A Beginner’s Guide To Kite Surfing

When the party FOMO faded in my early thirties, a new Fear Of Missing Out took hold.  Standing on the beach of my new hometown Zandvoort, looking at the colorful kites bouncing in the air, I couldn't help imagining myself in the water cruising along with the kiters.

This urge wasn’t new, I wanted to learn kite surfing for years, but living in Amsterdam the missing out wasn’t so much in-my-face. Moving to Zandvoort changed that. I wanted it so bad, but the excuses piled up: too expensive, no time, "too old for this shit". Recognize the feeling? Keep reading. A year ago, I took the leap, and it was the best (and, yeah, most expensive) gift I ever gave myself.

But let me tell you one thing, learning ain’t pretty. For the first year or more you’ll be a far cry from sexy butt cheeks peeking from under your harness, cute smiles for that sexy kiter over your shoulder and majestic jumping. Reality? Many gulps of water, accidental launches, fails, helmet hair, and a fluorescent shirt so your instructor can easily spot you when they need to fish you out. So a bit of perseverance is needed to complete the task. Hang in there. It gets better.

Getting started - great places to take your first lessons

This isn't a sport you learn solo. It can be seriously dangerous without proper guidance. Some try learning from experienced friends, but believe me when I say I’ve stood on the beach and watched that go wrong. Invest in a few lessons. Then accept buddy-help on your journey to kiteboarding independence. I've taken lessons in The Netherlands and Spain, and here are my recommendations:

Kitefeel Schellinghout - Low wind days in Tarifa (just my luck) led me to continue lessons at Kitefeel in The Netherlands. Now I'm a member! Those hot showers included in your membership are life after a dip in the cold Dutch water. Shoutout to my instructor, Carel, whose calm and encouraging vibe really boosted my progress.

Moana Zandvoort - For salty water riding (which we have plenty of in The Netherlands), Moana in Zandvoort is the spot. Friendly, welcoming, knowledgeable staff. Open late March to early October.

Kite Fun Tarifa - Rodri's been kiting since practically the dawn of the sport. His lesson goal? For you to have fun. And fun I had. They use a helmet comms system, which helped me stay calm and get real-time instructions. Highly recommend.

On your own two feet - your first solo rides

Depending on your experience in other (board)sports you’ll need about 5 lessons before you can start winging it on your own. This is a BIG and sometimes scary step. Here are some of my takeaways for when you say farewell to your teacher.

Take your time, stress kills the fun. Being with friends who are stoked can be a plus, but for me rushing to get ‘the best hour of the wind’, knowing people have to head home at a certain time can also cause a lot of stress. Now I only ride with people knowing I have time to stand, look around me a bit and get the feel before I enter the water.

Accept that you won’t ride much, don’t mind taking a step back in the learning curve. Being on your own, keeping control of the kite and the board can be a bit much. Why not do a few rounds of body dragging like you learned in your lessons and get confident doing it al by yourself. 

Share a kite - in the beginning it’s nice to work in a buddy system where you both wear your harness but share one kite between the two of you. That way you can keep an eye out fo eachother, make sure there’s no other kiters when you take of and give eachother some tips based on what you see the other do.

Every session teaches you a lesson, write them down. Sometimes you lines keep getting crossed. Your kite keeps crashing. you feel shit and insecure in general. But some sessions will go GREAT. and they are all important to remember. A wise friend once said, you learn something from every session. So now I find the thing that I learned and write it down to remember.

Make friends - motivation is better together. There are SO many kite groups out there to help yu alond every step of the way. There’s trips that kiters go on together and even dating events. Salt water groups, sweet water groups, beginner, jumper, a group for every jam. feel free to leave a comment on this post and I’m happy to add you when in The Netherlands. Otherwise… just chat to people on the beach, nothing a kiter rather does than talk about their hobby.

Progress - get your own gear

You will crash your kites in the early days and gear is expensive. Plus, like a car, a new kite will lose value as soon as you walk out the store. That is why I’d recommend opting for older gear t start with. There’s plenty of people selling a set when they move up in their progress. The sport progresses at a high pace, so try to be wary when material is over 5 years old and have someone with more experience look at the offer for a secons opinion.

I started with a set from a friend with relatively old gear, that way it won’t hurt as much when something lands… less well.

Slowly I am replacing stuff with better equipment. Good addresses for second hand gear that is used solely for demo’s and well checked I found in these places in my home country.

Van den Berg - they have a place in Hoorn and Almere and are widely known to be the best specialist in terms of watersports. They take time to advice you even if you are a beginner.

Kitesurfshop Haarlem - I brought my kite here when it had a good tear and I thought is was done for. But they got my baby back up in the air for a friendly price and in no-time. They also offer a wide selection in new and used gear.

And lastly, the most important advice: don’t forget to have fun out there!

Final note from the author: I still can’t ride for shit and keep working on my downwind skills. But my learning curve get’s steaper with each session, I’ll gladly let you know when I’m riding upwind. Can’t wait!