6/19/12 ULLB 17m

[John Guay]

Nice evening session. The wind started light but steady and by 8:00pm the Zephyr was a handful. Surprisingly few riders out and plenty of space for everyone. Billy was keeping his jumps below the FAA Flyzone and no incidents were reported

[jason morton]

It ended up being a lit 12m session after it finally came in. Todd came down to Sal Padre where Billy and I were riding and was surprised to see me out on a 12m. He was still holding down his Zephyr.

[Don Losee]

Best Spring ever? Maybe. Lots of little kite action. Last night was really fun. Lit on 12M. Good to see Bill back on the 12M horse that almost took him to heaven. My studs Amy and Scott rocked it.
3B

[AndyBlunt]

You guys are killing me. I'm looking at another 8 knot day in San Diego. Get me outta here.

[Don Losee]

Come Home Prodigal son.

[Todd Jacques]

Yea I am lazy as it gets. When I was a windsurfer I burned myself out re rigging all the time.
It was a great session. Went all the way up to the point and west a long way from there and then east. Then I gotten a ride on a swell down to Sal Padre to join Ralph who was strapless on his surfboard and tearing it up.
Somewhere in the middle it juiced up, and I kept going
I have not been that overpowered in a long time. I came in all the way depowered and dragging a hole in my booties.
fun stuff

[Jake-wright]

Every time i go out i have a new "best ride yet" I had given up on it going off but sitting at my house i saw the trees a swinging so i zipped down and arrived at 8:30 and rode pretty lit 12m for an hour till it was getting too dark to see my board if it came off. Mostly waveriders out there that night so I only had to share flat water with a few i love ULLB. nailed the switch backroll to toeside which i'm quite proud of. super fun trick. one of few i can do behind a kite. what's next?

[jason morton]

Jake- Learn the look before you jibe trick. That's a good one. And keep the butter hogging down to a minimum by venturing out into the lake on occassion. You remind me of our favorite redneck driller/trucker kiter David Kyle. Ha

[Chris G]

I was riding the north at SSB that night. Rode 17 fully powered. Got some cool GoPro footage of jumping the reed island and cruising through the jungle. After the sun went down it was all about just hanging on. Awesome night.
-Chris

[Jake-wright]

I love ULLB. for the flat water...sorry no can do jason, but I will work on that trick you made mention of.

[Mark Johnson]

I was riding the north at SSB that night. Rode 17 fully powered. Got some cool GoPro footage of jumping the reed island and cruising through the jungle. After the sun went down it was all about just hanging on. Awesome night.
-Chris

Post That footage!

[bordy]

I love ULLB. for the flat water...sorry no can do jason, but I will work on that trick you made mention of.

This is a trick lots of riders could use.....just a glance over the shoulder is all it takes...my second favorite is the down wind cock block....that's the move that so many riders make by turning around right in the jump area. There is nothing scarier then being mid flight and having some on gibe and sail in front of you while airborne....the butter is getting busier and we all need to share it, let's do so or I am going to start landing on people and their kites just to make my point

I hope everyone shares the butter....there are a hand full of riders I have never seen outside of the butter......And the lake is huge....lots of riders will not even ride Lincoln anymore because of the crowds and lack of etiquette lets tighten it up kite crew

[ChrisPSherwin]

I'm with Billy and many others on this one. Here's some ideas for discussion of maxing out the butter zone.

1) If you're out at "sea" and coming into the butter zone, stay upwind as close to the jetty as possible. This would allow people just downwind of you (in the butter) to jump. It also allows people in the butter to haul ass and hit the first wave on the point and go into orbit.

2) If you're hucking anywhere - remember that downwind people have the right of way. If you're going so big that you wander into their zip code, they probably can't hear you yelling from the air "look out." If they're wearing an ipod in both ears, they definitely can't hear you. One ear - maybe. I have aborted jumps on many occasions because I thought I might drift too far downwind into another's path.

3) Beginners that are not jumping. If you are in the butter area, try to avoid making sudden maneuvers in the landing zone. There are people going huge just upwind of you. You have the right of way, and so do I when I'm there. But if I see Billy, Jake, Trevor, TC, Spencer, Chris, Tyler, Jason, Todd, Ralph, John, Don or fifty other people loading up, I'm moving for them.

4) Lessons / total rookies / advanced riders: There is an obvious area at Lincoln where people exchange boards and also launch and land. It's right in front of where all the boards are. NOBODY should be hanging out here with a kite in the air, especially people with limited kite handling skills. Move on, it's a transition zone. If two kites tangle here, it is VERY close to solid objects and public.

5) Lessons / total rookies: If you are not confident enough to go out in to the waves - we totally understand. If you hang in the middle of the butter zone too long, you are just pissing people off. My friend learned how to kite at Lincoln last year, and he spent a TON of time just upwind of the reeds learning how to stay upwind. He was well downwind of most landings and still had pretty good flat water. He dropped his kite a bunch and things were fine. It looks like you might get sucked into that area and never get back to the launch area, but it's shallow and out of the way of high flying traffic. In light wind kiters often drift to that area and are able to easily walk back in waist/chest deep water.

My 2 Cents. Let's keep the discussion productive.

[Kenny]

I have not been to ULLB this year as it has turned into a circus. Love the spot, but it has become too crowded. Just a tip for all you newbies, the best way to learn is on snow. Next best, is at Rush in the spring before the moss becomes a problem (March - May) Rush is knee-deep all the way across with flat water and plenty of room to spread out. If you have the bucks, South Padre Island is also an awesome spot to learn. Due to the crowds, limited area, and nasty rocks on the bottom, Lincoln Beach is NOT a good place to learn.