GKC Race Season Round 4

[Melissa]

*UPDATED* 6pm Saturday 13th *UPDATED*
Sunday September 14th 2008
* NOW @ BELMONT COMMON! *
Click Here For Location Details (http://www.extremekites.com.au/locations/australia-and-new-zealand/barwon-heads,-13th-beach-2008010559)


Pilots Meeting 11:30am
Entry Fee $10 Per Race
If you have not paid your Entry Fee by 2pm then your result will not count.




Buggy Race Format
------------------------
Race Start: 12:30pm
5 Laps / 40 Minutes
First rider to complete 5 laps wins, 40 minute cut off for last place.


Landboard Race Format
-----------------------------
Race Start: 13:30pm
3 Laps / 30 Minutes
First rider to complete 3 laps wins, 40 minute cut off for last place.


Contingency Plan
If winds are not ideal for 13th Beach changes will be announced the night before and race will be moved to Belmont Common, Geelong. Times for the race may change if moved to Belmont Common to reflect an earlier race start as it will not be tide dependent.

Melissa

[nigel]

Yes, fingers crossed for some favourable winds!!

[The Duke]

I wish you guys could make up your minds about the dates for events.:mad:

This was supposed to be on the 7th, I know its fathers day, but now it clashes with the FOTW at Bondi. :confused:

Don't know if I can make it.

[Melissa]

Hi Neil,

It is inconvenient to many families wishing to celebrate Fathers Day to require them to leave at 10am to get to 13th beach and have them return home by 10pm that night not giving them any opportunity to spend time with their families.

Mel

[nigel]

Well it looks like mother nature might be pulling out all the stops and giving us good winds!!

From the BOM:
Sunday
North to northwesterly winds 25 to 35 knots, shifting west to southwesterly at
20 to 30 knots by the afternoon. Waves 1.5 to 2.5 metres.

The only problem, rain developing. :(

It might be a wet race?
Talk of 5-10mm of rain.

The final call will be made Friday night, or Saturday morning if we need to move it to Belmont Common.

Fingers crossed for the SW to blow through!!!

[SoutherlyBuster]

Yes mother nature is cooking up a storm, but in the wrong direction for Ocean Grove, Wed11sep08 update from the BOM:

Sunday
Northerly winds 25 to 35 knots, shifting westerly 20 to 30 knots by the
afternoon then tending northwesterly 15 to 25 knots at night. Waves 1.5 to 2.5
metres.

I had better watch out for those darned park benches in the middle of the Belmont Common, don't want to back up into them again. I guess all parks have the challenging bits, Presidents Park have a couple of deep holes that stop a landboard dead in it's tracks.

SoutherlyBuster.

[SoutherlyBuster]

Hmm, with a bit of luck at 4:00pm, might still be a goer at Ocean Grove at the far Eastern end:

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[goshen]

don't bet on it. if it says mostly westerly, with some north winds somewhere, then you're not going to get on-shore winds of any sort.... i would suggest moving the event to the Belmont Common, it'll still be a bit gusty though.

We need to decide quickly, and Mel, can you get an email out tonight once a decision has been made?
Given the rain forecast and super gusty winds - it might be best to postpone the event?

Or do an obstacle course on Saturday out at Dogrocks :-)

[Melissa]

Hi,

Nigel and I have been discussing the forcasts which are very uncertain either way. At present the Race will go ahead at Belmont Common instead of 13th Beach, that is certain due to wind forcasts. A final decision will be reached tomorrow night and circulated to all members at approximately 6pm once a more accurate rain forcast is available.

Mel

[.Joel]

Sounds good, as there is no shelter at belmont i'll organise the marquee to keep spectators dry.

Regards,

.Joel

[.Joel]

* RACE DETAILS UPDATED *

Hi Guys,

I have updated the race details as Mel is out at the moment shopping :rolleyes:
The following has been decided by Nigel & Mel earlier today due to the weather forcasts.

"We have moved the Pilots Meet and Race Times back as we are no longer tide dependant at Belmont Common. Be aware that we will be racing in approx of 25 - 30 knots, small kites are needed for the day! Bring full padding, no helmet then there's no racing! We are flying inland so the gusts will be accentuated!"

Regards,

.Joel

[goshen]

crap... does that mean I need to get up before 11?
looks like small kites it is; i'll have the 4m access.

perhaps a GKC meeting at a pub somewhere, if conditions do get as bad as forecast...

see you then.

