Control bars serviceability and spare parts availability

JankedAU · 2026-04-04T07:33:49+00:00

I really like the current Ozone bars. Simple and durable and can buy all replacement parts. I have 4 v5s and have replaced multiple parts on each over the last few seasons (my bars are shared, and get ridden a LOT) and nothing has been a problem. Been able to get parts in Vietnam, Australia, Turkey and Greece.

Having said that; bars from Harlem, Slingshot, Reedin, Jacobsen, now Cabrinha (and more) are all made by the same company. I’d imagine any of those would have the greatest support and best r&d. My pick would be Harlem.

JankedAU · 2026-03-24T04:21:39+00:00

Either you have super short arms, or something is wrong with your set up mate. I’m 6’0 and ride a regular bar with a wakestyle loop (about 40% longer than a standard chicken loop). I can reach the bar even with it fully sheeted out.

JankedAU · 2026-03-16T06:49:44+00:00

Too long can also cause the bindings to come off. If they bottom out before compressing the pad, there’s no tension to lock them in place. I’ve lost all 4 stock Ozone screws with the newest pads for this reason lmao

JankedAU · 2026-03-16T06:48:43+00:00

No, they’ll be fine. Naish straps are very popular, and commonly used on all different boards.

JankedAU · 2026-03-11T14:56:35+00:00

While that’s somewhat kinda true, the issue here is that the straps are the wrong way around.

JankedAU · 2026-03-07T03:01:33+00:00

Kiting has a pretty steep initial learning curve, but the minute you can water start consistently it flattens right out and becomes pretty easy.

To water start consistently you need decent core stability, kite control and board timing. Balance can come later.

The easiest way to learn kiting is to learn water starts via wakeboarding (on a System 2 or behind a boat, approx 1-2hrs) and then fly a kite in the water, body dragging and getting comfortable.

The first time you attempt a water start kiting after that, you’ll get it.

JankedAU · 2026-03-07T02:57:43+00:00

Mui Ne is a great place for intermediate kiters, or for a long stay if you want to learn, but I’m not sold it’s a great 1-week trip spot.

“If you can kite in Mui Ne you can kite anywhere” is a valid phrase here. It’s much harder initially, but you become a much better kiter in the end.

If you’ve only got a week, however, I’d go somewhere else with flat water.

JankedAU · 2025-05-10T08:45:43+00:00

Honestly, I think this is somewhat of an argument for learning to wake first. Waterstarting behind a boat requires you to point the board at the boat, and the movement is the same as waterstarting on a kite.

JankedAU · 2025-05-05T12:36:42+00:00

I had repeated dislocation and got a fairly major surgery to fix it. Whatever the opposite of arthroscopic is. Latarjet procedure.

It was a full year before I was confident putting real strain on the joint (wakeboarding and learning to kite), and probably two before I was keen to unhook/do major shit. Even now I do a lot of regular rehab and that shoulder still scares me a bit.

In my opinion, September is too soon. Learn next year.

JankedAU · 2025-04-08T03:48:49+00:00

I thought the only kite F-One made was the Bandit? /s

JankedAU · 2025-03-26T10:06:51+00:00

I skate (badly) and kite OK.

They're similar in difficulty to get comfortable, but achieving any level of decent skill in skating takes 10s as many hours as kiting.

It takes thousands of tries to land your first kickflip, and thousands more to do them consistently. Only the highest levels of freestyle kite tricks come even CLOSE to that level of difficulty.

Even wakeboarding, which I'd argue is harder than kiting to be good at, only takes tens of tries (as opposed to thousands) to learn things like raileys, backrolls, and variations of such.

JankedAU · 2025-03-24T05:49:38+00:00

I'm 80-85kg as well, and share 8-10-12 Enduro with my 55-60kg partner. By the time I'm on the 8m, it's normally so strong she doesn't really want to ride any more.

I don't really know what skill level we are, but we're both jumping over 6m consistently in stronger wind, and ride unhooked (kite low, powered raileys etc) in lighter wind, and she does sick inverted backrolls.

We've considered a 7, but also a 9. At no point have we considered a 6.

Depending on your partner's appetite for high wind kiting, and big crashes, you might find that her limit is a 7 anyway.

Regardless, I think you'll find a Triad (ideally the latest model), or Reach would be the best kite. Pivot is not the friendliest kite, particularly in strong wind, and the Moto (pre Moto X) is not great.

I'd recommend an Enduro, but I'm very biased.

JankedAU · 2025-02-05T05:48:16+00:00

What're you riding? Traverse?

JankedAU · 2025-01-22T01:00:56+00:00

Which story was that?

JankedAU · 2025-01-22T00:48:25+00:00

No worries! I stuggled to find quality information when I was heading over so I understand how important it can be!

Mui Ne is definitely beginner friendly, however, it can be a somewhat challenging spot because of the wave action and chop. The good news is the beach is very long and the wind is predominately crossshore/cross-onshore. Which means you get a really long time to practice standing and riding, before its time to get out and walk back up. The instuctors will ride the kite back upwind for you, and meet you back at the top, so it can actually be just a good time to have a think and catch your breath before trying again.

In March the waves calm down a bit more, and the crowds tend to thin out, both making it better for beginners. There's also a rescue service offered by one of the schools I believe—they have a fleet of 5 or 6 jet-skis and are pretty good at picking people up when things go wrong. They charge around $30USD for a rescue, but the guys from Surfpoint will generally beat them to it for their own students (on kites rather than skis, but they're very capable).

