I love talking about windsurfing. So I always get asked if I have tried kitesurfing? Well my first kite lesson was in the Gorge in the mid 1990's. Back then the very wide bar had a spool on it with a hand brake and you let out the two line kite with a disc brake.
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| Some of the first kite gear. I tried it in the 1990's and stuck with windsurfing! |
The kite itself was traction/power kite with hollow (not inflatable) shaped tubes. Like a trainer kite today, it couldn't be relaunched on the water. You needed a buddy in a jetski.
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| Back in the day you had to let out the kite while on the water |
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| Some guys were true pioneers: Cory Roeseler |
The photos above (not of me) give an indication that kiteboarding was at the windsurfing "teak boom tied on a with a rope"equivalent stage of development.
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| An original teak boom windsurfer |
Or like "bear trap" binding stage of skiing's progress to a safe sport.
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| Some first generation ski bindings |
It was super sketchy and I decided to wait to do more kiting when the gear got better.
By 2006 my kids were very interested in kiting and took a lesson in the gorge. They definitely thought kiting looked cooler than windsurfing.
The kiting industry introduced 4 line kites a few years later which could de-power and were much safer. Then I started taking the odd lesson. I recall some good sessions at the Bitter End a decade ago. And the kite gear keeps getting better with 4 lines, inflatable leading edges and adjustable power settings.
By 2006 my kids were very interested in kiting and took a lesson in the gorge. They definitely thought kiting looked cooler than windsurfing.
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| Kids kite lesson in 2006! |
I've documented a few of my kite sessions in this blog:
I like kiteboarding and it is a superior sport in many ways. But I still prefer windsurfing. Here's the email response I gave to a friend recently when he asked "Is kiteboarding or windsurfing easier to learn and which is better?"
Windsurfing is much harder to learn. I’d say a good 40 hours on the water with good instruction before you can be hooked in and planing quickly on top of the water back and forth in 15-20 knot winds. Windsurfing does have a huge advantage that you can also have fun just fooling around in very light under 10 knot winds and make it home as you have a floaty board and a sail to steer. While a few people can teach themselves how to windsurf if really motivated, lessons are recommended. A week in Bonaire at an ABK camp will have you on your way to high speed windsurfing.
Kitesurfing is easier to learn. With around 4 hours of lessons most people are hooked in and planing back and forth across the water. If you snowboard or wakeboard or have ever flown a trainer kite the learning curve is even shorter. The kiteboard gear is also much easier to transport. And you can get going nicely in 10-15 knots of wind which happens more often than the 15+ knots needed to plane on a windsurfer. But if the wind falls below 10 knots, the kite falls in the water and you sink and getting home can be very hard if you are alone. You MUST take a lesson to learn how to kite – google “kitemares” if you need confirmation of that!
Because the launch for kitesurfing is best on a long sandy beach, I only do it on vacations at dedicated kite spots. The launch at my cottage is all granite, so I only own windsurfing gear up there and it remains my favourite of the two. Especially now with foil windsurfing, which makes the 10-15 knot days fun too. The answer here to question #20 partially reveals my thoughts as well:
I hope you enjoy both sports and look forward to any comments.
Hey Carl, (I'm Carl's niece who taught windsurfing on Bonaire), another aspect which decided which sport was best for a lot of my friends on Bonaire, was the gear. One can get away with one board and two kites for hours of fun on the water with a wind range of 14-24 knots with Kitesurfing, whereas with Windsurfing, I find there are closer to three sails in that range, two masts and sometimes two boards. Arguably we can pump smaller gear onto a plane, or mess with out outhaul and so on, but hey, we all know what it feels like to be rigged to perfection. Also, my friends could hop on their mopeds and head to the beach with all their kite gear in their backpack, whereas that was not the case with windsurfing gear! Similarly this argument can be made about traveling with the gear on planes.
ReplyDeleteI have only taken three kiting lessons, so I'm not an expert, nor can I decide from a true place of experiential knowledge, but nonetheless, so far I prefer windsurfing!:)
Hugs!
Thanks for the comment! I look forward to the next time we windsurf or kite together.
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