fun.
Wind dies off and I'm working the hell out of the kite just to ride downwind and walk back up the beach. Sun is setting, so I pack up ... got to have a close looks at the 10m 2011 Slingshot RPM and the bar - very nice! Very light :o excellent colours and the bar looks good ... not 100% sure about the external bungy as the safety return mechanism though ...
JMA recorded the wind speed as 5 to 6 knots ... which SO can't be correct! I think weather-gpv.info offered 8 to 10 knots which sounds more likely.
What I learned today ...
• Sharks Version 2.0 are just as good as the first model - and they float!
• My sense of what the wind is doing is way off :( keep underestimating the kite I need ...
• Sending the kite WAY back is great fun - big ol' swing action going on :)
... got to the lake at 5:30 and tried to figure out what kite I needed. I erred on the side of caution and took the Crossbow 13 to the beach, with the Flyradical & the Flydoor ... I really wanted to take the Psycho4 15 or the Crossbow 16 but chickened out. Should have banked on the wind dropping towards sunset, like it usually does though :(
So I pumped up the kite (damned pressure gauge I bought doesn't work on the Cab Sprint cos of the one way valve!) and hit the water with the Flyrad. Just powered enough for some fun but soon I'm working the kite hard. Back to shore, swap for the 'door. Better.
Cruising around, going upwind, doing some jumps, testing the Sharks 2.0, having some fun!
I'm landing more jumps now - like, all of them :D it's the post-landing ride away that I screw up most often now ...? Jump, land, ride away for a few meters then SPLASH ... uh? Anyway, all good fun.
Wind dies off and I'm working the hell out of the kite just to ride downwind and walk back up the beach. Sun is setting, so I pack up ... got to have a close looks at the 10m 2011 Slingshot RPM and the bar - very nice! Very light :o excellent colours and the bar looks good ... not 100% sure about the external bungy as the safety return mechanism though ...
JMA recorded the wind speed as 5 to 6 knots ... which SO can't be correct! I think weather-gpv.info offered 8 to 10 knots which sounds more likely.
What I learned today ...
• Sharks Version 2.0 are just as good as the first model - and they float!
• My sense of what the wind is doing is way off :( keep underestimating the kite I need ...
• Sending the kite WAY back is great fun - big ol' swing action going on :)
Monday, June 6, 2011
Saved by the Flysurfer!
Been watching the forecasts like a hawk - as usual. Saturday and Sunday promised a little low wind but were total washouts - Saturday, the wind never shifted from southerlies and Sunday, the wind never picked up enough to be ridable. Everyone said Monday was going to be the day ...
Kept an eye on the webcam and the forecast ... was going to be light wind but looked ridable so I headed down after work. Looks like another job for - Flysurfer! Out comes the Silberpfeil, and I drag the Psycho4 15 over to the beach - just in case. I also take both the Flydoor and the Flyradical ... options, you'll recall, are important!
Probably on the water by about 4pm. No wetsuit, just shorts, rashgaurd and t-shirt. Water isn't cold at all, just refreshing. The SA2 launches easily, inflates nicely and seems to have enough power. Everyone hits the water at once, and we diddle about for a few tacks underpowered. I'm going on a downwinder but the wind has just picked up enough to be riding ... the water's so-ooo flat! Working hard to make the tacks head upwind but I drift halfway down the beach until the wind picks up enough to hold a beam reach ... now I can start to play!
Wind picks up a little more and I make up my lost ground. Then it lulls and while I'm still riding - albeit on a broad reach now - the LEIs are falling from the sky ... a 2009 North Rebel 14 and a 2012 Naish Charger 15 get a swim to shore for their lack of low end ;)
And so it goes until about 6:45pm - wind is up and down, sometimes walking, sometimes upwind. I have fun riding toe-side in the butter flat water, throwing out some load'n'pops and trying to jump ... the timing is tough with the big foil; I get some average heights but of course, mad hang time! I swap between the Flyradical and 'door as the wind goes up and down and Soh ends up nabbing the 'radical cos it's better in the low-wind than his Hadlow Pro thingy. Guy with the Zephyr on the large directional is doing fine, making good ground upwind - I got to try one of those!
Eventually, I'm struggling to stay upwind and running out of beach and daylight so I pack it in. The wind never got up enough to consider the P4 but I had a great time anyway. Just as well, cos the forecast for the rest of the week looks crappy :(
JMA recorded the wind speed as 2.3 to 4.5 m/s (4.5 to 9 knots). Yikes! Praise Jesus for the big foil!
Here are some pics - not from today, but it's the same person (me) in the same gear with the same kite ...!
What I learned today ...
• Sharks are great glasses! I love them!
• Wetsuit season is OVER - time to break out the new Fusion!
• Timing jumps with the SA is tough but rewarding when you get it right.
• In light wind, sending from 2 or 10 is super effective!
• Screw up that jump? Coming in for a crooked landing? Just land toeside or blind and ride off - how cool is that?!
