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Jeff206
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PostPosted: Apr 13, 2005 2:55 am    Post subject: New Rider Reply with quote

Hey, I'm currently studying abroad in Australia and jsut starting to take kiteboarding lessons, having a blast so far! Can't wait to pick up a few used kites and start going out a few times a week. I'm in Perth on the west coast of Aus and there's tons of people here who kiteboard. It's pretty seet the place I'm taking lessons from does them about 3 minutes from where I live, so that will be my local riding spot as well.

I agree with what some other people were saying on here about the sport getting a lot cheaper, I've seen tons of used kites and boards around here for pretty cheap and they're starting to pop up more and more on ebay as well. So, I expect it to start growing in the States a bit.
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jason_ssr
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PostPosted: Apr 13, 2005 4:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Congrats, and welcome to the addiction. Yeah, BEST Kiteboarding has really driven the price down in the industry. They are offering new 2005 kites for over 50% cheaper than the other brands. This also drives down the price of used kites.

I dont know how long youve been wakeboarding, but Shannon Best was one of the top pro wakeboarders in the pioneering days, and can still out ride many of todays pros. He is more in tune with what we want as more aggresive riders than some of the other companies who came from windsurfing backgrounds. They also know that we just want to get on the water and have fun, so they built a business model that allows for the sale of kites for much less than the competition. These guys are very good for the sport and are going to be the reason more people get involved and the reason more wakeboarders have the opportunity to add our style to the game.

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8824
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PostPosted: Apr 15, 2005 7:08 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I am looking for another kite to add to my quiver

I have a 21nemi

what would be the next size you rec?

I am thinking like a 14 yarga or something

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jason_ssr
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PostPosted: Apr 15, 2005 7:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

How much do you weigh? typically your quiver will move in increments of 4m to insure coverage of all wind conditions. I personally prefer higher aspect kites in the larger sizes, and medium aspect kites in smaller sizes. So I would get a 16m Nemi, 11m Yarga, and a 7m Yarga.
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PostPosted: Apr 15, 2005 1:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

close to 200

we have a lot of light wind days I am told, thus the purchase for the 21....

that would be the ideal quiver which will come,, but I want to get one more this summer and the rest next summer,,,,

plus, I need a deck,,,

I am looking at that drive board,,,,


you like your pro right?

Yargas starting at 299

I am having a hard time resisting

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jason_ssr
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PostPosted: Apr 18, 2005 1:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yeah, the Pro is sick, but you need to be juiced to really get everything out of it. The Float is good for lighter wind.
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bruehaha
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PostPosted: Apr 18, 2005 8:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I just got back from Jamaica, I never heard of kiteboarding and I was talking to a guy about it down here. I quit wakeboarding and jetsking when I had a couple kids and got rid of the motorized equipment, I still have my board though. I want to do this and can't stop talking/thinking about it.

I live in nebraska, mainly we have smaller lakes, but ocassionally we will get to some bigger lakes since we still camp. Can you do this in smaller lakes that normally don't allow wakes from motorboats? Is this banned anywhere for some reason? Of course I have a thousand questions. I called a kite company in town and they said no one does it here only because of the money. He said he kite buggy's on land, and tried one boat that was pulled by a kite but it threw a couple of big guys out of the boat so he sold it after one try. I need the water.

Should I jump in with some used equipment or research each component I need and buy it seperately? I guess the question is, can I get good used acceptable equipment for 500-600 to get me in? The first thing I want to know is where I can pick up a kite I can fly in my back yard just to learn how to get good at that part.

That is, if it is safe to do this on smaller bodies of water. Ironic that I have always said I love air. This seems like the pinnacle of entertainment.

Bruehaha
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jason_ssr
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PostPosted: Apr 19, 2005 5:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey man! Ask all the questions you want right here! Yes, you can kiteboard anywhere there is wind and water. Now, having said that, common sense needs to be use to make sure you have plenty of room downwind in case something goes wrong. Remember, you cant predict mother nature. Typically small lakes are fine, even with motor restrictions, but dont go try to ride in your friends pond, haha! The only resrictions/ban there are on kiteboarding are on bodies of water that have lots of low hanging power lines (obviously) and those where crowds of pedstrians/swimmers gather. So, though you CAN fly into the beach really fast, and jump over the entire swimming area doesnt mean you should. The first time you come up short and land on some kid, it will be banned. It is also banned infront of airport runways (Maui). Other than that you have full reign.

