I'll try to make this short but I've been looking at every post I can find about getting new kite. At the beginning of the summer I got a Beamer 2.5 and a board. I learned to fly it well and got on the board. I've been having a blast every day after work. I love it. The problem is I can only go downwind. I fly across the soccer fields but I have to do the walk of shame back and after doing 4-5 runs for 300 yards it gets old- that's a lot of walking. The little kite just won't or I can't get it to fy across the wind. The wind is usually gusty and inconsistant where I live and it takes some good wind to get me going and then I get almost ripped off the board by a gust.

So I'm wanting a new kite. I want something I can board with in calmer winds and get up in he air a little bit without geting hurt bad. I don't mind falling once in a while, just don't want to break anything.

I'm 180 pounds and have been looking at maybe a Crossfire, samurai or Riot. A guy at a kite store in Michigan when I was on vacation tried to sell me a 10M ozone access he had on sale. Not sure if I'm ready to go depower -kind of scares me technial wise- but he "swore" the access would solve my problems - inconsistant wind, be able to fly acoss the wind and even upwind and limit the need for multiple kites. I've heard the access is good but doesn't give much lift. I would also like to get back into snowboarding. I used to 20 years ago when I lived near ski places but now I'm in a flatter part of the world. Any ideas here? Before I lay down my hard earned money I want to be sure I'll like it and there's no where around her to demao anything. Thanks and thanks for all the great info on the site.

Scott... you sound like me..haha. I weigh 180lbs as well... bought a 4m for boarding and found that the winds around here during the summer months were pretty calm. So I looked for something with a bit more umph and possible lift too. I considered an ozone frenzy or the ozone access, but also felt like learning depower before learning to fly with a board might be jumping ahead a bit. Also, depower tended to be so much more then fixed bridal kites.

Ozone makes awsome kites and the durability is awsome. I've got a 4m Ozone Little Devil that I had considered selling awhile back, but then decided to keep it for my high wind kite. Am thankful I did too. It's been beaten to death but is still crisp, nothing torn or ripped. If you didn't know it, you would think it was practically new. Again, the quality and name cost though..and you'll find that with other brands like Flexifoil.

A friend of mine got me into the HQ kites since he got sponsored by them. Like you probably already know..the quality isn't bad for the price of the kite, and the kites are just as stable as a lot of the leading brands out there. Wanting a bigger kite and with some lift I decided on the Crossfire 6.3
It's a monster! In 5mph winds I got lifted easily about 3ft. and traveled a good 10ft. before being gently brought back to the ground. Definitely the coolest feeling ever! If I had to compare the Crossfire to another kite (based on what I've read) , the only one that would come close or better would be the Flexifoil Blades (which again...the price is high).

I had considered the Sami as well...and from what I read about those, they didn't seem to have much lift, but were excellent kites for pull..making them awsome buggy engines. Haven't read too much on the riots but have seen clips here and there about those being really good for buggy's as well. Not sure about the lift on the riot though.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help. If you look for reviews of the 3 kites you're considering you should be able to get a good idea of which direction to go though. You'll find that there are a lot of kites that perform well at different things, whether it be pull or lift and then there are the good all around kites (like the beamers..which btw you can get lifted on..it just takes a bit more work. So maybe you can add a 5m beamer tsr to the list..haha).
~Joe

I'd go with a fixed power foil in the 4.5 to 5.5m range to go with your 2.5

If your looking for lower wind performance stay away from depowerables, they lose power right off the bat and you have to fly at least 1 size larger than you would with a fixed power. Lots of kites on the market though, I'd hook up with your local fliers and see what they're using, maybe try their kites if they'll let you.

Always best to try before you buy. The kite that I love, you may hate, what's perfect for me, my weight, my wind, my flying style may be horrible for another.


On the downwind thing, you're just underpowered, I still have trouble getting back to the starting point when badly underpowered, I tried to learn to buggy for a year with a 3.5m kite, When I finally switched up to a 5.5m, things progressed overnight, It's way harder to learn underpowered than slightly overpowered. Just don't send a fully lit kite skywards without extreme caution or a helmet and body armour.

Have you ever sailed before, I mean sailed, not go for a ride on a boat, but actually sailed it. Reading your post, it seems to me that you may not know the fine art of tacking. You are going to learn that the more hurried you are to get somewhere upwind. The less the wind (Maria) will cooperate with you. It is going to seem that know matter what size kite you might have it will not be sufficient to get you the tack you want. Hence, the need for more kites. You will need to learn to use what ever she (Maria) will let you have. Sometimes, depending of the speed of the wind and or the size of your kite, you will be able to make large or small tacks.

Thanks guys. I'm leaning away from the depower thing but he reviews of Montana sound so good. Pablo, I wish there were people around her that did this but I have never seen anyone one else. So getting a ride on someone else won't work. I'll just keep reading and I'm sure I'll eventually pick one.

