Long answer; depends upon a million things, size of waves, speed of waves, steepness, size of board, etc bla, bla, bla
Short answer; 9m
That's a decent summary above. Just to add to that. It's hard to wave kite on anything bigger than a 9m. 7m is the magic size for me but you need more wind. You'd be surprised at how much power is needed in the waves.
I would consider your board choice very carefully too. Something that's very good in light winds and possibly a quad fin set up.
Re: Kite size for strapless vs. twin tips riding
Posted: Thu Feb 18, 2021 8:47 pm
by kct
Well, I own many surfboards. I have a cheapo grom board that I got on Craigslist that I've been practicing on. Once I have a better idea what I like I'll spring for a real kiteboard
How much smaller would a dedicated wave kite be? Assume 17mph cross onshore winds
There's nothing wrong with wave riding with larger kites as others have mentioned, especially since you'll be in cross on conditions. If you are in on shore conditions the speed of the waves vs. the speed of the wind becomes a big issue and makes larger kites problematic.
Now as for your question about kite power you'll need to pull you around in 15 knots at 175 lbs? It does depend on your board to a degree, but assuming you wont be on a LW bored you'd want a 10-12m for that, but you'll need to be very good at looping your kite or have one that drifts very well.
I'm about 175 lbs and would happily ride either my 12m or 17m in 15 knots and I only ride strapless. Not all 17m kites are created equal though, I can hold mine fine in 20+ knots.
Here's me in 11-14 knots of wind and my 12m in cross on conditions (more cross than on though). With the current and the cross on conditions the only real options are to go left on waves or do a downwinder, that's why Fort Stevens Lot B -> Shipwreck is such a popular downwinder.
Peter