• Looks like about a 5-6 knot difference in low-end between the two boards ...?
Kept an eye on the webcam and the forecast ... was going to be light wind but looked ridable so I headed down after work. Looks like another job for - Flysurfer! Out comes the Silberpfeil, and I drag the Psycho4 15 over to the beach - just in case. I also take both the Flydoor and the Flyradical ... options, you'll recall, are important!
Probably on the water by about 4pm. No wetsuit, just shorts, rashgaurd and t-shirt. Water isn't cold at all, just refreshing. The SA2 launches easily, inflates nicely and seems to have enough power. Everyone hits the water at once, and we diddle about for a few tacks underpowered. I'm going on a downwinder but the wind has just picked up enough to be riding ... the water's so-ooo flat! Working hard to make the tacks head upwind but I drift halfway down the beach until the wind picks up enough to hold a beam reach ... now I can start to play!
Wind picks up a little more and I make up my lost ground. Then it lulls and while I'm still riding - albeit on a broad reach now - the LEIs are falling from the sky ... a 2009 North Rebel 14 and a 2012 Naish Charger 15 get a swim to shore for their lack of low end ;)
And so it goes until about 6:45pm - wind is up and down, sometimes walking, sometimes upwind. I have fun riding toe-side in the butter flat water, throwing out some load'n'pops and trying to jump ... the timing is tough with the big foil; I get some average heights but of course, mad hang time! I swap between the Flyradical and 'door as the wind goes up and down and Soh ends up nabbing the 'radical cos it's better in the low-wind than his Hadlow Pro thingy. Guy with the Zephyr on the large directional is doing fine, making good ground upwind - I got to try one of those!
Eventually, I'm struggling to stay upwind and running out of beach and daylight so I pack it in. The wind never got up enough to consider the P4 but I had a great time anyway. Just as well, cos the forecast for the rest of the week looks crappy :(
JMA recorded the wind speed as 2.3 to 4.5 m/s (4.5 to 9 knots). Yikes! Praise Jesus for the big foil!
Here are some pics - not from today, but it's the same person (me) in the same gear with the same kite ...!
What I learned today ...
• Sharks are great glasses! I love them!
• Wetsuit season is OVER - time to break out the new Fusion!
• Timing jumps with the SA is tough but rewarding when you get it right.
• In light wind, sending from 2 or 10 is super effective!
• Screw up that jump? Coming in for a crooked landing? Just land toeside or blind and ride off - how cool is that?!
• Looks like about a 5-6 knot difference in low-end between the two boards ...?
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
First sunburn of the year :-/
On the Locus webcam, the wind looked like it was going to buck the forecast so I trotted down to the beach.
Took the Speed2 to the beach with the 'door and the 'radical. Beach was all mucky still from the typhoon the previous day, and the sand was muddy :( washed-up branches and bamboo stalks and crap everywhere, so I had to pick my way through the junk to lay out lines. Ended up doing a side-launch a la an arc, so the kite got muddy. Doh.
Nicely powered with the 'door so I came back in and got the 'radical. Easy to ride for sure, although the back-foot kept skipping out on me - I must be doing something wrong. Seem to remember a tip about it somewhere, will have to search the interweb again.
Riding around, trying some jumps and whatnot but the wind is steadily picking up. I'm starting to feel over-powered on the big foil so I head in and get Soh to land the kite for me ... he's had tuition at landing foils :D
Back to the car, I grab the 13m Crossbow and run around pumping it up blah blah blah. Get on the water and ... doh. Under-powered on the 'radical, so back to the 'door ... now only slightly under-powered :( throw some silly jumps, not much height but I land them all holy crap!
Wind dies off, I stand on the beach wondering if I should go get the SA2 again. Soh tried out the Flydoor and the Flyradical ... he's riding MILES upwind on the 'door and is surprised by how easy it is to ride, once he gets used to it. He thought the 'radical was ok but he's a wakestyle rider - too flat for him!
I run back to the car for the Speed2 again but now it's really gone off and as I unpack, the wind dies right away. Wait around for a while then give up ...
Got out on the water with the 720-armour Shark's too ...
• Very good anti-fog, I'm sure the little holes in the lens help. Better than the Wiley-X's so far. Full head dunking made a little fogging that cleared as soon as I got moving.
• The Hyrdrophobic lens coating works well until the dirty spots the water leaves start to build up but that wipes off easy. Good to know cos that seems to be a problem with the GoPro - no matter how much Rain-X I use ... looks like I'm going to have to resort to licking the lens after all LOL
• Very comfy - don't even notice they're on at all and they wrap around the face nicely too. The rubber on the nose and top/bottom of the frames is comfy but not intrusive.
• Field of view not restricted noticeable - I never tried to peer over the top like I have done with the others ...
• Stayed on the head ok when I did a bum dunk, the method I lost all the Seaspecs with. It wasn't from as great a height though as the wind wasn't up to much. And I had them leashed to the wetsuit ;)
So far, very good glasses, I'm greatly impressed - better fit, comfort and satisfaction than the Wiley-X; so I'd rank Sharks as #1, SeaSpecs #2 and Wily-X in at #3.
