you want your lessons to be from an iko instructor and school. this will cost alot of money there is no budget way of doing this. wait till you got 2k$ saved up then try get into kiteing again

Three-day lesson here is Y8,000, or about AU$90... there's no interest in the sport in this area so it's very budget. One other place here I paid $120 for a full-day lesson.

Gotta have lessons.

Fast-track will be expensive. Cheap will be getting a trainer kite, learning to fly the ass off that then getting a lesson.

In Elementals defence...
At the time you would have done your lessons a permit was not required at the beaches Elemental regularly uses. Insurance was in place & would have been valid in those locations with or without permits.
The same beaches now - at Woodman Pt. - do require ALL instructors to be working with a permit - with some heavy penalties for unlicenced operations.
Elemental has been awarded a permit to operate for this year - along with our own Kite Surf SUP school.
NB: Every student should ask any prospective school for proof of permits & insurance before signing up.

But remember that permits are not always required for insurance to be valid. Depends on the site. Your school should be able to sort this out to your satisfaction. Make sure they do - theres some very dodgy offers out there.

snalberski said..

It sounds like you have a really good start. Having pre knowledge and trainer kite experience should make you automatically fast track. The most important and main thing you will get from lessons is how to stay safe. I looked at the elemental site and it looks to be about the most professional I've spyed in Perth. If they are giving you a good price I would say go with it. Some businesses want up $300 for 1 x 2.5 hour lesson which I think is ridiculous. So ridiculous that I found someone giving kite lessons in Gumtree for a third of the price. You will no doubt get posts after this one warning you away from this because its blah blah blah..... but if you ask some questions about their experience, what gear they use to teach (2013 or 2014 kites preferred) and if they follow IKO lesson type then you can maybe score a good instructor for much less. An instructor can only tell you what you should do and inevitably everyone teaches themselves through trial and error and implementing instruction. Keep reading and watching the progression vids and definately get a couple of lessons. Then just dive in - its the bomb!!

Just a quick question Snalberski : do you know how to self rescue, pack down, safely self land and self launch? Can you body drag upwind effectively?

This is probably what you will get from a business who charges $300 for a 1 x 2,5 hour lesson.

All your advices suggest that you are a beginner yourself and maybe you are not the one who should tell people what to do. There is some reasons why the cowboy lessons you get off Gumtree are just a third of what you'd pay from a respectable business but then don't be surprised to see experienced kiters spending their time picking up lost boards or retrieving a drifting kite. This only happen because people like you focus on getting up on the board and don't give a crap about the safety and the basics of kitesurfing.

But maybe you are just a kook using a board leash?



To Crabbit,

Just be aware that most of the schools use backpacker instructors who usually stay only for the season. Most of them operates from the back of their cars and don't even have an emergency plan if things go pear-shaped.

Unfortunately not many schools provide a real professional training around Perth. From what I've seen so far I'd vouch for 3 schools only. PM me if you'd like their details.

livit, you carnt blame the backpackers for the kite schools un proffesionalism

snalberski said..

An instructor can only tell you what you should do and inevitably everyone teaches themselves through trial and error and implementing instruction.

While I disagree with almost all of your post snalberski you have nailed the general failure of the "Kite Instruction" industry in this one sentence.
The fanatical adherence to 1-on-1 instruction from wo-to-go is about as educationally effective as trying to teach roosters to lay eggs.
The accepted kite school format does (unfortunately) do exactly what you say. An instructor TELLS you what you should/need to do then you go off and learn how.
Its bollocks - there is no learning going on & no educational validity to the program at all.
By the time a student is let loose with a school approved learners licence they should be 'educated'. NOT just shown what they "should" do.
The widely accepted school programs 'instruct' they do not teach.

If a student leaves a school to go off & learn by "trial & error" what has been gained apart from the essential safety procedures - that the cowboys tend to neglect as well.
Kiting is still in its infancy. Im sure we will see more legitimate learning programs develop over time.
BUT this shortcoming only adds to the argument that school lessons are essential.
In their current format they are the absolute minimum level of introduction EVERY kiter should have before taking off at risk to themselves, those around them & the sport itself.

And as per the cost being quoted as ridiculous. ???? This is one argument I just dont get.
I rang for a mobile car service the other day to be told it was well in excess of $100 per hr. This for a van full of tools & independent worker with no responsibility for - or need for insurance of - anyone but himself. And they work in an industry with the opportunity to operate 10 hrs a day (or more) every day of the year.
I recently had a lawn mower repaired - $92 per hr labour + $3 per hr 'workshop expenses' (WTF is that??) parts at RRP (no discounts offered). And I dropped off & picked up. And then they asked me to pay +2% if I wanted to pay by card!!!
A kite school has to pay a casual instructor a very generous hourly rate to compensate for travelling & the haphazard & limited hours of employment involved. It can only work for 1/2 the year & then only on limited days for no more than about 4 to 6 hours per day. Every instructor has to be provided with $6000 to $8000 worth of kit. Insurance & permits are charged for 12mths despite the 1/3rd to 1/2 it actually earns an income.
With the average cost of reputable schools offering 1-on-1 instruction at around $100 per hr there is not much of that $100 returning to the school that has to operate from a base, handle bookings & phone service etc etc on top of the actual instructor time on the beach.

Where is that 'ridiculous' when (another eg) a whole industry works around a washing mechanic charging $83 call out for the first 20 mins then $32 per 15 minutes thereafter - plus all parts at fixed retail prices. Prices you cant go round getting alternative quotes for (my guess 150% MARK-UP)

snalberski said..


>>Just a quick question Snalberski : do you know how to self rescue, pack down, safely self land and self launch? Can you body drag upwind effectively?

The short answer is yes. I was taught all safety techniques as aligned with IKO standards. I researched and taught myself self land and launch and doubt that any responsible school would teach any newbie those techniques. In fact I know of some upcoming free clinics by a well known school teaching those techniques - for experienced kiters only. If you had enough powers of comprehension you would realise that my advice was to go with the school - If they are giving you a good price I would say go with it. Yeah I heard you before... blah blah blah.... tell someone who gives a toss

Tell me why a "responsible school" should NOT teach any newbie self launching and self landing? So if you as a good kook are left alone on the beach with your kite up in the air with no one to land it for you, what are you gonna do? Wait until the wind drops?

Now you haven't answer the question about the board leash (because I know you have one). So all your misfortunes from last season at Pinaroo Point didn't make you think that you should jump on a professional lesson instead or telling the world what to do? I bet you that spending $300 on a good program would help you getting rid of that leash and become an independent rider....

Livit said..

snalberski said..


>>Just a quick question Snalberski : do you know how to self rescue, pack down, safely self land and self launch? Can you body drag upwind effectively?

The short answer is yes. I was taught all safety techniques as aligned with IKO standards. I researched and taught myself self land and launch and doubt that any responsible school would teach any newbie those techniques. In fact I know of some upcoming free clinics by a well known school teaching those techniques - for experienced kiters only. If you had enough powers of comprehension you would realise that my advice was to go with the school - If they are giving you a good price I would say go with it. Yeah I heard you before... blah blah blah.... tell someone who gives a toss

Tell me why a "responsible school" should NOT teach any newbie self launching and self landing? So if you as a good kook are left alone on the beach with your kite up in the air with no one to land it for you, what are you gonna do? Wait until the wind drops?

Now you haven't answer the question about the board leash (because I know you have one). So all your misfortunes from last season at Pinaroo Point didn't make you think that you should jump on a professional lesson instead or telling the world what to do? I bet you that spending $300 on a good program would help you getting rid of that leash and become an independent rider....

Yawn