Florida or Texas

[Guest]

Hi all

I will be going to Aspen for business end of february and I am planning to take my gear and stop somewhere for kitesurfing on the way back. Would you recommend stopping over in Houston or in Miami for about 2 weeks? What sort of wetsuit will I need, what wind can I expect?
After that I will hopefully continue to Puerto Rico in April to catch a wave or two.

Thanks in advance.
Florian

[Guest]

Look at the weather.com forcast winds map and you'll almost always see a blue triangle
(min 10-15mph) down at Corpus Christi, even when the rest of N America is dead calm.

KG

[RickI]

You may have better wind in Texas in February. It will certainly be colder than in SE Florida. Also, I suspect that there currently are fewer restrictions regarding kiteboarding in Texas than in the Miami area. Much of the rest of Florida has few to no restrictions regarding kiteboarding currently. There are tons of excellent riding areas throughout the state things are just a bit more complicated in the more densely populated southeastern part of the state.

There are some excellent realtime wind reports and archived data for Texas at:

http://dnr.cbi.tamucc.edu/wiki/Main/HomePage

and at:

http://www.iwindsurf.com/

Rick Iossi

[Boy do I suck]

In Feb, you're riding fronts so neather spot is super consistent - maybe 50/50? again check the archives.

Fronts are typically stronger here in TX than by the time they hit FL. For TX, will probably want to head to Corpus or even SPI. Miami will have more of a tropical feel (white sand, clearer water) but less wind on average...

If you wait to mid-march, Corpus will beat Miami for wind by a wide margin...

Ed

[Guest]

Definitely Corpus. I kited, one day with Peter Nordby but mostly solo, last March and it blew 20+ for 2 weeks straight. Even when the wind came out of the north. I used everything from spring suit to trunks/vest - just be prepared. Check out the Port Aransas jetty. I kited solo on a gusty northeasterlie with nice waves. If you have time check out SPI next to the convention center. Keep in mind spring break in SPI so lodging might be an issue but not in Corpus. Florida is a hit or miss with fronts but more enjoyable for sailing with nice beaches and all. Not too much fond memories from my windsurfing days. I recalled too many 7.5+ days but might be OK fot kiting. I'll let you know how it goes when I visit my parents in Fort Lauderdale this coming spring.

Jimbo(LA)

Also, you might want to consider Cape Hatteras. It blows and kiteable in all direction. 2nd home to the canadians. Flat water, wave, name it - it rocks! A great place for beginners and loooong downwinders.

[chicagokitesurfer]

Corpus, dude! Definintely...

V
http://www.chicagokitesurfing.com

[bpadz]

Check out South Padre Island for sure. More of a destination than corpus, just a laid back small island...not to mention good kiting.

For info & weather history go to:


http://www.southpadreislandkiteboarding.com/

[Guest]

Corpus and SPI are only a few hours apart. You can base yourself in one spot, and do day trips to the other depending on the wind.

If conditions were perfect in both places, I'd pick SPI. The north flats at SPI are incredible!

[Richard]

I'll be in Aspen also at the end of feb. My snowboard has a Wipika sticker on the nose. But with 4 mountains it would be unlikeley that you would see me. Hoping for powder!

[Guest]

thank you guys for the informative replies, looks like southern texas is the go, i'll get my tropical fix afterwards when i continue to puerto rico.

if anyone has remote idea where i could get a (very) cheap car in the houston area for four weeks, please send me an e-mail to florian@linguatechnica.com

thanks
florian

hey richard, you never know, i'm the guy with dreads and a rental board