TheKiteMag #44 Free

#44 NICK JACOBSEN Fears no fear

ALBY RONDINA’S

Smooth playground

GIEL VLUGT’S

Rodeo show

NAISH’S

Tropical layover

TECH: Airush | CORE | North | Prolimit | Slingshot | Nobile

RELIGION KITE Y27

BE

YO ND

#RRD

STRIPE

BLACK

4-5-6-7-8-9-10,5-12

Ph: Samuel Tomè - Rider: Carl Ferreira

Rider Willow-River Tonkin Photo Steven Akkersdijk & Thomas Burblies

PURE. WAVE. PASSION. Take your wave riding to a whole new level with the Section 4. Its new, lighter CoreTex 2.0 canopy features massively improved tear resistance, stiffness, and durability. The new ExoTex Light struts, improved Future-C shape, and streamlined tips will get you to the best waves and keep you on them without a fuss.

If you're looking for effortless surfing and the right amount of pull, the new Section 4 will get you upwind and onto the cleanest waves.

——

FOLLOW US ON corekites.com facebook.com/corekites instagram.com/corekites twitter.com/corekites

CORE Kiteboarding GmbH +49 (0) 4371 88934-0 info @corekites.com Fehmarn, Germany

WAVE

KING OF THE BIG AIR KITES The reign of power continues. Zero hesitation, lighter, faster steering and precise response.

The 2020/2021 Red Bull King of the Air winning Orbit has your back when the rules of gravity don’t apply.

VIDEO

O R B I T | Own the sky

D / L A B

JUICE BEYOND IMAGINATION O U R W AY T O M A K E T H E W ORLD A BETTER PLACE.

D UOTON ESP ORTS .C O M

D U O T O N E

D U O T O N E D U O T O N E

D U O T O N E

D U O T O N E

DUOTONE

DUOTONE DUOTONE DUOTONE DUOTONE DUOTONE FO L LOW US

CONTENTS THE FEATURES 114 // No Danish Pastry Nick Jacobsen is no wimp when it comes to extreme antics; indeed he’s probably the most iconic daredevil in the kiting world. We find out how he tackles fear when he’s at the apex.

120 // Smooth Waters Alby Rondina explains why the lagoon of Lo Stagnone, Sicily, is so good for learning and freestyle with its miles of smooth, flat water.

And it turns out the island dishes up the odd tasty wave to go with the tasty food too.

126 // Flying Dutchman Giel Vlugt is currently flying high and landing back down firmly on the podium. We hear about his recent participation in the TatajubaFest event in Brazil where he took third place.

132 // El Bandito F-ONE always manage to produce exquisite photos, and it was no different on their photoshoot to Mexico, a fitting place to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Bandit. Paul Serin tells all.

140 // The Layover Covid restrictions worked out well for Katie Potter and Ewan Jaspan when they had to layover in tropical Turks and Caicos on their way from Europe to the US. Tough gig…

THE REGULARS 43 // Tangled Lines… Hannah Whiteley 50 // On The List… El Gouna, Egypt 56 // I’m On It… Stijn Koster, Eleveight Commander 60 // My Beach… Florian Gruber, Walchensee 66 // Colin Colin Carroll’s Loveletters 70 // The Mission… Chris Poole | Elena Dimitrova 84 // Profile… Olympic Dreams 94 // Gallery… GKA Kite-Surf World Cup, Sylt 148 // The Big Picture… Airush 152 // Technique… Erick Anderson 154 // The Green Room… Prolimit 156 // Tech and Materials… Carved Imperator 158 // Tell Me About It… Slingshot SST | North Navigator Nobile range | CORE Section 168 // Tested… Airush | Cabrinha | Slingshot Manera | Reedin | Duotone | Airwave 176 // The Committed… Tomi Deák 178 // Reflections… Peri Roberts

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COVER

Ben Wilson back with Slingshot and back on the cover…

Not bad for an old fella.

Photo: Scott Winer HERE

We do love a nice moody shot here at TKM and this one of Keh-Lung Su with a cheeky nose grab ticks all the boxes…

Photo: Nicholas Spilsbury

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THE ALL NEW

FREERIDE SERIES K now f re edom as you gl i de effor tlessly.

Feel the energy surge t hrough yo ur hand s.

Then ri se above i t al l .

AI RU SH. COM

RI DERS: VI C TO R HAYS & CO LIN O UDO T

EXPLORE YOUR WORLD

P HOTO: GOSS U I N BROTHERS

HERE See... those R&D guys have it tough, slaving away in the office to bring you better gear...

Some could even say it’s an obsession... an RRD Obsession...

Photo: Francesco Leggio

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Welcome A Material World As the world begins to return to normal-ish, supply chains begin to remember where they last were, and you can, finally, expect to find stock of whatever it is you’re looking for in your retailer of choice, it’s easy to forget that we have gone through a couple of years of product development during this whole sorry affair…

While you’ve been tearing your hair out, those clever science-and-engineering people have continued trucking along and looking for new ways to make our kite gear better… They don’t care if the fruits of their labor will spend three months stuck in a container somewhere in the Indian Ocean, they don’t care if the raw materials required for their creations are nigh impossible to source, and they don’t care if the already Covid-inflated prices are going to be bumped up another 25% because of their efforts. They just want BETTER kite gear. And they continue to deliver…

Of course some of the shiny new things are just slight tweaks – or a fresh coat of paint – but don’t doubt that there is a lot of genuine evolution occurring right now.

Check out CORE’s new Cartan carbon, check out Prolimit’s new PF-1 wetsuit (perhaps the greenest wetsuit to date) and we all of course know about ALUULA, which can now also be found within Duotone’s D/LAB Juice (which we’ve had on test).

