so at what point does it go from a mental game to a physical one........

For example... im 225lbs... i never flew the twister over 20mph when i got it.... too intimidating in my head to do so. Now i never fly it under 20mph.... too "uneventful" below twenty.... Its not that i physically couldnt fly it over 20mph.... just was to much, in my mind over 20mph... now its no biggie

At what point does my "gutsiness" become overwhelmed by the physical boundries of flying a given kite? Will i say in 1 year... never flew the twister over 30, now i dont fly under 30... lol, too uneventful ... and from there, in my sixties...... never take that twister out, till i see a twister comin' ..... too uneventful till a tornado drops out


i know this answer could vary greatly given any kite, any rider, any condition.. just curious how you view a kites printed top end, versus what you actually use your kite at....

just curious... ive been hearing stories of the dutchies, and their HOOOJ kiwis in regard to the chargers, and just wondering what it takes to finally say... "i found this [INSERT KITE NAME] 's absolute limit... lol its awesome! " vs "..." [ambulance drive to hospital]


cliffs notes version: where do you draw the line between an epic, edge of crazy, flat awesome session that you tell your grandkids about, and a session thats ends very badly... a fair amount of skill is assumed in this scenario

lol food for thought on a slow, hot, thursday... with no wind

reflexes, speed control and power management.

at some point your mass will succumb to the units output as wind increases.

when the unit is idled at the edge and still you are being dragged its over, the realization of the limits have arrived.


high wind sessions like 30+ the wind can be unpredictable. really have to use wide margins of safety, space & timing, speed run out with control and got have this in your head and reflex ready. . too much thinking you'll puking or chiting your pants.

time in heavy air with your gear is the only passage, NOTHING but experience . and its a gut check most of the time. it s less and less as you do more but something will ring you caution bell nearly everytime.

experience ...

Experience lol defiantly experience. When I heard of other Pl riders taking their 12 m chargers out in winds up to 40mph I didn't believe it. When I rode in a strong sea breeze at wildwood with my 15m charger between 25-30mph it gave mr confidence. That next day I took out my 12m charger in 30-40mph winds. I wad alert and pucker factor was up, but I was able to ride and still be in control. The clean quality of the wind defiantly helped change my mind about windrange. I guess the top limit of a kite in a physical aspect is when you can no longer hold your ground or make it upwind when your kite is fully trimmed and your kite is parked at the edge of the window.

As with getting injured you can get hurt in lower winds if you make a mistake. I guess if you get hurt in big winds because you can no longer keep control then that is when we cross the line into stupidity, especially when we know better.

But hey, what is better than boosting big air at 35mph wind? You definatly remember that forever

There is some very interesting research out there on people that push the limits. Desensitization can kill. I am not saying don't push the limits....it is just always wise to keep some perspective.

We are the only creatures on the planet that willing completely disregard our survival instincts. That is not always a bad thing...but again perspective. Two very good reads below.

http://www.amazon.com/Other-Survival-Signals-Protect-Violenc...

http://www.amazon.com/Deep-Survival-Who-Lives-Dies/dp/039332...

I'm not sure that it starts as a physical game. You have to keep your head together to make the right choices to fly at a performance level within an certain margin of safety.

My expirience has been that it gets very physical when something has failed mentally. Like if I put the the kite in the wrong place at the wrong time and have to muscle it to keep things together.

Every second on the kite pays off. I don't care if it's just lazy static flying in some field on a light wind day, it all adds to intuitive flying skill. Eventually you fly without looking at the kite and and get a sense for what the kite is about to do before it does it. Allows you to respond to situations before they have a chance to occur.

I think like a lot of things it's mostly a mental game. That said being in the 200+ range comes in pretty handy some days. (not so handy others grrrrrr)

Funny to read this. I took my beamer out today and I'd say it was about 20 mph with maybe gusts around 25. After the first launch I took it a bit slow for the next hour but within another hour or so after that I was doing pendulum jumps with 5-10 feet off the ground until I started getting blisters and couldn't jump any more. So ya it definitely went from being all mental to just being physical today.

EXPERIENCE IS SOMETHING YOU GET JUST AFTER YOU NEED IT

As said earlier, experience is a key ingredient to learning. But we must be aware that everyone's experiences are going to be different. Take location as a factor, those that live next to a beach will get most of their experience in much cleaner winds (hopefully onshore) than those of us living in a land locked area. Not to mention those that do live near a beach are most likely to get more rideable wind days and therefore get to experience a broader range of wind than those living inland. The only advantage I have found living in a landlocked area is that I know a lot about flying in dirty, gusty, swirling winds that change direction every other second. This location does not however help in finding a kites' top end. In this we must consider personal responsibility. Testing one's limits must be done responsibly. Push too hard in the wrong environment and your a gonner. What may be a thrill ride at the beach (30mph with my 8m venom) could get you a trip to the hospital in early spring storm driven winds in an area with a hill or trees acting as wind shadows creating turbulent air. My Philosophy is to know your limits and let them guide you on your decisions. If you don't feel reasonably comfortable, even if you've done it before - but this time something in the wind feels different, don't do it.

Well said Flexi.

In regards to the top end of a kite I think there are two factors. 1) the designed top end. 2) The willingness of the pilot to operate at that range and be comfortable to push beyond the design "limits".

The Charger for example is not a race kite like it's Vapor breatheren but I'm finding it's a fast kite. I have not found it's top end limit. I 've flown it beyond it's posted wind ranges (as most expirienced Arc riders will do) and it's been great but she's got a lot more to give. Now that I have some locations to ride that give me room to run I'll have a better feel for the limits of the kite (and myself).

As I think about this I've realized that for me it the physical/mental thing goes like this...

1) Getting psyched for a day of riding and going fast (Mental)
2) Actually riding and just ripping around in general (Physical)
3) Catching the right gusts at the right moment and going for it (Physical/mental)
4) Gauging speed, stopping distance and strength available to continue holding edge while holding out as long as possible to get a few extra MPH out of a run. (Mental)

I think that's roughly how it is in my world.

And almost everything gets overidden (fear, doubt etc) when I'm pissed off which works out.

One thing's for sure if your head isn't in it then your results are going to be less than you would want.