Hello to all in this forum;

bought this kite in fall 2014... Flysurfer pulse 2_ 8m2.. practiced well to fly this kite right till the first snow fall.... it did feel like this kite had a strong pull.. but now... when I try to fly it with my skis and or snowboard on.. it is not strong enough to really pull me around constantly.....

I am 185 lb rider.... and I did try it in heavy /wet snow condition.. I thought.. maybe it was the snow... but yesterday, I went out in fresh dry snow on pretty much leveled field.....only in gusts I have been pulled....
HOW STRONG THE WIND has to be.. to get going in the snow ?

DISAPPOINTING..thought this kite would have a strong enough pull to get me going in not just "huricane" strong winds......thought 15-20 km/h would be enough....

..wanted to use it in winter... snow covered fields... looks like . it will not work..... I do not get enough days with 30 km/h + winds... and that gets pretty cold in winter..not to mention..this kite is not the easiest to control in stronger gusty winds ( based on what I have experienced in fall)

your thoughts, experiences, opinions ARE more than appreciated!!!

Thank you very much for your reply....

this your first depower ? seems light for 8m. for land maybe 15- 20mph maybe more, for water 30+MPH (like 48km/h)

10mph wind for skilled rider maybe on FROZEN lake. Fairly small net power at 15km/h ...

for fun u may need like solid 15-20mph to get going.

in 15-20km/h a 14m maybe a bit bigger

I have a 7m Pulse and in 15 - 20kph ( about 9 - 11kts ) I would not be expecting to have a lot of power but would be able to make it work by spanking the kite around to create " apparent wind " . It would not be strong enough wind to " park and fly " .

Personally I would be flying a larger kite in that wind. Since you only have the one kite you need to work on creating power using loops and down loops + flying the kite in a sine ~ wave at the edge. Keep at it! YOU need to create the power from the kite in those lower winds. Nothing makes you a better kite pilot than having to learn how to milk every bit of power that you can out of a kite.

If your wind is consistently only 15-20 and you can only afford to have one kite you may want to sell or trade your kite for something bigger? Problem then is you will be overpowered when the wind gets into the 20's. We all have multiple kites in our quiver for a reason!

If jumping is in your desires I have found that the lowest wind with a larger kite that I can jump in is about 17kph ( 10kts ). I need winds in the mid to high 20'kph to jump with my 7m and gave up jumping in real strong winds with a small kite when I got old.

I weigh 145 and could get going on my 6m Pulse 2 on sand on a landboard with 12+ mph winds. On skis I was moving in the teens and overpowered by 25. I sold it years ago because I thought it was too punchy and hated how it backstalled and then exploded in the powerzone.

thank you, guys, for a quick reply...

thought so.. not enough power from the kite at 15-20km/h ( 8-10knots) to get me going in snow on skis with 8m2 flysurfer

I guess for those wind speeds I would need like 12 m2 ozone summit or something similar??!!!

so with my FS Pulse 2, 8m2 kite I should not really bother getting out into snowy fields without having at least steady 25km/h winds ( like 13 knots) RIGHT??!! :-(

I guess, I will have to shop for a bigger kite... or keep paying for the ski lifts...

Thank you guys, again....cheers

Not exactly.

You want to learn how to create your own power by piloting the kite. You should be able to work a ride out of the 8m in those same winds on a low resistance surface. Learning how will be very valuable. That said, something like a 12m would be a good size for 8 - 10 kts.

12m Pansh Aurora, or Genesis would be economical closed cell alternative to another larger Pulse, since you have lines and bar already. 15m Peter Lynn Arc? but arcs are hard to launch without help. How about Lei?

I have never flown a Flysurfer but I am 190lb and can get a good ride on snow covered soccer fields with my 8m Access in 15-20 kph winds. Had to work the Access more than my 12m Matrixx in the same conditions but I was never skunked. Also found it really helps to wax the skis if the wind is light and always when the snow is heavy and wet.

more wind..better ride.. to a certain point.. I guess :D

yesterday I took out the kite again to get some fresh air.... 17mph wind.. I guess, that's somewhere around 14 knots ( 27 km/h)....it was cold out there..in -20deg (-5F) but got some runs.. not as easy as it seems on youtube videos, but felt like my Flysurfer Pulse 8m2 was doing it's work.. I just have to get better to pull as much as I can out of it.. without washing my face in snow...

cheers guys.. have fun....without getting frost bites.... I guess....

SO glad you aren't giving up!

It sounds like you are figuring out that you can't simply " park and ride " a small kite in lower winds. You can let a kite do most of the work once you have it in it's " sweet spot " but when underpowered YOU have to work the power out of the kite. Speed = Power !

Work on flying the kite in a sine ~ wave once moving. You sort of ski / board a similar pattern as you pump the kite while edging on and off with the power. Point yourself downwind more when starting ( and absorbing gusts ) to avoid face plants + gain speed. Edge upwind to slow down. The trick is to also keep a certain amount of line tension AT ALL TIMES ! Then milk whatever power you can get out of the gained speed. Don't focus too much on getting upwind. Focus on getting up some speed 1st.

Once you are comfortable turning try doing it by turning the kite in a " down turn " . From high up turn down and then swoop the kite low across the power zone with front line input for speed. This creates a big long power stroke to take you out of a turn.