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Wave · Progressing

Strapless Toeside Riding

See it in the Trick Tree

Strapless toeside riding means crossing the water on an unstrapped surfboard with the chest turned to the wind and weight pressed through the toeside rail.

Also called: surfboard toeside · toe side riding · strapless toeside

Prerequisites

Strapless WaterstartToeside Riding

Unlocks

Strapless Toeside Jibe

Ideal conditions

Flat water with lots of space for learning, riding well powered so the kite still pulls at the jibe exit; no source we cite states a numeric wind range.

How to do it

  1. 1. Carve in from heelside

    • Bring the kite up to 10 or 11 o'clock, high enough to sit steady but off noon, or it pulls you off your rail.
    • Move your back foot forward before the turn.
    • Turn the kite first, then flatten the board and roll off your heels onto your toes to carve downwind after it.
    • Push the bar out a touch mid-carve to keep your speed in check.
    • Press harder through your toes at the end of the arc and hold the board there instead of carving on back to heelside.
    • Stay well powered through the jibe so the kite still has pull left for you after the turn.

  2. 2. Waterstart straight to toeside

    • Lie back in the water with the kite at 12 and both feet on the board in your natural stance.
    • Dive the kite in a power stroke suited to the conditions; a small figure-8, sweeping an hour off 12 and back through the opposite power zone, builds extra speed for a fast start.
    • As the kite passes 12 and starts to pull, sink your back foot at the rear of the tail pad to pop the nose clear, back leg bent and close to your body, front leg extending to steer the board after the kite.
    • Aim the board down and across the wind at first and avoid travelling dead downwind.
    • Drop your front hand off the bar just after the kite passes 12 and roll up onto the balls of your feet.
    • Send a second power stroke from higher up if you need it, then park the kite and ride away on your toes.

  3. 3. Hold the toeside line

    • Square your shoulders with the nose of the board; stay square to the kite and the board runs downwind.
    • Lean slightly forward with your chest facing the wind, dig your toes in and lift your heels.
    • Keep your weight over the back leg and resist the pull to run downwind.
    • Fly the kite with your top hand and let the bottom hand hang to windward for balance, or lean out and down to touch the water with it.
    • To climb upwind, look where you want to go, keep the back leg bent and press through the ball of your back foot; more pressure gives a sharper angle.
    • Manage speed by flying the kite higher to slow down and sheeting for control; park it to cruise.

Common mistakes and fixes

Mistake

Parking the kite at noon while trying to hold toeside, so it lifts you off your edge.

Fix

Park it around 45 degrees and partially sheeted out; it sits stable there without pulling you off the rail.

Mistake

Shoulders stay square to the kite and the board drifts downwind.

Fix

Rotate until your shoulders line up with the nose of the board; taking your front hand off the bar helps you square up.

Mistake

Over-rotating past the nose, which flies the kite out to the edge of the window.

Fix

Watch your angle and line your shoulders up with the nose, no further.

Mistake

Carving into the jibe underpowered, so the kite has nothing left at the exit.

Fix

Learn jibes well powered and add toe pressure at the end of the turn so you ride out with pull.

Mistake

Turning the board before the kite on a toeside waterstart.

Fix

The kite always goes first; send the power stroke, then direct the board and body after it.

If it goes wrong

  • Before a wave session, practice releasing every stage of your safety system and do a release check on the beach; you must be able to ditch the kite completely, quickly and easily.
  • If you crash the kite in surf, relaunch it immediately or release it completely.
  • If the kite is caught in breaking waves while you are attached to the bar, release and detach it; line tension in surf can easily rip the kite.

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 school

Educational 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

Do I need toeside before taking a surfboard into waves?+

Yes. You should be able to hold both regular and toeside stance on flat water without thinking about it, because you often have to approach the wave riding toeside.

Why learn toeside instead of switching my feet?+

Riding toeside upwind lets you tack in both directions without moving your feet on the board, so you stay in your preferred stance while lining up and catching waves.

Where does the kite sit while I ride toeside?+

Parked around 45 degrees and partially sheeted out; near noon it pulls you off your edge. Fly it higher when you want to slow down.

Where should I practice it first?+

On flat water with plenty of space. Get both stances solid there before you take the surfboard into waves.

Does my harness matter?+

Yes. A seat harness makes toeside very hard because the kite's pull on the hook rotates your body out of position. You can rotate your harness a little so the hook sits closer to your hip on the kite side.

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.