fins

[kitenick]

guys, ok, there is no wind today, the bears already played so i will give you something to do.

I am going to buy a surf kiteboard for our lovely lake michigan. i called and talked to several dealers, who all have the perfect board for me and lake michigan, but wanted to get the unbiased input from actual lake kiters.

I have two favorite manufactures in mind and the big question is do I go with a thruster (3 fin) or a quad board (4 fin). Either way i will be using straps until i get some proficiency under my belt.

there are no wrong answers and all input is welecomed.

thnaks,

jim

[Misfit]

My quad is fast and loose. Thruster: Drive Drive Drive. If I had to chose only one, I'd go with the thruster.

Skip the straps.


Cory

[IVO]

Take a advice from Cory....

If I can add anything,try to find something fairly used around 6'0 and as wide as possible.You won't be able to tell difference between boards for some time.Keep $ for later on for good board which will match your style.

Around 6'0=big enough to keep you stable,

Wide,wide,wide=easier to learn how to jibe..

If you'll find something used,send me pm,I'll take a look on that.


Ben(ironben) started to learn on surfboards last year,maybe he will give you first hand experience.

[ironben]

Ben(ironben) started to learn on surfboards last year,maybe he will give you first hand experience.

lol , tx Ivo
I can tell you this, i tried few boards before i end up buying one. i went with truster 6.0 axon
nice board fast turning, but for me i think i may need bigger board.
in mean time i rode few more boards around here, one is firewire 6.1 and 19.5 wide but it feel much wider than mine (19.5 too), more stable, easier to ride back and fourth and jibe, not as fast turning as my axon. so go few inches over your height and wide to get ur balance and jibe and go from there.
hope this helps a bit

[Pier]

Jim,

I can't debate on 3 or 4 fins since I have not tried different boards with the two setups but I can spend my 2 cents about the straps:

I agree 100% with Cory and IVO: go strapless, the earlier you get rid of them the quicker you will learn how to ride a directional board.

However, it could be hard doing the water launch at the beginning and staying on the board with the conditions that we have in this area so it may help starting with only the center strap. This will help you to understand how things change while you move your back foot on the board.
As soon as you get comfortable with the board remove the strap: it will become addictive soon.

Board size: as IVO suggested I would start from something on a larger size, it's going to help a lot and you won't be able to tell the difference in turning speed for quite a while...

Good luck

Pier

[kitenick]

guys,

thanks again for all of your time and input. it has been very help[ful. I can only hope that i can help you guys in the future.

thanks again, jim