Hi matthew,

As much practice on a trainer kite as possible will help heaps. Sounds like you have already got a heap of practice in with your stunt kite.
Pretty much any 2 line trainer kite will help, so what your doing is great.

Try to work out the edge of the wind window and try one handed control.

Good luck and enjoy

cheers angie

Trainer kites aren't that important for experienced kite flyers. It might get you slightly more ready for the pull of a real traction kite (as a delta kite sheds power but a trainer kite will harness it.) However, it probably won't improve your flying skills enough to justfy the cost.

Plenty of people will disagree with this but that's o.k. with me.

you could rent, beg, borrow or steal one for good value. They have their place but i wouldn't consider them "a must"

Trainer kites are great. There's always the chance to fly them with your new girlfriend or fella. Before you hook them up to your precious big kite.

As Colin says a ram air style kite will harness the wind and you will feel where the kite powers across the wind window. Ram air kites are pretty simple and generally heaps more durable. But not durable if you continuously smash them into the ground when its 30 knots
But more durable than a $1500 kite

Helps with lessons too. You wont be trying to get familiar with basic kite control and you will advance quicker during lessons. You want to know the basics when your paying almost $100 an hour for lessons.

Instructors rather do the water stuff than teaching you how to simply keep a kite in the air.

Ideal trainer kite is a 2m four line inflatable. they are absolute bastards to fly and relaunch. Any kite after that will be a piece of piss. Or use the local kite schools gear, they expect, nay want, their kites to be trashed.

i spose i better put my two bobbs worth in.... i learnt with a 9n airush dna straight off and im kicking myself for it. i recently accuired a training kite for my 6th kite and tend to have just as much fun with that on light days then i do with my 15m's. they are fun for skateboards in carparks too!!!
mine is a 4 line 3m foil kite... it kicks ass. i got mine brand new dirt cheap. it was cheaper from this one guy to buy a 4 line then it was to buy a 2 line...

a training kite is not a must but only stupid f**kers, like myself, would go with out.

as steve has said a trainer is great. I just brought one about 2 weeks ago and iv flown it around 8-9 times in some light winds, and winds up around the 25knts mark and let me tell you, Coming from no kite experience the trainer has taught me so much, with the assistance of a dvd explains the wind window ect, i have already become a confident kite flyier to an extent, as in a bigger kite will be alot more power full. But in terms of control and aspects of the wind window i understand alot more. Also the do's and donts i learnt, i would rater learn them on a $270 dollar kite rather then a $1800 one. Also steve, ill be coming in for my kite boarding lesson reaaal soon CANT WAIT!

A trainer kite probably isn’t "as" helpful as the good old days of having a lesson on a c kite unhooked but is helpful, back then kite control was pretty handy as opposed to being dragged about the beach, birds nest lines from kooked board starts and so on due to lack of kite control experience...

I used a trainer kite before getting into the sport and helped me get the most out of my lessons.

If you got the dollars go for it....

another option is buy your kite after or even before (use your kite in your lesson as a school lesson discount, shop deal...or private iko instructor setup) the first lesson making sure your taught the basic of self launching, landing and the rest of the gig primary about safety and so forth…then practice what your taught on a beach in light but flyable wind and then go for the second lesson once your confident in what you have learnt already.. No substitute by being connected to a large kite made to haul your butt about a beach! (Safely of course)

Trainer kites are really important for learning kite control.

I have flown pretty much all the trainer kites out there whilst teaching kids at school (not a kite school, a real one with detention, ovals and stuff) and with the "come and try kitesurfing days" up here in Geraldton.

None of the kite manufacturers that I have used seem to have put much effort into the design or maybe tuning of their trainers as Nathan has. Some feel jerky through the window or simply hover backwards in lighter winds due to incorrect bridle lengths. Thus not giving the flyer a true indication of what kite control is really about.

I would STRONGLY suggest as a teacher and kiter that you get your hands on a NEW trainer kite as they fly exceptionally smoothly compared to other brands and really do get people excited about the sport. It's very important that the trainer performs like a larger one, for transfer of skills to occur (which is the critical purpose of a trainer)

OR get another brand and a NEW and compare, you will see what I mean.

I found my trainer kite to be a waste of money, maybe hire or borrow one to make your own mind up?

Benji P, when you first get on a kite (trainer) it will feel strange and you will be fine having one that isent to powered, but quickly you will learn how to control it and you will probably want one with more power to have fun on in a larger wind range, but then again if you think you will sell the kite as soon as you start to get out with your big kite it wont really matter as you wont have it for that long anyway.

Obviously they aren't a must, due to the fact your going to get lessons and the school has them.

I would suggest if your going to want to save on a few lessons, then buy your own trainer about $160. That way, you can give pesky friends ago without risking their lives on a big kite also if you have kids you can get them started early.

