What you should have when starting to power kite

 

This is a personal opinion and by no means is it an exhaustive list. I'm sure there may be others on the forums who may disagree.

 

Usually the first question anyone asks on any kite forum when they want to 'get into' power kiting is 'What size kite should I buy'

There's never a correct answer to this one, as you will find out once you start there is never a one size fits all kite. From my own experience I started with a 3m kite which pretty well seamed to fly in the lightest of winds. Of course if straight off you want a traction engine to pull you on board or buggy in light winds then a 3m wouldn't quite do it. But we're talking absolute beginner here so a 2m-3m will do nicely.

Now for a new 3m kite you can pay anything from £40-£200. At the lower end of the scale there are some real rubbish. The best budget kites to buy in my opinion would be the Pansh kites. Although at the lower end of the scale this is mainly due to buying direct from the manufacturer in China. The Pansh kites are good kites and the quality has increased dramatically over the years. I have several Pansh Kites in my bag and no doubt there will be more. Other makes to look out for would be Peter Lynn, HQ, Ozone, Flexifoil, to name but a few. If you want information on a certain kite then ask on the forums, there's bound to be someone who has one. My first kite was a second hand 3m Firebee which was a great kite and they can still be purchased new now. Every kite has certain characteristics, mine tended to luff a lot at the edge of the wind window, but from searching on the net and your own experiences you can usually find some 'fixes' for your kites 'features'

 

 

So You've got your kite, now what

There's a few more things you'll need to kite safely. Ideally you'll need some form of ground stake to peg your lines out when setting up your kite, This will prevent your kite from taking off on it's own or just simply blowing away. There are several types of ground stake depending on what sort of ground you need to push it into to.

 

You'll also need some Kite Killers. These are safety leashes which connect from the lower end of the handles (the brakes) to your wrists. If you are flying your kite and there is suddenly a strong gust then to prevent injury it is best to let go of the handles. The kite killers instantly apply the brakes and the kite will come down to earth (usually in a bit of a tangle) without the kite killers if you let go of the kite it will simply blow away and could either get tangles in a tree or worse still get wrapped around someone else near by or head for the nearest road and possibly cause an accident. To me using Kite killers is a no brainer and whenever I am flying a four line kite I use kite killers. There are several makes out there Flexifoil and Ozone both make good ones although I must admit that Flexifoil kite killers are much easier to put on that the Ozone ones. (I have both)

 

Other Things to Consider

So you've been flying your kite and now your starting to fly in slightly more extreme conditions where the wind is starting to pull you the kiter along. You should really consider buying a helmet. There are plenty on the market ranging from the budget £9.99 special one fits all (they don't, they just make yo look silly) up to £40 or £50 pounds. Which ever you buy is down to personal preference and Budget. But remember if flying in very windy conditions and you fall backwards a bad crack on the head cold have serious consequences. Here are a few examples of Helmets used for kiting.

If further down the line you start to go boarding or buggying then you should also consider some body armour for protecting arms and legs. There have been many a power kiter that have finished their day with a Broken arm or leg. Again personal preference and budget will probably dictate what you will buy. Here are a few examples.

 

Other Gadgets that you've just gotta have

Wind meters
Kite Lights
The Kiters T-Shirt
The Kite Bag
The Board Bag
Cool Shades

I've tried to include as much as possbile here for the newbie to power kiting. If your not sure and wnat to no more then please join the forums and post your questions. The WeSK members are only to happy to help with advice and more often than not will be happy to arrange a meet where you can try some of the kites.

Where else can I go for Information

Rather than go into where and what to do next I thought I'd just put some links to another kiteing site which has an extremely good 'How To' section.

The site is Racekites and here are the different How To's

Beginners Ultimate Guide to Kiting
A Guide to Kite Killers
Larks head knot
The Wind Window
Beginners Guide