Stay connected in the wind. This forum is for anyone who rides the wind, winter or summer, on whatever board suits their fancy. Share the stoke, find out where people are going, ask any question, share your discoveries, and discuss any esoteric idea you may have related to the pursuit of wind. Please keep it positive.
Medicine turned out to be great yesterday! Not to diss on the Island, but, the surface was pretty much untraveled which really saved my knees and allowed for a smooth pre-launch position.
Unfortunately there are two fishhouse colonies towards the east third of the lake, however it was fun launching over the 15-18ft wide road that spans east to west.
Closer to the west beach area I discovered a cool plowed parking lot/fishing area (with no/few vehicles) where you can mess around launching off the snow banks which form the rectangular perimeter of the area.
Should the wind be decent Monday, that's were I'll be for sure.
Hey were you the guy with the snowboard on Minnetonka on Saturday?
If so I dont know about you but I think the hard pack sucks on a board. Is there more fluff on Medicine?
I snowboard... but I wasn't at the Island this weekend.
Medicine is pretty much all powder if you don't mind jumping the occasional plowed road. I was out there today and had a blast! I prefer Medicine because of the smooth take-offs... they allow me time to think about how exactly I am going to pull off a new/modified trick before I go airborne.
Bumpier terrain jiggles the fat in my head and kinda throws a monkey wrench in my takeoffs.
The Island's wind is more consistent whereas Medicine's wind can be weird at times. I guess it just depends on what environment you're most comfortable kiting in.
Hey Jason,Todd here,I was the guy on the snowboard sat at Tonk. Just wondering what it was about the hard pack you wern't diggin. I prefer the hard stuff (snow) for a couple of reasons.You can accelerate like mad, and you can load your heel edge without getting bogged down.I also keep my switchblade on my board even when I'm not riding on black ice, so there isn't alot of work involved in keeping a good edge. Just keep the kite high and enjoy the ride!
Hi Todd. You are right you can get moving alot quicker on hard pack but you also get rattled around crossing over all the other traffics tracks. In light snow I like to carve big turns and see where I have been. I have only kiteboarded 4 times before Saturday so I have alot to learn but gettin air looks like it might be easier on hard pack as well. Up until Saturday I stayed on lakes up north (Gull, Coon, and Forest) these lakes let limited snomobile or car traffic and no kite traffic. Ther great thing about seeing other people is the amount you can learn just by watching.
Closer to the west beach area I discovered a cool plowed parking lot/fishing area (with no/few vehicles) where you can mess around launching off the snow banks which form the rectangular perimeter of the area.