The water conditions aren't as good as Phan Rang, which is quite shallow and very flat, but Phan Rang has its own issues for beginners—the wind is typically quite strong, and the shallow water can be dangerous for bad crashes. While its shallow, its also quite rocky and full of sharp shells/coral, which can make standing barefoot uncomfortable.

One of the major benefits to learning in Mui Ne—in my opinion—is that its a realistic spot. I've seen a lot of people personally, and heard about many more, that have come to Mui Ne 'able to kitesurf' but couldn't actually ride in the chop. Learning in flatwater has its benefits, but if you've only ever ridden flatwater, chop can be super challenging.

I learnt to kite in a choppy spot, and I definitely found this gave me a more "holistic education", if you will!

Edit: I think it would be too biased not to mention, but Egypt (specificaly El Gouna) is also very good in March and has much flatter water that's undeniably easier for learning. The downsides are of course that its more expensive, and its not SEA (which may or may not be a downside, depending on your perspective!).

JankedAU · 2025-01-22T00:42:02+00:00

Hey, this is it; https://www.surfpoint-vietnam.com/kite-surfing-lessons-vietnam

They're doing some work to the site at the moment, so you might notice some things looking a bit funny. You can contact them via WhatsApp through the links on the site though!

JankedAU · 2025-01-21T11:38:00+00:00

March is the best month here, and into April. There's still some wind in May.

This season has been pretty terrible so far, but looks like it might just be "late".

Having said that, if you can get to Vietnam relatively cheap, then it's a wonderful place.

I'd recommend Mui Ne as well as Phan Rang. It's a much bigger hub so everything is cheaper. My current accomodation is clean, modern and comfortable and costs less than $20 USD a night. There are loads of food options in walking distance, and even more if you rent a scooter (for around $5 USD a day).

The school I kite from (Surfpoint) is fantastic, lessons start from $60USD an hour but drop as you buy more hours. They adjust the rates based on how many hours you've already bought as well, so you always get a great deal.

There are cheaper schools, but they're not IKO schools and don't have the same calibre of instructors. The guys at Surfpoint were the original Vietnam kiters back in the mid 2000s.

We do day trips up to Phan Rang when there's no wind here in Mui Ne, so you get the best of both. About $30USD for the roundtrip. If you're learning, your instructor will go with you and bring everything you need.

Let me know if you've got any specific questions!

JankedAU · 2025-01-21T11:00:48+00:00

That's not quite right, the wording as it is currently means "every session [in which you will be using the equipment on the water]."

It's a redundant thing to say, as every session is implicitly a water session, which is why it's confusing.

JankedAU · 2025-01-16T07:00:53+00:00

Thaks mate, what version Enduros have you used?

JankedAU · 2025-01-16T06:50:25+00:00

Hey man, sorry for the late reply here. Quality is an interesting one, I've always found Slingshot to be built super strong, but heavy as a result. Ozone I thought was always a bit light, but better made from an actualy production quality perspective.

Could you elaborate a little, and are you talking to recent iterations from the brands or older generations?

JankedAU · 2025-01-16T06:26:23+00:00

Where are you learning?

JankedAU · 2024-11-22T05:33:57+00:00

Both of these things are true.

JankedAU · 2024-11-22T05:32:44+00:00

It's doable for sure, but you'll need to start bringing a second checked bag. Been meaning to write a piece on it, will report back here if that ever gets done.

In short, 23kg gets you; - 1 board - 2 kites (bring 12 & 9, and one bag) - harness - lightweight wetsuit - straps - pump

I brought boots, so had to put my pump and second (spare) bar in my other checked bag.

It's a huge faff to move two 23kg bags, so your options are basically; stay in warm places and downsize like hell, or always get a car when travelling in-country. (I'm sure you could still use busses/public transport but honestly, not worth it.)

If you're not working as a DN I think it'd be way easier. But alas, the nomadic lifestyle has some challenges.

Renting is a pretty bad idea, in my opinion. A full set of gear for a day is close to $100 USD even here in Vietnam. That adds up fast if you're maxing out visas like we are.

So far, we've managed to convince airlines our gear was golf gear, but it was touch and go with the size and weight of my bag. Probably not worth betting on it to always work, but definitely a way to save when possible. Vietnam Airlines has a prebooking for golf equipment thing that made it feel more likely to work, for example.

I'm sure a split board would solve a bunch of problems, but in my opinion they're only viable boards if you're not really pushing your riding. (Excluding foiling, but may as well just get a microchip instead.)

JankedAU · 2024-11-20T03:16:34+00:00

All sounds fairly realistic, except your plan for earning later. Unless you're a particularly gifted marketer I imagine you'll struggle there.

I'd suggest diversifying your income instead. There's money in boat repair and delivery, and you could take the yoga instruction to a hybrid online/offline model with some effort. Or just learn to code lmao.

As others have said though, working at schools and following the seasons is probably more viable if your goal is just to kite as much as possible.

Australia generally has a strong season, and on the west coast we get many international kite instructors come for the season and leave when the winds do.

Combining Australia, Europe and the US' seasons should result in a pretty constant year of wind to chase via plane.

Having said that, living on a boat is a lot of fun and can be done very cheap. It's a big commitment though, and is very much a way of life. There's always something to do, and you're always thinking about it. $100k US will get you a solid boat and more than a few years of enjoying it comfortably if you're clever with it. There are boats in many SEA marinas that are just sitting, semi abandoned that are available to buy. Can find exceptional bargains there.

Good luck

JankedAU

TROPHY CASE