Power Kite Forum

Bad day today

Jack1988 - 27-8-2009 at 11:09 AM

So we decided to take the cirrus 6 out today as itseemed relativly fun wind, we got to the field and was hit by a gusty wind but it wasnt that bad to start off with, little did we know that it was 15mph winds Gusting to 35 maybe even 40!:o

So we forgot to pack the 3m so my bro wanted to set up anyway and take off. I took up first flight and it wasnt to viscious but it was one of those day when it would be 25mph one second then 5mph 2 seconds later, it was horrible and i wanted to pack up.

Anyway we carried on and i like to think of myself as a sensible jumper, so i was just bouncing around for 10 minutes or so, then i went for a little jump with minimal effort and Boom!, i went about 5ft up and redirected to come back down, but noooo! A crazy gust hit the kite, It lifted me higher and i didnt like it at all, out of my control and extremly dangerous. I prefer to jump in a constant wind where i know that im not going to get a 35mph gust after a jump at around 20mph.

When taking the kite up from the floor it was 0 to 10mph in like 1.5 seconds! scudding on feet then the gust goes, the kite collapses!

Kite going above my head and yanking me off the floor every other minute with shoulder dislocating force! Then collapsing a little. If i put some serious effort into a jump, i would have killed my self

After that i wanted to pack up straight away but my brother insisted that it would be alright so he flew it about without trouble for a while, but hes much heavier than me and probably stronger so the same thing was happening to him but he didnt give a crap! :o He is crazy and luckily he hasnt learnt to jump efficiently yet so it wasnt taking him up too much. Oh and he hadnt seen the guy in the vid smash his pelvis in!

I had a few more goes without jumping, then we packed up, couldnt land it without letting go of the handles.

This is exactly why im looking to get a smaller kite for the winter but if its ever that gusty again, im sure that i will have second thought about setting up as it was just dangerous and soo unpredictable.

Now im not crazy and i didnt like it one bit.

The moral of the story is...DONT FLY IN GUSTY WINDS!!:no:

furbowski - 27-8-2009 at 11:22 AM

yeppers.

glad you survived.

your bro is your bro, but you may need to be careful flying with him???

edit: on second thought (if your windspeeds are correct) I suspect the ace 4 you were considering on another thread may well have nearly the power / lift of your cirrus. something to consider....

Jack1988 - 27-8-2009 at 11:41 AM

Yeah hes my blood brother.

I dont think he realises what gust will do if he get a jump right, i showed him the vid of the pelvis shattered guy when we got back.

I dont expect to be flying again in those winds with a 6 let alone the gusts, the crazy thing is that he hasnt worked out how to properly jump yet, today he tried a few jumps but hes still getting it, if he would have done it properly maybe he would have had a scary jump to smell the coffee. He air but does it different quite alot, somedays he does it well, other days he does it totally different and it doesnt work aswell

Bladerunner - 27-8-2009 at 05:03 PM

Learn to launch and land at the edge of the window. It is the Proper way to go about it.
See how to do it right on www.kitesurfingschool.org

Avoid leaving the kite at zenith in gusty winds as well. If you keep it off to a side you won't get lofted.

Glad you are trying to stay safe!

Jack1988 - 27-8-2009 at 06:45 PM

Eh thanks man!

But tbh i dont think today anything can make the wind better= there was no edge of the window:o It was Gusting crazy!

Never again on the 6m- i was very cautious

Im sure that if i wanted to give it a proper lift it would have taken me over 12 feet and dropped me out of the sky- it was that gusty! :o

Thats why i kept down to earth and didnt like the conditions

Mate we tried going to the edge and bringing her down but it was so gusty that it was very tough

Jack1988 - 27-8-2009 at 06:47 PM

Too windy for a 6m kite basically- even if it wasnt gusty- no thanks

kitejumper - 27-8-2009 at 08:32 PM

flying in gusty winds isnt a problem if you know what youre doing--i do it all the time--you have to concentrate more,but not a big deal---but youre new right?? no gusty winds and no cirrus jumping--id say u are lucky to be upright after all that---

flexiblade - 27-8-2009 at 09:25 PM

Word to the wise when it comes to flying smaller kites (1 - 3m) in high gusty winds - they WILL hurt you - instead of what seems like a quick excelleration with your cirrus you will be moving so fast you'll wonder how both your arms got ripped out of their sockets and they are 40 meters away in less than 2 seconds. Seriously, a smaller kite in that situation tends to make you do dummer things than you would have and in turn put yourself in a larger amount of danger. If the wind is gusting over 20mph from 5mph - best to let that day go and wait for another - besides, in the UK how many days out of the week do you get wind? I would guess at least 3. I'm going on a 2 month dry spell - this just means you can really afford to let those days go.

f0rgiv3n - 27-8-2009 at 10:12 PM

http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=10499

I was in the same situation as you, but made the stupid decision to attempt a jump. Glad you're OK man! Hopefully you've got some safety gear now right?!

Jack1988 - 28-8-2009 at 05:47 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by kitejumper
flying in gusty winds isnt a problem if you know what youre doing--i do it all the time--you have to concentrate more,but not a big deal---but youre new right?? no gusty winds and no cirrus jumping--id say u are lucky to be upright after all that---


If you think im an idiot then just say. :p its not that i couldnt keep the kite in the air and flying the kite wasnt a great problem but it was hard work on the arms, any Sensible kiter would have packed up because the same problems i was getting.

