Off shore winds, yes or no?

[Flag53]

Thanks for the replies everyone

[Flag53]

Just as a follow up on this post .

I’ve recently been out twice in dead off shore winds , once it was blowing 14 knots and yesterday it was 30-40 knots .

It was pretty safe though as Theres a sand bank about 600 yds dead downwind , so if I couldn’t get back upwind To where I’d launched from then I could land on it and walk my gear back to shore .

I purposely ditched the wing and paddled back to my upwind launch spot .It wasn’t easy ,especially in the strong winds . But I did get back to the spot where I’d initially launched from .

I still prefer to not go out in off shore winds , but at least if the wind swings to off shore when I’m out then I know I’ll be able to get back to the beach .

[Peter_Frank]

Might repeat myself - but to clarify:

Offshore winds can be a huge benefit for wingfoil

If the wind is too light in general, you will get belts of more wind, when a bit or a lot offshore, or if not offshore, but coming up over hills on the other side.

These conditions are HORRIBLE for kitesurfing - but for wingsurfing it might be the deciding factor that makes you get up on foil, and from then on ride on

We are several who has utilized this on "thin" summerdays - and got out going with medium wing sizes only, because of the increased wind.

And then one can just ride the lulls out, quite easy.

A lot easier and better and safer, than with a kite.

Peter

[OzBungy]

I finished a wing session the other day and had a practice paddle against strong cross-onshore 25 knot winds.

I made it about 50m off the beach before I got bored. It was extremely unpleasant having the waves splashing in my face.

Possibly more concerning was the longshore current swept me down the beach to an area with some reef close to the beach.

I paddled back to the safe area but it was all pretty unpleasant.

My offshore riding experience was a lot more pleasant. The shore and the cliffs prevented large chop forming and it was a lot less unpleasant paddling against the wind.

So, yes it is doable. Yes it is quite good in places where kiteboarding would be strongly inadvisable. And yes you have to have a plan how to deal with the conditions and make sure you have a safe escape route.