Toeside riding means you ride with your toes pointed at the kite instead of your heels, and it is the stance carving transitions and wave riding come from.
Also called: toe side · switch stance riding
Prerequisites
Ideal conditions
No source publishes a wind range. First attempts at toeside are best made when you are feeling comfortable on the water, and the size of your kite should not make much difference. Start slow - making the switch and heading off slowly following the kite is already an achievement - then, as you get more confident, come in with more speed and a slightly lower kite. Check that your footstraps are big enough to get pressure from the balls of your feet over the centreline onto the other side of the board; an ancient, huge board (165 cm or bigger) takes a touch more effort to slide all the way around.
How to do it
1. Set up: kite and hands
- Put the kite at 11 o'clock if you are riding to the left, at 1 o'clock if you are riding to the right, and keep it there through the whole move while you balance the tension in the bar.
- Park the kite around a 45 degree angle and keep it stable, partially sheeted out - high, but not too high.
- Centre your hands on the bar either side of the chicken loop and trim the bar down towards you so it stays within reach.
- Know the trade-off: the lower you have your kite, the further around to toeside you'll go; the higher it is, the easier it will be to slide the board.
2. Slow down and switch the board
- Kill your speed: edge the front of the board into the wind while pushing out on the bar.
- Right before you stop, pull in slightly on the bar and bring your back foot forwards - your weight always stays away from the kite.
- To slide-switch instead: drive through your back foot to turn the nose of the board up into the wind, completely open up your body and lean over your front foot - all your weight over the front foot, but still very much on the heelside edge.
- Release your front hand and force your back foot through the 180 as you point your pistol upwind - shoot your shadow with the extended arm, and keep looking at your target so your head stays ready and steady.
- Shifting your weight forward onto your front foot while keeping some pressure on the back foot releases the tension from your back fins, so the board slides around more easily.
3. Settle into the toeside stance
- As soon as the board has come around, force yourself into the toeside stance so you don't lose power: twist your body around to face upwind, shoulders and hips turning upwind and away from the kite.
- With your chest facing the wind, lean a bit forward, dig your toes in and lift your heels - your weight will be over your back leg.
- Drop your hips - and with them your weight - over your back foot.
- Take your front hand off the bar, lean into your toes and direct the board into the wind; just before you let go with your front hand, give the bar a little tug for an extra burst of power.
- Square your shoulders with the board and try to line up with the nose of the board.
4. Hold the edge and ride
- Pull with your front leg and push with your back leg: bring your front knee to your chest and push your back leg out.
- Drive through your back foot, pushing away through your legs, carving the board upwind and keeping the nose up and out of trouble.
- Steer with your hips: opening them toward the kite points you downwind, turning them away points you upwind.
- Point slightly upwind to create more tension and more power; if you point downwind, you'll lose power.
Common mistakes and fixes
Mistake
Kite parked too high, near noon - it pulls you off your edge.
Fix
Park the kite around a 45 degree angle, stable and partially sheeted out: high, but not too high.
Mistake
Staying square with the kite, so you go downwind instead of holding a toeside line.
Fix
Square your shoulders with the board and line up with the nose - but don't turn too much either, or the kite will overfly to the edge of the window.
Mistake
Falling onto your face during the switch.
Fix
Keep your weight over the heel-side edge for the entire switch; only move your weight over your toes once the board has turned to follow the kite.
Mistake
Losing kite control mid-move with the front hand off - the kite keeps rising or you sheet out too much.
Fix
Feel free to get both hands back on the bar.
Mistake
Breaking at the waist into the 'take me' position, which makes it very hard to keep your edge.
Fix
Push your hips down towards the water instead of bending at the waist.
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
Which foot carries my weight once I'm riding toeside?+
The back one. When riding toeside you want your weight over your back toes, and your weight should always be away from the kite.
Do I need a bigger kite or special conditions to learn toeside?+
No - the size of your kite should not make much difference. What matters is that you attempt it when you're feeling comfortable on the water, and add speed and a slightly lower kite only as your confidence grows.
Should I take a hand off the bar?+
Yes, the front one: take your front hand off the bar, lean into your toes and direct the board into the wind - a little tug on the bar just before letting go gives extra power.
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.