I agree with your points. But does it mean, that any rating could not deliver any information? I don't think so.It's an interesting idea, but I think you're trying to quantify what are qualitative assessments. One person's impression of what is 'good' for wakestyle might be completely different than another's. For example, a lighter rider might prefer a more flexible board where a heavier rider may prefer something stiffer, or vice versa.
You need to test gear in your conditions to see, if it works for your taste. But since you can't test everything, ratings can help you to make shortlist.
Yep, but task is enormous for such small community.Imagine all the cool data you could derive though! Stuff like, "People around the great lakes like kites with a lot of depower for their gusty frontal winds." or "Heavy dudes in Hood River prefer directionals with a lot of rocker."
It is enough to make credible overall rating. If these guys can rank one gear over another, it is enough. Check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schulze_methodMost of the time someone would comment how amazing their gear is for them but had not ridden more then one or maybe two comparable products.
We can't separate votes of "jerks" over "professionals", so each vote will count equally. And I think its fair. Maybe another rating for proriders, but they are pimped by gear producers and have different set of requirements than average weekend warriors.
Its clear, we need to find right balance. We could ask for SMS/passport authorization, but who will vote like this?Dandaka: I have multiple FB accounts (for app development). I would not bother to vote many times of course, but you're not safe from that as problem if someone feels they gain from it (see people on KF posting with multiple accounts).
How can we do it?ie that people who rank gear have actually ridden it. It would make the process more complex, but doable..so that would mean riders have to pick what gear they have ridden for each of the dimensions you are interested in looking at (wave. tt, flat, tricks etc etc.), then for each of these dimensions rank order the kites).
I think we could limit voting for 1 person to 1-2 categories. Like If I'm riding wakestyle, I can't vote for all other categories, since I don't have enough experience in other styles.
Your friends could not test all. I'm talking about summarizing all opinions and make rating out of it.When looking for new gear i believe only my friends and my own opinion after testing.