Thanks again for your words of advice and encouragement.

I will certainly shoot off an email to pansh tomorrow and explain the situation, id prefer to send these back and buy another brand.

I had a feeling there was room for more brake to be applied on the lines. I was doing what you explained to do to reverse launch but there must have been some slack left as that input had no effect on the kite.

The incident with the lady really took me by surprise. I had kite killers installed but due to the handles being staked down and having some pull on them, they werent readily accesible to grab to pull the kite out of her way. In a panic I literally made a grab for the lines and wrestled the kite back and to the right. I dont think I could do it again, must have been adrenaline. it certainly didnt do my hands any good.

She was chatting to me after and was oblivious to the danger. Even after explaining to her, I dont think she fully understood.

Even though I learnt nothing about handling a kite today I learnt to respect them alot more than I thought I ever would and as you say, watch out for the general public and the crazy things they can do.

I love the thrill of seeing a big kite in the air but Im packing the 5.5 away for now and will maybe never fly it again, but hopefully one day I will learn to take it to the sky again.

Don't put away the 5.5 forever. It is an OK kite and you will want that power once you get going on the mountain board. Look at how big some of my kites are and I weigh less than 150lbs. Once you get the lines tuned and fly it in lighter winds you will start to like it. You will be real happy with yourself when you get a 3m and become the master of it ! It won't take so long with the right kite.

Odds are Pansh won't do a return but they are likely to replace the handles. They aren't the best but will do the job.

Astr4twin, It's encouraging to hear that even at this very early stage in your progression that you have raised concerns about the safety of others around you. You obviously have an instinct for potential danger, this fear will serve you well.

Bladerunner is right. Land and secure your kite if you start to become distracted. Distraction in this game is the mother of all......ups.

If you can't reverse launch or you notice the kite bouncing without leaving the ground then you're either over powered or you seriously need to get those brake lines shortened and/or lengthen the power lines.

You can secure the kite by walking over to it and flagging it out. To do this, grab a wing tip and drag the kite directly into the wind until its flapping around like a flag in the wind. Then put something heavy enough on that wing tip to secure it. No need to carry an anvil around with you though, a bottle of water should do.

The fact that your adam is closed cell also plays into things. As you will have noticed it keeps it's shape when parked.

Redsky is right on about flagging it out . Probably the best way to reduce all power.

Heh. Welcome to the exact same experience every single one of us has had in one form or another. Don't worry, it's natural, and yes the rabid obsession does calm down after a bit, but never the enthusiasm. Don't let these guys fool you into thinking we were all very careful and methodical about our approach... We've all made some ... Erm... Enthusiastic lapses in judgement. Mine was a climbing harness modded jobby attached to a Pansh Ace (horrible idea, btw... Hit me up if you need tips ). They've just forgotten because they've been doing this for so long.

So yeah, put that Pansh away or sell it and get yourself a Beamer or a Hornet or a PKD Buster. I still use mine all the time after 3 years, but ya know what? I don't miss that Pansh 5.5m Legend that tried to kill me a few years back AT ALL. 3m is the sweet spot, and will be plenty of power for your size. No need to buy new, since you're going to beat the hell out of it anyway. Check out kitecrowd.com for a really knowledgeable group of UK folks. Then go out and meet some dudes in your area and fly their kites before you buy anything else. I often lend my kites out for months at a time, if I'm not using them, so maybe someone will take pity on you and/or fix your Pansh in the process.

It takes time and a lot of flying.