Power Kite Guide for Beginners
If you’ve never flown sport kites, we recommend starting out with a two-line foil. These recreational kites will help build your flying skills and help get you ready to move on to that four-line traction kite. Two-line foils teach all the basic kite skills one needs with traction kites and are a blast to fly at the park.
Video: Basic Characteristics of a Power Kite
- Power kites can be dangerous. If you are a beginner, getting your first power kite, remember that large wings are NOT the way to start, even if that big kite keeps calling your name.
- Because of the tremendous amount of power that they can generate, larger power kites are recommended for intermediate and experienced flyers only.
- A smaller kite up to 2-3 meters is a good size to start out with. These kites will fly in a wide range of winds and won't overpower the novice flyer in higher winds.
- Even as your skills, experience, confidence and stable of kites increases, you won't outgrow that smaller first kite. It will still be your "go to" kite on those days when the breezes increase.
- The stronger the winds the smaller the kite you need. Medium sizes in medium winds. So a 3m to 4m kite is a good second addition to your quiver (size also depends on the surface you’re doing traction on – Grass typically requires more power than playa – For instance.)
- Conversely, the lighter the winds the larger the kite you will want to use to provide enough power and torque.
- Once you get hooked on this sport you will probably find yourself with more than one kite. Many flyers acquire a quiver of at least three kites (small, medium and large) to cover different wind conditions.