Summer Breeze Solutions Part 1 

 Don’t Overlook Freerace boards.

One problem that we all face as kiteboarders is arriving at the beach to find the wind is lower than forecast…. Not only lower than forecast but lower than our current quiver can cope with.

Some folk will write kiting off completely and do something else, but for me when my heart is set on kiting I need an enjoyable solution.

Want learn about hydrofoils instead – Check out Summer Breeze Solutions Part 2

Most kiteboarder’s first thoughts when looking for a solution to low winds is of getting a huge kite. With most of the kite companies now including big assed kites specifically for light winds it’s certainly a good option. Most modern lightwind kites fly exceptionally well and will extend your wind range however this can be an expensive solution to a problem that can be solved much more cheaply.

Many kiters will have a quiver of 2 or 3 kites for different wind strengths but few will own more than one board.

So yes you guessed it another solution is to beg, steel or borrow a Freerace board. Buying one might also work.

Freerace boards may appear expensive but by comparison to a big kite they are much cheaper. They can extend your wind range down into single figures and will feel nicely powered in a steady 10 knots. Better yet they offer you the chance to learn something new in those lovely flat empty waters. These new skills will help prepare you for riding a surfboard or even the ultimate lightwind activity kite foilboarding.

 

So what is a Freerace board?

A freerace board is the smaller easier going brother of the full size course race board and cousin to the surf board.

Compared to a surfboard the rocker is much flatter, the board much wider and the most important part the fins – they’re huge. The fins are usually 20 – 30cm long and look pretty intimidating at first glance. Usually these fins are set up in tri-fin or quad fin positions.

Compared with a course race board they are usually a little narrower, with less volume and shorter fins. Although similar riding techniques can be used for both, the Freerace is a much more forgiving user friendly ride.

The beauty of Freerace boards is that they are not just for racing. In fact the vast majority of those that I’ve seen have just been used by freeriders to blast around at high speed or for exploring places normally unreachable on a twintip.

Freerace boards can be ridden easily by any competent twin tip rider after only a short learning curve. Folks normally only take a few runs to get used to them. OK you’ll probably get thrown off a few times on the first water starts but it quickly gets easier.

You don’t need to heel the board over like a twinny instead flattening the board and pushing against the fins is the key.

The beauty of the freerace/raceboards is that if you have enough power to get up onto the plane and pick up a little speed, you will feel nicely powered up. The wind might only be 10-12 knots but your board speed will soon be into the 20’s. Add in the apparent wind and you are going to feel lit. Not just cruising and mowing the grass but powered and ripping it up.

Unlike a twintip after only a short time even in low winds your heart will be pounding. Also expect a few unusual muscle groups to feel a little tweaked in days following.

Jonny Smith Cruising the Wreck – Turks & Caicos

Ok, so it’s a directional board, but if you’ve never riden a directional don’t let that put you off. Yes, sooner or later you’re going to need to turn the thing but to start with just jump off and turn your board around and jump back on again.

The first thing you will discover is that the upwind angle that’s possible is phenomenal even in light breezes. Be careful though as riding back downwind can be a little trickier to start with but once mastered can be blisteringly fast.

Once you’ve mastered basic riding now’s your chance to learn a bit of fancy footwork. A number of gybes and tacks are possible with the freerace board. The nice thing with the raceboard gybe is the board’s width and stability, the tricky bit is dancing around the straps. My favourite is the Duck tack which feels amazing when it works. The board will actually plane upwind and around into the other direction with a bit of careful timing. All of these skills transfer directly to surf boards, both strapped and strapless.

A little secret to is that you can really boost nicely and pull some tricks in low winds… Shhh, don’t tell everone.

With a little experience on freerace boards you may get the urge to race others – To start with the freerace boards should be fine but to be competitive a full size course board will be the order of the day. The full size course boards have a greater width and volume than freerace boards with fins up to 50cm. They are also require a more refined technique to ride them well.

Give it a shot you will get a pleasant surprise.

The board I’ve ridden the most is an Airsuh Sector V3 60cm which I can highly recommend. It gets me out on the water with a 13m Cabrinha Velocity in around 8 knots of wind. With a Freerace board it’ll be only you and the hydrofoilers out having real fun at those wind speeds.

Want to know more about Kite Hydrofoil – Foilboarding check it out here: Summer Breezes Part 2 – Foilboarding