My name is Sean and I started working for Kitty Hawk Kites in May as a marketing intern. I decided to try kiteboarding because I was excited to receive the opportunity to work in the Outer Banks. I am originally from Northern New Jersey and mostly spent summers at numerous beaches along the Jersey Shore. Before coming to the Outer Banks, I had never noticed or heard of kiteboarding in those parts of New Jersey.
My first Kiteboarding experience truly made me want to get back out on the water as soon as possible. As well as respect the sport. I had zero knowledge of kiteboarding or how it works before my first lesson. But thanks to the experienced staff I now feel extremely comfortable with a kite on the water. There are several aspects of the sport that can’t be all taught at once. However, I feel that there was a strong base of knowledge formed to build upon in future lessons.
Fly & Ride Kiteboarding Course
I participated in the Fly & Ride course amongst five others learning to kiteboard for the first time. I began working for Kitty Hawk Kites at the beginning of the summer season at the Waves Village location in Rodanthe, NC where the kiteboarding school resides. This exposure to kiteboarding on a daily basis made me realize that I must attempt it before the summer ends.
The Fly & Ride course is an all-day adventure that begins with ground school. We learned the ins and outs of kiteboarding safety, wind control, and wind patterns. Our instructors, Jeff and Sean were extremely thorough. But they also knew we wanted to get out on the sound as soon as possible. We then practiced our kite skills without the board by doing body drags and other fun exercises on the water. My only issue was that I forgot to apply sunscreen before going out on the water and got burned before even using the board.
After a quick lunch break, we ventured back out on the sound to practice with the board. We are eventually able to stand up and ride by ourselves. However, I only rode around for a few seconds before I lost control of the kite. I watched as it fell back down into the water. This small victory ended a beautiful and exciting day on the water. It also made me want to get my second lesson right away so I can quickly improve on my initial skills and be able to ride all over the Outer Banks sound by myself.