It does feel like gear is taking a genuine step-up at the moment and – although there are no big revolutions on the cards – there are some very impressive evolutions which seem destined to improve our kiting lives.

It is great to see the brands still investing in R&D and pushing each other to make products that are stronger, lighter and, yes, better…

Unfortunately ‘better on the water’ is usually ‘worse on the bank balance’ but, hey, you saved some cash from those trips you missed out on didn’t you?! So quit dreaming and go and get yourself some of that new gear. And why not book your flights to Cape Town while you’re at it!

Enjoy the issue,

Alex

(and Sarah)

15

MOST WANTED And still runninG

For 15 years the BANDIT has been kiter’s best companion.

When riding waves, jumping high, sending loops, climbing on the first step of a podium, learning how to waterstart or breaking world record, the BANDIT has been the ultimate kite choice.

For 15 years, the F-ONE design team has never stopped improving each year the most sold kite in the world. From its creation, with the DELTA C-SHAPE, the BANDIT has shown its uniqueness and its fantastic abilily to perfom in every discipline.

It has been 15 years, we have created a legend, and it is only the beginning.

PHOTO / MAT T GEORGES

RIDERS / LIAM WHALEY, MA XIME CHABLOZ & PAUL SERIN

SPOT / BAJA CALIFORNIA , ME XICO

TKC Sales Ltd

f-onekites.co.uk

INST. @fonekites FB. @fonekites

KITE COLLECTION 2022

WWW.F-ONE.WORLD

EDITOR Sarah Sylvester EDITOR-IN- CHIEF Alex Hapgood ART DIRECTOR Nikki Hall A S S I S TA N T A R T D I R E C T O R Daryl Dibsdall TECHNICAL EDITOR Richard Boughton ONLINE MEDIA MANAGER Gemma Hamaini D I G I TA L M A R K E T I N G To m W e y e r s D I G I TA L E X E C U T I V E Rebecca Aldous CONTRIBUTORS Abel Zoltan, Action Edit, Alex Schwarz, Alice Aloha, Ángel Carrasco, Ant Green, Antonio Herrera Trujillo, Chris Poole, Craig Kolesky, Francesco Leggio, Frankiebees, Gianmaria Coccoluto, Graeme Murray, Ian Edmondson, Jennica Lowell, Jil van Dijk, Julien Le Prevost, Laci Kobulsky, Lukas Stiller, Matt Georges, Michał Jagniątkowski, Miriam Joanna, Nicholas Spilsbury, Noè Font, Orestis Zoumpos, Petra Hoexum, Samuel Cardenas, Samuel Tomè, Scott Winer, Sofiane Bouhadi, Svetlana Romantsova, Thiago Dos Santos Martins, Thomas Burblies, Toby Bromwich, Tomasz Ustupski, Tomi Deák, Vincent Bergeron, Vovan Voronov, Wake Up Stoked ADVERTISING Advertising enquiries can be sent to advertising@thekitemag.com COPYRIGHT All material in TheKiteMag is subject to copyright.

Reproduction without the express permission of the publishers will result in prosecution.

PUBLISHER TheKiteMag is published by Water Born Media Limited, 20-22 We n l o c k R o a d , L o n d o n N 1 7 G U E N V I R O N M E N TA L This magazine is printed on paper s o u rc e d f ro m r e s p o n s i b l y m a n a g e d s o u rc e s u s i n g v e g e t a b l e b a s e d i n k s . B o t h the paper used in the production and the manufacturing process are FCS ® c e r t i fi e d . T h e p r i n t e r s a r e a l s o a c c re d i t e d t o I S O 1 4 0 01, t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y re c o g n i z e d e n v i r o n m e n t a l s t a n d a r d .

FIND US ON

18 w w w . t h e k i t e m a g . c o m

HERE Nobel acts in Sardinia.

Photo: Tomasz Ustupski

FREESTYLE / WAVE Strategically placed ALUULA composite materials are blended with Dacron to create a new hybrid construction class that delivers decreased weight with improved airframe response.

Whether you are wave-riding and want a kite that will turn on a dime and keep you in the pocket, or for committed sending, predictable performance and power on tap, the Crave-HL is the kite for you.

Sizes: 5m | 6m | 7m | 8m | 9m | 10m | 12m

FOLLOW US AT: oceanrodeo.com | facebook.com/oceanrodeo | instagram.com/oceanrodeo | twitter.com/oceanrodeo

R I DE R : JA N E K GRZ EGORZ EWSKI P HOTO : THO M AS BURBLI ES LO C ATI O N : L A N GEBAAN, SOUTH AFRI CA

JG: This session, for the new CORE XR7 and Fusion 5 photoshoot, was definitely one to remember, with strong and gusty wind in the range of 20-35 knots. I was on an 8m, sometimes fully overpowered and sometimes without enough power to even ride, but at least the inconsistent wind meant there was nobody else on the water…

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RIDE R: JE RE MY B U RL ANDO PHOTO: GIANMARIA COCCOLU TO LOCATI ON: LO STAGNONE , S IC ILY

JB: I’ve been kiting a lot lately with the legend Cocco. This day he rocked up to my kite school in Sicily saying he had a sick shot in mind. So we grabbed the camera and went straight upwind to this spot in Lo Stagnone to get the money shot.

