KGB
The KGB is the next step on from a back to blind with an air pass. Much like the excitement of a Blind Judge 3, the add on is the final 180 of rotation so that you land heel side, therefore completing the move. It’ll have you laughing on the inside for weeks once you claim it, as that final float around to your heels is one mighty achievement. We will of course advise that you should already be stomping back to blind with air passes, as then it is more a matter of tweaking and polishing rather than learning something from scratch. If you did nail the Blind Judge Three it will help a lot, as you’ll already have built up some muscle memory to get the passing and kicking movement for the heel side landing.
- Approach and Carve Pic A.
In order to get the height, pop and slow enough rotation your entry into the KGB must be bang on. First off make sure you come in well off the wind, so bear away a lot before unhooking. Why? This will let you carve hard enough to get your rotation into the back loop without turning too far into wind, and therefore you’ll actually “do” more of the back loop in the air, and thus it will feel slower, giving you more chance to pass and turn. Secondly make sure you lean back towards the tail of the board as you bear away. You can see in the pit that the rider’s hips are leaning back over his back foot, and his shoulders are leaning back towards the tail of the board. This will help him invert, which in turn will make the pass both easier and closer so that he can pass later and therefore get all the way around to his heels. Finally don’t be afraid to have your kite a tad higher for learning this, as it’ll be more pleasant and confidence boosting knowing that there’s enough room to complete the manoeuvre.
- The Take Off Pic B.
Once you’ve got off the water with a right royal stamp against the back foot your aim is to get the board swinging up whilst you turn slowly through your rotation until you just about complete a back loop – but with the board up high and the bar in close. Here the rider has kept his hands in close to his waist from the off by locking his elbows in, and thus hopefully the bar will stay nice and close too and he won’t need superhuman strength to pass the bar. The rider’s head, although just about leading the rotation, is not looking over his front shoulder, but rather forward, perpendicular to his shoulders. This prevents him from spinning too quickly, thus helping him to turn the other way when needed and pass. Finally as his shoulders are still leaning back from the take off and his board rises the rider and brings his knees up and close, so that the board moves with him and doesn’t pull him down later in the move.
- The Inversion Pic C.
Getting the board up is what gives you time to pass the bar late and get your front foot through.
The timing and amount you turn can vary, but the more you complete the back rotation the better your KGB will look, much the same as a back to blind. The rider is coming around his back loop, not quite a full 360, but almost in relation to the angle he went off the wind to start, which gives him the most chance of landing comfortably downwind and not on an edge. Your aim is to get to this point with your board high and the bar still tucked in close to your hips. The further you come around the more your hips will come up towards the bar and save you having to pull your weight up to the bar, and this way you can rotate the opposite way for the pass without getting pulled backwards. Like many passes you will think you’ve left it too late, but this is your cue to go.
- Turn The Other Cheek Pk D.
Time to pull the trigger! Once you’ve completed the back loop you need to go for the pass before your board and legs drop and therefore pull you down and away from the bar. With two hands still holding the bar, The rider keeps his knees in and up whilst he turns his head to initiate the pass. The head should lead the entire move from here; if it does you can turn and claim the KGB. As you turn your head look up, not down at the water. The fact that the board and his feet have completed the back loop mean that the board is in front of him and therefore he won’t get pulled backwards away from the board but rather drop forwards towards it. This is not a bad time to give the kite a quick tweak down if you find that it keeps rising.
However if you keep your elbows in your kite will naturally dip once you release your back hand, as all your weight will transfer to the front. The MAIN DIFFERENCE here to a back to blind with air pass, is that your focus is not on passing the bar but rather on spinning your head, body and board so that you can see where you’ll land. If you just concentrate on the pass you’ll drop down without turning the full 360 to heel side.
- Forward Pass Pic E.
Looking forward to where you want to go will make you lead the rotation, so stretch your chin out in front of you and keep your eyes up. Normally you would turn your head down, and therefore pass but then drop down. In a KGB you must keep the head looking above the water, searching for where you’ll land. Here you can see the result – The rider is still turning as his head and body are leading the way. As the rider turns he rotates onto the bar and can therefore pass, but the priority is the rotation and therefore the pass from one hand to the other is late. Finally if you look at Christian’s front leg you can see that it is still bent. Keeping your landing foot close will guarantee that it comes with you and doesn’t get left behind. Once you get this far, prepare to scream and celebrate, as the KGB will be yours.
Top Tips
- The foundation for this move is a decent slow and inverted back loop, so repeat as many of these as you can, getting the board high and finishing your rotation at the apex.
- This will get you prepared and visually ready for the final 360. If your feet are dropping as you come around your back loop, you need more inversion, so more leaning back, more locked elbows and more knees up.
- We won’t be adding any common problems for this move, as it is a matter of concentrating on the relevant skills and putting them together – an inverted slow back loop, and a pass rotation lead by you head held high.
Keystones
- Massively off the wind
- Lean back towards the tail
- Hands in, knees up
- Full rotation to inverted position.
- Lead the pass with your head held high and front knee in.
Sent Back roll Nose Grab
This is very exciting and this is one of those many jumping moves that many of you learnt during your early steps and adding a glorious nose grab so that it doesn’t look in the slightest stale. In fact may get many of your peers back on the back roll bandwagon. Obviously all grabs are great but a nose grab really stands out as it forces you into a tweak, which just oozes style and smile. Only prerequisite for this is a sent back roll, but if you’ve already got the nose grab jump dialed, things will be very easier for you.
The Jump Pic A
To grab the nose whilst back rolling you’ll need time, and for time read slow back loop rotation. The only way to pull off a fancy slow roll is to get enough height, so the jump is everything. Approach wise you should be coming in on a good edge with the kite either at 11 or 1 o’clock, no higher. Extend your front leg to push your hips back on the board, essential for a controlled back rotation, and even though this will bend your back leg, keep it solid not soft; otherwise you won’t be able to hold the edge against the kite’s pull.
In Pic A the rider’s front leg is straight and her back leg is locked to maintain a solid edge and her derriere is low. With her kite moved into position and her but in the sweet spot she can now send the kite as for a jump and concentrate on resisting the resultant pull and lift with her back leg.
The Initiation Pic B
The way you start your back roll will dictate the entire rotation, so bearing that in mind let’s have a look at when and how the rider get’s things under way. Having resisted with a good edge whilst sending the kite quite hard from 11 o’clock the pull should come early, at about 12 or just after . 
As soon as the rider feels the pull she stamps up off her back leg in a popping motion and then pulls the bar in. By popping up into the back loop she can’t lean too far back or bend both legs and therefore can’t carve too hard into wind under the kite, so her rotation will be slower. This is because she is taking off upwind, not already into wind, so she has further to rotate in the air. And by pulling the bar in the rider can immediately freeze the kite above her, preventing it from continuing back as is often the way in sent back rolls. Note that although the rider has carved into this rotation she has not thrown her head over her front shoulder. You want slow and controlled so keep your head looking forward.
Go Early Pic C
It’s the same for pretty much every grab, you have to go for the grab straight off the bat, the longer you wait the less time you’ll have and the less likely you’ll think it’s a good idea, especially when it involves:: bit of stretching and twisting. You can clearly see another advantage of not throwing your head into the rotation. As the rider gets airborne, by looking forward she is actually staring right at the board. This way she can see where she will grab and can prepare for it. The rider lifts her front knee up and across her body, knee towards opposite shoulder and releases her back hand and reaches it down towards the nose – all the while keeping the bar in with her front hand.
