Yep, my safety release is working

[KitingKen]

I was just out on skis on the lake. WindAlert showed gusts of 20+ at one point which is higher than I've experienced with my 7M kite. The wind shifted direction and increased at one point which drove me toward the shore unexpectedely. I got in a little predicament having a hard time stopping on the ice and unable to turn in the direction of the shore. I landed the kite hoping to get a minute to think, but the wind blew it back down wind and I pulled me hard even with the kite landed and upside down.

You expert's probably would have kept the kite up and worked you're way back out, but I decided to abort. Thanks to MK's suggestion to practice the quick release, my hand was already on it without thinking. No panic or falling, just aborted and called it a day.

Anybody else catch a piece of that wind today?

Ken

[JohnK]

I kited around a couple hrs on Silver Lake. Was on my 6 wind was gusty and not clean. Not sure if it was a wind shadow from the trees and houses on the shore so I headed out towards the middle of the lake more but it didn't seem to help.
I would be lit for a couple seconds then the kite would fall out of the sky frustrating but still fun.

[BSMITH]

Small lakes are a bugger. I see so many windsurfers in the summer and kiters in the winter trying to learn on small lakes. Gusty wind is dangerous and impossible to progress in. You need to be miles from shore to get clean wind around here. Waconia has some real steady wind in the winter. I've eaten lunch with my kite flying above my head on Mille Lacs.

[KitingKen]

I'm glad you made a point about the unsteady wind. I stopped a few times and just tried to work on my kite skills, but the kite was jumping all over the place. I wrote it off as needing more practice. WindAlert did show very high gusts and I was on a small lake surrounded with trees, though, so that was likely more the problem.

I've had some moments on larger lakes when the kite hangs idle above my head for few seconds at least. I need to get out to Milacs or one of the real lakes!