Kiteboarding Basics | Learn How to Body Drag

Heads up, use this new playlist to supplement professional instruction only. It's not to be used as a lesson alone.
For the next few months, Blake will be covering just about everything a new kiteboarder would need to know getting into the sport. From what you need to get into the sport to your first back rolls.

[@szamanwlkp]

Excellent tutorial 😊 Thanks from Poland

[@imatreehugrgal]

Tomorrow is my first lesson. SO GREAT to be able to watch and know what to expect! Thank you

[@MACkiteboarding]

yew! How did it go?

[@ShannonHartnett-117]

Great vid I had my first lesson with an instructor and went through all the safty guidlines wind window explained and how to pump and fly the kite and i even did some 1 handed stuff body dragging both directions in the first lesson I'm kinda thinking I'm going to self learn from the academy of youtube instead of paying $300 au dollars per lesson it's very expensive getting great pointers from your content keep it coming mate I'm 95kg and I got myself a 12m ozone reo kite and a 140x43 naish hero board to begin with but I wanna hit the waves later on when I'm skilled enough.

[@MACkiteboarding]

Thank you for your kind words. 🤙🏽 We're glad you're finding the content helpful. First and foremost, we ALWAYS recommend taking lessons when learning to kiteboard. Is it possible to teach yourself? Yes. However, you run the risk of hurting yourself, those around you, and the possibility of getting your beach blacklisted due to your negligence. Please think it through and make good choices, my friend. Good winds to you. -Aaron

[@ShannonHartnett-117]

@@MACkiteboarding mate the guy reckons I'm a natural and will pick it up fast I have skate boarding and kite flying experience from when I was younger yes I flew stunt kites at the beach growing up lol honestly I wasted my money going to the first lesson after I already had done my research on KZbin beforehand and knew everything he told and showed me, and I'm not going to wast more money on somthing that can be further studied online for free rather than pay some fat chump $300 dollars for 1 hour of their time the shit thing is he is the only instructor in the entire area so I'm limited, our beach location is one of the best locations to learn kite surfing at he reckons, and he thinks I'm better than most beginners he has had come through his school and that I shouldn't have much issues picking up the sport at all.

[@antoineharel6923]

Love Blake's videos....thanks....

[@MACkiteboarding]

Thank you for sharing the stoke with us, my friend! 🤙🏽 Good winds to you. -Aaron

[@lindseybalague4755]

Love the details, now I understand my mistakes! Excited to try your recommendations! Thank you!

[@MACkiteboarding]

Thank you, Lindsey. 🤙🏽 Hope these body dragging tips help you on your next session. -Aaron

[@EezeeEmporium]

Lost a board yesterday. Only got it back because another kiter brought it in for me. Apparently the current in the same direction as the wind in that inlet makes it near impossible to drag yourself back but man did it hit my confidence hard.

[@MACkiteboarding]

Thank you for sharing your experience, Eezee. 🤙🏽 Glad that you made it back safely. Although not always fun, it is somewhat beneficial to get humbled by the conditions once in a while. Good winds! -Aaron

[@dovereesserico7861]

Seeing Blake doing the kook is priceless!! 🤣😂🤣😂

[@coderedex]

Thankyou very helpful!

[@bearlemley]

I would subscribe to Mac Kiteboarding if Blake was the only presenter ! Great job of presenting your knowledge without having to display what an expert you are.

[@MACkiteboarding]

Bear Lemley Blake has his own KZbin as well 😛 - Rygo

[@bearlemley]

MACkiteboarding Isn’t nice of you. Thank you so much!

[@MACkiteboarding]

🤙🏻

[@jamesmcgeehan4287]

Thank u very helpful!

[@MACkiteboarding]

Thank you, James. 🤙🏽 We sincerely appreciate the stoke. -Aaron

[@wallypootr]

What are the thoughts on using a board leash (if you're just learning), not catching big air?