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R I DE R: ANNA ST RE LC H E NKO P H OTO: VOVAN VORONOV LOCAT I ON: KAMC H AT KA, RU SS IA

TKM: It’s not often we get shots from Russia, and we had to look up where Kamchatka is. Turns out it’s a vast volcanic peninsula on their east coast, that is almost entirely wilderness (so says the Lonely Planet). Might have to put it on our list of places to visit. Looks like clouds aren’t too much of an issue…

FOCUS

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RI DE R: MARC JACOB S PHOTO: GRAE ME MU RRAY LOCATION: Q U E E NSTOWN, NE W Z E AL AND

MJ: I flew down to Lord of the Rings country for the North Orbit shoot, just as the air temperature was hitting zero degrees Celsius in Queenstown.

This wasn’t just another blue-sky kind of day. It was that dry, bone-chilling cold that heightens your senses, but also makes you wonder why we can’t resist being out there in the elements. We built a fire on the shores of Lake Wakatipu while waiting for the wind to come in. And when it did… well, there’s just no other feeling like it.

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R ID E R : C A R L F E R R E IRA PHOTO : SA MUE L TO M È LOC ATI O N : C A P E TOWN

CF: Another epic summer’s day out in Cape Town... this spot should look familiar to you by now? If not, then good! We’ve tried to keep it a secret haha. Riding on 12 meter lines with almost a dead off-shore wind was challenging, but worth it when you score shots like this.

This season in Cape Town promises to be one of the best... With Covid restrictions being lowered, it’s time to send it once again! See you in a couple of months...

FOCUS

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R I D E R : JA M E S C A R E W P HOTO : TO BY B R O MWIC H LO C AT IO N : F UE R TE VE N TURA

TKM: James smashing a wave at a point in Fuerteventura which is meant to be impossible to ride with so much water moving. Thankfully James is a bonafide superhero so he laughs in the face of this kind of thing.

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PHOTO: JU L IE N L E P RE VOST LOCAT I ON: F RE NC H P OLY NE S IA

TKM: Well this looks like a terrible way to spend a couple of hours…

Imagine yourself there: shallow water, crispy sand and jumping on your board and heading a little offshore before seeing the water drop away and 100 different shades of blue. Nice.

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RI DE R: H E L E NA B ROC H OC KA P H OTO: F RANK IE B E E S LOC AT I ON: MAU I

TKM: A classic Maui backdrop, a classic Maui photographer and a classic nose grab. Helena Brochocka pressing all the right buttons.

FOCUS

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R ID E R : LUK E M CG ILLE WIE PHOTO : MIR IA M JOA N N A LOC AT IO N : C A P E TOW N

LM: While the trumpeter swan is the largest species of waterfowl in the world, this particular swan is the largest of all! Meet Sally, the inflatable swan that became the unofficial mascot on this FLYSURFER shoot day. Sally was the only inflatable on this shoot, however, because I was riding the new SOUL, a user-friendly closed-cell foil kite. What a day for a SOUL Session in Langebaan!

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RI DE R: E T IE NNE CORDE AU P H OTO: ANT GRE E N LOC AT I ON: F RE NC H AL P S

TKM: When Covid shut the French ski resorts last winter, the ‘Flying Frenchies’ didn’t let that stop them heading into the mountains. They took an Airwave Koala with them and put it through its paces in sub-zero conditions.

FOCUS

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R I D E R : JE TT B R A DSHAW P HOTO : A N TO N IO HE R R E RA TRUJ I LLO LO C AT IO N : TA R IFA

TKM: Jett Bradshaw left his native South Africa for a bit of a European jolly. Kind of like backpacking, but you just have a lot of kites in backpacks... Here he is captured during his time in Tarifa proving that he’s really getting to grips with Spanish culture.

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R I DE R : KATA R ZYNA LANGE P HOTO : TO M ASZ USTUPSKI LO C ATI O N : SA R DI NI A

TKM: A nice tweaked grab is always going to be a crowd pleaser, add in something interesting in the foreground and you’ve got the kind of shot you could frame and stick on your wall.

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RI DE R: K IKO R O I G TO R R E S P H OTO: SAMU C A R D E N AS LOC AT I O N : TA R I FA

KRT: This was a levante day in Tarifa. I should have had only one session this day because the forecast said the wind was going to disappear. As soon as I did my first session in a secret spot close to Tarifa I moved to Balneario to check the conditions. I was not happy with my first session and I was expecting more. When I arrived at the spot Samu was there having a walk, and as usual for him he made some magic!

FOCUS

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R ID E R : YO UR I ZO O N PHOTO : O R E STIS ZO UM P OS LOC AT IO N : GR E E C E

TKM: With Ben Wilson on the cover of this issue, and Youri popping up here, it’s fair to say that the old guard have still got it going on… Youri has been heading to Greece for many moons – you can see why…

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RI DE R: P OS ITO MART INE Z P H OTO: L AC I KOB U L S KY LOCATION: B U E N H OMB RE , DOMINIC AN RE P U B L IC

LK: During the annual CrazyFly photoshoot, this time held for the second time in the beautiful Dominican Republic, our most favorite spot to shoot was Kite Buen Hombre. Not only because of the charming and naturalistic beach setup and lifestyle, but also strong winds that lasted long into the sunset. We photographers and filmmakers love to shoot into the sunset to get that epic warm backlit glow and the main spot at Cabarete does not offer the perfect shooting angles, so KBH was the easy choice. We were shooting some regular product shoots with a flash and I kind of got tired of the same ‘flash’ look, so I turned it off and put the camera in an Outex water housing to get some sun at the bottom of the frame. The rest of the job was on Posito, and like always, he delivered!

FOCUS

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RIDER: RAFAE L C AST IL LO SAU GRAÑE S PHOTO: ÁNGE L C ARRAS CO LOCATION : RIA DE ALVOR, P ORT U GAL

TKM: You know that feeling when you just start feeling a little tired midway through a strapless air? Here’s Rafael Saugrañes taking a moment out before deciding how he’s going to get down…

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RI DE R: KY L E MAC K IE LOC AT I ON: MAU I

TKM: We can’t quite get our heads around how you get this kind of shot… Something about an Insta360 cam apparently.