I got mine from ChainReactionCycles.com who seem to be the only internet vendor ... 720-armour.com told me they're working on Shark ver 2 so if they're better - they'll be pretty bloody good!
As I'm typing this I look at my hands and see red gloves :o guess I got my first burn for the season! And I forgot to put sunblock on my lips ... ouchie.
Wind was from 6 to 14 knots.
What I learned today ...
• Flyradical L - awesome board! Thanks Ripsesssionkites - again!
• 720-armour Sharks - awesome glasses!
• Getting my jumps & redirections sorted - awesome!
• Shoulda taken my P4 15 ... that might have seen me riding for longer and pumping less.
• white kites and mud ... bad.
Took the Speed2 to the beach with the 'door and the 'radical. Beach was all mucky still from the typhoon the previous day, and the sand was muddy :( washed-up branches and bamboo stalks and crap everywhere, so I had to pick my way through the junk to lay out lines. Ended up doing a side-launch a la an arc, so the kite got muddy. Doh.
Nicely powered with the 'door so I came back in and got the 'radical. Easy to ride for sure, although the back-foot kept skipping out on me - I must be doing something wrong. Seem to remember a tip about it somewhere, will have to search the interweb again.
Riding around, trying some jumps and whatnot but the wind is steadily picking up. I'm starting to feel over-powered on the big foil so I head in and get Soh to land the kite for me ... he's had tuition at landing foils :D
Back to the car, I grab the 13m Crossbow and run around pumping it up blah blah blah. Get on the water and ... doh. Under-powered on the 'radical, so back to the 'door ... now only slightly under-powered :( throw some silly jumps, not much height but I land them all holy crap!
Wind dies off, I stand on the beach wondering if I should go get the SA2 again. Soh tried out the Flydoor and the Flyradical ... he's riding MILES upwind on the 'door and is surprised by how easy it is to ride, once he gets used to it. He thought the 'radical was ok but he's a wakestyle rider - too flat for him!
I run back to the car for the Speed2 again but now it's really gone off and as I unpack, the wind dies right away. Wait around for a while then give up ...
Got out on the water with the 720-armour Shark's too ...
• Very good anti-fog, I'm sure the little holes in the lens help. Better than the Wiley-X's so far. Full head dunking made a little fogging that cleared as soon as I got moving.
• The Hyrdrophobic lens coating works well until the dirty spots the water leaves start to build up but that wipes off easy. Good to know cos that seems to be a problem with the GoPro - no matter how much Rain-X I use ... looks like I'm going to have to resort to licking the lens after all LOL
• Very comfy - don't even notice they're on at all and they wrap around the face nicely too. The rubber on the nose and top/bottom of the frames is comfy but not intrusive.
• Field of view not restricted noticeable - I never tried to peer over the top like I have done with the others ...
• Stayed on the head ok when I did a bum dunk, the method I lost all the Seaspecs with. It wasn't from as great a height though as the wind wasn't up to much. And I had them leashed to the wetsuit ;)
So far, very good glasses, I'm greatly impressed - better fit, comfort and satisfaction than the Wiley-X; so I'd rank Sharks as #1, SeaSpecs #2 and Wily-X in at #3.
I got mine from ChainReactionCycles.com who seem to be the only internet vendor ... 720-armour.com told me they're working on Shark ver 2 so if they're better - they'll be pretty bloody good!
As I'm typing this I look at my hands and see red gloves :o guess I got my first burn for the season! And I forgot to put sunblock on my lips ... ouchie.
Wind was from 6 to 14 knots.
What I learned today ...
• Flyradical L - awesome board! Thanks Ripsesssionkites - again!
• 720-armour Sharks - awesome glasses!
• Getting my jumps & redirections sorted - awesome!
• Shoulda taken my P4 15 ... that might have seen me riding for longer and pumping less.
• white kites and mud ... bad.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
FINALLY!
After nearly 2 weeks of no wind in the right direction, I was getting pretty desperate so on discovering a barely-reasonable forecast for this afternoon, I headed down to the lake right after work.
Sat on the beach watching ... nothing. No wind at all. My anemometer measured - 2 knots :( in the gusts! :D But the wind was supposed to kick-off around 5 though so I kept waiting; raked up some rubbish to pass the time and make my socks stinky ... mmm sweaty feet.
Dunno exactly when, but the wind eventually arrived 5-ish; I was getting gusts up to 9 knots when I decided to give it a shot and headed back to the car to get gear. Was pretty convinced it was an SA2 day so I got into the wetsuit, picked up the Silberpfeil and the Flydoor and headed over to the beach.
