Hi, just bought a Viper 3.9 from Dakitez and thought I would jump on a kite forum.

Every time I googled average wind speeds for Oregon I found sites trying to get me to pay money for something so I figured I would post the one chart I did find. Looks like winds in my area (Mt. Angel/Silverton) average around 6mph. I'm glad I got the 3.9 instead of the 2.6.

http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/htmlfiles/westwind.final.html

Thanks Midgaar, that seems to be great for the beaches and major rivers. I'm quite a ways inland so the one above works best for me.

This site(: http://www.atmos.washington.edu/marka/pnw.html ) has maps showing surface winds for western states as recorded hourly. You will need to figure out how to read the symbols, but it is pretty simple.
S

Thanks Scudley, that's a good one!

ATMOS is a great site for the NW forecasts; noaa is also very sharp for our area (noaa.gov). Times of the year and specifically where you fly will impact the wind. As for the ave wind speed, here's the crappy answer, you'll need to really just figure it out throught experience at your local kite spot or ask local kiters. The 3.9 is a great choice if you're just starting out. I wouldn't go any bigger, but if the winds are that low on average then I'd start saving up for a larger kite once you get very comfortable controlling the kite. What type of activity are you looking to do, buggy, static flying, landboard, jumping?

arkay, I will be getting a bigger kite (prolly the PL Viper 6.8) within the next few months or so. The wind around here has been very light (maybe 2-4mph, not enough to spin the impeller on my wind gauge usually) and a bigger kite should do me well. I think 5.3 would be ok but the 6.8 would be great for low winds. Then, of course, I have to get a smaller kite for high winds at the beach.

I plan to fly static for quite a while. I want to get a lot of flying time in before I decide to hop on something. Buggying is my ultimate goal but the damn buggys are insanely expensive!

Compared to some other outdoor pastimes, like ATV'ing or Snowmobiling, Kite buggy's are relatively inexpensive, and maintenance is way cheaper. Now, if we could only get a buggy that comes with acres of rolling, well groomed grassland that has constant winds at 15 or so....I'd pay way more than I would for any ATV or snowmobile!

Yeah, that's true. Maybe that's why I haven't gotten into any of those sports. I have a sit on top kayak that cost me more than an entry level buggy and kite combined! Either way I look at it $600 is a lot of money right now, though.