Riding waves backside....

[gbgreen59]

+1 Show us how it's done Bob.

[Peter_Frank]

Now once you all start riding frontside the next step will be learning to unhook. When you free your torso from the kite it will enable you to ride with more power and less kite restricting your movements.


Then you can say you are really wave riding and will "know the feeling" .

Here I totally lost you, and disagree

Each to their own, regarding frontside/backside or strapped/strapless or hooked/unhooked, that is of course my basic view

Having said that, then I believe that you can get so much more out when riding frontside on your switch side, that you wont believe it !

But unhooked, I think is REALLY restricting everything, instead of the opposite

It was a little "hip" a couple of years ago, to go unhooked in waves
But it faded out totally, and hardly exists today around here (maybe one max two single riders only, out of the whole country).

Watching even good riders unhooked - they get a crooked forward stance most of the time, and bent the wrong way, because the tow point inevitably will end up around your head almost (your shoulders), so eventhough you in theory has more freedom when the lines are slack, you will end up looking like a dork because of this often arched forward stance, looking like there is a string in the arms (instead of your hip/waist which is more natural).

At least that is what I have seen, watching all the best riders who rode unhooked for a long time.
And I think this is why they abandoned riding unhooked - as it restricted too much, not only in looks, but also in options and riding in general

Having said that, it is true, that the VERY very best top in the world, CAN also make it look and work awesome, yes
Maybe also in "normal" more shitty conditions, I dont know - but it is amazing how the very top of the pops can do "anything"


But for everybody else, it seems to be a dead end.
One of the reasons is of course, that strapless has gotten bigger, so riding both unhooked and strapless seems not to work at all, in general.
And choosing either between strapless and hooked, and strapped and unhooked - the first is the choice nowadays

So the unhooked trend a couple of years ago, has totally gone away here.
Strapless is part of the game now - just a little part, but some prefer this.

Although, it has gone through a similar phase - a couple of years ago also, it was "hot", and everybody who was cool (or wannabees) HAD to ride strapless

Now, it has found a more balanced level, where some prefer strapless, and most ride strapped (no matter what level), and a few do both according to conditions.
But there is no more "this is more cool (or better) than the other" like previous years, where it was hyped beyond reason.

This is actually the very best outcome - that all do what they like, without anyone looking "down" on you - so a nice balanced kitewaveworld here today


But NO, I dont see much or any future for unhooked in waves anymore, apart from a small niche of course...

Peter

PS: I am a dork myself with lousy stance, so I am not commenting on what I do and can do myself - more what I see and experience when talking to the other waveriders during the years....

[Peter_Frank]

If you can only ride regular or goofy it will feel awkward at first riding switch on a wave but you will eventually realize riding frontside allows for more free movement and stronger turns.

Indeed, very true

Peter

[Peter_Frank]

What is so difficult to get? Next time you are riding waves try it yourself. It ain't that hard.

I get that, and like I said, if you can ride switch well in real waves that is impressive to me. Maybe it is not as hard as you say, so I am interested in trying it. I just have not seen many people who can do this, and know no one who can do it as good as they can ride backside. So I was more curious on how many people can and do ride switch. Like I said it may be more regional. If you live on a point break that is not your natural stance that would be more motivating to put the time and effort in to learning switch. Fortunately (or unfortunately for learning), the predominate direction for us favors my natural stance. Do not often get conditions for practicing frontside switch.
What I did not get was what Peter was trying to say.

I am not sure if I am the "Peter" you are referring to, or another one ?

I think, that in countries where surfing was the background, riding switch is not seen that much....

And in countries where windsurfing was the background, riding (at least being able to) frontside on both tacks in waves is standard for everybody, also in kitesurfing.

Then there are many in-betweens of course, some who was not that good at windsurfing in waves, some who was, but found it more/too difficult switch strapless, etc etc.

But when I read the posts in here, and talk to riders around the world, above seems quite evident


I am a regular, fullly and truly, and LOUSY on my starboard tack regarding all board sports (well, maybe not that good on either, true, but much worse on starboard).

But from our windsurf background (and we only started surfing seriously here around 1985 and forward, so a new sport), both tacks HAD to be learned in waves, as you, just like in kitesurfing, could do so much more on the waves.

Furthermore, just like SSK writes - our breaks are most often starboard waveriding, so I got better and better on this tack.
Actually better on my "much weaker" switch side now !
So it can be practiced, thats for sure. Loving being able to ride both frontside and backside now, where and whenever I want to



SSK, you asked about if anyone could ride switch well in waves ?

Hmmm, I dont ride better "normal" than switch, as written above.

And I know how stupid it is to put a (quite boring, sorry) video on, from such a relatively mediocre not particulary talented (but experienced) rider past 50 like me

But from 2013, riding on my weak switch side (and the VERY first day out on my brand new and very different Ralf Bachshuster board, so not "myself" before after some weeks or a month, but anyways....)

The break is typically closeouts, so often not possible to get much more than one cutback.
Here is every single wave unedited, from the first sessions - nothing cut away (had no time to edit, simply cut the upwind legs away only, as I just wanted to see how it looked and the board worked)




Now I am sure most of you will say "that is not proper waveriding" - and you are not using the wave !

I dont care, that is how I do it and like it
(and you DO actually use the wave power hugely, and not kitepower, but most are not aware of this before after many years)

I ride waves on port tack frontside worse than above starboard frontside video, simply because switch has been learned, and we have more starboard wavespots than port ones - that was my point, and answer to your question SSK.

So I would simply go out and practice switch

Peter

[SSK]

SSK, you asked about if anyone could ride switch well in waves ?

That was not really what I asked, because I know there are guys who ride switch well. But you answered more what I was wondering. You actually can ride waves better frontside switch than backside normal stance. Pretty impressive.

Here is an interesting video. It is Mitu at One Eye riding backside and switch frontside, and even mixing it up. When you are that good everything looks good. Not sure if I would say his backside looks like shit, looks pretty damn exciting IMO. Obviously a lot easier to get tubed.

http://www.straplesskitesurfing.com/201 ... tesurfing/

So I guess I need to get off my ass and start throwing in some switch. Seems it can be done well, and you can get as good as going backside natural stance. Good news is my backside sucks anyways so it would not be like I was missing out on that much.

[Peter_Frank]

Precisely - when mixed up it is the most fun

And the very best can make ANYTHING look good

Peter

[NYKiter]

At 3:00min. in Reo Stevens kiting Teahupoo admits the barrel cant be ridden as deep with a kite due to line drag.

[ITN]

Hey Bob, since you are too shy (I doubt you are too modest) to post pictures or videos of yourself showing us how its done, how about you post a pic or video of someone else who is doing it "correctly". A video of someone must exist if you don't have the skills yourself to demonstrate.....

[SSK]

@ITN
Not sure if you saw the link I posted. But this has some ridiculous switch foot and backside riding by Mitu, so a pretty good example of both.
http://www.straplesskitesurfing.com/201 ... tesurfing/

The backside tube to backside off the lip to switch foot reentry to front side off the lip is unbelievable.

[ITN]

@ITN
Not sure if you saw the link I posted. But this has some ridiculous switch foot and backside riding by Mitu, so a pretty good example of both.
http://www.straplesskitesurfing.com/201 ... tesurfing/

The backside tube to backside off the lip to switch foot reentry to front side off the lip is unbelievable.

Yes SSK that's pretty sick riding from Mitu. I was just curious about what this Bob Marley thought was the right way of wavekiting... He dissed most of the Kitesurfing pro's in an earlier post.