Learn To Kitesurf | NewKiter.com

As I kept swimming the kevlar lines twisted tighter and tighter around my leg. I imagined a sudden gust tightening the lines and cutting off my leg at my ankle. As the thought passed through my head, I immediately swam towards my fallen kite as fast as I could and deflated the leading edge. Now all I had to do was swim 200 meters to the shore with 16m-square of plastic connected to me. No problem.

Such events, which usually take place when your trying to kiteboard alone in a new environment, are known in the kiteboarding community as KiteMares. I’ve had a few interesting ones to say the least. Some where I didnt know the extreme danger I had escaped, till I got back to shore and then looked back at where I had been.

Kiteboarding is a sport with so many variables that I’m going to assume that unless you’ve kiteboarded in the same spot, at the same time every year then you’ve already had one of these or will have one. Kitemares are more or less bound to happen. The happen because of :

• not knowing the weather forecast
• using gear which is past its regular useful life. Eg: frayed lines snapping, knots in lines,
• not knowing the area in which your kiteboarding. Eg;
• not having properly practiced self-rescue. A lot of people dont spend enough time understanding self rescue so when they find themselves in a bad situation, they dont know what to do.
• not having taken the time to think what you would do in a bad situation. Are you willing to let go of the kite if your life depended on it?

So what can you do to make sure that this doesnt happen to you? This is what I do:

1. Dont go out if you the wind is faster than what your comfortable with. This bears repeating even though its common sense. Dont let peer pressure or over-confidence ruin the rest of your life.
2. Make sure you’ve done self-rescue simulations in the water at least 3 to 4 times with a friend on shore to help. Make sure you keep repeating till you need no help from your friend to get yourself, your kite and your board to shore.
3. Check the weather forecast for the entire time you’ll be on the water. Note the tides, the water temperature, probable gustiness of the wind, possibility of a storm hitting and the possible direction it will come from.
4. Understand the local weather (depth at low and high tides) and lay of the land/water (submerged hazards, local currents, shallows) from the local kiteboarders/sailers/windsurfers.
5. Kite with a buddy. This really helps if your compadre is more experienced than you and applies this to help you in your endeavor to get better.
6. Test your safety releases before you start kiteboarding. This takes 2 minutes and could save your life.
7. Regularly change your lines and heck lines for knots.
8. Go over in your mind and convince yourself that the kite is replaceable but YOU are not.

Learning to kiteboard can be hard but its all in your mind. Just like everything else .

Image credit: chrischappelear.

The best way to get started kiteboarding is to take a beginner lesson at a local kitesurfing school. Please read this article on What To Do Before Your First Kitesurfing Lesson to learn how you can save money on a beginner kitesurfing lesson by preparing for it before hand. Lessons are not cheap and reading that article could save you the cost of extra lessons (ie, at least $200). Not a bad deal for 15 minutes of your time!

When should I think of buying gear?

You should only think of buying gear after your first lesson and after you feel this sport is for you. Kiteboarding equipment is expensive so make sure you understand what your buying. I will write a separate blog post on what equipment to buy.

What should I do after the lesson?

Most kiteboarding schools will offer a service in which they will take you out to kiteboard at a nice shallow spot where they will keep an eye on you while you practice your new sport. This will be usually much cheaper than a lesson and will usually involve them helping you out when you get into trouble (eg: if the wind dies and your in the middle of the bay, or if one of your lines break etc). I would highly recommend you taking advantage of such a supervised type of situation.

If the above is not available then you should try to get a bunch of people together so that you can split the cost of a rescue boat or find a spot where its very shallow and you can practice without fear of not being able to make it back when the wind dies.

Always make sure that the wind is side shore or side on shore so that in the worst case scenario, you can drop your kite and it will float back to the beach.

What kind of equipment should I buy?

Generally you want to buy a stable kite which is easily re-launchable and forgiving in gusty conditions. For a board, you want some with a lot of surface area as these are more stable and easier to balance against the pull of a kite. I have 2 waroos which is also one of the cheaper kites on the market.

How can I make sure I am safe while kitesurfing?

The most important part that schools omit when you learn to kiteboard is the psychological mindset that you need when your learning to kitebaord. I’ve seen many kiteboarders buy expensive gear and take a lot of lessons and then, on the first day that they kiteboard on their own, they realise how dangerous kiteboarding can actually get and quit the sport.

Kiteboarding is dangerous. You need to accept that before you can become a real kiteboarder. The only way to accept that is if you realise that there are a lot of variables that affect your safety when you kitesurf and the way to stay safe is to keep those variables within the bounds that you are comfortable with.

The specific variables that I’m talking about are:

1. Weather conditions. If its windier than 22 mph then dont go out. Dont go out if its more than your comfortable with. If the wind is blowing offshore then dont go out.
2. Location of the kitesurfing spot: The ocean will have  a bigger waves and you will have to self rescue yourself back to shore if the wind dies as your feet wont be able to touch the floor. However in a shallow bay, you’d have the option to literally walk back to shore if the wind dies.
3. Gear. Check your safety release each time before you go out. Make sure it works! And dont forget to reset it after you;ve tested it. Make sure your lines are all okay and dont have knots and arent strayed from excessive use.
4. Protective Gear: Wear a helmet to protect your head and an impact vest to protect your torso.
5. Number of people around to help you in case of a problem. Always go out kiting with a friend. If you cant find anyone to go with then dont go out.

