Trainer Kites

Trainer kites are the first step for mastering any power kite sport.

Whether it’s kitesurfing, landboarding, kite buggying or snowkiting, the trainer kite is the foundation. This is true even if you have experience sailing, windsurfing or any other sport. We tell everyone the same thing- start with a trainer kite.

Won’t it Cost More to Buy a Trainer Kite?

No. There are a few reasons why buying a trainer kite is better than moving up immediately to a bigger power kite.

• Trainer kites are smaller (roughly 30% the size of larger power kites). That makes it easy to learn and practice in very low winds

• Trainer kites are simpler.  Because you don’t have to worry about a kite harness, depower or trim straps the process is just simpler.

• Trainer kites are cheaper. Let’s assume you’ll spend $600 for a 2 day lesson with a kitesurfing instructor. The majority of that time will be spent having you learning the basics of flying. Now if you get 10 or so hours of practice time in with a trainer kite BEFORE the lesson – you can jump right into the fun stuff without wasting money on the basic exercises. And if you still take the lessons, you will get so much more out of it than going in without the basics. Don’t forget that we also have a buy-back policy where you can trade your trainer kite in for credit towards more gear.

• Trainer kites are more forgiving. If the wind pulls you forward too fast on a 3 meter trainer kite, simply let go of the bar. The kite will depower and then you can collect the trainer kite with the wrist safety leash and relaunch. Now imagine the same thing happening on a 10 meter kitesurfing kite that is harnessed to you. Of course there are safety systems on larger kites but they are not as forgiving if you make an error. Better to start small and add as you go. These two photos show the difference in size between the kites. Which would you rather make your mistakes with?

Trainer kites will help you to progress faster than a full sized kite. Why? Without the added complexity of larger kites, you’ll be able to quickly practice guiding the kite to all parts of the wind window to learn how it reacts. Remember that power kite sports are 80% kite skill so you’ll progress faster once you get those skills down solid.

Which is the Best Trainer Kite to Buy?

The answer depends on what you want to use it for. 

Let’s simplify the process by eliminating what we can. We do sell the 2 line trainer kites but because they don’t land, launch and re-launch as well as 3 line trainer kites they aren’t our first choice unless someone has an extremely tight budget. Of the 3 line kites we have the Ozone IMP, HQ Rush PRO and HQ Hydra. The IMP And Rush Pro are very high quality trainers if you want to learn snowkiting, power kite jumping, landboarding or any land based power kite sport. If you want to train on water the HQ Hydra is the only kite that water relaunches.  That doesn’t mean you absolutely have to have a Hydra to train for kitesurfing. Remember you can use one of the other trainer kites to practice land and then transfer your skills to water with a larger kite.

Remember that all of our trainer kites are brand new and the latest generation made (no, last years model unless we state that). These kites are complete with kite, bridles, bar and line attached and ready to fly. A manual and trainer kite backpback are also included.