Hi all,
My girlfriend and I want to give kitesurfing a go next year, but of course want to get a trainer first to maximise our lessons.
Where can I order from and what kite do you recommend? It needs to be useful for both an 85kg male and 50kg female. Also if it could be as similar to operating an actual kite as possible, that would be a bonus (lines and bar etc etc).
Looking to spend about $250, and would be useful if I could buy online.
Have a look on the kitepower website,ozone imp (now called ignition) is a great trainer kite as has a safety line 
Get a 3m Pansch Kite and buy Two wrist leashes, Mad fun.(i bought a 5m, WAY too big)
They have handles and are 4 line but its all the same. Its how i learnt anf going from handles to bar takes about 5minutes to get used to.
I'd back up the Ozone Imp - 3 line ( 3rd for safety) and has a bar - dont touch anything that uses handles ( you need to learn the bar approach!)
Other good thing about a dedicated kitesurfing 'learning kite' is that it kind of flies like a 'normal' inflatable kite - not some crazed stunt kite.
The other 'branded' training kites I would expect would be just as good - and a 2 to 2.5 m is way big enough - my kids find the 2.5m Imp pretty full on over 10 knots! - and over 15 knots I'd rather fly my own 13.5 m ( has depower which a trainer kite doesnt!)!!
Enjoy! and safe kiting
In my opinion purchasing a trainer (kite) with out a proper function of "power on" and "power off" is a semi waste of time. Sure, trainer kites give you that idea of how to fly in the "window" but the true essence of capturing the flying kite skills is to combine left (AM window) and right (PM window) AND COMBINE this with power on and power off. Ozone make a trainer called the UNO and this can be used with an Ozone 25 m bar/line set up.
Ozone IMPS are great to learn glad I spent some time flying before i got lessons, more time spent on board skills, look at kitepower web site they deliver to most places.
I bought an Imp 2.5 as a beach muck around kite for when I didn't want to fly the revolution. My wife loves it, she's claimed it as her kite. The bar with wrist leash gives her confidence to drop it, reel back in a go again. It's the first kite I've had that she loves to fly. Very quick to setup and launch too.
The problem for the average person is that there's a significant price jump to a Uno - you can get a 2nd hand 6m for cheaper!
At least a trainer foil with a bar and drop-the-bar depower (3+ lines) allows learning of wind window, and muscle memory to let go of bar when in trouble.
Best place to get the best flying trainer kite on the market is herehttp://www.kitepower.com.au/ozone-ignition.html
After teaching thousands of people to learn to kitesurf it is really obvious which ones have flown trainer kites, they simply learn faster because they already know how to fly a kite. They actually save money because they need less lessons.
The schools inflatable kites last longer because they are not being used as ground percussion instruments by students who have no idea how to fly a kite.
People need kite skills to get maximum value from a kitesurfing lesson.
Schools and instructors that don't recommend trainer kites either have some sort of illogical bias or are simply out to sell the unsuspecting beginner more lessons.
IF your not after a water relaunch trainer we find the HQ Rush Pro and Peter Lynn Impulse to be the most popular as they are both 3 line.
If you need to fly your trainer over the water you should look at the HQ Hydra.
The Flysurfer Viron fits the description of what you want the best but not your budget.
If you go to a safe enough spot i.e. Shallow water, heaps of room down wind don't bother getting one. Spend the money on the lessons instead.
I usually lend my 4m Ozone Flow(dunno if they still make them) to friends that want to get in to kiteboarding.
I recon that is a good buy, cause u can actually have a use for it once u past the learning stadium. It also got a little more power and are not as quick as the 1.5m trainer kites.
Since it's reasonable big it can be flown in light winds but still generate enough power to pull over the student if it's not handled with care so it teaches some respect to the power of the kite(which a tiny trainer don't do)
The only thing u don't get with it is how to work the bar in and out. If I'm there to help out I usually hold on to the chicken loop to illustrate that there is no really hold on to the bar.
2.5m Ozone Ignition.
Nice trainer kite with leash, very safe.
I believe its worth flying a trainer for at least a few hours before you get lessons.
Try it in strong and light wind also.
sorry just dont think a trainer kite is worth it, doesnt fly like a waterkite doesnt have the safety systems that a waterkite has, set up is completely different, doesnt power and depower like a waterkite, its like teaching someone to drive an auto then giving them a manual to drive.
if you want to save yourself money, buy one from a kite hobby shophttp://www.lekite.com.au/nitro.htm
u will need to get a bit of broom handle from bunnings to make a bar and your done.
If money is not an issue then get the ozone uno its great and has depower like a real kite.
either way make sure you really really have top skills with it before you have lessons.
If you just do an hour, i find it can actually make you worse on a real kite than better. Trainer kites fly and turn fast, the 2 line types are real bad as they teach you to be a bar puller.
IMHO
