Kitesurfing Gear
Introduction
Of course, pretty much any kitesurfing equipment can be and is used in Okinawa, but knowing a little about the prevalent wind and sea conditions can help when choosing your gear. Below you can find some guidance on suitable protection, boards and kites to use in Okinawa.
Protection
Probably the protection you will need most is against the sun- the UV is fierce all year round. Using a high protection factor sunscreen is a must. Stay as well-covered as possible, or the consequences will be painful, as I can tell you from personal experience.
Foot protection is also highly recommended as many beaches are covered with a liberal amount of sharp coral. Additionally, since the lagoon is shallow you may well find yourself in standing depth after a wipeout, and there's a lot down there that can cut or sting your feet, including sea urchins and stonefish. A lot of kitesurfers use Japanese tabi made from rubber, which are actually footwear for farmers who work in rice paddies.
The sea temperature drops to a chilly 20° or so in winter along with air temperatures down to around 12°, so a 5mm full wetsuit would be a good call. If you don't feel the cold much you could get away with a 3mm. In spring and autumn a shorty is sufficient; and when the sea and weather are at their warmest in summer, it is comfortable enough to wear just a rashguard. This would also offer some protection against the highly venomous box jellyfish if you were unfortunate enough to get stung by one.
Finally, do yourself a favour and wear an impact vest and a helmet. You know it makes sense.
Boards
As the waves rolling in from the ocean break on the outer reef, the water in the lagoon is generally flat or just slightly choppy. It is possible to use almost any board, even boards with very low rocker.
Short twintips and 'mutant' style boards are probably the most popular amongst the majority of kiteboarders in Okinawa, although some riders use surfboard style boards, too. Note that whatever board you use, it will likely get scratched up pretty quickly due to the sharp coral and rocks everywhere. As a side note, bindings are not particulary well suited to kitesurfing in a shallow lagoon.
For light wind I use a custom Decay Scimitar, which is equally comfortable on either glassy water
or in the small waves we get here. It's a hybrid skimboard/surfboard/kiteboard and it
just rocks upwind even in the lightest wind.
I also use a Crazy-fly 118 twintip when the wind picks up, this board is so small and flexible it can hold an edge like no other. Perfect for the typhoon season!
Kites
Like pretty much everywhere else on the planet, inflatable kites dominate the skies of Okinawa. The main brands to be seen are those which are the most heavily marketed- Naish, Slingshot, Cabrihna and North.
There are also a few kitesurfers using foils, or 'ram air' kites as they are
generically called here. This includes myself, as I use Peter Lynn kites. In
my opinion they have many advantages over inflatable kites. For example, they will not get punctured by the sharp coral and thorny plants found on the beaches in Okinawa. Other advantages include:
- No need to pump- all PL kites are self-inflating using just the wind. Makes for a faster setup with more time on the water.
- Stability- it is well know that these kites are extremely stable and forgiving with no tendancy to luff or fall out of the sky. It is very rare for the kite to end up in the drink except by pilot error.
- Relaunch- if you do manage to ditch your kite, it will usually relaunch itself. If not it is a simple technique to get it quickly airbourne again. Definitely relaunches better than tubes in lighter airs.
- Solo launching/landing- no need to rely on others being at the beach to help you out.
- Easy repairs- if you do manage to tear the material somehow, it can be repaired with self-adhesive tape in a matter of minutes.
I'll add more information on these kites sometime, mainly regarding tuning and repair tips. In the meantime, here's a page on how to do a top-skin tuck on the Guerilla 10m.
Size matters
The wind is often light, fickle and highly humid in summer, meaning you need big kites. Sea breezes around 9-10 knots are usual. 16 to 18 metre kites are popular with the local crowd, but bear in mind that they are usually lightweight riders of 60-70 kgs, so something bigger would be more suitable for heavier kitesurfers.
Winter brings colder, denser and stronger winds from the north- 25 knots is not uncommon. Days preceeding a typhoon or tropical depression (in summer) can also whip up to around the same, so you'd need something around 10 metres or less in size for this. Anything stronger than 30 knots (pretty rare) isn't worth the risk of kitesurfing anyway IMHO.
My own quiver consists of a Peter Lynn Venom 8m, Guerilla 10m, a Guerilla II 13m, an Arc 1120 and an Arc 840. The latter two I stack together for sub-12 knot winds and the G10 is a backup. Mostly I'm on the G13 or V8.