It’s a rad angle though and Kyle gets extra points for coordinating about 17 things at once…

FOCUS

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RID E R: IS MAIL ADARZ ANE PHOTO: S OF IANE B OU H ADI LOC AT I ON: MOROCCO

TKM: Ismail is a multi-talented rider who kites, surfs and paddleboards and can also stick a foil under any of the forementioned craft and still shred… Here he is keeping it simple and stylish.

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Hannah Whiteley T A N G L E D

L I N E S

Hannah Whiteley is undeniably a powerful and talented athlete regardless of what she throws herself at, be it a kite, in the gym, or even her penchant for rollerblades. She’s gone from national competition on the UK scene to perhaps the ultimate freeride content creator. Here’s a cross examination from some of her peers…

PHOTO AB OV E : V I NC E NT B E RGE RON

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PHOTO : IA N E D MO N DS O N

y e l e t i h W nah James Boulding

As a fellow UK northern monkey seeing you develop and compete on the UK national tour, how did these experiences shape your life and career now?

Yes James, shout out to all the northern monkeys! Competing on the UK national tour was definitely a fantastic stepping-stone. It’s one thing throwing tricks freeriding and a whole other thing performing them in competition. The British championships helped me so much to go on and compete internationally. I built my name and career in kitesurfing from competing, and it all started on the British tour back in 2007.

Alina Kornelli What have you learnt most about yourself and the world during your time traveling so much?

I think traveling educates you greatly. I’ve learnt so much, and become so much more of a rounded person. It’s taught me to wear my heart on my sleeve – you never really know when you’re next going to see that person. I like to tell the people that are special to me how much they mean to me.

I also feel a huge sense of appreciation when I’m home for short periods of time. The time spent with family and friends is somewhat heightened, and I see things in a different light – my local beach shines even on the bleakest day, the home I have created feels that extra bit warmer – as if some sort of fairy dust has been sprinkled over everything.

Jalou Langeree Who or what inspires you to push forward and think out of the box when it comes to projects and jumps/ tow ups? Will you become the female version of Nick Jacobsen?!

Nick is an incredible rider who has so much precision and control. His jumps and stunts definitely inspire me. I’m a long way off Nick’s standard but I don’t mind being compared as a female version of him haha! I am also inspired by fellow UK rider Lewis Crathern and his pier jumps! And Aaron Hadlow for dominating the world tour for so long.

Polly Crathorne Hannah, you and your family were an integral part of the British competition circuit for many years and so welcoming to me when I competed for the first time, 12 years ago. Can you share a memorable competition story from the golden years?

The first couple of years on the British tour were definitely my favorite. It was so nice meeting everyone from all over the UK. Hanging out with you and your family Polly, in your ace camper van, is such a nice memory. Another memorable moment was the first event I won competing in the Amateur Ladies, in Aberdeen, Scotland. What made this win so special was that it was shared with my dad, Pete. He got his first win in the Senior division too! It was so nice winning our categories for the first time at the same event.

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TANGLED LINES

P H OTO: TOBY B ROMW I C H

TKM When you’re in the spotlight, you’re subject to many people’s opinions – good and bad. How do you deal with criticism on social platforms and how does it affect you?

People are entitled to their own opinions; not everything I do is going to be everyone’s cup of tea and that’s okay. Negative comments do affect me; I feel it. But it’s not about how many times you get knocked down, it’s about how you get back up.

You’ve got to just brush it off and continue. People are quick to make assumptions without knowing the effort that’s gone into something and the real motive behind it. Don’t do what you do to try and get applauded by others, do it because you believe in what you’re doing!

Therese Taabbel What is your dream kite trip?

With the Brazilian season going off right now, I can’t help my mind drifting away to Brazil – those magic sunset lagoon sessions, prime 9m weather, the Duotone Dice and Team Series board, riding till dark with the crew, stoke levels high as we all push each other – that’s the dream right now.

If you could, what would you tell 20-year old Hannah?

Nothing ventured, nothing gained…

Craig Cunningham After all these years on the scene you are still one of the most stoked people I know and for sure one of our most energetic team riders! What keeps you so excited about the sport on the day-to-day basis?

Aw thank you Craig. I think it’s because I’m not kiting 24/7 – there are many sports I love to do – skating, rock climbing, calisthenics (bodyweight workout), snowboarding, hiking, free diving. We don’t have consistent wind in the UK and I’m not away on trips constantly, so it gives me the opportunity to do different sports, and when it’s windy I’m excited for sure to ride. So I think the secret is to have many passions!

Guy Bridge Snog, marry, avoid – Olly, Guy, Tom?!!

PH OTO : SV E TLA N A R OM A N TSOVA

Whiteley

Johanna-Catharina Edin

TOP L E F T

All smiles for Hannah and dad Pete, taking first place back in 2007.

TOP RIGH T

She’s pretty good on wheels too.

MIDDL E RIGH T

Top of the podium.

Haha this question made me laugh a lot! I’d snog Tom, marry Guy, avoid Olly (sorry Olly!).

HANNAH WHITELEY

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P HOTO : C HR I S P R I E STLE Y

That my biggest passion in life is actually my job still feels a little surreal, and I’ll never take a trip for granted. There have also been some very special competition wins too that still give me a tingle of excitement.

being cancelled. That’s when the idea came to my mind – what if I make the perfect kite shoot happen right now in the middle of winter in the UK – the idea of an indoor shooting was born. It took quite some logistics to make it happen and had me dangling like a yo-yo in a makeshift studio, but in the end it turned out better than I imagined. It will always be a very special shoot to me.

