A Simple Take on Snowboarding

The Snowboarding Dream

Snow. Gleaming white mountains and sheets of it laid down at a perfect angle. You could easily look at this pristine, white landscape, snap some photos and head back home. Maybe others can, but really you can't. That powder must be pressed under your waxed board...and it must be done as soon as possible.

Growing out of the skateboarding and surf culture of the Western United States, snowboarding has been scathing the sides of snow capped mountains since the late 1970's and early 1980's. Initially developed using skateboards with stripped wheels, the sport has come a long way, with boards of varying lengths, widths, and flexibilities, not to mention that many combinations of boots, bindings, and various other gear needed.

Unlike skiing, a snowboarder goes downhill "sideways", leading their body with either the left or right arm. This position allows them to swerve back and forth, cutting into the ice and snow, which in turn gives a modicum of control in a situation that is little more than hurling one's self on a split of wood down a bloody mountain.

Most non-professional riders will wear special safety gear such as a helmet, goggles, padded gloves, and special pants, because falling on your backside against ice and snow is never a joyous occasion. The rush you can get from snowboarding is something else; it's like parachuting, surfing, skiing, and wind sailing all rolled into one, yet better than all of them together. While snowboarding is not for the faint of heart, it is for any one fit enough to ski or perform any sort of aggressive or extreme sport.

Most snowboarding resorts also feature two types of area for the rider. The first is the traditional downhill course which may include moguls or jumps to perform tricks. The second course type is similar to street courses in skateboarding, featuring less incline and more trick-able areas, such as railings, scaffolds, or waxed wooden edges to show your skills on. Whichever you choose, the cold won't have any affect as you get better and better and find the joy of snowboarding.

A Bit of Reality - Snowboarding Equipment

All poetic ideals aside lets get back to reality somewhat and cover some of the basic snowboarding equipment you are going to need to indulge our previously described idea of heaven.

There are some essential items that every snowboarder should take with them whenever they hit the slopes. While you are going to want to take your snowboard, boots and bindings, you are also going to want to take a few other things along as well.

First up, a helmet, a good helmet is an essential item for, funnily enough, protecting your head, even the pro's fall over enough, so don't think for a second you won't. along with a helmet comes goggles; these will protect your eyes from the sun and your face in case of an accident.

Wrist guards are a must for all but advanced snowboarders. These can save you from an injury, especially whenever it's icy. However, they don't work for advanced snowboarders because they go too fast and thus can do a lot more harm than good for them. However if you are a new to intermediate snowboarder, make sure that you wear your wrist guards, because wrist injuries are not uncommon in this sport, so better safe than sorry.

Impact shorts (padded pants/shorts) will protect you from the impact (and the pain) that will inevitably occur whenever you catch your board in the ridges of the snow. I'd reommend a pair that has foam protection instead of plastic.

Foam knee pads are flexible and will help keep you out of pain whenever you are catching the edge of your board or falling down.

Thermal leggings are an essential part of keeping warm from the waist down and thermal socks will feel better and keep you warmer than if you were to try to wear 2 pairs of socks.

Heat pads will help to keep you warm. The best ones to use though are the heat patches that you put directly against your skin. If you get too hot, you can then transfer them to the outside of your socks and still stay warm. You will want to take plenty of these with you though as they are disposable.

A small, waterproof backpack is necessary for keeping your sun cream and any other small items that you need to keep with you which remind me tkae some waterproof suncream too.

So with that in mind (and we only covered the basics here) gear up and lets hit the slopes!

Kitesurfing Lessons in Poole with S2AS

Bank holiday weekend and I'd barely slept. Waking up on a Saturday morning like a 6 year old at Christmas eagerly anticipating a pile of presents at the foot of the tree, I had that little knot of excitement starting to build in the pit of my stomach. No, I wasn't going for a job interview and no, there were no presents. And no tree.

I had wanted to try out kite surfing for yonks, having lived in and around the Poole /Bournemouth coastline since I was 5, I remain only too aware about how cool I could have been if I had picked up a kite, added a board and taken to the sea a lot earlier in my life. I always felt, apart from the obvious proximity benefits, that the sport would be quite inaccessible. By that, I mean, there were a lot of excuses and preconceptions that I believed were good enough reasons not to do it.

“Don't buy anything older than 2007, as advances in technology since then are enormous. And always spend the money on the kite.”

Cost. It's true that it is not a cheap sport (though what is these days?), and a full kite surfing rig can set you back about £1500.00. Obviously, you can get cheaper and you can get 2nd hand, but always get advice and find the right kite's for you, your environment and your ability. As a general rule, always spend the money on the kite. Don't buy anything older than 2007, as advances in technology since then are enormous. And always spend the money on the kite. Did I already say that? Well it's worth emphasising.

I always thought that the sport was a bit intimidating. I genuinely had this idea that the solitary surfer attitude would be perpetuated here and that a disdain for newcomers on their turf would be frowned upon. As I'm not one for conflict, this was one anxiety to overcome when taking to the sport.

