I'm really trying to maximize my time on the water this year and am wondering about light wind kite sizes.

What do you all think would be the minimum size kite I would need to get out kiting in 10knots.
And is it even worth kiting in 10 knots?

My only board is a Best Armada 135.

Location- Perth Metro
Rider weight - 87kg

Would a 15m do it as a minimum starting size?

I have an 11m Waroo, but even though the chart for it says it can, it struggles to fly in 15knots - that's why I'm not thinking of using the 11m with a surfboard in lighter winds for example; I'm looking for a kite I can use with my current board that will get me out and on the water from 10 knots.

Cheers for any advice.

The board will make the most difference in sub 15 knots, get yourself a directional light wind board first (i.e. airush sector) and learn to ride it and jibe it. Using a normal size twin tip you're looking at barely going upwind and a few basic jumps in 12 knots on a 17m light wind kite for your body weight. Below 12 knots at your weight you can just forget about your twin tip even with the biggest kite you can find, but with a light wind board you'll be able to get down to 7-8 knots over time...just don't drop your kite and be ready to self-rescue if the wind drops!

Well if your goal is to ''maximize'' the times you can go out then 17m is a great size for your body weight. 15m or 16m is also great and will turn faster but obviously a little less power and this can make a great difference when you have a 12 knots day. The advantage with the bigger sizes is you don't have to move the kite so much to enjoy your ride. You can develop nearly as much power with a 13m vs a 17m in light wind but you'll have to move the 13m like crazy where you could just park your 17m.

ok so my take .

i own a 10.5 mkII obsession and 13.5 MKIII obsession .

100kg

bought a sector 60 instead of a third kite and i can comfortably kite and have fun in anything over approx 10 knots .

Cheaper to buy a sector than a third kite

You must be a bit lighter than me ZaZz with 10m in 10 knots, but possibly you have a better kite.
My 11m Waroo doesn't really like the lighter side of it's reported wind range- I can get it launched in lighter winds, but it stalls and falls back a lot when I'm on the beach with it deciding if I should go on the water, even with the bar pulled in.

Perhaps I'm just overestimating the wind strength at those times.

Thinking about it now, the board idea is interesting, I can see getting something like the Sector 60 would be a double bonus, allowing me to get out early in light winds and giving me practice for racing, which I'd like to do when I actually get some decent riding skills.

Board is way more important than kite for light wind. I was also out today on a 9m RRD vision with a 5'10" North WAM. Struggled in patches but had a pretty good session. I'm hovering between 85-90kg (maybe a shade more!). Saw another guy on a 17m with a twin tip.

OF,

Have you thought about a Flysurfer Speed3? I suggest 15 m for your weight. They are recognised as light wind kites. At 75kg, I was out on a 12m Speed3 on a twin tip, heading relatively easily upwind at Swannie between 5pm and 7pm today (SB graphs say 10 knots). These kites generates lots of power from their apparent wind, as they are shaped as a plane wing. The hardest bit is to generate the apparent wind at the waterstart, then it's just a nice fast cruising on a flat ocean. The other unusual bit is that Flysurfers are foils, they work as inflatables once they are in the air, but you will need to learn some basic packing techniques (in the manual) to stay tangle free...

Nevertheless, a bigger board / racing board is possibly an easier and more efficient solution than a larger kite for light wind.

Regards,

Fred

oceanfire said...

I'm really trying to maximize my time on the water this year and am wondering about light wind kite sizes.

What do you all think would be the minimum size kite I would need to get out kiting in 10knots.
And is it even worth kiting in 10 knots?

My only board is a Best Armada 135.

Location- Perth Metro
Rider weight - 87kg

Would a 15m do it as a minimum starting size?

I have an 11m Waroo, but even though the chart for it says it can, it struggles to fly in 15knots - that's why I'm not thinking of using the 11m with a surfboard in lighter winds for example; I'm looking for a kite I can use with my current board that will get me out and on the water from 10 knots.

Cheers for any advice.

15m ozone edge should do the trick nicely. 2012 or 2013
Just depends on if you want to fork out the cash. Once you do, you will understand, they generate a lot of power.
There is even a few 2012 edges that 'WDRIC' has for sale in mint cond. Thank me later.

No probs surface2air, the more the merrier.

Thanks for all the advice guys, once again with kiting, I can see that there is no straight cut answer as I would hope.
Seems I've some investigating/demoing to do.

Yep, no single answer indeed.

Medium kite and large board will give low-end planing, but jumps will be anaemic. A bigger kite on your regular twinnie will give better jumps.

However, too big a kite on a regular twintip and you'll feel the board dragging or even digging the nose in. A bigger/flatter board will relieve this as they can plane more efficiently at lower speeds and better resist the lateral forces from a big kite. (Getting an efficient upwind kite will help a lot with this - Edge being the obvious choice.)

Depends also on the style of riding you want to do - cruising, jumping, adventuring upwind/downwind, freestyling. All are possible and each will have different optimal equipment.

I'm looking at a 14m Catalyst as an all-round light wind option this season. Less outright horsepower than an Edge but a bit more playful in terms of turning, drifting etc, and snappier relaunch than the C4 in the lulls. In Melbourne and at 78kg I don't need a massive kite and my regular twintip will hold a 14 comfortably.

My 2c

oceanfire said...

I'm really trying to maximize my time on the water this year and am wondering about light wind kite sizes.

What do you all think would be the minimum size kite I would need to get out kiting in 10knots.
And is it even worth kiting in 10 knots?

My only board is a Best Armada 135.

Location- Perth Metro
Rider weight - 87kg

Cheers for any advice.

Hey Oceanfire - youve heard all sorts of variations to the light wind theme... I'll make a separate post for the FUN Version of Light wind Kiteing
Remember why we moved away from Windsurfing !!!