Woo Hoo!!

Kraemer · Since 24 Apr 2006 1736 Posts Sky Pilot Unicorn Captain

Possilby you aren't pulling the kite back down (forward, the direction you are going) soon enough?

tekko · Since 20 Feb 2006 376 Posts White Salmon Liquid Force

It's called 'fear of the front hand' and dates back even to 2 line kites and jumping...

You need to get over the fear of pulling hard on the front hand while you are jumping, so that you can land clean, with speed and planing.

Think about it like this... you want to time pulling on your front hand to redirect when you are at the apex of the jump and then think about directing the kite while you are on your way down the same way you would for a waterstart.. because essentially, the moment you touch the water you want to be powered and planing in the direction of travel.. so having the kite in a dive that pulls you out across the water.. whereas just hanging from the kite if it is high will 'plop' you in the water as you'll be just dropping out of the sky with no power to plane... and therefor ride away.

You'll see a lot of good riders these days who jump big will delay a little bit as the timing of being higher requires you to wait to redirect.. but you will always see them diving the kite aggressively on their way down before they touch the water so that they have planing power to land.

You also, just like a waterstart, want to begin your landing pointing your board straight downwind, so absorb the landing and provide the most control. If you try to land across the wind on an edge, you will slide out every time. The more speed/deeper the kite is in the window when you land, the longer you will ride downwind to burn off speed before setting your edge against the kite. On really powered jumps it's common to actually land pointed downwind and ride away from the kite, to put it further at the edge of the window prior to setting an edge against so much power.

Gman · Since 11 Feb 2006 4911 Posts Portland Unstrapped

Just as Tekko called it - if you don't pull on the front hand you ass check

Way to go dude Thumb's Up

Diggy · Since 25 Nov 2006 342 Posts Gorge to Coast Obsessed

Really appreciate this thread.

This is about where I am in my progression, started riding toe side recently, and jumping off of little waves but only using speed and the lip of the wave. When I try using the kite I come up off the water a bit (not much at all) and then float down wind and plop on my ass, from reading this thread it sounds like I need more speed and to turn up-wind harder to get the height.

Anyway - Great thread and thanks!

Nak · Thu Jun 05, 08 3:22 pm

Thanks guys! Detailed response Tekko, thanks!

The problem I'm having is that sometimes I start swinging downwind of the kite at the moment of liftoff. That puts me way off balance & no time to get the kite going forward again before I land on my ass. I know to pull with the forward hand & land with some power. (I definitely don't have it down yet, but I know to work on it.) It's that swing forward on liftoff that I'm trying to fix. Half of my jumps I went up fine & half of them I swung forward on liftoff. I guess I need to start with the kite Higher & edge harder for the pop.

Once I am going a little higher, how long do you wait to redirect the kite forward? Do you just bring it a little forward at the zenith & dive it before you land? The small jumps I was doing it worked well to dive the kite as soon as I felt a descent, but I wasn't all that high...

I haven't had a chance to try again & won't till at least the weekend...