What is a Backroll?

[slim_charles]

I have never tried woo 2.0 wake style, if it can detect how inverted the rotation is and name the trick accurately that would solve the issue

It's like raley, some people keep kite high and throw their leg up scorpion style and call it a raley. I am fine with it, but you can tell one looks better than the other

What?!? "Gayley's" are awesome!

[TheJoe]

I have never tried woo 2.0 wake style, if it can detect how inverted the rotation is and name the trick accurately that would solve the issue

It's like raley, some people keep kite high and throw their leg up scorpion style and call it a raley. I am fine with it, but you can tell one looks better than the other

Its pretty good but they based it off of some pro level riders so there is some error in the tricks. My regular S-bend sometimes does not get picked up as a trick because I ride cable a lot and actually get inverted on them. My switch S not really an S but all ways gets picked up as one. Plus if you land crappy on some tricks then crash a little bit afterwards it will count the trick even if you really don't ride away from it. Plus they do factor in some variance to angles and spins to count things that are pretty close but not really there.

[longwhitecloud]

i was a dodgy kook starting out kiting getting into it, others saw me trying when i started kiting - came to help me and now they are lifetime friends. Was same experience with surfing. Generally here kook is defined by someone that doesnt have the ability or knowledge to keep others safe around them in the lineup, we also use it for someone that isnt actually a good rider (maybe just about safe).

I don't want to define myself but just to make you aware because you keep referring to me as a "true kiter" for some reason, I have been skating and surfing far longer than kiting. I ride a lot.

Any one of us can go out and do something for our sport to help others and maybe to change it to a direction we think is right, but very few do. Calling out kooks isnt really going to get the result you are looking for. The industry made the decision to market kiteboarding more to the older generation, and unfortunately a series of fu##wits tried to organise kiteboarding without the necessary experience. The final straw in NZ was the new adventure tourism law whereby NZ was the world capital of action sports/adventure but now very few can afford to teach it with introduced fees and so lessons are super expensive and most instructors have given up being super poor back to normal jobs. The industry in NZ is close to dead now.

[NorCalNomad]

The industry made the decision to market kiteboarding more to the older generation,

It's more just the $3k+ entry into the sport makes it so more people who are older and have higher incomes can afford it. Also the fact that you can't just rent kite gear if you've never tired it and give it a go, you can do that in almost every other sport. Hell even skydiving and paragliding can be done tandem.

[longwhitecloud]

the average age of kiters 10 years ago was younger by my own observation, but overall yes - the cost

[Starsky]

Thats the bell curve. 10 years ago it was early adopters. They were more motivated to get into it so cost was less of a barrier. Now that were into the back half of the bell curve, a higher percentage of the people getting into it can cover the cost more comfortably. Skews older.

[Pedro Marcos]

I stopped correcting people on names a long time ago. Ignorance is bliss and if all kiters think spinning under a kite is a backroll and you know what they are talking about then I guess it is a backroll. Does it look like shit? Well yeah but really if everyone is enjoying there time on the water who cares.

therefore my posting...so people understand what they really do. Why not help to make it clear.

Are we really still discussing what a backroll is? After all this years ??

[Toby]

The industry is not attracting older kiters.
There is their mistake.

Correctly said, older can afford the gear...but they don't get attracted by wakestyle and mega loops.
Changed a bit with hydrofoil though.
And wave as well, but the lack of good waves for the most is a problem.

[Pedro Marcos]

Toby werent you saying exactly the same thing 12 years ago? I still remember you entering a "airstyle" competition in some PKRA in Europe (germany or belgium probably) that was won by Onieva at that time.

At time time, you were right, most of riders were "older", and could not do wakestyle (too much pain), but now, there are many young riders and all of them ride boots and love wakestyle.

Myself at 37 now, i still can do some passes, the ones i really mastered, but hidrofoil its what is all about now, there is a tottaly new world to explore, and im as excited to go on the water as i was 15 years ago, such a new challenge!

[longwhitecloud]

"The industry is not attracting older kiters." it does but in a bit of an interesting way. It uses younger idols to sell over complex and hence more expensive kit to more wealthy middle aged riders that aspire to youth. Also there is a clear shift to significant sub groups of riders now where there were none - the formula one buyers - got cash - want best freeriding, foiling kit etc - $ no limit. and the wakestyle riders which seems unsustainable right now - it is so niche that if you are chasing the $ you morph other kit into marketing and otherwise wake kites run at a loss.

overall i am observing that there were riders that i think that set kiteboardings progression and interest to youth back by being over the top with their view of free - style - specifically wake style . That in my opinion is closed minded, and not in line with what i like about freestyle sports, it actually isnt free style and this combined with the stagnant progression of kite wake style has led to less youth. It is not exciting - the best periods of these kind of sports are when they go through rapid progression as kiting did, same for surfing, same for skating. Skateboarding seems to be the king of progression and the reason? no one told anyone not to do a boneless or a no comply in 2017 cos that is just not how skater generally think. They are generally free thinkers.

Times are changing though, going to the same pond doing almost the same routine year after year grows old for most. Those with the staunch "this is the way it should be done" will eventually be left behind growing older and grumpier as days pass becoming a worse rider themselves especially as they age, eventually becoming a kook again.

I am all for the Pedro Barros or....... Richie Jackson ( a kiwi!) of kiteboarding - free thinkers.

What is a backroll? lol