So, not to be deterred and manning-up to the task, I enrolled on a two-day course with Surface 2 Air Sports (S2AS) of Ashley Cross in Poole, Dorset. S2AS actually has 3 bases in total; with Camber Sands in Kent and Brighton completing the line up. We arrived at the store to sign our lives away and meet Simon, our instructor for the course. Among the group were a lively couple from Winchester, who had decided that kite surfing was going to be their next adventure together, as well as a shop customer who had purchased a full rig from S2AS and came along for some help from Simon to get acquainted with his new kit. This is a great service that the store offers to customers and underlines their after-sales support and customer service focus.

The shop is about 5 minutes drive to our first location of the day; Baiter Park. Situated close to the main Quay & Poole town centre, parking can be tricky especially during holidays so give yourself plenty of time and make sure you've got some spare change. The park itself is renowned for kiting in the area and is used by many of the local schools for this stage of the instruction process as well ask power kiters and kite landboarders in general.

Starting, as you would expect, from the beginning, we were given a little theory – wind, safety, kite anatomy, that sort of thing. Nothing too scientific, nothing too boring – when you're chomping at the bit to start flying the last thing you need is the instructor spouting rhyme and verse from the health and safety manual at you as you probably wouldn't be listening anyway!

A short demonstration and soon given the keys to our own 2.4m flexifoil 2-line kite. The design of this particular kite is ideally suited to land-based flying. The problem is that, if flown on the water, it fills up in an instant after crashing and makes it nearly impossible to relaunch. Another interesting fact, in terms of performance, relates to the kites two-layer construction. Our 2.4m flexifoil training kite is the equivalent to a 5m single skin inflatable kite.

“This is a great service that the store offers to customers and underlines their after-sales support focus.”

As the wind picked up during the morning, as did our proficiency with the kite. We moved on fairly quickly to a 7m Nobile N62 Leading Edge Inflatable (LEI) kite, more commonly used for kite surfing. These kites were straight out of the bag & fresh for the new season. S2AS certainly don't make you learn on any old tat – this was shiny and new, which is just my favourite thing.

The briefing and setup instructions were a little more in depth for these kites, in particular the process for readying the kite – no-crossed lines, correct level of inflation etc. and understanding how to detach yourself quickly should you find yourself stuck on another kite, a passing car or an aeroplane! There is a very logical, straightforward and crucially important process to follow when getting your kite ready. Rush it it, get it wrong and you'll pay for it later. You will notice that even the most experienced kite surfers are on the beach doing exactly the same thing that you are being shown to do. Remember, one knot in just one of your lines weakens it's tensile strength by about 80% - and a snapped line out at sea is the last thing that you or the coastguard will need.

“A snapped line out at sea is the last thing that you or the coastguard will need.”

The afternoon session took place at Sandbanks in Poole, which again, is a hugely popular location for kite surfing & windsurfing due to the vast, shallow area in which you can learn. If you know the area, you can park for free by finding the right spots, otherwise bring plenty of nuggets with you, especially during the summer season.

Donning our wet suits, harness, buoyancy aids and helmets, the order of the afternoon was body-dragging. This involves using the kite to essentially pull your limp torso through the water, back towards the beach. It's amazing how quickly you get a feel for the kite, where the power comes from and how to harness it's energy into movement. It's really quite an exhilarating feeling, the spray in your face as your body glides powerfully through the breaking surf.

Unfortunately, the second day of the course didn't live up to the promise of the first. With confidence levels starting out high, hoping to progress quickly onto the boards and the aspirations to be crowned fully-fledged kite surfers by the end of the weekend were dashed when the wind simply forgot to blow.

We tried for a couple of hours, bless us, but a mixture of frustration in trying to just keep the kite flying and then introducing the board (something else to think about), it was all proving too much. A unanimous decision from the group brought a halt to proceedings, made easier with the introduction of a beer and bowl of chilli con carne in the local Sandacres pub.

Such is the commendable attitude to customer satisfaction from the S2AS Team, they offered to write-off Sunday and give the group their 2nd day all over again. To me, that's the kind of thing I hope I'll find when out reviewing. Genuine, honest goodwill to customers. At the end of the day, they will benefit, as those happy experience day customers come back to the shop to buy their first full kit. And guess where they'll go to upgrade a few years later? It's just good business, practiced in the best way.

And my preconceptions? Well, I was wrong, obviously. When you begin to understand the dependencies kite surfers have on one another – help with launching, keeping an eye on their kit left on the beach, raising the profile of the sport, you understand quickly that this is predominantly a sport made up of helpful, selfless and friendly individuals all with a common purpose – harnessing the power of nature for their own enjoyment. And that is a place I'd like to belong.

A two-day Kitesurf course with S2AS costs £195.00, or £99.00 per single day. There are special offers available (at the time of writing, the two-day course was discounted to £149.00) so it's well worth checking the website. If you're considering buying the kit, Justin in the Poole store is the oracle when it comes to prescribing the best setup for you, and as the store stocks all brands, you're going to get an unbiased opinion. We recommend popping in for a chat and a coffee – just make sure he's there first and not out testing the next best thing on the market!

