well put josh.

I rode lassing solo one day last week in solid 15 to 17 conditions for 2 hours...

Ive also been part of a 30+ kite invasion at EB ..

Ive had crappy times with 5 kiters out on the water and amazing times with 25 kiters..

we are DAMN lucky to have the choices we've got. always a few launches to choose from no matter what the conditions. When I was in Jupiter 2 weeks ago I saw the limited choices those riders have. they have ONE standard launch area .. other areas along the beach are widely frowned upon. Their launch area is TINY compared to something like EB. Maybe a bit larger than the launch at skyway.. not much larger.. but with massive shore break..

we've got it good.

keep it secret. :)

ya ya ya.. EB is the best place in the right conditions, but there are other places that are nearly as great and it aint too hard to get your ass upwind or downwind to create the distance you need.

but as josh said, the thing I miss most from last year is that most everyone on the beach was a familiar face. new rider would show up and most would watch with caution as they launched to ensure they knew what they were doing .. made it much easier to keep an eye out of for your fellow riders..
these days i feel lucky to know one of two people out there and I have no idea who should be avoided so i try to avoid everyone (best practice i believe)..

Pretty much... I'm glad to see people enjoying the sport because there is nothing else like it... but like Josh, I miss the small tight group. My post wasn't necessarily a complaint or "whining" as Toby said, only a sad realization.

I knew we had a lot more riders but going back and SEEING the difference between then and now is a shock.

Put it this way, Billy usually only shows up on the best days at EB. 6 kites in the air on a Saturday? I count more than that at backside on a crummy 9mph day on the way home from work!

I expect the growth to speed up too... like Toby said, you tell 2 friends, and they tell 2 friends, etc. Instructors are more available than ever and equipment has become so good that almost anyone can stay upwind.

If walmart can sell paintball guns, shotguns, and pistol ammo, they can sell kites. Could you imagine that? It'll happen eventually. Hey, at least they'll be cheap :)

I guess whining was the wrong word to use but this same topic has been beaten to death this year. That was all I was saying...

Recently I have tried to start taking the approach from the other side, thinking about how it would feel if I were thinking of starting to take up a sport, then reading the local forum and seeing how "welcome" I would feel after reading a thread like this and/or some of the others that have been put up this year (one by me)...

The growth WILL happen. Embrace it or lose. Like others have said, there are ALWAYS opportunities for us to have those sessions we used to have, and there are lots of POSITIVES to added riders yet we seem to always focus on the negatives. You will probably not have a hard time finding someone to ride with or someone to watch your back, soon there will be Wal-Mart GREAT VALUE brand kites on sale for $149.99 complete and best of all, you get to meet a bunch of cool new people that you never would have known otherwise...The past is just that...the past. I think growth is a good thing for the sport and like to live for today and the future instead of for yesterday...

With you on that...

Now a days I don't know but 3-4 people at the beach. Everytime there are new people.

Watching some of them launch their kites I almost have heart attacks.

Agreed. I stop on the way home to take pictures of the chaos. Last time I stopped at the skyway, I was only there 15 minutes and I saw one person get injured, a few riders jumping someone and almost taking out another rider in the process, and right after I left someone jumped and landed on the beach.

There is no shortage of entertainment these days.... I just don't understand the fascination with jumping a line length from shore... seriously, if you are not Billy or Jayson, we are probably not impressed!

Ok back on topic... there are plenty of other places to ride so no big deal. Just don't ask me where they are!

LOL, why won't you tell us Tom...?

call me 941-284-0477

-T

damnit, i don't impress you guys?

Nope.

Just kidding Josh, of course you impress us good buddy!!!

Yeah of course but you and Alex don't jump right near shore :) Obviously you guys are in the handle pass club... I haven't been accepted yet :(

Anyone who has seen Jason do his unhooked kite loop transition and land 3 ft from shore completely lit and hauling A$$ but in complete control knows what I'm talking about... the guy could do it with his eyes closed and it's cool as hell to watch. And then there's Billy... nothing more to say about that!