Philipp Becker (Duotone Marketing Manager)

Annelous Lammerts

How hard was it being locked down for you as such an active person? And how did you come up with the idea of an indoor shooting?!

What is your main goal for the next couple of years?

Are you planning to go back competing?

Annabel van Westerop What is the best thing so far of all your years as a pro kiter?

In the first lockdown I enjoyed having the time to slow down from a busy travel schedule. A year later and with the end of Covid still not in sight, I really started to struggle mentally. Not being as active and busy in the harsh British winter was definitely a challenge. I found myself so frustrated with multiple winter shootings 46

TANGLED LINES

At the moment I absolutely love creating content, thinking outside the box with the creativity. I really want to continue this and if there are some competitions that get me excited to compete, I will compete, but competition is not my main focus at the moment.

Steven Akkersdijk And what are your goals for the next 5 to 10 years?

To still share that excitement and thrill I have now for kiting – I never want to lose that feeling. To discover new kiting locations, and run more coaching camps and really connect with the kiting community. Kiting has given me so much in the last 10 years I would love to give it back over the next 10 years, and share even more stoke on the water with you all.

Jil van Dijk (Photographer) How do you want to be remembered for your time on earth?

As someone that has hopefully brought some good energy to you or perhaps inspired your kitesurfing – that would be nice…

TKM That women in kiting get true respect for their riding. I feel like there is always a ‘but’ involved with every compliment. ‘It was a great trick but it showed your ass and that’s why the video did so well’. I could go deep into this matter; I feel it’s a very current and relevant topic that needs raising awareness.

This will have to be for another time!

Rita Arnaus What is your favorite spot at home and when is the best season to kite?

My home spot Lytham St Annes will naturally always be my favorite. A magic day at home will keep me stoked for a week.

If you time it right with the tides you can score some great flat-water conditions and the beach is huge, never overcrowded. The best time for wind is the autumn – September to November we usually get some pretty decent wind.

P H OTO: SV E T L ANA ROMANTS OVA

If you could change one thing about the kiting industry, what would it be?

Colleen Carroll There are many, haha. One of my most embarrassing moments actually involves Sarah, now editor of TheKiteMag! Many years ago we were on a kite shoot in Tarifa. There were quite a few of us staying in a big house together. All was good apart from one night I got up from my single bed and started sleepwalking in the pitch black… I woke up some time later to find myself in a different bed and freaked out like crazy when I felt feet… I was curled up in a ball sleeping by Sarah and her husband Rich’s feet! I could not believe it – so embarrassing!

You will be happy to know I have stopped sleep walking now – great news for everyone’s safety at night!

Holly Kennedy

P H OTO: SV ET LA NA ROMANTS OVA

What is your most embarrassing moment while on a kite trip?

How would you motivate more females to get involved with the sport?

We simply can’t let the guys have all the fun on the water ladies! Kitesurfing is life changing; you will love it. Let’s bring a bit of girl power to the beach!

Any last words?

I would just like to say thank you to everyone for your questions. It’s really brought back some great memories, going back 15 years! Kiting really is a wonderful thing and in general we have such a fantastic community of people young and old united by our passion. Big thank you TKM for featuring me, and thank you to Duotone and Chiemsee – without your support I wouldn’t be able to live this passion.

PH OTO: TO BY B R OM W I C H

TKM

CARLA HERRERA ORIA

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Ticket to the Moon

Raptor Extreme HIGH PERFORMANCE FREERIDE/BIG AIR.

CRAZYFLYKITES.COM

L I S T H E T N O

WORDS MIRIAM TYMIEC

Photo: Action Edit

Egypt has a lot of very nice flatwater spots with turquoise crystal-clear water. While I have traveled to many different kite spots in Egypt, most of them are at all-inclusive hotels with nothing but desert surrounding them. Which is totally fine if you just want to kite, eat, sleep, repeat, but I was missing a more normal life – the opportunity to go out to a restaurant at night or even just move outside of your accommodation. When I first arrived in El Gouna, which a kite teacher once described to me as ‘Egyptian Disneyland’ I realized it is a one-of-a-kind spot for kiting and enjoying life.

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ON THE LIST

Photo: Alice Aloha

Photo: Wake Up Stoked

Photo: Jil van Dijk

El Gouna is a town built specifically for holidaymakers and water sports enthusiasts. It is super clean and well-organized, and with all its canals almost seems like the Egyptian version of Venice. It’s an ideal spot for both learning kitesurfing and progressing your tricks, thanks to the flat or slightly choppy water and a big area that you can stand up in. For beginners it’s best to wear neoprene shoes as there are some shells and rocks, depending which kite station you kite at. Also be aware of the tides – at some kite stations you have to walk all the way out to deeper water at low tide, at others you can kite straight from the station even at low tide. The kite stations are very well equipped, and with a relaxed, laid-back vibe are fun to hang out at before and after your sessions. There are many cool ones to choose from, like Kiteboarding Club, Element, Red Sea Zone and many more. Besides storage for your kite gear and a rescue boat you usually have nice chillout areas, restaurants and massage services. Makani Beach Club even has a sauna, fitness space and meeting room in case you need to do some work while you’re there.

Photo: Alice Aloha

Generally El Gouna is a year-round spot although the summer months from June to September have the best wind stats as the thermal kicks in with the warmer temperatures. The summer months can get very hot (around 40 degrees Celsius) but if you don’t mind the heat the wind is good. I’ve often visited in spring or autumn and even though some days were windless I was still happy with the overall kiting, vibe and holiday feel, as well as being in warmer temperatures than Europe at that time of year. You never really know what you’ll get though, sometimes you might have a week with wind every day, sometimes you might have five to seven days without wind. If you have the time I would recommend visiting for more than a week, ideally 10 to 14 days, to get some proper kiting in.

