hi everyone im new..

heres a video of some people doing some surfing with trainer kites.. i think thats very interesting..

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

what wind speed do you think that is?

i spoke to the guy in the video and he told me he used a 2m trainer kite when it was really windy and and kite surfed with people with 12m and got some really good speed.

Yeah, light rider, big board and nuking winds or some combo thereof could make it work. You'd have to have some experience as well to be efficient.

They weren't really holding their line either. Sort of a downwinder, but still looked worth doing. I almost thought the guy with the 3m was going to relaunch it. Nose down it seemed to be holding its air.

The most sucessfuly guy (first guy) was not very deep and using his board to skim board. It takes very little to skim board and thus takes much less kite. Looked like fun though. I would like to try.

i wonder what the girl was using... i ordered a pansh 4.5 just for that reason to skim board on the surface...

i spoke to the guy and he said a 4.5m is equalient to a 11m inflatable...true? if so then im going to be going super fast with a trainer...

Hi

The girl was using a Cabrhina Convert. Just a guess but it looked like a 7 meter.

John

Quote:

Originally posted by youngboipsl i spoke to the guy and he said a 4.5m is equalient to a 11m inflatable...true? if so then im going to be going super fast with a trainer...

no, he is wrong. first off static and depower sizes do differ, and yes flying my 5m beamer can sometimes generate the same power as my Montana 9.5. But are they the same, oh no no no no.... I am trying to think of a good way to say all of this, but my mind is befuddled by the fact that I am sick, it is snowing, and my mother comes into town in a few hours. I know someone else will come along and explain it, I don't know why I even started sigh.... cough cough cough.

Oh, and don't consider a non-depower 4.5 a trainer. That can be a full size kite. It will also wear you out A LOT quicker. have fun!!! :wee:

Quote:

Originally posted by flash Quote: Originally posted by youngboipsl i spoke to the guy and he said a 4.5m is equalient to a 11m inflatable...true? if so then im going to be going super fast with a trainer... no, he is wrong. first off static and depower sizes do differ, and yes flying my 5m beamer can sometimes generate the same power as my Montana 9.5. But are they the same, oh no no no no.... I am trying to think of a good way to say all of this, but my mind is befuddled by the fact that I am sick, it is snowing, and my mother comes into town in a few hours. I know someone else will come along and explain it, I don't know why I even started sigh.... cough cough cough. Oh, and don't consider a non-depower 4.5 a trainer. That can be a full size kite. It will also wear you out A LOT quicker. have fun!!! :wee:

oh so the pansh legend 4.5 isnt a trainer?

What flash is saying is that its plenty big enough to hurt you bad by itself thereby skipping the training part and going straight to "hurt you". A trainer is usually in the 3m range for most people. Body weight and wind speed factor in of course, but a 4.5m kite can have you in trouble before you know what hit you if you have little or no experience.

oh i see. im starting my training for kiteboarding with a 4.5 so im not really struggling when i buy a 12m...i know its gonna be sorta different, but hopefully not too much.

Is there any way you can get lessons? You will be best off taking lessons.

Seems you are already a little off track.

Comparing a fixed bridle and a depower isn't as simple as 5 equals 12.

Small changes in size make a big difference in power when you get down there. The difference between the reccomended 3m and a 4.5 is considerable. Take it easy until you know how to control the kite. Don't get too worried about staying upwind and you will have a lot more fun doing what you are out to do. :Ange09:


NOTE : how it is so windy that the guy has to launch the 3m the proper way. Accross wind !!!!
This is the thing, you will need to be able to handle your kite at the limits of it's rated wind. NOT a beginer move.

Size selection is dependent on a lot of factors. Your choice can be effected by pilot weight, wind velocity, type of kite, pilot experience, vehicle, riding style, bridle settings, and surface conditions. I'm sure others can add to this list.

The best method I have found for kite selection is to find someone your size who does the thing you want to do in the place you want to do it and ask them what they fly. This has been the best metric for me, but it is not perfect.

Here are few comparative measures I have found that are pretty reliable:

1) Compare projected area of kites, not surface area.

2) Depowers compare to a fixed bridle only when the depower is sheeted in. The depower can exert far less load on the flier when sheeted out. When moving from FB to depower get a depower with more projected area than the FB you would use in the same conditions. You will enjoy the extra power the depower can generate when sheeted in as well as the extra safety it allows when sheeted out.

3) These vehicles are listed in order of increasing power requirements: buggies, land boards, big surfboards, small surfboards. (Can someone insert snowboards in this list for me? I have zero knowledge of snowboards. Also am i right about the biggest boards still requiring more power than land boarding?)

4) Jumpers need more power than non-jumpers. This power requirement is tied directly to weight. Are you going to jump or cruise?

5) Land boards have more rolling resistance than buggies.

6) For land vehicles, the surface has dramatic effects. These surfaces are listed in increasing order of rolling resistance: pavement, dry lake, sand below the high tide line, mowed grass, unmowed grass, sand above the high tide line.

7) Increased tire diameter and width reduce rolling resistance in soft sand.