First thing you will want to do is take a lesson. I recommend a cheap flight to South Padre Island, Tx. You need to learn some very easy basics to make sure you know what to do when things go wrong. Flying and riding is easy when things are great, its knowing how to handle situations where things arent great that keep you alive and well. The flight and stay are very cheap and worth every penny when learning to kite. SPI is only waist deep for miles and have perfect steady wind. These things accellerate learning 100 fold. You can learn to ride and try all kinds of different styles of kites and boards and bars and other gear. Find which ones perform better for your style. You will change your mind 10 times before you settle on what you like best.

Then, go to www.iwindsurf.com and browse the used section. Look at kites from North, Naish, Best, and Slingshot. These have had good quality for years. Some of the other brands have a bad year or two out there that someone might try to offload on you. Get some cheap used kites and learn on them. You will beat them up, but you will gain lots of experience.

Then, once you know how you like to ride, and have stopped beating them up really bad, buy some new ones. When you are ready, you will want to check out Best Kiteboarding (link in my sig). They are top notch kites which sell direct to you without retail or distributors added cost, so you save over 50%.

Best has a good deal on the small trainer kite as well for learning to fly in your back yard. Check it out!

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Jason

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bruehaha
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PostPosted: Apr 21, 2005 4:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the info. The guy told me I would / could / or should consider a 12m kite for around 15mph winds in nebraska, with me being 150lbs. Should I go smaller for the first time around? Also, is there a good style board that is universal that I should be looking out for? I don't think I can wait to get to padre or june when we go to the lake in missouri where I am sure I can find lessons.

Daryl
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jason_ssr
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PostPosted: Apr 21, 2005 6:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

It funny, there is a correlation with money and easiness. Using beginner stuff makes it easy to learn, but once you are figure it out, the beginner stuff sits in the garage. Or you can save money and go ahead and buy the advanced stuff. It will be a little more tough to learn, but you wont have wasted gear either.

Basically, all kiteboarding boils down to 80% kite control and 20% wakeboarding. It boils down to being able to manage power production by the kite. When you are proficient, you want a kite with enough power to get you on plane and power up and jump etc on a small board. However, that much power given to a rookie means alot of hard spills. When you give it an incorrect control you are yanked up into the air 20 feet and slammed back onto the water unexpectedly. It knocks your board off and drags you 50yds. Then you have to get back to your board and in general spending alot of time paying for small mistakes. It doesnt hurt like faceplanting on a wakeboard, but is still counter productive since you spend more time retrieving your gear than you do riding.

Now, one school of thought is to change up the power structure. How can you go out with less power so that little mistakes dont cause so much downtime? Well the initial easy answer is go with a smaller kite. Smaller kite means less power. However, you need power to plane you on that small board. So along with your smaller kite, you need a bigger board. Bigger board need less power to plane. Now you can cruise around and learn to ride without the butt kicking of a powered kite. Now mistakes arent as noticable since it isnt as strong, and they can also be compensated for by carving that big board.

Now that big board is a few hundred bucks and will save you alot of time. But, once you get comfortable with riding, you are going to want to jump and be aggresive. You big board then goes into hybernation in your garage.

So, if you got the dough you can buy yourself an easier road. If you dont, then you can buy what you need and take your licks.

for 15mph, I would be on something between 16m and 21m, depending on water conditions, on my wakestyle board. A 12m wouldnt get me going on my board, but if I was on a 160cm board I could ride just fine. big boards can be fun, but once you into riding fast and jumping high, its a little lacking.

