so. to all you kitebuffs that have ridden the big stuff.
what's your preferred method of wave riding? i notice that some riders, e.g. shannon best, tend to waveride unhooked quite a bit. i suppose if you're riding downwind with side-shore then unhooked might be easier ... but what does everyone prefer? why? is sideshore the best??? or is side-on better?
also, boards. waveriding with a directional vs bidirectional? straps vs nostraps?
after my sp. break session in padre, i have a newfound love for riding the waves, but realized i know really nothing about it. so. thoughts?!
waveriding
Moderator: MK
tyson, so does that mean you will be one of the regulars at the mother this summer 
I don't know much about the tech but I would say straps are a must for superior. I tried with and without straps (on a Eric shroder surfboard) with out them I would lose my board trieing to get out cause you jump or free fall 10 ft down into the trough of the wave, when you loose your surf board it will roll with the wave all the way to the shore.... leaving you way down wind.
get yourself one of those SRT's and let me try it.
Jon
I don't know much about the tech but I would say straps are a must for superior. I tried with and without straps (on a Eric shroder surfboard) with out them I would lose my board trieing to get out cause you jump or free fall 10 ft down into the trough of the wave, when you loose your surf board it will roll with the wave all the way to the shore.... leaving you way down wind.
get yourself one of those SRT's and let me try it.
Jon
Stroh My E.S is actaully a kitesurfboard not really a tru surfboard
But it has a directoinal stance so it works ok for waves.
But it has a long rail so not the best for fast turns but it gets the job done. Riding this choppy shorebreak here is alot diffrent then Real waves
so the straps work really nice due to the constint breaking of waves. otherwise your chasing your board to shore, but strapless is fun to just depends on conditions really.
I think side shore is great but I like side on better espeacailly for unhooking and going down the line. and as far as the unhooking thing goes I feel it the same as regular riding it more free and u have totall manueverability . anyhoo strpless,straps ,unhooked ,hooked,longboard shortboard, who cares its all good get out there and try it! make sure to send us some pics of you in some waves in DR.
small day @ parkpoint
But it has a directoinal stance so it works ok for waves.
But it has a long rail so not the best for fast turns but it gets the job done. Riding this choppy shorebreak here is alot diffrent then Real waves
so the straps work really nice due to the constint breaking of waves. otherwise your chasing your board to shore, but strapless is fun to just depends on conditions really.
I think side shore is great but I like side on better espeacailly for unhooking and going down the line. and as far as the unhooking thing goes I feel it the same as regular riding it more free and u have totall manueverability . anyhoo strpless,straps ,unhooked ,hooked,longboard shortboard, who cares its all good get out there and try it! make sure to send us some pics of you in some waves in DR.
small day @ parkpoint
I hate to tell you but bows/hybrids are the way to go in the waves. I know you are a die hard C rider, but I think if you start riding waves a lot you're gonna want a bow. Bows give you the ability to ride the waves power and have the kite move with you. You want to do a big juicy bottom turn, just sheet out and take the kite out of the equation, or power it up for a massive spray to impress the seagulls.
I have tried true kitewave boards like the SRT. Nice and fast and very nimble under the feet, but it's hard going back to jibing something that has no means of stabilization (like a mast).
I'm stoked on the new Slingy Fuse. Supposidely you can ride it like a twin tip or a directional, so no need for jibing. It has four fins on one tip and one pair on the other. The rocker is more directional. The rails are real soft though not as bulbous as the SRT. It just looks fun. It is a 149cm so it should be an epic Reddy Creek, Mother Superior board.
I'll give another report when I return from Padre.
I have tried true kitewave boards like the SRT. Nice and fast and very nimble under the feet, but it's hard going back to jibing something that has no means of stabilization (like a mast).
I'm stoked on the new Slingy Fuse. Supposidely you can ride it like a twin tip or a directional, so no need for jibing. It has four fins on one tip and one pair on the other. The rocker is more directional. The rails are real soft though not as bulbous as the SRT. It just looks fun. It is a 149cm so it should be an epic Reddy Creek, Mother Superior board.
I'll give another report when I return from Padre.
