Was that you at Brighton on Saturday?

Hi little gav, I have just graduated from the school of walk of shame n it's a great feeling to b in the water n up n riding the whole time... Prob the best tip I had was too (a) get speed downwind first then edge hard so ur pointing ur board up wind... Once u got the speed n ur edging look over ur shoulder, looking upwind... When u look over ur shoulder ur body will twist so as to point ur body n board upwind...next step is to make sure ur kite Is sheeted out so that the kite is in front of u, not in line with u or behind u... U can try this on the beach, when u sheet out or let the bar out, the kite travels ahead of u, when u pull the bar in the kite travels backwards in line with u or behind u... So make sure u r sheeting out enough to keep the kite ahead of u, upwind... If ur losing power working the kite up n down helps too but key is to not hav it sheeted in hard, the kite needs to be ahead of u! So ease up on the bar! This took me a few wks to get after being comfortable going downwind. Hope this helps, I no this advice helped me!

if you try taking your front hand off the bar it will help open your shoulder and enable you to face the board further upwind

Also, don't have your kite too high in strong winds. You'll keep a better edge if it's at 10 o'clock then you can really bury a rail and crank up wind. Don't forget to use your trim strap to optimumise performace and comfort. If you feel the need to fly the kite high because the wind is strong pull in some trim so as to spill a bit of air ie learn how and why the kite flys

HUGE THANKS for all the advice guys and gal

I have been out last couple of days in strong winds and over the surf here in Byron Bay and all the tips have helped me immensely.

To be honest I have still walked the walk but less often and probably in the toughest conditions I have been in.

Many thanks again, it is really appreciated!!

Gav

A Dutch guy once gave me this bit of advice when I was learning how to edge:

"Imagine the hottest girl in the world is up on your kite; now, when you are riding along, point your d!ck towards the kite, and lean over your back foot"

Funnily enough, it works, and you avoid the poo stance.

monkey said...

Lots and lots of back foot pressure.
Stomp the board and jam that foot in with all you've got.

Look towards where you want to be heading.

I've been finding it difficult to put enough pressure through the back foot like everyone keeps saying, and my upwind's variable. Yesterday I narrowed the stance on each side (still around shoulder width) and duck splayed the footpads further out. Also put some heelstraps on.

Went out overpowered today. Initially was pulled off edge/ skimming out of control plenty. Then found with new narrower/ splayed footpad position, could dig in rear heel/ edge and control overpower/ board way easier- more fulcrum effect and easier on the thighs. After a while was able to maintain lower/ moderate speeds with board edging/ kite positioning alone and travel upwind way easier than previous overpowered situations, with less effort. Heelstraps seemed to help with with rear foot pressure, and also kept board on when it all went to s*** and blew up (which was still plenty).
Cheers.