Kayaking
Kayaking is about 4000 years old and was first founded by the Inuits. The word ‘kayak’ means ‘hunter’s boat’ and comes from the Paloe-eskimos of Greenland. They designed the kayak to hunt animals and used them for transportation of passengers or goods. The Inuits used to make the kayaks out of seal skins that they would stretch over the driftwood that was collected from the beaches. The native builders of the kayaks used to design and adapt the boats based on their own experiences and that of the generations before them. The wives’ of the men who used the kayaks would normally sew the skins of the boat. A ‘tulik’ was normally laced to the kayak, and this would create a waterproof seal so when the man capsized, they could Eskimo roll to regain posture. This influenced the spraydeck made of a waterproof synthetic material that most kayakers use now. Inuits used to have specific ways of measuring their kayaks. For instance the length was normally three times the length of their arm span. And the width of the cockpit was typically the width of the builder’s hips, plus two fists. Today, most kayaks are made of plastic and composite materials such as fibreglass as they are more prone to damage from impact. They have specific features making them streamline and move swiftly and easily through the water.
Features such as: * A raised bow * Multi-hull storage – this allows for more stability. * Deck lines – these make it easier to grab hold of the kayak and use it as support if you capsize. * Light- usually weighs between 20-30 kg. Lighter boats are easier to control and don’t wear you out as much on a long journey. * Length- usually about 16ft long. A longer kayak is normally faster. Touring and sea kayaks are usually longer as they are used to cover greater distances.
Each different design of kayak is made specifically to be used in a certain location, as not all kayaks are suited to certain types of water. They are categorized into: sea or touring kayaks, surf kayaks, white water kayaks, fishing kayaks, racing kayaks, and recreational kayaks.
Natural locations offer a wide variety of different types of water for all abilities. For people who want to paddle around in a lake or a stream, or anywhere that is away from the strong waves in the ocean, lakes and rivers are a good place to start. Natural lakes include lakes such as the Lake District and rivers such as the river Severn and river Avon, however not all inland water is open for kayakers as some are privately owned. Rivers and lakes offer a more calm and easy stretch of water. However rivers can also produce currents that are better suited to experienced kayakers. As upland rivers offer white rapids, for example in Scotland on the river Tay. Other natural locations include the sea and harbours. Sea kayaking can involve expeditions covering miles and days so is a location that can be for advanced kayakers. However it is not always rough conditions, so can be suited to beginners too. However sea kayaking can be dangerous because of the nature of the sea. Harbours offer calm waters as some sections of harbours are shallow and enclosed by land, and they can also offer some harder currents, so they are good places for beginners to learn the basics. There are also man-made venue’s to kayak in, such as Dorney Lake and Lee Valley. Lee Valley has been specifically designed to create white water rapids. And Dorney Lake which is a stretch of water that is 1.4 miles long and is used mainly for rowers and canoe sprinting as it is a long, straight lake. Kayaking is not a very restricted sport. It is a mixed gender activity; neither women nor men tend to dominate the sport. It is also a sport that disabled people can participate in. There is a Dorset Disabled Canoe Unit. The majority of centres and clubs that offer kayaking have clubs suited for most ages. For example, Poole Harbour Canoe Club offers a juniors club, for people under the age of 18 and a senior club, for people aged 18 and over. They even have paddlers up to the age of 70+. This obviously is to a certain extent. It would not be suitable to send a very young child out into the water on a kayak, and it would also not be wise to send out an elderly person who isn’t physically capable.