Tighe
This is a difficult topic for me to address without emotion, and it is debated quite a bit on KiteForum. The topic is that there is a difference between, what I call, "kite assisted surfing" and "kiting in the surf". I've seen many videos of guys kiting in the surf who are not surfing at all...although they say they are. To me, you must be using the wave to provide power to say that you are "wave riding". If you are just using waves as moving bumps to get tons of spray off the lip and to use waves as ramps, you aren't "wave riding". Take a look at the latest vid on KiteForumtv from Puerto Rico. The title is something like "wave destroyer". The guy never surfs; he just powers off the lip. After powering off the lip, he is way out in front of the wave using his kite for power to set up for another "off the lip". Now watch the vid called "The Ion - Cape Verde". The guy uses the wave to power himself; he stays in the power provided by the wave. He uses the kite to get himself to the next section so he can start surfing again. These two videos are two completely different styles. IMO, one guy is "wave riding" and the other guy is not.
Now take a look at Gulf Coast and Great Lake surf. I grew up on the Gulf Coast. Surfing in these places is like surfing in a washing machine. You can do it, but there is something so much better. If you ever get the chance to surf on "long period" waves (or ground swell), you will be stoked to the max. Long period waves are spaced well apart and are very long. Visually, it is like watching a set of rolling pins come in. California gets ground swell very often. The east coast is mostly wind swell. If you like being in the surf, then find an opportunity to kite in ground swell...you'll go crazy with excitement.
There I go sticking my neck out again....if you dish it out, you gotta be able to take it too.
Now take a look at Gulf Coast and Great Lake surf. I grew up on the Gulf Coast. Surfing in these places is like surfing in a washing machine. You can do it, but there is something so much better. If you ever get the chance to surf on "long period" waves (or ground swell), you will be stoked to the max. Long period waves are spaced well apart and are very long. Visually, it is like watching a set of rolling pins come in. California gets ground swell very often. The east coast is mostly wind swell. If you like being in the surf, then find an opportunity to kite in ground swell...you'll go crazy with excitement.
There I go sticking my neck out again....if you dish it out, you gotta be able to take it too.
G2 Kiteboarding
so Gary, you're saying that we're not really surfing and we're not really on a wave? ; )
Ride on
And, Dude, I'm trying to surf. Nothing like that instant when there is switch from kitepower to wave power. There's lots of decent waves within driving distance. Superior can get huge, big wide open troughs, nice faces. The bottom of lake Michegan can get massive on Northeners. Door County gets some nice good waves on a South. Even Reddy and Father Hennepin on Mille Lacs can kick up. Father Hennepin's waves usually aren't breaking because they are caused by the water flowing the opposite direction on the bottom.
Funny that is one dialog I must have missed on Kiteforum. I would agree though that unless you break free from the kite's power, you're not surfing.
Never forget when I met you. You had gotten up at 5am and just drove into Minnesota and started hitting lakes looking for other riders, cause you had heard that they kite in Minnesota. That's a great spirit.
How's the kite coming along?
ride on
Ride on
And, Dude, I'm trying to surf. Nothing like that instant when there is switch from kitepower to wave power. There's lots of decent waves within driving distance. Superior can get huge, big wide open troughs, nice faces. The bottom of lake Michegan can get massive on Northeners. Door County gets some nice good waves on a South. Even Reddy and Father Hennepin on Mille Lacs can kick up. Father Hennepin's waves usually aren't breaking because they are caused by the water flowing the opposite direction on the bottom.
Funny that is one dialog I must have missed on Kiteforum. I would agree though that unless you break free from the kite's power, you're not surfing.
Never forget when I met you. You had gotten up at 5am and just drove into Minnesota and started hitting lakes looking for other riders, cause you had heard that they kite in Minnesota. That's a great spirit.
How's the kite coming along?
ride on
Tighe
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ice_kmauve
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SCOTT RIDOUT
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Don't get me wrong...wind swell is still a good surfable wave...and lots of fun. I'm just saying that if you get the opportunity to ge to a place with ground swell, you'll never forget it. Ground swell is created by big storms that are 1,000 miles or more away. If you look "ground swell" up on the web, You'll find the term "fetch" discussed. Fetch is a big part in creating ground swell. Wind swell is fun too, for sure. Wind swell doesn't line up as nice, plus the waves in a set tend to be closer together. Plus they don't have as much energy, so they don't break as hard.
One thread on Kiteforum where the surfing debate went on and on was titled something like "can you surf with a twin tip". There have been other smaller ones recently too. I tend to resinate with a guy called surfingwithkites.
