Kitesurfing in summer and snowkiting in winter: what are the differences?
People who practice kitesurfing in Summer, learn snowkiting in winter almost immediately in winter. The skills needed for snowkiting is the kite control that a kitesurfer knows very well.
The kites used for snowkiting, however, have some differences (are so-called soft kites) in comparison to the summer kites that have an inflatable tube (also called tube kites). It is therefore worthwhile, even if you can kitesurf well in the summer, to attend to a short introduction to snowkiting to start safely.
It is also possible to use the summer tubekites in winter, although they are not ideal for this season as they require a stronger and more stable wind to fly than the snowkites, you need to blow them up with a pump and materials could get broken when the air temperature is lower than -10°C. Furthermore the snowkites can be started and landed by yourself without help of a second person (as for the tube kites). This is a very important characteristic that during tours on the mountains and in case of gusty winds, when you have to restart the kite often.