Tag Archives: Italy

Summer kiting around Rome, glad to be Home now…

November 1, 2013 CedFly

Remeniscing on my summer in Italyâ€¦

I spent from June to September mostly around Rome (except for a trip to Sardinia).

On the whole I was pretty disappointed with the conditions I found. Of course I wasn’t expecting to find huge winds, but I was hoping on average to get 2 days a week with somewhere around 15 knots. This was not to be.

The conditions I consistently came across was 10 to 12 knots (or less)I was very thankful for the Fury Lite sent to me by Peter Lynn kitesports. They definitely gave me the edge in the low wind conditions. I was riding a 15m and a 17m mostly and on the days when the wind blew, it got me back into some old school stuff

My main hang out was Fregene Beach where I bumped into some old friends and a great photographer called Andrea Zaniol. Together we got some pretty amazing shots.

Kiting in Italy is restricted by a huge influx of sunbathers during the summer. The demarcated kite areas are always under pressure. Some of the riders take this into consideration, others don’t. I fear for the well being of our sport in such crowded areas in the long term. There will always be more sun bathers than kitersâ€¦ (especially in Italy)

If you are heading to Rome over the summer, take big kites and big boards. I also got a chance to try a full size Race board. Amazing low wind and upwind performance. Took me a few attempts to get going!! New respect to those racers.

On a few occasions the wind blew above 15 knots, the beaches empty out and it was time for the real fun to begin:

Kiters in Italy are generally fairly friendly, it helps if you speak the lingo and Â come from somewhere with renowned Â windy conditions as it seems to earn you immediate respect. I made some great friends and found a few old ones

As usual lots of politics on the beach amongst brands, sadly I’m getting used to this.

A special thank you to Tania Romagnoli for taking pics all through the summer!

I’ve been back in Cannon Rocks for a few weeks testing and photographing the new Peter Lynn Wave kite… and truth be told, I have kited almost everyday!! Gotta love this place!

So watch the next blog for some exciting stuff!

Ced

Kiteboarding

A little kite history

August 17, 2013 CedFly

In 1999 I acquired my first traction Kite, it was a Peter Lynn Peel 5m. It was love at first sight. Or rather first flight. The feeling of the wind in your hands in this 2 line traction monster (Then) was an immediate adrenaline rush.

I became an avid beach jumper until deciding that the beach was becoming hazardous and water was a safer landing strip. Finally, a year later, I entered the world of Kitesurfing . But along the way, I had come across an interesting magical kite: The CQUAD

I had seen the first kite surfers in Cape Town in 1999 and had been attracted to the sport immediately but at the time just couldnâ€™t afford the gear. By a set of circumstances I was then living in Italy. And so with my Peel 5m, I would go down to Fregene Beach and meet up with Andrea and Pierfrancesco from airkite.com who were passionate Kite flyers and taught me everything. Pierfrancesco was then on CQuads going out in the water (While everyone sat on the beach with their Wipika’s and later the ARXs.) I was lucky enough to try the C Quad a few times back then.

And so 13 years later, during my trip to Italy, I bump into Pierfrancesco in Fregene.

And he tells me he still has the Cquads.
So we decide to re-visit the past, dust off his 6,3 C quad, and send it up in the air.

What a surprise! This CQuad, with faded colors, had lost nothing of its magic. An amazing piece of engineering.

Of course you need skills, kite flying skills that is.

This one was set up on handles.

Back in the day, you had a bar option too, but handles make the kite the most responsive and maneuverable. You really feel the power in your hands and the kite keeps pulling even right on the edge of the window.

Of course no option to re-launch!

Amazing to see this 14 year old kite still perform (in the right hands).
And to See it 14 years later next to the latest Generation Peter Lynn LEI

Here is a little cruising Video while messing around with that C Quad

[youtube]http://youtu.be/7YGzXODjIYc[/youtube]

Thanks to Tania Romagnoli for pics

Kiteboarding

New Toys part 2: The Fury

July 2, 2013 CedFly

2 Weeks ago, I received the Fury range fromÂ Peter Lynn Kiteboarding. 11m, 9m and 6m are to be my companions for the next few months. On top of that I received a 15m and 17m Fury “Lite” to get me going in the light winds.

My first outing was with the 11m in very trying conditions: Onshore underpowered and very messy water conditions with short interval waves making going upwind really difficult. In the Water with me was a few other kites all around 11 m – 13 m . I guess it was a good sign that the Fury was the only kite staying upwind.

My next two outings were with the Fury “Lite” in unfortunate conditions where the wind dropped after 15 minutes in the water.

A trip to Talamone in Tuscany last week-end gave me a chance to try things in some decent winds.

Saturday

I arrived in Talamone to be greeted by a gusty 20 knots cross offshore (gusting to above 25) and a tricky launch situation. Practically there is no beach. So you need to know what you are doing. Â I put up the 9m fury without problems, and set out to sea.

The wind was gusty, but the Fury handled beautifully. It jumped, it looped it did everything I asked from it. Smooth turns, depowered, responded. Even in the gusty conditions, I had a lot of fun. I stayed away from unhooking and also took it easy with the mega loops. Got a lot of kiting to do in the next few weeks.

Sunday:

Sunday the wind started on the soft side. I decided to put up the 15 Fury Lite. But quickly the wind picked up to around 15 knots. At 70kg I was well powered. Again smooth flying. This was the first time I was out with such a big kite. Normally I find an 11m huge. So a 15m felt like a giant. However it still turns surprisingly fast. I even managed to loop the kite coming out of a dark slide.

I then decided to put up the 11m as the wind had increased by a knot or two,

What a pleasure. That 11m was turning like a 9m. Bar pressure was just right, and in the gusts, I was getting plenty glide to try some Old school tricks:

I also tried some Raileys ( been a while) and the kite has good pop. I’ll be unhooking some more in the next few weeks…

I think I will be heading back to Talamone in the next few months. If you see me in the water there or anywhere around Italy,Â come try this kite, I think you gonna love it! And it deserves to be tried.

Thanks to Tania Romagnoli for the pics.

Next week, Sardinia!

Ced

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Ced's Kiting Blog

Tag Archives: Italy

Summer kiting around Rome, glad to be Home now…

A little kite history

New Toys part 2: The Fury

Cedric Vandenschrik Kiteboarding adventures

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