Kite surfing
Kitesurfing has said to combine surfing, paragliding, wakeboarding and windsurfing into one sport. A kitesurfer has to use the power of the wind to propel themselves across the water on a board with or without foot-straps or bindings. The idea came from George Pocock in the 1800’s. He used kites to pull carts along on the land and ships on the water. It wasn’t until about 1984 that two French brothers starting working on the kitesurfing principle. They started off by inventing the “bird sail” which was between a kite and a windsurf sail and was designed to lift the rider off the water better than the standard windsurfing sail. After a lot of ideas after the “bird sail”, they eventually came up with a version of what we see today. They decided on a board that was 2 metres long and less than 10kg in weight. These days, the kites are usually between 0.7 square metres to 21 square metres. The larger the surface area, the more power the kite usually has. The shape of the board has a big effect on its performance. Boards with narrow tips offer more control with smoother transitions during turns. Narrower boards give a smoother and faster ride in rough conditions. Natural kitesurfing locations are mainly in the sea and in harbours, as there needs to be a wide open area for it to be very windy and a lake would not usually be big enough. Most beaches are good for kitesurfing as it is only wind that is needed. Poole Harbour is a very popular place for windsurfing as it is very shallow in places yet it has a vast open space to pick up a lot of speed and work on manoeuvres. Man-made locations for kitesurfing include Rutland Lake: a man-made reservoir which has heavy wind from most directions so it is great for kitesurfing. Kitesurfing can be a dangerous sport as there are powerful winds that can take you metres into the air. It is a sport that most ages can do though. The British Kitesurfing Association suggests that you become a member with them before taking up kitesurfing. And some clubs will not let you join them if you are not a member of the BKSA. For instance the Poole Kitesurf club is free to join and it states that all ages and abilities can come along if they are members of the BKSA. The BKSA offers a membership for juniors, seniors, students and even families. So it is a suitable thing to do for all ages. It is also a mixed gender sport; neither males nor females dominate the sport.

Surfing Surfing can be dated back to as early as 1767. For centuries it was part of the Polynesian culture in Hawaii. It was after Captain James Cook’s expedition to the Pacific and the first recorded European visit to Hawaii where Lieutenant James King was one of the first people to write about the art of surfing. Standing or lying down on long, hardwood surfboards became an integral part of Hawaiian culture by 1779. Chiefs used to demonstrate their mastery by their skill in surfing. By the time Cook had arrived, surfing was a huge part of Hawaiian culture. Hawaiian society was distinctly split into common and royal classes. The common class used to use boards up to 12 feet, while the royal class used to use boards as big as 24 feet. After Cook published his journal, Hawaiian surfing fell into decline for around 150 years. The sport had completely gone back to the beginning; boards were short again and riding techniques were simple. Tom Blake created a board that weighed half as much of what the traditional boards weighed at the time and this reinvented surfing altogether. He also invented the small fin on the bottom of the board to help with turning and cutting through a wave. World War II helped with the discovery of certain chemicals which could glue parts of the boards together. A golden age for surfing was after the war, people enjoyed relaxing at the beach, beach films were released, Elvis Presley featured surfing in his music and the Beach Boys based their songs on surfing. It is because of all of this that surfing kicked off and became a multi-million dollar industry. There are various different boards that can be used depending on your ability to surf or the style of surfing you prefer. * Shortboard – usually around 5’6” to 6’4” and is designed for an advanced surfer. * Fish board- these are wider than a shortboard and are designed to improve wave catching capability while maintaining speed. * Longboard – usually over 8 or 9ft long. The longer the board the more stable it is * Mini-mal – slightly shorter than the longboard and allows for sharper turns. * Foamboard – these are designed for beginners as they are more stable, easier to stand up on and easier to catch waves and they cannot hurt you as easily as they are made of foam.
Features of a surfboard: * The shape of the nose of the board will affect its entry to into the wave, and the addling ability. * Fins- the fins are what make the board move as it does. You can have a single fin, twin fin tri fin, quad fin and sometimes a five fin setup. * Boards are usually made out of fibreglass, resin and a polystyrene foam core.

