Postby jumptheshark » Fri Jun 11, 2021 4:16 pm
jkrug,
Not really sure what that is. Unless your talking about so low end you actually slack line a bit. In which case, see below. The span line (the one the 5th line attaches to) was short on my 6m. I had to use some of the extra line provided in with the kite to fashion a longer one. The kites wingtips would not take proper shape and it definitely reduced peak power. Maybe have a look at that.
Strekke,
I'm not saying the peak is great at relaunching or anything so heretical! I have also had it ball up in the sky when I slack line it. I'm usually pleasantly surprised when it regains shape and we just carry on. In fact I don't think I have had it fall all the way to the water in this way since the really early days. Gotta be a wind drop out now. Regain line tension and you will be surprised at the percentage rate of recovery. Think I even had the kite fully invert through the lines and still regain shape. Rode in to shore to fix it. There is a dark art of knowing if a quick tug on the fronts or a single rear line tug is the right call to facilitate opening but if you can see the kite, you can generally learn which one with a bit of time and practice. Teaching anyone with the 3m on land in light air affords amazing familiarity with peaks that can pay dividends on the water.
In general these are a completely different animals from LEI and closed cell foil. There are a host of new skills to consider.
I think we need to discuss stuff like in water bridle management with this kite to really get the most of it. Everyone imediately thinks of slack, sunk, lines wrapping around your legs and foil, but it certainly doesn't have to be like that at all! In fact it never has to be like that if you simply wrap up the lines properly.
I have been poaching a completely non kiteable spot lately in an previously unusable wind direction and have had opportunities to mess around with swim launch and swim relaunch. The kites have been in the water repeatedly the last few sessions, but its warm and safe and I've had the time to sort it so have yet to swim back in. Can take upwards of 15 min sometimes, especially if you almost get it up but it flops at the last moment, requiring another reboot, but have got the kite up each time from absolutely under water. Whats more, is I'm way better at it now than I was just a couple weeks ago.
There is a whole set of skills to in water management that gets harder the bigger the kite. Sorting a drowned Peak and getting it off the water is something that only a fraction of Peak owners will get decent at, but these are not overly complex skills, they are just nothing like other kites. If the kite goes down in any relatively safe spot, I'm totally confident that provided the wind gets back up to 10 knots, I can get the kite back up with a clean bridle. It's actually way less stress to have a downed peak than many other style kites. There is no pull and it will not sink unless you sink it, it will not twist, unless you twist it, and it will not rats nest unless you rats nest it. Seaweed, strong currents and breaking waves not withstanding, peaks CAN generally be reset with very little risk or drama. Wrap the lines moving to the kite. Wrap all the way up to the tiny grey bridles. Sort the kite. This takes practice, but really comes down to doing as little as possible, set in drift position, unwrap lines, pull up the LE to catch some air and play the tension until the kite takes shape. Then be very patience as you let the tips empty...........................completely, until the kite takes off and flies straight up on its own. Not hard, not even complex, but requires practice to get it down.