Many times, you ask us how to position your foot pads and bindings on the kiteboard, so in this article, we will tell you how the position varies and what you can achieve by making some small adjustments that will likely improve your sailing. You will correct your posture and feel more comfortable on the board.
Separation between pads
The separation between the foot pads depends on factors like your height, your style of sailing, and your preferences. A narrower space between the pads is usually more comfortable as it provides a softer feel on the board, but it also becomes less stable. This is recommended for freeriders. With a wider leg stance, you achieve more stability, better board edging, greater pop, and improved landings, but it also makes sailing more aggressive on your joints and physically demanding.
Position in relation to the edges
You can position them closer to the heel edge or centered, but it’s not recommended to place them towards the toe edge. For wider boards, small feet, or beginners, the best option would be to move the foot pads closer to the heel edge, as this will allow you to exert more pressure on the edge and thus make upwind sailing easier. Centering the bindings on the board will provide more stability, especially during jump landings.
Angle
The angle mainly depends on each rider’s preferences. The standard angle is around 10 degrees, but do not overdo it, or your knees will suffer from every impact.
Closed or open?
To prevent injuries and sprains, we recommend not tightening the foot straps too much; your foot should enter and exit easily. At first, you may feel a bit uncomfortable without having your foot securely fastened, but you will soon get used to it and reduce the risk of injury.
In our kite school, we receive many inquiries about about choosing between boots or foot straps, as it is becoming more popular and more riders are using them. Boots are designed for wakestyle riders and provide a different sailing sensation, more precision in turns, and much more powerful pop. However, impacts tend to be much harder than with foot straps, so it’s not a bad idea to practice your new maneuvers with foot straps and switch to boots once you’ve perfected them. But be careful, with boots, all impacts will be absorbed by your knees.
We hope these tips have helped you get an idea, and you can experiment until you find the perfect position. You know the drill – grab your screwdriver and get to it!