Remember, if in doubt then dont go out. Take another lesson if you have to but only kiteboard when your confident. (Of course if you have kiteboarding in your blood, your not going to listen …

Stay safe and good winds!

-Vivek

Image credit: Christopher.

Kitesurfing, in most situations, is a safe sport. Having said that, its not possible to predict the weather and calm situations can become dangerous very quickly. And if your not careful, yes it can kill you. But so can snowboarding, diving, whitewater kayaking and other extreme sports. Extreme sports are named as such because of that inherent danger. And that inherent danger part of the reason why its so much fun .

By following a few rules you can make kitesurfing (kiteboarding) as safe as windsurfing in my opinion.

Some of the rules that I think beginners should follow:

1. Check the weather forecast beforehand and at the beach to get an idea of how windy its going to be during your whole session. If its blowing 22 or more then do NOT GO OUT. Literally, do not go out on to the water if your feeling even a little scared. Wait till you get better at the sport. And if its below 13 then dont go out because all you will do is drop the kite in the water and then have to self rescue as relaunching a kite in light wind is very difficult to do.

2. Check your chicken-loop’s safety release everytime before you go out. And always wear a leash so that your kite is always attached to you even after you pull your chicken loop’s quick release.

3. Always kite with a friend.

4. Write your name and address and phone number on your kite and board so that if you ditch your kite and board then rescue personell can try to contact you before they launch a rescue.

5. DO NOT use a board leash. Google for “board leash injuries to understand why”.

6. Wear a helmet and a PFD/impact vest.

7. Get in shape. Being in shape will give you the stamina and strength to get out of messy situations while kiteboarding. Most injuries happen when you get tired on the water. Workout so you can minimize this happening to you.

Happy Winds,
Vivek

Image credit: tac1980.

Kiteboarding can kill you if you dont know what your doing. Always, ALWAYS, always, always take a beginner kiteboarding lesson when first learning how to kiteboard.

Imagine being attached to a 200hp motorboat which you have to control while your wakeboarding behind it. That is essentially what kiteboarding is. Now, imagine that its your first time on such a “self controlled wakeboard-motorboat”. Do you really think that, in your first time out, your going to be able to do all the following at the same time:
1. Control the speed, direction of the boat
2. Balance on the board so you dont fall off
3. Keep your bearings so you can return back to shore when your tired
4. Keep an eye out for rocks, debris and waves so you dont get thrown off the board
5. Control the boat after you’ve fallen off your board.

As a beginner, 99% of your time will be spent in just figuring out how to just get on the board itself. Ie, you would be lucky to just do item number 2 listed above and you can forget about doing anything else. Now imagine yourself falling off the board (but still attached to the boat) and losing control of the boat while its charging at the shore at 40mph.  This is how dangerous kiteboarding can be if your a rank beginner.

Not a pretty scenario, right? Thats why I implore everyone who reads this blog to take a lesson when your beginning kiteboarding.

Some of the basic benefits of a kiteboarding lesson are:

1. Understand the Safety aspects of kiteboarding
2. Understand what kind of weather conditions, environment is safe to kiteboard in as a beginner
3. Understand and practice self rescue.
4. Understand and practice setting up your own equipment

So please go take a lesson. Sometimes I feel that kiteboarding should have licensing rules like cars and boats do.

This blog has some good information about kiteboarding but is no substitute for a kiteboarding lesson. If you read the information in this blog first then you’ll get much more out of your lesson and even minimize the number of lessons you will need to take to start kiteboarding.

Be safe and may the wind be with you.

Image credit: Smudge 9000.

You’ve been taking lessons for kiteboarding and your finding it hard to water start. Your now at the point where you are thinking of just giving up.Well DONT!

In 90% of the cases that I’ve seen, the reason someone has not been able to waterstart is due to external factors. ITS REALLY NOT YOU.

Kiteboarding, especially in the beginning stages, depends a huge number of variables. If some of these variables are out of whack from what they should be then it makes kiteboarding much more difficult.  Try to get a beginner lesson when the conditions are:

1. Wind speed should be between 14mph and 21mph. Any more and you will get blown off the board.
2. Wind direction should be side shore or side on-shore.
3. No or little chop in the water. The more choppy the water, the more difficult it will be to put the board on while keeping the kite in its zenith position.
4. You should have the newest LEI kite available either of that same seasons model or the next seasons model.
5. You should have a nice wide board which will make it easier to balance once your up and going. A handle in the middle of the board also makes it easier to hold while your trying to balance the kite.
6. The instructor should be near you preferably on a jet ski. In Maui, Hawaii this is not possible due to the beach laws but in any case learning in Hawaii is hard and not recommended for a beginner. If the instructor is on a jet ski then this also means that you dont have to keep going back upwind via the beach. This will give you more time to practice your waterstart.
7. No current in the water. If there is a current in the water then this will either “add” to the power of the wind or “take away” from the power of the wind depending on whether the current is in the same direction as the wind on not. This essentially will confuse a beginner.

Now, its in the interest of an instructor and the lesson provider to always make you take the lesson. So you have to be steadfast when telling them that you dont think the conditions are conducive to learning. This has happened to me on one ocassion in Hawaii where I was taken to a lesson even though the wind was whipping 25 with huge chop (it was winter). I lost like $150 because the instructor egged me to take the lesson. I accept that it was my fault in not being steadfast but I was a beginner so what the hell did I know? …

If this helps even one other beginner from the same scenario I’ll be very happy.
If your thinking of taking a lesson you might want to review my 7 Things To Do Before A Kiteboarding Lesson.