[nigel]

Sorry to get you out of bed before mid day Goshen :p

Don't forget the key for the gate this time :whistle:

Pub after the racing :D

[goshen]

the key for the gate might be misplaced... but I will try to find it.
it's gusting [edit: make that 35-46 knots!] down here guys atm, probably not the best conditions to race in (safety wise if anything); but if a few turn up we'll make the most of it, or make a call at 11:30.

[Goz]

Poor Goshen having to get out of bed before Midday. :rofl:

Sounds like you guys might be able to race on tea towels with strings attached today, stop hogging the wind and send some up North please. :D

[sinbad]

Holly shit Batman 35 to 46 knots has Ike changed direction :)

[goshen]

46 knots is a slight breeze compared to Ike's 100+ knots; you don't want to be anywhere near that shit.
anyway; i'd better get down to the BC...

[SoutherlyBuster]

So any one curious how the day or well at least part of it turned out?

Now this was one crazzzzzzzzzzzyyyyyyyyyyyy morning.

Well down on the ground, here is what the wind was doing:


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18.8 average knots gusting to a peak of 30 knots. From memory the minimum was about 15, so the load on the kite was changing by a factor of 4!! (Remember, kite load is proportional to the square of velocity).

Criss before I got there, put up a 4 meter foil (a Blade I think .... the legend continues) and got lofted buggy and all just launching the kite, floated safely to ground and kept on riding, well that's how they told the story to me.

Zachary and I couldn't believe the strength of this wind.

Well I wasn't going to let the wind spoil a good day. We had the Venom II 13m^2:eek::eek::eek: crikies no keep him in the bag, the NPW5 8m^2 also stayed well and truely tucked away. The smallest kite we had was the NPW5 0.7m^2 (Zachary's mini me), so we gave this a go first. Even this little bugger had a lot of pull. Too much of a tug for Zachary to hang on to, but I was having a blast. Hmm I think there is enough to pull a landboard along. So I rushed back to the car and doned the gear. One of the other buggiers said, "that's not a kite!". Well I proved him wrong, 2 minutes later I was heading off down the paddock on my landboard pulled along by a 0.7 m^2 kite!

Someone else in the mean time was giving a 1.5 or 1.8 m^2 Peter Lynn a go. Lot's a of far outs and ya hoos going on.

Man was this gusty wind.

So I thought, why not give the larger Nasa Kite a go, the 2.3m^2 but this time harnessed in, she's going to pull like a train.

Man was that a blast. Top fun. The only problem was when I got to the other end of the paddock, could not make this sucker go up wind, so just had to walk it back for a few more goes. After a few involuntary grass scudds while walking back and a few more hoots across the paddock, the last gust during the getting ready to hop on the board it took me over the board and for a tumble:

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My sunnies decided to plant them selves a bit hard across my nose, but still grinning. Top day. Oh by the way the sunnies were OK and yes I was wearing a helmet at the time.

Zachary was by now feeling a bit left out, since the conditions were too strong for him to kite, so we said goodbye and headed off for Hungry Jacks to fill up.

Looking forward to hear from the others how the remainder of the day went.

(Before I forget, one of the ladies at the event said she got some pictures of Zachary and I on here CAM, any chance of getting a copy?)

Regards,
Norman and Zachary Freund.

[.Joel]

Criss before I got there, put up a 4 meter foil (a Blade I think .... the legend continues) and got lofted buggy and all just launching the kite, floated safely to ground and kept on riding, well that's how they told the story to me.

Zachary and I couldn't believe the strength of this wind.

The fun continued..... Mid race eddie droppd his kite and was parked opposite a marker. I went upwind of him getting ready to cautiously top-turn as down turning you lost a good 30m from the side pull. I was out on a 3m Hornet, Cris for some reason elected to use his 4.9 Blade IV. He comes screaming accross to make the marker, goes to top-turn the kite and gets the kite up, gust hits and he is a good 3m in the air off a gust. Lands nicely facing the way he came and continues off to the next marker :rofl:

The wind was so crazy, the second race it completely died out. I spent 10 minutes stuck between the bench, goal posts and one marker going back and forward, not enough wind to get up wind. Gave my kite to Eddie, took his small kite and wrapped it up then walked off hoping he would have better luck.

They would have had to have been 20 knot gusts today, atleast. 10 knots to 30 knots, 15 knots to 40 knots? Who knows, but it was damn windy.

Regards,

.Joel