Stand Up Paddle board and kites

[Dman]

I have wanted to try a SUP for a while and thought it would be cool if you could kite with one as well but I have'nt heard or seen anyone doing it. I have a great mountain lake we go fishing at on the weekends and the wind allways picks up in the afternoon so we have to come in because fly fishing in the wind doesn't work too well but if I could kite with a paddle board I could fill my afternoons with more than beer and a nap in the hamock.

Anyone out there ever had a chance to give this a go?

[Lonny]

Yo Dman,

Welcome to lose the straps!

Its funny you should mention it, but yes, we have been playing around with a SUP, and in fact this last Sunday one of the crew was out on one. We were also trying tandem tricks on it. Josh was out riding it and Garry would hop off his board on to the nose and have two kites on one SUP. It was pretty cool. As far as the details of riding one goes I didn't do most of the riding, but I will message Josh to give you the low down on using one with a kite. I can tell you its a pretty slow cruise and turning it is a bitch. It would probably be fun to sit down on it with the kite and drink a beer too, no need not to get both pleasures in.

[Josh]

Hey Dman,

Welcome! Yes! Cruising on a paddle board is a blast in lightwind or just as something different to ride behind a kite. It points higher upwind than any race board I've rode, can be rode tandem with Gary or another friend, and goes upwind pretty much as long as you can keep your kite in the air. I've even used it to rescue a kiter stuck downwind by bringing them a lightwind board and taking back their small twin-tip for them. Plus you'll look like a big-kahuna walking back and forth on the board, and chicks dig that.

The easiest way I've found to get started is to pull yourself up onto the board first while the kites in the air above you, then get up on your butt or knees, then just stand up. You can always water-start it straight onto your feet like a regular board, but if it's a really bouyant SUP, it can be a pain in deep water. Once you get going, you can take a few steps back like you would to turn the board while paddling, and the board will naturally point upwind. To go downwind and gain speed, step forward more on the board. If you're nicely powered and really feeling the flow, you can attain speeds upwards of 8mph.

The best advice I can give to turn the board around is to BE PATIENT. No hyperbole, jibing typically takes me 5-10 seconds. I know this sounds hilarious and pathetic, but I'm really not exaggerating. If you've ever jibed a surboard, race board, or any directional kiteboard, you'll basically be doing the same thing, only much slower. The most common mistake I've made is to bring the kite over too fast before the board is done making it's turn, causing the kite to lose apparent wind and fall out of the air. As with paddling, the further back on the board you step, the faster it will turn, but the harder it is to balance. I suppose a 3 or 4 second jibe is possible with a lot of practice, but I've not yet reached that level. Have fun and let us know how it goes!

[Dman]

Thanks for the welcome guys! I can't wait to get my hands on one so i can give it a go. I will probably try the knee start at first but we will see how it goes, if not then maybe unhooked and butt ride it for a bit to get the feel. Do you think that bigger floaty boards will be more difficult to learn on, what size should I be looking for. I'm about 190 lbs. and fit so I was thinking something in the 11'x29x4.5 size would be good for paddleing so it sould be the same for kiting.

anyone got a vid to post?

[Josh]

I've only rode on two boards behind a kite, and they are both relatively buoyant:
Naish 11'6": http://www.naishsurfing.com/en/products/stand-up.html
Starboard Cruiser: http://www.star-board-sup.com/2008/products/sup126.php

I've paddled a bunch of other boards though, and from my experience, a more-buoyant board is a lot more fun to paddle and doesn't really have any negative points. Length is not necessarily as important as the thickness of the board. With a thinner board, like a Jimmy Lewis, a lot of water comes over the top of the board and you get a lot of vibration in the nose in any chop. We don't have any waves in Miami, so I'm strictly speaking from a flat-water or small chop standpoint.

I don't have any videos. I'll try and get one up soon though. Have fun and keep us posted on how it goes!

[Josh MM]

I think im missing the appeal of solo, but taking the girlfriend out tandem on a cruise in light winds sounds killer!

[mattv]

I have been riding a SUP with a kite for about 2 months now. I orginally purchased a SUP, 11' 6", for surfing on light wind days. I got interested in trying the SUP with a kite when I saw a picture of Naish on a SUP with a kite.

At first everyone I talked to said that it was a waste of my time and that it could not be ridden upwind. That, of course, just became a challenge.

My first time out it took me about 30 minutes to get the hang of getting up on the board and finding the right balance point for riding upwind but I did it and I was going upwind on my first day. Since then I have gone out with the SUP and my kite whenever the winds are light and there are no waves to ride.

Here are some tips that I found the hard way:

1. A small kite is better than a big kite. I normally use a 12m kite in 10 knots. A smaller kite is easier to keep in the air and a 12m has enough pull in 10 knots to get me upwind.
2. Be ready to move around a lot. I find that as the wind and the ocean conditions change you have to move you feet around a lot to keep an optimal strim on the board to go upwind. I find that when I have good power the best position is my back foot close to the fin and my front foot toward the edge of the board and as far up on the board as I can confortably move it.
3. To jibe the board I move back toward the tail to start the board turning and keep the kite in the same position. AS the board gets about 1/4 of the way through the turn I start slowly turing the kite so that the kite is traveling across zeinth as the board cross the point that it is pointing straight downwind. I switch my stance and continue to edge and move the kite to the other side of the window. Timing is everything. Move the kite to fast and the board will not be able to catch up and you will be pulled off the side of the board. Move the kite to slowly and the kite will stall.
4. I gave up on water starting. It is much easier to start sitting down with one leg dragging in the water on the downwind site of the board. This causes the board to turn upwind. Then I move to my knees then I stand up.

mattv
http://www.kitesurfinfo.com

[Lonny]

Hey Mattv,

Welcome to LTS!

Great post! Thanks for posting that information on using an SUP with a kite. I am sure that is going to help a lot of other people.

If you get a chance we would love to see some pics of you riding your SUP. Please post some in the show us what you got section when you get the chance:
viewforum.php?f=16

Keep on ripping strapless!

[mattv]

No problem. The next time I get a chance I will definately get some pics and maybe some video as well.

mattv
http://www.kitesurfinfo.com

[Lonny]

Awesome! I look forward to seeing it.

[Lonny]

Check it:
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=177