Hi Dave

There are already a few posts covering this already but I will have a go.
At 100kgs - no disrespect on a 12 you would need around the 18s to get going, especially starting out.
I,m no expert but there is nothing more soul destroying not quite have enough wind(from experience).
>Try to keep more weight over your front foot so the board planes better.
>Don't edge too much and head upwind at a smaller angle.
>Keep the kite higher and your body more upright.
>Move the kite bar out until you feel the kite power nicely or what is its sweet spot, you will feel if fly so much better.
>Remember to let the bar out on the upstrokes and in on the down strokes.
>The shape of the kite can also help identifying your choking it.
Its all about technique when the winds down a bit, and the guys sailing past you on 11mtrs have probably been at it for a bit!!
You get better and better with practice and more time out on the water.

Hope this helps
Andy

Andy88 said..
Hi Dave

There are already a few posts covering this already but I will have a go.
At 100kgs - no disrespect on a 12 you would need around the 18s to get going, especially starting out.
I,m no expert but there is nothing more soul destroying not quite have enough wind(from experience).
>Try to keep more weight over your front foot so the board planes better.
>Don't edge too much and head upwind at a smaller angle.
>Keep the kite higher and your body more upright.
>Move the kite bar out until you feel the kite power nicely or what is its sweet spot, you will feel if fly so much better.
>Remember to let the bar out on the upstrokes and in on the down strokes.
>The shape of the kite can also help identifying your choking it.
Its all about technique when the winds down a bit, and the guys sailing past you on 11mtrs have probably been at it for a bit!!
You get better and better with practice and more time out on the water.

Hope this helps
Andy

I'll back this up.. I'm 75-80 kegs and fly a 12 pretty comforatbly in the high teens - starting to depower - My mates who is at 100 is usually riding a 14 in the same windspeeds. From my experience as a learner the 12s are quite easy to choke up on as they are fast to turn i had a habbit of choking up very hard. With time i learned that a big ease on the up swing of the kite (after the initial dive) helps get the acceleration you need.

Davereid said..
My quesiton is how to learn to identify when i am choking the kite - if at all?

"Choking" the kite is when you are pulling the back of the kite so hard that the kite stops acting like a wing and now starts acting like a billowed sheet catching the wind (like a spinnaker). You will still feel like there is power, but the kite isn't really functioning correctly. Choking the kite typically happens at your low wind range because you have the kite trimmed for maximum power (front of the kite further away) and you are pulling the bar all the way in (back of the kite closer to you).

Knowing exactly how far you can pull the bar in before choking the kite depends on the kite model, kite size, and kite speed through the air (the slower the kite is moving the more chance you have of choking it). In extreme cases, you can choke the kite into a backstall (where the kite flies backwards), but usually it feels like the kite is just bogging down.

It takes a while to get used to the feeling of your kite flying properly, so especially in the beginning it's hard to pick up that the kite is being choked compared to just not having enough wind to fly properly. As a practice, try flying the kite with it trimmed 1/2 way in on a low wind day. That way you are very unlikely to choke the kite, but will need to work harder in generating enough power to get up & going. Flying the kite faster should generate power from lift (like a wing) rather than just catching the air.

HTH

kitcho207 said..
When your nicely powered, See what happens when you pull the bar in and out.
Pull the bar in and you should accelerate but the kite will be pulled back in the wind window making it harder to keep making good upwind direction. Then try letting the bar out 3 inches and the kite should move slightly closer to the edge of the window. This makes it a bit easier to get up wind.
Also have a go when your body dragging to get back to your board. Same effect and you will never get to your board with the bar pulled in.

I read the opposite thing on a thread here, where if you pull in the bar the kite doesn't fly efficiently and moves forward to the edge of the wind window. Also they said when body dragging you should pull in the bar to get the kite to the edge of the wind window.

Davereid said..


When sailing in the high teens i feel that im having to dive the kite and really let the kite run down wind a little while before cutting up into the wind to get upwind again.

Hi Dave,

Sounds like you aren't sheeting out the bar at the bottom of the dive stroke.
Once you dive the kite into the wind window, let the bar out ~15cm before making the turn at the bottom of the stroke - this will allow the kite to turn quicker and accelerate quicker on the upwards stroke. then once the kite is heading upwards you can pull the bar back in to make use of the power.
You and your board should have enough momentum from the downstroke to continue planning on the water while the kite makes its turn and starts on the upwards stroke (ie when the kite has little power).
Steve.

Hi Guys thanks very much for the comments.

I appreciate all the feedback and will try them all :) yes at 100 kgs a 12 is not alot of fun till its really in 20's but either way i still enjoy it :)

Looking forward to trying all the above.

danke!