another question for the kiteboarders here ....

following on from my footstrap attachment question …

a board design question …

what size board [unidirectional] would you recommend for a 5’9 and about 200lbs [95kgs, roughly?] guy , just starting out , for at the moment flat water riding ?

length ?

width ?

thickness ?

nose width ?

nose and tail shape ?

bottoms contours ?

I was just wondering if I could go smaller than the existing 5’5 x 19 1/2 x 2 1/2" fish I was thinking to footstrap , or would a double ended [non-fishtailed] board be better ?

thanks , guys …all help much appreciated !

cheers ,

ben

p.s. - he already has the kite …I will get more details of the size and type , if that will help you answer this better ?

First of all, NOBODY rides directionals anymore, since '03 anyways.

I still use a 7’3" Bic with straps and a 6’8" custom when winds are really light, under 8-13mph.

Size of board totally depends on windstrength to body weight to size of kite.

For instance, 195lbs rider on a 12 meter inflate, needs at least 14-20mph winds to stay upwind, so a 6’ directional is equal to abouta 5’ twintip for planing surface. Both probably slightly too small for those winds and kitesizing.

Jibes are NOT the crowning glory in kitesurfing…only jumps with spins. Switchfooting is not seen as a plus.

Instead, make him a wakeboard style 6’ x 17" wide twin tip…flat rocker in the center, turned up tips. Planing surface equal to a 6’8" directional. About 3/4" thick with small, rounded tuck rails and single concave.

Static float is not important, except for self rescue used as a paddleboard.

Chip,

I wouldn’t bother with a foam board to start with,

take a look at this link for info on a plywood board

http://www.kiteforum.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=2324106&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=plywood&start=10

Depending on your friends size, kite size, wind speed, etc., the dimensions could change up or down.

Width seems to be more important than length, wider for less wind/more rider.

most production boards are in the 135x38 cm range. Plyboards are heavier than customs, but only just heavier than most

production boards.

On that note, lessons on the water are very important. These things have beaucoup power,

and can cause unhappy events in less time than you think.

I would try 7 or 9 ply marine plywood, used windsurfer straps, and foam foot pads from the big discount store.

The neat thing about a plyboard is its very easy to change to the smaller.

if you want tech, try this link, from EH in Cabarete, Dominican republic

www.cabareteairforce.com/news/148/ARTICLE/1103/2005-08-02.html

I’ve built them from the much dreaded Blue dow foam, pvc core, and a very heavy PVC sign foam.

Strapless on a surfboard is very “cool” right now also.

Hope this gets you thinking.

Pete

Strapless on a surfboard is cool for surfing waves… anything else and it’s not that great…

I usually ride a 122cm board by 37cm I think…

Works great…

Definently have paid some dues the past two days though. OUCH!

Guys, this query is about a guy who’s STARTING OUT kiteboarding, and a big guy to boot.

What you PROS ride is of no importantance. What you rode as your first few boards might be important.

Of most importance is what Chip’s friend should be riding.

" For instance, 195lbs rider on a 12 meter inflate, needs at least 14-20mph winds to stay upwind, so a 6’ directional is equal to abouta 5’ twintip for planing surface. Both probably slightly too small for those winds and kitesizing. "

umm…sorry ,

forgot to mention winds …

perth is “blessed” [?cursed ?] with 15mph [minimum ] seabreezes on a regular basis in summer .

on the Swan River , where he is presently learning , the winds are sometimes 5mph lighter.

a couple more questions …

in terms of ‘stability’ for getting up [is that an issue?] …

  1. are the “twin tipped” ones as “good” as a wider surfboard ? or better , perhaps ?

  2. would cutting down my wider fish into a smaller twintip , and building a bit of ‘flip’ into either end be a good plan , or not ? …How thick or thin should I keep it , if I do this ?

