VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

Ok i concede.. either i need to take a lesson or two or i
need to find where you all hang out at what times on what days so i can ask a few things....such as how much do you inflate the kite? how do you/ what are the best ways to launch a kite alone? and land it? how do you body drag ( meaning do you just drag out then in then walk back up the beach)? when/how do you know your ready for a board?

i have a 12m trio, and i have a board (mutant) i still need a wetsuit, boots, and a harness, and extra gear.

i went out to I view today just to setup the kite, put it into the nuetral zone and land it. the wind was barely there and i almost took a good ride. Yeah to on lookers it was funny as hell considering i never put the kite inot any real wind zones.

i know lessons aren't that much and yes i have spent a bit on kites... but that there is running my tab into the ground. and healp would be MORE then appreciated. thanks guys.

dude - check out: http://kitesurfingschool.org/ it has all ya need, and THEN take a lesson. You will thank yourself later.

Good luck!

Hey,
Take a lesson, you will save time, money on kite repairs and injuries to yourself and or others!

Don

Best kiting investment i made was a lesson. Nothing worse than trashing your $1500 kite in one crash cause you didnt know how to fly it. I wont even go into the issue of hitting a bystander on the beach and the consequenses of that, especially in this day and age of possible closures. AND you might even hurt yourself.....you never know.....it can happen....really.

Do a google search or any search for that matter, on "Kitemares".
Read a few, or alot. Unfortunatly there is alot.

can someone please tell me what winds i am looking for at I View as well as the direction desired for body dragging. and the other question i had is, if i post when i'll be there if the conditioons are right would anyone else show up? it's hard for me to appear on the dates and times the local trainer has. i am in med school all week till 6 pm and i have 2 kids living with me, so weekend camp training is kinda out..... anyways thanks for all the advice posted on this forum.

check forecast page, it denotes the preferred wind direction and where it is steadiest .....and if it's offshore or gusty or really, really....really windy, I would think it's not good for beginners the rest depends I would think on your kite size. The other part: if it's windy, they will come, 10+knots. Once you hooked up with some folks you'll talk it up Windpeople are mostly friendly. IV works best on mostly SE or sometimes NE, W is gusty and offshore

Don't blame me ... I voted for Kodos!

Krang, I-View isn't the best place to learn really, there are other places that tend to be a bit friendlier, unfortunately there isn't much in the victoria area, I concede that I-View is the safest that I know of in that area, but you have to walk the kite to the beach launched, you have power lines and it is a park (people around). So if you are just learning, and you want advice from "profiecient" sailers, heed the advice to take a lesson. yes it can cost upto $400, but that gets you three days of solid instruction using anothers quality gear and all the knowledge you can absorb. Strong kiteboarding is one school I could recommend as I know he has all the equipement needed to do the job properly here on the Island. If you are over squamish way there is a young lady by the name of Marie you should look up. Marie also comes over the odd weekend to instruct at Nitinaht as well. If that is not an option, then consider heading out to nitinaht on a decent weekend and prepare to just hang out on the beach and observe and get to know the "regulars". Most will be happy to pass on some advice. Like anything else in this world, chances are nothing will happen if you go it alone, but there is the chance things can go wrong, and when they do, it happens fast and can potentially be lethal to you or others, not to mention expensive. Just a few years ago there were not alot of people around kiting, which made making mistakes not so bad as the beach wasn't as crowded as well as the water. Now it is getting busy and having a solid understanding of the basic skills would eliminate a gargantuan amount of frustration for you and others around you.

D

Taking a lesson is a very good idea
it will make your learning process a lot faster and safer
I give lessons out of Squamish and i also go to nitinat
I am headding to Nitinat on the 11th and staying for a week or so
If you would like some lessons you can call me at :(604)815-2196 or email me at :