Session 2

I return to South Milton again the next morning, it’s changeover day so it’s pretty quiet. The wind is super light, maybe 6-8 knots and dropping. I rig my trusty light wind machine, a 16m JN MRF3 mono strut on longer 27m lines. This is a very stable light wind kite with quite a flat profile and weighs about as much as an average 9m. Luckily it will fly in a gnat’s fart and the long lines make for a progressive, smooth power stroke.

I had been strongly warned not to attempt to foil in lighter wind to start with, as it would end in total misery, but for me this wasn’t the case at all. The slowness and steady pull of a big kite helped me get everything lined up and once I rocked up on the board (this took a little more effort) I was off like a rocket. It was all silky smooth as I didn’t have yesterday’s devil chop to deal with. It gave me a lot more time to find the balance point and start to get a bit more control over the amount of lift available.

I got three or four runs going left on my natural side all the way across the bay, and then managed a couple of better efforts riding switch with the board on the water. Upwind was cracked finally, and I didn’t have to walk the thing back, which is nice as it’s a lot like carrying your own crucifix, Monty Python style.

Everything felt a lot more controlled, there was no flapping about manipulating the board in the water like the day before. As luck would have it, the wind then dropped completely and the kite would barely hang in the sky, so I sacked it off.

The wind forecast now looks total pony for a while which is a shame as it may slow the progression. The shorter masts should turn up relatively soon. I am tempted to try a more medium sized one, as I have a feeling it’s going to be a hell of a lot more practical whilst I am learning. Time will tell. Total time clocked up now is 2 1/2 hours.