New KiteBoarder / KiteSurfer

[christopherlee]

Hello Utah Wind Riders,

My name is Christopher and I'm a Utah native living in Sugar House. My family used to be Skydivers, but I missed that flight, so I’m picking up Kite Boarding and Kite Surfing.

I have taken a few kite surfing lessons down in San Diego, and since then bought a 9m meter foil and MBS 95 mountain board. Hopefully soon my collection will include a water kite and some more boards.

I want to go out to Burmester and fly my kite and try out my mountain board though I'm not seeing a lot of information, hopefully you guys can help me out with information on where the windy spots are, vehicle needed to get out there... and if I will have any problems with UHP or the Forest Service for being out there.

Any tips are helpful…

Thanks, and I hope to make some good friends on here and out there! Oh, and if anyone wants to join me out there I welcome anyone and everyone.

Later,
Christopher Lee

[DanHasleton]

Hey Christopher,

Unfortunately I'm not the experienced rider with all the answers you're looking for, but some answers are better than none I suppose. I only have one season of snowkiting so I'm definitely still a beginner. And since I used skis while kiting, using a mountain board is like I have to learn how to ride all over again.

Anyway, at the top of the screen you can click "Local Sites & Maps" then near the top of the next screen click "UWA Places". This will take you to Google Maps with icons for all the main UWA kiting locations. Unfortunately from what I can tell Burmester is the only land kiting site I can find.(Besides the salt flats)

Here's a link with the Burmester icon in the center.Click on the icon for quite a bit of useful information about getting there and what weather the location is good for.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8& ... 68228&z=13

I was just there yesterday checking it out and there were three trains parked on the tracks right where you need to cross, which was annoying, but I got around them. Unfortunately the wind was dead by the time I got there so I didn't get a chance to ride, but it's a nice flat wide open area.

Hopefully this information helps.

-Dan

[Kenny]

Christopher,

Do a search on Burmester. You will get a list of the local riders and plenty of information concerning the location. I personally broke my ankle last summer while KGB, so I have decided to stick to water and snow. However, Burmester is a very fun place to ride. Enjoy.

Kenny

[Mark Johnson]

Rumor has it that if you park close to the tracks they will call the cops. If you go I think what I understand that they won't hassle you if you park just off the exit then walk in. I think you can follow the north south running track across then cross the east west track instead of driving all the way in and parking near the trains. I will try and get more info and post a picture if I go out there this weekend.

[btjsfca]

So, I started that rumor about getting the cops called because it happened to me! After 4 or 5 seasons out there, the train guys finally called. It looks like they're doing some construction work there, so I think that they're starting to watch their property.

The cop who got called out was surprisingly useful though. He confirmed to me that no private entity can block access to public land, and apparently there's a pending (current?) court case working this issue out [although, he indicated that the court was accepting the argument that you could get on a boat to access this area (super gay!)]. The problem for access to Burm is two-fold: parking on RR property and crossing the tracks, so parking off to the side only solves half the problem.

The upside is that, a few miles back there is an underpass that will allow access to the lake shore. I haven't had the chance to check this entrance since the wind has mostly sucked. To get to the shore this way, go west on I-80. Something like 5-7 miles after the Tooele exit, you have to pull off the North side of the highway. There is a short dirt road on an elevated strip will take you straight under the tracks. If you want to see what I'm talking about, go to google maps. You'll see that 80 is U-shaped west of Tooele. At the bottom of the U, the RR tracks break away from 80. Right at that split, there is a little connecting strip from the highway to the tracks. That's the one.

My concern about this access is that the ground may be wetter and softer this close to the lake. You may have to walk west to find firmer ground.

You want to watch
http://www.met.utah.edu/cgi-bin/droman/ ... gi?stn=URM
and wait for the wind speed to be over 12 and from the N, NW, or NNE. If it trends too much from the east, it's usually weak wind, and west wind tends to be gusty and strong.

To avoid ankle-breaking problems, ride a smaller kite. You don't need or even want lots of static power. A quick kite that generates good power when you flick it around will do you well. You also want to watch the surface. If you see ground that looks blistered, then it's a dry, sandy patch, and might break away. White patches tend to be nice, smooth, and hard.

This year, we had a pretty gradual warm-up, and my guess is that we missed the good wind at Burm already. For now, keep an eye on Craig's forecast. We want a dry front to come through, giving north wind and no rain.

BTW: the best way to be safe on a mountainboard is to ride it downhill a lot. The more practice you get, the better off you'll be. The U stadium parking lot is a good gentle intro, and there are good runs all over the U.

-J