Riding waves backside....

[Bob Marley]

Looks like shit. Why don't more kiters learn to ride switch?


Yes I.

Agree 100% with you here Bob

There can be advantages to both styles/sides, indeed, especially if you mix it up a bit it becomes really good - but if you only ride one side ALWAYS, especially if backside of course, it is not good IMO, and you wont get as much fun out of it, and will also limit yourself by a huge margin (and it looks like shit too, agree - but some dont care what it looks like, so a personal thing...)

I know we can never ever agree on this, but nice to see that I am not alone with this opinon (as I almost thought before you posted)

Peter

I agree!!!!!!!

[NYKiter]

Thats because surfing is harder.
And its 10x more fun.

Kiting waves is like surfing with training wheels...
Its only a way of getting back out to the lineup...

I can tell a kiter who has learned to surf waves with a kite...they look rather gutless....I feel bad for them actually...

They have no real understanding of wave mechanics or how to read the wave terrain in front of them. They have no clue where the power pockets are or how to leverage them for their own advantage. Ever see a kiter try and surf a wave without a kite? Now thats funny....

[Bob Marley]

Thats because surfing is harder.
And its 10x more fun.

Kiting waves is like surfing with training wheels...
Its only a way of getting back out to the lineup...

I can tell a kiter who has learned to surf waves with a kite...they look rather gutless....I feel bad for them actually...

They have no real understanding of wave mechanics or how to read the wave terrain in front of them. They have no clue where the power pockets are or how to leverage them for their own advantage. Ever see a kiter try and surf a wave without a kite? Now thats funny....

Surfing is not harder. You are confusing work with difficulty. While paddling and catching waves is hard work it does not require great skill. Kiting takes all the skill of surfing then add the kite flying.

I can tell a surfer who took up kiting as "just a way through the lineup" as soon as I see them kite. If you think kiting is nothing other than a way through the lineup you need to expand your mind. Try doing some jumps and getting outside your box. To think that kiters can't surf is so clueless.

[peppers]

I am exactly that guy. Never surfed but learned to appreciate the beauty of waves throughout kitesurfing and learned to appreciate the surfing as a culture.
I live in a cold place where good waves are rare. So, peace man and let me enjoy my modest surfing with the help of the kite
Though surfer has a priority in the wave.

Thats because surfing is harder.
And its 10x more fun.

Kiting waves is like surfing with training wheels...
Its only a way of getting back out to the lineup...

I can tell a kiter who has learned to surf waves with a kite...they look rather gutless....I feel bad for them actually...

They have no real understanding of wave mechanics or how to read the wave terrain in front of them. They have no clue where the power pockets are or how to leverage them for their own advantage. Ever see a kiter try and surf a wave without a kite? Now thats funny....

[tr3v]

I ride backside so I can do frontside bottom turns

But seriously, I also like riding backside to do backrolls on the wave, in either direction.

[NYKiter]

Funny thing about kiters who cant surf is they always feel something missing....something they cant put their fingers on.......in the end its all about having fun and any wave rider deserves props...but having done both I know the stoke from a glassy offshore head high surf sesh is more intense and lasts way longer than any kite sesh...like they say...only a surfer knows the feeling...

[Bob Marley]

Yes I let paddle surfers have priority on waves BUT never let a surfer try to say surfing is more cool or difficult than kiting. Surfing has not progressed in the last 100 + years.

[NYKiter]

Surfing is the ancestor of kitesurfing waves and it will always be cooler, more difficult and more fun than kitesurfing waves. Surfing has been in existence for hundreds of years. Kitesurfing is in its infancy. In surfing, the board becomes a complete extension of the body. There is no worrying about where the kite is or what its doing. The focus is 100% on the wave. It is the purist wave sport on the planet hands down - just you and the board, nothing else. Learning to ride a short board proficiently takes years. Any dolt with a kite can learn to ride a wave in months. Surfing will ALWAYS rule over kitesurfing.

[Peter_Frank]

Surfing is the ancestor of kitesurfing waves and it will always be cooler, more difficult and more fun than kitesurfing waves. Surfing has been in existence for hundreds of years. Kitesurfing is in its infancy. In surfing, the board becomes a complete extension of the body. There is no worrying about where the kite is or what its doing. The focus is 100% on the wave. It is the purist wave sport on the planet hands down - just you and the board, nothing else. Learning to ride a short board proficiently takes years. Any dolt with a kite can learn to ride a wave in months. Surfing will ALWAYS rule over kitesurfing.

Completely disagree

With that view one seems like a wannabee copycat, and not a real kitesurfer IMO

Surfing and kitesurfing in waves are two very different sports, not to be compared - still, so many do compare

Peter

[gbgreen59]

+1 for NYKiter