Wakeboarding with S2AS

Few water sports are as exciting as wakeboarding. Developed on the heels of the snowboarding craze, wakeboarding involves riding a wakeboard usually with fins and boots for the feet pulled by a boat at speeds of around twenty miles per hour. The wakeboard rider uses techniques of waterskiing, snowboarding and surfing to cut across the wake of the motor boat and jump into the air and performing acrobatics on the board much like a snowboarder.

In England there are excellent areas to pursue the sport of wakeboarding. One such location that affords excellent conditions for this sport is Camber Sands. Those new to the sport can learn on a large costal lake just outside of Kent where wakeboarding lessons are given for those from the novice to the professional level. Once instruction is complete wake boarders can head for the open water just off the beach for more exhilaration on the waves from this exciting sport.

Poole is another area that has excellent conditions for wakeboarding. Located in the south of Britain, Poole Harbour is perfect for the pursuit of water sports. Wakeboarding is no exception. There are many days when the wind is quiet and wake boarders abound. There are also times at where the wind is up and more challenge can be found as the cresting waves thrill wakeboarders and kite surfers alike.

In both locations Surface 2 Air Sports is the dealer of choice for wakeboarding equipment and instruction. With wakeboards, vests, ropes, and other gear for the novice to the experienced wake boarder Surface 2 Air Sports has all that the wakeboard aficionado needs in a location that is convenient to the awesome wakeboarding areas.

In addition to wakeboarding there are other sports of kite surfing, wind surfing, waterskiing and the like that wakeboarders may choose to try. It is difficult to beat wakeboarding however for continual enjoyment in the water not only for the wakeboarder but also the group of friends in the boat or on the beach.

Kitesurf Locations - Learn to Kitesurf in Brighton

At Surface2Air Sports we are ideally located to offer you the best kitesurfing conditions for beginners, and experienced riders alike.

Based from our new Kitesurf shop in Brighton (Hove), we have the option to teach Kitesurfing lessons at the local beach, (just 100m from the Kitesurf shop), Lancing, and Worthing, which are just a short trip along the coast. This means that we can find the optimal conditions for your Kitesurfing lessons.

The best conditions are southerly winds, ideally SW, and at low tide. This is what we look for as it enables our qualified Kitesurf instructors to ensure the safest possible conditions to learn this extreme sport. At low tide the water retreats to expose over 100m of soft sand beach, and a further 200m of waist deep water, creating a perfect location to practice your Kitesurf skills. The beach has also recently been divided up to provide us a specified kitesurf teaching zone, which allows beginners and experienced riders to have their own designated area.

During the summer months we get a warm sea breeze which picks up in the afternoon with winds anywhere from 15knts – 35knts. The water is warm enough for a spring/summer wetsuit, and when you’re ready for them, we get some pumping swell that provides an ideal playground to practice some surf skills.

S2AS Team

For kitesurf lessons in brighton call 01273 746836

How to Kitesurf: Getting Started - Buying a Kite

We will be adding to our site new 'How to's' every week and we will start at the very beginning for all the newbie Kitesurfers or wanabe kitesurfers, Ok well here we go!

This time we are going to cover buying your kite.

Getting Started - Kite Buying Guide

Kite Surfing can be a pretty expensive sport to engage in due to the high costs of equipment. It is therefore important to make sure you get a kite that fits your skill level, the kind of performance that you expect from it and of course, your budget.

But just how do you get the ideal kitesurf kite for you? Sure, you can resort to trial and error, but it will prove costly in the long run. Keep in mind that the price of a kite alone starts at around £800 for the basic ones up to around £1000 for the advanced models, so think twice before you shell out that much money. A better alternative would be to read this article and to let us Surface2Air Sports be your guide in getting a kite.

If you are just starting Kitesurfing, then it is advisable to talk to your local kitesurf shop. That way, you don't waste money buying the wrong kite for your level or weight, for example you buy a 16mtr kite and your weight is only 65kgs then your have a problem in the avarage uk winds. If you want to buy a kite for kitesurfing, do not purchase a kite which has a high aspect ratio (AR). The AR is the ratio of the length and width of your kite. The higher the AR, the faster your kite will make turns. Also, it is more powerful than those with lower ARs. As a general rule, try starting out first with one that will give you optimum control and that which will give you enough power to lift you to manageable heights. The more powerful ones can wait as you progress and become a better kitesurfer.

Meanwhile, if you are a more experienced kitesurfer, then it's safe to say that you pretty much know what you want in terms of the type of kite you want, your desired hang time as well as other factors. At this point, pretty much is left to your taste and what makes you feel comfortable. There are several types of kites out there that you can choose from. It is discussed in greater detail in our Kites - Types section. But if you want to fine tune your kite for better performance, you can also check out our Kite Tuning section.

We hope that this article has somehow given you some helpful insights when it comes to buying the right kite for you. Sure, there's no perfect kite out there. But if you get the right one for your particular needs and tweak it to your liking then you already have something that's close to perfect.

Thanks for reading

S2AS Team

Surface2Air Sports have kitesurf shops located at Brighton, Poole and Kent in the UK.