guitar_nut

Cannot belive that! Why not? Shhhh! I'm trying to keep him from coming over here and slaying a park full of children with his runaway kite.

Gawd damn. That could have been a bloody mess if you had been dragged any further. Since you've already had your butthole properly shredded, I'll be nice respond with some advice: 1. Get some lessons. An afternoon with an instructor will keep you out of the hospital; 2. After you get the lessons, don't fly alone. Have someone experienced help you launch if you haven't already flamed your local reputation. You don't want to be alone in the water if you get hurt. 3. The only thing you should be worried about when launching is the kite. Put the board down and throw that leash away. You can grab the board after the kite is launched, stable, and clear of all people and obstacles. 4. Through the entire launch process, you need to be ready to throw your safety. If the kite had spun up on those twisted lines, you'd still be dragging. 5. Pick a safe launch area. Inflate the kite. Set it down. Unwind and walk your lines. Then connect them. 6. If you completely f__k up and wrap your kite around a sign, disconnect yourself from it. The ride's over. You can put down the board and the bar. Deflate the kite if you can't safely remove it from the sign. People get hospitalized and killed because they get dragged into rocks and pavement. You need to take this sport more seriously. If at any time you can't comfortably do numbers 3-5, you're flying beyond your abilities. By the way, there are NO good kiting spots in the United States. At all.

I almost pissed myself laughing. Part of me even feels guilty for exposing you to this unspeakable horror.

For the love of god, we're not into feltching!

She has kite surfed in the past but will need refresher lessons. I should clarify that the kiting will be a small part of the trip. We're both into snorkeling, kayaking and swimming, and will spend a lot of time exploring whatever island we end up going to. These spots weren't picked just for the kiting

She has kite surfed in the past but will need refresher lessons. I should clarify that the kiting will be a small part of the trip. We're both into snorkeling, kayaking and swimming, and will spend a lot of time exploring whatever island we end up going to. These spots weren't picked just for the kiting

Don't hate me... for our honeymoon next year, my future wife has tossed the following two locations into the hat as possible kite surfing destinations: Cabarete in the Dominican Republic The Provincials in Turks and Caicos Anyone have any experience or local info with either place? She wants to take lessons and I'm an average rider. We're cool with no-frills accommodations and want to get in some snorkeling and swimming as well. We're looking to spend about a week in either location.

A quick piss, followed by a mandatory body drag to flush the suit, are standard with any long session. Wet suit shatting is forbidden as there's a 20% chance it will mush its way through the collar vs. one of the limbs. Do you want to risk having a poo beard? I didn't think so. Don't forget, ocean friends, that piss attracts certain types of sharks.

A quick piss, followed by a mandatory body drag to flush the suit, are standard with any long session. Wet suit shatting is forbidden as there's a 20% chance it will mush its way through the collar vs. one of the limbs. Do you want to risk having a poo beard? I didn't think so. Don't forget, ocean friends, that piss attracts certain types of sharks.

As everyone said, ignore the wind ranges. I bought the 15m and use it for land, snow, and water (I weigh 200lbs). I don't even get it out unless the wind is a steady 10-12mph. It's sooooo slow in low wind. One the wind picks up, I'll stay on it until around 20-25mph, but I won't throw any huge jumps in those winds. It has a great range of trim for when the wind picks up, and the depower is very good. The safety system also works very well. Whichever size you end up getting, know that it's a very good kite with a big wind range that will allow you to ride on snow, land, and water. If you're a beginner on depower, I'd recommend the 12m. I also recommend you demo both sizes. The Speed 3 flies very differently from other depower kites.

It only looks sketchy when you spend most of your day watching videos of the best kiters in the world. I had forgotten what it looks like when somebody actually wipes out!

I've got an 05 Frenzy 10m with the "top-hat" safety. The bar pressure is high, it suffers from tip-tuck at the edge of it's (small) wind window, and stalls or lulls in the wind result in a nice tangle fest unless you're quick to save it. The clam cleat also has a tendency to lose its grip on the trim line, sheeting out the kite at the worst of times. I don't even bother trimming it any more. It's either full power or nothing Once you get a feel for it you'll find it to be just as fun as the newer kites. It responds quickly to bar inputs, has great float in steady wind, and is a beast in higher winds. You'll probably need 10mph+ wind to really have any fun with it, though, unless you're riding on really smooth terrain. Watch out for the safety system. It doesn't fully depower the kite. I've been hit by a squall, threw the safety, and still got dragged on my butt.

