The intention with sailing a SUP is to use a big floaty board and a small sail around 3-4m. The sail gets you going at the same speed as paddling except you can cruise around using the breeze and go upwind. As long as you can stand on the board you can get moving. The small light rig reduces the risk of falling when the wind drops out to nothing.
The difference between kiting and others is you are planing in the 8-10-12 knot range. You can use a raceboard or even a not terribly big sheet of plywood works well as a light wind board and it all fits in the back of a standard car.
A top of the range kite raceboard costs $1500 complete (not including the kite). You can build a plywood board for $200 including straps and pads.
The cool dudes use skim boards and wake skates in light wind. That's essentially a sheet of ply with grip glued on it. You could get away with wax.
Personally I don't love kite race boards. They're uncomfortable to ride and a bit cumbersome to gybe in very light winds. The fins on them are wickedly sharp.
All fair enough comments - but why has this thread turned into the general kiting forum on the windsurf forum?
When the first kites appeared at our patch around 2002 I have to admit I was planning to morph a little way down the track because the only guys kiting were fellow windsurfers and it did look like a new challenge back then. We all used to sail together and all was cool.
But then a few ABSOLUTE TOOLS turned up with their new kites, they made complete dicks of themselves on the beach and on the water! Even though I know some great guys who kite, and we have good spirited rivalry, the sport does seem to attract more than its share of kock-heads which is unfortunate, because kiting might have otherwise had some appeal to me back then. (I hadn't been windsurfing long and was still spending a lot of time swimming)
Further, I can understand guys who only get to sail in light conditions might want to try something a bit different, and if there were more ex-windsurfers kiting, there might be a bit more respect on the water?
Finally, I must stress I accept peoples choice to kite, just the same as I accept peoples choice be gay
Somehow they can't accept it..natural though..but it's a natural progression I believe and as one t-shirt I saw says it all 'Kiting is for people who can't windsurf' But being fair it's vice-versa too
here we go the old australian pigeon hole...why do we do this...everyone get in your box...and dont dare come out lest your mates may see you..here is some advise from a crusty old bastard....I turned 60 last week and started surfing when I was 10, so I have just clocked up 50 years of surfing and I still love it like I did when I was in my twentys....I have tried anything that lets you ride a wave...started windsurfing on the original one design and as soon as I could waterstart I was in the waves...(not on the one design I might add).... for twenty or so years I thought it was the best thing ever (although still not as good as surfing)...then along came kiting...who would have thought...you could be whipped into a wave...with no foggy milar window obscuring your veiw....riding a 5'6" down the line at mach speed....and be able to get back to the take off in one short tack...holding nothing but a tiny little bar.....dont sell your sailboard kit...but dont waste time either...its easy to do and its a huge buzz...and you know...if your on a good thing stick to it.........but if you find something better.....switch.
this is my fav windsurfing vid i think its one or the other not sure if i have the time and wind to master both.Igguess both sports are fun which ever you choose its about being active and healthy and having enjoyment along the way !!!
There will allways be windsurfers and there will allways be kitesurfers!
regards
Just to summarise a little from a kiting perspective:
If you want to get out on the water in the lightest possible wind then a big board and a manageable sail will do it fine. Either a SUP or a sailboard.
If you want to plane in the lightest possible conditions then a biggish kite and a large twintip will do it for you and be quite compact. The combination is very easy to manage and there's less risk of crashing the kite in winds too light to ride. It still takes a fair amount of kiting skill to do it effectively.
A kite raceboard gets you planing upwind in the lighter breezes but they are quite difficult to ride and a tad expensive (although cheaper than an equivalent sailboard). I think that unless you are keen on race style kiting a kite raceboard, to an extent, gives you the worst of kiting (a kite that can crash into the water in lulls and a board that doesn't float you) and the worst of windsurfing (a biggish, fragile, expensive board that is hard to ride and has huge sharp fins).
There is a new generation of SUP kites available for very light wind riding but I think it's a bit of a niche market.
Havent yet seen a 5' 6" board draw a good line down a 6 to 10 foot face yet,
Especially on the end of a kite.
^^^ maybe try a legrope for your board, learn to relaunch your kite and ride unhooked into that barrel.
and to your last question- yes, i have a feeling there is a lot missing 
Only if there was an Adult section to say what you wanted with out mediators ,that would be fun.
u win kite bitch