The Nose Grab Pic D
This is a beauty, and by jove does it suit a back roll. Once you’ve got the nose or toe side edge up front, do actually grab it firmly as it’ll help you pull your front leg in and give you something to push against with the back leg, leading to a wonderful tweak, which you can hold for as long as you dare. Looking at the grab keeps your head between your shoulders, so will keep you rotating slowly.
This is probably a good moment to mention the advantage of giving the kite a decent send for the jump. It’s not just about getting height, but because you’ll spend a considerable amount of time keeping the bar pulled in with only your front hand, the kite will merely move from behind you to slightly in front of you. If you gingerly drift the kite up, by the time you come around your back roll the kite will be way too for forward and pulling you off balance.
The Finish Pic E
If your rotation is controlled and the kite is not too for forward you can hold the grab until just before touchdown. 
However looking at your grab and the front of the board will not encourage you to finish off the rotation. To make sure that you complete the 360° and get far enough around landing perfectly you will eventually need to turn your head over your front shoulder to see where you’re going, spot your landing and get the board pointing downwind. When you do release the grab, only release the grab – so keep your knees up and the bar in so that you can dive the kite for landing.
Top Tips
- Keeping in line with practicalities do start with some back rolls, concentrating on the send, upward take off and slow rotation.
- Then start to bring your front knee up and across whilst keeping your back leg bent. Once you’re happy with this release the front hand and go for the early grab, which you can hold or touch for just a fraction of a second. Finally build up to a long tweaked hold.
- Trim your bar and sweet spot in a touch, as it’ll make reaching the shoulder across for the grab more comfortable. And keep your harness tight!
Common Problems
- If you are over-rotating your back roll and either landing across the wind on an edge or starting another rotation make sure that you don’t carve up excessively during your take off.
- You should go from the edge that you’ve approached with, and then kick up and around. Also make sure you dive the kite for the landing as this will stop your rotation and pull you off down wind. If you can’t reach the grab, try a few without a back roll.
- The nose grab is more about bringing your knee up and across under your harness hook, rather than you reaching down for it.
- If you’re getting pulled forward and off balance by the kite in the air, either crashing or landing nose first. This is a result of the kite flying forward of
- 12 o’clock, so in the rider’s case towards 11, and can be due to a number of reasons. Firstly make sure your hands are centered on the bar, keep the bar in with one hand without yanking it forward. Make sure you send the kite, the further it goes back, the further it needs to return, so there is a perfect balance depending on your height and kite size.
Keystones
- Good solid edge with legs resisting
- Send kite positively
- Pop up into the back roll (not around)
- Pull front knee up for early grab
- Turn head to complete rotation
Unhooked Front To Blind Ole
There are a few takes on the front to blind, powered, unhooked, hooked, sent kite, you name it and it’s probably likely. We’re adding the unhooked Ole to the list as it serves a couple of purposes. Firstly it does allow you to go for and learn the blind with a slightly higher kite. Secondly on a big lefty kite in light winds, you will often need to have the kite a bit higher and with the resultant upward pull on the bar “Oleing” out is a health conscious option – oh yes and it does have a different look and feel to a standard bar pass ending. Before you attempt this we’d suggest you can pop front roll, and preferably relay to blind, but if you’ve got the hooked version down then this is a mere step away. Following are a few points worth more than a moment’s consideration.
- Take off, pause and rotate Pic A.
As with all things unhooked and popped we’ll assume that you’ll have the bar trimmed correctly, hands centered and approach with good speed before bearing off with your weight back to unhook, dropping low and edging hard into your pop, stamping hard to get the height without a cheeky kite send. If you use your kite you’ll lose forward momentum and the landing will be difficult to pull off.
For extra lift when learning you can have your kite positioned higher, just above 11 or 1 o’clock – but don’t move it up. Here the rider has her kite parked at 11 o’clock and has just popped hard to get up off the water. What’s clear to see is that the rider has not yet started her front rotation; she is still looking forward to where she’s going. You too must separate the movement, even if only by a fraction of a second, but you need to pop before throwing your head and shoulders down and around. As a result you’ll get the height, if not you’ll be diving yourself down into the water and onto your back.
- Front Hand Pic B.
Whilst rotating around, especially if you have the kite high, it will be very tempting to lean on the back hand, and also very natural to have pulled on it whilst edging to pop. Therefore as you spin around it is very good form to keep applying a bit of pressure onto your front hand as this will both stop the kite from floating up above you, and it will keep the kite moving forwards, which will make the landing easier as you’ll have momentum. The rider is only just into her rotation but she is already “leaning” on her front hand. This means that when she finishes her rotation she’ll be able to pull herself towards the bar to throw the blind – if you end up hanging under the bar you can only spin to blind, which won’t offer you any consistency.
- Look Pic C.
We’ve said this before but whether it be a hooked front to blind or an S-bend pass the principal is always the same, another very brief pause between finishing your rotation and throwing the blind. This prevents you from over rotating and you have much more chance of keeping the kite in the air, rather than releasing one arm and starting the mother of all down loops.
Here the rider has rotated the full 360° and is focused again on where she’ll land. This momentarily slows her down, almost pauses the rotation, enabling her to set up for the blind. If not she would be spinning under her kite. From here she can now pull on the bar hard with both hands and throw the blind. With her head, hands and bar leading the rider can throw the blind and swing her legs through to turn far enough for the landing.
- Landing Pic D.
Landing blind for an Ole or pass needs to be flat on the board, downwind, not on an edge across the wind. This way you’ll be moving toward the kite and therefore there won’t be any tension on the lines.
Sc bearing away into the move is important, as this leads to a more downwind landing, and pulling hard before committing to the blind will also help. In the photo the rider’s board is off downwind so her momentum will keep her moving towards the kite. Now what differentiates an Ole from a surface pass here are the position of the rider’s body and her bar. The rider is standing upright over the board with her head high, not bent over double, and she is holding her bar high above her on an outstretched arm. This position is the perfect set up to an Ole.
- The Ole Pic E.
Firstly let’s remember what an Ole is. You will be moving the hand that is holding the bar, across, upwind of your head and shoulders to the other side of your body, from where you’ll be able to continue riding, but now toe side rather than blind.
That’s all it is, you’re not trying to turn the board or slide it around to bedside. It’s an upper body movement to get the bar across to the direction of travel and no pass is required. You can see in the photo that because she is travelling towards the kite the rider can push the bar upwind of her and then simply move her hand across in front of her face – now the bar is the same side of her body as the kite and the natural order of things are restored.
- The Finale Pic F.
You have a few options to finish things off, and regardless of what you do it’s a good idea to get both hands back on the bar so that you get control of the kite. Continuing on toe side shows good control, and will certainly confuse a few onlookers. That said if you land with a lot of power and speed the chances are that you will carve onto your heels, so keep going and ride out in the other direction. Here the rider has pushed the bar across, finished her Ole and is reaching for her bar. She has a lot of weight on her heels and as a result will steer her kite across the window once she has her back hand on the bar and follow it by continuing to carve on her heels.
Top Tips
- Apart from making sure that your popped front rolls are working off pat, the secret is to land blind and yes you’ve guessed it, pause foss split second before attempting the Ole.
- If you rush the Ole you’ll fall backwards or if you really rush the Ole you’ll start to rotate into it before you’ve even landed. So first land, balance and then push the bar.
