hey guys in this video i'm going to explain how to do the elusive water start now if you haven't
perfected your body dragging make sure you go watch my video and practice that as much as
possible because the more you practice your body dragging the easier water starting will become
now it all happens really quickly in a matter of seconds there's a
fine line between having a smooth takeoff and doing a superman so let's get into it
before attempting the water start there are several prerequisites you should be very confident
body dragging in all directions including body dragging upwind i can't stress how important it is
to be very confident body dragging upwind before attempting water starts it makes the whole process
so much easier plus if you crash in deep water you can actually recover your board if you're
not confident with your body dragging check out my body drag tutorial here the conditions make a
big difference to how easy or hard it is to water start it's best to learn in waist to chest deep
flat water so if you fall it's easier to stand and recover your board but make sure it's not
dangerously shallow learning water starts in waves is going to be much harder and finally make sure
there is nobody downwind here are three simple but very important exercises you must practice before
trying to water start number one practice flying the kite one-handed and holding onto the board
in the other hand then switch hands progress onto practicing putting the board on your feet in the
water bend down with your legs out in front of you as you bend down have your kite at 10 or 2 try not
to have your kite directly above you to avoid your kite falling out the sky when you sit down
hold either the foot strap or the handle with one hand and the other hand on the bar then put
one foot in the foot strap the opposite foot to the hand holding your board then place your other
foot in wiggle your foot around to make sure they are properly in at this point kick your feet out
and start over do this a few times before going further three once your board is on your feet
now you need to learn how to control your board using your kite always try to keep
your board perpendicular to your kite if you straighten your right leg you will spin left
if you straighten your left leg you will spin right practice this as you slowly drift downwind
this is a really important exercise as you need to control your board on your feet before trying
to get up common mistakes are to take one hand off the bar and try to swim yourself round most of the
time this ends badly so if you do get spun around let go of the bar reset yourself and start over
now you're ready to learn the water start this all happens very quickly so it's important to start
with less power and gradually build up the power to avoid doing a superman and scaring yourself
begin with the kite around 12 and your board perpendicular to the kite with your knees bent
towards your chest dive the kite in the direction you want to go let the kite pull you forwards
onto the board as you come out the water stand up on the board and straighten your front leg
straightening your front leg is very important as that initiates the direction of travel
most of your weight should be on your back leg which is bent
once you're out the water when the kite is around 45 degrees
steer the kite back up to avoid it crashing as the kite comes up let the bar out then bar in dive the
kite back down into another power stroke continue steering the kite up and down to continue riding
these power strokes will keep your momentum and speed once you have enough speed and apparent wind
you will be able to leave the kite at around 45 degrees and cruise along that's officially
when you are a kite surfer congrats to stop bring the kite up to 12 sheet the bar out and lean back
check out my video on how to stop here let's look at some common mistakes the most common mistake
is having both legs straight or straightening your entire body which can result in a bad crash
it's really important to point downwind towards your kite as you come out the water you can point
the board downwind by straightening your front leg and pointing your toes be careful not to
straighten your front leg too early this can cause you to catch the nose of your board in the water
if this does happen and you end up backwards in the water try not to correct it kick the board
off let go of the bar reset and start over trying to spin yourself back around holding the bar will
end badly most people's instinctive reaction is to grip tightly and pull in the bar and hold it
don't try to pull yourself up using your upper body strength let the power of the
kite pull your hips through the harness try holding the bar with your fingertips if
you're not getting enough power to get up then you're probably not steering the kite enough
if you don't turn it quick enough it will stay at the edge of the wind window and it won't provide
enough lift the next progression is to start with your kite at either 1 or 11 pm the opposite
side of the window to the direction you want to travel this will help get more lift and power
try to dive your kite into the power zone rather than steering it around the edge of the window
finding the balance of power is the hardest aspect of the water start there are many factors that
affect this from your own weight to the size of the kite and what board you have too much power
and you do a superman not enough power and you can't get out the water so start slowly and build
it up avoid scaring yourself here are some top tips it's very important to be able to control
the strength of your power dive the slower you steer the kite the less the kite will
dive into the power the faster you steer the kite the more the kite will dive into the power
if your power dive is too weak then you can always try again
by diving the kite too fast means bad crashes and broken kites as the kite pulls roll your head and
shoulders forwards don't try to edge away from the kite straight away point your toes forward
and twist your hips to flatten out the board and point the board downwind towards the kite
as the kite comes up sheet the bar out slightly as the kite comes down sheet the bar back in
think about trying to pump the kite as it comes up and down once you're up and riding try to
twist your upper body towards your direction of travel lean back and bring your shoulders back
now you're starting to hold your ground and even go upwind remember you should always get
lessons when learning having the right gear in the correct conditions will make a huge
difference to your progression and be patient this all happens in a matter of seconds and
is one of the hardest parts of learning to kite surf there is so much to take in start slow and
build up so you don't scare yourself once you have cracked this you are away and the rest will flow
so as you can see it all happens very quickly that's why i'd recommend starting slow and
building up slowly you don't want to scare yourself and watch the video loads of times
and make sure you've got a good amount of power you don't want to be too overpowered you don't be
too underpowered you want to be just right cheers for watching if you enjoyed it please consider
subscribing all really helps my channel much appreciated see you in the next video peace out
you