What the heck is a Landboard, a chicken loop, fixed bridles, de power, Arc, Bow, C shape...
Well you're in the right place, you will find on this page all the info you need if you are a complete novice, or just forgot some terminology :
But do not forget, if you have never flown a power kite before, make sure to get tuition from a trained instructor (BPKA) or a skilled friend. Do not forget that power kites can not be considered as toys like the single line kites we used to fly when we were kids. If you are in doubt about the strength of the wind or kite, do not fly!
Landboard - Channel Truck - Skate Truck - Wheel - Deck - Foot Straps
Power Kite - Foil Kite - Inflatable Kite - Opened Cell Foil - Closed cell foil - C Shape Kite
Bow Kite - SLE Kite - Control Gear - Quad Line Handles - De-power Bar - 2 Lines
Landboard: Landboards are also known as Mountainboards, ATBs (All Terrain Boards) (Click here for a picture) so don’t worry if you hear many different names, they all mean the same. A landboard is generally made from a wood deck (Click here for a picture) also carbon and other composite fibres are now being as the sport grows and as riders progress. The board set up is quite similar to the traditional set up of a skateboard; the only difference being the bigger trucks, wheels and the addition of bindings to a landboard.
Channel Truck: Channel trucks are quite strong and heavy and are a must for speed fans as the resistance to wobbling is much higher than skate trucks. Manufacturers use springs and elastomers aka eggsocks to make the trucks more or less resistant when you turn. This kind of trucks’ only real draw back is their weight, as many people focusing on freestyling find them way to heavy Once they start to spend a lot of time in the air.
Skate truck: Skate trucks (Click here for a picture) As the name suggests, those trucks are very similar to skateboarding trucks. The only major difference is the length of the axle, which is longer. These are very popular with freestyle landboarders as their light weightiness makes them ideal for freestyle moves. Unfortunately they also have few drawbacks such as breaking more easily than channel trucks, bending and being less resistant to speed wobbling.
Wheel: Mountain board wheels are similar to any wheel (Click here for a picture) as you might expect! As any other wheel has a hub, which is either made of composite material (the majority are), or Aluminium in some case (£££), then you have an inner tube, the tyre and the bearings! However, there are some standard sizes that are used on the market!You will find two standard tyres sizes, which are 8" and 9". The 8" are supposed to be better for freestyle as they turn more easily even if they still require the terrain to be harder than 9" tyres which are considered better for softer grounds. There are two standard sizes of bearings that are different for each truck. To make it simple: channel trucks use 12mm bearings and skate trucks 10mm.
Power Kite: Power Kites are also know as traction kites (Click here for an action shot) and most commonly called kite amongst power kiters. The goal of this kind of kite is to allow the user to move and jump. There are two main kinds of kite nowadays with two different kinds of structure, which are Foil Kites and Inflatable Kites.
Foil Kite: Foil kites are soft kite which are similar to paragliders/Para foils in their shape (Click here for a picture). They are made of a number of cells that give the kite its profile (shape). There are two main types of foil kite, the open cells and the closed cells. Both kites can be flown with different control systems according to their set up. Nowadays, there are four main control systems used which are 4 lines handles, two lines wrist band, 4 line bars, 5 line bars.
Open cell foil: Open cell kites can only be used on land for activities such as Land boarding, Bugging and Snow kiting. (Click here for a picture) Opened cell kites have many advantages for land use as they can be set up really easy and quickly and do not require help from another person for launching or landing. However, they cannot be used for kite surfing as any crash would mean that you won’t easily re-launch! This kind of kite can be use by beginners and pros according to the models.
Closed cell foil: Closed cell kites have are similar to open cell foil kites. (Click here for a picture) However, they have been developed to enable the user to use the kite on water. The system consists of inflating the cells with air, which then close themselves. There are two kinds of ram air kite nowadays, which are traditional similar to a Para foil and the Arc ones which are Similar to an arc when inflated. Close cell kites can be really appreciated by riders practicing both land based and water based activities, as they can be used in both elements. These kites can require some help for launching and landing according to the rider’s skill. This kite is mainly aimed at intermediates and expert flyers, as they can be really powerful. There are two main control systems nowadays which are: 4 line bars and 5 line bars.