Common Problems
- Assuming that you can get to blind the main issue will be falling backwards. This is normally a result of leaning back to push the bar across your face, rather than keeping your weight balanced and physically pushing the bar up wind and past.
- If you land on your toes across the wind the lines will tighten and you won’t be able to push the bar without it pushing you back, or you leaning back.
Keystones
- Pop then rotate
- Look and pause
- Pull with both hands then throw
- Land downwind and flat – pause
- Then push the bar upwind and across
Kite Loop Handle Pass
The KL3 is a genuine pleasure to tame. Having a bit of pull from the kite and chucking a pass in to boot should get you cheering yourself on even without witnesses. Best bet before trying this would be to get your shifty 3 down, as that way you’ll be used to the rotation and muscle memory should prevail when you pull the trigger. For the more cautious amongst you, the progression step before this is the kite loop to wrapped, which we covered in Issue 21. It goes without saying, we hope, that at the very least you can comfortably and confidently stomp your unhooked fish polled kite loops!?
Approach and Pop
Perhaps a slight recap is necessary as your parting with water moment should be bang on to give you maximum hope of adding a pass and landing. Firstly you’ll need some height and therefore some up pull from the kite, not just some mad demonic downwind tug. Starting with your kite high, near as damn it to 12 o’clock will make all the difference. Trimming your bar down is also essential as not only will this make unhooking with your kite high possible, but it will also encourage your kite to loop, rather than spin on its axis. In Pic A. The rider has already set his kite at 12, flattened the board off to unhook with his hips up.
Lift Off
As you get launched into the air you must be ready for the put as the kite starts to turn. Having popped up hard you will be extended, but in order to take the power and still be able to rotate you must brace and balance yourself.
Pic B. As the rider explodes up off his back foot he puts all his effort into 2 things. Firstly he keeps his elbows in as tight as possible, so that his arms won’t extend too much as the kite pulls, which in turn will keep his body closer to the bar and ready for the pass. Secondly he pulls his knees up, making himself small, so that his legs and board don’t get left behind, and therefore have a chance of coming through and under the bar when he rotates into the pass. In short the rider is trying not to let his body extend into a Raley position. Flick and Kick those of you familiar with the shifty 3 will be aware of the spin that your back leg can create as it comes towards the bar for the pass. The KL3 is no different in that you’ll spin more quickly if you can “involve” the back leg. In fact here it is almost easier as rather than having to kick it out behind you, the whip from the kite will tend to flick your back leg out, so just concentrate on keeping the front leg in and your back leg will be poised and ready to strike.
Pic C. At this point the rider is watching the kite as it goes through the bottom of its loop and starts its journey back up. Keeping his elbows and front knee in the whip of the kite pulls him towards it, which conveniently flicks his back leg out, ready for the pass.
0 – 60!
As well as physical effort the timing of the pass will make or break this move. Although feeling is generally preferred, watching the kite during its loop is no bad thing as you need t “go” before the kite climbs back up in the window, as this will be the moment of least pull and the bar will be light and not pulling away from you. Pic D. As the turbo drops off, the rider pulls the bar down and back towards his trailing hip hard with both hands, so that his upper body comes up towards the bar.
Simultaneously he pulls and swings his back leg up towards the bar, which not only helps him lift the board but also generates the momentum for the pass. You can see how close his body is to the bar now.
The Pass
No rock& science here, as all the usual rules apply. Assuming that you went early enough the kite will not be pulling the bar away from you, so the key is committing. Therefore as your back knee comes through you must release your front hand and turn your head and shoulders so that you don’t block the rotation. Also you must hold onto the bar with you back hand until you can reach it with your free hand behind you. By holding onto the bar you can rotate around it, making the pass more achievable.
Pic E. You can see that the rider has twisted the bar behind him, which allows his shoulder and therefore body to rotate further around, almost rolling around the bar. This makes the pass simpler as by rolling onto the bar, it places the bar easily within reach of the searching free hand. Hence the progression from wrapped, as realistically you are first wrapped in the air, before passing.
Claim it
Once you’ve passed the bar preparation for landing is key. You need the board underneath you and your head looking forward and held high, whilst keeping your arm in as close as possible so that you complete the rotation sufficiently to land with the board heading down wind. Pic F. The rider has dropped his under carriage so that he’ll land on the board. Chances are that this will not be the softest of landings, so he’s lifted his head so that he can stand up and take it, whilst his elbow holding the bar is bent so that his body will follow the kite downwind and complete the rotation.
Top Tips
- As is so often the way the fundamentals are key, so hammering out a few unhooked kite loops first will acclimatize you to the wind and more importantly the kites arc.
- Watch the kite and feel for the flick as the kite whips.
- This way you’ll be able to anticipate the dead point, where you’ll have the slack to pass. If you it for it you’ll miss the moment.
- It will make good sense to learn this with less power and build up from there. If you can nail a pass on a low fly by just before landing it counts and the consequences of it not working are just a splash.
- We won’t be adding any common problems for this move, as it is a matter of concentrating on the relevant skills and putting them together – a comfortable kite loop with an explosive rotation.
Keystones
- Pop early
- Elbows in, Knees up
- Pull bar and swing back leg immediately after whip
- Hold on with back hand to roll around bar
- Get upright for landing and hold in front arm
Blind Judge 3
We’re expecting that you can already stomp the blind judge, and therefore we’ll tweak what you have to move you towards the full monty. In tech terms, considering that you should land a blind judge pretty much down wind, you’re only going to have to turn just over another 90° to claim this one, but that’s a bit like saying you only have to pass the bar in the air to convert the blind landing into a judge, only. It may not sound like much but it’s worth the effort, as it will quite literally feel stunning to land back on your heels – boom! We’ll walk you through the bits that we think make the difference and get you all the way around.
The Approach
Yes once again if you don’t start this right you’ll be emptying your bladder into the wind, whilst banging your head on the proverbial brick wall. First things first, where you start is where you’ll finish, so if you want to land heel side pointing downwind you better bear away so that you’re pointing very downwind before takeoff to help your chances. If not even if you rotate all the way you’ll land on an edge and butt check at best.
Finally and looking at Pic A. you’ll need to get your body and weight into the right position to control the speed and pop. This should be nothing new but you can see that the rider has his hips back over the back of the board, his front leg extended, his shoulders behind his hips and his elbows is This is only possible if you bear away in this position so don’t carve off the wind and bend your front knee!
The Carve
You need to be super aggressive here to get maximum pop, so fight for it if this was a close up you’d see the rider’s rather pained kite face, there’s some effort involved.
Pic B. From the good approach position the rider was able to quickly carve back onto his edge by turning the board back up wind. To resist sufficiently the rider does not allow his back leg to bend more than it was before he carved – you can only use the bend that you have to pop. At the same time the rider’s front leg remains fairly straight which keeps his hips back and low. The final battle is to keep his front elbow in to stop the kite rising as he carves against it
Pop and Flick
This is definitely one of the most influential moments in learning this move, the flick which follows your pop.
Pic C. By resisting hard, carving hard and popping hard but late, the rider’s board flicks around behind him, turning his waist and shoulders upwind, so that the board is more vertical than horizontal behind him.
To prevent him from rotating the rider keeps looking forward and keeps his arms in, but he doesn’t resist this movement as it is the coiling of the spring! In this position the rider’s legs are straight, he doesn’t let his knees bend and feet lift. If you’re used to letting your knees bend your feet up behind you, you need to work on this straight flick. From here you can use gravity to gain maximum speed to spin effectively. If the feet go up you only have your knees travelling a short distance, as opposed to the weight of the board coming from far behind and one side to the other.
