Wondering what kite you should buy?
So you have seen the guys and gals at your local beach or playing field flying big kites and getting pulled by them on boards or in buggies?
You want to give it a go but you are not sure where to start so you decided the best thing to do is to buy a kite.
You go in to your local kite store and ask for a kite and get asked what make you would like, what size you would like, what your budget is and maybe even more questions. Not as simple as you first thought now is it?
Traction kites are powerful pieces of equipment and should not be thought of as a normal kite, all good kite stores should provide you with a kite that you will enjoy flying, not something that is going to scare you away from the sport after your first time out.
Don’t be afraid to say you have no idea what you want, be honest with the shop assistant and if they know their stuff they will give you the right kite for your skills.
Traction kites come in all shapes and sizes for different activities and wind speeds. Buying one kite will not always allow you to fly in any wind conditions.
You will find that people who fly kites on a regular basis will have a quiver of possibly 4 or more kites. The normal rule is, the smaller the kite, the higher wind speed you can fly in, however you should never fly out with your own comfort zone. Just because someone is flying a 4m kite does not mean you have to fly the same size or bigger kite than them, its easier to fly a smaller kite and find you need to take out a bigger one than launching a kite that is too big and hurting yourself.
Start with something you can afford. The best thing to do is go in to the shop and ask them if they do Fly-in days, these are when they allow you to fly a kite before you buy it, so you can find out if you enjoy it or not. There is no agreement that you must buy after one of these days either, so if you don’t like it, you simply walk away.
Tractionkiting.co.uk are available most weekends at St Andrews and we would be happy to let you try any of our kites. If you want to arrange a meeting, contact us and we will try and arrange a suitable time.
If you are not local and your shop doesn’t do this, ask them if they know any local flying spots where you can speak to other kiters. The kiting community is full of helpful people and if you say to someone you have never flown before but would like to try it, nine times out of ten they will let you try a kite for a while. Don’t be afraid to ask! This is what we call Try Before You Buy (TBYB).
It’s the best way, even people who have been flying for years enjoy the benefits TBYB gives them, they can try a kite they have seen and liked the look of without having to spend the money for it.
If they like it then they can save their pennies and buy one.
When you buy a kite it is always a good idea to get kite killers with it. These will prevent you from having to run after your kite when you let it go!
If you have any questions, feel free to register to our forum and someone will be more than happy to help or contact us direct.