Imagine making aerial jumps 30 feet into the air. That is Kiteboarding. Imagine a great hobby where you can travel to beautiful locations and meet like-minded people. Imagine a healthy lifestyle, enjoying an adrenaline-pumping sport.

Kiteboarding is fast becoming one of the more popular ways to enjoy the rugged Pacific Ocean. Simply put, it is using nothing more than the wind and a kite to propel you along on a surfboard or wakeboard. You have a control bar, used to steer the kite and for adjusting its power. The best conditions is a wind of at least 6-7 knots that is not pushing you directly offshore, pulling you out to sea, or onshore, which may end up pushing you into rocks. As long as the winds are steady and consistent, you're good to go.

Cross-shore winds are a Kiteboarder's nirvana. Large, open bodies of water are also something you want to look for. Many places along the coast can accommodate you. Ultimately, a stronger wind and larger kite will give a daring person the biggest rush, as it picks them up and out of the water and allows for some righteous stunt boarding. Kiteboarding can also be enjoyed on the snow (which you don't find a lot of on the coast).

It is not a very complicated sport for beginners to learn, but is extreme enough for avid participants. In only a few hours, you should be able to get the hang of steering the kite and learning how to avoid crashing it. Your best bet to find a professional trainer for lessons, saving both time and money in the long run. Although easy enough to begin with, it can be dangerous if you don't know exactly what you're doing. Some good, solid training will lead you into many fun and safe hours of ripping the waves. There are schools, camps and shops popping up all over the world, catering to the person chomping at the bit to get out there and ride the waves like no one before him or her.

The top kiteboarding gear to have for a great experience, no mater whether you are on a lake, river, ocean or snow, is a couple different sized boards (a larger board when the wind is mild and a smaller one for when the wind is wild). You ultimately would want to own three kites, depending on what kind of wind you're catching. A good beginner's kite will be a 32-39 foot (10-12 meters), low-to-moderate-aspect kite. As you progress, you can look into some larger kites.

I would highly recommend a wetsuit to keep the cold away from you. You want to keep your thoughts on the fun of kiteboarding, rather than whether you're comfy or not. Have a great time! ;)

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