Pop to Toeside is a pop off the water without using the kite to jump, switching from heelside to toeside in the air to land tail-first on the toeside edge.
Also called: Air Krypt · Heelside to Toeside Pop
Prerequisites
Unlocks
Schools teach this differently
Sources genuinely diverge on bar and hook technique: both IKSurfmag guides keep you hooked in with the bar parked on the sweet spot and call pulling the bar in "spectacularly counterproductive", while MACkite's Air Krypt version rides downwind to unhook, pulls hard on the front hand to redirect the kite, and pulls the bar into the back hip for landing. IKSurfmag also files the trick under both its Beginner and Intermediate sections.
Ideal conditions
Flattish water with space, and wind that gives the kite power without constant working (IKSurfmag); for learning new tricks generally, 15–22 knots and flat water away from crowds and shallow spots (Shaka).
How to do it
1. Set up the approach
- Ride in on a moderate edge, kite parked at 11 or 1 o'clock — no need to race, but park the kite any higher and there is no resistance to push against, so you slide instead of pop.
- Keep both hands on the bar and hold it on the sweet spot; trim in a touch if it is a stretch to reach.
- Set your weight back over the rear footstrap with a straight front leg, like sitting on the back two legs of a chair with good posture.
- Stand tall and let the board flatten briefly so it runs off the wind before you turn.
2. Carve and stamp
- Drop your weight, push through your heels and carve hard back upwind, turning your shoulders and twisting your hips so the edge bites.
- Keep the carve short — hold it too long and your speed dies before the board leaves the water.
- Stamp down explosively through your back heel, extending the back leg so the board lifts off in a wheelie.
- Leave the bar parked on the sweet spot through the stamp; pulling it in lifts you over the board and kills the pop.
3. In the air
- Keep your head and shoulders up and turn your chest to face upwind.
- Drive the back knee through and forward — the same movement as your toeside slide, now done off the water.
- Move your hips over your back foot while airborne so you land balanced instead of tipping forward.
- Aim small: a few centimetres of air for a fraction of a second frees the fins, and that is all the rotation needs.
4. Land and ride away
- Touch down tail-first, pointing slightly downwind.
- Bend the new back leg as soon as the board is down; that bend is what lets you drive through onto your toes.
- Give a small tug on the front hand to bring the kite down a touch and put power back in the lines.
- Drive onto your toes to set the toeside edge and carve back upwind so the lines load again.
Common mistakes and fixes
Mistake
Carving upwind for too long, so speed bleeds off before the pop
Fix
Stand tall on the approach and stamp the instant the edge bites; if speed keeps dying, come in with more of it.
Mistake
Pulling the bar in to help the pop
Fix
Park the bar on the sweet spot and let the carve build line tension; the kite lifting you over the board is why you catch an edge.
Mistake
Sitting low with both legs bent before the stamp
Fix
A flat board slides instead of biting. Straighten the front leg and keep weight over the back foot so the rail holds.
Mistake
Letting the kite drift up toward 12 o'clock
Fix
Keep it at 11 or 1; parked higher it gives you nothing to push against and the board slides out.
Mistake
Landing toeside with no power
Fix
Pull on the front hand and actively carve onto the toeside edge to put tension back in the lines.
If it goes wrong
- Have upwind body dragging locked in before drilling new tricks, so you can always get back to a lost board (Shaka lists it as a required skill before trick practice).
- Know your self-rescue before sessioning new moves; Shaka names it alongside body dragging as the way out of difficult situations while learning tricks.
Learn this with a coach, not from a page
This guide explains what the move is and what riders get wrong, so you arrive at the session knowing what you are trying to do. It cannot watch your kite, read the gust coming, or stop you committing to something you are not ready for — a coach or instructor can.
Find a certified schoolEducational reference, not instruction. Kitesurfing is a risk sport: the steps here describe what named schools, instructors and technique libraries teach, and the page lists exactly which ones, but real conditions involve wind, gusts, water state, traffic and equipment behaviour that no written guide accounts for. Schools also teach justified variations — where our sources disagree, the page says so instead of picking one. Judge your own readiness, use the safety systems on your kite, and do not attempt a move because a page made it sound achievable. KitesurfingOfficial accepts no liability for the use of this information on the water.
Questions riders ask
What should I be able to do before trying it?+
Slide from heelside to toeside and ride toeside comfortably on edge. MACkite puts it plainly: if you can pop and ride toeside, you are good to go.
How much air do I actually need?+
A few centimetres for a fraction of a second. Freeing the fins is enough and the tail touches back down first almost immediately — no daylight under the board required.
Where does the kite sit?+
At 11 or 1 o'clock. Learners can inch it slightly higher for support and extra time to bring the leg through, but it must not get anywhere near midday — up there it lifts you and the board slides instead of popping.
What conditions suit learning it?+
Flattish water, some space around you, and enough wind that the kite has power without constant working. For learning new tricks in general, Shaka recommends 15 to 22 knots and flat water away from crowds and shallow areas.
Do I have to unhook?+
No. The IKSurfmag method is hooked in with the bar on the sweet spot throughout, while MACkite's Air Krypt take has you ride downwind, unhook and pop with power — two schools, and the hooked-in one is fully valid.
Keep reading
Sources
Every step on this page traces to the sources below. Where they disagree or stay silent, the page says so instead of guessing.