wow man as the post said all i was doing was testing the top end to see how safe the depower was .

have a look at the vids from the geralton 2004 nats where dan anderson is ripping it in an average 28-30 kts on a 10 metre North, kite loops and all...........It can and has been done before.............

If your in survival mode on a 7 in 25 kts, maybe you should change to a better kite. I think you'll find most 7's these days are very good and even rated out of the bag into the 30's:)

I agree wif carlbevo. I struggle to hold my 6 in anything over 30knots.

But one thing i noticed is how overpowered you are depends not just on the wind speed but also what I call the 'push'.

For example I kited in over 30knots in hawaii with warm trade winds and could easily hold it and do tricks. But I went down to albany in the cold wind and was struggling at 25knots.

my 2 cents not sure what everyone else thinks???

quote:

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Originally posted by CarlBevo

I can barely hang onto a 7 in 25-30 and i'm 75 kg and thats in survial mode (no tricks no waves just edging)

keep it real claimers

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You lost some kn weight?

quote:

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Originally posted by CarlBevo
I can barely hang onto a 7 in 25-30 and i'm 75 kg and thats in survial mode (no tricks no waves just edging)
keep it real claimers

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There are two major things that affect kite size and wind strength. Weight has a huge impact, as much as 2m different per 10-15 kg's of weight. I've personally witnesses guys hitting 40 knots on 9m bows on more than one occasion.

Second major item is wind temperature. I've seen guys in durban holding 40 knots in warm air, and I've seen guys battling with the same size kite in 30 knots of cold air.

we regularly ride in 25-30 knots ( real wind actually measured) but our air temp is in the high 20's low 30's. Its quite controlable and a lot of fun with the right kite. I am 100Kg so i'll be on a 10m if its 25knots and an 8m or a 6m if its 30 knots.

I think the density of the air in cooler climates would make a big difference, can some one find any numbers on what this difference could be?

Here's a claim...

Carl is gay.

Its more useful to compare projected areas if you are trying to compare the amount of power delivered by the kite. Does anyone happen to know the projected area of a 9m bow? A 7m c is around 5-5.5m^2. The size of the projected area is what you change when u "depower" a kite.

Unfortunately we don't measure the *power* delivered by a kite, a function of it's projected area, air pressure, air density and wind speed. The biggest factor by far is wind speed.

Most people are lit on a 7m by 30 knots around perth. A lot of the east coast guys were calling the ~25kn average at the gero nats "way over 30 knots".

jayp: you could correlate mean air pressures and mean air temperatures to give a % power increase for a given wind speed for different locations. (but that wouldn't account for thermal effects)

Harf ya wakas are wrong.
The other arlf are right.

The question now is which is which.

However it's always a safe bet to be on the other side of the fence to Waveslave. It also helps to stop being hit in the face by dribble when there is a barrier between you.

Chopper, I'm with you. now I have to work out which half that is.

And of course the amount of kite you can hold due to edging, board size, kite style etc. depends on whether you're kiting flat water or waves/rolling swell/chop.
In the same wind strength on flat or open ocean I have a difference of 2m in kite size (high aspect C-kites)
Definitely here in WA you rarely see anyone out in a true 30 knots; it's getting better but many people still seem to read the tip of the arrow on the graphs not the middle of the arrow; may help explain some over-inflated wind speed claims.
Jess

shut up dan... unless u want me to talk about suction caissons

I can't explain the physics behind it like some people can but these facts do support the air temperature/air density debate:

Scenario 1: Middle of winter/early spring and a cold, post-front breeze is blowing. Graphs read an average of 13knots, I'm comfortably powered on a 12m high aspect C-kite.

Scenario 2: End of summer when the breezes are tapering off, a warm day with a warm breeze. Graphs are averaging 13 knots and I'm working hard to stay upwind on the same 12m kite. All other visible factors like board, location, weight etc. the same.

