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To jump high and with long hang time is of course a matter of technique, but also a matter of which kite you´re using. I´ve been trying a dozen different kites, but I think it´s hard to pick a kite that stands out when it comes to jumping. I figured that slow kites, such as old Cabrinha Crossbow tend to be hard to jump with while faster turning kites are easier to jump with, but other than that I can't really tell what makes a kite better for jumping than another.

If you look at a kite from an aerodynamical perspective I assume that one could tell if a certain kite is suitable for jumping or not, I mean by looking at the profile, the shape and the aspect ratio. However my own knowledge in this field doesn't allow me to tell whether a kite is good for jumping or not =P

And if you look from a practical view? Are the "best" jumping kites built in a way that are consistent with aerodynamical performances that in theory will make a kite perform well for jumps?

What are your experiences?

which size?

I think for a jumping kite it is important to have lift AND hangtime.
Just big and fast down is not good IMO...the glide factor is important as well, specially for softer landings.

I know Flysurfer foils offer it...tubes I am not up to date. Ozone Edges I heard and the Naish Draft look like good jumpers. And Dimitri always shows in his videos what the Epic kites can do.

But again, I am not up to date...concentrating on new tricks rather than gear the last 2 years

But I am sure there are several users who know much better!

Dude its all about trade offs - when people started wanting more bottom end - kites became a little less exciting, they wanted more hang time - they got more docile etc etc. Youll be lucky to find a kite that goes really big, as it will have a short windrange... Trade offs again - and a jelly fishing kite in 40 knots going big - still means its a jelly fish with FA on water control !!!

The size plays its role for sure. I know that you Toby like to go out with 17-18 meter kites, right? And according to the videos I´ve seen with Dimitri he also often have larger kites and the wind conditions seems to be quite moderate in his videos. Then we have this video with Lewis Crathern when he jumps like a mofo over the pier on a 7 (or 6) meter kite, but in a storm.

To make things easier let´s pretend that we´re dealing with moderate wind conditions, steady wind around 8-10 m/s. Most people would probably pick something from 8-12m in this wind.

So a good kite for jumping in these conditions would according to what kite2heaven says be a kite with a small wind range that is optimized for high jumps and hang time. And what do we pick then, Ozone Edge or Epic Screamer? And what is it that makes these kites better than other for jumping?

Kite2Heaven wrote:Trade offs again - and a jelly fishing kite in 40 knots going big - still means its a jelly fish with FA on water control !!!

What is a jelly fish kite? And what do you mean by FA control?

At the end of the day, it all comes down to personal preference. Some kiters can rip off flatwater and ramps/waves and some can only use ramps.
Its all about comittment ...

Hangtime - Flysurfer - also great height.

Height - North Rebel - not bad hangtime.

Agree K2H. It is how they jump more than do they jump. Different techniques needed depending on how they jump. You can go huge on a C kite (check out the big air comps) and also a high aspect kite, but a different technique needed. What type of jumping so you want to do is the better question.

Hey Grodan.. Jelly fish as in way overpowered and the kites possesed flapping in a jelly fish motion... Just check out any storm jumping clips - youll see it on all brands. FA stands for Fark All control on the water.

Id like to see a King of air - flatwater... Youd definately see a change of kite models in the line up then