SKY WAY WIND Currents WATER Currents

[Steve-O]

Absolutely that Easterly spike in the evening is something I have now included in our content to discuss. I printed out the IKite graph of Friday night showing the spike of 20-45 in 2 minutes. Also printed out doppler and included your discussion from this post. I have started out with about a 30 page packet to give each student that has grown to 50 pages. I am sure by next year it will be even thicker.

Again, I have gained alot of insight from you through this forum and truly find it as a valuable tool in the sharing of knowledge. My entry into the forum was a bit dramatic to say the least, but I am glad that I stuck with it to see it's true value.

Thats a big thing... after about 8 months of riding I still had no idea it could go from 10 to 35 in 5 seconds until it actually did. Unfortunately I was on an 18M C kite when it happened.

My hard lesson involved getting dragged 75 yards to shore (quick release did not work.. pulled it as hard as I could may many times), hitting the beach and getting lofted 10 feet in the air, crashing down hard on my stomach, looping my kite when my bar hit the ground, and getting slingshotted another 75 yards on my stomach, between trees and signs, across the street, between cars, and into mangroves.. all at about 40mph in a time span of 8 seconds. A lot of road rash and some really bad near misses. WOW.

That was the day I realized I needed to pay more attention to the weather.

The second thing I learned was to crash the kite in the water first... pulling the quick release may just leave you with a looping kite and the bar out of reach.

Don't let your first hard lesson take you out.

Later found out the QR was a poor (Best) design which could easily be rigged wrong (the correct way was exactly the opposite way you rigged the more common slingshot version). The quick release worked fine unless it was under high load... so check your gear (under load) regularly boys.

[bayflite]

quick releases.
only use them as a last resort.
if your in hell and need to kill the kite, sheet out the bar then grab your chicken loop and unhook. Billy Parker explained this to me one time.
peace

If you are already getting lofted and dragged when sheeting out, you cannot simply unhook. Thats why the need for quick releases became apparent in the first place!

Hang from a bar in your tree by your harness hook and lets see you unhook by grabbing the chicken loop. It's not possible. I've tried. I tried it while getting dragged into EB with all of my strength. That chicken loop felt like a steel cable... I was not going to budge it.

However you might be able to do it inbetween gusts when there is a moment of slack in the lines.

[bayflite]

tom,
imo it's not the same bro.
when you pull on the chicken loop(front lines)to unhook, the kites >>>camber shift<<< will be more than enuff slack to get unhooked.
i'm assuming that whatever you hung from didn't give slack to the c-loop when you pull on it, kinda like if you tried to unhook using the bar(all 4 lines)
peace

Very true Bayflite. I hear you. I bet if it's really, really nuking though, it won't work. You would still have to take the time to get the chicken bone out of the spreader too, assuming you use that thingy (I do). Getting the Chicken Bone out is probably as hard as pulling the QR, for me it would be anyway.

All I know is it's hard to do much of anything when you're really getting worked, like that day yourself, Billy and I all got slammed at Shell trying to get back. That was pretty unreal.
Or if it happens real fast, like with a bridle snap gone to powered death spiral. I saw that happen to Chris Bigger. Not pretty.

[bayflite]

scott
good point.
i assumed everyone chopped off the donky dick straight away.
all i'm saying iz a quick release 4 me iz a last resort, not the first thing i reach 4.
steve...surefire iz a POS IMHO.
you however...r a cool mo fo.
peace