You mentioned earlier about talking with your local shop. I would suggest going back there and talking to them a little more. They should know of other people who have purchased power kites from them as well as different areas to ride at or where the other locals ride. Drill them for information - after all that is part of their business.

I wouldn't write off depowerable kites to quickly, especially if you are looking to get back into the snowboarding end of things. The Frenzy, Access, and Montana are awesome kites that will give you exactly what you are asking for. A kite that will handle gusty poor conditions with incredible lift. Your store was not that far off by offering you the 10m. You may be better off with something in the 7.5 meter size at your weight and espeically coming from a 2.5m kite. But as mentioned, what works for your area will be completly different than what works for our area. If the winds are normally on the light side in your area the 10m may be exactly what your looking for.

Depowerable kites allow you to take a huge sized kite up in marginal winds, when the winds are up you keep the kite depowered, when the winds drop off to nothing you power the kite up to keep it in the air. There is a little bit more skill involved to fly a depowerable kite, especially getting the controls down for gusty wind conditions but it isn't that hard to do, especially since you have already been flying a power kite. The ability to boost whenever you want by powering up the kite is very awesome and if the conditions are right, boosting can be done with very little effort and your lift and hangtime will be much more than any of the fixed bridled foils on the market.

The only downside to the depowerable kites is the price...they are spendy!

Again, talk with your local store and see if anyone else in your area has purchased a Frenzy or Access and if they could get you in touch with that person(s). That way you can at least talk to the people about the kites or you may be able to give those kites a try before dropping down your cash.

The least expensive way for you to go would be to purchase a larger beamer to go with your 2.5. let us know how it works out for you.

Kent- Thanks for the info on the depower thing. The shop I was at was while I was on vacation - about 400 miles from here. They deal mainly with water based stuff but they did have some land stuff. I guess if I'm going to spend a lot on a kite, I just want it to be something good for everything. I know you guys have all heard that one before. The thing that I like about the depower is the ability to fly it in calmer winds as well as stronger ones. Even though some of the posts I've read say that the bigger depowerables don't fly well in calm winds.

Some people might not like my idea but if your goal is landboarding and snowkiting, I would say go for depower, something like size 7 Montana. It will be approximately size 5 in fixed bridle kites.

It is a big step from what you have and might take a little longer to learn but it will get you where you want to be and have more fun with it (eventually). Since you are landboarding already, I am thinking you will get depower kites sooner or later. You might as well get it now instead buying something else and sell it a month later to get depower kite.

Again, this is just my opinion but as long as you take time to learn it and take longer time before you use harness, you will be just fine. - Brian

So A 7M Montana can fly in light wind- say under 10 MPH?
Don;t you have to use a harness with a depower to control the power? The winds here are pretty crazy. One day east, next west.
With fall and winter coming they should be stronger and more constant. I was at the beach on lake michigan a few weeks ago and man was that great. Nice steady winds, no gusts.
I saw an ozone access 10M for $700 when I was in Michigan. I heard these don't have good lift though but will fly in calmer winds.

Well, the lower wind, the bigger kite you need. Keep in mind though, bigger kites are heavier and hard to keep it up in light wind.

Eventuall, you're going to need more than one kite for various wind speed and I am thinking size 7 depower is a good start and move onto size 10 depower later.

True on your harness statement. In order to untilize depower, you need a harness. But you still can fly a depower kite and landboard without harness. Just make sure you know what you are doing before using harness (learned that lesson hard way :-) - Brian

Scott... if you go to depower, yes you should have a harness. The lines run through the bar and connect to a loop, which then connects to your harness.
By moving the bar forward and and towards you, you change the angle of attack of the kite causing the kite to power up or depower. This is part of the reason why these kites have such a range in which winds it can they can be flown.

The ozone access is a great kite from what I've read..but like you said they do not really have any lift. They're more for people just getting into depower kites or wanting to cruise and not be lifted. If you have jumps you'll be able to pop some air on those, and if you really work the kite you may be able to get some lift that way too. However, you probably won't get the nice floaty jumps or landings with the kite.

The 7m montana would probably be a decent kite for 10mph and under. If you're looking for a depowerable lifty kite the Ozone Frenzy is an option too. (ohhhhh how I wish I could afford one) They're costly and you rarely see them used for sale though..but awsome kites. There is also the flexifoil sabre and of course the hq montana..all which are depowerable kites.

~Joe

I'd stick with fixed power for now, I've flown depowers, many other locals have and all have gone back to fixed. If you live in the windy city, depower is ok, but they just don't perform in light winds. Both the sabre 9.? and a new ozone 10m could not stay up in the air last weekend and I was easily cruising and pulling a few jumps with a 9m buster, I'm 245lbs, my buddy (220lbs) was getting along nicely on a 7m rad pro.

Both the buster and rad pro aren't the most extreme kite on the market either. Go up to a big Brooza, Bullet, Sammy and you'll be grinning. Big depowerables will still be needing 10mph+ to fly properly. tried and tested. A big Century will pull in 6-8mph.