VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

Hey anybody, I just bought all sorts of used gear and now I'm itching to try kiteboarding, but i'm a broke student and would rather not pay for lessons, anybody willing to drag me out on their next session, just so I can watch and learn, and ask some questions??? THen I'll try it myself and you can laugh as I get dragged out to sea. And if nobody wants to help a stupid rookie, then someone tell me a good easy spot to launch on my first try!! THANKS

Hiya newbie- you'll note there are a whole bunch of threads on this in the forum. Not sure if you'll find someone to bite on suggesting a launch for a solo rookie now. There's been a lot of bad news lately and this ain't the time of year for this, that's fer sure. Nitinat in summer will have lots of help.....and examples of what NOT to do, like me drifting by in a tangled mess

http://www.bigwavedave.ca/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1476 http://www.bigwavedave.ca/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1135

well true this is not the best time of the year for a rookie. still, you can get a quick feel for the sport:
a) get your buddies to drag you around behind their car for a bit
b) put your kite and lines in a tumble dryer for 5-10 min then get comfy and start detangling the mess!

You'll find alot of good info here.
http://kitesurfingschool.org
Read all that, download movies, Fly your trainer- till spring. Then go to Nitnat.
You can watch from the beaches around here when people go out. Learn how to launch and land people. There is lots to do.
Learn about weather, there is lots of disscusion about that lately (threads).
Universal hand signals, the list goes on.
Because there is soooo much to learn, most people will benifit from some lessons, if not the whole deal.
I've said it before, kiting costs...
Time, Money, equipment, repairs.... Lessons!
The more of the latter, the less of all the others!!!!
Good luck!

WindePendanT wrote:You'll find alot of good info here.
http://kitesurfingschool.org
Read all that, download movies, Fly your trainer- till spring. Then go to Nitnat.
You can watch from the beaches around here when people go out. Learn how to launch and land people. There is lots to do.
Learn about weather, there is lots of disscusion about that lately (threads).
Universal hand signals, the list goes on.
Because there is soooo much to learn, most people will benifit from some lessons, if not the whole deal.
I've said it before, kiting costs...
Time, Money, equipment, repairs.... Lessons!
The more of the latter, the less of all the others!!!!
Good luck!

good advice

Thanks

Hey dude, I can truly understand the itchin part as I haven't sailed since last Sept, and that is truly a sad thing. With that said however, the advice of getting to know wind, handsignals etc etc and wait until spring at Nitinaht is DEFINATELY sound advice. There is very few friendly places on the Island for learning, in the Victoria there is virtually none. I.V. sort of, but powerlines near the launch area, then having to walk to the beach etc etc requires a solid understanding of how to fly a kite. My suggestion to add to the others is either borrow or buy a DVD on not only how to learn to kite, but also the basic tricks, visualization is key, if you watch and watch and watch when the time comes to put it into action you will have a far better understanding and chance to succeed. Lessons are the best, bar none, but they do cost $$ byt so does hospital bills, pain medicine (unless you got a awsome medical package) or coast guard rescues.