I have read a little bit about difference between land and water and want to know if I am understanding it correctly. If you want to primarily board on land then you require less kite size forgive me if I am way off. This seems to make sense to me because I know it takes alot of HP for a boat to pull a boarder. I plan on buying my first kite soon and will stay out of the water for now.

Very true, not much more to add. You gave a very good example.

Thanks is there a good trainer for a 200+ like myself that will eventually let me landboard not anything crazy just crusing around

Thanks

how much do you weigh and do you know what winds you'll be flying in and what surface are you riding on? all that plays in to what size kite(s) you will need.

opps you posted as I was typing. At 200 you are big. Typical trainer is in the 2-3 m range. I would say you should start with a 3m fixed bridle or 5m depower (requires a harness) for your first kite but they'll become your high wind engines as you gain skill and you'll need additional fixed bridle kites in the 5-8.5 meter range or depowers in the 7.5-12, range for a full quiver.

240 trying to drop some weight and live in Ontario Canada closest to lake Ontario not sure about surface don't really know I know there are lots of sod farms around here might be able to get permission

Get a 5-7 meter depower, your going to need the extra size for your weight.

Im sure you could find a good used landboard some where on this forum or on ebay.

A cheap alternative would be a pansh legend from www.panshkite.com

get a 3 meter if you must, (good high wind kite)

thanks this is great info

http://www.panshkite.com/index.php?gOo=goods_details.dwt&...

would this be on the right track?

Yeah the blaze 2 is a great kite, Your going to need a depower bar though.

I suggest you talk to Dakitez, he will be able to recommend the proper set up.

From what i understand, any 4 line(depower) bar will work with this kite, some tuning will be needed for good flight though.

Not a good choice if your goal is to ride on water + land.

The kite you are looking at is an OPEN cell depower kite. It doesn't come with bar or lines. No instructions either but they will sell it to you, no questions asked !

If you want to progress to water and want to go straight to a depower kite then you need to be looking for a 2005 or newer CLOSED cell foil or a LEI ( inflatable ) kite . Closed cell kites are made by . Flysurfer, HQ ( neo ) and SkyCountry ( wave ) .

HQ also make a great trainer that is good for water and may be an option for you. It is the Hydra, little Bro' to the Neo.

Skip the small kites and go for a bigger kite then exercise caution in the wind you go out in - buy a wind meter for $20 off eBay. Big kite, low wind IMHO is safer than small kite, nuking wind ... say 5m fixed bridle kite on handles for landboarding ...

I have to agree with Kami. At 240lbs you could hold down quite a bit of kite. Where I am light winds (like under 10) tend to be much less gusty and smoother power. Of course where you are it it could be completely different. Just be careful if you go big.

i def dont recommend pansh... they arew twitchy, unpredictable, and have very little resale value...

brands to trust: flysurfer, ozone, peter lynn... bladerunner mentions skycountry, i have no exp. with them, but would trust his word

a 7-8 m flysurfer, or 10m peter lynn would be great to learn on

The surface you use to landboard on has a huge influence on the amount of kite power you need. If you are on a smooth low resistence surface like a parking lot you will need very little kite size and, in fact keeping speed to a safe level will be the challenge, simply because you will have so little rolling resistence.. However if you are on an uneven surface, like a grass field, the kite pull needed is not that different from kiteboarding on water so you need a lot of initial pull to get started and then less to keep going. A depower system is pretty much a necessity here, like on water.

I gotta disagree with you frefel - grass to hard packed dirt/cement is not much of a difference IMHO ... soft sand is another matter though Work the edges of the wind window to control the kite speed and you'll be fine. Strangely enough this sport of power kiting is 90% kite control :D

So Pansh is not a good choice the neo 2 is pricey what kites have the value for the money keep in mind I do respect the term you get what you pay for just trying to keep my first kite affordable if saving for a little while longer is the best choice I will do that rather then spending twice.
By the way the advice given here is very valuable and greatly appreciated.

thanks

I think after my landboarding experience yesterday I would say the height of the grass seems to make a big difference. Short grass (1/2 inch on hard packed dirt) vs. long grass (4-6 inches and thick) is very different when it comes to rolling resistance.

The sod fields around here are hard and the grass is kept short sometimes after a field has been harvested it is really smooth hard pack dirt. Does this help the small town I live in is called Zephyr LOL

Verily, it is a tru-omen-man! Gonna snowkite this winter?

Hey, you're not far from frmr mbr williamrx7 . H kited the Lake Simcoe area if my misty memory serves. Had a good link to kite-spots all over.

Have to put the cash out slow first kite and learn how to fly it then some sort of board probably landboard first might have to save my penny's over the winter then hook up with someone to learn.

the good thing about pansh is if you decide if the sport isnt for you then you wont loose to much doe.

The blaze II is a good kite to test out and see if your up for it.

Kites are a bit like cars in that as soon as you take one out for it's first run the resale value has gone down greatly. ( with most models )

I am a firm believer in buying the past product that has proven sitelf in the market used. 2 of the best deals out there that I see are on Pulse and Pulse II's, Psycho III and IV and Outlaws. Similar with the Neo I but I understand not everybody was pleased with the safety or something on that model?

Twin skin arcs from the Venom and newer can also be very good deals second hand.

None of the above choices are good without some previous kite experience, lessons or someone to show you the ropes.

I have personally come across a fellow who bought a Blaze II in the park who was getting no place and ready to give up when He had the bar connected completely wrong . Not even using the right knots. From what I saw that day I would NEVER suggest somebody starting out alone buy a Blaze II . It nearly put this guy off kiting before he got started.

You may lose less on a Blaze II when you turn way but if you want to resell your kite Pansh doesn't hold strong resale value.

makes sense, i guess you do need prior knowledge to get the blaze 2 to fly correct.

Maybe he should get an Apex, cant really go wrong there.

i know theres a few for sale here on PKF

I guess one thing that is going around in my mind is would I be satisfied just flying a kite for a summer or would I get bored? because if I would be satisfied I would buy a nice trainer and just learn to launch,land and keep it in the sweet spot and enjoy the power when it was pulling hard but if I got bored I would have allready spent the money and have to wait longer to get a kite that will get me moving. Man tough decisions. At least I have the winter to figure it out and while I am thinking about it put some miles on the treadmill to get ready. May even take some advice and keep my eyes open for a good used kite.

One of the best things to do is take your time and avoid impulse buys.

It will be best for you to accept that you will eventualy NEED 2 or 3 kites to do the job in all winds properly. It is a sad reality.

You won't get bored with a small kite so much as look for stronger and stronger winds . You notice in our signatures how almost all of us have one.

It is your second kite that you want to choose very carefully to match your most common winds + goals.

Bro im telling you if your just looking for a SUPER FUN power kite to play with, jump scud,. And in addition to your miles on the treddy it will provide you with a crazy MMA style upper body workout

Buy a five meter Pansh Ace. I had my ace for about 6 months and i literally flew it every damn day. My neighbors thought i had lost my mind. It got me into landboarding too.

Even the 4.5 or 3 meter ace are super killer fun kites. Money well spent in my honest opinion.

I have modded my panshes every which way you could think of and they are still truckin

Side track alert -

Houston have you tried an AOA kit on your 5m Ace ? I have a kit but feel lucky with my Ace and am hesitant to mess with it.

ok I will take your advice but I have my heart set on a bar is that possible? with an Ace and I will need lots of help with rigging cause I have no idea what I am doing