Hello, my friends! I'm brand new to the sport, but I've been admiring traction kiting for over 2 years. In my area (Eastern Michigan), you'll never see a power kite flying.. anywhere. I'll skip the intros and get to the point..
I don't generally have a ton of extra cash on hand (house, kids, wife, car payments, etc..), but we got a decent tax return this year. My wife and I decided to each take exactly $500.00 each to blow on whatever we want (Again, I stress that this NEVER happens). I plan to "invest" my money on traction kiting.
My dilemma? (a) NO kite stores anywhere near me, at all. This means I can't try any kites, and can only rely on information given to me. (b) I met an awesome guy that runs a kite shop in California that's been giving me good advice. He also is willing to sell me a viper 2.7m and a Twister II 5.6m (with lines and handles each) for the $500. I should mention that I'm ALL about jumping. From my research, the twister would be an awesome kite for that. I'm wary of the viper because I have no interest at this time for boarding or buggying, only traction and jumping.
I need some help, please. I really wanted a flexifoil blade, but they're too expensive for me at the time. I've also been checking out de-powerable kites but expense, yet again, is the enemy. My wife already thinks I'm wasting my money on "stupid kites" but I'm already very passionate about the sport and I haven't even had the opportunity to fly yet! Any help would be appreciated, and if any of you live in Michigan, I'd love to be able to see you fly your kite or something to see what I'm up against. Thank you for your time!

Welcome to the forum Adam. I'm sure others will be along to comment soon for you.

I just want to clarify before rumors start. I am the guy in CA he is referring to and the twister is used. This is why the price is lower than retail. Both kites are not new for that price. I don't want other dealers to think I'm selling under retail.

I believe the twister is a better kite than this but fully capable of producing the power. The guys first jump was ok. The second one is out of control and he should have learned to fly the kite better before trying in these conditions. Be careful! or she might be spending your life insurance next. Maybe that is too harsh but I saw 2 people die at work today. Life sometimes isn't very forgiving.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oveLq6j4JUw

Hey Dino! Glad to see you around =) I'm just taking your advice and hoping someone in the Michigan area has a kite (or kites) that I can take a look at... I'm a bit on the realistic side.
Stetson05, I am geeked on the twister. I watched that video, and it seems the weather conditions for kite flying are quite erratic. It's no wonder that guy got sent to earth fast! I plan to be flying in wind speed as low as possible to get my feet wet. No hurricanes, no gusts that can push me back, just normal sunny conditions.
In other news, I just got done reading "Scoop's Guide for Newbie Powerkiters" and I wasn't surprised to read the section that said most new kiters want to jump (and unfortunately for me he doesn't recommend it). I don't plan to go out on the first day with a 12 meter kite and try to jump onto my roof, lol. As a matter of fact, until I get the basics down, I won't be trying to leave the earth at all. It would be exciting to get a bit of a lift here and there on the journey, though!

Sadly, I just did a search for "Michigan" to see if I could find anyone local... and I was the only turnout. Perhaps if I get good, I could start selling kites here=)

Glad you didn't take it personal

I loved the twister. Dino sent it to me and it was a great kite. I even got my pic in the paper with it. I have a 5m ace and I don't really like it as well. I buggied with the twister in 8-10mph and it was a great engine. I even got some jumps with it. I tried it in 13-15 and it was too much for me, beyond my skill to control the jumps. I recommend getting a kite in the 3m range and fly it first. Pretty soon you will realize that one kite only offers some of the days you can fly. 2 kites will offer you more days of fun.

Good luck

Welcome Adam!
Plenty of kiteshops here - good guys all

... yikes Stetson - what do you do for a job? :o

First welcome :bigok:

Dino is giving you a great deal there. The twister is exactly what you want but is a "tad" too big to try learning on, the viper however is a great kite to learn the basics on and will turn into a good high wind engine if you decide you want to try a buggy or a land-board. Also the viper is a kite that you can hand off to the wife so she can join you in the addiction.

I do want to say however, I have not flown either kite. I am just repeating what I have read and personal experience with kites of similar size and characteristics.

Your not alone in MI here is someone in Linden Michigan that has uploaded some stuff on too YouTube, but I don't know about the hot-launch he does below. Kinda close to the goal posts there.



