About KiteMix
KiteMix is an independent, advertising-supported site for kite flying and kiteboarding: gear and technique, festivals and history, and a set of free calculators built to answer the questions that come up before and during a session. Rather than open with a mission statement, here is a walk through what is actually on the site.
Reading the wind: Wind Speed Converter & Beaufort Scale Guide
Before anything else, you need to know what the wind is doing. The Wind Speed Converterconverts between knots, mph, km/h, and m/s, maps the result onto the Beaufort scale, and gives plain-language kite-flying guidance — from too light to fly, through the ideal sport-kite window, to too strong and dangerous. The Beaufort Wind Scale Guideis the full reference behind that guidance: force 0 through 12, with wind ranges in knots, mph, and km/h, land and sea descriptions, and a “what can I fly?” column, filterable and searchable.
Sizing your gear: Kiteboarding Kite Size Calculator
Picking a kite size is one of the most common questions in kiteboarding. The Kiteboarding Kite Size Calculator takes your weight and the wind speed and estimates a size in square metres, with a recommended range, a tweak for riding style, and a full weight-by-wind size chart. It is a starting point for narrowing down a kite bag, not a replacement for local knowledge of your spot and gear.
Understanding the pull: Kite Line Tension Calculator & Wind Window Calculator
Two tools deal with how a kite behaves once it is up. The Kite Line Tension Calculator estimates the pull on your lines from kite area, wind speed, and lift coefficient, using the standard aerodynamic lift equation F = ½·ρ·v²·A·C_L. It reports the result in newtons, kgf, and lbf, and suggests a line strength with a safety factor built in. The Wind Window Calculatoris a more educational tool: pick an angle within the wind window and see which zone you land in — power, intermediate, edge, or neutral — and the relative pull, which falls off from the centre of the window to its edge.
Judging height: Kite Altitude Calculator
For single-line flyers, the Kite Altitude Calculator estimates how high a kite is flying from the length of line let out and its angle above the horizon, giving you altitude and ground distance in both metres and feet, with a note on how line sag affects the estimate.
Beyond the calculators
The rest of the site covers kite types and designs, gear and technique, festivals and competitions, and safety, alongside the blog and deeper learn guides. If you want the history and culture side rather than the how-to side, the Museum of Kites & the Skyis a set of galleries on the kites of the world from the delta to the parafoil, the boards and buggies of kiteboarding and power kiting, the science of flight that keeps them aloft, and the history of kites across the ages — every entry, image, and fact drawn from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons.
What this is and isn’t
KiteMix is a small, independent site, not a manufacturer, retailer, or official body, and it is not affiliated with any kite brand, kiteboarding organisation, or wind-measurement standard it references. It is supported by advertising, which is how the tools and guides stay free. Every calculator is built on established aerodynamic formulas and widely accepted flying conventions, but results are estimates from the numbers you enter, not measurements or professional advice. Kiteboarding and power kiting are wind sports with real risk: always get certified instruction, check local wind, weather, and regulations, keep well clear of power lines, airports, roads, water hazards, and crowds, and use your own judgment before you launch. Questions or corrections are welcome on the contact page.