Hi All,

I am currently learning to Kite with a Kite School in WA. I am looking to start investing in some gear and have been looking at second hand stuff. My biggest issue is that when I look on line for advice over what size board I should be riding, I get various sizes from 142/42 up to 184/48 (if they even make it. OK so first post so can't link the website but is was a kite and board calculator from Omni....)

This one says 146 to 168 and 45 wide (Website is Surfer Today...)
You can see why I am a bit confused.....

I am 93kg and would be looking at a twin tip that I can ride in the Swan River at this stage until my experience improves. (so initially no waves, maybe once I get better a bit of air, but i think that is a way off)

As I said, I am a complete novice at the moment. Riding in wind ranging from 20 to 30 kts.

I did see a nice second hand Takoom 139/42 but from what I have read this will be too small for me.

Any advice appreciated.

HiXponti

You have to be careful looking at size guides from overseas websites. It's quite common for a lot of overseas kitesurfing locations to get light winds i.e. 12-18 knots, hence the recommendations for larger kites and boards.

One thing that you likely didn't learn in your lessons is that when double the wind speed, you quadruple the power (lift) in the kite. So at around 25 knots, you really don't need or want a very large board as you have 4x the power you would have in 12 knots.

Knowing you are based in Perth and intend to kite in at least 20 knots, a 140cm board would be fine to start with @93kg. You could go as high as a 145cm board but I would not recommend any bigger. if you chose a 145cm board for example, this would be helpful in the very early stages of your progression (learning to get up and ride over longer distances) and also helpful for the lighter wind days i.e. 18 knots or so. Once you are able to ride upwind well, a larger board can be harder to ride and manoeuvre, especially in the chop. So, in strong winds, even at 93kg, a smaller board is much more enjoyable.

You will find size guides for Perth beginner riders on our website here: www.kitebud.com.au/product/airush-lithium-progression-package-deal-2021/

I hope this helps

Christian - KiteBud

Keaw Yed. said..
Hi Xponti

Welcome on board.

For what it is worth I have a 10m kite and a 138*42 board, weighing in at 96 and I am good to go from 18 knots.

Thanks Keaw,

I am a beginner; 3 lessons and around 6 solo sessions. I'm in sydney and weigh 90kg. I have a duotone gonzales 151x48. I have found this board to be very good to learn on. I'm now comfortably hammering upwind and practicing my transitions. So far I haven't found the board to lose it's edge upwind even when quite overpowered. As I get better at understanding apparent wind I am finding it goes well in light air. For example I was using my 9m in 20-25 knots just fine. Then the wind dropped to around 15 knots. I was surprised that with apparent wind I was still flying with the 9m when lots of others were sinking. It seems to be a great board to learn on, and then to keep for light winds.