The craziness is underway in Cape Town

[jj83]

Yes today was the strongest wind I've kited in so far in Cape Town with constant wind averaging around 35 knots and gusts up to 52 knots. I did a downwind from Dolphin following all the pros - Josh, Ross, Mike, Jason, Ryan etc riding half depowered on 7m and was absolutely lit! It was more of an experience to be out there for me and feel the wind. I prefer 25-40 knot days on 8/9m. My balls start to shrink very fast when it starts gusting into the high 40s and 50s

[Hugh2]

Well done, jj, more nerve than me.

Today was much better for me. I grew a brain and got to the beach at 10 for a long 7m Pivot downwinder on strapless surfboard from Milnerton lighthouse to Holbaai. The launch was extra sketchy with two hindenbergs, relaunches, and a few loftings. At Sunset Beach the disabled rider launched and we rode together for a while, he is truly impressive smashing waves and ripping them up. Further along I had to run the gauntlet of megaloopers at Kite Beach and then caught up with a gang of about 10 directional riders in front of me, which turned out to include Jalou Langaree and Rodderick Pijls. Riding outside to get around to Big Bay I was surprised to rapidly pass three more directional riders who were gybing back and forth while I simply pointed my board downwind and cranked the bar in for a fast ride down the swells. I'm not sure why they did not do that. After Big Bay the waves were their usual special crescent shape with some nice barrels, if only I dared to ride them. I saw the first penguin of this trip just before Haakgat, always a pleasure to see them. By the time I got to Holbaai it was howling but the disabled guy's helper was there and landed my kite - he brings a beach dolly down to carry the dude back to the car park. Back at Kite Beach at 12:30 the wind had filled in and Kevin Langaree, Graham Howe, and Rodderick Pijls were putting on a show, along with a few others I don't recognize. Inspired, I pumped the 7m again and went out on TT. At first it was a struggle, but I got more comfortable and eventually did a few timid jumps. The BKA meter says it was 30 gusting to 36, so that seems my limit for a 7m. I had it near fully depowered, which makes landing jumps difficult. I stayed just upwind of the pros and enjoyed watching their jumps from the water. Kevin later said he was overpowered yesterday when he quit. I took a lunch break, then decided to try my old 5.5m Cabrinha Nomad, and chose the surfboard again, as while it is tempting to jump on that kite, I find it hard to land smoothly with such a small kite. It was good to be under control again, so I ripped a wild downwinder to Holbaai, having the entire section from Big Bay to Holbaai to myself, nobody even at Haakgat. The only disappointment of the day was that the forecast 4m swells were only 2m, and even then very broken up, sort of like Cape Hatteras in the US. Anyway, tomorrow might be the last heavy wind day for Bloubergstrand for a while, but it will be blowing elsewhere for those just arriving, like Ken, my kiting buddy who taught me to kite in 2005.

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[a99]

Nice ! Seems that for February will not left enough hi winds fros Kota is blowing so hard now on Janurary

[POACHER]

Hey Hugh, can you or anyone else down there score me a KOTA shirt this year please?!

j/k


(size XL)


lol

[decay]

Missed seeing you again today Hugh, Su and I were first on the water at Dolphin at around 7am, figured it was best to try and beat the crowds and the NUKING wind. Went looking for something to ride at 4pm for the low tide, sunrise and Mac both blown out windy, had to make do with one session today.

Might try for early one again tomorrow.

Cheers

DK

[Hugh2]

Only hope you are wrong, a99, as I am here through end of February, in part to watch the KOTA and be inspired by it like last year.

Could do, POACHER!

Hope to run into you somewhere sometime DK.

Last night was extremely unusual in Cape Town, we had a very rare thunderstorm over Table Mountain that went on for hours. I got a couple snaps with a lightning app on my phone, but none of the really big bolts. I've been here every summer for 10 years and several times before going back 23 years and never seen this. The structure in the foreground is the MyCiti bus station in front of my flat in Milnerton that I use to get back from long downwinders. Milnerton Lagoon is behind it, where lots of locals used to ride on NW winds when it was larger, sadly with the loss of at least two lives on the rocks in front of Lagoon Hotel over the past decade. On the right is Woodbridge Island.

[jj83]

Great summary as always Hugh. Yesterday was solid 8m kiting for me so I could ride full powered unlike Friday where I was half depowered and in survival mode. I'm slowly figuring out the appropriate kite sizes for me here on XR6 (coming from Ozone Enduro) based on the constant wind speeds from BKA meter, not gusts, very roughly:

15-21 knots 10m
22-28 knots 9m
29-35 knots 8m

Like Hugh says the wind here is fairly unique and these wind speeds would have seemed quite low to me if I saw them before. Many people talk about the gusts like on Friday where the peak gusts were just over 50 knots, but the constant wind speed was averaging around 35 knots, which doesn't sound like much but it was enough to almost clear the water at Blouberg

[Hugh2]

Indeed jj, I took this shot at the peak, around 3PM on Friday, with not a kite in sight at Kite Beach, but there were a few further north.

The scouring of the beach by the wind was so severe that yesterday it was all pebbly, the soft sand all up in the dunes and on Marine Drive!

Raining today and wind dying, still hoping for a session later.

[Hugh2]

Today was a little difficult. After the unusual thunderstorm over Table Mountain last night, it rained on and off till lunchtime, and as shown on the graph, the wind was up and down and had a little more east in it. That was just enough to make it slightly side-off and really gusty and difficult at Kite beach when I went out on 7m around 2PM. I was tired from yesterday, and while I should have done a downwinder, rode TT in place instead and the jumps were unsatisfactory with gusts and lulls leading to a lot of crashes. This week will be a lot lighter at Bloubergstrand, so expeditions elsewhere might be in order.

[jj83]

Indeed jj, I took this shot at the peak, around 3PM on Friday, with not a kite in sight at Kite Beach, but there were a few further north.

The scouring of the beach by the wind was so severe that yesterday it was all pebbly, the soft sand all up in the dunes and on Marine Drive!

Raining today and wind dying, still hoping for a session later.

IMG_1336.jpg

One of them was probably me on white 7m XR6 3 of us did a downwinder from Dolphin around 3pm and we were the only kites in the water until Mystic. I couldn't see any kiters further upwind so was scared to jump and lose my board. No chance to bodydrag upwind