Most kite manufacturers make wind range recommendations for their kites based on a "typical" kiter who weighs about 170 lbs (77 kg). I made this table so people of different weights can translate those recommendations for themselves, or figure out proportional kite sizes relative to what their lighter or heavier friends are using. E.g., if 110 lb Tina is perfectly powered on her 8 msq kite, then 230 lb Lars should use his 16 msq kite.
I also included approximate wind speeds in the right hand columns that you can match to your weight and kite size.
BUT the particular relationship between kite size and wind speed depends on the style of the kite, the quality and direction of the wind, the type of board, length of lines, etc. So take the wind speed versus kite size recommendations with a grain of salt, and be careful.
4 comments:
I'm not into kitesurfing but something seems missing from your table...There shouldn't be a column with the wind speed (in your case decreasing from top to bottom of the table)?
I would say that, for a given wind speed, the right size of kite to rig should scale linearly with the mass of the kiter. Hence, if I'm half your weight I should rig a half size kite which is what your table suggests....
Hey Tony- The relationship between kite size and wind speed obviously matters, but it's kind of complicated, so I left it out for now. You're right about the scaling linearly with body weight, though.
Tony- Ok, I went ahead and did what you suggested.
Hey James, good work, did not mean to give you a hard time...just wanted to get the table right. As I said I'm not into kiting ;)
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