Author Topic: Low wind conditions - video ID  (Read 5649 times)

surfcowboy

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #15 on: July 27, 2020, 09:18:08 PM »
DW, I am seriously considering winters in FL now that I foil lol. It’s really that bad. I get why Erik A says it’s a paradise. That mushy short period stuff looks so fun now.

It’s going to be wild to watch what happens to surf tourism if this stuff takes off. Jacksonville will be our new North Shore.  ;D

“Yeah, I’m just back from South Padre. I do the tour in Winter so it’s Padre to JAX or Daytona for the big stuff.” Haha.

PonoBill

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #16 on: July 27, 2020, 09:30:35 PM »
The gorge was dead flat today, 102 degrees and the river looks like a 100-mile long mirror. I took my daughter and grandson to the event center to cool off and just goof around in the water. The easiest SUP board to grab was my ancient Starboard 12'2" which is challenge for almost anyone to stand on. It was entertaining to watch my grandson find new ways to fall off it. In the late afternoon I pulled my foil board out of the truck and paddled around on it just for something to ride. When I got out into the middle of the river I felt a light breeze building so I went back and blew up my 6M.

The wind got up to about 5-6mph, enough to hold my wing up. so I cruised out slowly and saw cat's paws headed my way, a little gust. I started pumping hard and bouncing on the board. A boat wake from one of the many ski boats running by gave me a little ramp and I got up. Once I was up on the 1150, I was gold. I did a few long reaches across the river as the wind picked up to probably 10mph in the middle and bit less on the sides. Even if I touch down in a jibe with the 1150 the residual speed gives me enough oomph to switch feet and get back up. 

Then it was time to go. Two kiters--both with the weird super long wings with the ram-looking leading edges, and one windfoiler with a monster sail--probably 9M, and as I was coming to the beach another wingfoiler was headed out. Nice evening. I was on for cooking this evening or I would have stayed--I do love ghosting about on tiny amounts of wind, pumping through the lulls and connecting little puffs.

I barbequed King Salmon and roasted some nice fresh corn, Diane made corn spoon bread, sauteed baby zuccini from the garden, a rhubarb/blueberry/ginger cake, and coffee ice cream infused with Pendelton rye whisky. Nice dinner with the kids.
« Last Edit: July 27, 2020, 09:33:00 PM by PonoBill »
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

Dwight (DW)

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #17 on: July 28, 2020, 04:49:28 AM »
DW, I am seriously considering winters in FL now that I foil lol. It’s really that bad. I get why Erik A says it’s a paradise. That mushy short period stuff looks so fun now.

It’s going to be wild to watch what happens to surf tourism if this stuff takes off. Jacksonville will be our new North Shore.  ;D

“Yeah, I’m just back from South Padre. I do the tour in Winter so it’s Padre to JAX or Daytona for the big stuff.” Haha.

North of the Cape (Canaveral) in Winter is like going to the North Pole. You might as well be in NC.  South of the Cape, the water usually doesn’t dip below 70 degrees for more than a few days. Jacksonville gets 50 degree water!
« Last Edit: July 28, 2020, 04:51:45 AM by Dwight (DW) »

sflinux

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #18 on: July 28, 2020, 12:58:47 PM »
I am curious as to low wind conditions too.
For wind meter, I like to use:
https://hallwindmeter.com/collections/frontpage/products/hall-wind-meter
It is simple by design, and shows gusts/lulls very well, better than more expensive digital devices.
I got in the habit of taking a measurement before and after a session, to get an idea of what size gear worked well in certain wind ranges.
For those that don't use wind meters, there is the beaufort scale:
https://www.rmets.org/resource/beaufort-scale
In DavidJohn's video, I would guess a beaufort 3.5, based on how the pop tents were moving in the video.
For low wind, the Gong Wing Superpower seems to come in the biggest size (9M), which has a published low end of 6-8 knots depending on the weight of the rider.  I've owned big kites, been well powered at 9 knots, happy if they stay in the air at 6 knots.  I always called kitesurfing the lazy man's surfing.  I definitely get more exercise stand up paddle surfing.  But it is really cool to take advantage of mother nature's power.
My friend pumped up his black kite rock hard, and left it out in the sun... and it popped.  Something to keep in mind is the pressure will build if it is left in the sun, and the pressure will go down if it gets wet with cool water. [PV=nRT]
« Last Edit: July 28, 2020, 01:10:40 PM by sflinux »
Quiver Shaped by: Joe Blair, Blane Chambers, Jimmy Lewis, Kirk McGinty, and Bob Pearson.
Me: 200#, 6'2"

