Jump help
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 11:47
OK, now I finally can water start, transition and go upwind. So I decided to try jumping. I get a decent speed, send the kite to 12, do a little edge-pop, pull the bar in, and I do get some air.
Then, in all my total 7 -8 attempts, I found myself parallel to the water in the air. I see the sky, my kite and board in the air, kick away my board, and land on my back in water. Every time the same story.
What may I be doing wrong? Thanks.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 14:12
#1
Jump help
Sounds like you're on your way to getting air but not landing! it's a little tricky to understand at first but you'll get the hang of it in no time.
1. with kite at 10 or 2 ride with speed and decent edging (you should be riding crosswind to upwind at minimum - if not, you will not get very high)
2. send the kite accross the window from 10 or 12 (depending on your direction) over to but no further than 11 or 1 (once again depends on your direction).
3. as your kite is about to cross 12, edge your board quickly upwind and release your edge once you feel the pull of your kite.
4. no that you are going up, to avoid a pendulum, steer the kite back over your head to 12.
5. as you start to go down, send the kite back down hard towards the direction you were going pre-jump.
6. The landing - make sure that your front foot and board is pointed STRAIGHT DOWNWIND for your landing. This is the awkard part to understand because your board was going accross the wind when you left the water but will now be pointed downind as you're coming down.
The sining of the kite on your way down will allow you to approach the landing with some forward speed, allowing you to ride away provided you land on your feet.
failure to sign the kite back down will result in you coming straight down without anyspeed causing you to sink on landing.
Sounds like you are landing in classic "I'm not going to land this style" which is great when you know you're not going to land it!
The running parallel reference (meaning you're carrying more distance than heigth) is likely because you are not popping correctly. you may even be going a little downwind when trying to pop which would be a reason for getting minimal air.
Try these tips. you should get a hang of it in no time!
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 14:21
#2
It takes a lot of tries to
It takes a lot of tries to get the timing of the send and the pop just right. I am still working on this, some jumps, the timing is perfect, and it sure feels good! The thing about jumping and landing is that it involves moving the kite very quickly across the sky which is something they taught you not to do in your beginner classes, and with good reason.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 15:13
#4
By parallel, I meant
it has to do with the way you leave the water then. your're off balance when popping. if it is also happening when landing, you are likely being twisted around in the air and don't have the kite in the right position on your way down either.
Sometimes it helps to start learning to jump going your unnatural direction. One has a tendency to think out the steps more when going riding on their strong side. This can muddle the jump. Kinda like a golf swing, you will find more success if you simplify it and only think of 2 components of the jump on each effort.
when sending the kite also, i like to sheet in the whole time, not after it goes passed 12.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 15:17
#5
yeah
The load and pop is a focus area of my jumps now too. No problem doing it, but every once and a while you get the "ahhh that felt good, the timing was perfect" feeling and I soar like a paraglider on my foils....
Anyways, yeah my 2 cents is that once you are diving the kite correctly for the landing, making the landing perfect is a lot about how you leave the water. I like to keep my front knee bent and up a little after I edge hard and pop. I'd rather land with my weight little too far back than risk diving a front edge on landing and doing a face plant.
Another thing I've found.... Its really a very quick succession of movements. My opinion is that it is all about committing this quick succession into muscle memory (with the correct timing).
As someone who is new to jumping and going through all the turmoil now/recently.....
1) get touchy feely with your gear, you need to "feel out" the timing not force it
2) edge hard and quick! I've been edging "too long" before popping and I think I'm stalling the kite speed too much at that point.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 16:01
#6
Great discussion...
...as I am also at the stage of trying bigger jumps. Thanks to all for the tips and suggestions.
My problem is rotation and lack of position control while in the air. I think it has a lot to do with my form (or lack thereof) when popping and leaving the water.
On Saturday, I boosted the biggest air yet (scary high for me), and crashed very hard on the back of my head, neck and upper back. It was a bit of a wake up call.
In reference to the question of why one may find oneself in a horizontal position while in the air (back parallel to the water), I was wondering whether the harness type plays a role. The spreader bar on a boardshort harness or seat harness tends to be much lower than when wearing a waist harness. I am currently riding with a boardshort harness, and seem to have more difficulty controlling my jumps than when I first tried with my waist harness. I'm sure that skilled riders can jump perfectly well with either type, but I was wondering whether one type might be better to use when learning to jump. Thoughts?
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 16:11
#7
harness type
I'm very glad you mentioned you are using a board short harness.
I damn near broke my ribs last year trying megaloops (they were mega-eatshits instead) and rather than stay off the water, i tried using a buddies board short harness (he's gone to waist harnesses).
The difference in center of gravity and where the pull comes from is drastically different using a seat or boardshort harness.
