Windsurfer rescued at Dillon

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sloughslut
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Re: Windsurfer rescued at Dillon

Post by sloughslut » Sun Oct 06, 2013 12:50 pm

Life insurance for your sweet heart or loved ones is a good idea also SS$$
Riding used and closeout kites and boards from e-bay,craigslist,ikitesurf, and local surf shops.Now riding home made foils

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Re: Windsurfer rescued at Dillon

Post by windstoked » Sun Oct 06, 2013 10:43 pm

Riding used and closeout kites in the Shark Pit is not recommended, but taking your new and full-price kites out there with upper 20's and huge swell can be unnerving too! ;)

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Re: Windsurfer rescued at Dillon

Post by sloughslut » Mon Oct 07, 2013 2:46 pm

windstoked wrote:Riding used and closeout kites in the Shark Pit is not recommended, but taking your new and full-price kites out there with upper 20's and huge swell can be unnerving too! ;)

Its not the kite, its you *(
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Re: Windsurfer rescued at Dillon

Post by Bulldog » Fri Oct 11, 2013 9:12 am

Kiting in the ocean takes a few skills that kiting in the Bay does not. While a place like Sherman or Chrissy might have currents or tides that affect your ability to go upwind, the water in the ocean is moving in a much more dramatic fashion that you may not realize.

Rip currents can be localized and change with the tides, and large swell moves the water in ways that are not obvious from above. This can have a dramatic affect on your kite, making it appear that the wind has died or disappeared, and leading your to drop it in the water.

I often hear people say things like "the wind is really holey in the break" or some such, when what is really happening is the water is moving the opposite direction that you want to go, making it feel like you are underpowered.

Alternately, when riding the wave in, the wave will push you towards your kite and slack the lines if you aren't careful. Dropping your kite in this situation is really dangerous to both you and your kite. Plenty of kites have been destroyed this way.

Both of this situations require kite skills that you may not have developed yet -- like very quickly moving the kite to generate additional power when you hit a rip current. The bigger the kite you are flying, the harder it is to do this.

Lastly, in the winter it is fairly common for the wind to die on the beach and continue to blow on the water. If you are kiting late in the day, it's always good to go all the way back to the launch on every tack to keep making sure you have enough wind to get home.
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Re: Windsurfer rescued at Dillon

Post by zgur » Fri Oct 11, 2013 11:57 am

+1 to what Paul said!

I use a simple rule of thumb: if you can paddle out and in with the given conditions, you are set to go kiting....once, not if, stuff goes wrong in winter ocean conditions, you don't want to realize that you don't have enough skills and hope that others pluck your ass out of the cold/sharky water, as daylight fades and your body starts to shiver.....oh shit, what was that shadow I just saw in the water? What the hell just bumped my leg? sure hope it was that friendly seal

or you have so much local knowledge and confidence in your gear/weather patterns that you know you will not need to swim in....

I've been lucky to kite many years in big conditions that were more than I can handle, and I did not pay the price, except for a few blown up kites/broken boards close to shore....(how do you say lucky fucker in English? )

.....recently, I've paid enough dues to be able to paddle out/in in these conditions and feel a lot more comfortable.....

Either way, realize that you are entering an extreme environment when you venture into the ocean....appreciate the enormity of this experience.......rinse and repeat.

"your mileage may vary depending on your driving habits"

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Re: Windsurfer rescued at Dillon

Post by wjb » Fri Oct 11, 2013 12:03 pm

Basically it comes down to this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CG2cux_6Rcw[/video]
It is obvious that we can no more explain a passion to a person who has never experienced it than we can explain light to the blind. T.S.Eliot

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