Latest News, Blog & Videos
Ride with Blake | Basic Grabs - Indy and Tail
Hey guys, Blake from Mackite here.
This week we are going to go over kiteboarding grabs and give you a board grab guide.We'll eventually cover every grab from beginner to advanced so stay tuned. Why you need to start
Not only does adding grabs to your jumps/tricks feel great but it actually helps you control the rotation and adds style. Adding grabs to your tricks is the next step in progression after learning the basics. Once you have a trick or jump dialed in and feel comfortable i
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10th Nov 2017
Ride with Blake | How to Set Up Your Footstraps
This video covers how to perfect your kiteboarding stance as well as some of the basics concepts such as heelside, toeside. Goofy foot vs regular foot. Riding blind and riding wrapped.
If you need help putting your footstraps together for the first time give us a call and we'll walk you through it.
800-622-4655
This may seem like a simple one but in reality when do you ever learn how to set up your board? They don’t teach you this in a lesson. I’ve done it myself where the footstraps ar
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27th Oct 2017
Ride with Blake | 4 Tips to Land a Kite
Step One: Catch someone’s attention on the beach by tapping your head.
Make sure that as you are coming in you have gotten the attention of someone before starting to put your kite down. Make sure the person knows that you want them to land you before putting your kite down low at the edge of the wind window. If they are not there in time and your kite crashes it can launch back in the air and take you with it. This will not only be bad for you but for your kite and everyone on the beach.Ste
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11th Oct 2017
Ride with Blake | How To Do Your First Front Roll
The front roll is a must have basic for any kiteboarder. It looks awesome on its own but it does lead to more advanced tricks and rotations.
Today you were going to learn this basic in three sessions. I'm going to do this one a little different as this video is for beginners.
It's all about muscle memory and slowly building confidence. I'll be recommending a certain number of times you should practice each movement for each session.
Let’s get started.Session number one: Do a f
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18th Jul 2017
Ride with Blake | How To Do a Stylish Backroll
The backroll is a staple in your kiteboarding bag of tricks. With a few small adjustments you can really improve your style and make this basic trick your own.
Session One: Do a Flat 360 First
It's the same motion as a backroll, you're just taking the invert out of the equation. Send the kite gently, pop and look over your front shoulder. Doing this, your body will spin. As you come around spot your landing. As you look forward your body will stop rotating. Sheet the bar out to come d
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12th Jul 2017
Ride with Blake | 5 Steps to Better Kite Control
Five steps to better kite control.
Hey guys, today I want to talk about five things you can do to dramatically improve your kite skills. After all, kiteboarding is mostly about flying a kite. I mean, kites have been around for thousands of years. Most people can have fun flying a small kite on a string. We have these amazing highly engineered tools that propel us across the water and into the sky. So it goes with out saying you need to spend a lot of time flying your kite and frankly just ha
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5th Jul 2017
Ride with Blake | 5 Steps to Relaunch Your Kite
The relaunch is one of the most important steps in learning how to kiteboard. After all, if you can't get your kite out of the water you're not going to get very far in the sport.
One of the biggest concerns people face in the early stages is the fear of the unknown.
What happens if I crash?
How do I get back in if I drop my kite?
Will the kite keep pulling me if I drop it?
To counter these fears, I recommend starting small. You need to practice your relaunch on
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23rd Jun 2017
Ride with Blake | How to Jump Higher
How to Jump Higher Kiteboarding - Ride with Blake: Vlog 17
So you can jump, that's great! Now, you're wondering how to get more air. In this episode, Blake has 5 tips that will take you to the moon and back!
So here it is, five steps for you on how to jump higher with your kiteboard.Step one:
Have good board speed, a lot of people think that being overpowered will make the jump higher but that’s a common misconception. If you have to much power, you will get a lot of lateral jumps but n
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22nd Jun 2017
Ride with Blake | How to Ride Upwind in Light Wind
How to Ride Upwind in Light Wind - Ride with Blake: Vlog 16
For some, riding in light winds can be a little challenging. How can you ride upwind? Blake goes through the "Blake Necessities" on how to ride in lighter winds.
1. Get a big board or a foil
Look for something flatter with little rocker. Good suggestions are the North Spike, Cabrinha Stylus, or Liquid Force Overdrive.
2. Shorten the wind window in strong winds - keep within the power zone
3. Perform S-turns with
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30th May 2017
Ride with Blake | How To Transition on a Kiteboard
You've take a kiteboarding lesson and mastered the Waterstart that's awesome! However, there is one little problem... How do you go back the other way? Fear not, I've broken down the kiteboarding transition into five easy steps. The next time you hit the water give these a try and see if they help!Step one
Practice on the beach with a trainer kite. Visualization goes a long way with learning anything. If you can get your hands on it that's even better. I recommend taking a day
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5th May 2017
Ride with Blake | How To Jump on a Foilboard
With so many friends coming to visit recently, I haven't been working nearly as much as I should. The last week I've mostly logged a lot of hours at work. That said, I thought I would talk about a really fun event that takes place in Key West. The Havana Classic, a Hobie cat race from Key West to Havana Cuba. Last year a few close friends and myself followed the racers quite a ways out. We didn't make all the way to Cuba but it was an incredible experience non the less. One of my long term go
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27th Apr 2017
Ride with Blake | How to Ride Your Kiteboard Upwind
Hey folks! In the latest installment of MACkite’s Ride With Blake series, Blake Olsen chats about how to ride upwind - a critical skill in the learning process of kiteboarding for beginners.
Blake: Today’s lesson is on how to ride upwind. Once you get your first start, you end up going back and forth on the beach and you end up walking back up the beach, and that’s all part of the learning process. Everyone’s got to do it, so don’t worry about the walk of shame - we’ve all been there bef
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8th Apr 2017
Ride with Blake | How To Do a Back Roll Hand Drag Transition
The Back roll hand drag is possibly the most stylish way to transition
The last week in Key west has been epic. Exploring the islands with my kite, paddle boarding the mangroves and snorkeling the reef. The abundance of wildlife in the ocean never ceases to amaze me! For this week's blog I thought I would share five steps to nailing your first back roll hand drag transition. This is one of the most stylish ways you can transition with your kite. Like most kiteboarding trick
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31st Mar 2017
Ride with Blake | How to Throw an Inverted Front Roll
The inverted front roll is a slightly more advanced variation of the front roll.
The last few days in key West haven’t been that windy. In truth, it’s a much-needed break! I thought I would take a bike ride down to the White Street Pier and break down my favorite trick for you. The inverted front roll! One of the most fun aspects of our sport is taking these basic tricks and adding your own personal style to them. This is an intermediate level trick, that said if you can do three sta
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24th Mar 2017
Ride with Blake | Tips for Water Starting
So, you've taken a kiteboarding lesson or two and you're ready to try your first water start. That's awesome! Welcome to a new reality, my friend! I have five great tips for you to remember when you're first starting out.
Tip One
Learn to fly the kite in one hand. Kiteboarding is 80% flying the kite, so it's a no-brainer you should have some serious kite time under your belt. I recommend finding a clear area and just hanging out with a friend. Remember to keep your hand on the middle
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10th Mar 2017