Hi all,

I have been kiting properly for about a year now. My current set-up is as follows
12m Liquid Force Assault
LF WLF 140x45cm Board
I tend to fluctuate between 88 and 90kgs

I have progressed to the stage where I can usually stay upwind and in general my turns are reasonably well executed. I am finding it difficult to progess to the next level though. The main reasons I am finding for this are:
1) If i make a couple of mistakes with my turns in relatively quick succession, I end up down wind and it then takes me a while to get back up wind. I can stay up wind and go up wind fairly slowly compared to others around me. Don't get me wrong, I am sure that my technique could be refined further
2) I find that the turning speed of the kite hinders any attempts to perform jumps. Again, I am sure technique is the biggest issue here again.

However, after flying a 9m Bandit in 22-24 knts of wind this weekend, I was blown away by the responsiveness and turning speed of the kite. I was particularly impressed by the power in the kite and the fact that it felt that I could have easily have got lift out of the water from the kite, something which I have never felt with my current set-up. I am now adamant that I need to upgrade my kite and possibly get a smaller board.

So i have these questions to people who have ridden and do ride the bandits:
1) Do you find that the 11m is a lot slower in the turn and in responsiveness than the 9m
2) What quiver do you have and what weight are you?
3) What sort of wind strength do you usually kite in and what size do you use for different wind speeds.

I appreciate any opinions you have on any of the above questions. I am trying to seek advice from as wider audience as possible, so I can be sure that I make the right choice.

Thanks in advance
Lemm

I've got a 9 and a 13 Bandit and weigh about 95kg, I reckon this is a pretty good combo as the 13 takes me from about 15 - >20 comfortably and the 9 starts at <20 and takes me up to 30ish no worries. My TT boards range from a 150 Airush Switch to a 132 FLX Underground.
Of course the 9 turns a lot faster than the 13 and is much more fun when there is enough wind, but I think the 13 would still be quicker than your current 12, and the 11 is quicker again.
If I was only going for 1 kite it would be the 11, and also I think a narrower board might be better too.
What ever size you choose I'm sure you will be happy and your kiting will improve heaps, coz the Bandit rocks and will give you more confidence IMHO.

I ve got a 9m & 13m, I love the 13 It has so much rang. The 9m for me is for the surf or 28 to 46knots. i'm 95 k & feel fine on the 13 in 11 to 28knots.

im 95 kgs and can hold my 13 bandit in upto 30, but its crazy! and its not really a great deal of fun, infact its ****.. so 46 on a 9, well maybe u can but at that wind speed i think a 7 would be better and crazy fun! anyway bandits rock!~

Charl dv said...

if you can hold a 9m in over 35 knots.. then the kite is either REDICULOUSLY piss weak.. or you weigh around 500KG!!!!

once again people.. dont quote the highest gust of the day as the windspeed you wer kiting in.. AVERAGE windspeed is the one you quote.. e.g. Friday was lets say a constant 22knots with a 26 knot gust.. you do not say you wer kiting in 26 knots you say you were kiting in 22 knots. and over the spread use the lower of the wind averages to be more accurate

another thing is alot of wind meters are very un accurate, my old mans one used to read 12 - 13 knots when the actual windspeed was 20 knots ( shown by internet graphs)

and lastly.. DONT OVER EXADURATE to make yourself feel/sound like a big boy. even a 7 is big for 46 knots.

I'll put money on him not being able to hold his 9m in 46 knots. As you say, there is a huge difference between hanging on through a 46 knot gust (feasible but not fun) and kiting in consistent 46 knot winds (mother^%#&ing impossible unless you are god or are in the morbidly obese category)

Nobody is impressed by these claims, and if you really do take your kite out in these winds, they'll just look at you as irresponsible.

Choice have a F-ONE board you might like to have a look at to keep your kit all F-ONE..