Winter brings more variable winds and stormy conditions. So a smaller a kite and maybe required and understanding of weather patterns and how they can affect the wind.

In essence its a lot more dangerous than balmy summer seabreazes.

But the wa guys will be able to give you a more detail idea of what happens over there at you specific local.

I would say no given you are a beginner. Buy a Sup instead.

Suggest move to North QLD

jennavzla said..
I've been told the season ends pretty much in March (April if lucky), at least in WA.

Should I get myself a bigger kite (say a 10m for 50kg) for low windy days after the season is over, or there is literally no more kitesurfing days?

This is my first season so I don't know how the wind works after the season is over

Any advice is hugely appreciated! :)

Take a trip up here in Townsville Jen. Season will start soon and winds are coming back nicely

The bigger boards without foot straps look awesome, but tricky to ride, like wakeskste compared to bindings. I guess it would be ok if you have surfing experience, or once you are already a gun on the twin tip (?). I found a low wind twin tip with foot straps. Thoughts? Maybe we should go to Townsville Jen, it would be cheaper than Cocos! :) shinnworld.com/

A directional like the Shinnster is very different to a surfboard and equally different to a TT. It's wide and stable with little rocker, thin like a TT so that it doesn't bounce around like a surfboard and will cut through chop. To water start it you can put it on an edge and the pressure of the kite holds your feet in place.

The Shinnster powers up wind because of the long rail line (160cm) and planes early because of the wide tail.

When you're new to riding strapless it is important to keep the kite low so that you can keep some pressure on the board but after a while you'll want to move your feet around to fine tune your position. It's not hard to ride and you'll need a smaller kite than you would use for a TT. Transitions are the real challenge and this is what makes a light wind day fun. Every successful transition or changing feet is a win and will bring a smile to your face. Your weight distribution is more even between your feet and more relaxed than a TT since you don't need a lot of power in the kite to ride at speed.

I've been riding my Shinnster for just over a year and find that I'm riding the TT less and less as my skills improve.

You can choose to spend your time riding a TT like everyone else and just blend in or you can try something different and stand out.

Bronnieren said..
OK you sold me on it, once I my TT riding is more reliable I will get one :) For now I need all the help those footstaps give me in the chop

Think of your knees as shock absorbers.

Bronn, if you fly your kite too high, which is common with newbees, you will bounce across the chop and lose control. Get the kite low and bury the edge of the board to cut through the chop. Use your knees like you are skiing moguls to soak up the bumps and you'll keep control. You'll learn to work around the chop too as your skill improves and the best thing about chop is that they make great ramps to boost off.

KIT33R said..
Bronn, if you fly your kite too high, which is common with newbees, you will bounce across the chop and lose control.

Now that can be why I can ride for a while and then I loose control of my board. Still hasnt clicked for me and find it hard to go upwind and edge the board against the force of the kite :/

Yeah, I tried a bigger board yesterday Jen, and it was really hard to hold my line on, and it kept skidding out from underneath me. It was easy to get up on but way harder to ride.

KIT33R said..

Keep it low as Plummet says. This is important, unless you want to come to a stop of course. Turn your shoulders and hips to where you want to go. You should be looking along your shoulder. Now, it's about edging and finding the sweet spot for the kite. Use your trim strap to set the kite so that when the bar is all the way in you are at max power. This allows you to spill air in the gusts if necessary. If a gust hits let the bar out a bit, flatten the board momentarily to run off the wind and then re-edge and reapply bar pressure. You may have to let go with your front hand to let the bar out even further sometimes. I do this a lot. Flying one handed (back hand in the middle of the bar) can relieve shoulder fatigue in a long session and will allow you to turn your hips even further into the direction of travel. If you're still overpowered rig a smaller kite.

Learn to fly with your hands close to the centre of the bar and only move a hand when you want to turn the kite. Keep your elbows down and shoulders back, bum in. If your quads are burning you're doing it right . In the off season get on a bicycle or run to strengthen your legs for next kite season.

Going up wind efficiently is not a matter of park and ride. You have to work the conditions.

Thanks KIT33R! Im taking note of good advice here.

I've noticed that I make 2 main mistakes: The pooping position (butt out) and bending my two legs, which means front leg is not straight. I worked to correct this in the last session. What I've understood is that one has to maintain a straight position leaning backwards against the kite, just trying to get there!

KIT33R said..
Jenn, all you need now is practice. A good exercise to try is - As you're riding along start bringing your kite down from 11 o'clock, to just above the water. You will notice an increase in power as the kite descends. Straighten your front leg, push in with the back foot heel and feel the board edge bite. Pull in a little on the bar if you can. Push the bar out a bit and raise the kite slowly. Release the edge by standing tall and flattening the board. The power will go away. Repeat this simple exercise and you'll get used to the feel of the biting edge.

Incidentally, this is what you do to get pop to launch into a jump .

Remember, you can't turn a kite if both back line are tight. You must move the bar out a little to turn the kite.

Most importantly, relax and enjoy the learning experience.


Incidentally, back to your original query. I weigh 64kg and fly nothing bigger than a 10m Ozone Reo. On the Shinnster I can stay up wind in 12-15 knots. If you only weigh 50kg you'd need nothing bigger than a 9-10m kite, preferably 3 struts for lightness.

Thanks KIT33R I will definitely give this a go tomorrow morning and will see into a 10m kite to get the most out of this season