If you want to experience another kite spot you can also do a day trip to Tawila Island by boat. Many kite stations organize it on a weekly basis and it’s a beautiful spot with offshore wind, perfect flat water, and stunning scenery of blue water against the desert island. Or go for EL GOUNA

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Photo: Action Edit

Photo: Wake Up Stoked

a whole week of kite safari and let the kite tour operators take you to small islands and spots with the best wind and least crowds.

Once you’ve kited your heart out you can enjoy the Marina and El Gouna Downtown, stroll through the beautiful streets and shops of this artificially designed place, and visit the big choice of restaurants, bars and nightclubs. It’s a nice spot to meet other kiters and, compared to other Egyptian spots, has quite an active nightlife. One of the things I love about El Gouna is that you can easily move around with tuk tuks, which are literally at every corner and have fixed rates, so there is none of the usual haggling. This made it super easy for me traveling on my own to get to the kite spot or the Marina for dinners. If you want to

Getting There Hurghada airport (HRG) is only half an hour drive from El Gouna. You can usually find good deals with European airlines although it can be cheaper booking the whole package with flight and accommodation. A lot of kite stations offer transfers from the airport to El Gouna if you are organizing the trip yourself.

In the Bag Usually it’s best to bring everything you’ve got!

You could end up with anything from light days to hanging-on conditions.

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ON THE LIST

self-cater there are a few small supermarkets, although eating out is pretty cheap. The food standard is high overall and, personally, I love Egyptian food.

No wind days are perfect for diving or snorkeling – it’s astonishing how much sea life there is in the Red Sea – or you can hit the Sliders Cable Park for some wakeboarding, whether you want to have a go yourself or just watch the locals killing it. It has four different cables for all levels of rider, and a cafe. All in all, El Gouna is catered towards all tourist needs so it’s an easy getaway if you don’t want to plan a lot and want a laid-back, easy-to-organize kite holiday with crystal-clear, Caribbean-like water. ■

Staying There There are various options depending on your budget and needs, from self-catering apartments to boutique hotels to big all-inclusive hotels. Some of them are right at the kite spot like the Mövenpick which has the kite station, Kitepeople.

Beer Grab a beer for around three euros. If you want to escape the hotel scene there are some nice restaurants downtown and in the Marina. Most kite stations have plenty of kite-fuel as well.

Rubber Shorty from spring until early autumn, maybe even just board shorts for summer. Long wetsuit (4/3) for winter.

Most Likely to Hear Woah, did you see that fish?! The water’s so clear…

Least Likely To Hear I think I’ve done everything…

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AN EXTRA DOSE OF ADRENALINE

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NaishKiteboarding

Naish_Kiteboarding

E

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ST

IJ

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ELEVEIGHT COMMANDER

T KOS

P HOTOS: P E TR A HO E XU M

BOARD DIMENSIONS: 137 x 41.5cm // RIDER WEIGHT: 98kg // RIDER HEIGHT: 186cm 56

I’M ON IT

Stijn is the current European WOO record holder scoring a mahoosive 33.3m earlier this year. We were keen to find out more about the board that took him into the stratosphere.

I broke the WOO record at Leucate in January. I headed there as the forecast was looking insanely good. On arrival there was actually no wind, but after a trip to the supermarket the wind started picking up.

Although it was only 12 degrees Celsius it was sunny with not a cloud in the sky. We started the session with around 30 knots but the wind kept picking up, and our jumps got bigger and bigger. Then I got a perfect 60-knot gust and flew higher than I ever had before. In the air I was already wondering if I’d hit the magic 30 meters. When I downloaded my WOO session and found out my height I was extremely stoked; it was an incredible feeling!

To deal with stormy conditions and go as high as possible on the WOO score, I look for a board with loads of grip that is easy to handle in strong conditions. I also like a stiff board because of the fast and hard landings you can get in these stormy conditions. The Commander is a stiff board for hardcore riding.

I’ve been riding the Commander for three years now. When I first started using Eleveight gear I rode the Master and really liked it. Then a year later they released the Master C+, the carbon version of the Master. It was lighter and more playful. Then the new Commander V1 arrived on the scene. When I tested it for the first time I was really impressed by the amount of grip it had, and for that reason I ordered a Commander the following year. It has a multi-channel bottom for loads of grip, and has more channels than the Master C+.

There was a storm at home in June with really extreme conditions – loads of current and gusts up to 58 knots. The Commander performed really well in these conditions. There wasn’t a moment when I thought I couldn’t hold my edge anymore. Riding upwind wasn’t a big problem with the strong current we had that day. The stiffness of the board helped with the rough landings I made.

The Commander is made of a combination of carbon and wood. The board has double torsion diffuser on the tips for more pop and easy landings. The freestyle setup is best with the 30mm fins, while for Big Air I recommend the 45mm fins. I used to always ride it with the 30mm fins but since this year I’ve been using the 45mm fins for the little bit of extra grip.

Eleveight have made two versions: a 137cm and a 141cm. For lighter wind I recommend the 141 version and for using in high wind I recommend the 137. My board line-up is a combination of the 137 Commander with the 136 Master C+, the Commander for the high wind range and the Master C+ for lightwind old school days. The Master C+ is lighter than the Commander so it’s easier to handle with board-off tricks.

I really like to help Eleveight develop their products; it’s nice to contribute to making products better and better. I have some contact with Franz Schitzhofer, the board designer, to give feedback.

