HI All,

We had a customer wanting to suss our landboarding gear today and it prompted us to take it to Hillarys Carpark for a session. We got there with the wind about 6-8 knots and launched the 8m Ozone Access XC depowerable foil and grabbed the trusty MBS Mountainboard.

The car park was empty and the wind so light but the speed and fun on the board with the kite was absolutley brilliant. We spent about an hour riding around the car park having a hoot and laughing at each other and our mishaps! We grabbed a wind meter and on average the wind was 6 knots gusting to 8.

Too much fun and great workout for your light wind kite and board skills.

Good winds,

I have heard the Ozone Access XC is a great kite and a gust muncher in higher winds.

Always good to have a bigger kite in the quiver for the lighter days!

V.

Hey Velocity,

So there is someone else who reads the land kiting forum here!

Yep, the 8 is a wickedly good kite to fly, even in the 6 odd knots it was still powerigme around at about 20km/h. I had the tyres on the MBS pumpd to 55psi for maxspeed and least resistance.

I'm thinking of ordering in a Manta II, 10 or 12m for power and jumping on lightish wind days, probably stick with the Access XC on the bitumen, you just need so little power to get cracking. Reckon I'd be maxed at 15 knots on the 8m on bitumen.

Also thinking of building a plywood kicker for the Hillarys carpark for complete carnage

If anyone wants to come and have a crack at it, call and see where we are when it is sub 15 knots. Probably kite land boarding! [}:)]

Good winds,

Yes I read the landkiting forum..... so far "I am the landkiting forum" hopefully it will pick up soon.

Ill give you some insight on the Manta II.

If you want it for light wind days, forget it, they have killed the light wind capability of the Manta for V2. A V1 if you can get one will serve you better for the lower wind range. I owned one and traded it in for a V1 as you had to wait till the wind was in the upper end of the scale for it to "perform"

If you are still convinced you want a Manta II, for light winds, I assume you mean 8-14 knots suggest the 12 meter over the 10!

Or if you want to get really serious about light wind boosting, grab a Flysurfer they fly in any wind range.

Cheers
V.

I recently bought a 5.5m Pansh kite just as a trainer kite and also as something i can muck around with at my local oval. what sort of wind would i need to get moving on a grassed area? or even on a skateboard in a carpark?

Felixk,

Just about any kite will get you going on smooth pavement as rolling friction is so minimal. The ability to depower is almost essential in my books, especially on bitumen and concrete. If your kite will fly well, it'll probably also pull you along.

On grass, it depends on so many variables. What sized wheels you are using, tyre pressure, thickness, sponginess or depth of grass and type of ride ie, dirt surfer, mountainboard or carveboard. I would think you'll probably need at least 15 knots with a 5.5 foil, with 8-9 inch wheels on well mowed grass such as a cricket/footy oval.

Good news is I have met a number of people curious about mountain boarding with kites over the last week. If you fly it, they will come!

I think it could get some momentum in Perth over winter. Bring it on I say!

Good winds and thanks for the advice Velocity.

in some of the vids i see some people arent wearing proper harnesses. what are they wearing and if it is only light wind do i even need one?

Felixk You can use just about anything, the ozone harness is popular, I currently buggy in one of those. As an alternative you can use a climbing harness this is similar to the one I have




They retail for about $130 to $160, they are load rated for climbing so they are very tough. Make sure you get one with the widest leg supports you can otherwise they can dig into you behind the legs and around the waist. They are very light and you don't have the bulk of a normal harness. I usually wear a spine brace buggying, not for my back but to take some of the pressure of the harness off my lower back its good support and stops the harness cutting into you.

Cheers
V.

How do you connect to the climbing harness. Do you have to be using handles instead of a bar?

How do you connect to the climbing harness. Do you have to be using handles instead of a bar?

Use a carabina and hook that into your chicken loop and through the loop on the climbing harness, that is the easiest way.

Handles, you can use a carabina and a quick release pulley set up which works really well. or just hook a wichard straight up to the harness with a pulley on the other end with the strop running through it to your flying lines.

V,

Could you not just use a regular kiting harness that's used on the water??

D

Yes you can, but do not recommend it for jumping, as it could slip out, less of an issue on a landboard, but in a buggy, you do not want to be supporting the weight of it with your arms.

Cheers
V.

Hey D,

A regular harness can be used but they tend to make you sweat really badly. The Ozone harness allows your skin to breath and the sweat is minimal. It also helps to keep the centre of pull lower on your body.

Cheers and good winds,

Waist harness is good on an atb due to the freedom of movement. THe seat harnesses are very comfy and protect your ass. On a rough surface this can be important.

There are definitely two ways to ride the ATB, one is with a depower kite on a bar..... pretty much the same as kitesurfing. The other is using a fixed bridle kite on handles. Both ways can be done with a harness. If it's gusty then go the depower option.... makes life a lot more enjoyable.

mike