Hey fellow wind sport enthusiasts!

I want to get into kite-surfing. Where I live (Sunshine Coast) is mostly too windy or too flat to surf and too hectic to sail my catamaran.

What do I buy? I can't afford new stuff. I am 37, 90+ kg and fairly fit. (still playing rugby and surfing kind of fit)

Do I need different kites for different wind strengths? Is there an all purpose board that will get me started?

I don't mind getting lessons but I am sick of being given biased advice by shop owners with $$$ in their eyes.

Give me some honest advice please.

Dave

Yeah, i'd say buy a small trainer kite and learn to use that with your eyes closed and in all different wind strengths. You want to be able to feel the kite through the bar & be able to fly it without looking at it. This will be a huge help in learning the power zones etc when you move to a big kite. You will be able to trade it in on a big kite later too.

Lessons will give you a huge advantage because you will be told how to do things the right way from the start. You will save money on repairs because you will crash the big kite a fair bit when learning, so its better to use someone else's You will quickly learn the techniques used to body drag, self launch, water relaunch and will be able to go out after the lesson on your own and learn to get up on a board. (if you dont get to that point in the lesson anyway)

Read up all that you can on the equipment available. You should know all about aspect ratio and technical kite stuff before you buy a kite, so you know what your getting.... (Would u buy a surfboard because its called a surfboard or would you find out its dimensions & type to see if it would suit your riding style first?)

I live on the Gold Coast, but i'd say you probably get mostly 15-25 knot winds on the Sunshine Coast too? So a 13 - 14 meter kite would suit you best in the beginning. If you've had wakeboard/ snowboard experience you should pick it up pretty fast so keep that in mind when buying "beginner style kites" because 2 months later when you can kite well you may want a higher aspect (performance) kite or a smaller board.
A 140-150 length board is a good size for your weight in the beginning.(get a twin tip first to make it easy) Keep in mind that kitesurfing is 80% flying the kite and 20% boardriding so once you can fly the kite well you dont need a big board - Eg, My board is way too small for me to wakeboard with behind a boat, its way too hard to get out of the water. But with the kite lifting you out you dont need that extra length in the board so you get better performance from a smaller board.
IMO 'Slingshot' are very good kites & boards. You can learn on a Fuel 04/05 very easily and you will never need to upgrade to a better kite. Hope that hasn't confused you too much.

sent you an email dave

Hi Dave,
To start with, yes I am one of those shop owners with $$$ in my eyes but I though I would reply anyway.
Heres my thoughts, as the others have said get lessons first.
I agree with Richo on kite size a 13-14m is going to be the most used kite, only if you wanted a bigger wind range would you look at a 2 kite quiver of say a 10-12 and a 16-17.
You cant go wrong with a medium aspect kite. You will have problems with a high aspect kite and they wont necessarily offer you any benefits. If your on a budget I would reccommend you look for a Naish Boxer or a Slingshot Deisel. I know the guy at the wharf sells Slingshot and the guy at Caloundra sells Naish, so im not just trying to reccomend kites you would have to buy from me. There is some good used gear around but just be aware of apparent bargains and any costs you may incurr later. Take somebody who knows what they are looking at when you inspect used kites. The rite choices will hopefully see you kiteing for many years to come.
www.briskites.com.au/

your loved ones and your fellow kiters thankyou!
Have a wild time mate this sport is the bomb