Sometimes straps are the right choice
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tautologies
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Sometimes straps are the right choice
Look at the conditions...sometimes straps are the right choice.
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tautologies
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Re: Sometimes straps are the right choice
Yeah, I rode OR coast on a 2x day strapless...that was a bit painful
Straps that day would have been so much better.-
jonysan
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Re: Sometimes straps are the right choice
At Last !! the courage to buck the trend.
Strapless is fun, I like it a lot, but since it became the cool thing to do, I wonder if riders new to riding Directionals without straps are missing out on Boosting, Loops, Hard charging in challenging conditions, that straps allow........ at least until they ride strapless on the easy days and practice their Airton, Mitu, skills ?
Strapless is fun, I like it a lot, but since it became the cool thing to do, I wonder if riders new to riding Directionals without straps are missing out on Boosting, Loops, Hard charging in challenging conditions, that straps allow........ at least until they ride strapless on the easy days and practice their Airton, Mitu, skills ?
Re: Sometimes straps are the right choice
Watch the vid and you will see that he is NOT REALLY SURFING!!!
Straps suck and only losers use them when surfing with a kite. And here is why:
1. Straps make you go to fast so you don't get that slow "limited to wave power" feel of real surfing
2. Straps are waaaayyyyy toooo much of a roller coaster ride for it to be considered surfing - you lose that gentle wave feel
3. You can't move your feet around on the board - and in the vid it is clear that especially when he is backrolling that he could have moved his rear foot about a 2cm further forward, but he just pried up on the strap instead - so again, it is not surfing
4. Straps let you do tricks instantaneously without pre-planning and set up - that is cheating since you have to pretty much plan everything and set it up in advance when strapless
5. Straps let you do aerial maneuvers that you can't do strapless - kitesurfers must stick to "bottom turn, smack the lip, rinse, repeat" or they are not really surfing
6. Strapless riders fall off of the board all the time, just like surfing - If you ride with straps, there are just too many strapless riders down in the surf in front of you - and you have no excuse to fall off and go swimming with them
7. And no one that is cool is riding straps - Kevin just went down a notch in every real kitesurfers opinion, and if that is not true in your opinion, you are uncool
ESL forum users - total sarcasm above.
I was blue pilled just like all of the other wannabes. Yup, that means I was a wannabe back when I started on a kitesurfboard. I wanted to be a cool strapless rider. And I got pretty good doing it. Then, over the course of an entire summer kitesurfing strapless, I saw the light and took the "red pill". I have not seriously ridden strapless for years. And yes, I am uncool by every strapless rider's standards. I also don't just "bottom turn, smack the lip". I do more - so lots of riders say I am not really surfing. And that is the best part.
Straps suck and only losers use them when surfing with a kite. And here is why:
1. Straps make you go to fast so you don't get that slow "limited to wave power" feel of real surfing
2. Straps are waaaayyyyy toooo much of a roller coaster ride for it to be considered surfing - you lose that gentle wave feel
3. You can't move your feet around on the board - and in the vid it is clear that especially when he is backrolling that he could have moved his rear foot about a 2cm further forward, but he just pried up on the strap instead - so again, it is not surfing
4. Straps let you do tricks instantaneously without pre-planning and set up - that is cheating since you have to pretty much plan everything and set it up in advance when strapless
5. Straps let you do aerial maneuvers that you can't do strapless - kitesurfers must stick to "bottom turn, smack the lip, rinse, repeat" or they are not really surfing
6. Strapless riders fall off of the board all the time, just like surfing - If you ride with straps, there are just too many strapless riders down in the surf in front of you - and you have no excuse to fall off and go swimming with them
7. And no one that is cool is riding straps - Kevin just went down a notch in every real kitesurfers opinion, and if that is not true in your opinion, you are uncool
ESL forum users - total sarcasm above.
I was blue pilled just like all of the other wannabes. Yup, that means I was a wannabe back when I started on a kitesurfboard. I wanted to be a cool strapless rider. And I got pretty good doing it. Then, over the course of an entire summer kitesurfing strapless, I saw the light and took the "red pill". I have not seriously ridden strapless for years. And yes, I am uncool by every strapless rider's standards. I also don't just "bottom turn, smack the lip". I do more - so lots of riders say I am not really surfing. And that is the best part.
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tautologies
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Re: Sometimes straps are the right choice
I also love strapless, but I also love straps. In big waves and excessive chop I like straps better.
That backroll off the wave is just soooo sweet. With a little grab, it would tick every style box for me. It might just be my next trick....which I will undoubtedly fail.
That backroll off the wave is just soooo sweet. With a little grab, it would tick every style box for me. It might just be my next trick....which I will undoubtedly fail.
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Flyboy
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Re: Sometimes straps are the right choice
Great video! I suspect these are the kind of conditions most SB riders encounter most of the time: big waves only come with big wind, which means, lots of white water & churning chop. Very different from perfect down-the-line waves like One Eye. It is true that the very best strapless riders, like Airton & Mitu have the skills to deal with pretty much any conditions ... but the average decently skilled rider? Not so much.
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Faxie
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Re: Sometimes straps are the right choice
For me doing strapless in those conditions was part of the kick, and it ain't really that hard. But for jumping and freestyling a bit I understand straps are probably the way to go.
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tautologies
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Re: Sometimes straps are the right choice
haha I totally get that...but then again what is the most epic part..it is managing to get out and then make the drop or is it to dominate the wave where getting to that drop is easier? It just depends on factors like conditions and location I guess. Making the drop in ultra bumpy 2x overhead onshore and cold waters is very different from doing it in clean 2x overhead warm water side off.
Last time I was out in big waves and strapless my experience was the former of the two. For me, a strapped endeavor would be preferred for the most part even if I actually did it strapless.