I think you may have found our culprit...

To be clear, if the beach has clean wind the outside will likely be even cleaner---

And what you're looking to do is mange the kite one handed while floating / drifting --and no you cannot be kicking your legs to maintain body position like you're used to doing while treading water...

All these things are unavailable to sand bound, to say nothing of the ol' one,, two,,, three,, steps to parking the kite and motoring...

It should take no great leap of faith to believe the best place to kitesurf is in the water...deep enough so you cannot touch the bottom

and while I'm at it, Kites teach, instructors just talk...

A case of a maxim on its head----

talk is not cheap--

and that just cannot be right...

Everybody knows better, so--there ya go..

Ok, movie time
Thanks plummet
Best
fo

Can you? Yes. Should you? No.

Assuming that you take lessons, when you start practicing waterstarts, you're going to have some failures. At first, you're probably going to drop ass-first into the water, because you aren't working the kite hard enough. Then you'll build up confidence and go over your board, landing face first. Eventually you'll find the balance and you'll be up and riding.

The faceplant is a key stage in the learning experience. What you are proposing (trying to develop the burst of power necessary for a water start) will result in a faceplant. Do not try it on the beach, as it will hurt. If you want to play with your kites, and you have the space, I'd suggest that you get out into the deep water and body drag.

Symont

I have kited since 2002. I keep to my own. I had some lessons on 2002 lei equipment (naish) then started my research.

I found that Peter Lynn arc type kites had some real advantages in the learning stage (and further down the DV path but now important here). I bought a 15m PL Bomba slow enough stable as a rock and your really have to be a twit to mess it up. I still have it in the shed (10 yrs on).

You sound like you have enough grey matter to do and extensive YouTube education to get the main principles. So my advice (it's free so like they say it's worth what you paid)

YouTube a lot
Use deserted beaches
Use a Peter Lynn arc style kite (bomba / guerilla ) - look they are real cheep)
Scudding (like said in another post - lots of it)
Build on the wind range until you handle big punchy drags down the beach in 15kn winds
Body drag in side onshore wind until you an sustain your self skipping ontop of the water (maintain power - same with the skudding)
Do some wake boarding (if you dont already have board skills (surf / windsurf)
Bring it together in side onshore wind in 15kn wind (you should be comfortable by then with that wind) and as always deserted beach.

Your a kite flier so if your prudent maybe not, if your a bit gun ho definelty yes.

I can't stress the reduction in active though process with PL arcs especially compared to what you have now. This allows you to concentrate on the other stuff. Have look at the older vids tonnes of them.

For what it's worth.

Mike

"Your a kite flier so if your prudent maybe not, if your a bit gun ho definelty yes. "

Speaking of lessons!

I totally agree...
I've seen too many "stupid" beginners that just show up to the beach and endanger other beach-goers.... and we've tried to tell them nicely not to do it but some just doesn't want to listen... yes, our beach is on the line of getting banned from kiteboarding due to these a-ho***.

Anyhow, as long as you are safe, keep flying that kite. (I'd totally get newer gear 2010 and up though...) Kiteboarding is like learning how to play piano. (I think..) The more you fly that kite, the better you get. Any little time on the kite helps!
Keep going and I'll see you on the water somewhere! (still take lesson soon!)

hi there, i'm a newby !! one winter season snowkiting and 3 hours on the water yet....

learning alone ( 1 hours lesson on the snow ).. and saying, IF you have experience in flying kites, sailing, snowboarding, ect ... it's a easy thing to learn ! IF your are self aware, and take really care not to do stupid things.

two point i wanted to bring up :

first, beginner are not more stupid than experienced kiters ! some people are stupid and some not, there is no logical connection between experience and stupidity, so, if you begin but are not to stupid, you will understand that, given that a 800 pound line can cut a kid in two pieces and yo have some kids yourself, and given that wind is sometimes unpredictable, you will not kite in crowded beaches, but, sayed, that common sense, you dont need to take lessons to understand that.

second : trying stupid things, powering up, jumpig, getting the kite to lift you and so, before getting on the board is a good idea ( i have done it myself and have been getting on the board and running the first hour on the water ) but, BUT, dont do it on the beach ( or any solid surface in fact ) as you could harm yourself hard !!!!!

i tried things on the snow ( with skis on ) like letting the kite lift you in the air from the point where you are lying down ( good exercise for water starts ) but, all the time i ended up 15 meters from there with speed on the skis ( if you do that on land, youl end up in ER ). i played also in the water ( knee to waist deep ( powering up, jumping and so, ) and got draged down wind few time but, hey, water wont harm......given that you can swim !!!!

all i say is, try out, make mistakes, get wiped out , but, but, good safety system, empty places, and, water !!!! OH, and light wind !!!!!!!

most of all, enjoy, that sport is awsome, pure pleasure and adrenaline....

peace

Never kite alone...

I think that's pretty good advise...

The rest as always is ultimately and entirely up to you...

Good luck...
fo

I'm of the opinion, it actually takes a village...

Do you have any small sailboat sailing or windsurfing experience on the water where you live
Or are you simply in love with the "idea" of transfering your land skills to the water

You are OVER analizing the whole thing and asking the WRONG question
Instead ask yourself where is the best kiteshop in your area
Talk to kite professionals at their shops about your DESIRE to kiteboard on the water

Do not be CHEAP....you are making money as mechanical enginer...SPEND it on new gear
SPEND money on the best lessons available
DO NOT go at it on YOUR OWN trying to learn and FIGURE THINGS OUT

The water season where you live is SOOOO SHORT so do not waste time
Practice...practice....practice...with a PRO instructor is your only hope for success

So how SERIOUS are you to learn on the water
YOU ARE a professional at what you do
Let AN OTHER professional help you

shure, pay him big bugs teaching you how to bady drag !! haha !!!!

First of all, I want to tell you all my appreciation for taking the time to help me here.

I have enough material to make the good choices for me.

Just for the record, I am an experienced kiter (acrobatic 2 and 4 strings) and an average sailor (Mystère catamaran), snowboarder and kneeboarder. Kite surfing seem to be a great way to put everything together.

Keep in mind that my question was very simple, to know if the power it takes to lift me up on the beach (something I do regularly with stunt kites) is representative of the power needed to pull me out of the water (which must be greater that the power to stay afloat afterward). The reason I am asking was simply to evaluate my shoulder capacity to sustain this sport, BEFORE I invest in this sport (PLEASE READ LESSONS). I was hoping for something like "you will need 50% more" or "300% more".

But I am glad that it went in every directiond because I did learn a lot through this. I will have to reread all the posts with great attention in order to sort things from my perspective. True that our season is short and true that good equipment makes you better faster (which is not always a good thing BTW, cause it can give you a feeling of false security).

All this debate reminds me a true story of my youth. I learn snow skiing with old wood ski with leather leach. My two buddies of the time had the skis with autobreaking fixation. Something with take for granted now but was the big new thing back then. And true, the leach was the cause of some accident. Well, they were laughing at me at that time, saying that I was on a dead wish. The result at the end of our first winter was a broken knee and a broken shoulder... of my friends.

I am not saying that we should all start with leached skis in anyway. Simply that 15% is in the practiced skills, 15% is in the equipment and 70% is in the attitute. Don't get started here, maybe the Best 15m is a really bad idea after all

Don't worry about me. I am not a know it all, me myself and I, no fear kinda guy. Quite the contrary in fact. The proof is I am here asking question, making baby steps.

Have fun everyone and thanks again for your contribution.