Quick setup and out onto the water (yah foils!) ... nicely powered and happy for about 20 minutes on BUTTER flat water - it was excellent! Then the wind picked up and we got some foot high waves ... and I was over-powered :( I put the advice I read recently into practice - kite low-ish, drop your bum and edge hard which worked fine. Played with load'n'pop, again trying out advice and got some nice big ones :)
Tried to work the kite for some jumps ... man it's a slow old bus. Send the kite, edge up and ... wait for it ... here it comes ... right about ... now! Up you go but not far cos there's not much boost as I've killed it already but flo-oooooat downwind, redirect the kite and whee! off you go. Got a few big jumps in though - muffed one, overflew the kite and splashed down ... the SA just opened up like an arc and floated downwind. I got my head above water and tugged a rear line to get it out of shape and moving in the wind, then body-dragged to my board - no hassles! Great tune by Jim/John at powerzonekitesports.com!
Wind dropped off a little as the sun was going down, so I started doing downloop transitions ... all good fun till the last one, when the kite built so much apparent wind and speed through the power-zone that I went shooting off like a rocket and it took almost an entire tack to get the board, kite and speed under control :D
I was the second to head in and pack up as it started to get dark - I could have kept riding easily in the dropping wind but I wanted a bit of light so I could put the kite down without skewering it on the bamboo rubbish or tangling it in the gardening implements Miyacchi left out ...
Great session! Too much kite (or board) left me wishing I had my Psycho4 or the Flyradical though ... epic wind, crappy riding on my part :D
Also, recently discovered this page of the Japan Meteorological Agency so now instead of my flakey guesses at the wind speed, you can have the official flakey guesses at wind speed.
Today, the wind was listed at 8knots at 5pm, dropping to 7 knots at 7pm. Utter rubbish, it was at least that - I'd say 12 to 14 knots easy cos I read 8knots when the wind first picked up, and it was stronger than that when I got back to the beach. Oh well better than nothing I guess :(
Ha! weather-gpv.info was listing 12 to 14 when I checked just now for the same time period!
What I learned today ...
• Options. You need them - take either 2 kites or 2 boards to the beach, even if you think you got it sussed with your kite choices. I missed getting the 'radical wet today :(
• Timing for the SA is essential - but difficult!
• Sheeting out at the right time is important too but -
• Body position - my problems have been twisting around on the descent of the jump and landing on my heels with the kite behind me, falling over backwards cos I've rotated too far. This CAN be countered by - waving your legs around :D I pushed out my back leg and sorta leaned that way and I corrected the rotation, landed clean ... nice!
• SA2 is a big ol' bus ... the Speed3 loses a bit on the bottom end but if it has better turning ... hmm ...
• Probably should have put sunblock on :(
Sat on the beach watching ... nothing. No wind at all. My anemometer measured - 2 knots :( in the gusts! :D But the wind was supposed to kick-off around 5 though so I kept waiting; raked up some rubbish to pass the time and make my socks stinky ... mmm sweaty feet.
Dunno exactly when, but the wind eventually arrived 5-ish; I was getting gusts up to 9 knots when I decided to give it a shot and headed back to the car to get gear. Was pretty convinced it was an SA2 day so I got into the wetsuit, picked up the Silberpfeil and the Flydoor and headed over to the beach.
Quick setup and out onto the water (yah foils!) ... nicely powered and happy for about 20 minutes on BUTTER flat water - it was excellent! Then the wind picked up and we got some foot high waves ... and I was over-powered :( I put the advice I read recently into practice - kite low-ish, drop your bum and edge hard which worked fine. Played with load'n'pop, again trying out advice and got some nice big ones :)
Tried to work the kite for some jumps ... man it's a slow old bus. Send the kite, edge up and ... wait for it ... here it comes ... right about ... now! Up you go but not far cos there's not much boost as I've killed it already but flo-oooooat downwind, redirect the kite and whee! off you go. Got a few big jumps in though - muffed one, overflew the kite and splashed down ... the SA just opened up like an arc and floated downwind. I got my head above water and tugged a rear line to get it out of shape and moving in the wind, then body-dragged to my board - no hassles! Great tune by Jim/John at powerzonekitesports.com!
Wind dropped off a little as the sun was going down, so I started doing downloop transitions ... all good fun till the last one, when the kite built so much apparent wind and speed through the power-zone that I went shooting off like a rocket and it took almost an entire tack to get the board, kite and speed under control :D
I was the second to head in and pack up as it started to get dark - I could have kept riding easily in the dropping wind but I wanted a bit of light so I could put the kite down without skewering it on the bamboo rubbish or tangling it in the gardening implements Miyacchi left out ...
Great session! Too much kite (or board) left me wishing I had my Psycho4 or the Flyradical though ... epic wind, crappy riding on my part :D
Also, recently discovered this page of the Japan Meteorological Agency so now instead of my flakey guesses at the wind speed, you can have the official flakey guesses at wind speed.
Today, the wind was listed at 8knots at 5pm, dropping to 7 knots at 7pm. Utter rubbish, it was at least that - I'd say 12 to 14 knots easy cos I read 8knots when the wind first picked up, and it was stronger than that when I got back to the beach. Oh well better than nothing I guess :(
Ha! weather-gpv.info was listing 12 to 14 when I checked just now for the same time period!
