Power Kite Forum

New to power kiting...

John182rs - 19-8-2007 at 09:42 PM

Im abit of a extreme sport freak an just coming out of skydiving as ive been banned for a year.....:no: :no:
I was at the skegness beach a couple of weeks ago an had a play with the rage 3.5 which was good plus got some air.
I was going to buy one of the kites from decathalon for about 90 quid but i would easily cough up abit more to get a more decent kite.
I dont know what togo for at the moment but i did prefer the 4 lines to the 2 lines with just handles rather than the bar.
yea i would love to use my old parachute but i think thats a little bit too big (215 sq/mtr)
Im fairly tall an wopping some weight on at the moment 13st at the moment.
Anyone in or around nottingham at all?
John

ricky3510 - 20-8-2007 at 12:00 AM

Not sure what there is in Nottingham, but can i ask, how do you go about getting yourself banned from skydiving??

Did you go to fast? lol.

Oh and yes that would be to big.

danakachewy - 20-8-2007 at 01:57 AM

a rage 3.5 is a gr8 kite to start out with especially if you can got one for £90!

5m1FF - 20-8-2007 at 03:15 AM

I started on a Rage 2.5 and loved it. £170 from powerkiteshop.com

John182rs - 20-8-2007 at 07:47 AM

the kite for £90 is one of decathalons own brands not a rage one otherwise id have had it by now, as that one i played with at skegg one brilliant an fun to play with.
I got banned from skydiving as a mate lent me his ff3 suitable back pack with a 215 chute, i jumped from 14k curled up in a ball so i could see my alti with my knees against my chest right down to 6k then box man an open by 4k. Little did i know he had a pro track device in the back pack an it measured that i went wayy... over 220. ie an instant ban for 18 months plus a re run an everything else with it.

This is the kite i was thinking of gettin but for obvious reason iwould like to go more flexifoil pkd way though as they are a better well made kite.
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/Product_arborescence/waterspor...

ricky3510 - 20-8-2007 at 12:35 PM

Went over 220 what??

beachrights - 20-8-2007 at 02:49 PM

"Then box man an open by 4k" God- I thought our jargon was hard to understand! I have got to stop the spraypaint huffing!

As Ricky said- 220 what?! I hope you do not mean miles per hour because if so you are not going to be scared by ANY kite on this site!!!!

I have to give you respect though because I am too chicken to jump out of a plane!:o

John182rs - 20-8-2007 at 09:04 PM

yea 220 mph, is what i was told. ill try an find my ban/order sheet thing that says why i got banned to be exact.
Box man is laying flat down in the normal free fall position before deploying the throw away that brings out the main canopy.
If any of you get to have a go at parachuting then id say go for it, its just a pure adrenelin rush an even more so when you get ground rush feel through some thing as silly as a cloude...

This is why i want to get in to P/K abit more as it looks fun exciting intresting an physical..
I just dont know what sort of kite to start out with....

awindofchange - 21-8-2007 at 02:33 PM

That's pretty darn fast compared to the average free-fall speed of 120 mph. You must have been well above the 15,000 ft. mark to get those kinds of speeds. What height did you jump at? I broke 142 in a tuck on one jump, when I opened up it about tore my arms off.

Haven't jumped in over 2 years now, don't think I will be back into that at all. Kiting gives me all the thrills that I need, plus I can do it with my kids with a lot less risk. :yes:

Must be getting old.....

John182rs - 21-8-2007 at 09:18 PM

i did come out from about 15k, but weigh about 15st at the time an was in a skin tight suit an the pack i had was small, ive had bigger school bags..
I carnt find the letter from the BPA that actually states why i was banned or what speed they got me for.
It was the same day some free flyers from aussy got a real bollocking because they did a 4 way head down but basically cuddled each other to get maximum speed an broke the limit for free flyers.
the average speed is about 135 here for some reason, dont know if it had owt todo with the mantess position though.

ricky3510 - 22-8-2007 at 06:22 AM

There's rules for everything these days isn't there.

Should be down to you how fast you want to go. Whats next, installing floating speed cameras to catch people skydiving over a certain speed. lol

Seriously though, why do they limit it?

Boyddie - 22-8-2007 at 12:09 PM

Hey, i'm from Nottingham however, i've only had a powerkite for about a week now so im a complete noob to the sport.

