A Blind Judge is a raley with a backside 180 while doing the handlepass in the air. There’s a progression to this trick that we recommend you follow and a few key points to making this trick easy.
Progression Step 1
Unhooked Raleys. Click the link if you’re working on perfecting your unhooked raleys. Before progressing towards a blind judge, you want to make sure you generate enough pop to complete the rotation. Focus on your kite position, keep your kite at 11 or 1 throughout the trick. If your timing is right, at the top of your raley you should feel the kite “slack” or drift downwind which will make it easier for you to get the handlepass.
Progression Step 2
Raley to Blind. Before going for the Blind Judge, get comfortable with raley to blinds. You will not need as much height on the raley to blind, which makes it safer to try. There’s two key points for this trick. The first key point is to pull the bar down towards your front hip. Pulling the bar towards your front hip will make it easy to complete the pass, will keep you balanced while in the air and will help you create slack. The second key point is to commit to the rotation. The rotation is a simple 180 degree turn, make sure you rotate around.
Blind Judge: Key Points
Once you have raley to blinds dialed in, the next step is for the Blind Judge. You’ll have to pop higher to get the handlepass in the air or rotate faster. There’s two key points to making this trick easier. The first key point is focusing on the handlepass. To make the handlepass easier keep your elbows closer together for more leverage and really make an effort to pull that bar in towards your front hip. The second key point is the rotation. To rotate faster, throw your head in the direction you want to go. As you throw your head, you also want to bend your front leg. Bending your front leg will make the rotation and handlepass easier for this trick
**** Always remember to keep your kite parked at 11 or 1 when doing an unhooked trick. Kite control comes first, as soon as you feel you’ve lost kite control, let go of the bar. Letting go of the bar will help prevent injury and will keep you on track with your progression.
If you submit your email we promise to only send you the cool stuff you’ll want to click on like the weekend wind forecast, kiteboarding trick tips, kiteboard videos, clinics and free demos. 🙂