Pull and Turn
The flick is only transient, because no sooner is your board behind you than you need to get a move on and throw the 3.
Pic D. As soon as the rider can, he pulls hard on the bar to get his head and shoulders above it and swings the board forward. With the board and his body coming from that turned upwind position, it starts to turn the rider as soon as he moves. Worth noting as well that as the rider pulls on the bar with both hands he is already twisting it around ready for the pass. In comparison to a blind judge the rider does throw himself into the rotation, committing to a full rotation from the off. Think of it as a full flat rotation as opposed to a blind judge with a heel side landing. The basic difference here is that if your board is horizontal it swings forward and down as you pull. From the flicked position, as soon as you pull you automatically start to turn and therefore build up momentum for a full 360°.
The Pass
Hopefully the extra pop and direction of spin created from your flick will allow you to keep two hands pulling on the bar for longer whilst still allowing you to turn. This should then allow you to pass the bar nearer to you, whilst you remain more upright with the board underneath you. If you’re comfortably landing blind judges, then concentrate on passing the bar later, allowing your body to turn further before reaching for the bar. Pic E. You can see in the picture that the rider’s hips are over the board, so he is rotating with the board. The rider achieves this by keeping his head more upright, so don’t tuck your chin into your chest. You can also see that at the moment of passing the rider’s head is turning to look forward, keeping the rotation alive. Finally the rider’s trailing leg is bent.
You must keep this leg, your front landing leg bent so that it doesn’t drop down away from you, preventing you from completing the full 3.
Getting it round Pic F.
The final hurdle. You can see that as the rider releases his front hand he keeps his back arm bent and the bar close. This will keep him moving towards the kite and prevents him from dropping down. The rider’s head is still turning to look for the landing, bringing his shoulders with if now whilst holding the bar in close the rider lifts his front knee through with the rotation and twists the bar around in front of him, so that the bar will lead him as he comes around, bingo.
Top Tips
- They’ve all been mentioned, but start well off the wind, go for the flick and pull early. Really spin into the rotation, committing for the full 360 and pass the bar late so that you turn further, leading with your head held high.
- Once you pass the bar keep your knees and board up, and the bar in close, so that you can roll your front shoulder towards the bar waiting in front of you…. To get yourself in the mood and your head around it, try to get the full 3 without passing the bar, so let go when you should pass but aim to get your body and board around.
- Don’t however practice this method too much as you don’t want muscle memory to remember the letting go.
- You will need time and height to land this, so as well as going early you can sneak the kite up a fraction as you pop, but don’t wait to see if it’s enough, as then you’ll be its late.
Keystones
- Flick from take off.
- Immediately pull and turn.
- Head and knees up.
- Pass later in your rotation.
- Keep bar in close and lift
Beach Start From Two Feet
Many moons ago we covered the beach start where you anchor the board by putting one foot in a strap to stop it misbehaving and running off whilst you fly the kite. As effective a method as that may be, the launch can often be preceded by a game of hop scotch as you hop around on one leg waiting for the moment. Enter stage left the solution to a hopefully more dynamic and picturesque entry into the blue yonder, the beach starts from 2 feet. All the principals are much the same, bar the hopping, so let’s look at the ingredients separately.
1 Preparation Pic A.
How deep you need to start will depend on wind direction and space. Ideally you don’t want to be any deeper than just below the knee, with half way up your shin giving you a good balance between a soft landing if you get it wrong and an easy enough spring onto the board. We’d highly recommend not learning this in onshore conditions unless you have a lot of space down wind, and avoid rocky bottoms, sea urchins, mussel beds etc. and a crashing shore-break, you get the picture. We can see that the rider is carrying the board in her back hand whilst controlling the kite with her front hand. This way she can position the kite just behind her, in this case around 12.30 to 1 o’clock before she drops or places the board down, so that the kite is primed and she has the bar in with tension on the lines – this is your ready position and if you adopt it as you enter the shallows you’ll avoid all sorts of fifing around, swapping hands, repositioning the kite, dropping the board and generally getting out of shape as you rush to get ready. Also if there are waves, with the board in your back hand you are not in danger of getting hit by the board as the waves push against it.
2. Drop It Pic B.
Before dropping or placing the board on the water, make sure that you have your back into the wind, so that you know the wind is coming from directly behind you, as this will help get the board in the right place.
You can either drop or place the board in front of you. Dropping it has the benefit of being quicker and you can get the board further away from you. In the photo the rider has dropped the board in front of her so that it lands heel side edge first, which means that it’ll stay at the same angle whilst not stopping right in front of her. The board should lie across the wind, or ever so slightly up wind, but definitely not pointing off the wind. This means that you’ll have a solid platform to land on and the board will not be right next to you so that you’ll trip over it or fly past it whilst learning this if the board does skew off at the wrong angle you can push either the nose or tail to get it positioned correctly. However once you’ve got it sassed you’ll want this to be quick and dynamic.
Here the rider has already started to pull on the bar with her front hand to get the kite moving as soon as she has dropped the board. This way there is no time for the wind or is wave to move the board before she’s on it.
3. The Jump Pic C.
The idea is that you use the lift from the kite to float you up the few centimeters and support you whilst you slot your feet is You are not trying to launch yourself up and acrobatically land on the board from a great height. By moving the kite across the window from behind you, 1 o’clock to 11 o’clock, the principal is the same, but gentler than a water start – the kite will lift before pulling you forward. Now with two hands on the bar and tension on the lines, the rider keeps pulling forward and waits to feel the lift from her kite. As the kite lifts the rider pulls the bar in more and springs up with the emphasis being back foot up first, as this one should be the first to land on the board to keep the nose up. The whole time the rider is looking at her straps, so that she can aim her feet into them.
4. Contact Pic D.
When landing on the board, although the rider will get her back foot in first to stop the nose from sinking, she aims to keep her weigh central, as this way the kite will support her and keep her balanced. If she was to lean back against the kite or towards the back of the board she will slide the board away from her and dip her derriere in the water. You can clearly see that she has not gone for height, as she still needs to lift her knees to get her feet into the straps. As is result her feet, knees and board are in front of her and between her and the kite, so she can dive the kite with her front hand and use the pull to move forward and not get catapulted over the board.
5. Accelerate Pic E.
The final piece of the jigsaw is to casually ride away without sliding or tripping. For this you will need power, so as soon as you know/feel that your feet are in you will need to dive the kite harder from the previous lift stage. It’s almost two separate moves, the 1 to 11 movement to lift and support you, and then a dive from 1 to drive you out. To take this power you’ll need to drop your weight both upwind and back whilst pushing the board off the wind so that you can then carve onto your edge with power rather than sliding sideways with your weight on both feet.
You can see that the rider has dropped her weight low, moved her hips back over her back foot and pushed her front leg out so that the board can accelerate on is flat surface whilst her kite dives. Once she is balanced the rider will it’s her head, shoulders and hips to look Upwind and drive against her back foot to carve the board up onto its edge.
Top Tips
- The best way to learn this beach start is to break it into 2 parts, firstly the lift, spring and get your feet in. The emphasis here should be to land comfortably with both feet in the straps and the kite supporting you.
