Howdy, howdy!

Unsure of what size board to get. I'm new to kiting, but grew up on a lake wakeboarding and other water sports. Getting into the water with my kite and will buy a board soon, but unsure what size would be good for a beginner kiter with wakeboarding experience. I'm 165-175lbs in fluctuation. Winds would probably be around 13-15kts generally. Guy at the shop recommends around 130-132, but maybe that's a little short? Thanks for your help.

How much do you weigh? What size kite(s) do you own? Ocean, lake, or river? water conditions you plan on riding in?

What size kite do you plan to mate this up too? I would probably go with a slighty larger board, 134 or a 137. I started off with a 137x41 and I am about the same weight as you but you would probably get a longer life out of a 134.

Too short. For a first board go big otherwise you'll frustrate the *@$! out of yourself. Plus you're looking at learning how to kite in light winds, that's gonna make it even harder.

134-139cm is good? My kite is a Flysurfer Unity 12m. Do you know anything about the Airush Switch? How about the Flysurfer Radical? I'd like to stay under 140cm conidering my board bag is 140cm. I'm 165-175lbs. 75-78kg. Will be Ocean and Lake and the Han River in Seoul.

130-132 is too small unless you're flying a big kite in those winds. Start off with a board around 137 to 142 and a width between 38 and 42 or 43. When you're first starting off you want to get up and planing quickly, keep planing, and going upwind as much as possible and a bigger board will help you do all that. A wide and flatter board will get you upwind much easier than a board with a lot of rocker. Once you're proficient at riding and are more comfy with holding down more power, try a smaller board. My most used board is a 139x41.5 and I weigh 155lbs.

Knowing the type of water conditions you'll be riding in will also help you select a board. A board with rounded tips and more rocker would be great if you're riding in waves and/or choppy water. Rounded tips and rocker help smooth out the ride on chop. Riding a flat board on these water types would make for a bumpy/uncomfortable ride. If you're on a lake you can go with a flatter board with square tips since the water should be smoother.


Edit: My buddy has an Airush Switch 146 and it's been great for him. It's the board he learned on and mostly still rides today.. It's the size of a lightwind board but does have a good amount of rocker to smooth out the ride.

A new board bag is much cheaper then getting the wrong board

With light wind I would go as big as you can.

Quote:

Originally posted by Mostly Harmless A new board bag is much cheaper then getting the wrong board With light wind I would go as big as you can.

Haha, yeah what he said

Thanks, guys! I appreciate the input. Let me know when you come over to Korea! :karate:

agree with BK.........go big to learn then becomes your ulw board.....................keep in mind your 12m Unity is a bit under powered compared to the FSer Pulses......................kite speed will eventually make up for this but until then don't find yourself on the beach with a board that's too small.......keep the rocker and concave to a minimum as well............a flatter bottom board with flex tips will have you up and planing earlier and def stay way from booties at this point....................Starboard and KGB Comrade are two awesome boards complete for under $350.................good luck and welcome to the insanity

If you go with a big board (150-ish long 45 or more wide) it can serve as a light wind board for later. Plus a 12m for 12-15 knot winds? You're just asking for pain. Do you have access to a surfboard? That's a small kite for those winds for anyone but a skilled kiter.

Also pick a board that is easily visible. You will be doing a lot of body dragging back to the board. I don't understand why they make boards that are black dark blue and green. I really like my 2010 Mako King and would recommend that to a beginner and any level.

Kitesurfing:

board rule #1--when learning go big or sit on the beach

board rule #2--make sure to follow rule #1.........................:duh::duh:

IMHO FWIW ...

Taller person needs a longer board.
Heavier person needs a wider board ... for a given kite and wind speed.

First board = what will become your lightwind board. Doors are good ...

In other words - what they said up there

A great many thanks to you guys. I'm leaning towards a 2011 Airush Switch I can get for a good price. 138x42. I was also keen on the CF Allaround 138x43, but that one's not on sale.

Anyone know about Akona wetsuits? I'm about to buy a 3mm fullsuit. Fit is good. Then I have a 2mm sleeveless shorty to go over that for the early months. Boy, it's going to be hard to wait until around April to get out on the water over there, but at least in the meantime, I have a great beach and a landboard.

GET 140X44 .
GET 140X44 .
GET 140X44 .
GET 140X44 .
GET 140X44 .
GET 140X44 .
GET 140X44 .
GET 140X44 .


since your bag is a 140 .... make sure you can fit 44 width

I love my 145x48. I tried a mako king for chop and liked my crazy fly board better. I am about 200lbs though.

I think I've narrowed it down to 3 boards:
2011 Airush Switch: $400 is 138cm x 42cm
2011 Cabrinha Prodigy: $500 is 140cm x 42cm
2012 CrazyFly Allround: $560 is 138cm x 43cm

Any experience, preference or general thoughts about these boards? Any others u would throw into the consideration pile? Much much thanks!

can't go wrong with any of those, switch may have a little more forgiving concave center for easier speed control.

I need to add the 2011 RRD Placebo 140x43 to the mix. Also looks like a great board! I know very little about boards, and even less about RRD though.

...
i still have my learning boards and was thinking about selling my big board to buy a newer model. If you have not bought anything yet.. consider this...

I have my monster spleene door for light winds. Its 164x50. It is an 07 model, but in very good condition. It is great for light winds, and for learning in lighter conditions. I am a little heavier than you and use it when the wind is blowing 11-13mph. You could probably ride it at 9-10mph with similiar kite power.

My second board is a Spleene Rip '34. It is 134cm long, and I don't recall the width off the top of my head. I'd be willing to sell both to you if you are interested... Maybe we can even work out some kind of deal on the pricing. The boards are old, but in good condition, and would make decent boards for learning on.. Let me know

edit- So, I will say that it looks like a big gap between those two boards, and there is. And for quite some time, I felt like I wanted to get something that I could ride between those two boards. However, kite skills can make up for that. There were times the door felt too big, but I did not have enough power for the smaller board. But once I was on the small board, I loved it. So... something to consider I suppose. I'll say that now with my current kites and boards, I generally go straight to my small board, and if it is not enough board, then I go grab the big one, or a surf board instead.

Thanks, Ragden. I'm heading back to Korea with a 140cm board bag (CrazyFly with wheels). I'm looking for something close to the 140cm size with decent width. I'm most keen on the CrazyFly Allaround 138x43 so far, and I need to make my decision soon, so I can take it back with me to Korea. I'm buying with the intention of later ADDING a board to the mix rather than upgrading. I'm guessing my future board will be a little smaller in size than the one I'll get now. Your Monster sounds like a great board for really light wind conditions!! I'm 5'9, 175-180lbs now, but that's an out-of-shape me. My normal weight is around 160-170. When spring starts rearing its head, I'll be working on getting myself back in shape. Got a 20 yr class reunion coming up this summer. Hehe. :cool2:

I dont think the 138 is going to be big enough for light wind riding conditions. Unless you get down to 160lbs, but even then you would need a pretty big kite to fully utilize it as a lightwind machine. I think you would be a bit better off going smaller and picking up a light-wind board...

Though, I suppose the question boils down to which wind conditions are most common? Lighter winds, or over 15mph winds? Get the board to match the most common conditions and then later pick up the one you need to fill out your quiver for off days...