What I learned today ...
• Options. You need them - take either 2 kites or 2 boards to the beach, even if you think you got it sussed with your kite choices. I missed getting the 'radical wet today :(
• Timing for the SA is essential - but difficult!
• Sheeting out at the right time is important too but -
• Body position - my problems have been twisting around on the descent of the jump and landing on my heels with the kite behind me, falling over backwards cos I've rotated too far. This CAN be countered by - waving your legs around :D I pushed out my back leg and sorta leaned that way and I corrected the rotation, landed clean ... nice!
• SA2 is a big ol' bus ... the Speed3 loses a bit on the bottom end but if it has better turning ... hmm ...
• Probably should have put sunblock on :(
Friday, May 13, 2011
Dodging Trees
Ok that's twice now Lazarus plug-in has fucked me up - bastard thing! Lost 2 entries >:( one more time ...
Friday, 4pm.
Wind was all show and no blow.
Launched the 10, out and back, gave up and put the 13 up. Better.
Wind dropped off steadily till sunset.
Tons of crap in the water from the rains and wind - bamboo, rubbish, rushes and even a couple of trees!
Beach is messed up too - now there's a lagoon in our launch area!
Big air is better after following the advice from the link Ricardo posted. Even switch is getting better.
Aerial transitions are starting to zing!
Waves were huge - over my head but fun to ride.
Wily-X goggles work fine; fog up when wet but unfog with some airflow.
... stupid Lazarus!
Friday, 4pm.
Wind was all show and no blow.
Launched the 10, out and back, gave up and put the 13 up. Better.
Wind dropped off steadily till sunset.
Tons of crap in the water from the rains and wind - bamboo, rubbish, rushes and even a couple of trees!
Beach is messed up too - now there's a lagoon in our launch area!
Big air is better after following the advice from the link Ricardo posted. Even switch is getting better.
Aerial transitions are starting to zing!
Waves were huge - over my head but fun to ride.
Wily-X goggles work fine; fog up when wet but unfog with some airflow.
... stupid Lazarus!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
1 step back, 2 forwards? - The Movie!
Forecast looked crankin' for today but you never can tell, so I loaded the car up with the Flydoor, Rip Plus and my 16, 13 and 10m Crossbows. Got to Locus and the wind was good so I hauled the 13 and 10 'bow and the 2 boards over the road ...
... tough decision. Dithered around for a bit and decided to go with the 13 and the Rip Plus cos I need to get used to a small board. Started off with ol' Faithful though and was muy powered! Boosted some MONSTER jumps - seriously, they were massive and I just hung around under them for ages - but it was clear that the 13 was too much kite.
Pumped up the 10 and got back on the water ... weird being under such a small kite but I was easily powered, as the locals swapped down to the 7, 6, and 5m kites :o the big board had to go, so I jumped on the Rip Plus.
I'm determined to get used to a small board cos there'll be a Flyradical L in the mail soon hopefully - thanks Ricardo again! - so I persisted through the first few? many? minutes of nose dives and wipe-outs then I was riding and moaning to myself about the footpads not being as nice as the FS ones then I was just riding! I guess it's pretty easy to do when you're overpowered on a 10m kite :D
Spent a lot of the tack just standing on the fins, cos any edging at all sent me rocketing upwind miles away from the beach. Had a good amount of space to myself so busted some more monster jumps ... until I fucked them up several times in a row, looping the kite and slammed but myself good, at which point I came in for a break.
As I was sitting down having a drink, the Mistress of Disaster decided to launch her kite - this time, without checking that someone else hadn't laid their lines across hers. So up goes her kite with a bar wrapped around them and the kite attached to it starts to head skyward ... thankfully she got yanked into a nose dive and let go the bar and her kite depowered.
Seriously, what is wrong with people? If you're not flying the kite, wrap your line up don't leave them strung out over the beach! Common fucking sense and the only people who do it seem to be me, So and Hironobu ...
When I went to launch at the start of the day, I had to untangle the Master of Disaster's lines from mine first - he SAW me laying out my lines but landed his kite and just left his lines there, right over the top of mine. Wanker. He blew the LE on his brand new 8m Park so that'll learn him.
Anyway. I packed up my 13m before something happened to it.
Back out onto the water with the 10m and the Rip. Trying to control my jumps and land them rather than crashing or splashing down. Apparently the wife turned up for a while and she got some video, which I'll trim and upload. Not really exciting though cos like I said, was trying to do controlled jumps - not "how high can you fly?". Did a lot of jumps from the flat water behind the waves, rather than boosting off the face of the wave (although I still did them too) in the search for the elevator jumps. Did a lot of toe-side riding too ... for what that was worth :D
Sun was touching the hills, daylight is running out and I was spent. Great day, epic gusting to stupid but was muy bien! When I got back to the car, wife had left a choccie bar and drink for me too - lovely!
