Latest News, Blog & Videos

The new Sentry bar is a welcomed upgrade for Slingshot. I’ve been using their bars since 2013 and while they were making welcomed changes, like above the bar depower and a functional swivel the core design of the bar hasn’t changed all that much. So What's New? Softer Bar The new bar is soft. This really stood out to me. We now have soft molded ends, a soft grip, coated center lines. The older bar was cool because it was so simple but there was a lot of hard plastic. I found …

The Frontroll Kiteloop is one of the most exciting and scary tricks in kiteboarding. The key to learning this move is to start doing kiteloops… a lot of them! Thing is, those are kind of intimidating too! The trick to learning this is to start in extremely light winds. I'm talking about the kind of conditions where you're riding and the wind gets so light you can kind of stay upwind, you can kind of jump and you're ready to put up a bigger kite or get off the water. When this happens, yo …

A ride and review of the 2021 Duotone Dice by Jake Mitchell. The team is keen on getting more reviews out with different perspectives. We'd like to make these videos as informative and useful as possible, so please let us know what you would like to know in the YouTube comments section of the video! To kick off the review, I have to comment on the colors and graphics. I know this has nothing to do with performance but I've been a big fan of the Dice since 2015 and the new colors remin …

Choosing the right gear when you are a new kiteboarder is easy. Go for an all around kite and you will be set for years to come. Choosing your second quiver of kites can take a bit more work depending on what you want out of the sport. You have to ask your self some questions. What kind of kiteboarding do you like to do? Do you prefer once discipline over the others? Do you want to focus on hangtime, kiteloops, unhooked performance or wave? Different kites even in the all around category usua …

Kiteboarders are obsessed with getting more air, more height and more power into their tricks. At the end of the day, there are no shortcuts to improving skill on the water, only practice. That said, there are some things you can do that over time are going to have a huge impact on your riding and your pop. Tip One - Ride Finless Take the next 2 - 4 months and commit to riding without fins on your twintip. At first, everything is going to be more difficult. You'll find that you can't stay upwin …

The Raley to Blind is a critical step in your unhooked freestyle journey. It's typically the first fundamental move to be paired with a rotation. In our “Unhooked Fundamentals” playlist, I hammered home the point that all advanced moves are combinations of the fundamentals. This lower intermediate move is the first progression towards the Blind Judge, the Blind Judge 3, 5 and beyond. Once you get comfortable landing this to blind, you can pair the rotation with the Backroll and the …

2021 North Kites Overview This is a good look at the 2021 North kites compared to the 2020 North kites. We'll be taking a look at what the changes are and how it will impact you as a rider in this blog.  The Orbit  The ORBIT changed the game when it came to big air kiteboarding. It's one of the most successful kites at KOTA. With swept wingtips and a flatter canopy you get a very unique kite. It has the turning possibilities of a freestyle kite, but the flat canopy allows you to …

Once in a while, I come across some gear that its difficult to deliver a neutral review on. I've been using these boots for the past year and I'm hooked. In this video I will explain why these are my favorite boot but I will make a point to give a detailed review of what you are getting and the considerations. Form and function  Right out of the gate, Vadatek is a smaller family owned company. These boots are made by a kiteboarder / wakeboarder who is passionate about making the best boot …

Quick Reference Guide Pro Voke - Best for Strapless Freestyle Pro Fish - Best for Progression & lightwind Pro Whip - Best all Around Pro Wam - Best Surf Feel and Wave Variety Pro Session - Big Wave Performance The Voke is as good as it gets with strapless freestyle Pro Voke The Voke is unique in the sense that it rides more like a high volume twintip. It has a wakestyle board outline and is made to pop hard, stay on your feet and not boot you during hard landings. The board stays locke …

This week we're going to cover a popular trick that everyone wants to learn: the Darkslide! We've done a few videos on this, but I wanted to do a concise and to-the-point tutorial focused on doing the trick via bar feedback. You'll want to try this one with a little bit of power, but not overpowered. You can be a little underpowered, but you will have to go fast. Come in with decent speed and start to send the kite up like you would for a small jump. Pay attention to your bar. Right when y …

This week we'll be breaking down your first time in the water with a powerkite! Step One - Body Drag Downwind This is a fun and easy step. You'll be in the water without a board and letting the kite simply pull you downwind. Move the kite back and forth across the wind window. This is going to give you a good understanding of kite control in the water and get you used to the pull of the kite. Start to incorporate a figure 8 motion with your kite. These will generate more pull and simulate do …

This is the first blog of the ultimate beginner guide. This is a series meant to be used as a companion to actual kitesurfing lessons. So give this a watch before, during and after your lesson with a certified school. Do not attempt to use this as your sole source of lessons. We've left a great deal out and nothing beats real professional instruction. You will save yourself time, and most importantly you'll be keeping yourself safe and the local beaches in your area open to kiteboarding! Tod …

Is it an airplane, jet, or weather balloon? To many conspiracists’ delight, what we are looking at is a real UFO. Rather than an “Unidentified Flying Object” that you would see at Area 51, we are looking at Slingshots strutless kite known as the “Unlimited Foiling Object.” This is Slingshot’s only strutless kite in their lineup, and one of the few strutless kites in the market today. Due to the fact that it is so light and completely dedicated to foiling, it …

Strut-less kites require some special techniques and finesse to re-launch.  This quick walk through experience will help you explore some options for re-launch if you are struggling.  As we have said before, we recommend playing with these kites in shallow water before embarking on any offshore routes so you can get comfortable and experienced with their re-launch. Malcolm Crennell,  an experienced foiler passed his thoughts along to us and we thought it was well written and true …

This one is for those of you that know how to do basic front roll but want to take it to the next level. This is going to be a shorter one, but we'll cover a lot of ground. So first things first: you should know how to do a basic front roll. This can be with a sent jump or with the load and pop method. Once you are airborne, look over your back shoulder and pull your front knee into your chest. As you come around for the roll, pay attention to the axis of your rotation. Are you doing more o …