Gilly3 said...
Get the 7m out and give her a good going-over before summer, because according to the BOM, you’re going to need it! The Australian Bureau of Meteorology has just confirmed initial forecasts that the summer of 2015/2016 will feature one of the strongest El Niño cycles in recorded history.
While the surfers on the west coast of America are preparing for storm season by stockpiling surfboards and plywood to board up their windows, over here in Australia things are ‘El’ little different…. El Niños, La Niña refer to the cycle of warmer/colder than average water temperatures in the Pacific Ocean. They used to be running on a four year cycle, but in recent times Australia has been blessed/cursed (depending on your hobby/profession) with El Niños cycles every 5 years or less.
Our little Mexican friend the El Niño is the cycle of warmer than average water, which pools up on the Eastern side of the Pacific, leaving us with a nice big chunk of cooler-than-average water on the Western side, along the East coast of Australia.
Brisbane, Sydney, raise your hands, because here’s three reasons why El Niños cycles are AWESOME for kiteboarding.
Stronger Seabreezes
Cool water, with above average temperatures over land are a perfect recipe for strong seabreeze effects. You know how it works, hot air goes up, cool air goes down, cool air rushes in under the hot air and 25 knots of happiness results
Less Rainfall
While it’s not-so-good for the farmers, the cycle leaves large high pressure systems floating across Australia all summer long, meaning less cloud, less rainfall and less storms! It does mean there will be fewer SE’erly systems associated with the low pressure systems up near Cairns, so natural-footed-freestylers rejoice!
Less Jellyfish
Those annoying, smelly, foul looking blue jellyfish that plague the eastern coast of Australia LOVE warm water. In fact they quite literally multiply by the billions when the water gets super warm in La Niña seasons. El Niños on the other hand, brings cooler water, and less jelly-blubbers to sting you! So dust off that 7m kite you only got to use once last season, throw the stinger suit in the bin and prepare for one of the best summers for kiteboarding we’ve had since the sport was invented!!
Thanks Gilly looking forward to it.....can't wait to get back on my 6.
