Postby edt » Thu Dec 07, 2017 1:12 am
if kiting gets into the olympics I suspect it will start as a 100cm wide race board straight out of 2001, and a one kite quiver some sort of tube kite from 2006, something like that. That's the kind of stuff they pulled for windsufers who have RS:X, 286 long board, 93 cm wide, 15.5 kg, total weight of RS:X is 19kg with a single sail, 9.5m. There you go. Sounds like fun? It's not. It's not fun to do. It's not fun to watch. It's slower than anything in the water today that ordinary windsurfers use, from large race boards to hydrofoils, it's slower than an ordinary windsurfer at slow speeds, slower at medium speeds and can't go out when it gets too windy. The entire reason for the olympics is that for windsurfing at least you have nations that build sailors by getting them started in these junior olympics things and are able to raise up a generation of sailors that love the water. I say, "Let them windsurf!" If they are at all smart they will quit windsurfing when they come of age and can afford their first kite. Other sailing classes are hit and miss, some are great some are dumb, such as the Finn, which is for large men that like to go slow it's a terrible class, there's the 470 which I actually do like quite a lot quite small dinghy, then there are the 49er and 49erFX, again which are nice, and the laser which is fun but they race their lasers in 2 or 3 knots and it's a torment to watch as the winner is whoever can pump his sail for the longest. I also like the Nacra 17 which is a beautiful foiling cat and last the already mentioned turd of a windsurfer the RS:X.
Once you get into the olympics it is like you are frozen in time. The Finn class mentioned above has been unchanged since 1952, the 470 since 1976, the 49er is relatively new first built in 2000.
If we get into the olympics be prepared to have a single 12 meter kite, a 100cm wide race board raced in 10 knot conditions on a standard olympic triangle. I would rather watch paint dry. I would rather eat paint. No olympics for kitesurfing thank you very much.
If you think they will allow modern foil kites and hydrofoils into the olympics you don't know what kind of people are at the ISAF. They hate that kind of stuff and will not allow it.