Newb 1st time B2 practice

[Matteo V]

1. Do not keep the kite sitting at the zenith longer than necessary. Vunerable to lofting, Hindenburg and gets in the way of others. (Unfortunately Necessary can be a long time for beginners.)

Just thought I would expand on this:

Practicing keeping the kite at 12 o'clock (directly above you) is the biggest advantage of a trainer. On a small trainer, it is completely safe for you, and the "fast turning" property of a small trainer teaches you to steady a kite in high winds - even when the wind is light.

You do need be aware that 12 o'clock is not a place you want the kite when you are on land, and especially in gusty conditions on land. But you do use this position in many situations such as:

1. putting on board
2. transitions (flying through 12 o'clock)
3. Flying extra high when passing upwind of another kiter who does not get the concept of "downwind kiter puts kite low"

With a tiny trainer, you should be able to almost tie your shoe with one hand while steering with the other, before you consider yourself ready to put on a twin-tip in the water. Those that have this skill before moving onto full sized kites skip lots of crashes, and just plain time flopping around in the water, on their first lessons.

[Herman]

Just to make it clear rather than polite, I am all for trainer kites and I still regularly use one. I even use one on a strapless mountain board to help with foot changes and general balance practice. For me, virtually no time on water or flying is wasted!

Personally I learnt to landboard before I kitesurfed. The transition to water was reasonably straightforward although the kites were pretty scary back then! 42

[cunningr]

1. Do not keep the kite sitting at the zenith longer than necessary. Vunerable to lofting, Hindenburg and gets in the way of others. (Unfortunately Necessary can be a long time for beginners.)

Just thought I would expand on this:

Practicing keeping the kite at 12 o'clock (directly above you) is the biggest advantage of a trainer. On a small trainer, it is completely safe for you, and the "fast turning" property of a small trainer teaches you to steady a kite in high winds - even when the wind is light.

You do need be aware that 12 o'clock is not a place you want the kite when you are on land, and especially in gusty conditions on land. But you do use this position in many situations such as:

1. putting on board
2. transitions (flying through 12 o'clock)
3. Flying extra high when passing upwind of another kiter who does not get the concept of "downwind kiter puts kite low"

With a tiny trainer, you should be able to almost tie your shoe with one hand while steering with the other, before you consider yourself ready to put on a twin-tip in the water. Those that have this skill before moving onto full sized kites skip lots of crashes, and just plain time flopping around in the water, on their first lessons.

SoI have now learned something else here, down wind kiter should put kite low for passing. Always wondered how that worked without more kites crashing into each other!

[Herman]

In the areas I ride the experienced guys recognise beginners are likely to have the kite hanging around at the zenith and give them space so they don't panick and lose control trying to get their kite low. Hopefully this will be the case for you.
In the early water stages your priority is to keep control of the kite. Controlling the board a distant second. Obeying etiquettes only comes over the horizon once you start riding.

Further down the line when you have built your flying skills on the trainer it is perfectly possible to fly an underpowered LEI on the beach, providing you have enough space. This will help you to understand trim and sheeting without too much crashing as you will have the skills from your trainer sessions. As an example a 6m LEI in 12 to 14 knots would be useful session.

[Matteo V]

3. Flying extra high when passing upwind of another kiter who does not get the concept of "downwind kiter puts kite low"

SoI have now learned something else here, down wind kiter should put kite low for passing. Always wondered how that worked without more kites crashing into each other!

Keep in mind that is the basic idea. But what happens if 3 or more kiters cross paths? How about when the wind is light or has dropped suddenly and you must work the kite to keep moving? There are many different situations that can't be solved with one rule. So be aware that things can get complicated. Avoiding those complications is often as easy as turning around. If something is preventing you from turning around, like the beach, a barge, or an overhead wave, then you have right of way. That said, sometimes the other kiter does not understand what the "right of way" actually means.

So as others will suggest, giving yourself room and constantly appraising the situation is your best bet. Excellent instinctual feel for kites, built with trainer kite use, will allow you to focus more on the situation around you instead of only kite control.