Hello! I am a windsurfing/kitesurfer that is considering a move to Savannah!
You would be doing me a huge favor by answering the following questions!
1)How often can/do you you sail/kite?
2)What are the windy seasons?
3)What size kite/sail do you use most?
4)What size board do you use most?
5)What is the average wind speed during the windy season?
6)Is their good wave sailing/kiting?
7)What is the average wind speed during non windy season?
8)What thickness of wetsuit will I need in the winter?
9)If you were to move anywhere on the east coast for better wind/kite surfing where would you move?
Thanks so much!
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1 & 2 we sail mostly in the fall, winter and spring as mother nature serves up the cold fronts 15-25 mph. Very calm in the summer.
3. Much debated, but I sail mostly a 6.6 and 8.2, not much kiting in our area, maybe in Savanah though.
4. I sail a 130l board the most of the time since I weigh 225lbs. Most are out on 100's or less though.
5. Average wind speed is around 12mph which is washed out with a ton of 5-10mph days. Fronts usually produce 15 and up.
6. Best wave sailing nearest Savanah would be Cocoa Beach, FL and Charleston, SC.
7. Which brings us to the primo sopt on the east coast, Cape Hatteras, NC. Primo wave sailiing/kiting and super nuking einds almost year round. This is preferred. If you have a chance to go further North, Cape Cod is the windy'st spot year round average. Good luck.
8. 3-5mph and super hot. Need to be near the ocean to get the sea breeze from off shore.
9. I use a 5/3 in the dead of winter, with a fleece rash gard, keeps me nice and toasty.
Plop
Danny Johnson
plop's a good man but spent too much time in AL. ;)
Sailing in Savannah means sailing at Tybee. You'll get thermals and easterlies in the early to mid-summer as well as front driven winds the rest of the year. While late spring and summer are pretty light inland, you still get wind on the coast through mid-summer, at least; seabreezes and the odd front.
Tybee is not a hot spot although folks do sail there. Charleston is actually closer to Atlanta and the sailing spots are more accessible. There are folks who sail/kite there but for some reason, it never developed into the same kind of community that exists in Charleston or Jacksonville.
Otherwise, the plopster is pretty much on. We southerners typically use big stuff (7.5 or greater) in the spring/summer while fall/winter/spring can bring on a fair number of 5.5-4.5 days but we don't see that much use for sails smaller than that too often.
-wf
Thanks for the insight and your time! Both of the above answers helped alot!
I plan on windsurfing 4.0-5.0 weather and anything above that with a kite!
Thanks again!
John Fusselman
"In Duct Tape We Trust"