www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=32186
Would he have gotten different responses if he posted in the windsurfing forum?
Absolutely....the responses would have been biased toward windsurfing!! 
Having said that I'll be interested to see how many regular windsurfers 'dabble' in kiting 
If I could get the same buz out of something that was easier to rig up and cart around, I probably would. In winter when a mate and I attempt very poorly to surf, the most wonderful thing about it is pulling the plank off the roof and just throwing it in the water. No mucking around.
Once in the water though I am pining for my sail. I couldn't be bothered with all those lines though.
My wife rides a horse. I used to, but wouldn't go anywhere near one nowadays. She doesn't like getting wet. My friend loves golf, while my gear sits in my shed gathering dust (sound familiar?).
Windsurfing is not perfect; nor is it the be-all-and-end-all. It isn't perfect, but I love it and for the forseeable future it is my bag. If someone else loves kiting as much, good on you and may have you many happy hours with it.
These things are like music. What appeals to me now and in the future will be very different; and will be very different from what my friends like.
Thank the Gods we are all different and want to change and adapt through our lives.
Now bring on the wind so we can all have some fun.
I think that its much as Combs said "Its horses for courses". I love sailing and for me windsurfing is the purest form of sailing. Some will understand that (the fortunate few) others may not, but for me that is their loss. I did try kiting but for me being dragged along by a string just doesn't equate as sailing.
If anybody gets as much pleasure from kiting, surfing, or playing golf as I get from sailing then they are going to have a lot of fun.
But you also have to admit that it fun to tease the teabaggers.
Well I haven't tried kiting yet, but I will give it a go. Part of that is about having something (maybe) to share with the kids. They don't kitesurf but they don't windsurf either. Kitesurfing is trendy so they may find it attractive enough to get into it.
I've had reservations about the safety of kiting. You do have to be more careful. There seems to be a culture of safety though so I'm less concerned than I was. I wish I had access to some actuarial stats though.
I find it hard to imagine that, having been so focused on w/s and with so much left to learn that I would switch completely. The romance has worn but It wont ever entirely disappear. What's more w/s is therapeutic and I need therapy. "As breathing is my life, to stop I dare not dare".
The thing with windsurfing there's so many different aspects to it eg. Wave, Freestyle, Slalom, Speed, Formula and everyone likes to do differnt things.
I have friends that kite they aske me why dont you try kiting I well I love windsurfing so why change
. Besides I do allot of racing so thats something the kiting doest really offer. But each to there own.
ta Vando
Hi Guys.
I learned to kite over the winter, i've been windsurfing since the mid 80.s, the gear is at my disposal any time i like so i thought why not, it's a way different sport, i've had a few runs behind a wake boat over the past year and kiting is kinda like wakeboarding, same sensation without the boat leaving oil slicks in the water. i figure i would learn to do it, then make up my mind about the sport.
Conclusion.. for light wind it's fun, gets me on the water when it's sunny and warm.. on the plane.. it's easy on your body, a 2 1/2 hour wave sailing session it equivalent to a day of kitesurfing...... as for doing it full time instead of windsurfing? no way, first wave i caught this summer on my wave gear, made me smile and realise why i put up with all that waiting and wingeing from myself and sailing buddies for the last 4 months (you know who you are). and i just bought a new smaller wave board woohoo...
I will be kiting a bit over summer when it's a nice day and not enough wind to rig up my wave gear, but my sailing will always come first, over everything..
I dont know why kiters even go out in the surf, they cant ride waves for poo compared to windsurfing. Every time i see a kiter do a jump (float) in the surf it looks pathetic. The stuff kites do on flat water looks way better than in the surf. Stick to the lakes and ****off from the surf kites!