Finally edited the movie. After spending hours making it nicely sync with the audio track, fuckin' YouTube disabled it. Lame. Music from the '70's gets the ban-hammer but more recent tunes don't? That's a bit mad! So this is a place-holder until I get home and can upload to Vimeo ...
One step back, two forwards? from Kevin Henry on Vimeo.
What I learned today ...
• I might even need a 7m :o
• Riding a small board - possible! Starting needs more aggressive power strokes but I can cope with the short nose if I adjust my brain.
• 10m kite is crazy fast. Accidental kiteloops ... hurt.
• Small jumps I'm okay with - can redirect at the right time and ride away but going big results in splashdowns :( I still think it's timing of the redirection.
• Failed jump? Keep the kite behind you for a soft splash down.
• AERIAL TRANSITIONS! Little more than clearing the fins from the water, but I did a whole bunch in a row WOO HOO!!! At first they were lucky accidents but I did a number on purpose :)
• Don't need wetsuit boots anymore.
... tough decision. Dithered around for a bit and decided to go with the 13 and the Rip Plus cos I need to get used to a small board. Started off with ol' Faithful though and was muy powered! Boosted some MONSTER jumps - seriously, they were massive and I just hung around under them for ages - but it was clear that the 13 was too much kite.
Pumped up the 10 and got back on the water ... weird being under such a small kite but I was easily powered, as the locals swapped down to the 7, 6, and 5m kites :o the big board had to go, so I jumped on the Rip Plus.
I'm determined to get used to a small board cos there'll be a Flyradical L in the mail soon hopefully - thanks Ricardo again! - so I persisted through the first few? many? minutes of nose dives and wipe-outs then I was riding and moaning to myself about the footpads not being as nice as the FS ones then I was just riding! I guess it's pretty easy to do when you're overpowered on a 10m kite :D
Spent a lot of the tack just standing on the fins, cos any edging at all sent me rocketing upwind miles away from the beach. Had a good amount of space to myself so busted some more monster jumps ... until I fucked them up several times in a row, looping the kite and slammed but myself good, at which point I came in for a break.
As I was sitting down having a drink, the Mistress of Disaster decided to launch her kite - this time, without checking that someone else hadn't laid their lines across hers. So up goes her kite with a bar wrapped around them and the kite attached to it starts to head skyward ... thankfully she got yanked into a nose dive and let go the bar and her kite depowered.
Seriously, what is wrong with people? If you're not flying the kite, wrap your line up don't leave them strung out over the beach! Common fucking sense and the only people who do it seem to be me, So and Hironobu ...
When I went to launch at the start of the day, I had to untangle the Master of Disaster's lines from mine first - he SAW me laying out my lines but landed his kite and just left his lines there, right over the top of mine. Wanker. He blew the LE on his brand new 8m Park so that'll learn him.
Anyway. I packed up my 13m before something happened to it.
Back out onto the water with the 10m and the Rip. Trying to control my jumps and land them rather than crashing or splashing down. Apparently the wife turned up for a while and she got some video, which I'll trim and upload. Not really exciting though cos like I said, was trying to do controlled jumps - not "how high can you fly?". Did a lot of jumps from the flat water behind the waves, rather than boosting off the face of the wave (although I still did them too) in the search for the elevator jumps. Did a lot of toe-side riding too ... for what that was worth :D
Sun was touching the hills, daylight is running out and I was spent. Great day, epic gusting to stupid but was muy bien! When I got back to the car, wife had left a choccie bar and drink for me too - lovely!
Finally edited the movie. After spending hours making it nicely sync with the audio track, fuckin' YouTube disabled it. Lame. Music from the '70's gets the ban-hammer but more recent tunes don't? That's a bit mad! So this is a place-holder until I get home and can upload to Vimeo ...
One step back, two forwards? from Kevin Henry on Vimeo.
What I learned today ...
• I might even need a 7m :o
• Riding a small board - possible! Starting needs more aggressive power strokes but I can cope with the short nose if I adjust my brain.
• 10m kite is crazy fast. Accidental kiteloops ... hurt.
• Small jumps I'm okay with - can redirect at the right time and ride away but going big results in splashdowns :( I still think it's timing of the redirection.
• Failed jump? Keep the kite behind you for a soft splash down.
• AERIAL TRANSITIONS! Little more than clearing the fins from the water, but I did a whole bunch in a row WOO HOO!!! At first they were lucky accidents but I did a number on purpose :)
• Don't need wetsuit boots anymore.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Light wind - lovely!
Missed a great session yesterday - saw the joy on the webcam when I got home from hockey at 5pm :( - but the forecast was for more of the same today!
Fail. We got less :(
Luckily, I'm the proud owner of a 19m Speed2 Silver Arrow and a Flydoor so I actually got some riding in! Kept losing ground downwind cos I was jumping and fooling around, but eventually the wind picked up just a touch more (it was 4-7 knots when I unpacked the kite) and I was going upwind finally! Had some fun for a bit then was just starting to feel overpowered at full trim so thought I'd go back to the 16m Crossbow - I had pumped it up already, after all ...
