All,

I have recently purchased a 2011 Peter Lynn Charger 19m and have only been able to fly it a few times. I have been able to kitesurf the last two days in low winds. Let me explain my problem and ask for advice.

I am 200 lbs and ride a 140 cm board. I do not know the width of the board. I wear a seat harness and a life jacket.

The first day had about 13 mph winds blowing 45 degrees onshore. I was only able to ride downwind, but I was able to ride. I had the adjuster straps inside of the kite set in the middle (neither loose or tight) and 23m lines.

The second day had between 11 and 13 mph winds blowing 45 degrees onshore. I was not able to ride. I had the adjuster straps loose and 26m lines.

Can anyone tell me how they set their ARC kite in order to maximize low wind days? Can anyone give me some advice? I can't buy a different kite or board, since I am on a business trip in Angola, Africa.

Thanks,

Jason

Hi, What size Charger?

A lot of people have different preferences in regards to internal settings on Arcs. I keep all my straps loose personally as it allows the best all round perfomance of the wing.

I would guess your best bet is a different board ( I know, not an option right now) as Arcs are not known for thier light wind abilities especially on water.

I'm not a water rider, I just have a lot of hours on Chargers. It sounds like you're UP'd even if you have a 19m winds 11-13 are pretty lean I think for a Charger on the water and 200# payload. There are others here with a lot of water expirience who know a heck of a lot more about the water/Charger mix than I. :D

Feyd,

I guess I should have researched the winds in Luanda, Angola before I bought this kite. I guess a 15m Speed II would have been a better fit. I was hoping that this kite would give me a better low range than my 2006 Slingshot Fuel, but it doesn't look that way. I guess I'll just have to hope that I get some more wind over the next few weeks.

The bummer is that I only get off of work early enough on Saturday and Sunday to kitesurf. Every other day I get off right before dark. The wind is supposed to be great this evening, but I'll be in the office.

Thanks,

Jason

I think you'd be underpowered on anything short of a S3 19 in 11mph, especially on a small board. 15 honest knots would be starting to get good... but you'll want to keep board-speed high.

Get line extensions ~10m.
Might be able to milk little more of the bottom end

Yeah he's thrown extensions on. More may help for light wind deep snow on the 24m I run 40m some times.

But light wind on water is another deal altogether I suppose.:Ange09:

I'm a bit heavier and might be riding with my 159 door in 11 mph but I won't be having much fun.

Jason,

I've been out on CH15 in those conditions and I'm just 20# lighter (all straps loose). It really helped me get the low end out of my CH-15 when I dialed in the trailing edge pigtails. It made a world of difference when I moved to knots 2" closer to the kite and found the sweet spot. The kite should start to flare slightly when the bar is pulled in all the way. CH can take a lot more back line tension without stalling and with a long throw bar they have a lot of range. I wasn't able to do a whole lot, but I could stay up wind and was able to practice some slow loop transitions.

Another option would be to cut a plywood skim board. They are every bit as effective as the glass boards. That will get you cruising in super light winds and they are fun on the flat water in low wind conditions. They are tricky at first to learn - really slippery - but when you learn to step to the outside of the board and edge they scream.

cheers - dave

Dave,

Are you talking about adjusting the VPC3 system by moving the VPC line closer to the kite on the trailing edge? I think you are talking about shortening the rear lines by attaching them closer to the kite. I can't see how that would work. I couldn't even power up mine all the way or else it would back stall. I guess I need to fly it a bit more in order to learn how to maximize its power.

It also didn't help that the wind was blowing onshore so much. It kind of keeps me from being able to just do a pure downwind run. If the wind were parallel to the shore, I could have just let it take me a while and walked back. It was actually more onshore than 45 degrees, and a bunch of people were playing on the beach. I try to be a really safe kiter and don't like to kite with people downwind of me.

Thanks,

Jason

Jason

Yes, just shortening OR loosening the back lines as may be in your case if the kite is stalling. It's pretty important to use the whole range, so little adjustments are key. More time on the kite will help. Keep the kite moving forward while on the front lines moving up in the window, and then sheet in to get power on the down stroke; like rowing. Getting moving on the water is very important because once you kick in a little apparent wind with your forward motion, the power of that 19 will also kick in and you will get you upwind off the beach.

I learned from one of the guys from Holland how best to get more power in lighter wind. He came out with Marijn one year and was kiting with that 19m in as low as 4mph and as high as 20mph. His method was to internal side straps at half, middle at loose, 6m line extensions(you could go longer if you want...did 60m lines on a 24m phantom with amazing results.) One thing to keep in mind is when you extend the lines you need to add some knots to the top lines on the kite bridle. Depends on how long the extensions are. With 6m extensions I added 2 extra knots on the top lines, equal distance as the other knots. Wound up on the top knot for best results. As Feyd said, many people have different options, see what works best for you.