...just a word about the Dynafit system in case anyone is wondering about negative comments made above...

Dynafit has several models ranging from ultralight A/T race bindings and boots to 16 DIN A/T bindings and very stiff boots if you want that. The binding I use are 12 DIN which is fine for me, "TLT Radical FT". I have been skiing my entire life and feel completely confident with mine on any terrain, on or off piste. The burliest Dynafit binding is the "Beast" and it is 16 DIN and are also extremely light. The Dynafit gear is engineered really well, and unless someone screws up the mounting process they will suffice for 95% of people snowkiting with them. The lads out west in WY and MT are doing incredible things with these bindings.

check out the website at http://www.dynafit.com/en

If you are going to race on ice all the time or want to run gates at your local mountain or the pro circuit all the time ...sure then yes you will want a true race binding...but this thread is about snowkiting, so i think it's a bit ridiculous to even suggest that the Dynafits are inadequate in any way. Of course they are not cheap, but if you want a really light setup that works as an A/T system they are awesome. Some of my friends have the Markers Dukes and regret not going the extra mile to get the lightest package possible (Dynafit). But as I said before it's a big commitment to the tech binding and boot...so that's obviously up to the individual of course.

Some people might say...meh, who needs the A/T option? Maybe many don't need it, but I have justified this for myself so many times now that it would have been crazy to have something else. Just today I was kiting with the 15m SPeed3 on some beautiful early winter snow here and kept going and going until the wind died because tomorrow it's all going to melt. Unfortunately my timing was off and I was a good mile away from my van without a breath of wind...so I packed up the kite and rotated the heels into touring mode and had a beautiful time striding back to the van as I watched the sunset. It actually adds another wonderful dimension to being on the snow, because you are mobile with or without wiind or gravity. Any you can put skin on and go uphill with ease as well. So it's much more than a downhill ski binding, which adds a lot of value for me anyway. And it sure beats the #@%$#! out of post holing with heavy boots and carrying your skis, or trying to skate with your heavy boots-skis-bindings in 20" of fresh snow.

just sayin'

Scored 3 excellent days with this last storm (11/19, 20, 21)....day 1: lit with 6m Peak, 20-25+kts, day 2: 25-30 kts super lit w/5m Core XR3, day 3: mellow cruising w/15m FS Speed 3....but now it's gone with a 2 day warm up

...and I even had to trek out the last mile with the A/T skis on the last day when the wind completely died at sunset and I was at the furthest distance possible back to the van....LOVE that touring capability!!! it would have sucked big time trying to "skate ski" thru the deep snow or walk through the deep snow and thick grass below it, sinking up to my thighs. It was an absolute pleasure gliding along on the skis as the sunset in front of me!

praying for the next snowstorms to hit

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152924856485229....

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152922122675229....

Nice pictures. Looks like a farm field. I know a couple of farmers in the area that I have considered asking to snowkite on their field. It looks like soy bean fields would be best?

I would think any crop that has a small root system would be good. Soybean and hay fields work best around here. Corn is a no go because of the nasty roots that farmers leave until spring when they do their plowing.

Hey Cheddarhead, I didn't mean to copy you. I didn't realize how similar our avatars look since they were both taken holding the camera with our right hand. :D

If I would have been holding my ion air pro instead of the phone, it would have looked more similar.

Heck, that's not copying :D This was just a snap shot from some film I had last year. It's pretty seldom I get anybody to film me. Typically it's me holding the gopro in some form or another. It's lonely being a kiter in Green Bay. I need more people to join in the fun!:D

Ditto. I'm always my own camera man.

When considering riding on farm fields there are always several considerations to take:

fetch: if the field is too small and surrounded by tall tress or other physical wind blockers it will probably suck. I would say anything smaller than 3000ft x 3000ft is going to be turbulent. Of course whatever surrounds that area is critical...if it's fairly flat and open beyond those boundaries it's better than if surrounded by tall objects/land features, etc.

snow depth: obviously you need enough snow to cover any of the exposed plant material, dirt, etc. Some snow types will pack down better than others on the fields. If it's too light and cold it might not bond and just blows off.

The field i rode the other day was a mix of alfalfa and some areas of corn. the corn stubbles were probably about 12" long and some protruded thru the snow. landing a kit on the stubble or any other rigid/sharp plant material can spell the end of the day by damaging your inflatable or foil kite. The foils have an advantage of not having bladders to be popped, but the LEI's have fewer bridle lines to snag on things.. o you just have to work with what you have. The last 3 days I rode it was foil, LEI, foil...I only used the LEI on day that it was too windy for my 6m Peak so I used a 5m LEI.

hazards: scope it out to make sure there are no hidden hazards like pipes, wires, cables, barbed wire hidden below the snow, etc. tree stumps, powerlines, old wells, pits,etc..etc.

if there is measurable snowfall and enough to kite safely try to get out before the wind increases too much and scours the snow
off the fields (or scrubs the ice).....some of our best sessions are right after a good snowfall with light wind. some of the place we ride n the dunes can turn into sand again within a day or less if the wind blows too hard or the sun heats up too much. The sun will penetrate the snow and heat whatever is underneath it if its warm enough.

and do yourself a favor and do a good wax/tune job on your skis to get max performance and minimal frustration.