Florida in January?

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OliverG
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Florida in January?

Post by OliverG » Wed Oct 26, 2005 11:00 am

Anyone have any info on kiting the central Atlantic area? Southwest has some great deals for flights from Oakland to Orlando and it might make for a warm kite vacation.

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Post by KillaHz » Wed Oct 26, 2005 1:40 pm

All pre and post frontal Ollie. Usually 4 to 5 days of good wind with every approaching/exiting front. you would need to start with west winds on the west coast (Tampa/Naples/St. Pete) You would then ride East coast as the winds shift Eastward for the next few days.

Like I said though...hit or miss.
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sometimes Gary Bronson...

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OliverG
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Post by OliverG » Wed Oct 26, 2005 5:32 pm

Hmm, anyone think South Padre might be a better option?

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lmontejo
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Post by lmontejo » Wed Oct 26, 2005 6:09 pm

I went to South Padre early this summer. All I can say is that it is an incredible kiting location. I kited out of Phillip Money's place (http://www.windsurfinc.com/) He has a shop if you need any extra equipment, repairs, or even want to try a new board.

Basically you can kite all day and be picked up anywhere in the Laguna Madre by his crew. He also offers great instruction for those interested in better air time. As he said to me, "This sport is not about going fast, it's about going up!"

If you want good constant winds, and flat warm water (during the winter it will be cooler) this is the place to go. When I went there it was not crowded at all, and often shared the entire Laguna (miles and miles of it) with one or two more kiters.

Leo

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Post by KillaHz » Wed Oct 26, 2005 6:29 pm

BayAreaKite wrote:Hmm, anyone think South Padre might be a better option?
unfortunately, I think it's the same deal. Hit or miss. For gauranteed wind in the winter you have to head south...way south. Not to say that SPI doesn't get more kiting days in the winter than anywhere else in the country but it's still hit or miss. January is the worst month everywhere.

Not going to CR again Ollie?

I think I'm going to head to Panama.

Two of my friends just went to SPI last week and got one light session. Of course it blew 35 all day the day after they left.
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OliverG
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Post by OliverG » Wed Oct 26, 2005 6:42 pm

KillaHz wrote:
BayAreaKite wrote:Hmm, anyone think South Padre might be a better option?
Not going to CR again Ollie?
Always a possibility, never say never, right? Last year was fun.

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Post by Pablito » Wed Oct 26, 2005 8:14 pm

The CR trip sounds like a great deal. Is the airfare so steep and trip so long that you'd rather gamble with the weather here in the states, Ollie?

A better bet for guaranteed wind stateside would be a snowkite vacation to Skyline, UT or the wind-swept nether regions of Montana or Wyoming. Brrrr.

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Post by OliverG » Wed Oct 26, 2005 8:32 pm

CR is a lot of fun and I may just end up going there. The flight and travel time is no longer than FL, you still xfer in Houston and overall it takes about the same amount if time. The one thing that was really cool about CR is that you really have an opportunity to relax when you're not kiting. It's a remote bay with not too much else going on locally. My typical day was waking up early, going for a run or walk, breakfast, kiting, lunch, kiting, reading, dinner, beers, bedtime. Wake up and repeat. Very chill by any account.

I still haven't gotten into the snow kiting yet. I have to admit, I've always been a double planker, never even snowboarded, don't even have a snowboard! A warm trip will hit the spot around that time, I think.

I thought about a trip in the States as it's fun to try something new, but I would like to be able to count on some wind as I've been skunked plenty on other trips. Maui is one place where getting skunked is tolerable, though.

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Post by Pablito » Thu Oct 27, 2005 6:51 am

CR sounds good to me, but I'm sure some people are looking for more, umm, extracurricular activities.

Snowkiting on skis is just as much fun as on a snowboard, and you don't have to sit down in the snow to launch. It's a little different kiting on two planks, but I'm sure you'd get the hang of it pretty quick.

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Post by lmontejo » Thu Oct 27, 2005 7:40 pm

I've signed up for Costa Rica. Never been to Central America, and am looking forward to it. Jeff Ruoss of KiteWindsurf is going to have many different kites and boards available.

As for the extracurricular activities, I guess I'll take a good book!

Leo
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