I know this diverges from your question a bit. I have a lot more experience on land so I have more data there. I just find that the more knowledge you have about all kinds of kiting and kites the more you can use other people's experiences to guide your choices.

Philip

Quote:

Originally posted by youngboipsl oh i see. im starting my training for kiteboarding with a 4.5 so im not really struggling when i buy a 12m...i know its gonna be sorta different, but hopefully not too much.

If you ever make it to owning a 12m. You could hurt yourself or get frustrated and quit because the 4.5 will be so much more like work in the upper end of its wind range. You will have lower wind speeds you are qualified to fly the 4.5 than you would a 3m and therefore not get to fly as much. You aren't speeding the process by starting with a 4.5m, especially a pansh that many times needs some tweaking and adjusting that you won't have the experience to diagnose. The larger kite will either keep you from advancing or slow your progress compared to your path with a 3m.

Bam! I knew you guys would answer. Sorry I was feeling so under the weather, couldn't even bring myself to get out and fly!! Thank god for mom and homemade chicken noodle soup.

I hope this hasn't discouraged the OP, i just knew someone would have to say something, just a note of caution. And yes.... that pansh is going to take so much futzing with that you don't have to do with a depower that it might have an adverse effect on your flying.

I just had this happen on my home field and I was trying to explain to that guy that the 6m 'trainer' he bought was not a trainer but a full size kite, and maybe he should take a minute to play around on some of my smaller stuff. He honestly said "go big or go home". I watched for half an hour... and guess who went home and guess who went big!

I pulled out my 12m and he freaked....


YoungBoispl where in the country are you at? Cause I am pretty sure we can get you out with someone flying!!

well damn looks like pbc was the only helpful post in here; everyone else seemed discouraging to say the least.

Quote:

Originally posted by youngboipsl well damn looks like pbc was the only helpful post in here; everyone else seemed discouraging to say the least.

shyte.... I am sorry. I didn't mean to be that way. Blame it on the cold that skunked me from flying, and having my mom here which means I spend 3 weeks trying to find where everything is after she leaves. Bud damn... i eat well when she is here.

anyways, your kite will do fine in helping you to understand the wind window. Truly any kite can be used for that. If you are using this size to help you learn for your kiteboarding etc... remember the following things.

This is a full size kite, and as someone so eloquently said a few posts back while I was hacking up a lung, keep that in mind as this is not a traditional trainer size. For now, avoid kite loops till you have a better understanding of the wind window and power. Start with a few exercises like parking it in the safe zones, launching landing, redirecting safely, then take it up a notch and feel how the kite reacts when you bring it across the window (staying high.... ESPECIALLY in high winds). It really helps to move with your kite. By this I mean to walk in the direction your kite is going. Not downwind, but if you are redirecting from the left tothe right, now your kite is moving to the right, maintain your line and walk with it to the right. All kites fly differently when there is momentum of the rider.

ok... so... lets see another positive. Cupcakes are awesome. In november most of the microbrew porter and stouts come out. This is also the only month that you can grow a mustache and say it's a fashion statement and not look like a creepy pedophile. (this is for those that don't traditionally grow 'staches) Oh.... and it's snowing here and we are about to go out and session our first runs of the season!!! I hope that made up for my seemingly douche-bag attitude earlier...

Good luck and let us know!

now thats a helpful post! thanks. so i should totally walk with the kite. i think my kite comes with a dvd to be of help as well.


i think i saw your blogspot before, your the kayaker?

kadeem

Quote:

Originally posted by youngboipsl well damn looks like pbc was the only helpful post in here; everyone else seemed discouraging to say the least.

I hope I didn't sound discouraging. I was just hoping to point out how you are getting off to a difficult start. I want you to have fun and be safe. Not to encourage you to get in over your head.

The BEST advice you got was to take a lesson. It will make you go from zero to hero in 6 short hours !

Hows that for encouraging ?

Quote:

Originally posted by youngboipsl well damn looks like pbc was the only helpful post in here; everyone else seemed discouraging to say the least.

You're giving me too much credit. I'm just avoiding the don't-kill-yourself chatter because everyone else is doing such a good job at it. :-)

The key thing is you have to learn what to do and not to do incrementally. A big kite can send you to the hospital in under 10 seconds if you use it wrong. Alternatively, it can provide an epic ride. I've been taken out by a 5m.

It's all in knowing how to use it. You want multiple layers of safety and the most important one is in the grey matter. You need experience kiting, with a particular kite, and with all of your safety systems before you can go big safely.

The bottom line is to rush nothing. This is not a sport for the impatient.

Philip

re the vid... i wouldnt take anything Alex Sanz says as fact. if you doubt what i say then go to http://www.extremekites.com.au/forums/index.php and mention his name!!! the guy is so full of crap it ridiculous!!!

oh thats his name? he told his name was tom.

http://www.extremekites.com.au/forums/viewtopic.php?f=28&...

i youve got abit of frre time give this thread a read.

take lessons, get a proper water kite (Flysurfer/Neo/Inflato........ lower AR for easy relaunch) and have a blast..........................why scrap along on a small kite when you can go with a 12/10m and bust some big air.....................................