WHO RUNS FASTER:WINDSURFERS OR KITESURFERS?

[HENRY B.A.]

WHO RUNS FASTER ON FLAT WATER ,IN 15/25 KNOTS WINDRANGE,WINSURFERS OR KITESURFERS?

[fokiten]

no doubt about it w-sufs' go faster,,,9' vs 4'+ feet at waterline,,plus big lifty 14 inch fin,,,no-contest,,,its about control at speed,,,
I don't wanta go that fast on my little board,,no need to haul ass,, when the skys' your plaything

[kiteboarder@pacbell.net]

Technically, when a kiteboard RUNS (downwind course, by sailing definitions) it's usually much faster than a sailboard on the same course. In the famous annual downwinder contest at The Gorge, kiteboards win by a HUGE margin. The difference in speed is eliminated somewhere near a beam reach, or slightly off the wind, on flat water. As Fo mentions, control at speed becomes the issue (which is where sailboard's longer waterline helps*) at least at the higher end of your "15-25 knot" range, at which time the water is rarely flat. Sailboards' speed advantage increases the further upwind of a beam reach they go, however it seems that kites aren't as slow as they used to be, while sails have virtually reached their limit, so in a few years we may be able to keep up with them upwind, & pass them on a beam reach.

*Long waterline is only a direct speed advantage at sub-planing speeds.

[Peter_Frank]

Yep - on a downwind run kitesurfers can really kick ass !

At least the big wide course race boards can't follow.

But halfwind, and especially upwind - kitesurfers don't stand a chance - whereas windsurfers almost don't lose any speed.

The reason for windsurfers going fast upwind, is due to the very efficient fin (which is 70cm deep).
Which also is the limiting factor - alongside with the width of the board, on a downwind run.

A slalom or speed board is still much faster downwind or halfwind, than any kiter it seems (narrow boards, small fins).

But because we mainly see these Formula boards (wide, big, huge fins) - we can often outrace those in choppy conditions on a broad reach or downwind

This is fun - and they HATE it...

But going upwind again, we get our asses kicked big time

[vide]

I think a kite could take you faster than a sailboard, but you would need a lot of skill and strength (and balls!) to control it. Windusrfung you reach your terminal velocity and don't go much faster. With a kite, you are usually trying to slow down or limit speed so power does not get out of hand. But I do believe that if you really wanted too - you could outrun a sailboard on any tack - but the chances of a major wipeout would be high.

[david]

I think we have a big advatage whith the acceleration. I'm sure the acceleration is less in windsurfing. The terminal speed can be higher I think on the FOIL_BOARDS. Just like you have foilboats that are faster. But this looks pready dangereous...

[vide]

not only that but we have less weight, the upwards pull of the kite, less wetted surface area (which should be faster with enough power while planning). Our only downside is controlling att that power...

If you were travelling 40knots on a kiteboard and well powered, stopping or slowwing down would be a hard task. You would get ripped a long long way downwind if you got it wrong. Control is easier going downwind because you can kill kite power by flying towards it. But going downwind and riding flat you need fins. Going across the wind wakeboard bindings might help hold the power.

[kiteboarder@pacbell.net]

"Peter_Frank" wrote:
A slalom or speed board is still much faster downwind or halfwind, than any kiter it seems (narrow boards, small fins).

Where I ride we often get 18 or 20 knots, & even 25 once in a while, so there aren't all that many really wide sailboards here, yet it still seems we're faster off the wind.

[oli]

If you wan't to ride really fast, you need a specialized board...
A kite can generate a huge amount of power, better than a sail.
The question is how to manage this power.
If you have a narrow and long board, with huge fins, then you'll be able
to fairly fight with windsurfer.
It's not only a question of power. A 20 m² kite means a lot of power.
The question is how to manage this power. The board is the key.

We'll have a kitesurf speed event in the "Mondial du vent" in Leucate next
april... So wait and see !
Remember, 46.52 nots is the actual speed record !

[kiteboarder@pacbell.net]

I think it's been mentioned that a waterski is really fast. It makes sense that its length adds pitch stability for control (lacking in our typical short boards) & the wetted surface drag is reduced by the lack of width.