Lastly about opening a kite shop. Here is a good read for the first 14 or so posts, after that it kinda got hijacked. Thankfully that doesn't happen too often here.

Hell of a take-off

WOW I thought he was going to take out that goal. What a close call.

If you're willing to drive around 2 hours, there are some guys in northwestern Ohio that might be able to help you out.

Thank you all so much for the warm reception! This is the greatest forum I've seen for information yet. I've checked out the links (if you've attached them) in the above posts, and was scared to death for that traction kiter on the soccer field (reverse goal? lol). Strangely enough (Maven454) I'll be in Ohio tomorrow, I'm taking the family to Kalahari Resort for the day, but I won't be able to get away to powerkite... or else face many a cold night with the wife.
This forum is fantastic!

One cold night vs one day kiting ... I'll take the sofa, thanks! :Ange09:

it may be one night for your situation... but my wife is a different breed. I'll be moving out to the living room permanently, lol.

So I guess the consensus stands at "go for it"? This may not be atypical for new users, but I just want to accelerate my learning curve without endangering myself in the process.
Question: With the viper 2.6m- despite the function being for buggying and boarding, if I'm just traction kiting, will I be able to pick up (effectively) the skills necessary to progress to the (kite I can't wait to try) twister II 5.6? Sounds like they're kites from 2 different ends of the spectrum.
Now comes the hard part - waiting for the snow to go away and for a nice and calm spring day to come!

the snow is great! go to a thrift store and buy some skis or get a snow board or just practice scudding. Then you can get going. I wish I had snow here. and welcome to the forum.

don't forget the hornet 3m, beamer 3m, twister 3m. I just recommended the viper because its my favorite is all. I know not very many people have flown the viper so not many can comment on it. I know I enjoy the kite and everyone I let fly the kite has a blast (noobie or experienced). You can always go with the twister 3m if you want to get 2 kites that fly similar. I just don't highly recommended it as the twister has some lift and I don't suggest jumping with a 3m. So my thinking is if its not safe to jump with a 3m ... why have a 3m lifty kite? But it will still be fun non the less. Just be careful in high winds you don't get snatched up.

Just throwing more options on the table for everyone to pick from

Adambomb, I'm currently in Hinckley, OH (just south of Cleveland) and frequently head up to the Toledo area to kite. If you want to meet up, I'm sure I could teach you a thing or two, and you could try some of my kites. It's a bit of a drive for both of us, but if we can get several others over there, we could have an awesome session. Have you ever checked out Red Sky in Toledo? I've never been there myself, but I know a guy who rides for Red Sky and I'm sure they have a ton of kiting equipment there.

Oh my! A twister 5.6 and a viper 2.6?!?! *looks down at the signature*

GREAT combo! That is my 2 kite quiver! Ok so you are all about jumping, I get that as I was too. My advice? Buy both kites! Why? Use the viper as your trainer. Trust me on this. I bought the twister 5.6 as my first kite after logging some time on a 4.1 (mistake) I then called Dino shortly after to purchase the viper as well. That viper is an amazing little kite! It will serve you well as a trainer while learning control, etc. After that its a BLAST to fly in higher winds! After you are solid on the viper, move to the twister with respect for the kite and the wind. It doesn't take much wind for that kite to unleash the beast within! (I speak from exp!) All in all that's a package you can't go wrong with, and a great seller to boot! Do eet!

Of course you could always be a little different and take your $500.00 and spend it on something for your wife. No nights on the sofa,,,,,,well at least for a little while:bigok:. Ok, Ok, I'm leaving now,,,,,I didn't know what I was saying. Lack of wind around here is keeping me from thinking straight

Jovver- I don't go to Ohio much, but for some experience and personal training, it would be worth the trip. I'm not familiar with Red Sky - in fact, I've been trying to research places that can teach me locally, to no avail. As a matter of fact, I even looked on the flexifoil site for distributers that have lessons, and it had a phone number for a place in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. When I called, it gave me a kite shop in Mount Pleasant in a different state!

mougl- it's nice to get an opinion related exactly to my issue. I see that you're enjoying the duo. I was even thinking about doing a twister 2.6 and the twister 5.6, but I suppose that would be a tad redundant. Perhaps I can use the twister to power me around in my daughter's radio flyer... (kidding, please don't think I'm suicidal)

Kteguru- My wife also got $500 "play money" from our income taxes. Also, what could she possibly want? She has something better than money can ever buy! (me)

I would stick to the viper/twister combo. Then again, I'm biased lol

That is a pretty sound combo. The viper isn't near as lifty and is a nice kite to start on. The Twister is a handful in stronger winds, but once you have learned how to fly safely, you'll be ok. Plus on light wind days, you will really enjoy flying the 5.6m.

