The level ladders.

Every sport on Sesh ID has one ladder of twelve levels. Schools keep their own step names for teaching, but each step is bound to one of these levels, so a level on a passport means the same thing at every school. Where a federation scheme exists, the closest equivalent is listed, as a reference only: no federation card is required, and no level on Sesh ID ever costs money.

Catalogue version 2 · updated 2026-09-25 · machine-readable at /api/levels/v1

Water

Kitesurfing

12 levels · equivalents: IKO, VDWS

Lvl	Name	What you can do	IKO	VDWS
1	Kite controlControl	Sets up, flies and lands a trainer or small kite with control in the wind window.	1A–1C	1
2	Launch & landLaunch	Launches and lands a full-size kite with an assistant, walks with the kite, uses the safety systems.	1D–1F	1
3	Body dragBodydrag	Body drags downwind in both directions with power control.	2G	2
4	Upwind body dragUpwind drag	Body drags upwind to recover the board, one-handed kite control.	2H	2
5	Relaunch & self-rescueSelf-rescue	Relaunches from the water, performs a self-rescue and a controlled steady pull with the board on.	2I–2J	3
6	WaterstartWaterstart	Water starts and rides a few metres in one direction with control.	2K	3
7	First metresFirst metres	Rides consistently in one direction, controls speed and stops safely.	3L	4
8	Riding both sidesBoth sides	Rides in both directions and recovers the board and kite alone.	3L–3M	4
9	Riding upwindUpwind	Holds and gains ground upwind, returns to the starting point; rides independently.	3M	5
10	TransitionsTransitions	Changes direction without stopping, sliding or with a small pop.	3N	5
11	ToesideToeside	Rides toeside both ways and carves transitions; rides in varied conditions.	4	6
12	Jumps & advancedJumps	Jumps with controlled landings; first freestyle, wave or foil moves.	4	7

Wing foiling

12 levels

Lvl	Name	What you can do
1	Wing handling on landHandling	Holds, flips and depowers the wing on land; understands the wind window.
2	Kneeling & standingStanding	Kneels and stands on a big board with the wing, moves downwind.
3	Sailing displacementDisplacement	Sails both directions on a non-foiling or big board, turns and stops.
4	Upwind in displacementUpwind disp.	Holds ground upwind on the big board, tacks or gybes at low speed.
5	First foil liftsFirst lifts	Pumps up onto the foil for short controlled lifts, lands back safely.
6	Sustained flightFlight	Flies on the foil for longer stretches in one direction with height control.
7	Flying both sidesBoth sides	Flies both directions, touch-down turns, controls speed on the foil.
8	Upwind on the foilUpwind	Gains ground upwind while foiling, returns to the start independently.
9	Foiling gybeGybe	Completes gybes staying on the foil most of the time.
10	Foiling tackTack	Completes tacks on the foil, rides toeside.
11	Waves & swellWaves	Rides swell and small waves with the wing flagged, pumps to connect bumps.
12	Jumps & advancedJumps	Jumps with the foil, advanced transitions and downwinders.

Windsurfing

12 levels · equivalents: VDWS

Lvl	Name	What you can do	VDWS
1	Rig & stanceStance	Rigs the sail, uphauls and holds the secure position on a stable board.	1
2	Sailing & stoppingSailing	Sails on a beam reach both ways, stops and steers with the rig.	1
3	Basic tack & gybeBasic turns	Turns around through the wind (tack) and downwind (gybe) at low speed.	2
4	Upwind & returnUpwind	Sails upwind and returns to the starting point on a fixed course.	2
5	Beachstart & harnessHarness	Beachstarts, hooks into the harness and sails hooked-in both ways.	3
6	Footstraps & planingPlaning	Gets into the footstraps and planes in moderate wind.	3
7	WaterstartWaterstart	Waterstarts on a sinker or small board in planing conditions.	4
8	Planing upwindPlane upwind	Planes upwind in the straps, controls speed in gusts.	4
9	Carve gybeCarve gybe	Completes carve gybes, dry most of the time.	5
10	Fast tack & duck gybeFast tack	Fast tacks and duck gybes at speed.	6
11	Waves & chopWaves	Rides in waves and chop, first jumps.	6
12	Jumps & advancedJumps	Controlled jumps, wave riding or freestyle moves.	7

