The Kite/board setup performs basicly the same as any other sailing craft eg. it uses lateral resistance to point upwind, and can do all the other points of sailing, also gybing and tacking etc. Just happens that now and again we get more altitude and speed than most other sailing craft can 
PS. Catman hit a peak speed of 60+ knots at Luderitz 
out with the old, in with the new i say. time to step up and put the iron boards in the cupboard and buy a kite guys. 
lets look at known quantities here.
at speed trials for the last few decades a lot of craft have reached their limits no matter how much time money and effort is thrown at them.
windsurfers blew the doors off conventional thinking about sailing speed in the eighties and continue to inch forward knot by knot.
kites have just entered this race.....did i mention doors!
i consider kites to be every bit as legit as windsurfers and the guys achieving 50 knots are trained athletes.
pulled along by a parachute!!!!!! "far cough"
break the classes into "masts with stays", "masts without stays", "free for all"
and the biggy " fastest wind powered man on water" 
I think, for the ISAF the racing car tyre on the kiteboard was the ultimate proof that kiteboarding is not sailing
Excuse me if i am wrong,,but surly any wind driven craft on water has to be a contender, be it any contraption,anyone who has the blks to want to be the fastest free energy Straight line Sailor has to be reconised.Fk all the big wig snobbery involved and lets see how fast we are in ten more years
As windsurfer, I am as keen as anyone for a windsurfer to hold the record, however I have seen no sensible argument so far as to why kites do not now hold the record.
It's a joke.
10 February 2005, 7:11 pm
Three-Day Meeting Concludes
ISAF Executive Committee Meeting
Chantilly, France
Three days of meetings in Chantilly, France concluded on Tuesday 8 February
.... in considering recognition of kite surfing within the speed sailing arena, significant safety concerns continued to be expressed. At this stage, ISAF does not give endorsement to recognizing kite powered crafts as holders of the outright World Sailing Speed Record.
Safety Concerns???
I thought falling at speed with a kite was far less dangerous than catapults on a windsurfer or a multihull.
I haven't been able to find any other reason put forward by the ISAF executive committee
As a windsurfer I also would love for someone from our sport to hold the outright world sailing speed record, but as far as i'm concerned that's no longer the case and in my opinion we will never again hold the record.
Lets be realistic this is the 'outright world record' It's not the 'fastest windsurfer' record. The number of radical contraptions that have had a crack at the record over time is staggering. Look at Yellow Pages, it's basically a wing on it's end sitting atop of what can hardly be considered a function sailing craft as we know one. It can only sail in one direction, only sail at particular angles of attack and apart from a couple of locations in the world is utterly useless. At least anyone can go down to the kite shop, grab a kite and a board (ok maybe modify the board) and have a crack at the world speed record.
It's the world speed sailing record, as far as i'm concerned almost anything goes, a kite is hardly bordering on the radical.
The amazing thing about the recent run of kite records is that they are being achieved on standard seaworthy equipment. The inflated leading edge and floppy aspect plan really distorts in apparent winds over 50kts and a finite limit will be reached. All sailors have to applaud the achievement
When kite design gets extreme (like some sailboats have) with a carbon fibre leading edge foil, and a dozen fully formed carbon battens, even a solid foil perhaps, then perhaps 100 kts is the potential. But it won't be sailing!
It will be very expensive after a crash and will not be self launching from the water. A really dangerous machine to fly, at this time the ISAF might have reason to withdraw their recognition.
Congratulations to the 50kt heros.
is it true that the ISAF won't allow kite records based on safety concerns?. that is flaming ridiculous!!!! so many other types of speed record are so much more dangerous than kite boarding. I mean how many people have died breaking the 500m speed sailing record compared to how many have died chasing land speed records etc.
ISAF have become the governing body for kite boarding i believe, but yet don't recognise kiting as sailing! what ludicrous hypocrisy.
