Howdy. Been trawling here for a while, reading/learning.
Have my first lesson tomorrow at st kilda. Pretty pumped to get a feel for the sport.
Had a couple of questions:
Do kites sail in lower strength winds than windsurfers, and what is the strongest wind a kite can handle?
How long does it take someone with good surf and water experience to be up and riding?
Cheers
good board skills mean stuff all it is 70% kite flying 20% sailing abilties (if the wind is blowing at ya how can you go into the wind sortof knowlege) 10%board skills .yes kiters can get out earler in liter winds with expericence 9 kn onwards . the top end is how big are ya balls and how small kite can you go ,
Have fun with the lessons and kiting is the best sport will ever find .
Kites come in different sizes so yes you can kite in really low strength winds if you have a bigger kite, and vis-versca.
Even if you're a good surfer it's not going to help THAT much getting up and riding.. Most of the skill comes from kite control.
Strongest wind a kite can handle is the strongest wind you're man enough to go out in...
People have kited in hurricane strength winds with small 3m trainer kites.
Stuff you should've covered in your lessons: the extended wind range as a beginner is typically 15-25 knots with sort of the best conditions between 18 and 23 knots. When you get more experienced AND have the specific gear you will be able to go out in lighter winds and stronger winds as well. Lighter winds = bigger kite, bigger board. Stronger winds = smaller kites
This morning I was out well powered in 8-10 knots and a month ago I was enjoying a 40-50 knots storm, in these extremes it's when experience and the right gear is making all it's sense.
Have fun learning and stay safe
Well. Just had my first lesson. So pumped!
We covered the basics and flew the trainer kite, then jumped on to the 9m kite and hit the water. Was body dragging in no time and then dipping into the power and dragging in the water.
Really stoked on just this first lesson. Next lesson is introduction to the board. Woot
Hmm - lower and upper wind strength comparo between the pole dancers and tea baggers?
Below around 5 - 8 knots most kites start to struggle to stay in the air and the homeward journey is beginning to look like a swim - you certainly wont be riding the board back to the beach VS poledancer riding perhaps a 130l board with a 7+m sail - even at 3 knots you can drift along on the board to get home ( not fun but not swimming!) - at the light end big sailboards take the bananas over kites!
At the upper end - balls dictate the outcome! - but in a mega gust its easier for windsurfers to simply drop the sail and just prop on the board until the gust has passed - with a kite you have to make the decision to park it at 12 and (possibly) get lofted or park it on the water at the edge of the window.
I'm not sure if you have a windsurfing background but from what i have learnt from the conversion process (as an ex pole dancer) is THAT WHAT EVER SAIL SIZE (m2) YOU WOULD HAVE PREVIOUSLY USED IN WINDSURFING FOR THE WIND STRENGTH - DOULBE IT , AND THATS THE SIZE OF KITE TO USE - with in limits of course!!
Glad to hear you are stoked with this great sport !!
Sorry, don't think I was clear before. I'm not a windsurfer, just interested in how the two sports compare. I have windsurfer, but its not feasible for apartment living!
Too much gear in windsurfing I decided, so hence here I am.
For more tips and advice the Newbies forum under the Kitesurfing heading is great. You will find constructive help there and less of this...
Keep the stoke man!! Good luck with your lessons
I was exactly the same as you mate! I was totally stoked after the first lesson and I tell you I have not lost that stoke ever since!
.... except for when things go pear shaped but hey thats kiting for ya! I guess when things do go wrong and you get out without a scratch and all your gear in tact is also a reason to be stoked!
For sure! I can see that there will be frustrating moments, but i'm prepared for it.
After I finished my lesson yesterday I watched guys go back and forth without even nearly dropping kites. Looked like so much fun.
Bring it!
Forcetwelve, consider yourself hooked, and welcome.
As mentioned, a windsurfer with the right board volume can putter along in just about any wind while any kite has a minimum windspeed.
There are many variables that influence kite size vs windspeed, including kite make and model, rider weight and board type/size.
My minimum kiting wind speed is now around 10 knots (Sector 60 board, Lithium 12 kite) while the maximum wind speed I have kited is 40 knots gusting to 45 (twin tip board, Crossbow 7 kite fully depowered). I don't recommend kiting above 40 knots.
Here is some more info on kite sizes: kitesurfing-handbook.peterskiteboarding.com/progression/choosing-the-right-kite-size
Enjoy your kiting journey.
Here's a windy day at Inverloch
Got my board lesson tomorrow at st Kilda. Very excited! Anyone got any tips that they are willing to share that the instructor may not tell me?
I have just had a bunch of lessons, and am up and riding now most of the time.
Best advice I can give from my recent lesson experience is:
-When trying to get up, and it doesn't work straight away, don't try to push through. Just sink back into the water, reset your kite and take a deep breath then try again.
Its a better result than the alternative: Trying to whip your kite back around for another power stroke, bringing it over too fast, then getting nasal irrigation and losing the board then crashing the kite 
Great advice thanks. Was watching some guys tonight and most were seeming to reset, relax after each failed attempt.
The instructor should talk you through all the steps and tips but this is from my experience.
1. keep the back leg more bent than the front
2. start with small kite movements and 'reset'. try bigger kite movements gradually and once you hit the right 'power', you'll be up on your board and not face plant
3. once up, keep the weight against the kite and smile :D oh and don't forget to start the upstroke!
I found that remembering to really point my front foot downwind when learning to water start helped a lot, really push it forward towards the kite as you get up then lean back a bit once up.
Many thanks guys. Will keep it all in mind.
On a side note, where do you recommend a beginner go that is out of harms way to get started? Seems like lots of frustrated people out there with crowds and incidents. I'm keen to not be involved with the next one.
Where is a decent spot in Victoria to get away from it a bit?
Second lesson complete. I got up! Ad then fell off 5m down wind. Haha. Pretty awesome though! Officially hooked.
Not so freaked with the kite now, feeling a little more in control.
Cheers mate! have Friday booked for 2 hrs on the board solely. Should be up and riding after that!
Yeah for sure! After that you should be able to go out by yourself or with friends and progress that way! 
So stoked. Had a couple more hours on the board today. Up and going along heel side, for quite a while! Such a rad feeling!
Had a minor incident, kite collided with another guy who crashed into my lines, I couldn't depower my kite so I released the safety. Had to do my first rescue and swim back and look for my board. All good though with my instructor there obviously, but educational. Good to be in the deep end.
Pumped now to get out there!
How much are you paying for your lessons FORCETWELVE?
Roughly how long are they? I'm very interested in lessons
How do you feel after 3 lessons? are many more required?? did you use a trainer kite before the lessons?? thanks for the quick reply =)
hey karlos.
i have had one follow up session to just keep the momentum going. i can now waterstart first time with control, go downwind for 100m or so. then i try to come back in upwind and kind of just bob up and down into shore!
feeling quite confident though and am completely hooked. kite arrives tomorrow so i'm out there!
Great you guys are doing the right thing with lessons etc, these kites can be dangerous and deserve a degree of respect.
We had 25kts of wind with two guys that had never done this before - nearly ran my daughter and I over in the surf (great place to learn!!) then dump their kite on my wife and second daughter on the beach.
After preventing them from hot launching for the second time - first one was entertaining to watch but pretty scary - being told where to go when looking out for their safety was enough to walk away and let Darwin take care of things.
Gees- that is heavy.
My instructor and I watched a guy at st Kilda yesterday. Launched an old cabrinha, the lines blew out and it crashed into some crew on the beach with him being dragged up the beach. So many idiots out there!?
Felt sorry for the guy who wrapped his kite around a buoy there too.