Califoilia

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #19 on: July 28, 2020, 02:58:27 PM »
Ya Dave good luck wingfoiling at SanO in the typical summer winds. Plan on taking a trip up to Belmont when the surf is flat you'll have blast up there when it's blowing solid 20 mph.
Had a guy out ystdy w/ a Naish 5.3 on a SUP, and really not going anywhere, but then again it wasn't even windy enough to get me out of the water right away (I did eventually when the meager offerings turned even worse). So yeah, I'm becoming resigned to the fact that it looks like I'm gonna have to drive about an hour or more to find a place to actually us it. Not something I'm all that wild about, since I've never been one who enjoys being in a car much, even when someone else is doing the driving. :)


SanO I feel ya. Our spots get ruined above 7-8 mph too but that won’t get you anywhere. I’m gonna track wind speed for a while before I take on another sport.
The bold is a great idea...I wish I had done that before I jumped in with both feet. Especially given the fact that I've never done any "wind" sport...besides the typical $1 kite we got at the 7-11 when we were kids on a windy day.  :P

Hey Dave,
After our mutual hassles with getting our Gong V1 7m wings last summer I got a quiver of Fone wings and pretty much gave up on the 7m. When I did try it on really light slop onshore days I would be out there flapping that 7m wing like a fool and whining about only short runs in the gusts. When you posted that video of your buddy on his V2 Gong wing at a lake I decided to give my 7m another try -only this time I decided to see what would happen if I pumped the wing up to max recommended 10psi instead of the usual 8. I figured if it exploded it would at least be entertaining. Wow! That thing pretty much flew along by itself. All I had to do was pump my backhand like a windsurf sail and I got instant power. Had one of my best sessions ever on my 6’6” Kalama with an Axis 1020/440 kit. Now I kinda understand more how important it is to have a stiff leading edge on these things.
Yeah, "Air Boom Ron" (guy on the lake) can be pretty inspiring (and persuasive)...so much so he can make one go through another round of Gong hassles for a second time, after getting rid of their first wing w/o ever even taking it out of the backpack. At least this new Pulse has made it out of the backpack to be blown up in the backyard...but still hasn't gotten wet, and they way things are going, not sure if it ever will.  :-\ 

But thanks for the heads up on the max pressure thing should I ever decide to pump it up again for some crazy arse reason. Lol... ;D
Me: 6'1"/185...(2) 5'1" Kings Foil/Wing Boards...7'10 Kings DW Board...9'6" Bob Pearson "Laird Noserider"...14' Lahui Kai "Manta"...8'0" WaveStorm if/when the proning urges still hit.

surfcowboy

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #20 on: July 28, 2020, 07:07:16 PM »
SanO yeah man, research, what a concept right? lol

I’m also going to talk to some of the kite surfers. But Hdip shot me a video of a dude on Instagram who is winging up here. So it’s clearly doable as these conditions are not even the highest wind we see.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CDIDzmBDjXc/?igshid=3kfw79s05st5

I still like the idea of taking a trip to somewhere windier to get started so I could get a few days in a row. My foil progress will be greatly improved once we can travel again. A week in Waikiki will do my skills and my head some good right about now.

DW, thank you for the tip. I’d be mad as hell to get to FL and deal with the same water temps as home!  But I’m assuming the warm vs cold water also correspond with the hurricane tracks too? It’s always a trade off. But my wife is seriously scoping rental property down there so I’ll pass this on.

Admin

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #21 on: July 29, 2020, 01:27:40 AM »
Hdip shot me a video of a dude on Instagram who is winging up here. So it’s clearly doable as these conditions are not even the highest wind we see.

Hi Cowboy,

Those are really nice conditions for winging.  You can go in much less.  There may be instances where video doesn't tell the story, but honestly, it almost always does.  In this instance he is clearly spilling air (hiding his wing from the wind) the whole time.   Those are also great conditions to learn in so if you get that or more with any frequency you are in a good spot.  Lighter wind is super helpful to learn in provided that your gear is big enough.  The whole early notion that you needed 20 to have fun came about when only 4 meter wings were available.  With a 5 or a 6 and a big foil, 12 to 15 MPH is the ideal learning wind. 
« Last Edit: July 29, 2020, 02:12:50 AM by Admin »

surfcowboy

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #22 on: July 29, 2020, 08:17:06 AM »
Thanks Admin. I have been baffled by this lol. The early discussions seemed to not make sense with all the kites near the spot where this was filmed but I assumed they were just able to get into more wind.

2200cm2 wing, 64kg, and a 5m seemed like it should be doable.

