In the right conditions emphasis on right with a good instructor plus as you say your past experience its possible within your first lesson you'll be up and off.
Good luck enjoy and respect the non kiting community.

If you have had plenty of time on a trainer kite and have the kite controll down, you will be up in one or two lessons. It also depends on your teacher as there are heaps of bad ones.

It's 90% about flying the kite. The board skills will come soon enough. After 8 years I'm still discovering things about kite flying! Maybe I'm a slow learner.

Thanks for all the feedback, it helps me to set time frames to my goals.

I must be doing ok then, I had my first lesson just flying the kite, second lessons we did some body dragging and started on water starting, in the 2 hour lesson only face planted twice but did get up and ride the board for about 10 meters, by the end of the lesson I was starting to make all the same mistakes I was making at the start of the lesson and was getting frustrated.

I do have one foot that always wants to lead tho, so when i am going in the opposite direction my board tends to want to switch.

Hey BigwaveDave,
do you think it is easier to learn on flat water (i.e not at the beach) or on the coast in very small swell / sheltered beach? Or does not matter?

poolboy said...

Hey BigwaveDave,
do you think it is easier to learn on flat water (i.e not at the beach) or on the coast in very small swell / sheltered beach? Or does not matter?

I have taught in both locations.

Flat water is definitely easier. However, the students that learned in the ocean often advanced more rapidly and their ability to cope with differing conditions was increased.

I definitely recommend plenty of body dragging in the waves and ocean. It gives you so much more confidence.

My biggest tip to anyone learning to kite.

Learn to trim your kite correctly.

Correct trim assists you maintain the right stance. The right stance helps you go upwind and keep good balance for jumps.

Incorrect trim results in poo stance, over-sheeting and poor kite control.

Believe it or not I reckon 70% of kiters do not understand the correct way to trim a kite. (mainly because they think that it 'depowers' the kite).

Once you have learned how to correctly trim your kite you can stand on the beach and identify all the kiters who have their kites incorrectly trimmed.

I would be interested? I normally don't depower much at all when riding, say 20-120mm tops.

Signs of incorrectly trimmed kites:

Poo stance (which is caused by leaning forward to reach the bar)
Kiting with arms at full reach.
Kite stalls (flies backwards)
Inability to go upwind.
General kookiness

(n.b. correct stance is straight front leg, bent back leg, straight back, centre of body weight should be behind the feet)

The first step to correctly trimming your kite

Step 1
Understand that there is a maximum distance you can pull in the bar until you have reached full power. Going past this mark will give you no more power and will result in over-sheeting and cause the kite to stall (fall backwards) or otherwise misbehave. This maximum distance will change each time you fly your kite and often several times each session. Understand that the centre lines adjustment mechanism is not really about power and depower. It is about adjusting the length of your front lines to allow for correct trim and correct stance..

Step 2
Launch the correct kite for the conditions. Ensure you have plenty of room and not in anyone's way. Adjust your trim strap (depower) so that the front lines are as long as the setting allows. (max power?)

Step 3 (light to moderate wind)
Park the kite at 45 degrees at the front edge of the window. Pull the bar all the way in to the chicken loop (or unhook if you have the skills to do so). If the kite stalls, shorten the front lines with the adjustment mechanism (strap, rope, cleat) until the kite can no longer stall.

Step 3 (moderate to strong wind)
Park the kite at 45 degrees and attempt to pull the bar all the way in. If you can't without being hauled off your feet, adjust the mechanism until you can.

Step 4 On the water
If you find you have to kite with straight arms, or lean forward to reach the bar while kiting with the correct stance, adjust your mechanism until you can achieve the correct stance and your are cruising with your arms bent at least 45 degrees.

You have now correctly trimmed your kite.

Adjusting the trim setting will not depower your kite. All it does is place the 'sweet spot' of the bar throw as close to your body as possible.

Bigwavedave said...

Signs of incorrectly trimmed kites:

Poo stance (which is caused by leaning forward to reach the bar)
Kiting with arms at full reach.
Kite stalls (flies backwards)
Inability to go upwind.
General kookiness

(n.b. correct stance is straight front leg, bent back leg, straight back, centre of body weight should be behind the feet)

The first step to correctly trimming your kite

Step 1
Understand that there is a maximum distance you can pull in the bar until you have reached full power. Going past this mark will give you no more power and will result in over-sheeting and cause the kite to stall (fall backwards) or otherwise misbehave. This maximum distance will change each time you fly your kite and often several times each session. Understand that the centre lines adjustment mechanism is not really about power and depower. It is about adjusting the length of your front lines to allow for correct trim and correct stance..

Step 2
Launch the correct kite for the conditions. Ensure you have plenty of room and not in anyone's way. Adjust your trim strap (depower) so that the front lines are as long as the setting allows. (max power?)

Step 3 (light to moderate wind)
Park the kite at 45 degrees at the front edge of the window. Pull the bar all the way in to the chicken loop (or unhook if you have the skills to do so). If the kite stalls, shorten the front lines with the adjustment mechanism (strap, rope, cleat) until the kite can no longer stall.

Step 3 (moderate to strong wind)
Park the kite at 45 degrees and attempt to pull the bar all the way in. If you can't without being hauled off your feet, adjust the mechanism until you can.

