FREE RIDE & OLD SCHOOL
15 years ago 99% of the kitesurfers were riding twintips or also called bidirectional –symmetrical boards. What is now called old school kiting basically is free riding with the kite hooked in, making lots of jumps and turns in the air, sometimes taking the board of their feet. (board offs)
FREESTYLE
Developed out of the unhooked riding on a twin tip board. Unhooking the kite made it possible to pass the bar behind your back what gave room to many new moves. In the freestyle competitions it is all about landing a difficult trick but without using the kite to jump high. But how do they jump then? The energy of the jump is called POP which is achieved by edging and loading up the rail of the board in the water and release it suddenly, like in wakeboarding: WAKESTYLE!
BIG AIR and MEGALOOP
The name says enough. The higher the better but done with style and with huge kite loops preferably. A kiteloop is a 360 degree loop with the kite while you are in the air. The result is an enourmous G force creating an horizontal speed high in the air.
WAVE KITING
Wave kiting is riding waves while kiting with a surf-like directional board. For the last 5 years wave kiting has grown enormously. Many riders start wave riding on a board with straps to change later to a strapless board. Strapless riding makes it more of a challenge to jump (Freestyle Wave kiting) and it leans closer to the feeling of surfing. The competition is held on strapless boards.
RACE
Speed is important in this modality so longer windsurf-like boards are used to float over the water and go fast.
FOIL
Foil Kiting uses a board with a mast and wing underneath it. At a certain speed, Aquadynamics of the lower wing creates a positive force pushing the board out of the water. Because of the fewer drag on the small wing, it is possible to ride with very low wind conditions on a foil board.
SNOW KITE
Gear up for the cold and go riding on the snow.
