There are a number of reasons.  Having a boat provides spacious comfort while being on the water and learning this new activity of Kiteboarding or WingFoiling.  At first when you are learning and are unable to navigate and ride upwind, (everyone has been at this level) the boat drives you back upwind rather than spending more time and energy walking and carrying your gear back upwind.   Extra gear is stowed on the boat so when conditions change, equipment changes can quickly be made.  Multiple people can come on the boat and take part in the lesson.  Jet-ski supported lessons are pretty good, but having a boat is much better and more comfortable.  You can also get towed alongside the boat using a “support pole” to develop board/foil riding skills.

YES!  While other lesson programs have you stay on land for the first lesson, you will get in the water and be able to make you first attempt on getting up on the board, or on foil, in the first lesson.  You’ll spend more time and money going through other schools’ lessons in order to get in the water and start making attempts at getting up and riding the Kiteboard/FoilBoard.

All lessons are based off of the Windseeker Support Boat.  This is a 21ft Yamaha JetBoat with no external propeller, similar to a jet ski but bigger and with more sitting and storage space.

All first lessons are a gradual “build-up” of skills and knowledge that keep adding up until you reach a level that allows you to spend more time up and riding/foiling on the water.

For your 1st KiteBoarding Lesson, you fly a full-size/4-line kite while sitting on the boat, learning to control/maneuver it.  Then you hook-up to the kite, get in the water and body-drag with the kite.  At this stage you learn to feel and control both the amount and direction of pull from the kite.  Towards the end of of lesson, you will get the board and make attempts at getting your first rides.  After your first lesson, the next lessons are geared toward improving your board riding skills which may include some “Pole-Supported” board riding time.   Or, you may just need a couple more sessions gaining more control of your riding speed which which will help you get better and longer rides.

For your 1st WingFoiling Lesson, you first ride a Foilboard using the support pole for additional help in balancing yourself and finding the optimal foot position on the board.  Next, you fly the wing while standing on the back of the boat.  Then, you get back on the board with the Wing and begin riding and foiling around with the Windseeker Support Boat ready to take you back upwind and give you a break before you go out for another run!

We cancel and reschedule the lesson.  Often times, if we wait bit, the wind will become more favorable so the session wil go on.  There are board riding skills that we can work that do not require wind, and this can be done while we wait the wind to improve.

When a 2nd person joins in the lesson, the two of you split the 3hr session.  This means each individual gets less instructor attention and less time in the water doing the activity.  This is nice for those who want to experience a briefer or lighter introduction to the sport while the other person may want to use the majority of the lesson time for themselves.  By sitting in the boat, one can observe and learn quite a bit.

A difficult question, and there is much debate over this.  Kitesurfing, a more powerful sport and being “hooked in” with the harness, requires less strength and agility to stand up and get going.n  In other sorkds its eaeir to stand up and start riding with a ktie.  As a WingFoiler, you start on your knees then stand-up from a one-knee kneeling position without much help from the Wing.  This is more difficult than standing up with a kite.  Kitesurfing, however, requires more understanding and technique to handle the kite properly and also more riding or planing speed to maintain riding speed.  WindFoiling has larger, more voluminous boards that do not have to reach planing speeds for the rider to be up and moving.  But, to actually get up on foil, requires some finer-tuned balance that take some additional time and training.  Either one takes time to master, but they are both activities one enjoy in their later years with low impact of being on the water.  The feeling of foiling is remarkably smooth and allows riders to enjoy surprisingly fast speeds even in low windspeed.  Kitesurfing on a foil is also possible.

For Kitesurfing, on average, people need at least 4 lessons before they can go out on their own.  If the rider has good wakeboarding experience and knowledge of points of sail-upwind/downwind courses- then 4 lessons should be good.  Essentially, when you can ride away from the boat, then return back to the boat while riding, proving you can stay upwind for about 30 minutes, then you are ready to go on your own.

For WingFoiling, you can go out on your own after one lesson but you will have a much easier and more enjoyable time if you keep doing lessons until you have the skills to ride upwind, in other words, being able to ride back upwind to the boat.  Otherwise, you will spend a lot of time and energy walking back upwind after a limited time in the water.

*There are lessons packages available.  Ask about the 4 lesson discount.

For Kitesurfing, you can get trainer kite and fly it on land, but this is certainly not necessary.  In fact, trainer kites creates bad habits and give a false impression of how full size, 4-line kites fly and how you need to handle them.  In your first lesson, you will fly a full size, 4-line kite from the boat and therefore build a better, more realistic impression and develop good habits leading to better control and understanding.

For WingFoiling, if you have a wing, you can fly it on the beach before the lesson.  Watch this video for guidance and specific training that helps you develop basic and important skills.

For Kitesurfing, No, you will not have enough skill and experiencer to safely go on you own.  You must get to a level where you can safely launch a kite from land, walk while controlling and flying it and enter the water to begin your session.  Then you have to be able to navigate on the water and target your return to land.  Many troublesome events can happen if you attempt this before being able to ride upwind which is why at least 4 lessons are recommended.

For WingFoilling, Yes, you can go out on your own after one lesson.  Because launching and landing WingFoiling gear is easy and safe to do by yourself, you can go out and practice.  But you’ll need to pay attention to your downwind travel and be able to return and target an exit point out of the water.  More lessons are recommended to get to the point of being able staying upwind.

Most of the time, lessons are performed in the waters between Treasure Island and Berkely/Emeryville.  Depending on the wind, we may have to chase the wind and will drive the boat to other spots, like Candlestick, Angel Island, or Crissy Field.  The Windseeker support boat can drive to other spots and have the gear on board.

The Windy Season begins in March and goes through October.  The central bay near Treasure Island, where KiteTheBay operates, has the longest windy season of the entire bay area.  Because it is inline with the Golden Gate opening which allows ocean pressure to be funneled through the bay in a west to east fashion that creates exceptionally strong thermal produced winds, the central bay will receive good strong winds while many other kiting/winging sites will not. It’s arguably the one of the longest windy seasons that exists worldwide!

La Ventana, Baja Mexico.  Come down for a week or longer and keep your progression going!  It’s a warm and windy spot where a lot of enthusiasts flock to and spend time working on their skills and staying active and stoked on their passion!  John, has spent the last 11 winters here and looks forward to teaching others.  Ask about accommodations and start planning your winter trip!