WOO is running their worldwide competition at the moment and I really want to win it! We’re also competing as team Eleveight at the moment, and of course I want to take the top spot with the team as well.

Next winter I’m hoping to visit Cape Town and see what’s possible there; for sure I want to try and beat my personal record.

ELEVEIGHT COMMANDER

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The Imperator symphony Rider Linus Erdmann Photo Lutz Englert

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RIDE A

MASTERPIECE

CARVED — A CORE BRAND

MY BEA

C H

Lake Walchensee Multi-disciplined Bavarian Florian Gruber has been in the racing mix for many years, and has stood on the podium more times than most. We find out about his favorite spot at home, where he honed his cat-like foiling skills.

P H O T O S A L E X S C H WA R Z

W H AT A R E Y O U R F I R S T R E C O L L E C T I O N S O F T H E B E A C H ?

It is for sure the crystal clear water with all the beautiful mountains around. Always when I talk about my favorite lake at home, I have to mention the beauty of the spot.

C A N YO U R E M E M B E R A N Y O F YO U R F I R ST S E S S I O N S ?

I first kited in the Netherlands then in Tarifa as Walchensee itself is not a good spot for beginners, so I had some experience before I first rode there. The launching area is not that easy, as the wind tends to be gusty. I remember the water was still chilly as it was spring, and I was not that experienced at the time as I was only 11 or 12. But I think I handled it quite well as a young kid. I knew the lake already from windsurfing, but looking at the kite with all the mountains behind was just amazing.

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MY BEACH

W H O E LS E D I D YO U R I D E T H E R E W I T H ?

At the beginning I spent a lot of time there with my dad, because I couldn’t go to the spot alone.

C A N Y O U TA L K U S T H R O U G H T H E T Y P I C A L C O N D I TIONS?

It is a thermal breeze on a mountain lake. So most of the time you will end up using big kites. The water is almost flat with a small amount of chop. Now with foiling I love kiting there even more.

H A S T H E S E T U P AT T H E B E A C H C H A N G E D O V E R THE YEARS?

No not really. The kite spot is in a national park area and the rules are strict. You have to get there by bike.

W H AT W O U L D B E Y O U R P E R F E C T D AY T H E R E ?

Going to the spot with my girlfriend and meeting my dad with the family there, having a good session on my foil and doing some jumps, with a nice picnic lunch in between! There is nothing better than having your family and friends around for a good session.

W H E R E ’ S Y O U R F AV O R I T E P L A C E T O E AT O R W H AT I S Y O U R F AV O R I T E M E A L A F T E R A S E S S I O N T H E R E ?

On the way home there is a market with a classic Bavarian snack, called ‘Leberkas Semmel’. It’s a kind of sliced meatloaf in a bread roll…

D O Y O U T H I N K Y O U W O U L D H AV E G O T T O W H E R E Y O U A R E T O D AY I F T H AT H A D N ’ T B E E N S U C H A F A MILIAR SPOT?

Walchensee always helped me to enjoy the sport as much as possible and that’s why I am still doing it on a professional basis. Maybe it’s not the windiest place but for me it’s one of the most beautiful ones.

W H E N D I D Y O U L A S T R I D E T H E R E – H O W WA S I T ? !

Yesterday! But actually I went for a wingfoiling session after returning home from the European Championships in France, to give my mind some time off from kiting. So I will be back and focused on kiting from today onwards.

I F Y O U H A D T O C H O O S E A N O T H E R S P O T T H AT Y O U L O V E B U T T H AT I S C O M P L E T E LY D I F F E R E N T, W H E R E WOULD IT BE?

I think I would choose Tarifa. I spent a lot of time there when I was younger. You get so many different conditions there and it’s perfect to grow your skill level in different disciplines. Also the town has a special flare! ■

TARIFA

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1.

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LOVE LETTERS TO KITEBOARDING

2.

As we know, Colin Colin Carroll is a humble individual, so he hasn’t told many people that he has recently graduated (with slightly below average marks) from his PhD in Advanced Kitesurf-Boarding Social Anthropology, attained from five years of dedicated field work at the University of Novotna, Czechoslovakia. To mark this monumental academic achievement, he offers an excerpt from his soon-to-be-published thesis, boldly titled ‘Social Observations of Kite Propelled Humanity’ – it’s an intimate appraisal of commonly observed demographics and their behavioral patterns that surround us at local kite spots. At least he’s doing something constructive with himself and not just relentlessly fawning over Tom Bridge on social media to pass the dark hours…

Think you’re unique? Bit of a maverick? You’re not, mate. Come off it. You’re a product of society. A slave to the system. So have a flick through these kiteboarding stereotypes and pretend you’re not any of them.

1. The Disgruntled Pro

3.

Since having to actually wield influence rather than just rocking up to the yearly photoshoot, their career is looking shaky at best. Expect plenty of copy pasted philosophical captions. Expect total ignorance to the fact that no one cares. And if reality has dawned, expect a blind panic to set in. They’ll start thinking that people care about their private life or their dogs or their airport luggage fiascos. They’re wrong but it’s too late. Their career is doomed and will no doubt resort to racing remote control cars or strapless freestyle instead. Or vlogging.

2. The Shady Instructor “I’ll teach you to kite” – said with a smile that if you didn’t know better you could have taken for kindness. In reality, he wants to get into your pants and no one has ever set eyes on their instructor qualification.

You’ll be wanting to self rescue before you can say the words, have you really done this before?

3. The Proud VW Transporter Owner The target market. These guys keep the industry afloat and the second hand markets bursting at the seams. Put fins on backwards and love nothing more than cleaning the sand out of their VW Transporter with a tiny little brush.

