Session #7, 2012

As Tom Petty once sang – The waiting is the Hardest Part

The darn wind here has SUCKED!! But I remain hopeful for better things to come.

Session Date: May 4th, 2012

Session Time: 1:30 – 3:30

Location: Sheboygan, WI the North Launch near the pier

2012 Season Days to Date: 7

2012 Season Hours to Date: 16.25

Wind Observations: What can I say it was Sheboygan, always so solid here. This place is an hour drive for me but from NE – S the drive is so so worth it. I need the free time but when I do I go. As you can see from the chart the gust range is low and the wind is constant and solid. I have not kited a ton of spots on Lake Michigan but I really love this spot. It is worth noting however that the meter on the lighthouse is a tad bit deceiving. From my experience it is about 3-4 miles above what you experience riding. I have no idea why other then it’s height and exposure, but I firmly believe it to be the case.

Session Notes: NE is easily my favorite direction in Sheboygan. The breakwall/pier you see pictured really cleans up the waves. NE would side on blowing left to right across the picture. If the swells get a chance to build it can be amazing. This day however was short lived and not a multiple day blow, so the waves were about chest high. Many were on surfboards but I strictly rode my twin tip on this day. The wind was a pinch to much North which creates a wind shadow from the resort that is not pictured but just to the left. The shadow is in close but it covers some of the area the waves break the best when they are not real big. All in all not much of a leaning day for me. Was more just ride my twin tip and have fun boosting off wave ramps. I had my surfboard with me but my time was limited so I just wanted to ride and enjoy my first session of 2012 on Mother Michigan. Great day and left with a big smile on my face. I have so much left to learn and I can’t wait! Now give me some more wind Mother Nature!!

BroKite Freeride 134 Review

I thought it was about time I shared some information about some of the kiteboarding gear I have had the opportunity to ride and become familiar with. Truth be told I am not one to bash any gear, kiteboarding equipment is as I have come to learn very specialized and what works for one person may not work for another. This can be based on style, where the person rides, weight, sex, age the list is long.

There is one piece of equipment I feel compelled to share a review on and it is my BroKite Freeride 134×40 Kiteboard.

History – I am a bit cautious when it comes to making purchases. When I began looking for a second kiteboard I was getting interested in getting on Lake Michigan and I wanted a twin tip that would work well in the waves. Many ride surfboards and I am learning to ride one myself but the keyword there is learning. I wanted a twin tip that I could ride and enjoy in varied conditions and have fun in the waves with, and I looked high and low and kept coming back to the BroKite Freeride. So I e-mailed Jerry and the next day got a call from West and soon had all the information I needed to feel like I was making the right choice. And more importantly I had met people willing to share the stoke of kiteboarding, West has introduced me to Lake Michigan Kiters and spots to ride, Jerry has let me launch from his house in Texas. But in the end those things are just the icing on the cake, lets talk about the board a bit.

Construction – I suggest you go to BroKite’s website and check out their construction videos. They explain exactly how they build the boards and why. There will be a brand new video out in a couple of weeks from the posting of this review to explain some new ways they are using the carbon in the boards to make the boards even a bit lighter and stronger. The boards also have a new skin for 2012 that I am sure will be on the website soon but can be previewed here.  In the end the board is a single concave board with a nice amount of rocker in it. The board is firm yet flexible, I describe it as lively or snappy. The board is light under foot and the pads and straps are first-rate and comfy. The colors are bright and easily seen in the waves or chop if you ever (when) become separated from the board in the waves. This fact alone tells you one of the main things you need to know about these boards and the guys building them. They are built by kiters for kiters, it is all about how the board works when you drag it out in the water.

Positives – This board likes to get out and go and can hold down overpowered conditions and gusts with ease. To me what stands out about the Freeride is the way that it eats chop and holds such a sweet edge. To be perfectly honest it took me a bit to really appreciate this fact. But when ridden back to back with other boards I have tried it is like going from a ride in a Chevy Nova to a ride in a Cadillac. The concave and the rocker of the board seem to work together beautifully to smooth the ride and keep the board very solidly under foot allowing you to set a very solid edge. The rounded nose and rail were made to carve turns, toeside, heelside it doesn’t matter the board is always there, rail locked. The solid feel and locked in edge make boosting with this board fun as you can really leverage the kite and are never pulled off your edge downwind as you send the kite. Pop while not really what this board was built for (Jerry and West build other shapes for that) is still excellent. A board that turns this well and holds an edge like this is logically easy to pop, this is exactly what the freeride delivers. And last but for sure not least the board shines in the waves, it carves smoothly, and is turns just flow from it once you get on a wave.

Negatives – I am not really sure this is a negative as based on the set up of the board it should be expected. But you need to be powered to ride this board. This is not a board that will get you through lulls or light wind situations. It is made for when the wind is strong and steady and you know the power will be there.

Conclusion – I ride a ton of inland lakes and Lake Michigan and this board is perfect for what I do. I spend a ton of time in choppy messy conditions and this board eats that stuff for breakfast and allows me to stay on task. never having to worry about being thrown off kilter by a white cap, shore bounce or a breaker. This board is a great board for when the wind is solid to strong and you are nice and lit up. It also carves sweetly in waves and swells when they are big enough to catch a ride on.

If this sounds like something that would work for you, I recommend you give Jerry a call down at BroKite headquarters he will be glad to talk shop with you. It was a great decision for me, and one I am very happy with. Excellent Boards and Excellent People.

This year I will be adding a BroKite 136×43 Wake to my quiver, this should cover all my bases going forward. After I get a season on the Wake I will share my thoughts on it.

