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School Recommendations

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Created by wagalagaland > 9 months ago, 15 Jun 2017
wagalagaland
NSW, 10 posts
15 Jun 2017 12:21PM
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Any recommendations for kite boarding schools?

I'm based in NSW, but happy to travel if there are a better locations/schools.

Experience so far:
Bought a training kite and practised launching, landing and flying.

Richoa
NSW, 478 posts
15 Jun 2017 1:31PM
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where are you based? ie narrow NSW down a bit more

wagalagaland
NSW, 10 posts
16 Jun 2017 5:47AM
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Morning Richoa :)

I specifically didn't mention as I am quite happy to travel to get quality :)

But all things being equal, Sydney or Darwin would be the easiest to get to for me.

But to be honest all major Aussie cities would be easy for me to travel to.

Richoa
NSW, 478 posts
16 Jun 2017 9:27AM
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wagalagaland said..
Morning Richoa :)

I specifically didn't mention as I am quite happy to travel to get quality :)



ok good, I got some lessons off Tom Moore (gumtree add) in toukley, he was good

Newcastle Kite and Sup do lessons and he seems pretty good bloke.

Not sure I d drive from Sydney to there but if your keen.

KiteBud
WA, 1515 posts
16 Jun 2017 8:39AM
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wagalagaland said..
Morning Richoa :)

I specifically didn't mention as I am quite happy to travel to get quality :)





That's great. The challenge in NSW or VIC is to get consistent winds. When you're learning it's always best to commit full-time for a week or two. I always found that many students progress slowly due to big gaps between their lessons, which essentially ends up costing them more money and makes it frustrating for them as well. I tried to learned in Canada myself with very poor conditions and locations, so it took me year to figure it out. In the summer in Perth it would've taken me only 2 weeks to reach the same level.

The only State where you can get such wind consistency when learning in the summer months is in WA

Also, when looking for lessons, you'd rather ask for recommendation for a specific instructor instead of a ''school''. It's a bit like if you're looking for the ''best'' personal trainer, you're not going to ask what gym do you recommend? You'll ask which trainer do you recommend.

Christian

wagalagaland
NSW, 10 posts
17 Jun 2017 7:21AM
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Thanks Richoa and Christian :)

pattiecannon
QLD, 593 posts
17 Jun 2017 10:20AM
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Hey wagalaga, m8 cbulota is right about consistent winds and getting out there however our time schedules don't often permit this even in times of consistent wind.
The fact with wind is that any location can turn off when it's supposed to be on and vice versa. Here at the Gold Coast Broadwater we have had an extremely unseasonal awesome fortnight, & it's still going. In July I am heading to Townsville, Cairns and Cooktown this is another place where the wind traditionally blows all day every day at this time of year. Pm me if you'd like to know more about my very awesome progress based lessons.
Cheers

Jimnastic
NSW, 16 posts
17 Jun 2017 7:58PM
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I was very happy with lessons from Vit at KBA
www.kiteboardinglessons.com.au/
He's well equiped with the boat, headphones-helmets, etc and does a great job covering safety as well as coaching on the beach and water.

FoS
TAS, 1664 posts
3 Jul 2017 8:45AM
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I went to mui ne in vietnam and my instructor was Son, very good.
Ananda Resort
goo.gl/maps/BTxgahWnixF2

If Aus is your preference WA is great
Exmouth would be my next choice, but its not a capital
Safety bay near perth

BronqMrs
NSW, 4 posts
3 Jul 2017 3:00PM
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@wagalagaland, kitepower at sans souci (syd) have excellent instructors??. Teaching season is sept-april

Jhana
WA, 120 posts
6 Jul 2017 3:01PM
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Its definitely better to find a good instructor rather than rely on the reputation of the Kitesurfing School because the Kitesurfing Schools may change their teachers regularly.

I have been burnt a couple of times relying on the reputation of the Kitesurfing School - it has cost me at least $750 going to dud schools.

I finally found a great teacher but he has gone back to New Zealand.

Keep looking - A good instructor will treat Safety as number 1 and they will be able to know what you are doing wrong - rather than keeping you coming back time after time without progress.

