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Kiteboarding without fins is an easy way to spice up your otherwise bland freeriding routine. Oh, yeah—we all do it. We get out there on the water and slowly glaze over into our almost preset mode of jumps and tricks that we always default to. By taking your fins off (twin tips—not kite surfboards), you'll find the ride to be super loose and skatey, giving your existing board a breath of fresh air should you choose. Have a go at it, and be sure to let us know what you think. Good winds! …

Getting InspiredGetting Hooked On KiteboardingWhether you hit the beach one day and saw some crazy kiteboarders flying in the air on a windy day, or you saw Kevin Langeree’s 28.3-meter jump in an Instagram video, you’ve somehow been introduced to kiting, and now you’re hooked. You’ve done your research, watched youtube videos, bought all your gear, and are ready to hit the water (with either an experienced kiteboarder or instructor, of course). The wind is cranking 25 knots, and you can see the …

Kiteboarding kites come in a wide variety of sizes. Which size kites are best for you? Let's take a look at your riding style, your gear budget, and find out how many kites you'll want to have in your quiver. Step 1 | What Kind of Kiteboarder are You? First, let's figure out what kind of kites you'll want to invest in. Are you an all-around, freeride kiteboarder who likes a little bit of everything? Do you want to focus on kitesurfing in waves with a surfboard? Maybe you want to get …

In my opinion, Chris Bobryk is one of the most underrated freestyle riders in the USA. Yes, I'm biased as we've been friends for a long time. That said, the proof is in his riding. A decade ago he was the last real potential candidate from the USA in the PKRA. He's invented several never-been-done-before tricks, known as NBDs, and he's single-handedly pioneered what we like to call "back country park riding". This includes things like grinding logs, beaches, and more or less interacting wi …

Kiteboarding is amazing because it's so accessible to just about everyone. Now, if you want to take your kiting to another level, learn new tricks, ride longer, rider harder, and have less chance of injury, you need to consider fitness.We've had a few requests for some videos on this topic, particularly on how to tailor your training towards a specific discipline. In my opinion, the best training program is the one you will stick to. Ideally, it would be a well thought out program designed …

The Crail Grab is the least common grab seen on the beach, mostly because it's not one you would think to do often. Taking your back hand and reaching for the nose takes some flexibility and core, but it looks epic paired with rolls and rotations. For this video I'll cover the most simple variation. If you want to see the more advanced version, check out this video by Rygo and Blake. They accidentally called it a Nuke Grab, but this video breaks down more variations of this grab. Step O …

All-Around Kites Freeride kites, sometimes called all-around or do-it-all kites, are a popular choice, especially for new kiteboarders who do not quite know what they want out of the sport yet. They are balanced right in the middle to do most everything. They are a jack-of-all-trades and master of none.Wave Kites The thing is, with modern gear, even specialty kites are technically all-around kites that excel in one particular area. That means if you live to surf waves, a wave kite will be sig …

Mistake One With social media on the rise, I've noticed a lot of misinformation being circulated in kite groups, especially when a new rider asks questions. The most common myths I've seen in this arena are that kiteboarding is 90% learning the kite and 10% the board, or that skills from other sports like wakeboarding or surfing do not matter. While these statements are not entirely wrong, they're out of context. Even I've told students that kite control needs to come first. When you are a ra …

The Front Roll is usually the second trick everyone wants to learn right after the Back Roll. It's a simple trick that always looks good, especially if you add a grab to it. The easiest grab to start with is the tail grab. This is one of my go-to tricks every session because it just feels so good. For this video, I'll break down the freestyle pop technique. This can be done hooked in, and you can actually do this with a sent jump. This technique will help give more power to your pop and help …

What up guys. Today we're going to break down another half loaded pop video. We just covered the tail grab with Chris Bobryk. Next up, we're going cover one of the most stylish and easy grabs, the Tuck Knee Indy. It's a half loaded pop where you tuck your back knee and grab the board with your back hand between your feet on the toeside edge. Later we'll do a more advanced version with Chris where you take it to blind or wrapped. This is a fun and easy one that can be used as a transition or …

We're kicking off a fresh series of trick tips with Chris Bobryk and myself. We'll be covering the lost art of kite low line tension tricks. In an era of sent jumps and big air, it seems many have forgotten all the other aspects of the sport that make it unique. Kite low line tension tricks are the friendlier version of unhooked freestyle. We actually covered a lot of line tension tricks in our Ride with Blake series, but we never put the emphasis on keeping the kite low and not sending the ki …

The Back to Revert, aka Backroll to Toeside, is actually a very natural and easy trick. In this video, we'll break down how to do this powered with the kite low, so no sending the kite to noon. It will stay at 45 degrees and you will use board speed and edging to load the lines. This is the same loading technique as an unhooked freestyle trick Keep the kite at 45 and come in with good speed. Come off your edge and quickly ride downwind to go even faster. Now lean back like you are sit …

This video is for riders who have experience with basic loops and are looking to take things up a notch. Remember to start small and underpowered when learning loops. You might spend months practicing these or longer, slowly working your way up. These tips should help those of you who want to take your loops higher and harder. The first step is to watch Shaun's advanced jumping tips video. To summarize, the key is to load your edge and sheet out a little so you can load more power into the b …

When I first started kiting, unhooked freestyle and strapless surf were king. Athletes were pushing the sport forward at an incredible pace. We started to wonder what it would be like if athletes from other sports took notice. Would world-class surfers pick up a kite? What about wakeboarders or snowboarders? As things panned out, some did but never quite on the level we hoped for. Tye is the rare example of a pro crossing over from another sport and excelling at kite. The only other pro snowboar …

The Non-inverted Sent Hooked-in Front Roll Tail Grab is a super easy beginner trick. Keep your hands close to the middle of the bar and get some speed with the bar sheeted slightly out. Come in with good speed and send the kite up to noon. At the same time, sheet the bar in and pop off your back leg. As you leave the water, look over your back shoulder and swing your hips. Bring your back knee into your chest at the same time. Since this in a non-inverted roll, your body will automatically …