Stamp mate,
Ok look at Kauli Seadi, he rides a board that is not much bigger than a normal thruster surfboard, he absolutley rips the **** out of a wave, stays in the pocket and looks like he is riding the wave. Polakow, where do you start, the bloke demolishes every wave he rides. I see wavesailing as its own sport. You have ariels, roundhouse cutbacks, snaps and cracks of the lip. Wavesailing is not surfing, instead its WAVESAILING. What is kiting- its trying to claim that its surfing and that it looks the same or better then surfing. Get ****ed, it looks worse. The best guys in the world that kite surf, actually SURF better than they do when they ride a wave kiting...why kite with no straps??!!!!Kiting has ****all diverstity. Do it on a lake, dont try and ride a wave, it looks kooky. Ben Wilson has a career on riding waves on a kite, yet the bastard looks better when he SURFS not riding a wave kitesurfing. I dont get it.
it really doesn't matter to me what you ride. if you're out on the water with a smile on your mug, i'm stoked for you. everyone has different opinions, we will never all agree.
its only the 1% arrogant bull**** attitudes like peto's "stick to the lakes and **** off from the surf kites" that cause problems. a bit of mutual respect on the water and especially in the surf will lead to happy sailing for everyone.
if you get pissed off because there are kites in the lineup maybe you should stay on the beach
All you can do under a kite is an endless variety of a 360. front-side grad, rail grab, mute grab, inverse etc etc. Freestyle windsurfing is sooo much better to watch as there is the all the stuff you can do with the rig. That said you don't windsurfers doing tricks as often as a kiter.
To give kiters their due in the surf though I've seen them get tubed. Which is next to impossible on a windsurfer.
As for kites being easier to setup, I'm not sure. I've take my son down to watch them at the beach one day, after half an hour we got tired of waiting and went back to our spot on the beach. An hour later they (it always seems to take 2 people) were still dry.
Reminds me of the old Surfer vs Bodyboard arguments 20 years ago. Both are still popular.
I am starting to think that it is not the actual difference between the two disciplines that makes one preferable over the other. It is the difference in the Culture of two wherin lies the difference. Reading from the kite forum I am going to stick with windsurfing. Kiting culture seems selfish boorish and arrogant.
The bottom line is why not give it a go? I have no intention of letting go of my windsurfing gear as I have put too much time, effort and money into it. The other thing is that when I go sailing with my mates I want to be there with them on my sailing gear with them.
Plenty of people out there willing to criticize each others sports yet not try and find out what its all about.
Besides, my wife said I was allowed...
I must say, some kiters have no idea whats going on around them, these are the ones who need to stay the hell away from the sailors in the surf, then there are the guys who kite in the line up with the sailors and you wouldn't even know they are there, i think if someone on the water is sailing or kiteing and they do something wrong, like drop in or make up there own rules, say something on to them on the beach. they will more than likely not do it again. abusing people on the water is so not cool, unless they persist then go nuts and give it to them..
Rideing in the surf? windsurfing wins hands down...
Kitesurfing in waves is nice because you don't have to paddle for them and wait all the time, it's tow surfing with the wind. When you get good at it while you ride the wave its like the kite isnt even there, then it gets used again to take you back to the line up.. In that sense, riding waves with a kite is surfing. Doing tricks and stuff off the waves suspended at the end of lines is kiting.
In windsurfing you get your speed from the sail to jump, do loops, catch waves, do tricks, etc... I agree it is its own sport, thats why i love it too .
Some of my best mates at the beach are windsurfers turned Tea Baggers, they love it, and good on them but it's not for me, I love what I do with no interest to change at all.
At the end of the day over a beer, I'll listen to their stories about doing handle pass cr*p, then I'll tell them about my day, every ones happy and why not 
But for the guys who think we should change over because it's getting so popular, remember the number of gays is increasing, but I'm not trying that either
Geez, look at that. I've done more posts this week than in my entire life!
This could mean only one of the following;
1. Somebody changed my medication.
2. My tax returns are due and I don't feel like doing them.
3. I feel I have some deep and meaningful contribution to make to this site for the betterment of mankind.
4. I have finally gone saline and thought there were lots of people out there who cared even a little bit about my point of view.
For those who picked "2." above as the reason, you win the prize, which is one empty beer can, suitable for recycling.
I took a whole week off to do my tax returns. So far I have been surfing 4 times, windsurfing twice, (maybe 3 times if it picks up a bit more), dismantled my biro 3 times, read about 500 posts on seabreeze, and posted 50 more. (well it seems like 50) and spent about 2 hours on my tax. And here it is friday afternoon already. Doh! And my tax is nowhere near done.
Somebody shoot me.
Hey DL,
I forgot to add, by the look of your photo on your avatar, those Ugly pills you are taking are finally begining to work so you should ease up on the dosage. You can have have too much of a good thing you know.
(well I know some people might think that's unkind, but if your friends wont tell you then who will?)