OT: Tighe, the new kite is really progressing. Got the struts and LE finished and attached. Struts are sewed shut. The real tedious part is making the "thingys" to get the bladders in and out, plus I put on a lot of attachment points. I've just started the canopy. It probably won't be done by May 5 deadline (Des Moines Regatta). However, I plan to come up north when it's done. Maybe Worthington will work. I've got high hopes...definitely not a typical kite. KISS was not a part of this project...mainly due to the bridle.
One thread on Kiteforum where the surfing debate went on and on was titled something like "can you surf with a twin tip". There have been other smaller ones recently too. I tend to resinate with a guy called surfingwithkites.
OT: Tighe, the new kite is really progressing. Got the struts and LE finished and attached. Struts are sewed shut. The real tedious part is making the "thingys" to get the bladders in and out, plus I put on a lot of attachment points. I've just started the canopy. It probably won't be done by May 5 deadline (Des Moines Regatta). However, I plan to come up north when it's done. Maybe Worthington will work. I've got high hopes...definitely not a typical kite. KISS was not a part of this project...mainly due to the bridle.
G2 Kiteboarding
Oh, one more thing. My first post wasn't directed at anyone or any group. You have to decide for yourself if you are surfing, or not, or don't care. I'm just trying to resolve that there is a difference between kite assisted surfing and kiting in the surf. Both are fun, and you choose what you like to do.
Plus, don't get me wrong about wind swell and ground swell. Both are "real" waves, and both are fun. I've had a blast suring on waves 1 to 2 feet. It's like kiting in light wind. If you love to kite, you'll be out when the wind is light. You guys are very fortunate to live near a place with waves. I'm going to try to get up to Duluth this year.
Plus, don't get me wrong about wind swell and ground swell. Both are "real" waves, and both are fun. I've had a blast suring on waves 1 to 2 feet. It's like kiting in light wind. If you love to kite, you'll be out when the wind is light. You guys are very fortunate to live near a place with waves. I'm going to try to get up to Duluth this year.
G2 Kiteboarding
Sorry to keep this up, but here is the link to the debate I was talking about
http://www.kiteforum.com/phpbb/viewtopi ... =twin+surf
http://www.kiteforum.com/phpbb/viewtopi ... =twin+surf
G2 Kiteboarding
I hate to say that the whole is pretty much a BS debate. It truly revolves around conditions. If you are out in the surf and there are waves to be ridden, most any rider with reasonable skill is going to try and ride them - regardless of the board type.
You merely have to catch a wave where you could ditch the kite for a few moments to be (kite)surfing. Whether or not you also get on and and off the waves, tear them up in a non-surfing fashion, or other kite-assisted only moves is irrelevant.
One of the KF posters states, "If you cant paddle it, its not KITE SURFING." If you carry that argument across all of "surfing," you wouldn't be able to call Laird Hamilton's and the strapped crew's big wave efforts "tow-in surfing". Yeah, right... (and who gets to tell Laird that?)
If you use the power of the wave to keep you up, moving, and riding, it is surfing. The board doesn't matter. A few surfer snobs on KF can't change that.
-Coach
You merely have to catch a wave where you could ditch the kite for a few moments to be (kite)surfing. Whether or not you also get on and and off the waves, tear them up in a non-surfing fashion, or other kite-assisted only moves is irrelevant.
One of the KF posters states, "If you cant paddle it, its not KITE SURFING." If you carry that argument across all of "surfing," you wouldn't be able to call Laird Hamilton's and the strapped crew's big wave efforts "tow-in surfing". Yeah, right... (and who gets to tell Laird that?)
If you use the power of the wave to keep you up, moving, and riding, it is surfing. The board doesn't matter. A few surfer snobs on KF can't change that.
-Coach
It was great the one time I rode it. The other time in the waves (last Sunday) was actually too big for it (didn't want to jibe in gnarly conditions) and today was perfect mutant conditions (staying upwind at the Jetties in 6-8ft waves).
I should have ridden it more, but I'm so particular to mutant-style boards in the surf - at least for here in South Padre or especially for Duluth.
I've got a Fuse on order, that's more my style...
I should have ridden it more, but I'm so particular to mutant-style boards in the surf - at least for here in South Padre or especially for Duluth.
I've got a Fuse on order, that's more my style...
Here's more on the surf twintip debate if you care. I find it interesting.
http://www.kiteforum.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=2338515
http://www.kiteforum.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=2338515
G2 Kiteboarding