I got tired of always being passed by parked kites, while working the scout in the sine wave and not being able to reliably jump on command, so I picked up a depower kite: 9.5 m montana VI.

How do I improve my edging so I can head upwind? I feel pretty dialed in on the scout and in control now in winds up to 20knots-- that took 4 months and one repair.

But on a day were I felt underpowered on the 4m (12knts) it was still too much for me on the 9.5 m; especially when the gusts hit. I kept it low and was leaning hard, but found it really hard to turn upwind to lose speed, and each jibe blew me 10m downwind. Am I just impatient after a second session? I was hoping for a bit more transfer.

Aside from waiting for lighter, steadier wind, and practicing turns on the trainer, what can I do to speed up my progression?

Being overpowered on skates happens earlier than other rides.

Once you have the kite low try and drive the kite hard to the edge. Shortening the depower strap will make it fly fartherforward and help with the upwind. Getting the kite down and forward before you get too much speed helps. It is easier to get upwind going a little slower.

In cleaner winds , I will take the kite up to almost zenith and do a toe drag to slow down.

depower the kite, and keep it at the edge, this will help you get up wind. and yes you are being impatient. total balance(whole system, you + kite) is going help everything, and progression just takes time.

how much harness time do you have on depower kites?

About three hours of depower... Just one with this kite. Guess it will take some more getting used to. Till then I'd better wear the back pack for the walk back.

the jibe is gonna eat up alot ground on a turn, with aerial transitions jibe or tack the ground lost is zero, this requires good speed control and kite timing.

you go up, turn around, then down, and off you go... practically from the same spot.

a running jibe carries some speed in the finish so regaining that lost in the turn adds up, plus reestablishing an upwind point of sail at speed is tedious and at its hardest point with running power.

vid demos of that if you would like. youtube in the sig below " ditch monkey ...."

I've been trying to carve... Thanks for pointing out the link, definitely got some new ideas. Nice beach, too.

Yes the long wheelbase on doomwheels makes carving turns tough. Step turns are the easy way out.

Spartan has a very interesting technique. Riding on a single wheels through the turn.

The transition jump that Phree has turned you on to will work best but takes a bit of practice to get consistant.

ok. you got 3 hours of depower harness time ,.. power kite/sail time in general??

Asked my better half and she said somewhere between 60& 80 hours since febuary.

I've been doing sort of a reverse telemark turn on the powerslides: kick or slide the upwind skate forward and lift the toe then pivoting/ carving the new downwind skate around the heel wheel.

What really surprised me was that I could down loop, kite loop in the window to untwist the lines and ride it out heading upwind in both directions on the 4m FB, but the same wind freaked me out on the 9.5m depower.

Friday looks like I'll have a nice light wind to get to know my new kite. When I started with the scout I felt like a rocket with no brakes, too.

work on speed control , without it turning really is hard to negotiate. settle for clunky turns til you can control your speed.

a combination of kite control and skate direction.

remember these things in the learning process:

downwind is the accelerator

upwind is the brake

kite high is helpful

kite low is hurtful

good luck, be patient, wear hillbilly pads, helmet and gloves

Steady 10 knots with gusts up to 15 and being on grass instead of pavement, did the trick with speed control and heading upwind. I need to log many more hours though before I'm popping jibes like Phree.

My new problem is controlling the float. When I went up I kept spinning around to switch (unintentionally). I also got picked up twice when I didn't expect it. Falling on grass aint so bad though.

My lesson learned is pick the right wind and terrain to learn. I think I need another kite too.

keep your head still

legs tucked and close together

Keep flying that 9.5 and it will start to suit the winds you had. It is a good size for jumping once you get there.

Your body tends to follow your shoulders and head. Spot your landing. Pull the bar on the side you want to ride out from when in the air .

Sounds like you are on the right track.