Let me get something off my chest here, I was a bit scared the first time I held the kite on my first day. The amount of security systems in my rig made me feel like a bit of an astronaut about to dive into the dangerous unknown. I also learnt in which parts of the wind window the kite would fly, and in which areas it would drag me along. There is nothing like experience and guidance to face this initial fear and there is no way that one should attempt learning this sport without supervision and educated advice from an instructor. I was taking my lessons with Mallorca Kiteboarding & SUP again.
- Me & Perico from Mallorca Kiteboarding & SUP
On my second day we headed out to the Port de Alcúdia beach, a beautiful wide open beach with white sand that was virtually available just for our selves and a handful of other kiters. After learning the basics about kite security and moving the kite outside of the power area, aka the neutral zone, it was time to dig into the fun stuff: being dragged about by the kite. The first exercise we practiced was body-dragging. You don't need the board for this. What you do is you fly your kite in and out the power zone where it starts dragging you. It feels like riding a jet-ski, without the jet-ski...
By starting to feel the force from the wind and by knowing what I had to do to get the kite in the power area I started feeling like I had much more control of the situation. After practicing this for a while it was time to start on the board but by the time we got to that I was so tired from walking back into the water to practice body-dragging that I could hardly continue so decided to call it a day. From that day I am happy to report that I have been on a few more guided lessons to improve my water start and according to my instructor, I am almost a rider!
I have started to invest on my own rig so I can drive down to the beach and practice and it looks like I've got myself a new hobby! Here's a
photo of me riding in Barcarés, Alcúdia. I am the little person in focus, using my new Caibrinha 14 kite. What's for it now is practice, practice, practice. Now that i'm kitted out with my new gear i'm happily taking to the seas to tune-up my technique.
- My new hobby is taking shape
Getting the lines prepped and about to launch the kite - it's a two man job
By the way that's me in the featured photo, doing some of my first proper rides!