True wind
The actual wind speed and direction over the water, independent of the rider’s motion.
KITE SPEAK · CONTROLLED LANGUAGE
Kite Speak.
This is the language Beyond The Edge uses to describe conditions, board and kite setup, tack geometry, the big-air take-off chain, WOO evidence and coaching. The rule is simple: talk to you like a kitesurfer, keep the mechanics precise, and never pretend the data proves more than it does.
TECHNIQUE GUIDESKite Angle & Send →Landing →
BIG-AIR SEQUENCE
The canonical take-off and flight chain.
- 01Approach Speed
- 02Send
- 03Edge
- 04Load
- 05Peak Line Tension
- 06Release
- 07Pop
- 08Sheet
- 09Redirect
- 10Flight
- 11Descent
- 12Landing
REFERENCE
109 controlled terms.
Surf and windsurf crossover language is included where it improves the kitesurfing read. BTE coaching follows the frame: Domain → Phase → Variable → State → Effect → Action.
Apparent wind
The wind felt by the moving rider: true wind combined with the airflow created by board speed.
Average wind
The sustained or mean wind speed over the measurement period used to describe the base power available.
Gust
A short-lived increase above the average wind. A gust can create extra boosting opportunity but also changes timing and control.
Lull
A temporary drop below the average wind that reduces line load and usable power.
Wind direction
The compass direction the wind comes from, such as SW or WNW.
Onshore
Wind blowing from sea toward land.
Offshore
Wind blowing from land toward sea. Normally unsafe for kitesurfing without specialist support.
Cross-shore
Wind travelling broadly parallel to the beach.
Cross-on
Wind angled toward the beach while still giving a useful cross-shore component.
Cross-off
Wind angled away from the beach. Often less forgiving and may be unsafe depending on the spot.
Wind band
A practical BTE range used to describe session character: waiting, foiling, mowing the lawn, normal boosting, big air or going massive.
Usable wind
The part of the wind that can actually be converted into board speed, line tension and lift for the rider’s course and tack.
Effective wind
BTE shorthand for how strong the wind effectively behaves for the rider once course geometry, beach orientation, tack and board speed are considered.
Flat
Relatively smooth water with little chop or wave face to disturb approach speed.
Chop
Short, irregular surface waves that can interrupt edge grip, board speed and take-off timing.
Swell
Longer-period wave energy travelling through the spot, often creating more organised ramps than wind chop.
Set
A group of larger waves arriving together.
Face
The sloping front surface of a wave.
Lip
The breaking top edge of a wave.
Shoulder
The unbroken section beside the breaking part of a wave.
Trough
The low point between waves.
Kicker
A useful piece of chop or wave face that acts as a ramp at take-off.
Ramp
Any water feature used to give the board a cleaner upward trajectory into release.
Section
A particular part of a wave or water feature that offers a specific line or take-off opportunity.
Carve
A controlled arcing turn created through rail/edge pressure.
Bottom turn
A surf-derived turn from the lower part of a wave face back toward the lip or shoulder.
Top turn
A directional turn near the top of a wave face.
Cutback
A carving turn back toward the power of the wave.
Re-entry
A turn off or through the lip back toward the wave face.
Regular stance
Left foot forward as the natural stance.
Goofy stance
Right foot forward as the natural stance.
Port tack
Riding with the wind coming over the rider’s port/left side.
Starboard tack
Riding with the wind coming over the rider’s starboard/right side.
Preferred tack
The tack on which the rider naturally carries speed, loads and releases most effectively.
Non-preferred tack
The tack that is less natural for the rider and may change course, speed or release timing.
Tack Compatibility
BTE variable describing how well wind direction, beach orientation, stance and travel direction combine to support a fast, clean boosting approach.
Course geometry
The rider’s path across the water relative to wind direction and beach orientation.
Bear away
Turn slightly downwind to free the board, accelerate and reduce excessive edge drag.
Head up
Turn more upwind, increasing resistance and usually increasing edge load.
Powered
Riding with enough kite power and line tension to accelerate, load and boost without struggling to keep the kite moving.
Overpowered
Riding with more power than can be comfortably controlled without significant edging, depower or speed management.
Underpowered
Riding with insufficient pull to create normal board speed, line tension or boost.
Approach Speed
Board speed carried into the take-off sequence. BTE treats it as a key input to load, Pop Velocity and height.
Send
Steering the kite upward for the jump. The timing and speed of the send must work with the rider’s edge and release.
Edge
The board angle and pressure used to resist the kite, control course and build line load before release.
Progressive edge
Building edge pressure smoothly as the kite climbs instead of locking into maximum edge too early.
Load
Tension built through kite, lines, harness, body and board before take-off.
Peak Line Tension
The point of maximum useful line load immediately before release. BTE aims to coordinate release around this peak rather than simply hold the edge longer.
Release
The moment the board stops resisting the kite and leaves the water, converting loaded energy into upward acceleration.
Pop
The board-and-rider contribution to take-off as the loaded edge releases.
