No. In terms of maintenance, packing it clean and dry is all you need to do.

By far the greatest cause of damage to a kite is dragging it around on the beach, snagging it on bushes and stuff, crashing it on hard stuff, leavingit flapping in the breeze etc.

By far the worst is dragging it over a hard surface like a path or rocks. That will immediately rub a hole in your kite.

Just don't do any of that stuff. Ride it hard until you can't ride anymore then pack it up and put it in the bag. Don't dick around with it on the beach.

the worst part of kitesurfing is the packing up, i just throw all my gear into the bag, take it home re-inflate my kite and hose it down and leave out to dry, wash my board and harness, wash and then walk out my lines to dry(i live in a culdesac and everyone very nice about my ** being everywhere lol) the once completely dry pack it all away. I have instilled that in my kiddies too and they even do it with their trainer. Its an expensive sport and god knows i need everything to last as long as possible:0)

Gorgo,

Awesome advice... Really awesome.

On self launching and self landing, is it something hard to master. More so, will you do more damage to your new kite learning how to do this?

I ask because I also asked this on my last lesson with my kite instructor. He said that 'officially' he wasn't able to teach me as his kiting employer didn't think this was something a beginner should learn. His rational was that until one is 90% comfortable with their kite and how to use it they should never be on a beach alone. Get someone else on the beach to launch and land it for you.


kiteboardingtom.blogspot.com

Tom,

Every beginner should be taught how to self launch and land. Especially landing, what happens if everyone packs up and leaves the beach, how are you to get your kite down, if you havent been taught. Self launching is a necessary tool,and i would have to say i self launch atleast 50% of the time, as when i knock off work, everyone is out on the water, and know one is around.
to me the only reason of not teaching these valuable skills, would be if the beach is crowded, or Not enough beach to adequately teach the necessary steps. But at a minimum should of went through the basics, and demonstrated these to you.

Dont wash your kite as fresh water on a wet kite will grow mould. Mould doesnt grow in salt water.


KR

Trackingtom said...

Gorgo,

Awesome advice... Really awesome.

On self launching and self landing, is it something hard to master. More so, will you do more damage to your new kite learning how to do this?

I ask because I also asked this on my last lesson with my kite instructor. He said that 'officially' he wasn't able to teach me as his kiting employer didn't think this was something a beginner should learn. His rational was that until one is 90% comfortable with their kite and how to use it they should never be on a beach alone. Get someone else on the beach to launch and land it for you.


kiteboardingtom.blogspot.com

ok well this is probably a stupid question but being a newbie when packing up my kite is wet and full of sand, ive always thought it best to wash it all off, should i just pack it up and leave all the sand on it?

Trackingtom said...
...
On self launching and self landing, is it something hard to master. More so, will you do more damage to your new kite learning how to do this?

...

You could damage your kite learning to self launch and land if your kite runs into a stick or a sharp rock or something. Pick a beach with nice clean sand and plenty of room.

Just self-launching and landing in itself won't damage your kite. It will increase wear and tear but you're talking over 100 hours of use before it's noticeable.

There are two reasons why you need to know how to self-launch and land.

1. So you can do it safely when there is nobody else around. You should always get assistance when it is available but you don't want to be stuck if there's nobody around to help you.

2. The most important reason is that if you can't self launch and land then you really don't understand how your kite and the safety systems work so you are a danger to yourself and possibly everybody else.

seriously .... packing up then repacking, inflating it at home, rinsing is all a waste of time ..... from day one my kites have gone straight back into the bag wet and sometimes a little sandy....besides they are usually out again later that week...... I upgrade about every two to three years and all my kites have been fine with no signs of adverse effects.

FResh Water = mould

Self landing doesnt damage the kite,

Self launch can - especially if your kite drags across concrete ie: foot path as the contact points ( usually the stitching in the leading edge joins ) tend to drag and burr the stitching ...creating a weak point so the next heavy kite slam sees the edge blow out.

I would not be practising self launches with a new kite ..... once you have had plenty of practice you can set/ position your kite for a self launch with very little or no dragging required and therefore very little wear.

To check your kite is dry, open up the zipper on the leading edge and stick your hand in there. The kite exterior dries very quickly but you'll be surprised how long it takes to dry inside the LE and strut casings.

btw both myself and my mates have numerous windsurfing sails from the late 80's early 90s. We always religiously washed them in freshwater and thoroughly dried them if not being used the next day. Apart for normal wear and tear they are all in excellent condition (including all stitching intact).

The marine environment is very harsh. I always have washed my fishing gear, diving gear, boats, wetsuits etc etc in freshwater immediately after use.

IMHO the real reason people don't wash their kites is they see it as a real PITA and can't be stuffed so they come up with all kinds of excuses to justify not doing it.....IMHO...

By all means wash your kite if you think it needs it.

...if you have a place with plenty of clean grass or similar non-abrasive surface to spread it out on and pack it up on.

...if you have somewhere to hang the kite that won't abrade it or put point loads on where you hang it from, that is in the shade and out of the wind.

...if you can hang it so the water and sand washes off and does not pool in the folds or the seams.

...if you think it worth unpacking your already dry kite, spreading it out, hanging it up, washing it, drying it, packing it up again.

...if you're not going kiting the next day.

...if you can be bothered and have good reason to think that not doing will cause damage.

PS. I still have my first kite from 12 years ago. It's still fine. I keep thinking about going kiting on it but I prefer not to waste a good kiting day when I've got all these nice new ones to ride. The old one is from the days when kites would try to kill you if you were not careful.

PPS. A kite is not a sail. Monofilm and dacron in a flat, battened, relatively compact structure are not the same as dacron and polyester in a big, floppy, fragile structure. It is far easier to manage a wet sail than to manage a wet kite (especially if the sail is sitting on a mast.) Sails generally end up wet where a kite is usually dry at the end of a day of riding. Mylar and dacron are far more abrasion resistant than polyester.

PPPS. I have used pulley equipped kites since 2001 (yes, long before bow kites appeared). I have had one pulley failure in that time. I am fortunate to be able to kite on beaches with gritty sand that is too big to get into the pulleys. I do clean wet sand off the pulleys if I am at beaches with fine powdery sand. If the sand is dry I usually just blow it off. I always check the pulleys are turning smoothly by clamping it in a loop of bridle line and working it back and forth. If the kite is all wet and sandy I will ride out and park it on the surface and lets some minor wave action rinse it clean.

PPPPS. I am a bit obsessive about kites and kite care. I do give the leading edge a gentle wipe with a damp chamois cloth to get mud and sand spots off it before packing.

PPPPPS. I have also flown paragliders for over 20 years. We used to wash them because of all the worry about salt and dust and stuff. We don't do it any more. My current glider has 250 hours on it and is still going fine.

PPPPPPS. There are two things I love about kiting, apart from the riding itself. Packing away a clean, dry kite after a good session at the local beach. Having the kite perfectly rolled and folded with no wrinkles and neatly zipped into the bag and slotted perfectly into it's spot in the car and everything locked neatly away. The other is after a really good session down the surf, pulling the kite out and seeing all these little drifts of sand in the bag reminding me of how good it was ... then I clean out the sand and dry off the kite if necessary.