Professional advice when purchasing your new kite!

At Shaka online you can easily and quickly order your new kite! We only have the best brands of high-quality kites. Our kite brands are Duotone , Airush , Eleveight , Cabrinha , F-One , North Kiteboarding,Naish and Gaastra . Do you want to buy a new kite? Then you have come to the right place at Shaka online! We have kites for novice kite surfers to experienced freeride, freestyle and wave kite surfers. Of course you are also very welcome in our kitesurf shop in Scheveningen . We are happy to help you personally with choosing your new kite.

Two important questions before purchasing your new kite are:

• What is my level / experience in kitesurfing?
• What is my body weight?
• What type of kite do you want?
• What size kite do you want?

What type of kite should I sail?

There are a number of different types of kites for different types of kite surfers. The following types of kites are available at Shaka kitesurfing:

• freeride kite
• freestyle kite
• Big Air kite
• wave kite
• foil kite

Most kites are versatile and versatile. However, they are designed and developed for a specific type of kite surfer.

freeride kite

The freeride kite is a real all-round kite. The freeride kite has a large wind range, are stable in the air, sail easily upwind. Are you a novice kite surfer? Then we advise you to buy a freeride kite. This does not mean that this type of kite is not for advanced kite surfers. The freeride kites are for every level! Do you want to buy a freeride kite? Our most sold freeride kite is the EVO from Duotone .

• Large wind range
• a lot of depower
• Easy relaunch
• good upwind
• Average bar pressure
• Versatile in use
• Perfect for beginners and advanced freeriders

freestyle kite

Would you like a kite with a lot of explosiveness and power to improve your freestyle tricks? Then you should buy a freestyle kite with her characteristic C-shape. These kites are direct and react super fast. That's what you need for your kiteloops and unhooked tricks! Do you want to buy a freestyle kite? Our best-selling freestyle kite is the DICE from Duotone .

• Very fast and reactive
• explosive
• Slack in the lines during jumps for unhooked tricks
• Low bar pressure

Big Air kite

Ride hard & go big! For many people this is what they want, jump as high as possible! Do you want this too? Then you are looking for a kite that generates a lot of power and has a large hang time. The big air kite is what you are looking for! Do you want to buy a big air kite? Our most sold big air kite is the REBEL from Duotone .

• Lots of hang time
• a lot of power
• Large wind range
• good upwind
• a lot of bar pressure

wave kite

Are you a wave kite surfer or do you want to start with this? Then there are also special kites developed for kitesurfing in the waves. These wave kites have the property that they fly stably with you or 'drift' when you are busy with your top and bottom turns in the wave. Do you want to buy a wave kite? Our best-selling wave kites are the NEO from Duotone and the WAVE from Airush .

• Super fast and reactive
• Good drift properties for when you surf the wave
• quick relaunch
• Light bar pressure

Foil / light wind kite

The newest kite on the market is the foil kite. It has been developed for light wind conditions and works best when there is not much wind. The foil kite uses the lightest materials to be able to kite with less than 10 knots! Do you want to buy a foil kite? Our most sold foil and light wind kites .

• Light building construction (often single strut)
• Light bar pressure

Do you want to buy a kite? But do you have another question? Please feel free to contact us or visit our kitesurf shop in Scheveningen!

What size kite should I sail?

Another important question to ask yourself is: what size kite should I sail? A kite size is shown in square meters (m2). There are kites from 4m2 to 20m2. With little wind you sail with a large kite and with a lot of wind you sail with a small kite. To arrive at the right kite size, the following question is also good to ask yourself: with what wind speed do you want to go kitesurfing? Most kite surfers sail between 15 and 25 knots. This is a moderate to fairly strong wind. If you know what wind speed you want to kitesurf with, you can also determine your kite size. Each kite has a so-called 'wind range'. A number of other factors that play a role in your kite size are your experience, body weight and board choice (twin-tip, wave, hydrofoil).

Wind range of my kite

Each kite has its own wind range, this is a certain range of wind with which you can kitesurf. This wind range therefore indicates from which wind speed you can kitesurf with the kite. The minimum wind range of the kite is also referred to as the 'low-end' of the kite. If you get into this range you are under-powered. The maximum wind speed with which you can kitesurf is called the 'high-end' of the kite. If you get into this range you are over-powered.

For example, you can kitesurf with our Duotone Evo 9m2 from 15 knots to 33 knots. This freeride kite has a large wind range and is good for beginners and advanced kite surfers.

Many kite surfers also buy a second size kite. This significantly increases your wind range and allows you to kitesurf more often! Do you have a 9m2 kite? Then it is use to buy a kite of 2 to 3 sizes larger. With a 9m2 and a 12m2 you have a very good combination for moderate wind to fairly strong wind. Do you want to go kitesurfing with strong winds at some point? Then you can also buy a 7m2 kite.

Wind speed conversion: from Beaufort to knots

Wind speed in the Netherlands is often stated in Beaufort, knots and km/h. Below you will find a conversion table of these wind speeds and from when you can start kitesurfing.

*this is based on a person of +/- 80 kilograms with a lot of kitesurfing experience on a twintip kiteboard.

Which shape kites are there?

In recent years, different types of shape kites have come on the market. The most common shapes are:

• Hybrid kite
• Delta kite
• C-kite
• bow kite

Hybrid kite

• Shape: combination of a C-kite and bow kite
• Style: freeride & freestyle

The hybrid kite is a combination of the C-kite and bow kite, the best of both worlds. The hybrid kite is currently very popular because of its all-round properties and wide usability. Hybrid kites have a good wind range, react immediately and are stable. With these kites you can sail well upwind, make your first jumps and also pull kiteloops.

Delta kite

• Shape: combination of hybrid kite and bow kite
• Type: freeride, big air, race & wave

Delta Kites are more freeride oriented. This shape has a large wind range and is easy to relaunch. A Delta kite is forgiving and slightly less direct than the hybrid kite and C-kite. They are therefore also used by a wide group of kite surfers. From novice kite surfers to experienced freeriders, big air specialists and wave kite surfers.

C-kite

• Shape: 'C' shape with long square tips
• Type: freestyle and big air

The C-kite is characterized by its C-shape. These kites generate a lot of power and lift. They are good for 'unhooked' tricks and kite loops. The C-kite offers high-performance in a narrower wind range, so it is a real freestyle specialist. This shape has less effective surface area in the wind, because of its long and square tips, so you often surf it a size larger. This kite is not suitable for the novice kite surfer, because of the limited wind range and relaunching is a lot more difficult with these kites. If you want a real freestyle kite, then you are looking for a C-kite!

bow kite

• Shape: Arc Shape
• Type: Freeride, big air & racing

The bow kite has the shape of a bow. These kites go upwind easily and you can relaunch well out of the water. This means that this shape is very suitable for novice kite surfer. Experienced kite surfers also sail with a bow kite. You see this shape in big air specialists and racers. This kite is not suitable for the freestyle range.

In addition to a new kite, do you also need a kitebar or a kiteboard? Be sure to take a look at our kitesurf bars and our kiteboards !