Quote:

Originally posted by Adambomb Sadly, I just did a search for "Michigan" to see if I could find anyone local... and I was the only turnout. Perhaps if I get good, I could start selling kites here=)

The search engine is a little confusing make sure you select "the beginning" from the drop down list.

Here is a post about a kite shop in Frankfort.

Also here is a map of user added spots in Michigan to fly at.

Quote:

Originally posted by Adambomb Question: With the viper 2.6m- despite the function being for buggying and boarding, if I'm just traction kiting, will I be able to pick up (effectively) the skills necessary to progress to the (kite I can't wait to try) twister II 5.6? Sounds like they're kites from 2 different ends of the spectrum.

Definitely, I first learned on a 1.4m quadline stunt foil by "Go Fly a Kite". It was the closest thing to a powerkite that the local shop had.

Willard, thanks for the tips! That map is actually pretty neat - Harsen's Island is literally right across from me (I can see it from my house). Also, I gave the search engine another shot after your tip and I got more results. Unfortunately, it seems that most of those people have been inactive for quite some time (I've even messaged some earlier, to no avail). I just have to keep trying to find local members. I've been fortunate to find 2 that live in Ohio, and I've just joined today!

Welcome to the forum,
Don't rule out the Viper 2.6. I think it would be a great trainer and stick around as you progress. Not a jumper, but you can learn alot with it. I bought a Viper 2.6 from Dino and love it. In 15-25mph it's a blast to static fly, in 20-25mph it turned out to be a great high wind buggy engine as Dino promised. Had to go to the Viper last week on skis as the winds were overpowering the Gin 6.0. Had to work the heck out of it, but it did the job....surprisingly well.
If you have good 15-20+mph days there, the Viper should keep you out of trouble and "grounded" And you can use the Twister on the lighter days.
And believe me, $500 for both kites is a good deal....and just the start. :roll:

Jaymz, Thanks for the welcome! I've never doubted Dino's generosity with the price of the kite, but being brand new (and never having flown a power kite of any kind) I was just reaching out to the forum for some experienced eyes to look over the plan=) I just wish I could find someone in my area that could show me a thing or 2. First-hand experience is the best, and those lessons in kite shops are quite expensive.

Just thinking outside the box here... What if you could get two kites in one for now to learn with... like the HQ Crossfire II with Dynamic Trim System (DTS).

Quote:

The DTS system gives you an adjustable kite allowing the pilot to tune the bridles to better fit the pilots flying style. Change the settings for maximum speed and acceleration for the buggy or adjust it for raw grunt power for awesome air time on your mountain board [or jumping].

I have no first-hand experience with this kite but the concept seems interesting if it performs as advertised. Perhaps Dino and others could validate and provide their feedback.

DTS is really just adjustable AoA I believe. He'd be better off with 2 different sizes of kites. Particularly so he can get some learning in on the small one.

Quote:

Originally posted by BoneHeadGolf Just thinking outside the box here... What if you could get two kites in one for now to learn with... like the HQ Crossfire II with Dynamic Trim System (DTS). I have no first-hand experience with this kite but the concept seems interesting if it performs as advertised. Perhaps Dino and others could validate and provide their feedback.

This is ok if the need was a lifty kite and a not lifty kite. The need here is a small kite for him to learn on. The only reason the 5.6m twister is in the mix is because he will end up there eventually and I have the used one that I offered him at a good price ... but to get the 5.6m he has to buy a 3m ish size kite to go with it. Aren't I mean I might even delay the 5.6m shipment by a month or so this way he has to learn on the 3m. j/k

Back to the crossfire. It is an experienced pilot only kite. It requires alot of pilot input to keep it from becoming a poster for taco bell. I like the kite and the DTS works well, but I think it needs to be alot more stable before I can recommend it to more people .. especially newbies.

Thanks Dino, that makes sense