Jack1988 - 28-8-2009 at 05:52 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by flexiblade
Word to the wise when it comes to flying smaller kites (1 - 3m) in high gusty winds - they WILL hurt you - instead of what seems like a quick excelleration with your cirrus you will be moving so fast you'll wonder how both your arms got ripped out of their sockets and they are 40 meters away in less than 2 seconds. Seriously, a smaller kite in that situation tends to make you do dummer things than you would have and in turn put yourself in a larger amount of danger. If the wind is gusting over 20mph from 5mph - best to let that day go and wait for another - besides, in the UK how many days out of the week do you get wind? I would guess at least 3. I'm going on a 2 month dry spell - this just means you can really afford to let those days go.


I see what your saying, best thing to do is stay in on gusty day.
Yeah in the winter here its windy most days, its more gusty atm though.

Jack1988 - 28-8-2009 at 06:04 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by f0rgiv3n
http://www.powerkiteforum.com/viewthread.php?tid=10499

I was in the same situation as you, but made the stupid decision to attempt a jump. Glad you're OK man! Hopefully you've got some safety gear now right?!


Yeah man, i should start actually wearing it soon.

Im not going out in gusty crazy winds again.

Bladerunner - 28-8-2009 at 06:41 AM

RELAX JACK !

People on this forum aren't out to put you down. If I didn't understand what level you fly at it is because you are new to the forum. I thought you are new to the sport. I don't think kite jumper was putting you down either? Just suggesting that you CAN fly in gusty winds.

You have a good safe attitude and we all like that ! Just be open to suggestions that may be " below your level " ( or above ) because a lot of others are learning and reading as well.

kitejumper - 28-8-2009 at 04:45 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Jack1988
Quote:
Originally posted by kitejumper
flying in gusty winds isnt a problem if you know what youre doing--i do it all the time--you have to concentrate more,but not a big deal---but youre new right?? no gusty winds and no cirrus jumping--id say u are lucky to be upright after all that---


If you think im an idiot then just say. :p its not that i couldnt keep the kite in the air and flying the kite wasnt a great problem but it was hard work on the arms, any Sensible kiter would have packed up because the same problems i was getting.
listen up,dude--first--youre telling evryone youre new and youre flying a 6m in winds gusting 35 to maybe 40 and were supposed to be cool with that?? you know, once on here i told everyone i flew my kite in a hailstorm and i got CRUCIFIED and i probably deserved it--was it fun?? VERY--would i do it again?? yes, i would-but i damn sure wouldnt tell anyone about it,cause i learned it hurts the safe reputation that kiters want to portray on here .....so, if you think im insulting your intelligence-im not.....but stop giving me ammo,like bragging about flying in nuking winds

Jack1988 - 28-8-2009 at 05:14 PM

lol it was ment toungue in cheek hense the emoticon :p

im chilled and aint looking for a ruck or anything, i just wanted to wsrn people about these types of winds, im not bragging at all, how do you figure, your bragging if anything.

If you want to fly in gusty winds then thats fine by me but i personally dont want to go for a jump expecting a 5ft lift then get a gust mid air and end up 20ft up. its not controlled and its not cool. unpredictable gusts are very dangerous. one minute the kite will collapse, next minute youlle be yanked off your feet, not good.

Im actually having to try and make my bro see sense but hes stubborn, he may have to learn the hard way but i dont want it to be like that.

kitejumper - 28-8-2009 at 05:56 PM

if you fly safe-thats fine with me--im not the most cautious kiter on planet earth,but with easily over 1000 hrs of flying in the past year,i'll take my chances--i dont recommend flying overpowered,but for me it works out.......sorry to get on you,just dont want to hear of u getting broken up--i have a friend on here who i feel is a very safe and cautious kiter and i saw him get launched thru the air bout a month ago--stuff can happen fast out there-gotta have a plan man-cheers

Jack1988 - 28-8-2009 at 06:54 PM

no worries dude i appreciate the concern

Im a bit annoyed recently as we have been getting scatty winds and high tides in the daytime

Maybe when it starts to be constant again i will have some fun- those gusty winds are fun but its scary fun and as you know- i am quite new to power kiting so i dont want to be having scary fun yet :)

flexiblade - 28-8-2009 at 08:35 PM

Good call - we all on here have done questionable things in search of a good time. I would say that you have done an excellent job in parlaying a bad time into a lesson not only learnt unto yourself but shared in the hope of enlightening those yet christened to what an "oh crap" moment can be (apparently that includes your brother in particular). I appreciate your input on this forum.

kitejumper - 30-8-2009 at 06:18 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Jack1988
no worries dude i appreciate the concern

Im a bit annoyed recently as we have been getting scatty winds and high tides in the daytime

Maybe when it starts to be constant again i will have some fun- those gusty winds are fun but its scary fun and as you know- i am quite new to power kiting so i dont want to be having scary fun yet :)
yeah-ive been annoyed lately too--no winds and no kite flying--i looked at a few of my posts the last few days, and i could see i was irritable--got a good session in yesterday,so im back to normal