Stormy Weather Hits Kiter

ricki · #1 02-13-2008, 02:24 PM

Noel reported similar conditions down in Islamorada a few hours earlier:

Quote:

Originally Posted by noel

Down here in the keys it blew @ 25-35 mph all day. What a great day. Between 1:00 and 2:00pm, a squall came in. We could see it coming and everyone but 1 person got off the water. As the storm approached, the wind got stronger until the 1 person on a 7m Best Bularoo got tea-bagged and forced in. @ 5 minutes after landing his kite the wind spiked upwards of 50 mph. Everyone was on top of there kites trying to hold them down. Glad we were not on the water.

ricki · #2 02-13-2008, 02:26 PM

Hey Noel,

Could have been related to the squall line that moved through here a few hours later on. Although it looked a bit less threatening in the radar image from around 1 pm shown below. Pays to avoid these like the plague. Glad you guys weren't caught out in it.

X marks the spot

ricki · #3 02-13-2008, 02:27 PM

More input from Oceanplay

Quote:

Originally Posted by RickI

Oceanplay called and filled in some more details. We owe him special thanks for posting his experiences on here. Nothing like a real life example to sharpen the critical importance of something in people's minds.

The incident happened between 3:30 and 4 pm. He was on a 10 m flat kite. The wind had risen, flattened out the waves somewhat has they rode north on the downwinder in strong SSE winds. Suddenly he saw a white wall rushing towards him from the south and it was on him before he knew it. Visibility plummeted to where he could barely see his kite 25 yards away, the wind roared like a freight train and his kite spun crazily with explosive changes in wind direction. He was holding the bar out and panic at bay, thinking mechanically about what he needed to do. He wasn't lofted but was expecting to be as he was dragged around. He guessed the squall was on him for about five minutes but it could have been less you lose sense of time in such cases.

From: http://www.weathermichigan.com

I think he saw the approaching gust front of a supercell storm cloud. It was blasting ocean spray (almost like oceanplay, funny?) up into a wall before the rapidly advancing squall. He mentioned the radical wind direction changes.

Such changes could shower a kiter with falling line, allow the kite to relaunch and get cheese sliced, dragged/lofted into whatever without anyway to depower or simply be drowned as has sadly happened in the recent past in tragic fatal accidents in Spain, Hungary and the Ukraine. You can't know in advance what will happen in a squall.

In looking at real time wind graphs these direction changes are a give away of squall activity such as shown below:

You look for these conditions upweather and work hard to AVOID THEM.

Pretend all that dust is actually water. Do you really want to try to ride through one of these with a kite up?
From: http://skydiary.com/gallery/chase2001/chase2001f.html

Lastly, squalls occur WORLDWIDE. Kiters have been killed and injured in squalls/storms in many sections of the USA, Europe, Asia, Oceania, etc.. This is far from a Florida problem. Weather planning and monitoring make good sense. More about this in the first several posts at: http://www.kiteforum.com/viewforum.php?f=131 , in particular http://www.kiteforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=131&t=2323430

FKA, Inc.

transcribed by:
Rick Iossi

ricki · #4 02-13-2008, 02:28 PM

Still more insights ...

Quote:

Originally Posted by oceanplay

Well it hit around 4:00 and if anything the wind was stronger than the meters, just the sound, it was like a train.

I did a lot of things wrong, and right because I am here, but if I had lost my composer or control at any time it would have been over.

If it was someone new, or if not totally comfortable in the water, they would be dead, hell I should be!

It was a eye opener, never would I had thought I could be dragged 360 degrees around 3 times, the wind was over 40 and I don’t now how strong but it sounded like a freight train.

The kite was a 10 bularo and handled like a champ, but was fully powered, depowered!

Ryan, it was ED, Nick and I, the later is from the west cost you would know him by face.

We all have tons of experience kiting and a lifetime of water sports, that helps allot.

I'M DONE ROLLING DICE IN WEATHER LIKE THAT, I hope.

ricki · #5 02-13-2008, 02:29 PM

Here's a real important question. Informed input particularly from guys in the industry would be very welcome ...