Waves that are suitable enough to surf on are usually found in the ocean, however some can be found in lakes and rivers in the form of a tidal bore. Great beaches include Porthleven in Cornwall, as when conditions are right, it creates a barrelling wave. For beginners, Watergate bay is a good place to go because it has a 2 mile stretch. For experts, Thurso East is a great place to go as some huge waves are produced.
Man-made locations include wave pools and boat wakes.
Surfing is a mixed gender sport and it is continuing to become more and more popular with females. It is a sport that is good for most ages as beginners and younger people can start off with training boards such as foamboards as they are safer and it is difficult to get hurt using them. Bournemouth surf school offer lessons for beginners, improver and advanced, and they have divided their lessons into under 16 and over 16.

Windsurfing
Windsurfing is a sport that combines surfing and sailing. The basic sailboard is made up of a board and a rig. Windsurfing started back in 1948, by Newman Darby. Darby created the board by just mounting a sail onto a board. In 1964, Darby invented a universal joint to connect the mast to the board. Although he did not file for patent for his design, he did write about the sport he called “sailboarding” in an article, and created a company with his brother which they called “Darby industries” where they manufactured their own boards. Jim Drake and Hoyle Schweitzer first designed the real sailboard. Drake wanted to create a kind of water ski which floated when you stood on it which could be steered by hand. They came up with the name “windsurf” and the original boards were 12ft in length and weighed about 27kg. The sport became very popular in the late 70’s; one in every three households owned a sailboard. Windsurfing started to grow internationally and there was a first world championship in 1973. It eventually got accepted into the Olympics in 1984.
In the 70’s/80’s, windsurfers either had longboards, normally over 3 metres, or shortboards, below 3 metres. The modern board is based on the shortboard, the board is supposed to skip over the surface of the water, rather than cut through it. Features: * A windsurfing sail is made of Monofilm which is a clear polyester film, Dacron which is woven polyester, or Mylar. * Battens- all sails have battens; these are to make the sail more rigid. * Boom- the boom attaches to the mast and supports the sail. * Fin- just like a surfboard, the board of a windsail must have fins. A centre fin and a fin at the rear of the board, sometimes called the skeg. * Boards today are normally made out of fibre glass and normally have a polystyrene foam core.
Windsurfing is a sport that can suit most ages and is popular for both men and women. The Hengisbury Head Outdoor Centre states that they have various sized boards and sails so that all ages can take part. They also state that the shallow waters of the harbour are suitable for learners. Harbour challenge run an RYA level 1 windsurfing course that allows you to hire equipment at all RYA centres worldwide. They state it is for those who have little experience in the sport and are serious about wanting to learn to windsurf.
Water conditions are very similar for those who do windsurfing as those who do kayaking. Natural locations can offer easy and difficult conditions for those who are learning or those who are experienced. Harbours and the sea are very popular places for windsurfers. Harbours can be calm for those who are learning, as they can stick to the shallower waters, but the harbour can also offer quite rough conditions nearer the beach for those who prefer more of a challenge. Poole harbour is a popular place, and other harbours such as Portland harbour. Popular beaches include West Wittering, and Hayling Island. The sea is a great place for intermediate to advanced surfers as the wind can be quite strong and the sea can be rough.
Man-made locations: there is an indoor windsurfing championship held in London, where huge power fans propel the boards along the pool. Rutland water is one of Europe’s largest man-made reservoirs.

All four of these sports are quite similar. They all have similar locations and conditions needed to do the sport. Rough and windy conditions can be suitable for all of them- it can be good for advanced kayakers who like challenging conditions, surfers need rougher conditions for bigger waves, windsurfers need it to be windy to propel themselves along and so do kitesurfers. However for windsurfers, kitesurfers and surfers, the suitable conditions are necessary to take part in the sport, unlike kayaking, where for most of the time it doesn’t matter what the conditions are like, you can still go out. The equipment for all of them differs. For surfing, the only equipment needed is a wetsuit, board and leash. Kayakers need a wetsuit, paddle and kayak, as well as some other necessities to ensure safety such as a radio, first aid kit and a buoyancy aid. Kitesurfers need a wetsuit, board, kite and sometimes a helmet. Windsurfers need a wetsuit; some wear a buoyancy aid, a board and a sail.