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lukeFoils versus inflatables — which kind of kiteboarding kite do you prefer? A panel of experts, including Jason Slezak, Jacob Buzianis, and Noah Poritz weigh in.
Tom Fredericks // Photo: Gavin Butler
Pro Inflatable
“I love the stability of inflatables! It’s great to ride one kite in all conditions in all seasons! I can ride my Liquid Force Havoc in the surf, for freestyle, on sliders and on the snow.” — Jason Slezak, Liquid Force team rider
“One walk across 3 feet of powder to untangle a foil’s bridle will have you pumping up for your next session.” — Jacob Buzianis, Best snowkiter
“An inflatable’s rigid frame helps to prevent twists and tangles on relaunch or when flying in light wind. Who wants to untangle a bridle when you’re out shredding the pow?” — Tom Fredericks, alaskakiteadventures.com
“To have performance in a kite is the key between an OK session and an epic session. That’s why I take the time to set up my inflatable, knowing I have the stability, depower and performance to charge in all conditions.” — Fredericks
“Snow has never blown into my inflatable’s leading edge because, unlike foils, my kite has no cells and turns like it was made to turn — fast and without the extra snow weighing it down.” — Andrew Goldman, Idaho snowkite pioneer
Pro Foil
“Have you ever tried to pump a kite up when it’s negative 20 degrees? It sucks.” — Joel Beatty, Montana Kite Sports
“Foils rule the snow! No pump, no bladders, no valves, no BS!” — Noah Poritz, North American snowkite pioneer
“The main purpose of the inflatable tube is to float on water, which definitely isn’t needed in snow.” — Ken Lucas, backcountry snowkiter
“I usually kite up the mountain, pack the kite up in two minutes and snowboard down at full speed with the kite in my backpack.” — Benoit Menetrier, Airush foil designer
“Cruel as it may be, I have watched beginning snowkiters repeatedly yarded and tea-bagged and pummel their tube kites into the snow. I never see that with first-time foil kiters.” — Poritz
“For snowkiting, foils are safer and more fun due to their extra hang time and float. They are more durable, easier to set up and safer to relaunch, allowing you to explore safely without any assistance.” — Poritz
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I have to put my vote on foils. Being able to hike in, unpack and board…then pack-up and hike out easily is big plus.
What matters for me the most is safety and that's only a foil can offer me, with it's triple depower systems and it's enormous wind range with only one single foil, am more happy than anything. Is like windsurfing and kiteboarding, once you go black …you never go back! The rest is just a myth… (flysurfer, hq-powerkites)
Foils for sure. Anyone who uses their kite for real trips across large distances will know that a foil is the only way to go.
Also… most of the negative comments above come from people who has an economical interest in pushing their LEI-brands. So this whole article seems a bit flawed.
Then I really think that people should try out the new generations of foils out there before making a decision; the stability, turning speed etc is very different to the foils from a couple of years ago.
The question should be where do you kite? Inflatables rule the water and work great in snow. Foils work well on land, are safer launching and landing(especially on your own), and pack and are up faster. I would not tell someone that is learning on water to get a foil. On the other hand if your starting out on land/snow a foil is going to have a lot less pop nice for learning, but that pop is great for the water. The pop that inflatables deliver gets you out of the water and riding faster and thats nice for getting up wind. The main difference between snow and water is getting up wind in water is harder, for the simple fact that you sink, and a the edge of a snowboard or ski's on a none liquid surface gets you up wind much faster. I'm going with inflatables but think foils have there place on land.
kiteboarding in the snow! nice ^_^
It's simple, really . . . foils for land, Inflatables for water. If you spend more time on one surface, or the other, then you'll probably stick with the one best suited for that surface, and try to use it as much as you can.
It depends where you kite, I use both. Try kiting in Africa! If you hit a thorn tree or land your inflatable on rough turf, you need to think about fixing a bladder, which will take up your kiting time. Foil kites are more forgiving, easier to repair, and more durable in rugged terrain i.e. on fresh water lakes, snow, land etc. Plus foils are safer if you are on your own. Most quality manufacturers make foil kites that float on water. If you are stranded for some reason, you can always use your foil as a make shift tent. Lastly I would recommend using inflatables for heavy surf on the ocean. Like I said it depends where you kite.
I've kited since with old C kite days and have newer new bows and love my bows but all I want to do now is fly my Flysurfer speed 3 12M and 21M on the water. The hang time is unbeatable. Relaunch is much better and easier than my bows and I've been killed in 4 foot waves and the 12M self inflating foil still relaunched because they stay ON TOP of the water. Setup and take down is by far easier than a pump. Power delivery is smooth and stable with massive depower. Truth is the first kites where foils and we left them because open celled kites fill with water but the new closed cell foils changed the game. Try them. If waves are your thing then try a smaller Pyscho 4 in 8 or 10M and see if the turning speed meets your expectations.
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