In a previous article, Patrick Dwyer shared the method of the basic Jumping, and some other tricks like Back Spin Kite Loop, KGB, and Front to Blind. Here you can learn more tricks and moves that could improve your game. Take notice that some of these new moves are not suited for beginners.
Image courtesy of Pierce Martin at Flickr.com
F-16
Basically, the F-16 is an unhooked back loop kite loop, a kite loop being when the kite is hurled against the direction of travel. The difference from the hooked-in version is the way that you hold the bar. Both hands should be grasping onto one side of the bar, which forces the kite to turn extremely fast. The kite mostly dictates what happens in the F-16. To start, position your kite very close to 12 o’clock above you. If you wait until the kite pulls you off the water, it will already have turned too far, and therefore pull you around too early, making landing a little wobbly or leading to a bad case of over rotation. Physically jump up into your back loop off your edge just before you think the kite will pull. It will pull you up, it will rotate you and it will softly drop you back down once it finishes the loop.
Once the hands have moved, get back on your, drop your weight low and get your shoulders out and upwind of the board. The bar is now vertical, this will happen automatically. Before the kite pulls, carve hard bending the rear leg ready to pop upwards. Your head should be looking forward. Jump up across the air powerfully. The kite has now travelled far enough behind that it pulls up. As the kite starts looping, the power will extend you. The turning of the kite should pull you around. When you feel the power collapse, look over your shoulder and locate a landing spot. On landing, try and maintain your weight over the back of the board. A speedy approach will make the pull from the kite seem far less violent while it gives you more control and a smoother landing. The more power you have in the kite, the higher and harder you will go.
Raley
The Raley could be described as a gateway trick. This kitesurfing trick is generally considered the initial tentative move towards a life of hard, unhooked riding. It gives the rider a solid basis for the hard tricks, such as the Blind Judge and the S-Bend. The direction in which you are travelling just before you carve onto your edge will pretty much be the same as the direction you land.
First, stop resisting with your legs and instead bent them and allow to be pulled up over the board. Standing up over the board, extend the front leg in order to keep your weight back over the tail of the board, keeping your back leg slightly bent. Pull the bar in towards your hips and push it down to release the chicken loop. Extend the front leg and lean back into the wind. With the shoulders leaning back into the wind and the hips moved over your back foot, you can now start to resist against the edge of the board, driving against the edge with your legs and turning the board away from the kite. Now you are ready to take off. Ideally, the kite should not move throughout this phase of the Raley. You must pop before losing the edge. Stamp down hard on the back heel against the edge, extending your back leg as quickly and forcefully as you can. You should be popped up of the water, and the kite pulls you forward towards it stretching your body out and flicking your feet up behind you. The pull from the kite will vanish as you travel in the same direction as the pull. Because of this, your legs will naturally start to fall. Pull your arms in towards the hips. Focus on where you will land. Steer the kite down hard for a controlled landing, with the board pointing towards the kite, in the same direction you started the move. To accomplish a proper landing, touch down tail first with your legs extended but ready to absorb the landing. Remember there is no kite floating you, so you are falling down to the water.
Basically, the F-16 is an unhooked back loop kite loop, a kite loop being when the kite is hurled against the direction of travel. The difference from the hooked-in version is the way that you hold the bar. Both hands should be grasping onto one side of the bar, which forces the kite to turn extremely fast. The kite mostly dictates what happens in the F-16. To start, position your kite very close to 12 o’clock above you. If you wait until the kite pulls you off the water, it will already have turned too far, and therefore pull you around too early, making landing a little wobbly or leading to a bad case of over rotation. Physically jump up into your back loop off your edge just before you think the kite will pull. It will pull you up, it will rotate you and it will softly drop you back down once it finishes the loop.
Once the hands have moved, get back on your, drop your weight low and get your shoulders out and upwind of the board. The bar is now vertical, this will happen automatically. Before the kite pulls, carve hard bending the rear leg ready to pop upwards. Your head should be looking forward. Jump up across the air powerfully. The kite has now travelled far enough behind that it pulls up. As the kite starts looping, the power will extend you. The turning of the kite should pull you around. When you feel the power collapse, look over your shoulder and locate a landing spot. On landing, try and maintain your weight over the back of the board. A speedy approach will make the pull from the kite seem far less violent while it gives you more control and a smoother landing. The more power you have in the kite, the higher and harder you will go.
