Utah Windriders Association

I'm back on Utah waters. It's been a while. Really nice session in the 15 fuel. Perfect power for jumping and ripping on the butter. Kenny was out on his 16 and Derrick and a few other newbies were there. That was my first time at Lincoln beach and I will be back. Nice grass to rig on, running water to wash off. I'm spoiled.

BTW: The Jazz dancers were doing a photo shot on the jetty but I didn't have my camera to share with everyone. I guess it was just one things you should of been there for.

Utah lake must be the new modeling hotbed. Bust a move, impress the chicks. I was wondering who was out at Lincoln last night. I could see kites out from SSB. I thought of kiting across the bay to the other side and finishing my session off there, then hitching a ride back with someone. Tonight might be the night. Maybe we'll run a shuttle. I was on my way to Lincoln and saw 5 kites out at SSB so I pulled in there and rode. Lots of new faces. One guys released his waroo into the trees and apparently ripped it. Was a great evening.

It was good to ride with Rossberg. The two of us were the first kiteboarders in Utah. We spent a lot of sessions entertaining the windsurfing crowd at Rush as we tea bagged on our two-line kites. I recall that it took me an entire summer before I could stay upwind on those silly kites.

Based on the numbers, SSB is more popular than Lincoln. I have only ridden there 3 times, but it seems that the more experienced riders are at SSB and the newer riders are at Lincoln. I don't mind sharing with the newer riders as long as they stay downwind of the good flatwater as they did last night.

The two of us were the first kiteboarders in Utah.

What year was that? Where did you learn and when?

i'll agree with the newbie kiters staying at lincoln remark. dont' get me wrong, SSB is awesome with it's secret surf spot appeal and sandy bottom, but the launch is small and when the wind has a west flavor like it did yesterday, it's pumping onshore. i thought i had the hang of keeping upwind until i hit the rollers at SSB. those damn waves are something i need to get used to. did a little air off one which gets me excited for future hang time! other than the rocky bottom, lincoln is better for learners like me because the water is so much flatter in the bay.

thanks to everyone for helping though yesterday. i got a little close to the shore and had the fifth line. Sal caught it for me and everything was cool. Alby though had a little accident where his waroo kept looping when he let go of the handle and it gave him a little kitemare with the kite ending up in the trees with a big rip in it. thankfully he was only scratched up and scared.

since i don't have a waroo, i don't have to worry too much about them, but how is the safety supposed to work? i dont' think he went through this before hand.... apparently, upon landing a little hangtime, alby let go of the bar. the kite looped once and he couldn't reach the bar. he popped off his chicken loop, but by that time the kite already had the lines taut and it just kept looping. during all this he was being teabagged into the shore. i know he needs to go over his safetys before he heads out again, but i was curious too becuase i don't seem to understand how the bow 4 lines are supposed to work.

Didn't he have the suicide leash attached to his bar? That could definitely cause a death spiral. You have to attach the leash to the chicken loop so that the kite depowers when you let go of the bar. It's probably not a good idea to attach a suicide leash anyway until you are trying unhooked moves.
If you are a newbie, I think SSB is an ok place to learn. That was the first place I learned to kite upwind. I like it because it has a sandy bottom and is shallow forever, so you can walk out as far as you want kite a bit and end up on shore. True, having and onshore breeze makes it difficult but I'd rather walk out a few times than ending up downwind with no place to go.
Know your limits. Don't get discouraged...it took most of us many many sessions (and punishment) to learn on those C-kites, but it is well worth the effort. Stay away from the flat water (and reeds) until you are confident to go upwind. Advanced kiters...keep an eye out and move your kite, and give them some tips.

Chris

Kenny and I started in the spring of 2000 on the good old Naish 2 line kite. We had 5 meter and 7.5 meter.
A guy named Jerry was kiting a little bit in the fall of 1999 on the original Wipika's. 2000 was the first year you could easily buy kites. Boy how times and kites have changed.

Les,
My son Jeff and a friend, Steve, who lives in the Gorge bought our first Naish 2 line kite from Big Winds, in the Gorge, in the summer of 2000. We learned in the Gorge by trial and lots of ERROR, you name the kitemare and we've done it. We had a ski boat and on the days that the wind was to light to windsurf we played with the kite. We have basically body dragged the Columbia from Stevenson to the Dalles dam. I first met Kenny and Mike in the Spring of 2001 at Rush. I though Jeff and I were the only kiters in UT. Suprised to see two more at Rush.
JON M

While Mike and Kenny where the first kiteboarders in Utah, I guess I'll have to settle for the first Utahn to kiteboard. In 1998 my roommates Elliot Leboe, Lou Wainman and myself got our hands on a 5m wipika and took it down to Kanaha. We had no instruction whatsoever. Manu Bertin and Marcus Austin were the only guys kiting on Maui at the time. They didn't exactly provide any advice, nor did we ask. I guess I was one of the first guys to ever kite. Lou, Elloitt and I still did alot of windsurfing during that time. We would abuse ourselves in the morning kiting, then polesurf in the afternoon. Serious punishment ensued. I eventually decided to move back to the mainland and finish school. Didn't kite again for several years. Lou and Elliott tried to talk me into staying. Sometimes I wish I had. Both are legends. I'm a legend in my own mind. At least I can support my kite habits with my own hard earned money.

Ya know, kiting with Jason in Oregon,
I was amazed that everyone knows Jason.

Room mates with former champions,
Drag racing with all the speed guys.

Kinda like a sparing partner for Mohamad Ali.

I gotta new name for Jason.


Jason,,,,

Masterboarder

-Marty