That would get u part of the way but you would be adding a bucket load of time to your progression.
Lessons will give you the 'know-whats' for you to understand whats happening - most importantly what went wrong & why - so you can very rapidly work towards doing it better.
Without lessons you will be floundering around never knowing why what you are trying isnt working. OR what it was you just did that made it work.
Trial & error will prove to be a very slow teacher as well as one who only teaches slow learners.

BUT yep safety could be covered that way - sort of.

jesseftw said...

ahh its just annoying that lessons cost so much.i found a local teacher that does lessons for 175 each 2.5 hours and $400 for 7.5 hours. i really want to get into the sport quickly but if i get a $400 lesson its gunna take a while :S

Hi jess
I am just about to get into the kiteboarding and recon that $175 isnt that bad when you think how much you will gain.
Don't forget the teacher needs to be paid,
The Equipment needs to be maintained.
Bills need to be paid
Profit margin...
It seems expensive however if you haven't tried it before a lesson might save you a sh1t load.....at least you will get a good idea if you think you like the sport...
Cheers mate

Definately think the lessons are worth having, but I have to agree that it is pretty expensive. To do a five day dive course in Cairns will set you back about 5 to 600 bucks for 5 FULL DAYS of instruction and if you do it without taking lessons you are most definately putting other people at risk!!!
All that said though, I'm getting lessons this month. Those kites have a huge amount of power. Why learn like a lot of the experienced guys on here by trial and error if we don't have to??

puppetonastring said...

Scuba Diving. No-one thinks twice about taking dive lessons if they want to dive. They are pretty much compulsory even though anyone can do it - with or without lessons - just by following a few safety rules. AND there is no-one ever put at risk but yourself. You will find them at least as expensive as a kite course and they are taught in groups. Work group cost back to hourly rates then see how much you would be paying if kite lessons were charged at that rate.

Sorry Puppet but I don't really agree here. I'm a diver myself.

- For one you are legally not allowed to dive without a license unless a diving instructor goes with you and you can't go deeper than 12m. (They will also give you a fairly thorough lesson before you go)
- As a diver you can still put other people at risk. Me and my girlfriend went diving and she accidentally kicked my regulator out of my mouth and my mask of my face. If you don't have any knowledge you may freak out and swim up which will cause decompression sickness (the bends) which can be fatal.
- You don't necessarily have diving lessons in groups. I did mine with my girlfriend and an instructor. Bit the same as Kitesurfing I guess, pick the right school.

I know you said to follow a few basic safety guidelines but in my opinion there is a lot more needed then just that and you really shouldn't go without a dive master/instructor. In fact even when you have your open water you still bring a master with you most of the time.

However I do agree with the point that you are making. Lessons in kitesurfing are important! Safety not only for yourself but mainly for others.

thanks for the advice. does it take long to be able to fly a kite? thats the only thing im worried about :S it looks kinda hard lol

jesseftw said...

thanks for the advice. does it take long to be able to fly a kite? thats the only thing im worried about :S it looks kinda hard lol

if you can find a mate with a trainer kite then you could probably spend a couple of hours flying that until you are comfortable and in complete control of the kite. Flying a trainer allows you time to understand how to steer the kite and become comfortable with the whole pull action to turn instead of trying to steer it like a car. That will shortcut the lesson process a little because you can reduce the amount of time spent learning to control the kite and the instructor can focus on things that are more important and less time consuming.

A trainer kite itself is generally not dangerous due to the size but its important to fly it at an empty beach or somewhere open so you don't endanger other people that you could hit with the kite. Also advisable not to take it out in gale force winds or it will be dangerous.

i dont know anyone who does kiteboarding. i live on the east coast of australia 2 hours north of newcastle which i know has alotttttt of people who do it but unfortunately i dont know any of them haha. can u buy training kites? or rent them?? hwo much do u reckon they are?

interesting point, my 13 y/o had 4 hours of lessons and got up and going, given all clear to practice what he's learnt before further lessons, then had a mishap that kept him out of the water for 8+ weeks, so got a bit rusty. the next couple of attempts were not real successful our local beach conditions not ideal, on shore shallow with close breaking waves. took trip away to a more beginner friendly location and he nailed it there or caught up. back at our local recently after some difficulty in getting going was sorted by shortening line length, still need to get working to windward together but handled the chop. the gear that the kite shop put together needs 15++ 7.5 M , we are lucky enough to be part of a small group that plays together share gear and advice, oli being the smallest has an advantage, has played with 15M, last man standing.
so after 20 odd hours on the water, looking at his own 12M kite and a 2nd larger board to give options on the day. it doesn't stop with lessons.
Lessons are important as is the people you play with.
P.s i'm a sailor not a kiter and oli has been land kiting from 10 y/o so probally had a head start. Pansh 4 line foil relatively cheap, though not on bar could help if you have not flown, before you line up a lesson.

sounds like you need to go and introduce yourself to a few of the crew at Newcastle and ask them which kiteschool you should get lessons from. Kitemuddies, has an up and riding package that looks pretty sweet.

I agree, lessons do look expensive and I earn a decent income and was still a bit surprised at the rates. But I think they are totally definitely essentially important.

They look expensive on an hourly rate basis compared to say, ski, or dive lessons but it's really different. Ski and dive can pretty much book and go. Kiting can only teach when there is wind, far less times. And kiting is one on one, as against groups for ski / dive.

To be honest, I don't know how kite schools make a living. They get so few hours out of each student. I have snow skied for 40 years but i still go back and get the occasional lesson. Can't imagine doing that with kiting now im past the basics. Hmmmm maybe I should!

I really enjoyed my lessons, to the point I found it quite confronting to go out on my own, post lessons. I would have been happy to get more lessons. I wnder if the teachers are a bit embarrassed at the rates and seem very motivated to get you up on the board and independent ASAP.

I wonder how it would work to have a snow ski model, where you still keep going back for coaching / improvements on a long term basis. I'd pay. But it doesn't seem to be part of the culture.....

Cheers Dave

Better yet, get a friend to teach you for free. Beats spending money on information that people can share with you for free; and they'll most likely care more about your long term kiting experience rather than just the time period you are paying them for