I ask these questions as a complete gumbie / newbie when it comes to kitesurf stuff …

I got a catalogue [with photos and descriptions of different boards] , watched a kitesurfing video , picked the brain of a guy in the local kiteboard shop here , but I guess I missed it , in terms of when my mate was there with me , pointing him out to the guy and going “look , THIS is the guy …what size / width / thickness/ design would you recommend ?”

anyway , thank you heaps for your help guys !

any more suggestions / experience to share on the different types of boards and setups for a complete novice would be MUCH appreciated …

cheers !

[this is WHY swaylocks ROCKS , I reckon !]

ben

p.s. - something in that original quote of Lee’s rings a bell …I think that might be the size of the kite … cheers !

edit …yep , just rang him…he said he had a

"12metre inflatable ,

and an 11 metre twin skin " , apparently [hope that means something to yo?

…the board he “was” on [but not standing up riding yet …still getting dragged !] was a 150cms ‘Airrush’ switch …3 fins each end [not thruster setup , though] .He was only borrowing it …had to give it back , unfortunately …

I’m an inflatable guy… but if that twin skin is a peter lynn and you’re a beginner GRAB IT!

Those things literally fly themselves. They aren’t as great for high powered non-sent/no whip tricks, but for starting out and just jumping and having fun they’re the shit. If you fall and just let go of the bar, the kite will automatically fly to zenith/12 oclock and has barely any power.

We had one at our local beach for a while… someone would ride it, then hook it into a little pole in the ground… it would stay in the air with nobody at the bar… then someone else would grab it and have a go…

As far as boards go, being new, the bigger the better. You want to ride a big board and small kite. It’ll help your learning curve.

Checkout some old litewaves in the 150cm+ range.

Yeah, twin skin PeterLynn ARC is the one.

Kiteboars do not need ANY float, if you plan to stand up on them. Surprisingly.

I started on surfboards and windsurfboards, and found a twin tip around 6’ long, about 15" wide is plenty for the 5-12mph winds if my kite has enough power. Thickness can easily be 3/4"…yes, less than one inch thick, and plywood works just fine.

Tip rocker, you don’t need much, as some guys ride plywood dead flat. Flat works if the board is short, so you can keep whichever nose up.

At 6’ long, you’d need tip rocker on both ends…maybe 2" max.

Insulation foam, 1" thick, skin of epoxy resin and fiberglass, maybe 3 layers of 6oz in the deck, 2 on the bottom, concave the bottom for glide and better edging.

Fins need lots for beginners, so make some of your own lexan or sheet glass, can be thin, like 3/16" or slightly less, about 3" tall and 6" base, 2 sides near the tips each end and maybe one centered on each end.

Small rounded edges…sharp edges skip out when powered, and on such a big board…6’ x 15 or 16", it’s a BIG board, small round hold better.

The board is ridden at about 35 degrees banked over.

For him to stand up in steady 10mph breezes, he needs a 18 meter kite, lots of skill to send the kite fast low, bent legs and constantly sending the kite for extra power. 10mph is NOT good, but he can stand up, ride downwind, and continually send the kite up and down for power.

this is great , thanks guys !

sounds like he did well , getting the peter lynn kite then , eh ?

[it was a peter lynn video we watched]

lee, I’m not quite sure what this means…

" The board is ridden at about 35 degrees banked over."

can you please explain ?

cheers !

ben

I wish I had a peterlynn for working on unhooked tricks and handlespasses… just leash to the chicken loop, don’t have to worry about relaunching or having it too powered…

It MIGHT be a while till my mate Steve gets to that stage , being that I watched him getting dragged face first through the water the other day , while trying to figure if he should let go of the kite or not [I would probably be dangling from telegraph poles or wires , if I tried kiteboarding at my local beach …]

ben

Unlike a windsurfer, kiteboard’s are ridden on edge all the time, never flat to the water.

Rider usually hiked out about 50 degrees, board perpendicular to the rider’s body line, about the same level as the kitelines actually.

For a rider to have enough power to get upwind slightly (he loses the upwind position when he jibes…either directional, or twin tip), he needs the kite to have lift app 100 lbs while on land. That same lift allows his board to be ridden on edge, and has about 1/3 of the board in the water…the rest out.