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bruehaha
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PostPosted: Apr 21, 2005 8:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

So I am thinking a used big board (somewhere around 160cm) and a medium kite (around 15m), a harness(Does it matter which one/type) and lines to get me going without getting discouraged or killed. Does best have any used trainers? Seems like they should be readily available, as after you have learned they wouldnot be needed. What about a 2 month rental? Hmm.. The lakes are smaller around here so I probably should play it safe until I am a little seasoned, Dont want to land on the shore, rocks, trees, etc...
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jason_ssr
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PostPosted: Apr 22, 2005 5:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Best doesnt deal in used gear, with the exception of selling off their pro teams stuff really cheap about once a year. I would get a new trainer and hold onto it. A 3m trainer is alot of fun on a skateboard or mountain board, and in your area, even a snow board. Its also cool to have because once you get riding, other will be bugging you to try it. Having a trainer gives you something they can do and you can show them without wrecking your riding gear or hurting anyone.

To get used stuff, go to www.iwindsurf.com and check out the classifieds. Lots of good stuff.

Harnesses are personal preference. A waist harness is more simple, light and manuverable, but can easily ride up out of position (depending on your body type). A seat harness is a little heavier, but gives better back support and is held down in the proper position all the time.

The frustrating thing about buying a starter setup and learning, if finding conditions condusive to learning on the gear you have. I too started with one kite (16m) and one board (158cm). However, this gives you basically a 5mph window of wind you can ride in which is 13mph-18mph. Any less is not enough and any more is too much. Then you have to deal with direction. When learning you want wind blowing straight down the beach, not too much onshore, and not too much offshore.

So, you show up to the lake on a windy afternoon, and its too strong. The next time is the right speed but wrong direction. Then its the right direction but too weak to fly. Then you have the right direction and right speed so you give it a shot. However, 30 minutes later, one of the conditions change. Or you get out int he middle of the lake having a great time and crash the kite and cant get it to launch. its quite frustrating. Once you understand how to ride, these conditions dont mean as much. At that point can ride in anything and be ok, but as a beginner, you want very specific conditions. This is the delimma of riding inland. All you can do is either buy another kite to extend you wind range or another board bigger or smaller to extend the range one way or the other.

Thats why I reccomend hitting the coast and getting a lesson in the perfect conditions and get the initial growing pains out of the way quickly. Then you can return home with an understanding of how it all is supposed to work. Then wind direction is as important and if its a little onshore its ok. You would also know how the kite is supposed to generate power and can ride more aggresively against increasing your range on the kite. Now maybe you can hold it til 21mph. Also, if you crash your kite in the middle of the lake, relaunching wont be an issue since you did it 50 times in 30 minutes in the warm shallow water of the coast. All that repitition in a short time paid off!

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Beaver
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PostPosted: Apr 22, 2005 6:01 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

jason_ssr, You sure know your stuff.
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bruehaha
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PostPosted: Apr 22, 2005 3:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

So you are saying that when you have just a little experience you can have a bigger kite, get out in guaranteed windy conditions and not get frustrated but still be able to play it safe? If you dont get the bigger kite you could get stuck trying to play it safe and the be frustrated because your kite wont launch if the wind settles to 10mph or less? Can you get there after a couple days of training?

I would think you need a bigger kite for snow boarding? I go a little around here and would definitely be interested in that as well.

Thanks a ton for the info. I have a couple months before it gets warm enough to toy around here so that should give time to find some training, and get prepped, I hope.
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jason_ssr
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PostPosted: Apr 25, 2005 5:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Its not hard to be safe, however, there are levels of "taking your lumps". The more power you are working with, the more drastic the effects of the mistakes. The best way to guarantee a good ride is to use a big board with a smaller kite. You will be able to get the hang of everything, but forget trying to boost really big or doing any tech tricks. You can jump 10ft or so easily and do some spins, etc. The cool thing is that if you steer the kite to the wrong posittion it just pulls funny and you slightly lose balance and you correct it. With a small board and big kite, if you steer wrong, it yanks you into the air, then drags you in the water. However, you can get right to trying wakeboard moves etc.

Actually, the snow uses smaller kites compared to water in the same windspeed. The most power you need when on the water is to get planing from down in the water. On snow, you are already standing on the surface and need minimal power to begin moving.

I learned by getting on a trainer and a skateboard/mountain board, and just rode around in parking lots or fields. I bet you could do it on snow no problem if you still got snow.

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