When it comes to kite tricks I’m pretty shit. It pisses me off that it is easier to admit that I suck than I thought it would be but doing something about sucking badly, is no easy thing. Unless, you book some time with Push Kiting and ask for Dave Ursell. I was fortunate to get 3 hours tuition as a birthday present from my wife this year. Yes, you read it right, I swallowed some pride and headed for Clacton to get me some mojo. My lesson was on the Friday but I headed down on the Thursday to scope the place out and get a quick fly in which turned out to be a very good idea because the Clacton beach front is small and you gotta know your shit if you fly in onshore winds over there or you might end up in somebody’s living room. I met two cool guys too, Andy & Ben who clearly knew what they were doing. After an hours worth of flying I headed to a wicked little b&b, spending the evening relaxing in front of a stoking fire place. I rushed down to the kiting spot the next morning and started setting up my Peter Lynn 12m Synergy so as to save some time and cram as much wisdom as possible in when the lesson started. The wind was all over the place but a tad on the low side and when Dave showed up I was packing the 12m away to set the 15m Synergy up. Everything about the guy oozed professionalism, from the well stocked kite van to the form he had me fill out and back to his patient mannerism which was going to be put to the test in the 3 hours that was to follow. My goals for the day in no particular order were: 360′s front and back foot-out board off board jump in better hang time He spent the first part of the lesson sussing me out & explaining 360 trick theory in a way that made it seem both do-able and exciting. Fortunately, this guy isn’t all talk and before you know it, I was doing rotation exercises without the board. Some ass & elbow aching moments later, I managed to land a 520 back roll toe side which we were both pretty chuffed about. We then moved on to better hang time & bigger air’s which are both essential for the other tricks on my list. Again, he explained the theory to me & then had me do some preparation exercises before I tried the tricks themselves, most of which I almost landed. Remember I mentioned that Dave Ursell isn’t just about theory? During the lesson, he’d take my Synergy and show me how to do each trick pointing out what to look for as he does it. To say I was impressed is to say Jessica Alba isn’t attractive, considering he’s never flown a Synergy in his 15 year kiting experience. I was in awe to say the least & inspired to really throw myself into getting the tricks nailed. No fault to Dave, but I couldn’t manage to land or execute everything I’d hope to in the 3 hours simply because I needed more practice but I now know it’s only a matter of time & wind before it happens. I was knackered & broken but smiling so much my face hurt. My wife stood watching me with Dave for a while & said when I turned around to look at them after I landed a trick, I was beaming happiness but Dave was beaming pride at his pupil. If that isn’t a testament to a great teacher & tutor than I do not know what is. Dave has all kinds of kites in that van of his & I know he would’ve gladly let me use those lush Flexifoil Ion’s but it was important to me to learn tricks using my Peter Lynns for obvious reasons. He also has insurance so there’s nothing to worry about when starting out. Push Kiting specializes in Kite Surfing lessons and depending on the wind, he also uses nearby Clacton or Holland on Sea as teaching spots. If you’re considering taking up this sport but do not know where to start, or like me, need to get some personal tuition focusing on your kite boarding skills, take it from me, Dave’s your man. Here’s my favourite video of Dave and other legends like AJ Phillipson & Lewis Wilby.