Raley
The Raley could be described as a gateway trick. This kitesurfing trick is generally considered the initial tentative move towards a life of hard, unhooked riding. It gives the rider a solid basis for the hard tricks, such as the Blind Judge and the S-Bend. The direction in which you are travelling just before you carve onto your edge will pretty much be the same as the direction you land.
First, stop resisting with your legs and instead bent them and allow to be pulled up over the board. Standing up over the board, extend the front leg in order to keep your weight back over the tail of the board, keeping your back leg slightly bent. Pull the bar in towards your hips and push it down to release the chicken loop. Extend the front leg and lean back into the wind. With the shoulders leaning back into the wind and the hips moved over your back foot, you can now start to resist against the edge of the board, driving against the edge with your legs and turning the board away from the kite. Now you are ready to take off. Ideally, the kite should not move throughout this phase of the Raley. You must pop before losing the edge. Stamp down hard on the back heel against the edge, extending your back leg as quickly and forcefully as you can. You should be popped up of the water, and the kite pulls you forward towards it stretching your body out and flicking your feet up behind you. The pull from the kite will vanish as you travel in the same direction as the pull. Because of this, your legs will naturally start to fall. Pull your arms in towards the hips. Focus on where you will land. Steer the kite down hard for a controlled landing, with the board pointing towards the kite, in the same direction you started the move. To accomplish a proper landing, touch down tail first with your legs extended but ready to absorb the landing. Remember there is no kite floating you, so you are falling down to the water.
Image courtesy of mrksphoto2007 at Flickr.com
NIS
The base for this is a powered unhooked popped front roll, the more aggressively you can pop the easier this will be. Work that kite to get some pull and speed, and park the kite at 11 or 1 o’clock, so that you know it won’t drive you down and therefore give you the confidence to pop hard and not lift the kite as you edge. Get your body back over the tail of the board as you bear away. Your board, knees, and hips will be thrown up high enough to make the pass. Concentrate on extending from your back leg all the way up into your back shoulder. This way even as your head goes down and around and your front knee lifts to initiate the rotation, you’re still on the way up. As you go down into the front roll you will still be rising. And with the bar in close keep the kite parked with the bar angled forward.
You need to be leading with your head, even though you will be throwing the pass against the rotation, as you need to see where you are going so that you can time the movement. Once you can spot your landing, you need to pull the bar in towards your hips and pull your back knee, towards the bar. This will slow your rotation and lift that end of the board, giving you more chance to make the pass. Give one last tug on the bar with both hands, a bit front hand heavy to stop the kite flying up when you release it and then throw you head and shoulders back around, down and away from where you have been looking. Make the pass hand to hand with the board high and his knees bent. This way the board won’t drop and pull you away from the bar as you turn. For the landing, keep your head turning. So as you change hands keep turning the head to look towards where you are going, and untwist the hand, allow your wrist to turn palm down so that the bar is once again as it should be and the status quo is restored.
The base for this is a powered unhooked popped front roll, the more aggressively you can pop the easier this will be. Work that kite to get some pull and speed, and park the kite at 11 or 1 o’clock, so that you know it won’t drive you down and therefore give you the confidence to pop hard and not lift the kite as you edge. Get your body back over the tail of the board as you bear away. Your board, knees, and hips will be thrown up high enough to make the pass. Concentrate on extending from your back leg all the way up into your back shoulder. This way even as your head goes down and around and your front knee lifts to initiate the rotation, you’re still on the way up. As you go down into the front roll you will still be rising. And with the bar in close keep the kite parked with the bar angled forward.
You need to be leading with your head, even though you will be throwing the pass against the rotation, as you need to see where you are going so that you can time the movement. Once you can spot your landing, you need to pull the bar in towards your hips and pull your back knee, towards the bar. This will slow your rotation and lift that end of the board, giving you more chance to make the pass. Give one last tug on the bar with both hands, a bit front hand heavy to stop the kite flying up when you release it and then throw you head and shoulders back around, down and away from where you have been looking. Make the pass hand to hand with the board high and his knees bent. This way the board won’t drop and pull you away from the bar as you turn. For the landing, keep your head turning. So as you change hands keep turning the head to look towards where you are going, and untwist the hand, allow your wrist to turn palm down so that the bar is once again as it should be and the status quo is restored.