Kitesurf Beginners Guide

Just getting into kitesurfing? We've got you covered. From kites to harnesses, you'll find everything you need to make the right choices as a beginner. Ready to put together your first kite setup? Contact us for personal advice.

Harnesses for beginners

Buying a Harness. We help you as a beginner in making the right harness choice.

Your harness is one of the most important (and probably most undervalued) pieces of your gear. It is the crucial connection between you and your kite. You will hook into a lot of power and use your harness to lean against that… therefore, nothing less than a great fit and the right choice of materials will do! No worries, after reading the following page, you will know everything you need to pick a comfortable, functional and robust harness:

Seat Harnesses

Seat Harnesses sit on the hips, equipped with leg straps, used mostly by beginners and some foilers.

Waist Harnesses

Waist Harnesses sit between hips and ribs, used by the majority of intermediate and advanced kiters.

Hybrid Harnesses

Hybrid Harnesses sit on both waist and hips, waist harness with detachable seat part and leg streps.

View our range of Harnesses

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Soft shell harnesses

are flexible and do adjust to your body and movements. This offers a lot of comfort, but also the least amount of support for your back. So, if you want to cruise in comfort, go with a soft-shell harness.

Hard shell harness

are stiff and keep their shape. This gives you a very direct feedback from your kite and a lot of support. The ideal hard-shell harness spreads the pressure from the kite evenly across the whole back plate and does not pinch you on the side. If you are ambitious or want to ride in strong winds, go with a hard-shell harness.

Flex shell harness

Harnesses that are in between are called medium or flex-shells. These are a mix of both. Some hard shells are more flexible than others and others have a very stiff back plate and flexible side panels. This offers a great mix of comfort and performance and is suitable for most riders.

Some harnesses are offered including a spreader bar. But for more advanced harnesses you can choose which spreader you want to ride. You can choose for a hooked spreader bar, a slider spreader bar or now a days you have also some spreader bars which can offer both disciplines in one spreader bar.

Spreader Bar with Hook

This is a fixed connection, where you hook in your chicken loop and secure it with your chicken stick. This results in a more direct feedback from your kite. Twintip riders most often use spreader bars with hooks. As most beginners start off on a twintip, you should get a spreader bar with hook first.

Slider

For this connection, you open your chicken loop, pull it under the slider and stick your chicken loop back into your quick release. This connection can therefore slide from left to right. This results in more freedom of movement, when twisting your hips. Wave-riders and foilers often prefer spreader bars with sliders.

Combination of hook and slider:

The Stealth slider spreader bar of Mystic has a loop, which you can use to pull the slider ring through and this will give you the same experience as a hooked spreader bar. When you mostly practice wave riding, but like to use your Twintip in some cases this option can be very nice.

Checkout all available Harnesses

Now that you know everything about choosing your first harness, you are ready to make your choice!

If you have any questions, you can of course always call, email, WhatsApp or visit our store in Noordwijk!

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Kitesurf Beginners Guide

Harnesses for beginners

Buying a Harness. We help you as a beginner in making the right harness choice.

What types of harnesses are used for kitesurfing?

View our range of Harnesses

Which kitesurfing harness is best for me – seat/ waist or hybrid harness?

Which waist harness is ideal for me – soft, medium or hard-shell harness?

What is the right size for me?

Should I get a spreader bar with a hook or a slider?

Where should I connect my leash?

How do I take care of my harness?

Can I use a windsurfing harness for kitesurfing?

Can I connect a board leash to my harness?

Checkout all available Harnesses

Now that you know everything about choosing your first harness, you are ready to make your choice!