Big boosts - soft landings

SpaceRacer · Since 04 Nov 2007 434 Posts Obsessed

I love boosting as high as I can but sometimes i feel like my landings can be pretty hard. Am I doing it right?

1) Solidly powered with kite at 11.
2) Edging solidly.
3) Come off edge a bit to pick up some speed.
4) Kite goes to 1
5) Pop upwind, preferably off of something
6) Pull bar all the way in.
7) I like to hold my kite at 1 for a bit because I feel that it allows me to fully rotate to face downwind.
Cool

Kite to 12
9) As I'm coming down, pull with front hand
10) Land with board facing down wind

All things being relative, do larger kites generally provide softer landings than smaller kites? I can only assume that steady winds and a small board helps.

Any tips to make things easier on the ankles?

Thanks!

Sol-flyer · Mon Jun 01, 09 11:40 pm

the downloop.

also, High aspect kites provide better hangtime and will let you down a lil softer.

Rico · Since 13 Mar 2005 1219 Posts Vancouver Photographer

#9 is important to landing soft. Start at about 8 feet to go and if a small kite be more aggressive.

f0rgiv3n · Since 26 Jan 2009 6 Posts New Member

I"m not a kiteboarder on water (yet) but I do kite landboard quite a bit and I wanted to say that a "GENERAL" rule is that larger kites (depending on the type) will be more floaty. Smaller kites seem to be more grunty and you really have to work them to make sure you stay in the air longer/long enough for a soft landing.

Mark · Tue Jun 02, 09 7:04 am

Right as you are starting to come down, Sheet out and then sheet back in quickly. This will "reset" the kite and give it more bite. It will then slow you down for a comfy landing.

Big air is still my favorite thing about kiting.

pkh · Since 27 Feb 2005 6549 Posts Couve / Hood Honored Founder

If you are landing hard you are probably redirecting too early.

Also like Sol Flyer sez, with small SLE kites (9m and smaller) I downloop almost 100% now. It started out as a "trick" but now its just part of getting a soft landing. Also if you are doing a front spin a downloop helps you straighten out at the same time as landing.

tinyE · Since 21 Jan 2006 2004 Posts not really an XTreme Poster

pkh · Since 27 Feb 2005 6549 Posts Couve / Hood Honored Founder

The downloop is just a continuation of the redirect of the kite forward, all one continous motion and continuous front hand bar pressure.

When at the peak of the jump, my kite is usually still back at 1-2. I start the redirect forward at the same time as I start falling back towards the water. Just a bit of forward hand bar pressure... the amount of pressure on my front hand stays consistent throughout the fall.

After the first 30% of the way down the kite is back over my head at 12, the next 30% its at 11, the last 30% its in a downloop and usually finishes around 12 but heading in the new direction (I land in the new direction usually too, so its actually a transition.)

The turn of the kite accelerates through the end of the fall because the resistance of you falling accelerates the kite... but if everything happens right, you get the second lift from the loop right when you are at the water, so you land smooth.

Oh yeah and by "spin" I mean dangle wind chime style Very Happy

With a front spin, you can stall your spin as you stall at the height of your jump, then the redirect and downloop pulls you through the second 180 degrees of the spin. You follow the turn of the kite and your lines stay straight so its all very smooth.

Sella · Tue Jun 02, 09 12:05 pm

bulae99 · Since 12 Jul 2006 1692 Posts XTreme Poster

Kick free of the bonds that bind yeee feet!!! Get a surfboard and start riding without anything holding on yer feet.

I like soft landings and the trick for me is to transition the kite before landing.

Here is what I think about:

Jump, send it hard!

Kite, feel where it is and send it into a sine pattern

If you do it right you will drift

Land, just before you land find your kite and send back into the power window, 1pm to 11am, if on the port.

This makes for soft powered up landings.

Kataku2k3 · Since 14 Aug 2005 3754 Posts PDX-LA Videographer

Phil covered everything I would have said.

Hope this doesn't start drama again... I stopped looping the kite around when I came up on the WS (~24 sec) which contributed to my falling out of the sky! Amery's "Super-Whoop" (@ 37 sec) takes one, huge parachute-backloop to slow him down! Laughing

Link

Pretty small, but I did manage to get 3 "loops" (1 downloop and 2 backloops).

Link

SpaceRacer · Since 04 Nov 2007 434 Posts Obsessed

Wow, this is all cool stuff! Thanks!