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've 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 for the purchase of your new kite are:

• What is my level / experience in kitesurfing?
• What is my body weight?
• Which 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:

• Free ride kite
• Freestyle kite
• Big Air kite
• wave kite
• foil kite

Most kites are versatile and widely applicable. However, they are designed and developed for a specific type of kitesurfer.

Free ride kite

The freeride kite is a real all-round kite. The freeride kite has a large wind range, is stable in the air, and sails 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
• Lots of power
• 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 its 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 most sold freestyle kite is the DICE from Duotone .

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

Big Air kite

Ride hard & go big! For many people this is what they want, to 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 long hangtime. 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
• Lots of power
• Large wind range
• Good upwind
• Lots of bar pressure

wave kite

Are you a wave kite surfer or do you want to start? Then special kites have also been developed for kite surfing in the waves. These wave kites have the characteristic that they fly with you stably or 'drift' when you are busy with your top and bottom turns in the wave. Do you want to buy a wave kite? Our most sold wave kites are the NEO from Duotone and the WAVE from Airush .

• Super fast and reactive
• Good drift properties for surfing the wave
• Fast Relaunch
• Light bar pressure

Foil / light wind kite

The newest kite on the market is the foil kite. This has been developed for light wind conditions and comes into its own when there is not much wind. The foil kite uses the very 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 ride? 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 next question is also good to ask yourself: at what wind speed do you want to go kitesurfing? Most kitesurfers sail between 15 and 25 knots. This is a moderate to fairly strong wind. If you know at what wind speed you want to kitesurf, 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 the 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 kite surf 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 wind at some point? Then you can also buy a 7m2 kite.

Convert wind speed: 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 go kitesurfing.

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

What shape kites are there?

In recent years, different types of shapes (shapes) kites have appeared 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 applicability. 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 kitesurfers to experienced freeriders, big air specialists and wave kitesurfers.

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 kiteloops. 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, due to its long and square tips, which is why you often surf it a size larger. This kite is not suitable for the novice kitesurfer, due to 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: Arch shape
• Type: Freeride, big air & race

The bow kite has the shape of a bow. These kites go upwind easily and you can relaunch well from the water. This means that this shape is very suitable for novice kitesurfers. 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 !