They are just fun to have in the kit whilst the winds picking up too.

You can hire trainer kites now a days too. I know of a couple of shops that do it for about $40 per day. Maybe you can have a crack at that initially to see what you think and if its worth you buying one.

It was a kite shops 'open day' on the beach where I got my first taste of kiting on a 2m trainer. They showed me how to handle it and let me have a play for about an hour. I signed up and paid then and there for my lessons, and they let me keep a 3m trainer kite to practice with between lessons (after the first lesson). The First paid lesson was an hour and half on a 3m trainer, then same on a 5m 4 line bow.

I told the instructor I got about 12-15hrs or so on the 3m 2 line trainer before the second lesson (a week and a half later), so he had a look at my kite control on the trainer at the beginnng of the second lesson, and he put me straight onto his school kite 13m FONE Bandit !!

You definately progress better if you practice on the trainer, but once you got the basics down pat (15 - 20hrs), your better off practicing upwind body dragging on a full size kite in the water.

I agree with what the others say, you also may get use out of a trainer though on other days at the beach if you were to buy one. I wouldn'tmind having one to give my wife and kids to play with - maybe give me more time on the water !!

Benji P said...

Thanks for the tip hirschausen.

Another few questions though.

The "New" kite trainer is only a two liner and 1.6m.

I read on an american site that for my size of 80Kgs I really should match up with a 3-4 metre trainer, otherwise it feels like a toy and you do not feel the effect of being powered properly. Does it really matter that much?

And how about the lack of control compared to a 4 line setup?

I'm kinda conflicted on what to do.

Getting a 4 line trainer with bars and all for around $400 seems to defeat the purpose of trying to make the most of lessons. I could spend that extra on lessons. But then I don't have something to practise with when the conditions aren't right.

Atleast I know what to do in regards to boarding practice, I'm going to save up a little more and get both surf and wakeboard lessons

No need to spend $400, thats a bit over the top for a trainer, but its quite reasonable for a 4 line power kite that can double as a trainer, and then be used for maybe landboarding later.
Trainer kites come in a variety of sizes, because bigger people are better off with a bigger one, and some people live in light wind areas, so need a bigger one to get similar power.
Virtually all the no name brand kites I have seen on ebay are rubbish and are not worth even the low prices they sell for in my opinion.
Get a decent sized reasonable priced trainer or quad line power kite and you will get fun from it for years, get rubbish from ebay and you will just get a bad experience.

We have 2M trainers on bars from $179, and 3 liners from $225
https://www.kitepower.com.au/catalog/category_253_Trainer_Kites.html

3 liners come with a 3rd line that is connected to a wrist cuff safety that kills the kite if the bar is let go, and that 3rd line means that you never have to walk to the kite after a crash, by pulling on the 3rd line the kite will reverse launch.

Get a kite from a shop in Oz that cares about what they sell, and will only sell decent quality, guaranteed to fly and perform well, kites.

Cya and

Goodwinds

steve

It's quite funny that people say they only fly their kites for a short while 'til, "They get it" then they dont need it any more.

My experience is that most people continue to love their trainer foils and still fly them from time to time to sharpen skills and just to have fun. If you've ever flown a trainer next to a friend who is also flying a trainer, and had dogfights, chasings in the air, or tried synchronized kiting, then you'll know the fun you can have.

Trainers are also awesome for giving friends and girlfriends something to do on the beach while you're out kiting or whilst waiting for the wind to come up.

4-Line foils are a waste of time if you intend to fly full size kites on a control bar, although they will help if you wish to get into buggying, or maybe even landboarding if you intend on flying large 4 line kites on handles.

2-Line kites are fun but are more of a headache when you crash as you have to drop the bar, remove the safety, run to the kite, prepare the kite for a relaunch by setting it up again. Letting go of a 2-line throws it into death spins until it eventually crashes. In strong wind this can be unpleasant and usually ends in tangles.

A 3-Line kite as Steve said can be relaunched from the bar by pulling on the third line and reverse launching. This saves heaps of frustration and effort and makes flying heaps more fun. Self landing is also easier by letting go of the bar and the kite folds and drops immediately to the ground ready for it's launch.

A Small kite is OK for small people but larger bodies need larger kites. The smaller the kite, the faster and more furiously it flies which is not really like it's big brother traction kites. A larger slower foil is best.

If people outgrow and get rid of their trainer foils, how come there are so few for sale in the buy and sell? Spend the extra few bucks and buy a decent foil trainer like the Ozone Imps.
kiteboardingschool.com.au/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=17&Itemid=84

Think about it! Good winds,

^@ Meerkat.

Your kite did help a lot mate, just got back into the sport, did my advanced class with AKS and Darren, going back for another one cause riding switch is a beeyotch and im goofy footed.

handed off the trainer to a work mate who wants to get into the sport, how much did i pay u for it again?