If they say things like "it will just click" or "just keep trying" without being able to explain what is wrong and how to correct it then change teachers.

If the teacher shows any frustration or anger then ditch them - they should be calm and fully attentive on what you are doing.

I had one teacher who was on his mobile phone while I was in the water trying to Water Start. He then got angry when I came into the beach.

Another bum teacher told me yeh what you are doing is ok - 5 minutes later I ended up with concussion for a week because I wasn't doing it ok and he couldn't see what I was doing wrong.

From my experience there are very few good teachers around.

Do your homework - keep looking

Good Luck

KiteBud
WA, 1515 posts
6 Jul 2017 4:27PM
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Jhana said..
Its definitely better to find a good instructor rather than rely on the reputation of the Kitesurfing School because the Kitesurfing Schools may change their teachers regularly.






Very good comment Jhana. NickT said the same thing a while ago, it's NOT about the school but all about the instructor.

Unfortunately the majority (probably over 80%) of kite instructors in Australia are working in the Country for only a single season as most of them come from overseas on working holiday visas. This makes it very difficult for most schools to guarantee high quality standards. It's also pretty hard to find passion driven instructors. School owners simply don't spend time or money in training their own instructors

I've trained many instructors over the years and it takes hard work, long hours and dedication to have them reach a good level of teaching, and by the time they actually become good, the season is over and most of them won't be coming back...

That's why I decided to launch my own school as I realized that having a small operation is the only way to maintain consistent high quality standards.

The OP has been in touch a few weeks ago, we're all booked up for December in Perth. Looking forward to it

Christian

ActionSportsWA
WA, 950 posts
7 Jul 2017 1:07PM
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Jimnastic said..
I was very happy with lessons from Vit at KBA
www.kiteboardinglessons.com.au/
He's well equiped with the boat, headphones-helmets, etc and does a great job covering safety as well as coaching on the beach and water.


Hey Wagalagaland,

Jimnastic is right, Vit is "the goods" in Sydney. He does one on one lessons and safety is a priority. I can highly recommend Vit. Sydney gets plenty of good teaching conditions and Vit is not bound by wind direction as he uses a boat but also does beach work too.

DM

Unhooked Wtrspts
NSW, 7 posts
19 Aug 2017 4:39PM
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Select to expand quote
wagalagaland said..
Any recommendations for kite boarding schools?

I'm based in NSW, but happy to travel if there are a better locations/schools.

Experience so far:
Bought a training kite and practised launching, landing and flying.


Hi wagalagaland.
I own a kite shop in Wollongong. Unhooked Watersports. Not sure if we're close but we are happy to assist.

5 Sep 2017 5:58PM
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Im up in Noosa sunshine coast myself and you could come up , but its a fairly long drive, and I'm happy to recommend Vit , James and kite power in Sydney all of them have been doing it for a fair amount of time, and have a good reputations for doing there best for you.
Hope this helps
George

ExSurfCentre
WA, 481 posts
8 Sep 2017 1:11PM
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If you are up for traveling and looking for lessons in uncrowded, consistent conditions with experienced instructors check us out up here in Exmouth at Exmouth Surf Centre www.exmouthsurfcentre.com.au

A little off the beaten track but accessible through Learmonth Airport and once you are here you will instantly forget about the extra travel time.

We don't like to blow our own trumpet but are proud of the work we do introducing new kiters to the sport and feel that alongside our experience, the local conditions and the lack of crowds there aren't many better places to get to grips with kiting than with us. Don't take our word for it, see what others from all over the globe have said about their experience with us on Tripadvisor www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g488342-d6560465-Reviews-Exmouth_Surf_Centre-Exmouth_Western_Australia.html

Call me directly on 0467906091 for anymore info...

cauncy
WA, 8407 posts
8 Sep 2017 8:48PM
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If you want possibly one of the best locations and quality instruction you'd be hard pressed to look past esc at Exmouth wa, tom and Yana are renowned for their methods
when you get home it'll be tough though



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"School Recommendations" started by wagalagaland