Posted 20 hours, 27 mins ago
I'm planning to spend a month in Perth from mid Dec to mid Jan and I'm hoping to get some local advice.
I weigh 91kg, and ride a 135cm Jimmy Lewis, and have a 10m, 13m and 15m kites. I love to be well powered, and love my 13m around 20kts. I have read that the wind in Dec and Jan in Perth is 15-25kts, but others have said that it is really 20-30kts in the prime afternoon conditions. If it is 20-30kts then I'm just bringing my 10m and 13m, but if it can only be 15kts then I might bring the big boy too. Appreciate some local advice about the wind conditions in the afternoon.
I'm also planning to rent an apartment for the month, and unfortunately I won't be able to sort out my driver's license before I get there to rent a car, so I'm wondering what the best neighborhood /area would be to live (easily get to some wave spots, near bars and restaraunts, etc.).
Many thanks,
Peter from NY, NY
Hey Peter,
For starters, leave your 15m at home. We just don't use them here ..... ever!
Bring the 10m and 13m. You may use the 13m from time to time but we get very little increase in wind speed in the afternoons, it's just not blowing one minute, and cranking the next. We generally get 18 to 23 knots most days and often up to as much as high twenties to thirty knots.
It does increase very slowly throughout the afternoon, but only slightly maybe by 5 knots all afternoon from the initial onslaught. Gotta love WA wind. If you need any more wind, just head north!
Scarborough is your best bet for restaurants, bars and close to the Brighton Beach surf spot. There is lots of accomodation around Brighton/Scarborough.
Enjoy Perth, it's damn windy in Dec/Jan. 
You should ride at least 6 days out of 7.
Cheers,
KH
Darren knows Perth wind better than most, but at 0.09 tonnes, you won't be well powered if we have a few days of lighter seabreezes and/or days where it blows Easterly in the morning and glasses off in the arvo. Granted Dec/Jan is prime seabreeze time but there's nothing worse than riding around underpowered when you know you've left your big kite at home. I keep a 16m in my quiver just for those <16 knot days (~85 kg).
If you're flying from NY you'll have a heap of baggage allowance, assuming you book all the way to Perth with the one carrier?
The other point is that there's pleanty of other things to do if there's not enough wind. Scarborough is good but also check out Fremantle - it's closer to Woodman Pt which is the prime flatwater venue. Also get over to Rottnest Island and take kites!
If you're from the US, i'm pretty sure you don't need to sort out a drivers license, i'm pretty sure you can just rock up and drive away. I know i've done it the other way around anyway (rocked up in LA and cruized off to vegas in a car).
Thats assuming you already have a drivers license in NY...
yer most of the time u can use ur licence for up to 3 months in oz before having to convert it.. i had this with my NZ licence n old man uses his pommy one all the time aswell