Step 4 On the water
If you find you have to kite with straight arms, or lean forward to reach the bar while kiting with the correct stance, adjust your mechanism until you can achieve the correct stance and your are cruising with your arms bent at least 45 degrees.

You have now correctly trimmed your kite.

Adjusting the trim setting will not depower your kite. All it does is place the 'sweet spot' of the bar throw as close to your body as possible.

Great info BWD! way too many times on this forum i see more experienced kiters bagging us beginners then offering no advice to improve. cheers!

Hey Scott,

Started about a month back, did about 10 mins of trainer kite flying (had already flown them competently when i was younger) then went straight onto body dragging/practiced launches/upwind board retrieval drags (ESSENTIAL!) for around an hour and a half. That day went out and bought a quiver of 3 kites and a couple of boards, i was HOOKED! Had a lesson few days later with Trevor from http://www.moretonbaykiting.com.au/, aside from being a great person he was an exemplary instructor, he spent a good half hour checking out all the competencies needed making sure I was in good stead incase of any bad scenario. Around half hour later he had me on my feet and then the battle began to stay upwind!! It is all time on the water and making the most of any opportunity in any wind condition, dont be afraid of those minimal wind days, it all matters. It has been around 3 weeks on the board now and i'm loving the sport, trying to land sent jumps consistantly! In the past have done around 7 years of freebording (out-of-season snowboard trainer), surfed and wakeboarded for around 10 years. Has all helped! Make sure to listen out to all the locals if you respect them they are sure to help you out. It is an unreal sport, get into it!!

cheers Josh

Thanks for that very helpfull post I was going to ask a question about trim

Bigwavedave said...

Signs of incorrectly trimmed kites:

Poo stance (which is caused by leaning forward to reach the bar)
Kiting with arms at full reach.
Kite stalls (flies backwards)
Inability to go upwind.
General kookiness

(n.b. correct stance is straight front leg, bent back leg, straight back, centre of body weight should be behind the feet)

The first step to correctly trimming your kite

Step 1
Understand that there is a maximum distance you can pull in the bar until you have reached full power. Going past this mark will give you no more power and will result in over-sheeting and cause the kite to stall (fall backwards) or otherwise misbehave. This maximum distance will change each time you fly your kite and often several times each session. Understand that the centre lines adjustment mechanism is not really about power and depower. It is about adjusting the length of your front lines to allow for correct trim and correct stance..

Step 2
Launch the correct kite for the conditions. Ensure you have plenty of room and not in anyone's way. Adjust your trim strap (depower) so that the front lines are as long as the setting allows. (max power?)

Step 3 (light to moderate wind)
Park the kite at 45 degrees at the front edge of the window. Pull the bar all the way in to the chicken loop (or unhook if you have the skills to do so). If the kite stalls, shorten the front lines with the adjustment mechanism (strap, rope, cleat) until the kite can no longer stall.

Step 3 (moderate to strong wind)
Park the kite at 45 degrees and attempt to pull the bar all the way in. If you can't without being hauled off your feet, adjust the mechanism until you can.

Step 4 On the water
If you find you have to kite with straight arms, or lean forward to reach the bar while kiting with the correct stance, adjust your mechanism until you can achieve the correct stance and your are cruising with your arms bent at least 45 degrees.

You have now correctly trimmed your kite.

Adjusting the trim setting will not depower your kite. All it does is place the 'sweet spot' of the bar throw as close to your body as possible.

Ellobuddha said...

I found that watching that "Progression Beginner" video was helpful between time on the water as you can sit back and watch it and learn heaps by reviewing what you have been doing in practice. It helped me to identify some mistakes that I was making as well. I know its not the same as time with your instructor but it keeps you focusing on what to do - at a time when you dont have a massive piece of cloth above your head trying to smack you

Have to agree, I picked up a very useful tip when I was learning to get up on the board from the Progression DVD's.

One simple thing the IKO instructor never really emphasised a cpl of years bacl, was how keeping your arms bent and bar closer to your chest pulls you up out of the water much quicker and cleanly than trying to water start with arms more outstretched. Centre of gravity and all that I guess. Lots of other tips from the DVD's too....

I say allow a full year to go from pleb to confident rider.

BWD's suggestions are on the money.

I'd like to add if you have to trim your kite significantly due to the wind strength (not beacuse you have short arms) your riding over powered and you need to put up a smaller kite.

IMO if you need to trim more than an inch or two you have the wrong kite for the situation. Over powered riding is harder, less fun and more dangerous.

Another idicator of being over powered. your harness is giving you the mighty rib squeaze.

Lastly dive head first into learn the weather pattersn cloud formations and squall fronts. The most dangerous side of kiting is not understanding these conditions and how they can change the wind.

General rule of thumb. If all the experienced guys all of a sudden land land there kites you should too.

I've only been on the water a handful of times, and it came together for me this weekend with that nice 20kt NE on Saturday arvo! Amazing. Now learning to turn and go the other way better. So much fun. (As a surfer I've found going one way easier than the other coz it feels goofy footed).

I've also learned to be careful who you except advise from on the beach. While most people are friendly and helpful it's not all good.