first session Pansh A15 15m ultralight, new to foil kites

[opie]

I arrived to 8 knots wind and in my wind shadow launch it took me an hour to get it up. I kept yanking the front lines running back 10 meters, which was all the room I had, then dragging the kite back and trying again. Each attempt inflated the kite better and better, until it was standing up completely on its trailing edge, at which point I got it in the air. I can see why people use leaf blowers.
The wind was blowing 6 to 7 kts and I flew it around, playing with the backstall and the turning. I was getting a little wing tip collapse at first during turns but I got better at avoiding them by keeping the kite moving and turning before the kite got to the edge of the window. When the wind increased to 8 kts and above I no longer had any collapse even on slack lines.
With the kite just stationary in the window It did not pull at all, but with even slow movement it would drag me along, so I was very conservative.
When I was ready for the water the wind jumped to 12 kts, normally 8.5 meter cloud weather but I wanted to try my new kite. Getting up on my 880 cm ketos wing was easy, but I couldn't handle the power once I got up, I kept having to point downwind to get control back. I ended up riding with the kite at 11:30, almost all my weight in the harness, playing with the trim, which I am unfamiliar with.
On the beach later I was told I should have used as much depower as possible in those conditions.
I missed every jibe trying to bring the kite over 12, but when I looped it I was able to make it around. Even slacking all four lines the kite stayed stable.
One issue I had was I kept popping the quick release accidentally. I kept grabbing it and putting it back together before the kite hit the water, but looking back, I wonder why I was able to grab it. Once, it went to the fifth line, hit the water with upwind current in a ball. I had to swim for maybe 30 seconds downwind to get my foil. I sat on my foil grabbed both back lines and it opened a little, enough for the wind to catch it and bring it back down wind of me. Once it got back to the window I reversed launched it just like the videos.
I was nervous about landing in 13 kts wind but I prepared myself mentally to pull the release during a face plant and backstalled it from 12. As it started to come down from 90 to 60 degrees it accelerated and scared me with its pull. I pulled harder, following instructions to "commit" and it suddenly partially collapsed and fell the last 60 softly to the ground.

I am super happy with this kite, already considering a 12 meter. No way I could have kept my 17m Cloud in the air, or even come close to launching it.

When I rolled up my lines I discovered the possible reason for my chicken loop probems.

[Mossy 757]

Sounds like a good first session, congrats! I ride my 15m foil kite up to 17knots, that's when I'm so overpowered I have to head downwind to prevent from overfoiling and crashing...once you get more comfortable with the way these kites ride you'll be able to really put weight in the harness and treat it more like a "wing" than a kite.

[borist]

crappy bar and qr. good that you like the kite

[socommk23]

Glad you like it. Get rid of the pansh qr. Its crap. Maybe grab a better chicken loop assembly for better quality and safety.

[opie]

crappy bar and qr. good that you like the kite

It was only 169 USD, and since I plan to get rid of the chicken loop anyway, it seemed like the least expensive way to go.

[socommk23]

crappy bar and qr. good that you like the kite

It was only 169 USD, and since I plan to get rid of the chicken loop anyway, it seemed like the least expensive way to go.

I have a pansh bar but changed it imediatly and turned it into a race bar for my 15m diablo.
I use my airush bar and lines with my aurora 2 with no modifications and its perfect for evey pansh depower i have.

[opie]

Went out again in 12 to 15 kts and did much better with the depower strap all the way in but I still needed three tries to launch. Each attempt inflated the kite more than i could by just holding the vents open in my wind shadow launch.
Should I be launching with the kite depowered all the way at the trim strap in light wind? I had the trim fully powered up both times.

[Mossy 757]

Went out again in 12 to 15 kts and did much better with the depower strap all the way in but I still needed three tries to launch. Each attempt inflated the kite more than i could by just holding the vents open in my wind shadow launch.
Should I be launching with the kite depowered all the way at the trim strap in light wind? I had the trim fully powered up both times.

Fully powered, in fact, you might end up tuning a tiny bit of backstall (approx 1") into your bar so that you can oversheet the kite during launch. These things generate power by moving forward in the wind window, being able to sheet in hard and backstall it against the chickenloop prevents the kite from overpowering too much and helps hold the kite in the right spot as it finishes inflating the wing tips.

[socommk23]

Went out again in 12 to 15 kts and did much better with the depower strap all the way in but I still needed three tries to launch. Each attempt inflated the kite more than i could by just holding the vents open in my wind shadow launch.
Should I be launching with the kite depowered all the way at the trim strap in light wind? I had the trim fully powered up both times.

On launching a foil kite at my club spot all youll hear from everyone us "bar in!"

I launch and fly all my depowers fully depowered 99% of the time. With the range of movement on the bar itself i can get all the power i need but easily dump the power anytime.
On launch you need to get it off the ground, as soon as it is, pull the bar in till it just hovers a few feet up and the wing tips out. Slowly allow it to rise as it inflates but not fast, too fast will fold the tips in if not in half.
This technique works faultlessly for me. It just takes practice.

[opie]

Third time out launched fully depowered on the 2nd try. It did seem less stable that way, but I had wind that filled into the ground better so it was a less exciting launch.
I understand about backstall during launch to fill the kite and keep the power manageable, but do you ever backstall to lesson the pull of the kite while riding? Or do you just sheet out always like an LEI?
This session, with 7 to 9 knots wind, really showed me that I have no idea what I'm doing. At first I couldn't get enough power to water start, but I kept getting a great surge of power after I fell back in, I couldn't figure out what was causing the power, so I couldn't make it happen to water start. Also frustrating, I could body drag like nobody's business, I think I could have gotten on foil on my belly body dragging but I could not replicate the speed or power to water start.
Finally I figured out that if I dove the kite and sheeted all the way out, trim totally depowered, I had plenty of power and it started to be fun.
I ended up getting over ambitious and missing a jibe in 7 kts, and tucking a wing tip. I could not shake it loose, so I dropped it back to the water but that only made it worse. With both wingtips caught in the bridal I did my first self rescue. The current was taking me away from the so I hurried my pack down and during the swim back the kite slowly spread out and the bridals made a very impressive knot. If I rested to regather the kite I lost ground so I just kept swimming. Next time I will wrap the bridals on the bar, and take time to pack the kite tighter.
I think me letting the lines get slack made this worse, but I am not sure how much better I could have done.