Professor David Mckay addressed a lot of this in his book "sustainable energy without the hot air" his website has a readable version - essentially he looks at the energy need of the UK and looks at what is needed to replace fossil fuels https://withouthotair.com/ its quite readable and gives an ide...

Fukishima had some bad design there were two other reactors hit by the Tsunami on Onagawa was even closer to the epicentre If we go on mass to electric vehicles and start heating our homes with electric rather than gas .......renewables will not atm be able to cope with that demand and we either hav...

Bugger - I remember seeing him out at one of my local spots in Kent Uk - boosting huge on his Blades...guy was a legend.

RIP

Have not seen a ram air kite all year, not one.

It depends where you kite

My local spot has about a dozen riders who use foils......and in the summer went to Lac de Serre Poncon in the Alpes and it was about 50:50 with up to 30 riders on the water at any time.

It's true I started in 2003 with a New 7 mt FS maniac - complete for £400, a home made ply board £50 harness £80 and wetsuit £150 - a couple of months later added complete 12 mt Mastair and 9 mt Psycho 1 for an extra £500....... I bought a second hand Sonic 2 kite only recently and it cost me £800.....

Weight does play apart .....I've been riding for many years with a buddy who weighs 95 -105 kg....I'm around 70 kg. We both fly similar style kites - if I'm on a 10 or a 13 flysufer - he'll be on a 15. If I'm on a 6 - 7 mt tube he'll be on a 10. Oh and in 15 knts he'll be jumping around 10 mts or mo...

I use the Sonic 2 with twin tip.....bloody great fun in 14 - 15 knts

...foilboring - a kite a board a harness and a foil . ADD $2000 Gong are making a complete foil rig for 800 Euros....that's becoming affordable for someone who gets out a couple of times a month like me. And for Foils disappearing I see more foils now on the beach now than in the last 17 years. But...

I had similar issues recently at Lac Serre Poncon in the alpes - Bridles and lines snagged a lot on the big stones.....but managed ok in the end

One of you chaps with the Soul at Lancing last evening ?