... hmm, just powered. Had some fun playing silly buggers like I don't dare with the foil, pulled off some nice jumps and even some (intentional) aerial transitions! Getting real good at the down loop carve turn too :D
Was a bit crowded and there were a few close calls.
[rant]
The Mistress of Disaster - what a bitch! Everyone walks all the way up the beach, waits to get into the water and start in the order they arrived - but not her, she's got to jump in just downwind of you, fuck around for a few minutes holding you up before diddling off. She does the reverse when you're trying to walk up the beach too. And she never N-E-V-E-R looks behind herself when she fucking turns! She nearly flew into me yet again.
Boofhead the Huncback - likes to trample your lines into the sand and stand over your kite smoking, flicking burning ash all over it. Also has no idea about the water code - I was on a starboard tack, he was coming at me with his kite at or above 45° and would have gotten tangled in my lines if neither of us moved. He didn't even move his kite so at the last minute I dove my kite and went to head downwind of him - grr! - and as I did that, he started a turn by diving his kite so I had to whip my kite back to port and continue my bearing off as a heel to toe turn. Moron.
SeaSpecs - DON'T fucking float, unless you consider bricks to float. 3 pairs now at the bottom of Biwa, 2 pairs had been tied to my wetsuit pull cord ... in the milliseconds that I splash down and pop my head back up, they're fucking gone to the bottom like a rocket. Debating what to do about new pair of glasses ...
[/rant]
Despite that, had a good day playing with the low wind. Praise the lord - or Ricardo! - for the Flydoor, what a great board! And the Silberpfeil made the most of the utter butter water we had for the first 2 hours ... OMG flat water riding at last!
What I learned today ...
• SeaSpecs do NOT float ... Ffffff uuuuuuuuuuuuu ...
• Am very happy I didn't buy a Naish Cult - the dude out on the 15 had to swim in TWICE cos it simply wouldn't relaunch - even from T.E. down :o Not an unusual occurrence! The F-One's don't relaunch so well in light wind either ...
• When I've trimmed in the Silberpfeil about 1/2, I could be having great fun on the Crossbow. A smaller board will mix it all up though :D
• SA2.5 overlaps perfectly with the 16 'bow but is a PITA to pack up in a hurry!
• Don't pack it up wingtip to wingtip but rather roll one end to the center, then the other. A little more time consuming but zero SPL or bridle tangles ...
Fail. We got less :(
Luckily, I'm the proud owner of a 19m Speed2 Silver Arrow and a Flydoor so I actually got some riding in! Kept losing ground downwind cos I was jumping and fooling around, but eventually the wind picked up just a touch more (it was 4-7 knots when I unpacked the kite) and I was going upwind finally! Had some fun for a bit then was just starting to feel overpowered at full trim so thought I'd go back to the 16m Crossbow - I had pumped it up already, after all ...
... hmm, just powered. Had some fun playing silly buggers like I don't dare with the foil, pulled off some nice jumps and even some (intentional) aerial transitions! Getting real good at the down loop carve turn too :D
Was a bit crowded and there were a few close calls.
[rant]
The Mistress of Disaster - what a bitch! Everyone walks all the way up the beach, waits to get into the water and start in the order they arrived - but not her, she's got to jump in just downwind of you, fuck around for a few minutes holding you up before diddling off. She does the reverse when you're trying to walk up the beach too. And she never N-E-V-E-R looks behind herself when she fucking turns! She nearly flew into me yet again.
Boofhead the Huncback - likes to trample your lines into the sand and stand over your kite smoking, flicking burning ash all over it. Also has no idea about the water code - I was on a starboard tack, he was coming at me with his kite at or above 45° and would have gotten tangled in my lines if neither of us moved. He didn't even move his kite so at the last minute I dove my kite and went to head downwind of him - grr! - and as I did that, he started a turn by diving his kite so I had to whip my kite back to port and continue my bearing off as a heel to toe turn. Moron.
SeaSpecs - DON'T fucking float, unless you consider bricks to float. 3 pairs now at the bottom of Biwa, 2 pairs had been tied to my wetsuit pull cord ... in the milliseconds that I splash down and pop my head back up, they're fucking gone to the bottom like a rocket. Debating what to do about new pair of glasses ...
[/rant]
Despite that, had a good day playing with the low wind. Praise the lord - or Ricardo! - for the Flydoor, what a great board! And the Silberpfeil made the most of the utter butter water we had for the first 2 hours ... OMG flat water riding at last!
What I learned today ...
• SeaSpecs do NOT float ... Ffffff uuuuuuuuuuuuu ...
• Am very happy I didn't buy a Naish Cult - the dude out on the 15 had to swim in TWICE cos it simply wouldn't relaunch - even from T.E. down :o Not an unusual occurrence! The F-One's don't relaunch so well in light wind either ...