I actually found it much tougher to be aggressive as a result. Unless you have major back problems, i think you should ditch the shorts and move onto a waist harness.
you can even get a waist harness that has more width top to bottom to give you better support if you need to.
Body position while riding and jumping will improve greatly.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 16:19
#8
Thanks!
Thanks Philippe. I will give my waist harness another try.
I had switched to the boardshort harness as I found it more comfortable for basic riding. As a beginner, spending a lot of time in the water, my waist harness was always riding high, and constricting my breathing.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 16:20
#9
Load & Pop Question
Since we're on the jump subject. I've been practicing just load&pop while keeping the kite at 10 or 2 (no kite movement). I'm not really sure I"m doing it right tho. Here is what I'm doing:
Riding with a little edge to pick up some speed and then edging really hard as if i'm trying to go upwind which puts a ton of kite/bar pressure but slows me WAY down. Then I do a little jump, like a bunny hop, up off the water. The kite pulls me a little bit... Usually not very far... Landing.. then doing it again..
That sound about right for doing a load/pop without the kite action? I understand for bigger lifts I want the kite in on it but I want the pop ingrained first. When I get bored I pop the kite back, do a big lift.. crash.. bodydrag back to board =)
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 18:12
#10
load and pop hooked in is not
load and pop hooked in is not as necessary to get down pat as when unhooked.
you'll never load and pop hooked in like unhooked because the kite pull is centered lower when hooked in. it's really just a matter of getting the movement down and becoming comfortable with it. it's all kite control from there on.
the bigger the jump when hooked in all has to do with how much authority you send it with. popping comes into play a bit but not as much as you might think.
also, most videos people watch when learning a trick are played in slow motion. It looks like they are loading up for an eternity but in reality if you're 2 seconds into loading, you've just killed all your kite power!
be comfortable with your kite skills and then just go for it! the board skills will come with practice.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 20:14
#11
is there a way to describe the feeling?
that is..... it is more of a "feeling" than "how it looks" which I think is a shortfall of many instructional videos. .....
Anyways, I ask because the times I have really hit those 25-30 footers has been when my edging/pop succession has felt "like a bull whip"..... what I mean is .... let off the edge (gain slack) then edge (tighten it up) and then pop (crack!)
best analogy I could think of to describe a "feeling" as opposed to "a technical breakdown"
Next forum thread should be the breakdown of the best conditions for the first pracice session of un-hooked riding.... I would think get comfortable just "cruising around" un-hooked at first, no?
Tue, 07/03/2012 - 12:29
#14
LOAD and pop
mlee1278 wrote:
Since we're on the jump subject. I've been practicing just load&pop while keeping the kite at 10 or 2 (no kite movement). I'm not really sure I"m doing it right tho. Here is what I'm doing:
Riding with a little edge to pick up some speed and then edging really hard as if i'm trying to go upwind which puts a ton of kite/bar pressure but slows me WAY down. Then I do a little jump, like a bunny hop, up off the water. The kite pulls me a little bit... Usually not very far... Landing.. then doing it again..That sound about right for doing a load/pop without the kite action? I understand for bigger lifts I want the kite in on it but I want the pop ingrained first. When I get bored I pop the kite back, do a big lift.. crash.. bodydrag back to board =)
For both unhooked and hooked load & pop you can really add to the height by bearing downwind (as you unhook for unhooked) then cranking hard upwind (as you send the kite in a hooked boost). This will load the kite lines with tension that can add a few feet and some great momentum to your trick.
If you practice while riding, try it. You can really feel it. Hooked in you should be able to load (bear down wind) and pop (crank upwind and release) and get a 5-6ft bunny hop pretty easy, even with the kite at 10/2.
Mon, 07/02/2012 - 20:32
#15
vid
I found this helpful:
Tue, 07/03/2012 - 08:05
#16
I saw in a video once, when
I saw in a video once, when you feel the gust, send it.
Tue, 07/03/2012 - 12:56
#17
lol
"whoaaaaaa..."
Tue, 07/03/2012 - 16:32
#18
That's how I like to ride
That's how I like to ride Tyler, providing i'm not too close to land.
Tue, 07/03/2012 - 11:55
#19
That was one of the best videos on jumping
I've seen yet. And I"ve looked.
Thanks p_han1 for the detailed notes, I will try these.
But when I said "parallel", I was referring to my body position in the air and during landing, not to how much distance I carry downwind. When I take air, I am "standing up" on my board. When I land (well, fall down and crash), I am approaching the earth as if I will lie down on water; my body is parallel to the water surface.
Actually, it happens way before landing. As soon as I lift of, I start to rotate backwards. From | , to \ in the air, and finally __ on water.
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Burak