That would be for a 200 lbs guy riding powered up, say…15mph winds on a 16 meter inflatable kite, using a 142 x 16" wide twin tip.

" Unlike a windsurfer, kiteboard’s are ridden on edge all the time, never flat to the water.

Rider usually hiked out about 50 degrees, board perpendicular to the rider’s body line, about the same level as the kitelines actually."

ah, thanks Lee !

It’s quite complicated , I guess , for a beginner …when he had me hold the wires of the kite , and move the kite around …gee …I thought I was about to become a hang glider .

I quickly gave him the baton [or whatever it’s called back] . Those kites sure seem to want to lift me off the ground in a hurry ! [think I’ll stick to paddling out for now]

“kitesurfer” . "board crazy " …where are YOU guys …

anything to share from england about flat water kiteboarding , your experiences learning , what board you guys learnt on and would recommend for my mate Steve ? [ like I said , I know nothing about kiteboarding ]

cheers … any help MUCH appreciated !

ben

perth , west australia

I learned on a wakeboard, which was a BAD mistake… slowed my learning curve down HORRIBLY.

Although, now I’m riding pretty good.

And you do ride flat sometimes… if you’re going to fast, you just point downwind. Or, if you want to unhook, point downwind for a second to get some slack in the lines. It’s not often, but sometimes.

Ben, here is a link to a discussion about the plane ability of kite boards that might be helpful in your design process.

http://www.kiteforum.com/…wtopic.php?t=2325913

For someone just learning to kiteboard the plywood boards are ideal. If you lose the thing you’re only out a couple bucks for the wood and bindings, and the time to make a new one.

You don’t need to be very high tech to get a good board. Some plywood in the 150x46 cm with the corners rounded off would be good. No rocker or very slight, and straight sides would work fine. For light wind keep a hard slightly tucked rail at the ends for release.

Have you thought about making a skim board also. I have yet to try it, but I made one to give it a go when the snow goes away. Here is a link to threat with a picture of my kiteboard and skimboard. You’ll have to look for the picture I can’t remember which post its in. I think the picture is labeled “projects”

http://www.swaylocks.com/…ing=sparkles;#232253

If your friend is going to use it in surf you may want to put a bit more into it.

Here are a couple of videos of the fly door (what I was looking at for my kiteboard). Have a look at the “lightwind kite”, “Kite Launch” and “jump” videos.

http://www.flysurfer.de/Gallery/view_album/album01/?gallery_inline=1&mnid=214

Off to kite ski this weekend ‘cause all the water here is frozen.

Hafte

Seems to me…

If you kiteboard, and you use a twin tip, why kiteski? Why not kiteSNOWBOARD?

Then you can ride just like kiteboarding!

Chipfish…what is meant by wakeboards being no good…wakeboards have more rocker than any kiteboard. Only ONE company makes a crossover. The reason for the increased rocker on wakeboards is the boat has basically unlimited horsepower, and can power any rocker setup.

The kite, on the other hand, has very limited power when the winds are light.

Notice I said you need about 100 lbs of lift when you are on land, so you can ride powered up and maintain upwind. Well, you weigh 145lbs., so there IS some safetey valve there.

It’s called a bar, the lines are lines, the inner lines of foils are brake lines, the inner lines of inflatables are power lines, and the trailing edge lines are called steering lines.

LeeDD, why kite ski? Well… mostly because I can. There are also situations in the mountains where skis are very much preferred (for me). Like when you need to step back/sideways to remain standing or if the wind dies and I have to skin out over hill and dale to get back to the car. And another small problem… I don’t currently have snowboard mounted. Due mostly to laziness on my part.

The snow has been too good this year, so I spend most of my time on the slopes playing in freshy pow. So, making time to go out to the shop and work on the snowboard has not been a priority, but you’re right. I do need to perfect my skills on the snowboard so when the water is liquid again I’ll have a better feel for it.

Got Pow?

Hafte