During the progression of jump training (Big Air), height sensors are incredibly useful assistants. You perform a jump, check the height, then change something in your technique and check again: did that give you more height? In essence, you can see your mistakes and corrections in real-time, which is indispensable for progress.
Today, there are two global leaders in manufacturing tools for measuring jumps in kitesurfing: the company producing physical sensor hardware, Woo Sports, and the company that developed a specialized app for smartphones and smartwatches, Surfr.
The Difference Between Woo and Surfr
Woo manufactures a physical sensor that you attach directly to your board (the mount is included). It records all data regarding your jumps while you ride. Afterward, you can view the analytics on the beach by connecting the sensor to your phone via Bluetooth.
Surfr developed an application that you install on your smartphone or smartwatch. You go for a session, you jump, and the watch or phone records everything using internal gyroscopes and GPS. The main advantage is that you do not need an additional external sensor.
The benefit of both solutions for measuring your kite jumps is the ability to upload all your jumps and sessions to the app or website after riding. You can then analyze your main mistakes in execution (whether you approached the jump too slowly, had the wrong line relative to the wind, etc.).
Accuracy: Jump Sensors vs. Apps
Undoubtedly, neither Woo nor Surfr works perfectly, and inaccuracies do occur. However, in most cases, they perform very well. Woo users often notice that the sensor tends to "lie" a bit, usually in the rider's favor (overestimating height). For example, you jump 5 meters in reality, but it shows 7 meters. This isn't exactly ideal for objective training.
From my personal experience—since I use a smartwatch with the Surfr app—Surfr sometimes struggles with kite loops (conversely, it underestimates the height). I might see a height of at least 7 meters below me, but it records 3.8 meters. After 17 years of kitesurfing, I can distinguish between 4 meters and 7 meters, even during a loop. However, for standard high jumps, everything is accurate. Occasionally, on low jumps like a transition backroll (no more than 1 meter high), it might show 2.5 meters. These specific low heights aren't important to me, but the fact remains.
Woo Sports Jump Sensor
The mount for the sensor is small and sticks onto the board; it is simple and convenient. The app for viewing results is also very user-friendly. Many pro athletes use this sensor, upload their results to the leaderboard, and compete to see who jumps higher in various locations. For instance, if you visit Minsk and jump 20m high on the Minsk Sea, the whole world will see your achievement. Even without owning a sensor, you can enter the app and watch how athletes fly and compete.
- They break (at least up to the 3.0 model)! Both sensors I purchased "successfully" took in water (even though they were used on the water no more than 20 times) and stopped working. The main reason is that water eventually (in my case, after a year) enters through the small charging pins. The Woo 4.0 version is made with wireless charging only, so the sensors should stop "drowning." But sorry, the price of the sensor is around €280, and it is very painful to lose it due to such a design flaw.
- Again, until recently, we couldn't see jump results in real-time because the sensor is tiny and has no display. You had to go back to shore, download the data to your phone, and review it. Now, an app for watches has been created, allowing you to see everything live.
Surfr Kite Jump App
Initially, Surfr launched as a phone app and entered the market with a specialized composite (plastic) waterproof case for mounting the phone on the board. There was one huge advantage here: on the large smartphone screen, you could see your jump height in real-time, and—crucially—key performance metrics.
Three parameters of your jump that you need to work on:
- Your take-off speed at the moment of the jump;
- Your sailing line relative to the wind direction;
- Your board edge angle relative to the water (edging).
These 3 parameters are the pathway to high jumps.
To jump high, you need a movement speed of 40-45 km/h, a direction of 90 degrees to the wind, and a board edging angle of 45 degrees relative to the water. You will immediately see this in the results. Moreover, after the jump, the phone will indicate what you need to correct (add speed, edge harder, etc.).
Surfr Cons: For some unknown reason, the board mounts for smartphones disappeared from sale (I didn't manage to buy one), so now I simply use the app on my watch. The second downside is that for proper tracking and detailed analysis of your jumps, you need to subscribe to the PRO package, which costs about €45 per year.
Which watches work with the Surfr App? It works on Apple Watch and Android (Wear OS). Verified 100% compatible models can be found on their website in the Surfr App FAQ.
One of the cheapest options is to buy a Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 and enjoy the ride. The cost of this watch at the beginning of 2025 is around €100-120.
I use the slightly more expensive Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 LTE (bought for €170), which allows me to:
- Have mobile connectivity on the water (I set up an eSIM, added it to the watch, and forward all calls from my regular phone to the watch);
- View jump heights and correct my failed attempts instantly;
- Monitor health metrics on the shore and at home (blood oxygen, heart rate, blood pressure—all possible on my Samsung Watch 7);
- Keeping an eye on the time helps sometimes too :-)
Conclusion: I chose Surfr for myself. For me, it is much easier to buy a watch that can be used not only as a kite jump meter but also as an assistant in everyday life, rather than buying a height sensor that will only be used for kitesurfing and might eventually break.
Do you want to learn how to jump high and safe? Come to our kitesurfing school in Egypt or join our kite safaris, where we analyze jumping techniques with video breakdowns.