- Without the dive you’ll then drop slowly back into the water, and as you do you can dive the kite to pull you back up. Once you’re comfortable with this you can then anticipate the drop and dive the kite earlier and earlier until you exit dry and relatively powered.
Common Problems
- The most common mistake is to start with the kite too high. If you start with the kite at 12 o’clock, the power will not come on until the kite pulls low and forward. The result is to get pulled across the front of the board, whilst manically attempting to lean back against the power, so you’ll either catapult over the front or have the board tea tray out in front of you as you fly off the back.
- Remember you need the lift to support you getting on, and then the power to move off.
- If you are getting the lift but still seem to be sliding off the back of the board, it’s the result of the board pointing too far off the wind.
- And finally if you keep dropping back into the water, regardless of what you do, make a point of focusing on what your arms and harness do. Your arms are just for steering the kite, and your harness should be taking your weight. If you hold onto the power through the bar you’re both unable to steer the kite or sit back into the power.
Keystones
- Kite just behind you
- Bar in front hand, board in back hand
- Drop board across the wind, pull kite up and over
- Go up with lift, back foot first
- Once in dive hard
Twin Tip Duck Tack
A rather fun transition, the love child of two moves! You could look at it as the twin tip variant of the directional duck tack, but equally it is essentially an on-water, or un-aerial back loop transition. In its own right a smooth way of changing direction and a possible method of learning the key movements to the duck tack before venturing out on your surf or race board. Technically on a twin tip with straps, the mechanics of this move are not overly complicated, however the timing is crucial so once you get the movement, pasting it together piece by piece will deliver the goods. The end result should be a carve up and through the wind of almost 180° degrees, so that your board is across the wind with you facing upwind, followed by a pivot on the nose of the board to turn you and the board the remaining 180°, before you ride off back from whence you came – simples!
The Carve
You need to get the board a long way up into and through the wind so you’ll need some speed. However don’t come blotting into it like a bat out of hell, rather start on a good upwind edge, kite just above 11 or 1 and then momentarily sit down slightly so that your board flattens and picks up a little bit more. To be able to carve all that way you don’t need anything fighting you, whether it is the kite pulling you back downwind or the board dragging through the water. Therefore you need to get your weight, think hips and shoulders, more forward so that you use all the board to carve – the sitting slightly helps with this. If you’re low and have weight on both feet, the board won’t bog and drag, but instead whizz around. To go all the way you must get the kite up to 12 o’clock, so pull gently on your back hand as you approach. And finally to prevent the kite from holding you back you must let the bar out to get rid of the power as the kite moves up.
Pic A. The rider is carving into the wind whilst drifting the kite up to 12 o’clock with his back hand. He has taken his front hand off the bar, which allows him to twist his head and shoulders further upwind and let the bar out as the kite lifts. His front knee is slightly bent, and as he pushes his back foot away he breaks at the waist to keep his body upright. With weight on both feet you can see that his entire edge is in the water.
Half Way
Carving all the way until you are literally across the wind will place you in the perfect position to complete the move. As you can imagine once you’re here you won’t have any time to think before you gracefully sink back into the drink. The good news comes from 2 things. Firstly if you have got the kite up to 12 o’clock with the bar sheeted out, it will have flown all the way to the edge of the window, so therefore be right above you, waiting to support you. Secondly if you have carved hard, there will still be resistance against the board as it turns back towards you. This means that you can pull the bar in and push against both feet for support.
Pic B. You can see that the rider has carved all the way on the edge. With the board banked over and the kite high the tail does not slide, which would move him away from the kite. As Christian comes around past the 180° mark he pulls in on the bar and moves his weight forward, bending his front leg and pushing his hips towards the nose of the board.
Dig In
Assuming that you’ve got this far now is the time to get dynamic. Your sits is to dig the nose of the board into the water, throwing your weight over it and your front foot, whilst pulling in on the bar and turning your head and shoulders. As the power comes from the kite the resistance from the front of the board should be enough that the kite will pull you around.
Pic C. With the kite above him, the rider pulls down hard on his bar hand whilst throwing his weight forward onto his front foot. At the same time he turns his head down and around to sink the nose and lift the tail – the rest depends on the kite.
And Around
When the power from the kite arrives you need to be in the previous picture’s pivoting position. If so the kite will lift you up from the water and then pull you off downwind. If however you don’t get your weight forward and therefore have too much of the board in the water the kite will lift you off the water and you hopefully land a couple of feet downwind and sail away.
Pic D. With the bar held in tight, the kite has lifted the rider and he is now up and over the board. With all his weight pushed over what was his front foot, he leans back against the pull of the kite and allows it to pivot him around the sunken nose. To stoke sure that he doesn’t get pulled onto his face, the rider locks out his front leg, which will force the board to follow the pull from the kite.
Top Tips
- It’s worth trying to learn this in two stages. First work on getting your carve; as once this is in the bag you’ll be able to think ahead and throw yourself forward into the pivot.
- The carve must be just that, a carve any sliding and it’ll be goose over. So practice carving as far as you can, moving the kite up to 12 o’clock and letting the bar out as it drifts.
Common Problems
- Best start with the problem of sliding the tail out, as we’re all too proficient at this. If you are “loosing” the tail as you carve up it’s because you’re subconsciously going into slide turn mode.
- This means that as you carve you are bending your front knee so much that all your weight is over the front foot, which results in the tail sliding as you push the back foot away.
- Try to move your hips into a central position in between the foot straps, but no further forward. Also concentrate on edging the board so that you push through your back heel against the board, not your foot over the board. If you’re falling in downwind of the board, it will be because the kite is pulling you.
- Be sure to drift the kite up to 12 and let the bar out as you go. Also try to break at the waist as you turn so that your upper body stays upright. If you are falling onto your side as the kite pulls and board pivots around, make sure that you turn your head and shoulders to lead the pivot.
- Finally if you hop up and out of the pivot, it is because you have too much resistance, too much edge in the water. Make sure you get all your weight over the foot and roll back against the pull.
Keystones
- Drift kite up towards 12
- Release front hand
- Good solid carve off both feet
- Pull on bar, throw weight forward
- Lead pivot with head and shoulders
Double Back Roll Kite Loop
Hey guys! This week lets rock with double back roll kite loop and find all the possible way to complete this trick.
This one harks back a bit, watching some of the early adopters pulling the trigger on one of these back in the day was a sight to behold, large kite, no depower, heavy mutant strapped to their feet, and serious landings! Fortunately things have moved on and tricks like this are open to anyone and everyone, so certainly worth a bash and a lot of fun – possibly feels better than it looks.
As a prerequisite we would advise that you have a decent back loop, so that you can control your rotation and you know where your kite is, and some experience with looping the kite as you’ll be happier if it turns. Other than that as long as you’re not maxed it’s game on as this move is more about commitment and timing than finesse and technique
The Approach
Pic A. This is a sent back loop, so you’ll need to come in with good speed on a solid edge and your kite no higher than 1 or 11 o’clock. With a good edge you can confidently send the kite hard enough to get sufficient height, happy in the knowledge that it won’t drift too far behind you because the lift will come early. For this same reason you must keep the bar in on the sweet spot when you send the kite. If you let it out the kite will drift further back before taking you up, and the result will be a low and slow kite loop – not ideal.
You can see in image that the rider has speed and is low on as much edge as possible, driving through his back foot to resist the extra pull from his send. This will give plenty of up and keep tension on the lines during the back rotations – important for the moment you pull the bar to loop the kite. As for a normal back loop you should aim to take off with a bit of upward stamp off the back leg as this will also keep the kite above you.