Session #6, 2012

Session Date: April 15th, 2012

Session Time: 3:30 -6:30 3 hours

Location: Home Launch Lake Butte des Morts

2012 Season Days to Date: 6

2012 Season Hours to Date: 14.25

Wind Observations: Well if you read my last post about the SE wind, the S/SW is just the opposite sort of wind here. Lake Butte Des Morts is basically a glorified river. And it just happends to run in a direction that SE will blow directly up it and NW will blow directly down it. S and SW blow across it on shore to where we launch. But I believe the distance across the water just does not allow the wind to fill in fully so you deal with gusts and holes. This is all part of kiting where I kite and why I tend to always err on the side of the larger kite when I rig here. I need a kite to get me through the holes,  I can generally hang on through the gusts.

Session Notes: Was a really enjoyable session. It started with some frustration as I rigged my 10 and was just not powered enough. I hiet that little dip in the chart between 3 and 5. I was watching the day unfold from my daughters Birthday party and the wind was fine for my 10. But when I got out I just did not have the power. So I rigged my 12 and was lit once the wind came back up but I was having fun and did not want to re-rig again. I started out on my FLX and was having a fine time just riding and boosting and trying some hooked in Railies. There was a small lull and I switched to my surfboard strapless and fell on every attempted jibe. When the wind picked up again I went to my Brokite Freeride and the session got even better. I just love this board, no other way to say it. I was just holding a better edge, which allowed me to boost bigger. I was much more comfortable through the chop and carving run transitions. This cemented my idea to sell my FLX and purchase another BRO I am between the Wake and the Pop right now but leaning towards the Wake as it will give me some versatility. Wake for trying tricks, Freeride for just that when the wind is up, and my surfboard.

Anyway the session was as I said really enjoyable. Mostly just a ride, carve and boost session. But another season goal I have is adding a few tricks to my riding. A backroll is first on the list. And towards the end of the session I worked on them. The first couple were not pretty as I was losing the kite back up and through the window. But after a few crash and burns I landed one on my ass and rode out of it and then hit one just perfect, or at least it felt that way. How pretty did it look? No idea but it felt really good and I landed really clean. I decided to just end on a high note as I was pretty worn out. I will pick a session here shortly that I will dedicate to the backroll and hopefully get it cemented into my brain. What is after that I do not know but I will come up with something.

Session #5 2012

Was  long break between sessions but finally wind and my schedule matched up!

Session Date: April 13th, 2012

Session Time: 3:30 -6:30 3 hours

Location: Home Launch Lake Butte des Morts

2012 Season Days to Date: 5

2012 Season Hours to Date: 11.25

Wind Observations: SE is the wind here. I don’t claim to full understand it but it is stronger then the wind chart shows. The charts I post are taken at the local Airport. I find that anything North is a terrible reading but the SE here is just more Full. I would compare it more to an Ocean Breeze then the typical lake wind we get here. There was more wind then the chart indicates, mid to upper teens no question.

Session Notes: As I said the wind may not look like much but I was very nicely powered on my 12m Rally. This is not to say I was lit up, but there was enough wind to do plenty of fun stuff. Actually this was good because I wanted to ride my surfboard strapless.

Strapless Riding!! One of my season goals is to ride locally here strapless as much as I can so that I can hopefully take it to Lake Michigan and on a trip to the ocean some day. I can tell you it is going to take some work for me, I am far from a natural but the getting up and riding is not an issue. The Jibes however are going to take some time. I completed quite a few but they are heavy footed and slow. Others are outright awkward looking falls, which I can live with. Half the session was on my 5’8″ Celeritis. The other half was on my Underground FLX, just working on pops and having fun freeriding.

Session #2 2012

Session Date – March 21, 2010

Session Time –  2:15 – 4:30 – 2 Hours and 15 Mins

Location – Home Launch, Lake Butte des Morts

2012 Season Days to Date – 2

2012 Season Hours to date – 4.25

Wind and Weather Observations – Wind was full of holes which is typical on a S or SW here on our inland lakes. It never really got cranking. I was powered on my 12 with a twintip to start but I was never really lit. The air and water temps are amazing, it is going to be a good year. Wore my Assassin and was reminded I have a broken zipper that needs repair from the end of last season.

Session Notes – It was a nice session I started on my twin tip and quickly got bored of just cruising along waiting for gusts so that I could boost and pop. So I switched out to my surfboard. The surfboard is without question where I wish to improve the most this year. Yesterday I had the rear strap on but I am going to take the plunge and just go strapless forcing myself to learn. I have a long long way to go with jibes. I feel very uncomfortable jibing on the surfboard. I completed a total of 2 yesterday, not real impressive. Today my core is very sore, all the workouts in the winter did not seem to replicate kitesurfing. Wind is gone now for a few days so time to recover and get ready for the next round. This starts with taking my wetsuit in to have the zipper repaired.

Kiteboarding Wisconsin

Hello to anyone that stumbles across this blog. I am a Wisconsin based Kiteboarder that got into the sport in 2010 when I was just turning 40 years old. Thus I am entering my third full season of kiteboarding or kitesurfing whicever you prefer.

I have been kicking around the idea of keeping a log book of my sessions. I looked around for a tool that had what I needed to keep the wind stats, and session data I wanted and decided a blog was the best solution.

Most of my posts will be just that, session logs. But on occassion I will take the time to review equipment I have used, spots I have been to or visited and just anything that is on my mind.  I toyed with keeping the site private, but if any of the information I post can help anyone learn to be a better, more informed or safer kiter I am all for allowing access to the masses.

Enjoy and thanks for visiting if you have a question you can always contact me through the site.