Windsurfing really is a completely different thing. Yes, windsurfing in very strong winds is challenging, but you always have the option to drop the sail in the water, at which point it's no longer capable of producing any power. You can't do that safely when you're harnessed to a kite.knotwindy wrote: ↑Tue Dec 18, 2018 3:51 pmWow, ok, perhaps I didn’t say things clearly enough. Of course there is no reason to go out in 40 knots and of course it is dangerous. These things should be self evident to anyone with a self preservation instinct. That is not the issue. There is also no reason to go out in 20 knots and 20 knots is dangerous as well. This sport is dangerous at all times.
It is a matter of degree. Short story, back in my windsurfing days I was rigging with a friend on the beach. I was rigging a 3.7 and pretty sure I was going to be way overpowered but I didn’t like my 3.2 at that time. My friend was rigging a 4.5 and someone came over and told him, nicely, that his sail was much to big for the conditions and he shouldn’t try to go out on it. He looked at the person, looked at the water, looked back at the person and said thanks. I went out first for about 45 minutes very overpowered and came in thrashed. He went out and blasted 20-25 foot jumps for well over an hour and had a great time.
Seems to me, if you don’t know the person or the conditions where they are riding, they have a better grip on their abilities to handle the situation than you do. You don’t get a vote unless they are putting other people or a launch in danger.
And yes, 90 knots is dangerous and foolish but the extremes of any discussion always are. Matter of degrees.
My comments were addressed specifically to wave riding. Of course there is significant variability based on rider size & to a
certain extent local conditions & skill level. But ... I kite at a local spot where pretty much everyone is on SBs. Everyone riding there is a competent & experienced kiter - some are more skilled than others, but the kite size used for the conditions is remarkably consistent among the riders, with some small variation because a couple of the bigger guys may, on occasion, use the next kite size up. The consistency is due to the fact that for wave riding you nobody wants to be too powered up - regardless of skill level - because being too powered diminishes the ability to enjoy riding the wave. This is different from free-riding on a TT where a very skilled rider may choose to rig big because he's focused on maximizing boost or hang time.
I will go out, as will others, when the wind if gusting over 35 knots, but this usually turns out to be a frustrating experience because theres just too much power in the kite to wave ride effectively. In my experience, around 30 knots is ideal for a 5m kite & average sized rider.