• When I've trimmed in the Silberpfeil about 1/2, I could be having great fun on the Crossbow. A smaller board will mix it all up though :D
• SA2.5 overlaps perfectly with the 16 'bow but is a PITA to pack up in a hurry!
• Don't pack it up wingtip to wingtip but rather roll one end to the center, then the other. A little more time consuming but zero SPL or bridle tangles ...
Monday, May 2, 2011
Summer's on the way!
Went down the lake today to get over the weekend blues ... forecast was for crap but the webcam at Locus looked great! But by the time I arrived, it was borked again ...
Unpacked the Silberpfeil and rode the edge of the bottom end limit for a while; doing some riding, doing some walking ... then the wind picked up and was nicely- to over-powered for the rest of the evening.
Got off the lake about 30 minutes before dark, packed up and got home about 7:30pm - woohoo! summer is well on the way!
What I learned today ...
• NEED a smaller board!
• ALWAYS take 2 boards or two kites over to the lake - they're too far away in the boot in the carpark!
• If you think the Speed is going to luff, grab a rear line and haul on it!
• Landing a decent jump - make sure the big foil is diving downwind to stop the luff.
• If you swing under it (moron) try and turn it to get speed back into it or ... grab a rear line and haul on it!
• Riding toe-side is much easier when you're tethered to a tractor ...
• A bad day at Biwako is better than a good day at Hamamatsu :P
Unpacked the Silberpfeil and rode the edge of the bottom end limit for a while; doing some riding, doing some walking ... then the wind picked up and was nicely- to over-powered for the rest of the evening.
Got off the lake about 30 minutes before dark, packed up and got home about 7:30pm - woohoo! summer is well on the way!
What I learned today ...
• NEED a smaller board!
• ALWAYS take 2 boards or two kites over to the lake - they're too far away in the boot in the carpark!
• If you think the Speed is going to luff, grab a rear line and haul on it!
• Landing a decent jump - make sure the big foil is diving downwind to stop the luff.
• If you swing under it (moron) try and turn it to get speed back into it or ... grab a rear line and haul on it!
• Riding toe-side is much easier when you're tethered to a tractor ...
• A bad day at Biwako is better than a good day at Hamamatsu :P
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Slipped in a sly one!
Forecast looked promising, headed down to the lake after work. Wind looked ok so I thought I'd rush out for a quick blast ... sunset is now pushing 6:30 so if I hauled ass, I could get an hour or more on the water.
Geared up - my US size 12 boots arrived from the Wetsuit Wearhouse last night and they're the perfect fit! Pumped up as fast as I could and that seemed to suck the wind out of the air into my kite :( wind drops off ...
16m Crossbow self-launches fine and I'm riding easily but not powered how I like ... trying to work on perfecting my stance and elevator jumps. Really need to tighten the straps to help with the stance but the pull-pull straps baffle me. Moderate success on the elevator jumps but only on a port tack :( it seems I'm very 'handed' as far as that is concerned.
Accidentally did a back loop/spin/roll - muffed a launch and spun around under the kite but hung on and landed it and rode away. Of course, nobody saw it!
Good session, glad I made the effort even though the wind was light and the lake was full of floating logs, park signs and stuff! 0_o
What I learned today ...
• Proper sent jumps - I can do them. They're just as tough to land though. There's more of a floating downwind feeling to them too which is disconcerting. Boosting up the face of a wave is still the best :D
• The 5mm gloves may be the cause for exploding forearms, not the 16m bar pressure. Will check again when it warms up.
• I load'n'pop to starboard better than to port, but jump much better the other way :(
• Can handle spins, my poor old brain is up to the task! Woohoo!
Geared up - my US size 12 boots arrived from the Wetsuit Wearhouse last night and they're the perfect fit! Pumped up as fast as I could and that seemed to suck the wind out of the air into my kite :( wind drops off ...
16m Crossbow self-launches fine and I'm riding easily but not powered how I like ... trying to work on perfecting my stance and elevator jumps. Really need to tighten the straps to help with the stance but the pull-pull straps baffle me. Moderate success on the elevator jumps but only on a port tack :( it seems I'm very 'handed' as far as that is concerned.
Accidentally did a back loop/spin/roll - muffed a launch and spun around under the kite but hung on and landed it and rode away. Of course, nobody saw it!
Good session, glad I made the effort even though the wind was light and the lake was full of floating logs, park signs and stuff! 0_o
What I learned today ...
• Proper sent jumps - I can do them. They're just as tough to land though. There's more of a floating downwind feeling to them too which is disconcerting. Boosting up the face of a wave is still the best :D
• The 5mm gloves may be the cause for exploding forearms, not the 16m bar pressure. Will check again when it warms up.
• I load'n'pop to starboard better than to port, but jump much better the other way :(
• Can handle spins, my poor old brain is up to the task! Woohoo!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Technique!
Good resource tips and instructionals. Just wish some of the pics were bigger! The search engine thingy is handy too ...
KSurf online magazine
KSurf online magazine
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)