Line lengths

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[Old Greebo]

Most mass-produced stunt kites seem to come with 20- or 25- metre lines.  Why is this?  Would I have more (or less) fun with my HQ Yukon if I fitted it with (say) 40-metre lines?
I'm sure there must be a logic to the length of kite lines, but I do wish someone would explain it to me!

[Steve]

65 to 85 feet is probably the most popular length line today ... particularly among the freestyle/trick crowd.  You may certainly enjoy the longer length lines for your kite but the manufacturers are aiming for the most popular length.
And while I am sure this has nothing at all in determining the length of lines included, longer lines increase to cost of the package. 

[Zeke]

  Exceptions might be dual line kites with wingspans greater than 8'-10'.  I have managed a 16' Flexifoil on 150' lines; the 16' kite needs a lot of room to turn in; being a foil might affect this as well.. Big lift, Mystic, Force-10, El Nino (15') all can use the extra turning space.

[FlyingJoe]

And of course, the longer the lines the larger your window.
I'm a fan of 90' or longer... but I don't trick much.

[Bob D]

I started on 65' and 85'. Longer lines means a wider window to work with and if you have more height you have more room to recover from tricks gone bad. When I first started flying 100' lines the kite seemed very far away. I got used to it though and I like the longer lengths now. (Somebody, who's much more of an expert than me, said Nirvanas should be flown on 125' lengths. I'll probably get a set in the spring.)

If space is a problem, short lines are good.

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