Scenario 3: Winter (very cold frontal wind) at Woodies (flat water) graphs reading around 22-26 knots I'm DEALING with the 8m.

Scenario 4: Summer (warm day, warm seabreeze) at a flat water spot graphs reading 24-28 knots and I'm still comfortable with the 8m.

Conclusion: Although I don't understand all the ins and outs of temperature etc., it is real and definitely affects how powered I am. When you get to know your gear really well you will be able to feel the difference. The kite can literally feel more aggressive and powerful in cold wind and it can feel more subdued and lifeless in warm wind.

Jess

This is a plot from last Sunday at Fawkner Becon in Melbourne (the Point Wilson one didn't work??) we went down to Point Henery at about 4pm to have a look but decided against going out as it was still pretty cold. There were two guys out one on a 14m Best Waroo and the other on a 10m C kite both looking well powered but in control. As we left the guy on the 10m came in and he was a large lad but on a small surfboard. As we were leaving a guy was putting up a 12m bow.

http://www.earthsci.unimelb.edu.au/~awatkins/graphplot.html
(You need to select the date 24/09/06)

I went out in 55 knots........no.......65 knots the other day! completely offshore....

Got to new zealand real quick...had to virgin it back though!

Thats my claim!!!

What side of the fence am I on????

TOOLBAGS!

quote:

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Originally posted by Jess

I can't explain the physics behind it like some people can but these facts do support the air temperature/air density debate:

Scenario 1: Middle of winter/early spring and a cold, post-front breeze is blowing. Graphs read an average of 13knots, I'm comfortably powered on a 12m high aspect C-kite.

Scenario 2: End of summer when the breezes are tapering off, a warm day with a warm breeze. Graphs are averaging 13 knots and I'm working hard to stay upwind on the same 12m kite. All other visible factors like board, location, weight etc. the same.

Scenario 3: Winter (very cold frontal wind) at Woodies (flat water) graphs reading around 22-26 knots I'm DEALING with the 8m.

Scenario 4: Summer (warm day, warm seabreeze) at a flat water spot graphs reading 24-28 knots and I'm still comfortable with the 8m.

Conclusion: Although I don't understand all the ins and outs of temperature etc., it is real and definitely affects how powered I am. When you get to know your gear really well you will be able to feel the difference. The kite can literally feel more aggressive and powerful in cold wind and it can feel more subdued and lifeless in warm wind.

Jess

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G'day Jess.

It's to do with air density, colder weather= higher air density, warmer weather= lower air density.

Knots only measure air velocity, the denser the air the more "bang for your buck" for a given velocity.

Drag racers also look at air density when setting up fuel mixtures on their engines. Higher density= more available oxygen.

Al the best guys, see yas on the water.

Alby

this seems to be a case of 'dinghy sailors' wind or now 'Kiters wind'
when you hear tales of people screaming along in a force 6 only not to be able to plane windsurfing on a 5.3!
40knts is a lot of wind- trees swaying erratically and a confused water state with the tops of the waves streaming off. also find it fairly tricky to stand still!
as used for a few hundred years by Beaufort!
as a sailor windsurfer surfer and kiter who has been all over the world i am well aware of wind density affecting the size of the sail/kite you use for different wind speeds/temp.
this subject is open to much debate but as far as im aware it is due to the 'viscosity' (stickiness) of the wind, resulting in different amounts of lift from the benouli effect.
a classic example of this is egypt where you use a 5.3/5m sail or 12m kite in a force 6 where as here in wa youd use a 4.7 or 9m kite due to the wind being denser(colder) and less sticky resulting in increased laminar flow and more lift!
myself and many friends have had many debates on this over the last 10 years and the outcome is no one really knows!!!!
just don't go kiting in 40knts (real wind) remember if it is really blowing that much as it was in Cape Town a lot while is was there a few years ago the only way anyone could kite was using a Naish sabre 2m or you could windsurf on a 3.6!
now thats 40knts
keep it real guys and have fun
lee