What is a wind gust?
A wind gust is a brief, sharp increase in wind speed above the sustained average — typically lasting a few seconds to under a minute. For kite flyers, gusts matter more than the average wind.
WindGusts vs sustained wind
Sustained wind is the steady, average speed over time (usually a 10-minute mean). A gust is a spike on top of it. The two are reported together: "15 mph, gusting to 25 mph" means the average is 15 but it will jump to 25 in bursts.
As a rough rule, if gusts run more than double the sustained wind, the air is lumpy — the kite luffs, then gets violently yanked.
Why gusts are dangerous for kites
A kite sized for the average wind gets over-lifted the moment a gust hits. That's how frames snap, lines part, and kites end up wrapped around power lines. In the city forecasts, gusts over ~31 mph cap the kite score hard, because 31 mph is roughly where control goes for most single-line kites.
Every statistics page and best-time page shows the average gust by month for that city, so you can pick a season with steady, low-gust wind.