The Rotation
Pic B. Although this is a double back loop, you don’t want to be throwing a super fast spinning rotation. For those of you who can already pull of a single back loop kite loop, it’s a similar theory. In the single version you only perform half a back loop and the kite does the rest.
Here for the double if we can get one and a half the kite will do the rest. Otherwise you run the risk of over rotating when the kite pulls, which won’t be the most comfortable of landings. Your aim is to rotate at a speed that will get you around 360° by the time you get to the apex of your jump, the higher you go the slower you need to spin. So give the take off a bit more than you would for your normal back loop. Even though you don’t want to overdo it, you do need to get yourself into a position from which you can rotate and maintain balance. Here the rider is already half way around his first rotation. He’s tucked up small, knees up, board close, so that he doesn’t stall or slow down. However his head is still looking through his arms, he’s not thrown it into the rotation. And he has the bar leveled and pulled into the sweet spot, to keep the kite from drifting back and also keep tension on the lines, so that the kite is primed.
Do It
Pic C. Assuming that your kite hasn’t drifted too far back you should still feel it supporting/floating you as you come around your first rotation. This is the moment to pull the trigger and loop the kite. If however you feel that the kite is way behind you and that you are already starting to fall, it’s best not to pull. The rider’s momentum is taking him into another rotation. He still has the bar in and is tucked up, so all he has to do is pull in hard on the back of the bar and push away with his front hand. As fun as it is to get as much power out of the • loop, when learning you want it to get around fast so be positive with your bar movement. You can see that the rider has his back hand slightly down the bar, whilst his front hand is near the centerline. This means he can pull easily on the back, and keep the bar on the sweet spot with the front.
Turbo
Pic D. Once you pull be ready for the kite’s power to pull you around. Here the rider has now turned his head to look over his front shoulder. This will help him “go with” the kite as it loops, meaning that he’ll turn slowly as the kite pulls him around. Once you’ve got here you are fully committed, so keep pulling and don’t let the kite pull the bar out and away from you.
Around to Land
Pic E. As the kite goes through its loop and starts to climb, keep the bar in and the kite turning. As long as you keep looking, keep the bar in and keep the kite moving you’ll come around. Once you can see your landing as the rider can here you know you’ve made it. Only thing left is to land downwind and then get back on your edge quickly to get tension on the lines and get the kite back under control.
Depending on your height and the speed of the loop, you may need to dive the kite hard to prevent it from overflying behind you!
Top Tips
Before bashing on with this, definitely bang out a few back loops to work out how hard you should send the kite and how fast you should rotate, then you can amp up the rotation a little bit and add the loop.
This move is all about timing. As long as you don’t let the kite drift too far back on takeoff, and pull for the kite loop as you start your second rotation it will work. We’d recommend not trying this too powered up to start with, work your way up in steps, both height and power, as you don’t want to be coming in on your side or back!
Common Problems
- Kite drifting too far back during first rotation. Chances are that you let the bar out as the kite started to lift, and/or you didn’t send the kite hard enough.
- If you want to tone it down it is better to give a hard but short yank on the bar than to slowly drift the kite.
- If you’re over rotating and starting a third back roll you are either pulling for the loop to late, or spinning yourself into the first rotation with too much energy. The quick his is to make sure you pull on your back hand as soon as you start the second rotation as the kite will pull you out of it foss down wind landing.
Keystones
- Approach as for a jump
- Good send with bar held in
- Make yourself small
- Pull hard as soon as you start 2nd rotation
- Keep pulling and turn head as power comes on
Raley To Toe Side
This sport of kite boarding moves with different styles and ticks. The benefits of this sport can be measured by its refreshment and popularity worldwide. Today we all like a Raley, and funnily enough most of us learn on our preferred side, favorite foot forward, leading to a solid heel side touchdown. It looks like an embarrassment to overlook the other side and deny yourself the kudos of flicking your board both ways. Therefore the Raley to toe side, and just to prove it is a genuine move it even has its own name, the Krypt. With no trouble you can gladly learn these both hooked or unhooked. In this article, we will be going through the unhooked variant, but be assured that apart from the actual physical act of unhooking the rest remains pretty much the same for both, from approach to landing.
The Approach A.
As in every trick your approach will always determine how well things will turn out. Please have a look in the picture that the rider has her kite just below 1 o’clock, she has turned the board off the wind onto a very broad reach, whilst keeping her weight both upwind of the board and back towards the tail of the board. You can also see that her front leg is extended and both her elbows are tucked into her sides. Not only is this the perfect position from which to unhook, it is also the perfect set up for a Raley.
Now over here Kite height is very significant, too high and you’ll fly, but too low and you may not have the confidence to pop, so a happy medium is required, at a height just about where your kite is happily flying forward without creating lift, as a reference point this will be just below 1 or 11. Suddenly bearing off the wind allows you to lose tension from the lines and unhook, 
and it lets the kite drop back a touch so that it will pull you downwind, easier landing, once you pop. Weight upwind positions the board between you and the kite so you can pop without the kite pulling your shoulders prematurely over the board. Then weight back over the tail so that you can rapidly and professionally carve the board upwind to pop, the extended front leg helps this. Elbows are tucked in to stop the kite from pulling your arms out straight and you over the board. Now you are all set for the Raley part.
The Carve Pic B.
Your action carving up against the kite needs to be accurate and quick; or else the kite will win the tug of war. With your weight back over the tail of the board you only need to turn your shoulders and the board will carve spec the shape that some lovely board designer put there for such a purpose.
Please see picture B wherein the rider has turned her shoulders and the board carves upwind, putting tension on the lines and thus generating some resistance. This resistance is your platform to pop off. Though to make sure that you are in control you need to keep your position. The easier way to do this is not to let the kite drift up, which it will want to do as you pull against it.
The rider keeps both hands in, arms bent, but her focal point is on keeping the front hand close, as it’s natural to pull on the back one as she turns away from the kite. Also as the rider carves she resists the pull from the kite with her back leg, which combined with her arms allows her to keep her weight upwind, on that edge, turning the board towards the wind.
The Pop Pic C.
Raley is simply an extreme pop. If you’ve somehow managed to oppose on the aforementioned platform you will be in a position to, and have something from which to pop. 
As the board turns underneath you it’s the right time to stamp. The rider feels the board turning under her, and more significantly feels herself being pulled forwards by the kite. This is her cue to pop. She pops hard against the board with her back foot by stamping down and extending her back leg as explosively as possible. Her front leg has remained extended throughout. The amount of pop you get will depend on a few variables -speed, power, timing, aggression, but your aim is to extend, really focus on straightening your legs, uncoiling the spring which is you.
The Flick Pic D.
There are two possibilities in a Raley, to end up with the board horizontal and behind you, 
or flicked around vertically behind you. The second talked option will make all number of tricks more attainable and the Krypt is no exception. This flicking action is simply a continuation of the carve upwind and by extending and letting the board go you should end up here.
In this position you are airborne you also require to take stock of what is going on lest adjustments need be made. The rider has let her board flick around by carving hard to get the board into the wind and extending fully as she took off. She now wants to make ensure that she is in control, and here that means that the kite is doing what it should. If you’re well versed in Raleys, you know that once you have it nailed the kite doesn’t move, but if this side is new chances are the kite will have gone up. If it has, steer it down, the rider’s bar here is angled forward to keep the kite from rising. You’ll need to utilize both hands. The rider will also be spotting her landing, that is to say she’ll be working out where she’ll most likely land so that she can prepare for it.
