Derf54 said..
I am a beginner with Air Rush 12m kit and a Switch 140 board. I've had lessons and am at work beside the beach and have a opportunity to put it all into practice.
Problem is I'm at a point of putting the board onto my feet and getting up, however the sea floor is not sand but hard (not loose) rock bottom.
Generally the sport suggests that starting off is ideally done on a sandy shore/bottom, where the person would be bear foot. At present this is not the case, where i must wear some type of foot wear to launch and move into the water and practice, body dragging, water starts etc.
The board has straps and conducive to bear feet where i am in shoes.

How can i over come this challenge. I so want to up skill, however the local environment wont allow.

Derf

Can you post a photo of the location please Derf.

Hey Derf,

Just go to a local surf/kite shop and buy some reef booties. Heaps of companies make them. You'll have to adjust your board straps though. I learned at a spot with heaps of stingrays and stone fish so it kind of motivated me to get up on the board riding quicker.

Best of luck.
Cheers.

Good news derf sounds like you dont have fire coral sea urchins dirty nappys military mangroves or dysentry

What are the other kitesurfers doing in your area and how are they coping?

A google map link can help everyone here guide you better.

jamesperth said..
Are you saying you need to be standing on the bottom in order to get the board on your feet ? That is never going to work :)

Unless you are kiting in a very shallow area the second you start riding you'll probably be in deep water, then crash and what then ?

The water start is generally initiated from a seated position, floating, and you'll manoeuvre one foot in then the other. Your instructor would have asked you to demonstrate this, assuming they followed the KA/ BKSA curriculum.

From my maths hes like 65? Years age so we just need to work out where hes actually located and point him in right direction

Sandfoot said..

Derf54 said..
I am a beginner with Air Rush 12m kit and a Switch 140 board. I've had lessons and am at work beside the beach and have a opportunity to put it all into practice.
Problem is I'm at a point of putting the board onto my feet and getting up, however the sea floor is not sand but hard (not loose) rock bottom.
Generally the sport suggests that starting off is ideally done on a sandy shore/bottom, where the person would be bear foot. At present this is not the case, where i must wear some type of foot wear to launch and move into the water and practice, body dragging, water starts etc.
The board has straps and conducive to bear feet where i am in shoes.

How can i over come this challenge. I so want to up skill, however the local environment wont allow.

Derf

Can you post a photo of the location please Derf.

Derf54 said..

Sandfoot said..

Derf54 said..
I am a beginner with Air Rush 12m kit and a Switch 140 board. I've had lessons and am at work beside the beach and have a opportunity to put it all into practice.
Problem is I'm at a point of putting the board onto my feet and getting up, however the sea floor is not sand but hard (not loose) rock bottom.
Generally the sport suggests that starting off is ideally done on a sandy shore/bottom, where the person would be bear foot. At present this is not the case, where i must wear some type of foot wear to launch and move into the water and practice, body dragging, water starts etc.
The board has straps and conducive to bear feet where i am in shoes.

How can i over come this challenge. I so want to up skill, however the local environment wont allow.

Derf

Can you post a photo of the location please Derf.

Check tide times

causehecan said..
Good news derf sounds like you dont have fire coral sea urchins dirty nappys military mangroves or dysentry

What are the other kitesurfers doing in your area and how are they coping?

A google map link can help everyone here guide you better.

At present i havent seen any other kiters around.
Lat: 2? 0'38.23"N Long: 45?18'16.65"E

cauncy said..

Derf54 said..

Sandfoot said..

Derf54 said..
I am a beginner with Air Rush 12m kit and a Switch 140 board. I've had lessons and am at work beside the beach and have a opportunity to put it all into practice.
Problem is I'm at a point of putting the board onto my feet and getting up, however the sea floor is not sand but hard (not loose) rock bottom.
Generally the sport suggests that starting off is ideally done on a sandy shore/bottom, where the person would be bear foot. At present this is not the case, where i must wear some type of foot wear to launch and move into the water and practice, body dragging, water starts etc.
The board has straps and conducive to bear feet where i am in shoes.

How can i over come this challenge. I so want to up skill, however the local environment wont allow.

Derf

Can you post a photo of the location please Derf.

Check tide times

At the high tide mark in one place there is maybe a 10-15 stretch of sand that I launch from. Problem is, it runs along side the airport run way so I practice before 0630 and walk it out into the water for body dragging. South side of the airport is better situated however its the main approach into the airport

Okay... Mogadishu airport has some very large planes im going to try find you a more suitable location. In western world its illegal to fly kites near international airports for safety reasons (traffic control really dont like it)

se.kiteforum.com/kitesurf/spot/Mogadishu_Beach

Looks a bit far away from you but theyre is atleast 1 guy theyre i see on facebook flying since 2015

m.facebook.com/KitesurfingSomalia/



My friend you are a bit of a pioneer.

I have been searching for somalia windsurfing and somalia surfing for previous information and trips. Sadly everyone just seems to suggest going to mogadishu beach which looks like theres some distance for you.

gosurfafrica.com/somalia/

Good news is you have plenty of wind. If it wasnt for some surf tourists being kidnapped then i would consider going theyre myself. But i have too many other options i would like to explore first.

Im going to start looking again for more appropriate location to kitesurf my best advice would be to search for other somalian kitesurfers on facebook or whatever social media you use. Witj me searching in english i can not find alot of local communications

Stay safe

Derf54 said..

blows south west
perfect cross-offshore wind for riding that righthander
launch up near that headland

Notwithstanding local security issues in Mogadishu which I am sure are a factor; but what about kiting 10-15 km south of the airport - looks to have some inbuilt safety elements if you get into trouble on the SSW breeze. Booties for the reef. 12m kite sounds a lot if you are learning on a 20 knot thermal wind - try a 9m and a larger board if possible. Dont give up, but always consider what if?when pioneering a new location - legendary stuff!

chillout said..

Thanks for the suggestion.
Not shown on the map is that its currently used as a range by different identities

Hey dude- firstly good on ya for sticking with it! For what its worth: if the bottom is hard you are much safer starting off seated. Your pants are gonna rip and your heel side edge get scratched but so what- its better than getting tripped over yo board and banging up yo knees/elbows/head straight on the rocks. I just saw this happen to a dude not two hours ago (followed by a 50m drag over the sand).
Good luck.