I used to see a lot of hang gliders back in the 80s but it seems like a sport, like wind surfing, which has been replaced by a similar but different thing - paragliding. Related question - is there much difference between kite boarding and windsurfing? Can you still buy wind surfers?
Used to check them out at Torrey Pines, CA. I don't really see many on the East Coast. Although, I have been to those Kitty Hawk Sand Dunes, they are crazy.
I'll bet it's a blast. In my younger years, I often thought about trying it. Forty years later... Before giving it a try, I'll get my financials in order, set up a living trust, power of attorney, advance medical directive, and update beneficiaries. Actually, I've been doing this over the past few months. Might want to check life insurance policies. There are certain activities considered "hazardous" that are not covered or the premiums are significantly increased. SCUBA diving and skydiving can be considered as such. Sorry for the buzz kill. While I was in college, a friend of mine was killed while hang gliding in the hills above San Luis Obispo. Still, I'd rather go out hang gliding than waste away in a nursing home.
Kitty hawk kites is awesome. Never tried hang gliding but have seen people at jockies ridge doing it. Those are some cool sand dunes. Every time i visit NC i got to stop by
Looks like fun Is that you and your friends in the video? Is that how you learn to control, by jumping up like that? As those whom mentioned windsurfing- I always wanted to give it a try but didn't want to spend the money, although you can find them cheap on CL... now I just don't have the extra time lol I love sailing and surfing so it seems like it would be fun
i remember going to Kitty Hawk thinking about doing for a bachelor party. then we saw the prices and we're like f that. i know that's the place to do it on the east coast, but i'll prolly be more intrigued if i was out of the country with a cheaper price. good luck, can't get Will Ferrel "Chazz" out of my head tho when it's mentioned
Totally different, and yes. I used to do a lot of "windsurfing" (it's really sailboarding) and thought it was great when the wind was strong and the surf was on the bigger side. It let's you get out and actually have fun in conditions that are frustrating for surfing, but the down sides are cost and... you can't get tubed. Kitesurfing is way better than sailboarding, in terms of power and speed. Same downsides as sailboarding.
I always thought windsurfing (Like Ho'okipa style)was actually riding waves and sailboarding (Lake or flat open water style) was the diff....I guess in its original form it was sailboarding.
You might be right, JayD... kinda makes sense. I'll defer to you on that. All I know is that "Windsurfer" was (maybe still is?) a brand name. So we called it sailboarding instead, since none of us owned a Windsurfer brand board/sail. But once we learned the ropes on flat water, we never went back. It was for surfing only from that point on.
