Boots - Hard to get on/off. Great for flat water. More connected to board and personally I prefer them as they allow a more agressive riding style.

Straps - better for surf and big chop. Easier to get on/off, allow you to kick the board off if all goes pear shaped. However, they can allow your feet to fall out mid jump

probably should add that you can't just put boots on any board. Needs to have more rocker and be slightly larger.

Also generally need more wind to ride boots.

Just went to boots a few months back, find it horrible to ride straps and it's nicer to ride boots in the chop aswell.

Keep my strapped setup for those light days and anything above 30Kts

Straps= Kiting
Boots= Fake wakeboarding

I've been riding for just under 2 years and I've started riding boots this year. I much prefer them to straps in flat water. They gave me the confidence to push my riding a lot more. The locked in feeling makes me want to unhook more and go harder. I thought that once the wind picked up more and I couldn't unhook that I would come in and change boards but I don't. I haven't ridden my strapped board since switching.

Even in chop, they are more comfortable as the footbed is way thicker and yOur foot doesn't slide around tweaking your ankle. Try it and decide for yourself. A lot of guys do both. I pretty mch split my time between boots on the tt and strapless surfboard riding. Kiting is great that way. Lots of stuff to try.

Capt Loopy said...

surfingboye said...

Straps= Kiting
Boots= Fake wakeboarding

Straps=Attracking elderly homosexual man on d beach
Boot=The future

Watching people ride straps i feel like Doc Brown in d past watching people trying to work out how to do it right and eventually thay mite evolve and work it out.

10knots to 10ft I'll always wear boots.

YAWHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

WARNING.....Wearing boots can damage your brain.......

Is there more of a chance to do knee or ankle ligament damage when you crash and burn using boots over straps ?

Spacemonkey! said...

Gfresh said...

Is there more of a chance to do knee or ankle ligament damage when you crash and burn using boots over straps ?

Ankles are pretty protected in boots comparatively. Knees are probably a little more prone to injury as your feet are locked in forcing a lot of the forces into the knees although that being said I know lots of people that have hurt their knees in boots and straps- I personally hurt my knee when a foot came out on landing with straps and have never hurt my knees with boots.

Okay cool i had a bad experience once while wakeboarding where my mate broke his ankle and tore some ligaments, on what appeared to a fairly minor spill ,never the less the out come was not good and have been turned of boots ever since.Possibly the boots were a bit loose and allowed a cetain amout of movement and inadequate support.

I was out of action for 5 weeks prior to christmas with a broken rib that was the result of straps. Since going to boots I have never looked back. Boots encourage you to push it further and Im finding myself riding bigger with them

The majority of pro freestyle videos i have watched they ride straps.. must be something going 4 them?

The "Pros" don't us boots (or arn't allowed) because majority of kite companies don't make boots, they make straps, therefore they want their "employees" to be seen in them.

this is a really weird topic
I haven't been kitting that long crossed over from windsurfing but been a logo term water-skier. Started wakeboarding when we were basically making them ourself and now a days its biggest behind a boat sport. The range of boots is endless.

I love the free feel of straps and surprisingly use them behind the boat from time to time as I tend to only wakeboard now after driving the kids all day. Its general stinking hot and I have a quick ride home to cool off and I am generally to lazy to drag the wake board on. Also I love a quick wake skate now and then with no straps or boots at all.

have been learning to directional kite on a small surf board no straps and its a bit impractical but great fun ( got to get better on the toe side ).

this is were it gets messy

just recently I have been using my wake board (A liquid force shane boat specific ) on the kite. Its a 3 stage rocker short and wide with really small fins and full on wake boots (every thing a kite board shouldn't be). To be honest for crashing around in rough chop spinning, riding toe side and soft landings it great. the extra rocker slows you down a bit but makes for a really different feel.

As for the boots they don't feel as free, they are hard to get on and even harder to get off if you got into trouble but in the right conditions they are so comfy on the feet. I have also noticed they seem to be bigger in europe than out hear

Its interesting how specific kiteborders are, being that some come from surfing, others from wake boarding or windsurfing and so on.