Decided to get into the hobby. I ordered two new kites this week and decided to head over to Santa Cruz to fly them on the beach.

I picked up a new HQ Symphony and a like new (Used twice) Beamer 3M.

Two new kites. New flier. Naturally there was zero wind. :sniff:

I had my Kestrel out and the best I saw all day was 4kts. Naturally once we packed up to head home, the wind started to pick up.

Are there any good learning spots in the bay area? We live in Morgan Hill. I may just head down to the soccer complex and see if I can get one of these kites in the air.

For learning to Kitesurf Alameda is the place. Ocean beach is a good place to fly kites. Unfortunately the rangers don't allow buggying there anymore. www.bayareakiteboarding.com is a good site for information about the bay.

You should try moss landing right in the middle between Santa Cruz and Monterey. Pretty good place to fly - the rangers and locals are friendly and there is usually plenty of space there either on the north shore or the south. If you get into buggying you will really need to watch the tides. If your flying there and you see horses land immediately and see if you can speak with whomever may be leading the pack - just try and get some basic common courtesy rules. Do land your kite so that you don't spook the horses - liability and all.

For static flying, anywhere you have some room under your lines and at least a line length downwind with no people or obstructions will be fine. The beach is best for the smooth wind, but harder to get away from the people. Give this a read for all the questions you have now or will have after a few sessions. Don't be embarrassed if you read it over and over.
Don't discount the fun and knowledge you will gain from the symphony. This tutorial is primarily for 4 line kites like your Beamer, but the symphony was my first power kite, and a 3m Beamer was my second. You can have loads of fun with these 2 kites for quite some time. We can help you if you need help or start to want something more.

First time flyers tutorial

Thanks for the advice. Much appreciated.

Excellent info on Moss Landing. Easily accessible from Morgan Hill.

I will read the tutorial for sure. In retrospect I'm kind of glad the wind wasn't up yesterday at the beach. The beach wasn't packed, but I really couldn't find a good clear spot to launch without people around/under the kite.

One more question:
Seeing how I have the Symphony (2 string), would it make sense to pick up a 2m Beamer?

Thanks again!

santa cruz .. south to aptos is rough flying the cliffs and curve of the beach make it tough. Not to mention the people. Like flexi said moss landing has been great.
The coser you get to monterey make sure you watch the cliffs and para gliders. The cliffs can make the winds un-predictable and the updraft could carry you away :shocked2:

Went down to the soccer fields here in Morgan Hill today. The winds were barely 6mph. I was amazed at how much power/force this 3m kite would generate down in the power zone. Simply awesome.

I can't wait to get this kite out in the 10 to 15mph zone.

Is it wrong that I now want to pick up a 5m kite?

Thanks again!
Ted

Spend a few months with what you have. We are just about to come into the windy season and you'll have more than you want somedays with the Beamer. If you aren't having fun, drop back to the symphony. Lots of people for their next kite get something around 5m with lift in it so you can play around with jumping. If you go that route, don't do it full bore till you can fly your kite without looking at it. That should be good enough for you to tip toe into jumping.

If you go more into a buggy or board path, then a larger kite without lift like your Beamer would be the logical next step. I've flown at Half moon bay in moderate winds and it was a fun fly.

Great advice.

I had a lot of fun today. For now, my plan is just static flying without the buggy or board. I really dig the pull and power from land based kiting. Jumping would be fun, but some of the videos I've seen are frighting.

What is a good 5m kite with some minor lift? I was previously looking at new in package Beamer III 5m on ebay, but if that's not the right next step - I'll back away from it.

Thanks again,
Ted

The Beamer is a great beginner/intermediate buggy kite, so the 5m would be appropriate for you if that's the direction you end up going. My phase 2 kites were lifty and then I got into the buggy and traded every one of them for intermediate/advanced power kites for the buggy with reduced lift. HQ has a new kite coming out that has lift designed in. It is not quite available yet but soon. Peter Lynn has the Twister which has been a favorite kite by many. Lots of choices! You have time to decide what's next for you.

Another decent place to ride is a little farther south from Moss Landing. I havent ridden at Moss, but I did go down to another place farther south... Seaside? Been awhile. I also buggyed at Manresa State Beach. That was a bit tricky. Sand was really too deep, and not enough wind. Unfortunately the way the coast line wraps around Santa Cruz, it makes the winds pretty hard to get just right for good flying. You will, most likely, end up traveling a couple hours either north or south for good flying conditions.

Best of luck.. I have family out that way, so next time I head out there, I'll have to drop you a line...

Thank you all for the advice.

Regarding my next kite, My take away is this:
Keep what I have for now, and get used to them. Learn to fly them blind and know how to get out of any bad spots without having to think about it. Then worry about what to get next.

I can liken this to another hobby, flying Radio Controlled Airplanes. Most every newly minted pilot starts on a basic trainer. Something easy to fly. Once they get the basics of flying that, they all want to jump up into a P51 Mustang. That progression never ends well.

I'll keep my dreams of flying a 'mustang' on the back burner for a while.

Thanks again!

If your goal is to get out on the water, I would look at getting a small depower kite to get used to flying with a bar and how the sheeting works.

I'm not sure what my goal is yet. For now, I just really enjoy feeling the power and pull of the kite. I'm still trying to get the 3m in some decent wind. Last Sunday I had a blast. I went out yesterday and it was too inconsistent to get the kite up for more than a couple of minutes at a pop. Right now, I'm dying to feel that pull. New equipment curse, for sure.

For now, my goal is to just really get comfortable flying and judging the wind conditions, etc. If I were to guess about my 'future' in the hobby, it will most likely be land based, and not on a buggy/board.

Thanks again for all the info and the encouraging words.