Surfing

12 levels · equivalents: ISA

Lvl	Name	What you can do	ISA
1	Beach & board basicsBasics	Understands the beach, currents and etiquette; paddles and sits on the board in whitewater.	Beginner
2	Whitewater pop-upPop-up	Catches whitewater prone and pops up to standing on a foam board.	Beginner
3	Standing & steeringSteering	Rides whitewater standing with a stable stance and basic steering.	Beginner
4	Paddling outPaddle out	Paddles through small broken waves, turtle rolls or pushes through; reads the line-up.	–
5	Green wavesGreen waves	Catches unbroken waves and rides straight to the beach.	Intermediate
6	Angled take-offAngled	Takes off at an angle and rides along the wave face.	–
7	Trimming & speedTrimming	Trims for speed, bottom turns and stays ahead of the breaking section.	–
8	Turns on the faceTurns	Links bottom and top turns on a mid-length or shortboard.	Intermediate
9	Duck dive & positioningDuck dive	Duck dives, reads sets and positions for the peak in head-high surf.	–
10	Cutbacks & floatersCutbacks	Cutbacks, floaters and re-entries with flow.	Advanced
11	Critical sectionsCritical	Surfs steep and critical sections, late take-offs, barrels in small surf.	–
12	Advanced & big surfAdvanced	Aerials, tube riding or overhead surf with consistency.	–

Stand-up paddling

12 levels · equivalents: ASI

Lvl	Name	What you can do	ASI
1	Kneeling paddleKneeling	Carries and launches the board, paddles kneeling on flat water.	Basic
2	Standing on flat waterStanding	Stands and paddles straight with correct stroke and stance.	–
3	Turning & stoppingTurning	Sweep and reverse strokes, stops, turns around and falls safely.	–
4	Wind & currentWind	Paddles into light wind and current, self-rescues from the water.	–
5	TouringTouring	Paddles a 5 km tour with planning, pace and safety kit.	–
6	Pivot & step-back turnPivot turn	Step-back pivot turns and cross-bow strokes with balance.	–
7	Small waves proneSmall waves	Paddles out and catches whitewater on a SUP, kneels or stands.	–
8	Green waves standingGreen waves	Catches and rides unbroken small waves standing.	–
9	Downwind & chopDownwind	Rides bumps on a downwinder and handles chop.	–
10	Race techniqueRace	Efficient race stroke, buoy turns and drafting.	–
11	Wave ridingWaves	Bottom and top turns on a SUP in head-high surf.	–
12	Expedition & advancedAdvanced	Multi-day expeditions, big downwinders or advanced surf.	–

Kite foiling

12 levels

Lvl	Name	What you can do
1	Foil handlingHandling	Carries, assembles and enters the water safely with a foil board; kite skills at kite level 9 or higher.
2	Foil body dragBodydrag	Body drags and positions the foil board with the kite low.
3	TaxiingTaxiing	Rides the foil board displacement (not flying) both ways.
4	Controlled touchesTouches	Short lifts with controlled touch-downs, front-foot pressure.
5	Sustained flightFlight	Flies for longer stretches in one direction with height control.
6	Flying both sidesBoth sides	Flies both directions with touch-down transitions.
7	Upwind on the foilUpwind	Gains ground upwind on the foil, returns independently.
8	Foiling gybeGybe	Gybes staying on the foil most of the time.
9	Foiling tackTack	Tacks on the foil, rides toeside.
10	Light-wind & small kiteLight wind	Foils in light wind and with small kites in stronger wind.
11	Waves & swellWaves	Rides swell with the kite depowered, first strapless foil moves.
12	Jumps & advancedJumps	Jumps and advanced transitions on the foil.

Equivalents are indicative: federations define levels by their own assessments, and a Sesh ID level is only ever issued by a school after a signed lesson.