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Snowkiting in Utah

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 11:04 am
by kitedavis
Hey BAK'ers,

Here's a trip report from a snowkite trip with Wind Over Water in the Skyline area. See www.snowkiteutah.net. I joined Jeff Kafka and a few others for a 4-day trip last week, while Utah was getting epic amounts of snowfall.

Jeff provided everything needed except for snowboard boots. He gave me a choice of foil kites or inflatables. Mostly I used a 12 meter Cabrinha Crossbow. Initially, I went with a waist harness since that's what I use on water, but I learned that using a seat harness in the snow has a definite advantage in that it prevents the gap from forming between jacket and pants and keeps the snow out of there much better than a waist harness.

Jeff has a great set-up with a lodge where they provide hearty breakfasts and dinners, sack lunches for the hill, and comfortable rooms. It was great to let Jeff handle the driving to and from the lodge to the different kite spots that he has scoped out, and his trailer full of stuff included all the basic gear, plus some nice unexpected extras like handwarmer packets for the gloves, and chairs and a space heater for the day when temps went below zero.

As a kiter with two full seasons on the water under my belt, I was really happy with the progress I made on snow. By the 2nd day, I was able to go uphill through the powder. Jeff coached me on more aggressive kitehandling skills that are necessary in the typically lighter winds that we rode in, and I definitely think this will transfer into better skills for the water.

I'm not affiliated with WOW, just a satisfied customer. The Skyline area has lots of possibilities for snowkiting.

Cheers,

Matt

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2008 6:52 pm
by OliverG