benbecker56 wrote: ↑Sun Feb 18, 2018 10:42 pm
Eli, I will put a post about the classes I took from the school once I finished the next class.
Toby, thank you! I didn't go today because the wind dropped overnight, we pushed the class back to Wednesday morning which is my next day off. Can't wait!
What kind of gear (used gear) would you recommend for a beginner? I am interested in acquiring my gear now and I have an idea of what to look for but I would like some feedback from more experienced kiteboarders.
Thank you!
Hi Ben,
I live in Boca Raton, usually kite at Spanish River beach, we have a pretty group up here. I think riding in Deerfield is technically against a city ordinance, but people do it anyway north of the pier 100 meters or so. You might want to check with a local at that beach re: the rules in case you need to run when the cops show up or something... I've heard mixed reports about the actual rules there.
Regarding gear, you'll have to see what you can find as far as brands go, but I would recommend something around 12-14m as your go-to kite for most wind conditions. I am 150 lbs and ride a 12 or 13m about 85% of the time. If you are heavier weight or really like riding in light wind you can grab a kite around 17-18m also,
especially if you want to try to ride at all over the summer. Otherwise you can only really plan on riding maybe 1-3 days a month or so from June through September. For the typical person I think a 14m/10m quiver works well to start with.
Good sites to look for used gear:
www.windance.com (I've bought many kites from them, they are a great shop in the gorge)
www.realwatersports.com
www.ikitesurf.com (classifieds section - listed by individual kiters)
The benefit to the top two links is that they are shops and they test all the gear before they sell it, so you know you will get something that works.
Real also does good deals on brand new gear if you find it at the right time, last year I got a brand new liquid force envy 12m for $700. Another shop that does great sales all the time is
www.kitepaddlesurf.com, I've bought a ton of stuff from there and they are really nice people that run the shop as well.