Is there a difference between kiteboarding, kitesurfing, flysurfing and kiteskiing ?

English speaking countries tend to use the term "kitesurfing" or "kiteboarding" and French speaking nations use "flysurfing" to describe the same sport. The use of a kite to propel a board under one's feet. Kiteskiing is somehow different because it has to be done with the use of water skis (single or combos) and is a term created by the Roeselers.

Where can I find a Kiteboard school?

Kiteboarding School of Maui provides kitesurfing lesson throughout the year. http://www.ksmaui.com

Is Kitesurfing easy to learn?

Yes it is quite an easy sport to learn and practice. It is much simpler than windsurfing or surfing because your balance is partly assisted by the kite, which keeps you standing upright. Some knowledge of power-kites, windsurfing, wakeboarding, snowboarding or skating may help you to learn quicker. But anybody who is in a good shape can make it with proper instruction.

Is it possible to travel up-wind?

Yes, you can tack the wind with Kitesurfing equipment easily. We go upwind going "back and forth with jibes in between or without jibes with twin-tip boards. Believe it or not, with good equipment and some training you even can tack much batter than a windsurf waveboard!

What about light wind?

It is possible to Kitesurf with only 5 to 6 knots of wind with the larger kites and rather big boards like 6.6Ft. Long for 75-kg weight and 15.5 m kite or larger sizes. For extremely small boards like wake-board style boards, you need more wind to go upwind. Let's say 10 to 15 knots.

Can you Kitesurf in strong wind?

It is possible to kitesurf in wind over 30 or 40 knots, but it is important to first get used to lightwind and medium wind conditions. Ideal wind is 14 to 20 knots. I recommend 5 line kites, smaller board and shorter lines for strong winds.

Can many kitesurfers sail together ?

Yes, you can be a bunch of kitesurfers together. The lines cross in a diagonal plan. Tip: when you meet somebody, DO NOT put your kite over your head! This is a very bad reflex that creates a "wall" to the kitesurfer that arrives opposite you! A beginner has always priority over an expert that is supposed to be able to evaluate quickly his environment.

Can you use a wake-board or symmetrical board ?

Many competitors have chosen to ride wake-board. This very small board (142 cm long) is also very thin (1 or 2 cm thick). It's nice board when you have plenty power (wind)! As we consider that sailing overpowered is an expert level, we do not advice you to begin by this kind of board. By expert I mean somebody that can sail correctly in strong winds like 25 to 30 knots with no problem on directional boards.
The wake-board is equipped with high wrap bindings that you can hardly step in alone when you have your kite hooked in your harness. That means that you need an assistant to keep your kite while you "close" your bindings. You can also use more practical lower bindings but you lose a lot of precision with those ones. Some recent bindings like the tantrum by NSI are easier to enter. They look a bit like some snowboard boots attachments. They are easier to close by your self.

Do you stay on the same side of the board?

For directional boards, most of the kitesurfers change the feet of side when they jibe the board. Boards are equipped with a 3 footstraps configuration like a windsurf board to help to do it. But you can also sail backside without moving your feet of place. This position is not comfortable and it is quite difficult to stay backside like this on over more than 500 m (1500 ft). The best riders use 2 strap boards for more freestyle tricks but they are in a very good shape. That's why they are pros! With wake-board style boards and twin-tip boards > you do not change your feet position and you stay on the same side of the board.

Is it possible to use a windsurf board or a surfboard to kitesurf ?

Yes and no. Yes, because we used all these different kinds of boards in the past. But no because all those boards did not satisfy us. It is obviously cheap to transform a windsurf or a surf board into a kitesurf board but: windsurf board is much too long and the boards are not designed to sail on the rails like we need in kitesurf. Furthermore, the footstraps are located much too far back, surf is really fragile and can't resist to the feet pressure and the harness hook repeated shocks. The shape and rail design is not appropriate because it is too thick to tack correctly the wind. if you get stuck with the fins in the sand or worse you hit a rock, than you have a destroyed your board. Surfs have usually no fin boxes, the fins are just stuck on to the skin of the board. the surf boards need footstraps in the right position and it has to be very strong under your heels otherwise it brakes under the hard pressure of your feet.

Who invented this kitesurf sport?

We can't say that somebody has really invented the sport. Cory Roeseler (USA) has developed his kiteski equipment during the late 80 's. His technique is based on a rigid banana shape kite with water-skis. He is using a control bar with a disc brake. This allows him to restart the kite over his head once it fell in the water. The Legaignoux brothers patented their marine self-relauching wing called "Wipikat" in the 80's . It was originally marketed with a 2.50 m inflated catamaran and then became a few years later the Wipika. In1993, Laurent Ness associated his huge home built delta kites with a windsurf boards to sail on water. On his side, Manu Bertin began in 1994 in Hawaii with soft kites (paragliding type). He discovered and then used the Wipika marine wing in 1995. First kitesurf pictures were published in the magazines in 1996 with Manu Bertin in Hawaii.

Principles of flying a wing

What is a wind window?

The wind window is the half dome where the kite can virtually fly (see sketch). A good kite has a 150/ 170° wind window and looks like flying completely overhead. A bad kite has a small window. Let's say about 100/ 140°. The window is wider with a thin profile. It also gets a bit wider when the wind gets stronger.

What is a 4 lines kite ?

In my opinion the best kite you can buy (X2 Naish) advanced level. Two lines are called centerlines and they attach to the leading edge. The other two are called the brake lines and they attach to the trailing edge. Those kites are usually controlled with a bar that has a role in the center (for the centerlines) some call it a "chicken loop" But the correct name is trim line or center loop .

Is there an effect of the length of lines on the power, which length of lines should I choose?

The average length of lines is 30 to 40 m long (100 to 130 ft). The principle that help you to choose are: shorter lines = less power and more angular speed, longer lines = more power and less angular speed, So the rules are: to begin, prefer long lines to decrease the angular speed of the kite, if you are overpowered, shorten you lines to loose some power, if you are underpowered, add 30 ft of lines to gain some additional power. Be careful, the big wings ( 9 to 11 m² )can fly correctly with 50 m (170 ft), but using a small kite like a 3 m² in strong wind is not necessary a good operation. Also note that adding 10 m (30 ft) to change from 20 to 30 m (65 to100 ft) is a 50 % modification but adding 10 m (30 ft) to change from 40 to 50 m (130 to 170 ft) is only a 25 % modification, so be careful when you add lines in strong wind!

Other questions

If you have more questions, please email me flymaui@flex.com or paulflymaui@yahoo.com