Stay connected in the wind. This forum is for anyone who rides the wind, winter or summer, on whatever board suits their fancy. Share the stoke, find out where people are going, ask any question, share your discoveries, and discuss any esoteric idea you may have related to the pursuit of wind. Please keep it positive.
Ok!!!! i got my firt lesson... i want more!!!
Matt was really patient and nice, i think what i learned make me more interested and challenged me; he told me about a little bit about the equipment but i would like to hear from you abotu the options that i have.... i want to buy a foil kite to trainning me, but also will be iseful after that, and the equipmnt for water; i read that to chose the equipment you shoul relate it with your height and weight; well i am 145 weight and 5'7'' heght what do you recomend me? or at least where can i read about it?
btw i am open to receive offers from you if you have equipments,
T.J. Do you think you want to kite on water, land or snow?. or all of the above.
If you want to go in the water you should not bother with a foil, if you think you are only going to kite only on land and snow a foil would be great.
An inflatable, though not perfect, would work for all the above. A lot of the guys use them on snow and water, but land may beat an inflatable kite up too much.
I'm not really the best person to recommend size as I'm almost twice your weight, I would guess a 8 or 9m would get the most use.
I would prefer someone like Matt or Tighe, who have taught a lot of smaller people,recommend what size kite you would get the most use out of around here.
If you target a kite you can use from 10 mph to 20 mph that would give you the most bang for your buck, what kite would be good for a light weight guys?.
Thanks for your answer steveb: I am thinkig in water... but here the winter is longer than anything else so that is why i also am interested in a foil one, what i plan is having a foil to improve my skills in land and also use it during the winter; and also having a water equipment... i am student so i would like to have a versatil equipment that deserve my investment to practice anytime in the two choices of weather that i have here...Matt told me that a 4 to 6 foil kite willbe worthy and the water eqipment thattigue or some of you based in your experiences can tell me,
I personally would not recommend a foil on the water. I use my foil on the water sometimes, but it requires some experience. The equivalent of a 4-6m foil kite is 8-12m inflatable. It kinda depends on the brand. I would say that a 10m kite would be a good place for you to start in moderate winds and a big floaty board.
Of course, never forget the harness, helmet and board leash when starting. Those were worth their weight in gold to me last year.
I took a look at the site you posted. It looks like they are selling their old Gaastra stock. It might be a bargain, but I would be careful of stuff on the web. Your best bet is to buy from someone local or go talk to Larry at Scuba Center.
HI TJ, Todd here with Kite Central,sounds like the kite bug has bitten you like so many of us.Good for you! I have a kite shop up here in good ol Brainerd Mn.If you would like to give me a call on my cell phone @218-821-6952 I'd love to chat with you about kites. Stay stoked!
TJ,
I'd recommend going Leading Edge Inflatible (LEI) for winter and summer. This will allow you to better know your kites, bars, chicken loops, safety releases, rigging and tuning tips inside and out without having to switch around. This will better prepare you for the water.
Just a thought... Good luck! You are in good hands with Matt!
Lots of good info. I would agree with with everyone's input thus far. It sounds like you're looking to do some more flying before heading to the water, correct? If you think you'll be in the water this summer, buy a smaller inflatable say 8-12m. You can still fly this on land in very light winds (less than 15mph) to practice and then on the water and snow. If you just want to fly in fields this summer and start riding this winter, consider a foil in the 4m range ( foils sizing is different than inflatable sizing...almost 2:1 ). It'd be cheaper to start, easier to fly by yourself and be a great kite for dialing in your riding next winter, then when spring comes you could start building your inflatable quiver.
As far as first inflatable kite choices, there are a lot of good choices out there. Look for a moderate aspect ratio ( how fat the kite is) kite, which are more user friendly. I'd consider new though if you are on a budget there are great used kites out there, though I would consider buying a 2004 bar and line setup. They've definately improved them.
The local retailers are listed in the kiting section of this site.
if you have a setup in mind post it here, you'll probably get some good advice on whether or not it is appropriate or not.
The main thing to remember, when you only have one kite is to wisely choose the days you can put it in the air. Most of us have 3 kites and choose the size based on the wind of the day. Choose wisely.
I want to echo the choose wisely advice. I don't know anything about kiting ... but there was a crazy guy out there late yesterday. He was just learning to kite, and was struggling to get started about 5 meters from a father/son beginning windsurfing pair, and about 20 meters from the swimming area, both of which were due downwind from him! This was about 8:00, so the big winds were gone, but I had just come off the water, and the gusts were BIG. Looked extremely dangerous.
The better kiters I see launch from Ramsey start much further upwind than this guy. What he was doing just plain did not look safe.
I don't want to use this site as promotion, but we do have some 4 meter slingshots at scuba center for a very reduced price,
I gave you some advice at the lesson but if your considering a foil and inflatable, I would go with a 4 foil and 10-12 inflatable, In the winter you can ride your 10-12 in light winds, and the 4 when the wind picks up.
Another thing would be to get some kite instruction videos, when I learned I tryed to get as much information as possible about what I was doing and this makes the learning curve shorter.
To John's point, I think that the best thing to do when you see a kiter doing usafe things is to talk directly with him right then and there. We all need a reality check from time to time, and that starts with me. ehehehe.
When it comes down to choosing where to buy your equipment, I would strongly encourage you to buy local, either from a person you know or a local retailer. That way if there is something wrong with the kite you can always go talk to them. Plus, supporting local shops ensures sponsorship of events and perpetuation of the stoke.
If your looking for an all around Foil that will do it on everything, you really should look at a brand I've grown to love. The Vio's that I have rule for around here. I've got a 5m, an 8m, and a 12m here in Sandstone that anybody can try out. They're closed cell foils like Flysurfers but I can get them at cost while they are still in promotional stage to spread the word. I love em. for about 350 you can get a full setup 8m kite that zips down to a 6m. The construction rules, the safety features rock and the guy who designs them is the same dude who works on foils like the North Husky. You can fly them solo safely and they work everywhere. you can read more at http://www.viokite.com and check out the VR series man. I don't know why more Minnesotan's don't fly closed celled foils really. I guess I'm just biased by my own learning experiences though. Easy to set up in the cold and solo and no rigid structure which translates to ultimate safety. Check it out before you completely decide and better yet, come fly one. Anytime you can try before you buy your better off man.
i am open to receive offers from you if you have equipments,
I am thinkig in water... but here the winter is longer than anything else so that is why i also am interested in a foil one, what i plan is having a foil to improve my skills in land and also use it during the winter; and also having a water equipment... i am student so i would like to have a versatil equipment that deserve my investment to practice anytime in the two choices of weather that i have here...Matt told me that a 4 to 6 foil kite willbe worthy and the water eqipment thattigue or some of you based in your experiences can tell me,