Forum for kitesurfers
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ed257
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Postby ed257 » Sun Feb 01, 2009 4:21 pm
There is plenty of ice this year, but not many places where I am to use my snowboard with my kite.
I have seen pictures of an ice kiteboard. It's like a long skateboard but with some sort of blades in place of wheels. Looks great for kiting on frozen lakes.
Does anyone here have an ice kiteboard?
Who sells ice kiteboard?
If it is not a commercial item, how do you make the blades?
Thanks,
Ed
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ed257
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Postby ed257 » Sun Feb 01, 2009 6:41 pm
That looks good.
Is anyone using the switchblade?
Any feedback on how well it works would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Ed
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zfennell
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Postby zfennell » Sun Feb 01, 2009 6:48 pm
hi ed,
what you're describing is a 'freeskate' essentially a 5' skateboard with blades intead of wheels
freeskate appears to have gone out of business so most boards are home-made these days with no real loss in performance.
they are quite a bit different than a switchblade.
the most popular use is with a windsurfing rig attached to the nose.
i'm sure any place popular for ice boats will also have a a few freeskates as well.
right now SE mass is the best place for ice.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IceReports/messages
-bill
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toyletbowl
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Postby toyletbowl » Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:35 pm
the only problem with freeskate type boards is that they can be unstable at speeds. nothing like the back edges skidding out when going fast.
the switchblade device is basically a single blade added to the heel side edge, so you can go as fast as you want.
bob
www.kiteridersllc.com
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gbgreen59
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Postby gbgreen59 » Sun Feb 01, 2009 10:43 pm
I have a Switchblade and am happy with it. To me, it really excels when there is snow with patches of ice. You can hold your edge when you hit a patch of ice. It was pricey with I bought it at $200 US about 2 years ago.
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Safe_Cracker
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Postby Safe_Cracker » Mon Feb 02, 2009 3:31 am
toyletbowl wrote:the only problem with freeskate type boards is that they can be unstable at speeds. nothing like the back edges skidding out when going fast.
the switchblade device is basically a single blade added to the heel side edge, so you can go as fast as you want.
bob
www.kiteridersllc.com
Hey Bob, Polo here do you think the mountainboard conversion would be a problem? I e-mailed the person who built his in the above links and he stands by it, says it functions great. I have an MBS I use during the summer in fields the only conversion I had to make was spring stiffeners (egg shocks) to slow the the steering reaction. Without them you end up with an oscillation at high speeds. I don't see a how using blades on a mountain board over wheels could make that much of a difference other than the blades holding a bit more of an edge than the tires would be able. If anyone has any input let me know or I am getting busy with building the blades
....Polo.
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bay surfer
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Postby bay surfer » Mon Feb 02, 2009 4:07 am
I've inspected a switchblade up close, looks like it would work real good, and it can be adjusted fast so you can ride on snow, but........ plan on trashing a board, but........... most of us have boards we d'ont like to ride ..........
P.S. putting a switchblade means drilling and screwing nothing better.
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ed257
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Postby ed257 » Mon Feb 02, 2009 4:51 am
gbgreen59 wrote:I have a Switchblade and am happy with it. To me, it really excels when there is snow with patches of ice. You can hold your edge when you hit a patch of ice. It was pricey with I bought it at $200 US about 2 years ago.
How far below the board bottom does it stick out and how long is it?
Can you adjust the depth of the blade to make it stick out more or less?
Any problems with your board when you just want to go snowboarding and you take it off?
Because you are using just a short section of the center of the heelside, does that mean that board length is not a factor? My son has an old board that I could use, but it is too short for me to ride for conventional kiteboarding. Would that work, or do I need one my normal length (160+cm)?
Also, because the blade is on heelside, can you ride toeside at all?
Thanks,
Ed
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