Miller 2-16-12

[mrgrey]

Ok so I didnt get wet, but still had some fun! This has been my kite anchor I have been using this winter and i have been practicing in 10-12knt winds. I was making 150 yard runs down the beach draggin my heels, diving the kite for water start simulation and getting familiar with relaunching techniques in light winds. Also getting very comfy really working that bar to generate pull and flying with one hand effortlessly. I feel very much in control now of the kite and feel ready for the water part! Got my 6/5/4 with hood and gloves and boots I wanna try out soon too...maybe put my ski boat in early and do some wakeboarding! anyway.. the last one is me in my favorite toy with my daughter..

http://www.flickr.com/photos/50030819@N02/6911812619/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/50030819@N02/6911811393/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/50030819@N02/6911810577/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/50030819@N02/4873024444/

[smpl]

hey mate. i've found another really good trick that people can practice on the beach to give them the feeling of what is required to to upwind on the water. decide on your direction of tack, left or right, sit on the ground and dive the kite to emulate a water start. if you do it right you will skid up to a standing position on the balls of your feet. you will be moving in a direction 45 degrees off directly downwind. now start running and shift your direction of travel towards 90 degrees from downwind. this has the same effect of edging your board into the water. you may need to pull your back hand lightly to get the kite higher in the window, so that you can dive it again (using your fron hand) to generate more power. you need to experiment with this balance between generating power from the kite to project you forward, and running (edging) hard enough against the pull. you have found the sweet spot when you are actually running more than 90 degrees and are actually going upwind. it is a unique feeling where you are getting more apparent power from the kite as you are running into the wind, and this only happens when you are moving fast into the wind AKA sailing.

good luck and be safe

Ps. i do not condone beach jumping as this is when you break stuff, but if you pulling your back hand really hard while you continue to runn upwind, you will emulate jumping on the water. better to practice this while running towarrs the water as you can go as high as you like but have something soft to land on. btw, don't for get to dive the kite back down using your front hand otherwise you will drop like a stone.

[mrgrey]

Thanks for the advice! I have been trying to emulate that same feeling by doing something similar to what you described. It seems much more difficult without a good stiff wind to get that upwind feel. It seems like diving the kite and edging when there is pull and then turning slightly downwind when the pull decrases seems to work when the wind is light. Gives a stepping upwind kind of pattern. Seems to make sense to me at least... oh well soon enough it will happen. I am sure the time on the water will be much more helpful once I can get in it. I am sure my 6/5/4 will get me in it a little sooner. Thx for the insight and some assurance I am doing something productive!

[smpl]

yup, when you're not powered it's all about lessening your edge to go downwind and gain speed so that you can edge again to shoot upwind - kind of like shooting a wet apple seed between your thumbs. good luck!

[FSP]

The winter can be very deceiving in that the winds are much more steady, making your practice seem almost easy breezy. Once spring hits, rest assured you will be like "what the _ _ _ _ happended!!!" Coming soon, when the air warms past the water temps on many of our "good"days you will find shifty, powerfully gusty, and downright unpredictable kite flying. The hazzards will be "loftings", pockets of air causing your kite to lose brief moments of contact, wind aloft, with more people strolling into the scene...and so on.

I feel your anxiousness to get out but just realize you might be flying in some especially nice winds now that will change to: "beware of" just several weeks ahead. The frustrating catch around here is that the water seems like a much safer place to be when spring hits, but stays so dangerously cold into may, that getting stranded in the cold is equally dangerous leaving both the beach and water very tricky learning ground this time of year.

Many try to learn in warmer places to avoid these challenges we face, however if you cant, then use extreme caution from those who know when to practice and why. Kiting is actually very easy when all is steady, so a good rule of thumb when getting started spring time is learn more about the weather than kiting.

good luck and get to mr tom skilling at 9:34pm.

[mrgrey]

Thanks for the level of concern, seems like a good bunch in this area. I hear ya about the weather, especially because I am a private pilot. 70% of flying is weather... To mitigate my risks I am hoping to get some sound instruction while in Florida next month in St. Pete area. In addition continuing to learn as much as I can safely on my own. My plan is to not start on the big lake but rather a lake I have grown up on that is a "mini Hatteras" in terms of consistently flat, shallow, sandy bottom that you can stand up anywhere and walk to shore.

I have posted this info elsewhere here but believe this is a great lake with lots of potential. The lake has an average depth of 3.5' and the entire south end of the lake can be walked across without getting more than chest deep.



http://maps.google.com/maps?q=bass+lake,+in&hl=en&ll=41.226764,-86.589432&spn=0.050481,0.077162&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=53.829089,79.013672&vpsrc=6&hnear=Bass+Lake,+Starke,+Indiana&t=h&z=14


BTW thats me in the middle..