Pop Velocity
WOO take-off metric describing the speed of the pop/release event. BTE treats it as evidence about conversion through the final take-off phase.
Sheet
Bar movement that changes kite angle of attack. In BTE coaching, sheet timing is considered after load and release rather than as an isolated action.
Sheet in
Pull the bar toward the rider to increase kite angle of attack and power, subject to kite design and trim.
Sheet out
Push the bar away to reduce angle of attack and power.
Line tension
Load carried through the flying lines. Clean line tension is essential for an effective send and release.
Speed scrub
Loss of board speed caused by excessive or early edging, rough water, poor course or other resistance.
Conversion
How effectively available wind, approach speed and load become Pop Velocity, height and airtime.
Boost
A powered jump created by combining approach speed, kite send, edge, load and release.
Height
Maximum vertical jump height recorded by WOO or another sensor.
Airtime
Time spent airborne during a jump.
Apex
The highest point of the jump.
Redirect
Steering the kite forward again after the apex to control travel, descent and landing.
Downloop
Looping the kite during descent or landing to create forward pull and support.
Heliloop
A controlled kite loop used near the apex/descent phase to generate lift and stabilise a high jump.
Flight
The airborne phase from release through apex to descent.
Descent
The phase from apex toward touchdown.
Landing
The touchdown and ride-away phase after descent.
Landing G
WOO impact metric. Lower G generally indicates a smoother touchdown; BTE interprets it in context rather than treating a lower number as worse.
Stomp
A clean, controlled landing with a stable ride-away.
Heavy landing
A high-impact landing that is ridden away but shows reduced control or support.
Crash
A landing where control is lost or impact is severe enough that the ride-away fails.
Kite support
Lift and stability maintained by the kite during flight and descent.
Kite size
Nominal kite area in square metres. Size affects power, turning speed and usable wind range but does not determine performance alone.
Kite model
The specific kite design. Aspect ratio, profile, bridle and turning behaviour change how power, send and hangtime are delivered.
Board
The board used for the session. Length, width, rocker, flex, fins and outline influence speed, grip and release.
Rocker
The longitudinal curve of the board. More rocker can improve control in chop but usually creates more drag.
Rail
The board edge profile interacting with the water during edging and carving.
Fin
Board fin that contributes directional grip and resistance.
Bar pressure
The steering/load feedback felt at the control bar.
Trim
Adjustment of the kite’s baseline power and steering relationship before or during a session.
Depower
Reducing kite power through bar position and/or trim system.
Line length
Length of the flying lines. It affects kite window size, timing, power delivery and loop radius.
High aspect
A kite planform with relatively long span and narrow chord, commonly associated with efficiency, glide and hangtime.
Low aspect
A kite planform with relatively shorter span and deeper chord, commonly associated with quicker turning and more compact handling.
Best jump
The highest recorded jump in a session.
Session median
The middle jump result when all valid jumps are ordered. BTE uses it as a stronger measure of normal performance than a single peak.
Top-5 average
Average of the five strongest valid jumps for the selected metric.
Top-10 average
Average of the ten strongest valid jumps for the selected metric.
Distribution
The shape and spread of all valid jump results across a session.
Outlier
A measurement far outside the normal pattern that requires checking before it influences coaching conclusions.
PB
Personal best: the highest verified result achieved by the rider for the selected metric.
Repeatable
A result or technique pattern that appears consistently enough to be treated as more than a one-off.
Reconstructed Potential
A clearly labelled estimate rebuilt from historical evidence when a pre-ride prediction was not recorded. It is not treated as a genuine forecast.
Predicted vs Actual
Comparison between the pre-ride performance prediction and the result actually achieved.
Immutable evidence
The original uploaded WOO file retained unchanged so later analysis can always be traced back to source data.
BeachStats mapping
Matching session timing to stored BeachStats observations so wind and jump evidence can be viewed on the same timeline.
Coach Read
BTE’s concise interpretation of what the session evidence actually supports.
Strong Evidence
A pattern supported by adequate data, material effect and agreement between relevant checks.
Useful Clue
A credible signal worth acting on carefully, while some uncertainty remains.
Working Hypothesis
A possible explanation worth testing, but not strong enough to treat as established.
Insufficient Evidence
Not enough reliable information to make the coaching claim.
One Cue
The single rider-facing technical thought to take onto the water.
Next-Ride Test
A controlled session experiment designed to test one coaching hypothesis without changing several variables at once.
Session Opportunity
The quality of the conditions and setup available for performance before technique is judged.
Current Performance
The level shown by recent evidence, which can be lower than the rider’s highest historically attained level.
Highest Attained Level
The highest performance level the rider has demonstrated repeatedly enough to qualify historically.
Stoke
The rider’s subjective “how did it feel?” score and context for the session.
Gotcha
A practical warning about an interpretation trap, data limitation or repeat mistake that can distort the coaching read.
No taxonomy terms match that search.
BTE PHYSICS INTELLIGENCE
New derived performance terms.
These terms connect conditions, approach, release and flight. BTE labels what is measured, derived and modelled so estimates are never presented as sensor facts.