Sharing the water with kites is new to me. When windsurfing I try to stay at least one mast length from other sailors unless I know them very well. Most sailors seem to understand right-of-ways. Most understand when to take off from a busy sailing site and also know how to approach a busy beach. There are a lot of unspoken rules that courtious sailors practice. Are there rules like this for kiting? How close can you get to a kiter without getting in their lines?
How about some general information for us sailors so we know how to share the space with kiters. No I don't want kite lessons right now. Maybe someday.
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Good questions Alan.
I have been thinking some about kiteboarding on our local lakes, still trying to see if makes sense. Even on good days, the winds typically cylces up for 15-20 minutes then cycles back down for 15-20 minutes. This leads to a lot of waiting for the wind, taking advantage of it, then sailing back in when the wind cycles downs. This is gives a good excuse to come in and take break, eat lunch, tell some lies to the other sailors, etc... Now can a kiteboarder do this -- go out, come in, go back out at the lake? This is not so much in issues at the beach with steady winds and large launching areas. Every time I have seen kiting at any lake, the sailor seems to spend 2 hours setting up lines and tyring to launch, only to go then sail for 15 minutes then swim back in when the wind inevitably dies.
Also could any launch in our area handle more than 2 or 3 kitesufers at the same time?
Kites in general need more downwind room, especially on a gusty lake. The mast equivalent rule is generally 30 meters (lines 27m plus kite 3 meters). Add to that the possibility of an intended or unintended lift and 45 meters becomes a more appealing rule of thumb. I know that I don't like to kite with anything, especially fixed objects, within 45 meters downwind of me.
As to the launch space, a little bit of organization goes a long way toward maximizing the number of folks that can effectively use a launch area. Not all kiters launch or come in at the same time. Once the kite is down it doesn't take up much space as long as the lines are laid out not to intrude on others launching/landing. I would guess at Athens park you could have 10 kiters coming and going at once without much difficulty. Old Federal probably 12-15.
On the kiting cycle - when I started on Lanier in 2002 the ratio of setup, ponder, worry, agonize, measure the wind ... to actual kiting was laughable. We were basically spending a day outside with lots of anticipation adrenaline and a little bit of the real thing.
With the new bow or supported leading edge (SLE) kites, a proper board, knowledge of the lake and prevailing conditions the ratio has improved significantly to the point where on a good day's a pretty even split between kiting and setup/ponder time (if you are able to stay upwind).
I am sometimes amazed at my tolerance for the setup/retrieval time. My wife thought I was crazy. She understands better now that our ratio has improved. I think it's all about the high from floating across the water and carving turns. I've been a windsurfer since I was 12 (25 years) but would never endure anything close to what I look forward to in a windy kite day. It's more like an adventure than just a sport.
Hope to test out my guesses on launching capacity on some windy weekend in the near future....
- Mel
mel . This is Mark . I am about to buy a sonic 14 and a 145 freestyle board with 6 inch fins.. / Do you own a sonic I weigh 170 took a lesson in kiting and have windsurfed 20 years or so I know Lanier pretty well. there is a launch north east of Vans Tavern right in the wind E mail me I plan on a trip to Tybee March 4 and 5 Emillio Is going to demo the kites I hear Email me markwman1@ yahoo.com I am torn between the 11 and the 14 which would you get if you were me?.
Mark,
I do not yet own a Sonic. I've demoed the 14 and liked it. Haven't yet tried the 11. My current quiver is a North Rhino4 12 and 20 m2 and a 15.5m2 AirRush Lift. I use 12 the most by far on Lanier and feel like I need a smaller kite to fill out my quiver. I weigh 170 lbs by the way.
When I upgrade, the 11 will give me the high wind option I've been missing and still have the power to get through the lulls. It will be my most used kite. I might also go with the 14 as a replacement for my 15.5. I rarely use the 20 so I'll probably get rid of it and not replace.
I think having a couple of boards, one high wind one low wind will really help cut down on the number of kites needed. I've got a 125 cm high wind board and need a 135cm or so board for lower wind. North's Jaime Pro is the best I've ridden.
Hope to see you out there soon!
- Mel