Here are 2 of 3 questions,

I am breaking this up to avoid confusion, especially when they start getting answered.

1) knee torque. I haven't come across this is regular riding on the slopes, but there seems to be some sort of torque that goes on when trying to ride with a kite, especially upwind. My knees didn't hurt at the end of the day, but I did notice pressure during riding.
Is this part and parcel of kiting? Are there ways to reduce this?
I ride a directional board, but have my bindings in a twin setup. (the board is a bit slippery but it works fine, and I rode it that way for most of last session on the slopes). I have about 12 degree duck stance. Has anyone noticed whether a larger stance distance or larger stance angles decreases the amount of torque on the knees?

Also, I may be trying to turn too much from the hips, and not edging enough with my back leg. Any ideas regarding that?

2) up wind skills. I know the amount of depower really affects upwind riding. I noticed that as I shifted the amount of depower around, the kite shifted where it sits in the window (horizontally), and at a certain point, going upwind was possible with a clean line (ie, not just plowing). So, this is a horizontal issue as to where the kite sits in the window. I am making progress with this.

I am wondering if the vertical aspect changes anything, ie the height/angle of the kite in the sky. Does 60, 45, or 30 from the horizon make any difference when trying to go upwind?

Also, going upwind seems more difficult when the wind increases? I am assuming this happens to most people. Seems the edging needs to be better, and the amount of edging is dependent on the condition of the surface. Is that right?

Thanks.

1) Changing the angle of your stance should relieve the pressure on your knees. You can get a better idea of the angle required for you by observing your natural stance when standing or your gate when walking. Most people have a degree of duck walk and unnaturally straightening your feet can cause this pressure in the knees. I needed to go with 15 degree to relieve it. I know others with more angle too.

I suppose if your feet are very straight when you walk forcing them into a duck stance would also create this pressure.

I found extra relief from loosening my boots up a bit as well as my bindings. This also reduces the burn you might feel in the quads and my feet stayed warmer longer.

I never really played with stance distance as I ride a directional too but I try to center my stance on it and that pretty much removes that option.

2)Yes. Sorry, I never have a problem going upwind. It's something I never think about anymore and it was hurting my head thinking about it. Riding a directional you will find riding upwind easier going one way over the other too. Also, you go where you look.

Most instructions suggest keeping the kite about 45' to the ground, to balance lift and downwind pull.

I got out for another session today, but the winds were pretty light. I did get to try a larger duck angle, but didn't really get a chance to get going for very long. It seemed to help a bit. I'll have to give it a longer chance though. I was sitting right around 15 degrees before, and moved up to the 20-25. That is HUGE and I would never ride that way on the hill, but this situation calls for something different.

Zero Gee, I am sure that flying skills become pretty automatic in time, I am looking forward to that day.

Kamikuza, ya, that makes sense. I didn't experiment much with the angles, but enough to notice some differences but not really find out which one was 'best'.

Thanks for the input!

so, got out for another session. I kept my binding set up the same as last, about 25-30 degree duck. it is pretty large.

My knees felt pretty good after the 2 hour session. Not as much torque as the first session at all; however, I am not 100% sure it due to the binding set up alone. I have adjusted the weight distribution of my feet too while kiting. Kiteboard and regular snowboard have some serious differences in weight distribution on the board simply due to the new dimension of the kite. I had to simply put more weight on the back leg while kiting. Usually, when going down a hill without a kite, I lean forward quite a bit and use the front hip almost as a leverage point to turn the board - that wasn't working very well with the kite. Just needed more weight on the back leg.