Inflatable Kites: The Legaignoux brothers first developed inflatable kites in the mid eighties. (Click here for a picture) These kites have an inflatable structure (bladders) that makes them water re-launchable. They are the best kind of kite for a water use on a security point of view. Also known as LEI (Leading Edge Inflatable), these kites are not recommended for a land use but some experienced flyers use them, as they are very reactive and hardcore. There are three main control systems nowadays which are 2, 4 and 5 lines bar. However, the 2 lines bars are not produced anymore due to the lack of safety.
C Shape kites: C shape kites is the name given to the first inflatable kites as their shape is similar to a C. (Click here for a picture) These kites do not have any bridles or pulleys. The first commercial model was the Wipika Classic created by the Legaignoux brothers. They started to work on it from the mid eighties. Also the kite performance was poor back then, the post-models have improved with time and will continue to do so. These kites were first flown on 2 line bars. Now they are flown on 4 line bars to control the power and 5 line bars to control the power and have an increase safety with the fifth line.
Bow Kite/SLE (supported Leading edge): Flat kite also known as SLE or Bow kites (Click here for a picture) are a new development in the design of inflatable kites as they have much more depower than traditional C Shape kites. Some time marketed as a 100% depower kite, which is a lie. A kite will still have power whilst in the air (not necessarily a lot of power but certainly not 0% power). On the other hand the security has greatly improved and has opened the sport of power kiting to many more people. Flat kites are mainly used on water but some riders start to use them on land as they are really easy to use and can be managed more easily whilst on your own compare to a C Shape kite. However, these kites are still only recommended to good riders on land as an array of crazy crashes may be fatal to the kite’s structure and you might just see your kite blow up! This kind of kite mainly uses a 4 line bar but the North Rebel is flown on a 5 line bar for it’s centre line safety and nothing else.
Control Gear: Control gear is what controls your kite funnily enough! Each kite has a specific configuration that requires it to be flown either on a bar or handles for example. All these systems have pros and cons. Nowadays, most of the traction kites are either 4 or 5 line kites. 2 lines kite are used to learn the basics but are made in small sizes, and are not used for landboarding unless you are really, really, really light! Of course there are the old 2 line Inflatable kites, but you have to be crazy to fly one of them nowadays.
Quad Line handles: Quad Line Handles (Click here for a picture) are used on four line fixed bridle kites. Nowadays most of them are open celled foils. However, there used to be closed cell foils such as the Peter Lynn Peel, which was made to be flown on handles. One of the bestseller four line fixed bridle kites is the Blade from Flexifoil. Of course there are also many other really good fixed bridle kites on the market. Flying on four line handles means that you use the front lines situated at the top of each handle where all the power from the kite is centralized. Then you just have to brake (pull the bottom of the handles towards you, pulling left if you want to turn the kite left etc. To land, the technique is quite easy; just pull both hands towards you whilst breaking your wrists forwards to break the profile of the kite, which will then fall slowly to the ground. If you want to kill all the kite’s power but don’t wish to use your kite killers, just grab the ends of the handles closest to the break lines, to completely break the profile of the kite.
2 Lines wrist Straps: Straps (Click here for a picture) are used on small beginners kites nowadays and give the user a direct input on the kite. For example; pull the left strap the kite will go to the left. Pull the right strap and the kite goes to the right. Landing these types of kites requires sending the kite to the edge of the window making sure it is low in the window, and letting it land on the ground. The preferred method of landing these is crashing them onto their leading edge; or that’s what I see beginners do anyway :P
4 Line de-power bar: Four line de-power bars (Click here for a picture) are used to give the user control over the kite’s power whilst in flight by changing the leading edge angle of attack (Position in which the front of the kite penetrates in the air). The two lines situated on each side of the bar (also known as back lines or brake lines) help the user to steer the kite in the appropriate direction. The two centre lines of the bar also known as power lines or leader lines are linked to the chicken loop and help the user to manage the power of the kite by changing its leading edge angle of attack. Note that the two central lines are also the lines that handle all the power developed by the kite.
5 Line de-power bar: Five line de-power bars (Click here for a picture) are similar to four line de-power bars in almost every aspect; however, the fifth line is used as a safety option that kills most of the kite’s power should be bar be released from the rider. The fifth line is situated in the centre of the bar and is attached to the centre of the kite’s leading edge. In some cases, the kite can either be flown with or without, e.g. on the new Flexifoil Ion 2