You’ve mastered the jibe and now you’re ready to change it up a bit and start tacking. A tack is performed by turning your board into the wind to turn around. It can be very useful as you can gain upwind ground when performing this move quickly and correctly.
STEPS:
1. As you turn your kite towards the 12 o’clock position, turn the nose of your board into the wind. 2. Keep turning the nose of the board into the wind until it is pointing directly into the wind. As the nose of the board approaches pointing directly into the wind, you will loose your forward momentum. You need to time switching your feet so that your feet are switched by the time the board looses all forward momentum.
3. You should be able to swap your feet in two steps: as you turn into the wind, bring your back foot up to your front foot. When you feel your foot firmly planted on the board place your front foot where your back foot originally was.
4. Your feet are switched. You are most likely standing still so continue to bring the kite down towards the water for a power stroke to start your forward momentum and head back in the direction you came from.
TIPS:
1. Keeping your weight centered on the board is key. By doing so you will keep the board stable. Stepping wildly around and off-centered on the board will increase the difficulty of staying on the board and completing the tack.
2. Taking your front hand off the bar allows you to twist your upper body and point your chest into the wind to help you turn the nose of your board into the wind.
3. Remember, your feet are simply switching positions, not creating new ones. Your back foot becomes your front and your front becomes your back. You went into the turn with your feet in the ideal spot on the board so it only makes sense that that is where they need to be when you finish the turn.
4. As you bring your back foot forward to meet your front foot, you can use your front foot (the only foot on the board at this time) to pull the nose of the board through the wind window.
Oahu’s Reo Stevens is sponsored by Cabrinha Kites and Dakine.