I’ll likely wait a bit, as I said, til I can guarantee a few days of wind in a row but I’m definitely looking for a starter wing. Is it hilarious that a lot of us on this forum have basically signed up for a year or more of learning curve on multiple sports? I think it speaks to our adaptability... and questionable sanity?  ;D

Admin

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #23 on: July 29, 2020, 08:53:44 AM »
Absolutely.  Wingfoilers are in the first group to launch (with the the earlybird kitefoilers).  The non foiling kiters are almost never out yet.  If a location has a kite spot, it has a wing spot.  If I understand that you are 64 kg then you are going to have a great time on that kit.
« Last Edit: July 29, 2020, 09:01:47 AM by Admin »

PonoBill

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #24 on: July 29, 2020, 09:09:57 AM »
Sometimes the only group is the wingfoilers and a few kite foilers. I went again in the late afternoon yesterday. The wind had dropped to nothing much, and what there was, was highly variable. gusts strong enough to raise whitecaps and lulls wide enough to drop kites. There were lots of kites on the beach, but only two in the air flown by the better kite foilers with long lines and 10M kites.

I pumped up my 6M and went out with the 1000 wing. I got up, but it was a struggle, and when I hit the big lulls I couldn't stay up. So I went in and switched to the 1150. Had a great time floating around. The 1150 actually turns better than the 1010--I can't for the life of me say why. I can kind of pivot turn it, very tightly, or carve a sweeping turn the seems kind of locked in.

Once again I was up for cooking dinner so I couldn't stay as long as I wanted, I bailed about 5:30, and the wind was pooping out anyway. One of the kites was down in the water when I left, but there were still three wingfoilers having varied levels of success in the shitty wind.
« Last Edit: July 29, 2020, 09:11:43 AM by PonoBill »
Foote 10'4X34", SIC 17.5 V1 hollow and an EPS one in Hood River. Foote 9'0" x 31", L41 8'8", 18' Speedboard, etc. etc.

Califoilia

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #25 on: July 29, 2020, 09:57:32 AM »
Very cool Cowboy, thanks for forwarding the clip...and appreciate hearing Admin and Pono saying that that's actually favorable conditions...gives me encouragement to get the wing wet at least one time before pulling the plug.

That's really the main reason I'm starting to buy the Axis stuff, because that seems to be the "go to" wingding foil brand at the moment (at least here at the Zone anyway), followed by all of the various combinations one can tune to - at a fairly reasonable cost - that the other brands at the moment can't seem to match in one category or another.
 
Me: 6'1"/185...(2) 5'1" Kings Foil/Wing Boards...7'10 Kings DW Board...9'6" Bob Pearson "Laird Noserider"...14' Lahui Kai "Manta"...8'0" WaveStorm if/when the proning urges still hit.

clay

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #26 on: July 29, 2020, 10:59:45 AM »
My 2 cents:

Cowboy at your weight just about everyday could be a wingday.

Dave at our weight Sano in the summer is more like once a week for an hour or so.  But some of the gaps nearby had more wind last time i was there...

If the Cabrillo sensor is accurate there is enough for me to fly with a 6m right now.
Aloha, I welcome and appreciate all responses of positivity and good feeling.

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Califoilia

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #27 on: July 29, 2020, 11:17:22 AM »
Cowboy at your weight just about everyday could be a wingday.

Dave at our weight Sano in the summer is more like once a week for an hour or so.  But some of the gaps nearby had more wind last time i was there...
Hey...wth!? I thought we were friends Clay. :o >:(

JKing...it's all good, I know what you mean/meant, and no offense taken. Lol... ;);D

Me: 6'1"/185...(2) 5'1" Kings Foil/Wing Boards...7'10 Kings DW Board...9'6" Bob Pearson "Laird Noserider"...14' Lahui Kai "Manta"...8'0" WaveStorm if/when the proning urges still hit.

surfcowboy

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #28 on: July 29, 2020, 12:37:57 PM »
Haha, and yes, I’m 63kg (138 lbs +/- 2)

Now y’all know why I always ask what your wives ride.  ;D

Califoilia

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Re: Low wind conditions - video ID
« Reply #29 on: July 29, 2020, 01:08:53 PM »
Haha, and yes, I’m 63kg (138 lbs +/- 2)
HA! Yeah see that, our numbers are exactly the same! Just in a different order is all...and no, I'm not 318 lbs. :P :D
Me: 6'1"/185...(2) 5'1" Kings Foil/Wing Boards...7'10 Kings DW Board...9'6" Bob Pearson "Laird Noserider"...14' Lahui Kai "Manta"...8'0" WaveStorm if/when the proning urges still hit.

 


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