Landing Gear Down Pic E.
Gravity always wins and your legs will naturally fall underneath you, 
which is the beauty with a Raley. That said if you start with your kite at 45° or below Newton may not be able to save you. You can see in the picture the advantage of the flick, the rider left foot is forward as her front foot was flicked around behind her. If you have a strong toe side preference, chances are that you’ll automatically keep this position, but just to make sure, try to bring your knees up towards you as the board falls. As your knees come up you can pull your toe side leading knee under the bar, much as you would for a gentle pop to toe side. Here in picture the rider pulls her left knee through underneath her.
The Result Pic F.
By pulling her left knee through and under the bar, the rider will now happily and happily 
land tail first for a toe side landing and a Krypt claimer. By keeping the bar in close she lands over the board and is not pulled forwards by the kite. Once you have landed, either bear away towards the kite and hook back in, or casually pop back to heel side and ponder what you’ll do next.
Top Tips
- The very first tip is to start off gently, you don’t need to be hounding along at Mach 10 with the intention of a full blown Raley.
- A decent extended pop will give you the feel, so concentrate on carving and extending your legs and body before landing.
- Also have a good look on images.
Common Problems
- If you find that you are landing very downwind and having to carve around onto your heels, the chances are that either your kite has drifted up, or your error have extended which means that the kite will pull you too far downwind. Keep your arms tucked in and don’t be afraid to dive the kite down to keep you going where you should be.
- If you are catching your toe side edge on landing you don’t have enough height, so either pop harder or try with your kite slightly higher in the window. These are the things to keep In mind.
Keystones
- Approach with weight upwind, back and front leg extended
- Carve hard upwind with arms in
- Explode against the edge with your back foot
- Extend and feel the flick
- Pull arms in and bring back knee through
Double Back Rool Transition
Adding together some extra rotation is a sure shot fire way of stepping up a move that you already have mastered, and the double back roll transition is definitely up there as one to learn, so here it is. Although some warning words are here, if you’ve been practicing the double back roll kite loop from last issue, you may require to rewire your brain and press default as these are two clearly different moves wherein you definitely don’t wish to be confusing. A very good base before starting this is a solid and controlled, BLT, or back roll transition if you’re from across the pond. From this point below is what you will be doing.
The Approach Pic A.
Vital 2 things to remember for any transition are; you have to kill some forward momentum and then you still need to send the kite for lift. You certainly require a good edge for both of these elements. From a good edge you can edge harder upwind to slow down, and with a good edge you can send the kite rapidly and sharply from either 11 or 1 to 12 o’clock because you maintain tension in the lines. If you think about this you won’t drift the kite up slowly whilst standing up on the board and your chances of success will be greatly increased. Please note and also see in Pic A that the rider has come in with good speed on a decent edge, kite at 11 o’clock, weight back and tension in his lines.
From this point the rider has sent the kite up whilst edging harder to both resist the pull, and also to slow down. Even though his back leg is bent it is not soft – it is pushing and therefore resisting.
The Rotation Pic B.
A certain element of trial and error with good amount of practice is what required for this part, depending on your standard BLT. In case if you are a recognized exponent of slow, casual-looking back roll transitions then speeding up the rotation to accommodate an extra 360° shouldn’t hold much of a problem. If however you’re guilty of the occasional foray into spinney quick low BLTs, then you’ll need to focus more on your approach and the take-off, in search of more height and float, which added to your spin speed should see you nicely round the full double.
We feel it extremely important to mention here that that you do want to help yourself into the second rotation, but you don’t want to force it as later in the move you can use your head, body and kite to help you finish. The rider I Pic B. has dropped his weight way back over the tail of the board. With his weight so far back the board will turn/carve much further into the wind as it is almost pivoting on its tail. This will efficiently speed up the rider’s rotation as he will carve further into wind before take-off than for his standard BLT.
The important tool here is timing, you must drop back as the kite starts to lift, a fraction before you take off. This way you’ll still edge and therefore be rewarded with some air and float. If you drop back too early you’ll be pulled back and the kite will fly further back in the window, offering you less time in the air to make it round the two times.
Take Off Pic C.
Here comes the key moment, though your approach will dictate how this goes. If you have edged and resisted and literally stabbed the kite back hard but face short time you will be able to pop up off your back leg as you pull the bar in whilst the kite is somewhere close to 12 o’clock.
The rider has pulled the bar right in after popping. The reasons for this are twofold. Firstly by pulling in hard with 2 hands the rider successfully stops the kite moving and keeps it centered above bias around 12 o’clock. Secondly he gets a cheeky bit of extra lift from the kite. However be cautioned if your sweet spot is trimmed miles away from you, your kite will flare/stall and you will not get the float or control that you’re expecting. As he takes off he keeps his head looking forward between his arms, which will stop him over cooking the rotation. Finally the rider in this image lifts his knees, making himself small, balanced and easier to rotate.
Half Way House Pic D.
By the time you reach to the peak of your transition, your aim is to complete your first rotation, so one on the way up and then one on the way down. That means unless you’re getting great height there won’t be much time to separate the move into two halves.
You are ready and primed to go into number two as you complete the first 360°, it’s the most important thing here. Check images number D. that the rider has lifted his feet above him and has his knees pulled in close. This a little inverted position will make it much simpler to finish the move, as with your feet high and knees in, your whole body, legs and board will follow your head and shoulders as you turn into the second rotation. It is absolutely possible to finish the move with the board down low, however you are far more likely to finish with your head and shoulders, but find that the board has been left somewhat behind – which will hinder your smooth landing. In picture you can see that the rider has started to pull, gently at first, on his left hand (old back hand, new front hand – whichever way you prefer to think). This gentle movement of bar and kite will encourage you to lean back into the second rotation
Turn and land pic- E
Your second rotation will come from a combination of your head and the kite. With your feet up look around and you’ll continue to turn and the rest will follow. You can see that the rider is attentive on where he will land, and as soon as he feels that he is rotating, he dives the kite down hard. The pull from the kite twists him around and powers him up for a down wind landing.
One thing which really important is Timing here in this trick , but if you pull too early the kite will end up low with little power and as such you’ll be forced into a late kite loop once you have landed to keep you dry. If you time the dive well, you’ll get the perfect dry landing without needing to loop the kite.
Top Tips
- Start with some single BLTs, focused on the edge, send, upward take off and keeping the kite above you at 12 o’clock throughout the move.
- Once you’re comfortable, confident and consistent bring your feet up and go for the second rotation whilst keeping the kite at 12.
- Once this is in the bag you can dive hard to add the perfect 10 landing! If you’re struggling with the slow rotation, concentrate on the up rather than the spin and approach with less speed and more edge, whilst sending more aggressively – but just for a short moment.
Common Problems
- The most common problem here is implementation the move but landing with the kite so for at the edge of the window that there is no way to get any power to get moving.
- There are two probable reasons for this. Firstly you’re drifting the kite up rather than sending, so you feel the lift late and the kite has already travelled too far behind you.
- Secondly as you take off your leaning back onto your back hand, so you don’t stop or even redirect the kite to 12. Concentrate on performing the move with the kite at 12 o’clock and then add the kite dive on at the end.
