Forums > Kitesurfing General

Figure 8 or 0?

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Created by NorthernKitesAUS > 9 months ago, 10 Nov 2016
VRBones
130 posts
12 Nov 2016 10:58AM
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Coiling (looping into an 0 shape) is generally bad as it imparts a twist on the rope going into the coil and a twist coming out. If you can get the rope off in the exact reverse of how it was put on, then the twist imparted when coiling is untwisted when removing it. The trick is to ALWAYS accept the twist of the lines going into the coil. If you have wrapped the majority of the lines up and it looks like the last bit needs a couple of untwists to "pretty it up", then when you unwrap it you will have that same amount of twists somewhere else along your line.

A coil (looping into an 0 shape) also has problems if the removal of the line is in a direction other than the reverse of how it was loaded. Fortunately the bar acts like a spool keeping the coil shape tight and deterring any form of coil collapse, as well as forcing loading and unloading from the same side. However, if the line falls off the bar, the coil is very likely to end up in a collapsed, twisted mess.

The figure 8, on the other hand, doesn't impart a continuous twist because the twist on one end of the bar is reversed by the twist in the opposite direction on the other end. This means that the lines can go on 'flat' and can come off 'flat'. If you see any twists while loading the lines you know that they are from something else (like the lines rolling around after being detatched from the kite) and can untwist them if you like, or load it twisted and know you have an untwisting job when you roll out the lines. Since the lines aren't stored twisted it also doesn't matter as much if they come adrift from the bar or you need to undo the coil from another direction.

So the very best you could hope for with a technique like Kevin's would be to wrap it up quick and unwrap it quick. Once unwrapped, deal with whatever twists / jumbles there are when doing the line check. Figure 8's allow more opportunity to detect potential twists / knots on loading and be more resilient to failure in storage, which should then lead to an easier run out and check. Both are fine, but don't try to load an 0 shaped coil 'flat' or take your time prettying it up or you're in for a world of hurt.

SaveTheWhales
WA, 1869 posts
12 Nov 2016 11:15AM
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Vrbones - good post. I was wondering why Kevin didnt say something at they end of the vid..

A lot of kiters have no idea or common sense- so always a good for the experienced to break things down, when necessary... cheers



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"Figure 8 or 0?" started by NorthernKitesAUS