Hey Jack, love the Blade 8.5! I've got one myself and after a few years I still love flying it. I think the whole helmet discussion is pointless; I don't let an internet chat room tell me what to do and you probably don't either. I will however give you some good advice I wish I had received earlier. If you're flying without a helmet, become (if you're not already) more weather-wise. I've had a few times where I was flying on a clear day and then got blasted by a gust front. The last time it happened (a few years back) the wind went from about 15 knots to 30+ knots. I was flying a 7 meter fixed bridle in the park, messing around. I don't know how I even held on, but I was RIPPED into the air when the gust hit and flew a good 30 feet, landed hard, and was knocked unconscious. It was a cold front pushing a mass of air. I had no warning until it hit me. I wear a lid when I'm riding, but I still don't wear one when I'm "fun flying." What I have done, however, is learned to interpret the weather. Watch out for pressure changes, incoming cold fronts, learn how to read prognostic charts and wind reports, etc. You're not going to get hurt because of your flying skill. You're going to get hurt because Mother Nature, every now and then, throws you a nasty curve ball that no amount of skill will handle. Either be ready to take the hit (wear your pads), or learn to interpret when it's coming so you're not caught with your kite in the air. Concussions lead to depression, sleep apnea, memory loss, and other fun symptoms. It is YOUR choice to wear the helmet, not this forum's. If you go without, make yourself a smarter flier and lower your risk because some weird s**t can happen up in the sky. Blue skies!

His next shower is going to be a religious experience...

To answer some of your questions: 1. Kite Size Your kite size will be based on your weight, skill level, and the winds you're planning on flying in. When I started out landboarding, I was flying a 10 meter depower foil in 12-16 mph winds. Now I fly that same 10 meter in 25 mph winds. For strong, gusty winds, you're going to want a smaller kite until you get used to handing a depower. 2. Foil vs Inflatable If you're going to kitesurf, you'll probably want an inflatable. If you're spending most of your time on land, a foil might be a better starter kite. You can definitely use inflatables on land, but they tend to get damaged easier when you're learning (punctures, tears, etc)... I watched one of my friends DESTROY his inflatble Cabrinha on a soccer goal, while my foil would simply tangle up into a fixable wad I'd really recommend befriending some other riders and trying out their kites. There is a world of difference between the inflatables and foils when it comes to speed, power, absorbing gusts, and relaunching.

Any chance you'd ship to Colorado, USA?

HOLY... The guy who flys through the guy wires on the tower is a NUT!

Don't mean to offend with these questions, just getting some background. Have you flown depower kites before? What kind of stall is it? Is it happening during regular static flight, during riding, during a jump? Are you trying to fly in lower winds? It sounds like a back stall where the kite goes 'backwards' and sinks. The first things I would try would be: 1. Make sure you don't have the bar pulled all the way in when you're at the edge of the window; 2. Make sure your brake lines aren't too short (has the same effect as flying with the bar pulled in); 3. Try pulling in some trim; Interested to hear what the Montana is like. They look like fun foils. I wouldn't mind a session on one, but nobody out here owns one.

It ain't the kite. I've got a Speed 3, and the most exciting thing you'll see me do is a 7 second tail grab That is some sick riding going on there!

I gotta ask... is the 21m fun in 4-6 knots? Love the footage!

Yeah, I've seen your videos. You do lots of unnatural things with your kite

Thanks for the feedback, all. It definitely wasn't a kiteloop. I made that mistake long ago and entered a transition, ass-first... won't be doing it again. Besides, the Flysurfer takes DAYS to loop. I'm lucky if I can get it back to the 45 before I land. Stiffer winds are a different story, of course. I did let the bar out about halfway during mid-rotation as I had been boosted higher than I expected. Sounds like my bar position, combined with some funky wind, sealed my doom. So you guys always keep the bar fully sheeted in during a jump?

I was out on the lake the other day. Wind was about 12-16 MPH, with a few small gusts. I was working my 360s without any issues. Flew the kite up to 2:00, sent it, spun, pulled the bar for a redirect, bla bla bla, everything's as it should be. On one of my last jumps, something goes horribly wrong. I end up swinging out in front of the kite. I'm trying to get oriented, I'm too high and I've overspun... the bar is sending me mixed signals... I desperately look for the kite to salvage a landing, and spot it about 15 feet past the zenith, behind me and flying towards the ground. I pee my snowpants. I land flat on my back from about seven feet up. My helmet earns its paycheck. What happened? I've had this kite for a year and haven't ever had this issue.

He had a long rope, strong wind, and HANDLES?! I wonder how he planned on coming down once he was 50 feet high, trying to hang on to the kite? At that point, you can: 1. Let go. 2. Fly the kite to the edge of the window and eat s###. 3. Hang on for a few days until the wind dies down and float down, light as a feather, admiring your newly-formed 40 inch biceps. He's effing lucky he didn't make it all the way up.

I was lucky enough to spend four days taking kitesurfing lessons and riding on Kahana Beach, Maui. Just wanted to send a shout out to the local riders and instructors that got me going. Riding on water was unbelievable. Bigger jumps and faster lines, without the brutal impact that I'm used to from riding on the land. Although I did have a nice faceplant that shatterd my sunglasses and had me seeing stars. I found out water is not so soft when you're eating sh## from 20 feet... There was no attitude from the locals and everyone was really focused on helping out the new riders when they needed it. Having dealt with a general anti-kite attitude at my local parks back home, it was nice to be amongst a kite-friendly crowd!