I've been out to a few local places such as wollaton park. Been 4 times now, the first 2 times the wind was pretty much dead, the 3rd time it was quite windy (10mph according to met office) and had a great laugh and got a bit of air (accidently). Went out the 4th time and both me and my firned struggled like crazy to control the kite, we were getting dragged all over the place and picked up a few bumps and bruises, but it was such good fun!

I own a 4m Flexifoil Blade III. I bought it purly because i got told by lots and lots of people that it was one of the best kites for lift which is what i wanted although i got strongly advised not to buy one for my first kite.

I'd like to think im picking it up pretty well although still havn't mastered how to jump, i think the air i got was down to the high winds more than technique.

I'd love to get out to the coast one day, skeggy seems like the best option, just need to get a bit better... and after last time maybe some pads :!:

Paddlenround - 22-8-2007 at 03:19 PM

You sound like a complete nutter...hehe...perfect for this sport.

I have that Decathalon kite and I am about your same weight and it has no trouble picking me up and tossing me about across the beach. I only started a month ago and am still mastering flying but I am about to move to the board. I am getting good at controlling the kite. I also bought the 2.5m kite as well for windier days.

It normally wouldn't take a month but it has been raining here every day in northern France and it took me a week to find a good unobstructed spot to practice flying.

John182rs - 22-8-2007 at 09:28 PM

Paddle - do you have the 3.5 or 4.6 kit from decathalon, an is it in mild winds that it pulls you around alot.
I aint got a clue which kite to get but i would have gone for the 2.5 like a friend has done but if i get bored quickly ill drop it an leave it for a bit but i dont want to go too strong either..
Help me some one please.

Boyddie - 23-8-2007 at 01:51 AM

People said to me go for a 2.5m to start with otherwise i'd regret it. I went straight in for a blade which are supposively for experienced kite flyers and a 4m one at that.

Personally i'd say go for the bigger one, ive only taken mine out a few times and i want a bigger one alread despite not even being able to hold mine in stronger winds :lol:

Might have a few crashes and it may drag you along the floor a fair few times after you've learnt to keep it in the air (my first few flys were basically ktie goes up...kite crashes) but it's well worth it!

John182rs - 23-8-2007 at 08:00 AM

Right i got to grip with the rage 3.5 easily enough an i didnt really crash it much, struggled to get the kite going up at first an could go side to side plus some swooping in the hour or two i played.
So would people say 4m or slightly higher?

Paddlenround - 26-8-2007 at 11:33 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by John182rs
Paddle - do you have the 3.5 or 4.6 kit from decathalon, an is it in mild winds that it pulls you around alot.
I aint got a clue which kite to get but i would have gone for the 2.5 like a friend has done but if i get bored quickly ill drop it an leave it for a bit but i dont want to go too strong either..
Help me some one please.


I actually bought the 2.5 and the 3.5. I was told by people in this forum that I would need more than 1 kite and thought they were simply junkies. However, they have proven to be right on many occasions and this was no different.

The power of the wind is going to vary a lot and changes constantly. I bought both kites and will probably get one more larger one and one more smaller one. My first attempt resulted in getting tossed around the beach. I have since gotten comfortable flying the kite and am going to start the move to the board.

Maybe you ought to go with the bigger kite and get your buddy to share with you. If the wind is stronger, borrow his smaller kite. If the wind is gentler, use yours.

John182rs - 27-8-2007 at 09:10 PM

Sod it i went out a bourght a beamer 4m kite from airboss uk. awesom kite pulls like a #@%$#! an ive enjoyed it loads, already had my first accident an bust my thumb, dont ask. But im already flying it again after 2 days never mind having a wacking great cast on my hand.
No pain no game people.

tridude - 28-8-2007 at 04:43 AM

No pain no gain--no guts no glory--pain is temporary, pride is forever! Good on ya John. I have no doubt I separated my shoulder last winter flying the Bego 600 in some crazy winds (never went to the docs) and the same kite cracked 2 ribs on my left side (verified by x ray). Ibuprofen and kept flying! Stupid? of course but its all about the passion and I learned the hard way to redirect on pend jumps!:thumbup:

John182rs - 28-8-2007 at 08:01 AM

Yepp people this is also another essential to power kiting to have in your bag - Ibuprofen an anicare creme which is for swelling parts of your body an is wounderful as it acts fast (within the hour) an soon youll be up up an away.