Kiteboarding Handy Tips And Maintenance

Kiteboarding is one of the best extreme sports. It takes a lot of knowledge before you become an expert kiteboarder. There are tips you need to know on how to properly perform this sport as well as the maintenance of your kiteboard before you go out in the water to start honing your kitesurfing skills.

Maintenance Tips for Kiteboarding

Keep your kiteboard away from any sharp objects when transporting as it may cause scratches to your board. Store it inside a board bag and place it in the backseat of your car, which is the safest place for it.
Check all of the screws before heading out for your kiteboard session. Make sure they are screwed in tightly without any signs of breaking.
Strip your board down once in a month. Take off the footpads, fins, etc. Rinse them all in a bucket of lukewarm water. This will get rid of any salt crystals that build up around the board. Rinse the screws as well and place inserts on the kite board so that you will prevent them from becoming rusty.
Wipe the board clean using a soft cloth to dry off any excess moisture as well as the residual salts.
Avoid riding in shallow water. You may think that it is safe to ride in, but you will have more damages once you fall into small shells and rocks found at the bottom of your board.
Do not store your board out in the sun. This will cause the graphics to fade out. The excess heat will also weaken the materials used in the board. Store it in a cool and dry place indoors instead.
Make sure that your board is completely dry before putting it away. This will help prevent molds to grow in the footpads.
Wash your kiteboard using fresh cold water after each use. Dont let the salt water dry up on the board as it is its worst enemy.

Handy Tips for Kiteboarding

Wrap up the kites lines around your bar in a figure 8 pattern. This will help keep the lines from knotting. It also makes unwinding a lot easier.
Store the pump in a protective area as they break easily and are quite expensive to replace as well.
The flying lines are easily stretched. In case your kite flies tilted, the lines are probably stretched. If this happens, swap your left lines to the right every 2 weeks. This will avoid future line stretching. However, if the lines are already stretched, you can balance the line stretching by adjusting the knots up and down on your kitesurf bars leader lines. You may also go to your local kite shop and they will re-sleeve and re-adjust the line ends for you.
Rinse the harness, bar, wetsuit and board after each use so that your gear will last longer. There is no need to rinse the kite, but make sure it is dried up before storing.
Find a sand area in securing your kite for self launch. You can carry a soil bag with you anywhere which can be pretty handy.
While walking, wrap the harness around your kite to keep it from opening. This will make it easier to carry around.
If you get overpowered while on the water, point your board downwind so that you can put some slack on the lines to slow you down.

These tips will help you on your next kiteboarding trip into some of the best kite spots. Dont forget to make sure you are outfitted with the right kiteboarding equipments before setting off.