- The other famous problem is not having enough height to land cleanly, so you are completing the double but always landing on an edge across the wind with your burn in the water.
- This can generally be linked with concentrating too much on the rotation and not launching yourself up into the move. Make an effort to pop up into the rotation, and not just carve around into the wind.
Some Keystones
- Good solid edge with legs resisting
- Send kite positively with confidence
- Pop up into the back roll and center bar
- Keep Kite at 12 o’clock and lift legs
- Turn head at apex and dive kite to complete number two
Front Foot One Foot
This is really a fun of highest order. You’ll confuse yourselves at first, however be rest assured that the Triple “F” is astonishingly easy and is guaranteed to put a smile on your face – it is a show boating with a sense of humor. Now on serious note what do you need to bash out one of these? Practically if you can jump with a tail grab and loosen your straps you are good to go and actually ready to rock and pose.
Preparation
Get yourself prepared before you hit the water. To free your foot temporarily from the confines of your front foot strap you may want to loosen the strap a tad so that your foot can slide out, and probably more significantly back in effortlessly without hindrance or interference. And if you’re going to loosen the front one you best loosen the back one a touch too. With this way if you don’t get the front foot back in it’ll be simple to ditch the board pre splash.
Image-1 (The Jump)
If you’re not as quick as Flash Gordon getting some height and float from your jump is paramount so that you have time to grab the board and set free your foot, get it back in without stubbing your toe and then land
. Preferably you’ll wish some power in the kite, a jolly good edge and some space. Start with your kite no higher than 11 or 1 o’clock. Once you know it’s there,
Look upwind and drive against your edge, pushing against your back heel ready to resist the extra power that you’re about to create. Now wiggle your front foot a little out of the strap so that it is not wedged in and send the kite hard with a decent pull push action, keeping the bar on the sweet spot. Keep edging, keep the bar in and wait for the kite to launch you. Only if you edge well and send kite hard you will get the up earlier and the kite won’t fly too far behind you, making it easier to focus on the task in hand. We’re looking for an elevator jump here, so more up and down, not flying at mach 10 downwind.
Image-2(Knees up)
As with any foot out and board off you, need to get everything in position as soon as possible, so that you’ve got plenty of time. If you only manage to get the grab in on the way down your chances are getting slimmer. Here in this image you can see that straight away after take-off rider is getting his knees up towards him. This needs the most effort as the lift from the kite is straightening you out, so you’ll need to pull hard and its maybe why the rider in the picture doesn’t look too happy. Please have a look at his bar – he has pulled it in and also leveling it. This way he gets the kite settled just behind 12 o’clock with two hands before getting on with business.
Image-3(Look for the Grab)
Pay your attention on where you wish to grab the board, as this way you’ll get there earlier. Turning your head to look at the tail will also turn your body and the board, which is a good thing. By turning the board back you have more space behind your harness to lift your back knee and get the board closer to you. Lifting the back knee and the back of the board towards you tilts the board which aids un-weight your front foot and makes it easier to slide out. You can see that everything is happening behind the guy in the picture, so he has plenty of room to do maneuver
Image-4(Make It Count)
Of course! This moment is full of glory, so stoke it count. Once you have the tail of the board pull it up and in towards your bottom,
as this will aid twist the board off your foot. At the same time lift your front foot towards you, your foot will now be dangling in told air. Keep your hold tight on the board and keep your bar in for float. From this moment you have a plethora of alternatives to show-off, the most significant of which is to get your front leg extended as the guy has in the images. As you get confident you can play with board angles and leg positions. As per any reasonably high and float jump, aim to keep the kite just behind at the angle of 12 o’clock so that you don’t get pulled forwards and off balance whilst in flight.
Image-5(Eyes and In)
In the time when you are learning this, once you experience that you’re dropping it’s your signal for font foot in. This way you’ll have sufficient time. Once you get more proficient and confident you can wait until mill moments before landing. To make life easier and give you a bit longer you should start to pull gently on your front hand. This way the kite will fly at 12 o’clock and you’ll be satisfied with a little extra lift, and therefore time. If you don’t perform this, you’ll drop much quicker. Fix your gaze on the front strap and pull your back knee up, which will tilt the nose of the board down. Bend your front leg to bring your foot up and if your strap is loose it should be a fairly simple procedure. Once your foot is in give it a wiggle whilst you still have hold of the tail to make sure that it’s secure.
Image-6(Both Hands and Dive)
Now all that’s left is to land this with panache and you’ll feel quite chuffed. Once your foot is in release the grab and get you back hand on the bar. You’ll need to dive the kite hard for landing because you gave it a little pull forward for support whilst replacing the front foot, so if you’re not aggressive now you’ll get pulled off balance as the kite flies around the edge of the window. You can see that rider is giving the bar a fair yank down to dive the kite and as it pulls he angles the board off the wind for a soft downwind landing.
Top Tips
1. Approach your first few attempts with an aggressive jump, a boned grab and a subtle look back to get your confidence up.
2. Then loosen the straps and give it a go.
3. You’ll be surprised how both the grab and the back foot act as anchor points, making this feel far more solid and controlled than you would expect.
Common Problems
- First off, struggling to get the foot out. Assuming that you have loosened the strap or straps the primary cause of this will be your legs. If you bring your front knee right up into your chest you’ll have no room to lift your foot out. Similarly if you don’t lift your back knee enough you may have the some problem.
- Make sure you get a decent tilted angle on the board, as this will make a world of difference.
- If you’re getting stuck looking back and then dropping down into the drink. Chances are that you’re being a bit ginger on the front hand and leaving the kite too far behind you after take-off. Remember to fly the kite back up to just behind 12 o’clock with two hands as you bring your knees up. Don’t go for the grab until you have the kite settled.
- When you’re having problems getting the foot back in it’s either going to be lack of time and height, so make sure that you pull gently on the front hand as you slide it back in. It could also be the knees again, so make sure the board is tilted.
Keystones
- Elevator jump
- Control kite with two hands
- Tilt board back knee up into chest and grab
- Pull board in and lift foot out
- Tilt, look at strap and slide foot in
This video shows how you can progress your jumps and not only to take your one foot of from the board but both feet and even flip the board! Practise and you’ll become the jumping king at your local kite spot in no time!
Front Loop Transition
Before attempting to learn the front loop transition it is wise to first learn the air gybe. If you also know how to make a front loop, this should be a piece of cake for you. Here are the steps to complete a front loop transition.
- Approach as for a normal air gybe. Ditch some speed by carving hard into the wind and then immediately send the kite back aggressively, keeping the bar on the sweet spot. Keep your weight over your back foot, extend your front leg.
- As soon as you feel the kite lift, explode up your back leg and level the bar out by pulling both hands down towards your hips.
- Throw yourself into the front rotation by dropping your leading shoulder, turn your head and kick off the back foot.
- As you start to rotate redirect the kite with your front hand in order to get it back above you.
- Lift your knees, making yourself smaller to help the rotation and to keep your balance in the air. Keep the bar in so you can feel where the kite is and keep tension on the lines, which in turn keeps you up and floating.
- Look over your back shoulder and wait until you see a potential landing spot. With the bar still in you can feel where the kite is, and in this case it’s now above you so you level the bar out.
- Now at the apex of your jump keep the bar in so that the kite will be responsive once you need to dive it. Still look over your back shoulder, waiting to spot your landing.
Keystones:
- Carve then send
- Keep bar in
- Go early
- Redirect kite
- Dive kite really hard