[@ir1284]

Blake! Would you please give me some body dragging tips in light wind and strong wind? I get dragged downwind in strong wind and not enough power to go upwind in light wind. Thank you!!

[@MACkiteboarding]

For light winds, you'll want to sign the kite gently. Imagine moving the kite up and down on one side of the window. This is a gentle turning motion with your hand on the bar. Too much and you will get pulled downwind. Too little and you won't get enough apparent wind to sail upwind. Practice makes perfect for this one. In stronger winds, it could be a couple things. You might be on a kite size too large. Alternatively, you can keep the kite higher in the window and sheet out. Keep your body rigid and give the kite something solid to pull against in the water. Hope that helps! - Rygo

[@ir1284]

@@MACkiteboarding Thanks!

[@achilleseleftheriadis7873]

@@MACkiteboarding Hello! Concerning the above, I want to ask a few questions! "Keep your body rigid and give the kite something solid to pull against in the water." What's the reasoning behind this tip? How does the kite interact with the weight it's gotta pull? How would it behave in the aforementioned case if there wasn't something solid to pull against in the water? How does keeping the body rigid aid the kite? Thank you in advance!

[@kst157]

Love the full detail and the time given to really explaining everything totally with all facts + tips + properly! Appreciated. Also, are you still making videos as missing them enormously. Love your style + excellent teaching. 🪂

[@larsw.larsen4173]

Any comments i relation to beeing overpowered (to big a kite) or underpowered?

[@MACkiteboarding]

When you are first learning how to fly the kite I would recommend going out properly powered or underpowered. - Cole

[@patconnelify]

Thats the proper use of the shaka

[@blakeolsen9762]

Haha glad you caught that 😂

[@kraan004]

Hi Blake is depower the kite first helps or not for getting back top the board

[@jakke1975]

It all depends on the wind and that can change from moment to moment. There are videos on trimming your kite that may help. But to go upwind, you need a little bit of power. If the wind (or power in your kite) is too light, you won't get enough speed to go upwind and you'll just drift downwind.

[@kraan004]

@@jakke1975 last weekend I was able tot test and indeed with more power in the kite IT was much easier to bodydrag back to my board. Thanks

[@achilleseleftheriadis7873]

@@jakke1975 "For light winds, you'll want to sign the kite gently. Imagine moving the kite up and down on one side of the window. This is a gentle turning motion with your hand on the bar. Too much and you will get pulled downwind. Too little and you won't get enough apparent wind to sail upwind." Hi! You mentioned that in light wind, not generating enough speed will make someone drift downwind, whereas MACkiteboarding mentioned in the above comment that the opposite is true. According to the comment, in light wind, when someone wants to sail upwind, if he steers kind of aggressively, that's when he'll drift downwind, whereas if the kite lacks the power necessary, it simply won't be able to pull someone upwind. I just want to clarify a few things, hence the question.

[@jakke1975]

​@@achilleseleftheriadis7873 He means that if you pull your kite up too much to 12, you won't generate any sideways speed, you'll lose speed you already had and drift downwind. He's talking about the motion of the kite in that sentence, not the speed of the wind or the power in your kite. Keep your kite moving up and down between 10-11 or 1-2 o'clock to generate power. Keep doing this in a gentle way until you generate enough speed and then you can turn your body towards the wind to move upwind. Also at 9 and 3, your kite is "parked" and won't generate any pulling power. That's why he's talking about too much or too little and you'll be dragged downwind. You need to keep your kite where the power is greatest to get up to speed.

[@jakke1975]

@@achilleseleftheriadis7873 Before you start body dragging, you should just go in the water where you can stand and play around with your kite for a while. Move your kite through the window with gentle motions so you get a feel for where the power is and how. You can also use a trainer kite if you want to experiment a little more with the high power zone before you are on the water. When wind conditions are normal, you should be able to park your kite at 45 degrees and that should give you enough speed to go in all directions. Not enough wind speed requires you to generate a little extra power by moving your kite through the window and if you make gentle motions, a little bit up and down that 45 degree angle, you should be fine.