Directional riding toe side

> 10 years ago
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suniboy21
suniboy21
VIC
1090 posts
VIC, 1090 posts
10 Dec 2012 12:23pm
Ive got a 5,3 dirrectional cabrinha straped board, and ive been riding fine heel side but when i turn toe side i find my self strugling to get up wind as i tend to loose speed as im allways finding the board is sinking in because of the weight over the back foot.
Any tips? loose weight? bigger kite? more wind? eat weetbix?
KiteBud
KiteBud
WA
1615 posts
WA, 1615 posts
10 Dec 2012 10:14am
Stronger winds definitely helps for learning toeside riding. That being said if you can ride comfortably upwind on your heel side on a given day, then toe side can be done just as well. The difficulty riding toeside is putting enough weight on the upwind edge to create apparent wind and keep cruising, and this can only be done by forcing your body upwind (against the kite) and using your knees to point upwind as well. It's a weird unnatural stance at first but you need to try harder and it'll work. Also, make sure you build up enough speed downwind first, before leaning upwind on your toeside.

It is more difficult if you have your front foot strapped in the middle of the board and therefore you really need to force your knees upwind even harder for this to work. To make life easier try removing the front foot strap and this will allow you to move your front foot freely and place it closer to the upwind edge making it less effort to go upwind on toeside.
Saffer
Saffer
VIC
4501 posts
VIC, 4501 posts
10 Dec 2012 1:27pm
Thanks. Been having some issues with Gybing and wasn't haven't much luck with the toeside riding for the same reason (although toeside on a twintip is easy). Will try out some of these solutions.
surfingboye
surfingboye
NSW
2707 posts
NSW, 2707 posts
10 Dec 2012 6:28pm
lose the straps that way you can go heel side both ways.
then you will motor up wind.
best thing about strapless and nobody seems to do it.
lol.

sunseeker
sunseeker
QLD
1203 posts
QLD, 1203 posts
11 Dec 2012 8:41am
When I'm riding my strapped board I'll often bring my back foot out of the strap and put it in front of the foot pad with my toes almost on the rail. This allows me to get more weight over the front foot to get the board on the plane more easily. This also gives your back leg a rest from being twisted. For toeside in general, make sure you get some downwind speed up before edging too hard. Also, not enough edge can also cause you to stall.
dave......
dave......
WA
2119 posts
WA, 2119 posts
11 Dec 2012 5:53pm
Keep the kite low as possible. A kite past 10:30 tries to point your hips downwind.
suniboy21
suniboy21
VIC
1090 posts
VIC, 1090 posts
12 Dec 2012 8:21pm
Can i achive the same up wind direction when ridding toe side? Or should i expect a little less compared to heel side?
sunseeker
sunseeker
QLD
1203 posts
QLD, 1203 posts
13 Dec 2012 9:33am
Once you have your technique sorted you should be able to get the same upwind angle riding toeside and heelside
SaltySinus
SaltySinus
VIC
960 posts
VIC, 960 posts
13 Dec 2012 1:52pm
Suni, I'm a massive Newbie... so feel free to disregard.

Whilst watching Kiting101 this a.m. they talked about this and it suggested one needs to focus on rotating the hips, shoulders and head in the direction of travel.

I'm sure you're doing it, but something to think about.
NickT
NickT
WA
1094 posts
WA, 1094 posts
13 Dec 2012 11:38am
I've always found that being on your toes you lose your "suspension" in the chop and will end up losing ground in comparison to heelside.
KiteBud
KiteBud
WA
1615 posts
WA, 1615 posts
13 Dec 2012 11:43am
NickT said...
I've always found that being on your toes you lose your "suspension" in the chop and will end up losing ground in comparison to heelside.



I agree, for general upwind cruising around yes you may be able to match toeside and heelisde performance, but for a hard upwind tack I doubt anyone can claim they can do as good on toeside vs heelside...especially in choppy conditions.
kyteryder
kyteryder
NSW
692 posts
NSW, 692 posts
16 Dec 2012 9:55am
Ben is your friend

+ loose the straps


NSW, 4382 posts
16 Dec 2012 12:34pm
Dynabar helps with riding toeside and getting upwind, because the pull from the kite comes off your hip. A normal hook is always trying to twist you the wrong way when you ride toeside.

www.kitepower.com.au/collections/kitesurfing
SibboV1
SibboV1
368 posts
368 posts
16 Dec 2012 6:15pm
I run my harness loose enough to allow it to swivel, so it doesn't add any twisting forces.

I also lean as forward as I can - helps in getting the weight on the front foot.
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