Does anyone here have any experience with power kites and land (mountain) boards? A friend used to have one and we had a great time getting flung through the air but then I went to uni and he sold everything. I've tried to find some decent forums or community sites but there doesn't seem to be much out there. From what I gather Flexifoil seem to be the top brand with the kites. I've not even looked into the boards. What sort of money should I be spending? Cheeeeeers! (We need a sport tag/prefix)
I'll ask my friend if i can grab her on msn, shes a kiteboarder... I blieve flexifoil are the way to go though! RwD
Flexifoil are good for starting off, i have kited for a few good years now (my current penchant is snow kiting with my ozone frenzy). I would recommend getting a smaller blade3 to start off with, maybe even a little stacker 6 so you can learn the basics. I would not recommend getting anything more than 2.5 meters to start off with on land, as often the suitability of sites is often marred by bordering trees which cause all sorts of problems with wind. A decent second hand blade 3 should be about £150 for a smaller one, i would also recommend the bbc (british buggying club) to get the right liability insurance and reading material just in case the predictable numpty walks in front of you as you are bringing your kite into the power zone and you cut their arm/dogs head off with your lovely 300lb bees waxed prestretched lines. Also they have a vibrant online community and will probably answer your questions a lot better than i did.
2.5 meter... Doesn't sound extreme enough! I want to be that guy who breaks his legs after flying 20 feet through the air! I think my mates kite was a 4 meter flexifoil so I know I can handle that. I think I'll leave the board for now and get a kite. After a while I'll be used to it and then I'll grab the board. I'll take a look at that site though, cheers
Broke 2 ribs and nocked my self out on my 3rd outing . It goes by the weight the more ballast you have the bigger the kite you will need to gain traction and then further down the line Lift. If you want something extreme to start with look for a 4m or 4.9m Blade III or IV, they are good for traction and have added lift lots and lots of it if you want it, they can be a handful for a beginner but you can go out in lite winds to get used to the feel of the kite. I would recomend something like 4-5m Fixed bridle foil so anything like Ozone samari, HQ Beamer, Flexifoil Rage/blade. Any of those will give you a good start, you want to build up your kite skill in different wind ranges and this will also help you build up your confidence which will then leed onto better things and will help you stay a bit safer. I've been out and people have turned up with a 13m inflatable they bought on ebay for £50 and they try to set it up and fly[i always go over and help them make sure thye don't get spanked too hard lol] although i have seen some people get spanked good. If you remember that kites have alot of power and aren't toys especally when you get over the 4m sizes you'll be fine, go out have fun and post lots of photos for us to see Also depending on where you are in the country gimme a shout I'll come out. oh yeah buy from www.tractionkitesuk.co.uk Could you mention me if you do Morgan. [EDIT] Nice am off to france soon for some Snowkiteing woop woop and then onward to canada, then should finish off this year in thailand for the start of the windy season I'm an inflatable fanboy 2009 BEST Nemi HPs .
the only reason i recommended something small is the unpredictable nature of wind conditions, where a smaller kite is more suited to heavier wind conditions, or a person new to kiting can do something in all conditions. personally, if i knew you irl i would smack you for recommending something so large for someone to take out on their own as it would be a hazard to other people. Learn the basics, then buy the equivalent of a ****ing Ferrari, but take it or leave it. If you come moaning about you killed xyz or died i will come laugh at your funeral/rehabilitation sessions
I'm not completely new to kites. Along with pissing about with a mates I've done a week of kite surfing in Egypt (where it is ****ing windy) so I know the basics. I have done a lot of sailing so I also know how to use the wind to get about. Added to all that, I'm not a retard.
Wasn't there a video on the news and the webs with some guy kiting during one of the hurricanes in the US? Picked him up bug slapped him into a building. john
even so, i wouldn't **** about with kites. even if you have kite surfing experience, i still wouldn't. i feel the seriousness warrants my comments. Inland wind conditions are unpredictable.
Was that aimed at me?? because a 4-5m is quite small especally if you are bit on the chunky side, I had flown a 4m fixed bridle before i went onto depower Arcs, not knowing his weight or exact previous experience i recomended what I thought he would need. Quick basic lesson, Fixed bridle kites have no depower[which means you can trim them in and reduce the amount of power they have like the accelerater on your car, the more you let the trim out and pull the bar the faster you go] Foils do not have this option, its either power on or power off. Lifty kites are of the FLexifoil Blade variety these can be quite a handful and will spank you if your not carefull and considerate of the power that they hold, I said to get this becuase its the best of both worlds really if you take it out in lighter wind and get used to the power and build up your confidence then they are awesome kites to use I know loads of people that started on blades and never looked back. Traction kites - Buzz, Sting, samari, HQ beamer, Radsail Rage etc... These kites offer some lift some more then other but are mostly for traction they get you moving put them in the order or power in my opinion buzz being the trainer never flown a kite pick this up kind of kite & the rage being the more gruntier faster kite for if you wanna step on a board or get into a buggy and get moving. As long as your sensible and not a retard then you'll be fine take ya kite out in Lighter winds and keep an eye on the weather forecast. Inland conditions are a bit irratic and get very gusty but then you don't wanna be going out in those conditions wait for some smooth 10-15mph winds and go from there.
you have to think about wind conditions, faster winds generate more lift and are more dangerous, especially coupled with buffeting caused by nearly trees, a smaller kite may sound less knarly, but at 10ms you will still have a lot of air time. I know a lot of pro buggiers use stacker 6's as they are more manageable so they can keep it in the power zone easier, the flip side of a smaller kite is that they travel faster. Get a small kite first, learn the basics and improve on your reactions and feel with a kite, then move up to a 4 line bigger kite. Steer clear of 2.5 meter pkd busters if you intend to jump with it as i had a few mates breaking ankles on their first go. a good stepping stone is a 3.5 meter blade. I would also recommend a full face helmet and padding as the ground is a lot harder than the sea.
Didn't recommend a 10m kite to him :S dunno where you got that from. Anyone as mentioned many times buy a small kite and go from there, better still try and find a local spot where people fly google yorkshire kite flying or something see what comes up then you can have a go on someone else kite , from my experience kite flyers are all very nice people and eager to help.
I started on a 2.5m 4-line "Beemer". Great as it gives you the idea of how a power kite works, pull etc and very little outlay however its something that was outgrown very quickly. De-powerables are by far and away more fun and (imo) if flown right safer due to the de-power aspect of it. I have flown Morgans Blade and by christ it was crazy. I found it fun for about 30 seconds then my arms got tired and it was plain annoying, I feel better suited to buggies than boards. I need to go flying again actually.. time to get the 12m Phantom and Cabrinah out
