When is Ocean Beach Windy?

[nathaniel_e]

Is it just March - May?
Why doesn't windalert have breifings for this part of the coast?
The wind predictions sometimes seem to be a little off - how do
people decide when to go?
Thanks

[sflinux]

https://www.bayareakiteboarding.com/for ... f=1&t=6741
"The first rule of Fight Club"...

[Aloha]

March - May we get those obvious no fog NW clearers but OB will get wind year round. There's not much of a method to its madness though so it definitely helps to live nearby.

Good luck and see you out there!

[nathaniel_e]

Does this seem about right?

Does this seem about right?

1. best months (most consistent) - march - may
2. there is no windalert briefing because there is no accurate windmeter available to make accurate predictions
3. When the ocean bouy is over 20 from the WNW or NW and its not foggy - 'Endlestorm'
4. when Waddel and Bodega are both blowing around 20 and there is no fog - then OB should be good as well

is the OB fulton any more reliable than the OB kelly cove meter?
anything else worth knowing? is the north side of the beach windier than the south?

[jjm]

I'm not sure #2 is accurate. Mike Godsey's response may have been more oriented to the sailflow/ikite/iwindsurf sensors they have access to at the time ~2009. The new windalert system is able to pull from non-sailflow maintained sensors, such as the OB-KC meter. This should make it easier for the forecasters to make predictions as they can use their own system(s) and not scour sources all over the place. Notice how they have been throwing in forecasts for Stinson.

If enough people expressed interest, they might be willing to give it a shot. I imagine it would be pretty tricky to do well compared to the other sites they focus on, outside of the strong NW clearing patterns in the spring.

Read the details on the ob-kc.com cam/sensor here:
http://ob-kc.com/wsguide.html

It discusses the placement of the sensor and how to adjust based on direction.

Not familiar with the OB-Fulton sensor. Do you mean Ft. Funston?

Out of habit/convenience I normally ride around Balboa-Fulton and not so frequently on the south end. I like to see OB-kc reading NW as it is more side-on. WNW starts feeling very on-shore. If it is on the lighter side it can be really tough to break through the whitewater sections, especially on a twin tip.

[nathaniel_e]

refering to this guy http://www.windalert.com/spot/85765

[le noun]

Easy, if I see white caps all over the place on the cam, over 20 at the SF buoy, and fort Funston between 15 and 20, then I'll drive to OB.
I love when it's WNW as you can ride in the glassy inside between waves.
It will take you time to understand how to ride that place since the wind blows mostly straight on shore.
Mostly blows during clearing wind from march to June.
You can have a few killer sessions during south wind in the winter ( downwinder all the way from sloat to Kelly's cove is awesome).
I generally find that you get better wind at the north end when the wind comes from the NW and better wind at the south end of the beach when the wind comes from the S.

Hope this helps. See you in April for the "OB NUKE DAYS FESTIVAL". (bring your 6m)

[cleepa]

And don't forget right of way rules in the surf... OB requires more awareness in that regard, for a few reasons. First, there are rideable sections everywhere along the beach. This means there often isn't a rotation people are following. Second, someone who is on a wave will quite often be upwind of you - need to watch out for that when coming out through the break. Especially because their kite will often be whipping across the wind window downwind of them - right where someone might be coming out.

[BryanMichaelMeyer]

windy right now at OB