Aerial transitions offer the easiest way to get into strapless flying as you use your hand to hold the board so the chances of it flying away are reduced, and because you are moving into a transition you don’t have to worry about re directing the kite once you are in the air.

If you are riding a bow style kite you will need to either have the stopper down so the kite does not de power too much or you will need to hold the bar around the centre line, otherwise in trying to keep the power on, you will accidentally steer the kite too fast. On a C kite you should set the chicken loop length so that when it rests on the knot at the end (or stopper ball as I use) the kite still has some lift and the rear lines are not so loose that you have no chance to steer the kite.

The start of this move is one of the basics of strapless boarding and mastering it will let you learn many other aerial tricks. Kicking the board into your hand seems, and looks, like the easiest thing in the world, but is deceptively tricky, and until you can do it you are going to struggle with any kind of aerial turn or spin, so just get practicing.

• Ride along with the kite in its regular 11 o’clock position. • Carve the board into the wind whilst letting the kite slowly rise over your head to 12 o’clock. Try to carve the board sufficiently fast into the wind so that it starts to come up out of the water and then reach down and grab it on the rail just before your front foot. (The further back along the rail you grab the board, the more balanced it will be in the air and the easier to get back under your feet to land.)

• You are trying to get the board into the air upwind of you. There is a temptation to kick the board forwards, however you'll only succeed in sending it forward out of reach. By carving it into the wind and then letting it rise up into the air it will naturally be blowing back towards you and you should be able to grab it easily. • The other thing to bear in mind here is that you need to reach down and grab it. It’s unlikely that the board will come all the way up to your hand on its own!

• Once the board is in your hand the tricky part is over. Slowly start to send the kite to the other side of the window as you would for any transition. There is no rush to get the board back underneath you, so take your time and enjoy the moment. You can even let the board tweak out a little if you're feeling fancy!

• As the kite starts to pull you in the new direction of travel start thinking about getting the board back under your feet. Let your weight hang in the harness and bring the board back under your feet. Don’t forget to keep steering the kite as you need to have some speed when you land.

• If you have steered the kite forward fast enough you can let go of the board early as your forward speed will hold it onto your feet. If you don’t have enough speed then you will need to hold onto it until the end as I do in this sequence.

• You can even hold onto the rail until the board actually touches the surface of the water if you need to.

• If you have let your weight hang in the harness you will be well-balanced at this point and not fall off the back of the board. Falling off the back is a symptom of either not keeping your centre of gravity vertical or sending the kite forward far too fast. If you land with no forward speed at all then you have not sent the kite forward fast enough and need to be a little more aggressive next time.

• Try to land on the board traveling a little downwind and as soon as you are sure you are going to stay on then gently carve the board into the new direction of travel.