June 2009 Issue of The Kiteboarder Magazine

THE OFF THE HOOKOFF THE LipAn off the lip turn is basically justa heelside carve timed to happenon the face of a wave. This is thesimplest way to begin having fun in swell.Practice this turn in small waves beforemoving up to the big ones as mistakeswill hurt a lot less. Remember, you haveto learn to walk before you can run!1. Approach the wave toeside with yourkite about 60º above the water. Timing isthe most important aspect of the off thelip turn. You want to be carving acrossthe top of the wave just before it breaks.2. As you near the wave, flatten out yourboard and build speed.3. Just as you get to the bottom of thewave, move your kite up to the top ofthe window.4. Stomp hard on your tail and whip yourboard around back towards the beach.Bend your knees as the board comesaround. If you timed it right, you will goflying across the vertical or near verticalface of the wave.5. Dive your kite towards the beach so youcan ride away with speed.Tips:•The faster you are moving and the tighteryou turn, the more spray will be thrownoff the top of the wave.• If you are skipping out and falling onyour butt, make sure you are bendingyour knees, especially your front knee,through the turn.Surfing takes years to master, but once you are able to do heelside and toesideturns in flat water, you are ready to tackle the surf. Ben Myers demonstrateswhat you will be able to do with a little practice. Photo: Stephen Whitesell• If you are falling off the back of the waveinstead of carving onto it, you are notcarving a tight enough turn. Try being alittle more aggressive, entering the turnwith more speed and really throwing yourweight onto the tail of your board.70 70 thekiteboarder.comthekiteboarder.com 71