it was really windy
7 kitable days, 4 were 20kts, 3 were 30kts+

Ever boost on a 5m??? The Saturday we arrived, it was blowing 20 - 30kts. Most made it for a lengthy session as large frontal system was moving in. The rest of us settled into the house and rode the elevator! Naturally, this was a critical tool in getting all the red bull up to the third level, where the main gathering was.

Ever boost on a 5m??? Sunday morning we woke a bit groggy from the traveling and the previous evening's festivities. A quick breakfast and the entire group started scopeing which launch would work best for the 30-40kts breeze we had blowing side shore from the North.

Option number one: fully rig your kite in the yard, roll up the lines and walk you inflated kite down the narrow dockway into the thigh deep water. There, you would tie off your chicken loop to a rope on the dock pillar and then walk your kite out to rest it on it's side (see top picture). Since only your chicken loop was attached, your bar naturally depowerd and your kite would just sit there as you scurried back to hook in and self launch. Tricky part was walking down the dock without snagging lines or kite.

Option number 2: Walk about 150 yards to a field filled deep with forage. While the launch was much easier, the wind shadows caste by the large house next door made things a bit challenging. You had to precise with the gust and very quick. If not, you would get hurled toward some pine trees...that was one scary moment for everyone. Thankfully it was the first attempt and we all learned quickly what not to do.

Needless to say, most started with 10m kites. Then as winds increased, down to 8's, then the few of who had them, down to 5's and 6's. The wind was so strong we were jumping quite high with some scary hang times.

The rest of the week mixed things up as we had classic Southwest Hatteras winds on some days with nice 70 degree temperatures. And others, we had heavier winds.

On day three, we had that super sweet solid 20kts from the south. The water was slick, and everyone was dialed in and pulling crazy stunts. Several of us had our eyes on this land gap that's about 10 yards wide. So, of course we tried jumping it. It started with the crazy seasoned riders, but next thing you know, here comes Air Chica, Air Wood and AIr Blender...all jumping the same island that was featured in that Discover show "Stunt Junkies."

Just as we were about to take a break, Dimitri shows up with all the new 2009 Eclipse kites and boards. Out of nowhere he comes riding into our crew and pulls to most incredible blind to boost to blind move I've ever seen. Inspired, I made it my goal to nail down riding blind at length. Catching up with Dimitri was easy, as he was pushing us all to ride his new gear. Though I was half tired from riding all morning, I was reminded that the right gear can really make a difference. I went from crashing blind to totally riding blind on Dimitri's new pro kiteboard. Naturally, I kept the kiteboard and took it home....Thanks Dimitri!

The rest of the week brought us more wind, an 8-mile wave down winder with Dimitri, a couple "lit" sessions, and many more home made dinners...

the culture
who new total darkness could be so fun!

The best images we took came from the docks after the sun went down. A couple of us went down one night to check out what Air Wood was up to. He had his tripod setup and was taking long exposure pictures of the landscape. Whoa! Everything came out like there was a huge flash. Stars, buildings...even people.

That's when we came up with the lighter idea. If you point a camera into total black, then using a lighter or even an LED light, you can make some pretty crazy designs. I was pretty please with the first attempt of scripting "air" into the...well, air. Many more ideas followed, which the best are highlighted under the "memories" tab above.

Getting off the water was blissful as it was proceeded either by an insane 5m session, which scared both riders and watchers (in a good way of course). Or, about 4 hours of non-stop action. Many found relaxing refuge in the hot tub, while others went Nordic style and jumped in the cooler pool, then the jacuzzi, then back into the pool.

Evenings brought custom cuisines from around the world, poker tournaments, sunset watching and the occasional movie. Oh yeah, can't forget the pool table, guitar hero and the meditation sessions on the porch.

Many thanks to Ryan, Ryland, Jon, Anthony, Vladia, Elea, Bert, Jeff, Zach, Scott, and Ryan # 2 for joining us outside Chucktown for some flat water nirvana. More thanks to Eclipse Kites and Dimitri, along with Liquid Force Kite designer Julien.

.