Hey guys need some advice....

Firstly Im an advanced kiter and my surfing is at the level where I am almost getting barreled.

The problem is that I have boards everywhere and I want to just have one universal board- but I still want the option to have straps.

Has anyone here had any experience of surfing with a kite board (like a mitupro more specifically)? I would really really appreciate any 2 cents you have to chip in...

My mate told me he found his kite board pretty heavy and not buoyant in the water, but that it was an old and small board.

Thanks for Advice!

DanMan

I don't surf, but this shows it can be done if you are skilful enough and fit enough.

Ive done it a few times, surfed pretty much the same as my same size surfboard.
Only thing is thing is footpad gets a little annoying

If you're a good surfer, trying to have one surfboard that suits all conditions is about as unrealistic as having one golf club to play a game of golf.

if i could only have one board for ALL conditions it would be like 60% of boards that get made - 6'2, 18 1/2, 2 3/8.

DanMan,
I have used a variety of kite boards in the waves: strapped surfboard (5'10" quad strapped, 6'2" unstrapped), Liquid Force Recoil 133x40, Ocean Rodeo Mako 140(ish?), Liquid Force Concept 135x41, and stacks of others on loan for a couple of runs. At my 80kg's, and the way I ride, my first preference in waves is my 5'10 quad as its the board i'd surf on if I didn't have to paddle to catch waves. I actually can't paddle it fast enough to catch waves without a kite. I play around with straps on and off, depending on the day.

If I was after a board that could still boost hell good, and carve up a wave i'd go for something like an Ocean Rodeo Mako. I don't own one, I've just borrowed them at the beach - single concave, they ride super smooth on a wave and slash out nice big carves. A couple of other local kiters use them, I don't know if Voitek is on here but he shreds on one in waves for hours at a time. Loves it. Pops a decent bit of air from time to time too.

But if I wanted to attack the wave a bit more and write my initials on every wave grommet-style i'd pick a larger kite board with decent rocker and go to town with it. The low-rocker-freestyle boards do the job, but i keep catching a nose on ripples and stacking it down wave faces despite heavy back foot weighting which makes me think that higher-rocker boards are the go. I'm sure there are lots of different opinions on this, but this is my experience.

I can definitely say that my newest board (Shinn) is the lightest I've ever had and is handling the odd waves fine, but also the heavy bombproof Liquid Force boards (I only know from 2008 boards onwards) do the job just fine as well.

let us know what you finish up with...

See if you can demo a BWS Drifter.

Hey DanMan, I bought the 5'11'' cab subwoofer over the 5'8" for the extra volume thinking that I could surf small mush (when on holiday and can only fit one board). Too heavy in the surf and leaves me wishing I had bought the 5'8" when I kitesurf it.

Take a look at what sort of volume you need in a board (depending on your fitness and skill level, types of waves you will be surfing etc.) and take it from there, if you want a board for both standup and kiting I would get something that has reasonably light glassing but this will be at the expense of durability when kiting it. Toppleover is right the Drifter looks pretty sick with 2 x 6oz glass on the top and 4 oz feet patches.

This has been talked about at length in other threads. For example:
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Kitesurfing/Review/Best-Strapless-Surfboard-for-kitesurfing-and-surf/
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Kitesurfing/General/Surfboard-quiver-dual-purpose-kite-and-surf/


What you are talking about is taking a compromise. One board for everything will not do anything particularly well. Consider the following:

Volume
Like it for paddle. Not for kiting.

Strength
Like it for kiting. Not for paddle.

I have had a BWS Drifter with inserts. It paddles right for me, but is bigger than I would ordinarily want a kite board. I thought it was strong enough for kiting, but much heavier than my other surfboards. Some other Drifters without inserts appeared lighter than mine however, and regardless a new model is out now.

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DanMan777 said..

any experience of surfing with a kite board (like a mitupro more specifically)?

umm just realized you're talking about using a kite-specific surfboard to paddle out and surf waves in as well as kite on. I think. Disregard what I said before, I get what you're after now...

Phil Byrne, does not need any introduction...

5' 11" x 19 x 2 7/16

carbon rails, carbon stringers both sides..

I've had Mulcoy and Drifter and they were great BUT

This is the next level ... too bad I am such a "kook" to show what it can do...

The differences in volume between a kite specific surfboard and a typical short board for surfing is in the region of 15 litres of foam. Therefore unfortunately you have to compromise one way or the other.

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Tony Armstrong said..



Phil Byrne, does not need any introduction...

5' 11" x 19 x 2 7/16

carbon rails, carbon stringers both sides..

I've had Mulcoy and Drifter and they were great BUT

This is the next level ... too bad I am such a "kook" to show what it can do...

That' looks awesome, meaning it looks like it will ride really nice, don't ask me why...nice lines.

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NitrousOxide said..

The differences in volume between a kite specific surfboard and a typical short board for surfing is in the region of 15 litres of foam. Therefore unfortunately you have to compromise one way or the other.

Byrne surf here in Wollongong have particular surf board models based on conditions and what (board) you want to surf.

Approx 6/8 months ago local Sandon Pt surfer/kitesurfer/waterman, Jeremy Smith had Phil shape him something like my photo above. He uses his for both surf and kite. I liked the way the board looked in the water and had another one styled on their "shredder series".

It has taken quite a few sessions to get some understanding on how to extract the best from the shape, however it has greater performance than other specific kite boards I've previously had, without a doubt.

This is what Byrne surf web say's ...http://www.byrnesurf.com/byrne-surfboard-models

The Shredder is a performance board for slightly weaker waves under the 5' range. Great for your average beachie or fuller surf conditions.

The Shredder's rocker is the straightest of all the Byrne high performance models and is also a great board for the average surfer because of the flat rocker and easier paddling characteristics.

The Shredder has a single to double concave followed by a slight vee in the tail. When choosing this board, it is recommended that you drop an inch and go slightly wider than your normal shortboard.

The Shredder is available in all tail shapes but is best suited as a rounded square.

I could paddle surf it but unfortunately, life + business + family + stuff is getting in the way... trying very hard to change it all...

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terminal said..

I don't surf, but this shows it can be done if you are skilful enough and fit enough.

Nice vid and yes Ben definitely has the skills on both sides, surf and kite we could all use.

However those waves in bali make any surfer/ board look and go better. Im sure trying to paddle your kite board on a typical aussie beach break is a place you will really struggle with less foam.

Guys thank you so much for all the responses!
Just realized how to respond on the forum now...
Really helped a lot!
Happy kiting!