AZKevin - 15-1-2012 at 03:59 PM
So while at work and working hard.... I've been browsing around Youtube looking at low/light wind kites.
http://youtu.be/bP2EnN1Awyo
http://youtu.be/g0-VNBHwjMc
I've tried looking around on here for a previous thread about recommended light winds but need some more input.
After watching those videos, it looks as if you can still kite surfing with winds as low as 5-10mph with the right kite/board/rider.
Im lookin at getting a 145 board and 12m kite but what other kite and size would you guys recommend from your experience?
lunchbox - 15-1-2012 at 04:17 PM
Well I've got a Flysurfer Speed 2 19 Deluxe that will get in going in about 8mph. I'm riding an old school fish surfboard with good volume and low
rocker in a pretty bumpy ocean. I'm also about 220lbs with all my gear on.
The Flysurfer Speed 3 21m would be a good choice for me as well.
Obviously, rider weight plays a huge part in this picture.
AZKevin - 15-1-2012 at 04:50 PM
Thats what I'm seeing.
Flysurfer Speed 2 19m - seems to be the choice of many on other sites. Wish I could find a used for under $1,000 though. I think i'll be putting that
one down for my long term goal 
Kamikuza - 15-1-2012 at 05:35 PM
At first I thought this thread might end up in the suck real fast, but of course! there's no PMU, snobdr et al here so it'll be ok...
The Golden Rule
Your light wind is not my light wind aka not all 5 knots are created equal.
Keep that in mind and you'll cut through the horse-crap with ease 
what it means
is that the numbers are totally irrelevant from one person/location/session to another. You can stand on the beach with a wind meter or check the
internet weather page when you get home and get in the vague ballpark of whats going on, but the only real tests that matter are side-by-side at the
same time.
It's for this reason that I wish there was some kind of power/torque curve way of charting a kite through the wind window... I envision a #@%$#! fan
array, a robotic flier and a strain gauge for ultimate consistency
If you want to buy gear, get some demo stuff and take it to your local spot on what you feel is an average day and see how it goes, they size up or
down from there.
Personally... I'm fat... and so I bought the biggest kite I could find and the biggest TT board on the market to make the most of the crappy light
winds we get here.
The S3 21 and Flydoor XL keeps me riding when the local riders (teeny-tiny Asians like Ricardo ) are starting to drift off downwind...
Obviously, you won't need that much gear. In NZ, when I was riding the Big Guns Sam, a local Kiwi lightweight, was riding his regular board and 14m OR
Rise... although he ended up well downwind, we were both jumping and doing small tricks.
Compare that with a different day - me on a Crossbow 13m and the Flydoor, another guy on a 13m Naish thing and Naish 1979 (14?x4?)... he couldn't get
upwind at all, while I could cruise crosswind and a tad upwind. Bow kite & big board were the difference, and perhaps a little bit of skill.
So what I'm basically saying is... you don't NEED huge kites unless you're a huge kiter or insist on going on in absolutely no wind :D
More thoughts to follow, I have to work now...
AZKevin - 15-1-2012 at 06:29 PM
Nicely put Kamikuza. It'll be down the road before I get serious about looking into a BIG kite but of my little knowledge of kites and their
performance, your words make sense. I will need to try out a few kites before I can tell what will work for me.
Kamikuza - 15-1-2012 at 06:36 PM
There are those that refuse to fly bigger than say 12m kites cos "they're too slow" and so, won't go out in 'light winds'... we're not all blessed
with locations like that - I know I'm not. If I followed that rule, I'd ride only once or twice a year 
my big gear keeps me riding a couple of times a week...
Also, I like to be powered so I can ride smaller boards - that usually means I'm pushing the top end of my kites.
This is all kitesurfing talk though - landboarding is a different kettle of noodles.