Postby Trent hink » Mon Jun 07, 2021 1:59 am
I find this thread very interesting, I used foil kites from right when I started out and for many years afterwards.
I really liked Flysurfer kites for a long time, and for a long time, in my experience, starting with the warrior, through the psycho 2 and up into the speed (1, I guess), landing was a simple matter of letting the kite go to the leash, which pulled the brake lines and set the kite down nicely in all but the strongest winds.
Then it was just a matter of securing the leash.
At the beach I would just dig my twin-tip into the sand and attach the leash to the closest foot strap.
Back in those days I would frequently ride in winter conditions, and then I carried an ice-screw with me for set-up and landing.
I fully understand the down-sides of that old system, and if you found yourself totally overpowered there was a chance that things could go pretty bad. And I have had the experience, twice, where my center line failed and the old leash design (with a plastic buckle!) could not handle the instantaneous load and left me swimming after the kite.
But I'd say that system worked very well in the vast majority of conditions.... except when I got into riding strapless on a surfboard, and of course, the more overpowered you were, the sketchier it got: Obvious weak point there.
I still don't see why that old system is not still used alongside a modern release to one line. It was just super easy to use in the vast majority of conditions, despite the fact that it had to be rigged to fit the kite.
In those days, Flysurfer kites always came with the bar and lines, can anyone even imagine that now?
These days I'm back to using Flysurfer, but Peak 4, and mostly for hydrofoiling. I always land by grabbing the outside lines to stall the kite, then just wrap the outside lines once or twice around the bar to keep the kite stalled on the ground.
If it's breezy, I might press the bar down into the sand before casually walking up to the kite.
If it's windy, or if I have been out on my surfboard, I probably have to grab a line hand over hand as I walk up to the kite, otherwise the whole rig can blow down the beach, but once landed in this manner, there is practically no chance that the kite will take off.
Understand, I know it's totally different handling in hydrofoil wind ranges.