Quote:

Originally Posted by RickI

Quote:

Originally Posted by tautologies

Good to hear you were okay. Squalls like that can be very scary for sure. We have spots that has pretty crazy. wind...Wind changing direction, going off shore, sometimes being super squally so I am not entirely unfamiliar with what you are talking about although your situation sounds pretty extreme...I think the it is scary when you jump, and the wind changes direction on you while in the air...especially since there about a foot of water then reef.

Anyhow, I noted you saying that the other riders were on 5 line kites and therefore just released their kite and therefore were safe.
I have three points here that I am thinking of.
1. makes me think about what would happen only a few years ago when kites had a way smaller wind range. C-kites were crazy in winds like that...but you could still release them.
2. Flat kites bow / SLE should be releasable like that too. I've ready about kites doing crazy loops upon release. I don't think that is acceptable.
3. If not released flat(ter) kites has bigger wind range, but needs a little technique riding in winds like that. I found two ways to ride out nuclear squalls. One is to put the kite in the water on its side, which I don't really like..the second is to ride it like you did, but always remember to keep some tension on the backlines. Of course different kites does react different to different conditions and I have my latest experience on the shockwaves and helix which seem to handle it quite well.

I also basically think that in many case looking at wind charts in squalls will many times only ba a weak indication as small local circumstances are wildly different in terms of strength and behavior, and most charts are averages over a time period. Maybe you were caught in something that was a lot lighter only a few hundred feet away..even in the same squall. There is no way to know though. :-)
I posted a post a few weeks ago about how to ride through crazy squalls, (where the squall hit so hard it ripped the bar out of my hands)...and think there were some good suggestions there. :-) I really think that we absolutely have to think through what we are going to do in a situation like that BEFORE it happens. What about if you had not been as experienced as you are? It probably could have gone way worse than it actually did.

Anyhow good to hear it went well...
A.

What happens if you release your flat kite to the leash in high winds? Say on the o'shit handle vs. one of the leading lines? Does it spin but very little power, spin with power, risk tangling and redeveloping power? What should you do? Manufacturer input on this would be very welcome.

Whitey · #6 02-14-2008, 07:56 AM

We had a day like that here (Clearwater) yesterday also. 6 or 7 of us off south end of Honeymoon Island riding on 12s and 14s. Big black death band appeared from the west. We all scrambled to the beach and put the kites down. Then made the "uncool" but very smart move to deflate the leading edges and roll them up just as we got them rolled up and to the otherside of the dune it nuked. Waited 20 min and pumped em back up and rode again for the rest of the day.

It was a good feeling to do the right thing and play it safe. It did not go unnoticed by the Rangers in the park that we got off the water as a group, and acted responseably.

When you see anything that resembles a change in the sky that is the time to move your leash connection point not when your hanging from the bar.

Most were struggling to stay up wind prior to the cell coming in, on big kites and big boards, but even with the wind at 10 to 12 on a glide I took the time to slow down sink out and move my lease from the chicken loop line to the union of the front two lines just incase I did'nt make it to the beach before the squall hit.

I don't know how to post the ikite wind picture for yesterday at Dunedin Causeway but if you look you can see this event at 2:30 it goes from 12mph to 30+.

Be safe, don't get lulled into thinking that just because it has not happend to you, it can't. It will, it is important to learn from the mistakes of others with out having to experience the mistakes yourself.

I was very proud of all the guys I was riding with yesterday to follow the lead and get off the water instead of staying out for a few more tacks and showing how high they could jump to the guys on the beach who had set their kites down first. It's ok to be the first one to go in when you see the potential for pain. It's the best thing you can do for your buddies.

I was guilty of going in and getting a smaller board to go back out for a few more runs in good wind and nice waves, but as I headed back out into the water, I looked at the sky and managed to stop myself and say "no I'm smarter than this" and turned around and landed.

Whitey · #7 02-14-2008, 08:16 AM

Rick, Like you said every kite is different. I know that on a SB3 if you put your leash on the triangle shaped ring that connects the front two lines to the chicken loop main line and depower straps, when let onto the leash the kite will act like it does in Jon Modica's video of self landing a swithblade III. Much better alternitive to the back line ring the factory provides on the outside of the bar. Letting the kite go onto that point results in a big mess of spaghetti and a kite that you can not relaunch.