BayAreaKiteboarding.com

What's the deal with the Jumps at the Island at Sherman? Can you ride up with fins on? Do you need to jump onto it? Wanted to try yesterday but not sure how they work.

You probably will not do very well with fins in your board. There might be seams on the kicker surface which your fins will surely catch wipe you out! You want the "sliding" effect anyways.
Riding a finless twin-tip is how to do it. You'll want to have your board pretty flat once it's on the kicker, b/c there's no edge holding on that surface. I've seen riders slip-out and hit the kicker hard with their body, so make sure you find an upright balance once you've left water and are on the kicker heading up towards the take-off. As for your kite, I've stayed hooked in...but others have done it unhooked. Visualize how you'll be sliding flat on your board from the momentum you had coming up to the ramp... have it pretty high as you're about to take off.
Go for it! ...with a helmet!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwxVKuqKMnM[/video]

I don't understand the advantage of the ramp. You don't need a ramp to get air for tricks with a kiteboard. Yesterday I saw a guy boost over the tules and barely miss that ramp coming down.

windstoked wrote:I don't understand the advantage of the ramp. You don't need a ramp to get air for tricks with a kiteboard. Yesterday I saw a guy boost over the tules and barely miss that ramp coming down.

i agree.. but then again I'm not that much of a freestyle guy.

Ramp is fun for unhook tricks. If you're working on handle pass for example, it will be easier since you don't have to focus on speed and your load and pop.
At least that's what I would imagine.
If you're staying hooked in... I don't really see the point to hit a ramp indeed...

North wind will fix the ramps

Thanx Captain John. Definitely glad I did not try with fins on.

Also, it is possible to break your fins when hitting a kicker.

I would recommend hitting it unhooked. If you are hooked and get caught on the upwind side of the kicker you can hurt yourself. If you are not experienced with features like this I would strongly recommend a helmet. Boots would also be recommended as they give you better connection to your board and put your body in a better position to hit a ramp.

Kickers are really geared for unhooked tricks like at a cable park or behind a boat. Le noun is right it can make it easier to get that extra height for handle pass tricks or other grabs/inverts. This is because typically you hit the kicker with speed and point nearly directly downwind. This will slack your lines and reduce the pull of the kite.

When hitting the kicker make sure you flatten your board and put your weight forward (over your front foot). Edging on a kicker/feature is bad news. You will slip out and land on your back.

How to hit kicker:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkA2wuidr4c[/video]

How not to hit kicker:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u13RTZcPLMQ[/video]

Ha! The second one is a friend of mine from New Zealand. Small world.