As an ex-paraglider and current kiter... I've been watching the weather for the past ~20 years. Every year is always different but there is a definite pattern to it, not just your seasons but other patterns... like in Sydney if it gets too hot before December a low off the coast will usually develop and hang around until late January... so it stays cool and muggy depending how the low moves and southerlies; it's hard to explain but I get a feel for it.

This year we've add a lot of strong dry westerlies, which usually happen for a couple days in Nov/Dec, winter has ssw/sw... we've had ~4 weeks of them over the past 8 weeks and I don't have a frame of reference for it... but they do create a lot of static, so I keep getting shocked every time I touch something earthed. And if they continue like they have been or get a bit more North in to November Sydney might go up in smoke... BOM is forecasting a wet late spring, which might make early summer hot and thundery.

How has the weather been in your area?

winter never really happened here in SE QLD ...short John all winter ...

What was the wind doing?
Sea temps around Sydney have been higher than usual, which should have made it wetter, but W kept it dry.

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FlySurfer said..

This year we've add a lot of strong dry westerlies, which usually happen for a couple days in Nov/Dec, winter has ssw/sw... we've had ~4 weeks of them over the past 8 weeks and I don't have a frame of reference for it... but they do create a lot of static, so I keep getting shocked every time I touch something earthed. And if they continue like they have been or get a bit more North in to November Sydney might go up in smoke... BOM is forecasting a wet late spring, which might make early summer hot and thundery.

How has the weather been in your area?

With a somewhat longer perspective, I'd say that strong westerlies are a fairly normal part of Sydney's late winter/ early to mid spring. The start of the Sydney sailing season usually involved a string of ferocious, dry (static inducing) westerlies. Not the best thing to sail in when you're out of practice and unfit.

Come to Victoria now and you'll experience winter. Brrrrrr!

Se qld was bizarre dis vinter more north than westerlies, was on the sunnyscoast on the weekend its been so dry it looks more like Townsville.

I thought westerlies in winter were common? Maybe not this late though. I remember one winter hanging out for the westerlies that came every week.

The first season I started windsurfing the westerlies in winter were what made it possible.

I remember reading somewhere that Australia had something like a pattern of 7 seasons. To me that makes sense. We don't get "typical" dry summers and wet winters. We sometimes get dry winters and wet summers.

Westerlies are common in Winter... I think usual is WSW, some WNW... but they're usually pretty weak with the occasional blustery strong. I find late August/Sep pretty calm with the first NE coming through. But strong W for so long I think is unusual, unless my memory isn't working... I was told to remove my weather station last year :(.
But if y'all reckon the weather is the usual deal, it must be me.

I think the weather is only noticeable when you have the time to use it.

I remember last year not even thinking about snow, and by the time I did, I found out it had been a great season.

As for the westerlies, there was definitely a time when a lot of speed sailors were hanging out for them and turning up at Primbee, Lake Illawarra, to make the most of it. They were pretty strong, and with a decent amount of distance across the lake, they weren't as gusty as they might have been elsewhere.

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FormulaNova said..
I think the weather is only noticeable when you have the time to use it.

I remember last year not even thinking about snow, and by the time I did, I found out it had been a great season.

As for the westerlies, there was definitely a time when a lot of speed sailors were hanging out for them and turning up at Primbee, Lake Illawarra, to make the most of it. They were pretty strong, and with a decent amount of distance across the lake, they weren't as gusty as they might have been elsewhere.

sailing seriously since 1986 ,i have never seen 1 year the same as the other , some good years ,some awesome ,some crap, that why they call it weather ,i have never seen any one get it right ,but have heard a lot theories. buy more types of boards and expand your sailing and stop waiting for it to get better.

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grich62 said..

FormulaNova said..
I think the weather is only noticeable when you have the time to use it.

I remember last year not even thinking about snow, and by the time I did, I found out it had been a great season.

As for the westerlies, there was definitely a time when a lot of speed sailors were hanging out for them and turning up at Primbee, Lake Illawarra, to make the most of it. They were pretty strong, and with a decent amount of distance across the lake, they weren't as gusty as they might have been elsewhere.

sailing seriously since 1986 ,i have never seen 1 year the same as the other , some good years ,some awesome ,some crap, that why they call it weather ,i have never seen any one get it right ,but have heard a lot theories. buy more types of boards and expand your sailing and stop waiting for it to get better.

You're telling me. I was the heaviest out of our sailing group, so instead of keeping only small equipment I went and bought larger sails and then a formula board.

I was the only one planing some weekends and despite carrying big sails on a big board, they felt as light as a feather and it was excellent sailing. Even better in some ways than smaller boards as you feel like you are skimming across the water with almost no wind. No one else seemed to enjoy my stoke though as they sat on the beach...

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FormulaNova said..

grich62 said..

FormulaNova said..
I think the weather is only noticeable when you have the time to use it.

I remember last year not even thinking about snow, and by the time I did, I found out it had been a great season.

As for the westerlies, there was definitely a time when a lot of speed sailors were hanging out for them and turning up at Primbee, Lake Illawarra, to make the most of it. They were pretty strong, and with a decent amount of distance across the lake, they weren't as gusty as they might have been elsewhere.

sailing seriously since 1986 ,i have never seen 1 year the same as the other , some good years ,some awesome ,some crap, that why they call it weather ,i have never seen any one get it right ,but have heard a lot theories. buy more types of boards and expand your sailing and stop waiting for it to get better.

You're telling me. I was the heaviest out of our sailing group, so instead of keeping only small equipment I went and bought larger sails and then a formula board.

I was the only one planing some weekends and despite carrying big sails on a big board, they felt as light as a feather and it was excellent sailing. Even better in some ways than smaller boards as you feel like you are skimming across the water with almost no wind. No one else seemed to enjoy my stoke though as they sat on the beach...

i have always been the heaviest out of every one i sail with back then and now,i always had at least a meter bigger sails, for a while i was a wind snob and would only sail if i got planing on a 6.5 and Slalom board, now i am out on race boards most of the time as the wind has not really kicked in for me this year.last year i got out on 136l board and 8.5 ,this year i have not used it since February . last year.we had some n/w wind ,this year none.

Y'all still convince weather patterns are ~normal?
28c last night at 22:30.

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FlySurfer said..
Y'all still convince weather patterns are ~normal?
28c last night at 22:30.

****in nuts eh... don't know where you are but that is stupid for September unless your equatorial.... the draw of hot air from the interior seems to be the blame of the day but we're gonna cook if that's gonna continue from here through summer... pray for rain I guess...

As far as the weather getting weird for me it was 5 years ago when winter just stopped midway July?... 2012 I think, got home from indo early June stoked for the cooler temps then it just got warm... not warm like now, 34 degrees in Brisbane tomorrow which for me late sept is rediculous but anyone I talk to seems to have some reason why, from conspiracy theories like americas controlling the weather via lasers to the body heat from 7 billion humans is to blame... wow... I'm more inclined to listen to the science on this one but what can you do when the President of the second largest emitter of Carbon is saying man made climate change is made up by the Chinese? Plus side is It's heaps windy and no need for a wetsuit anymore... negative? Not worth thinking about...

I'm lower north shore Sydney; the wind pattern just seems a little weird to me this year, 10 weeks of strong westerlies drying out the state.