4.

4. The Try Hard Got into kiteboarding in order to solve the crippling problem of being desperately uncool. With this target still at large, they ensure they’ve got the sickest gear. They almost certainly ride boots and own a C-kite, but in reality they spend so little time on the water there is a real danger of seasickness. When 30 knots comes around they selflessly film their mates, and despite lots of talk of loops no one has ever witnessed one from this complete and utter Try Hard.

THE 12 TYPES OF KITEBOARDER

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5.

5. The Industry Mogul Got completely trampled on in the corporate rat race so resorted to the insular industry that is kiteboarding. Not known for its levels of professionalism, the barrier to entry is nice and low, so anyone can join!

Want to do a job that you’re not qualified for in any way? Why not have a go! One of these guys will hire you, and before you know it, you’ll be on the phone to me, haggling podcast endorsement rates and generally saying no to everything I propose. I look forward to hearing from you.

6. Quite Talented Tina She can loop. She can pass. She can probably do loads of keepie uppies, too. But does that get her anywhere? Hell no. Not in this broken world. No one cares about hard work or talent, do they? They just want those bikini shots on Instagram…

7. Lit Lee

6.

Completely bitten by the kite bug and excitable to the point of irritation - you wonder whether you’ll ever get a moment to yourself again.

On the water they’re a total loose cannon. At best they’ll loop their 12m and not give a damn about swim zones. At worst they’ll proudly laminate their written warnings from the RSPCA about disrupting bird sanctuaries. They’re the sort that’d put their hand out of the window of a moving car to check wind strength. Lots of talk about interchangeable chicken loops, and if you point out that the trees aren’t moving they’ll say trees are just stiff.

8. The Annoying (better than you) Grom Barely likeable in the car park, these half-tacking little bedwetters are everywhere these days. They’re barely pubescent, yet able to throw huge boogie loops and do doubles like it’s Wimbledon. When I’m in power they shall be banned from the beaches. In the meantime, can someone please explain to them that if they change direction halfway through the lagoon it ruins the flow of the whole place. Thank you.

9. The Weekend Wind Woman Warrior How this lot manage to ride through the barrage of condescending advice that is dished out to them on the water on a daily basis, we’ll never know. But they find a way. Some say it’s trickier to navigate the rough waters of a male-dominated sport than making it round the Isle of Wight on a 5m Slingshot Fuel and a sit-ski.

7.

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LOVE LETTERS TO KITEBOARDING

8.

9.

10. Fairweather Ferris Kited for years. Load of gear. Fairly decent but should be better considering the time spent flying kites and is therefore exceptional at finding excuses. If, god forbid, the conditions are actually looking decent, they’ll find a spare bit of water four kilometers away. If all else fails and they should find themselves in a confined area, they’ll take a skimboard out and pretend to be a laid-back free spirit.

11. The Wakeboarder Wasn’t good enough at skating or surfing so resorts to kiting. Brings an air of skate-park-vibes to the beach, where if you dare make a joke about their riding they’ll spit at you. Fully believes that there isn’t any point in doing a trick unless someone is watching. Cares heavily about kite angles, and prides themselves on how fast they can do their lines.

Criticizes Liam Whaley but would smother their grandma with a pillow to be him.

12. Inland Bodhi

10.

Bodhi always had ambitions of being a roots surfer after watching a Point Break VHS relentlessly whilst growing up just outside Coventry, a solid four hours travel from the ocean in any direction. He didn’t actually clap eyes upon the majesty of the sea until he reached his 32nd birthday, and only scraped a 10m swimming badge doing backstroke at primary school. He completely dismisses any form of twintip riding, due to his total lack of gymnastic talent, and describes any technical freestyle move as an ugly series of ‘reach arounds’. Beware, he may become borderline aggressive or annoyingly evangelical at the glimpse of footstraps in any context. In the water he’s harmless enough, riding around in the shallows wiggling his bum, with the odd irritating flourish in the whitewater, sometimes catching his flappy surf leash in his game-changing $600 sliding rope harness. If there’s over 1.6ft of surf, he’ll be hiding in his van terrified and feverishly consulting Magic Seaweed for better (smaller) conditions. ■

Colin Colin Carroll xoxox

11.

12.

THE 12 TYPES OF KITEBOARDER

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HAPPY SNAPPER

Without the invention of photography this magazine would be nothing but smooth flowing prose, and we’d have to rename it TheKiteBook. So we’re very grateful for all the talented snappers who choose a career path behind the lens. We hear from one, Christopher Poole, who has spent the last couple of summers snapping some of the world’s elite kiters in mainland Greece…

ABOVE

Crazy clouds, empty spot... Liam Whaley lucks out.

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THE MISSION

As I write this I'm just a few days from my 34th birthday and it was 16 years ago to the day that I got my first DSLR camera. I then fell in love with kiting photography when I moved from Australia to Cyprus 10 years ago, with my favorite toys in tow – my camera and underwater housing. I was spending most of my free time at my friend's kite school, Kahuna Surfhouse, and after years of shooting the locals I decided to take a trip to Greece to see if I could get the chance to photograph some of the best freestyle riders on the globe. It was one of the best decisions I ever made! Last year I got to photograph some of the world's top riders such as Liam Whaley, Therese Taabbel, Maxime Chabloz, Val Garat, Pippa Van Iersel and Louka Pitot. Having them on the other end of the lens made me fall more in love with photographing and filming kiting. After that it was a no-brainer to keep visiting Greece; it's now a matter of deciding how long and how many times I can visit every year! The handy thing about living in Cyprus is that it’s only a short flight to get to Greece, so I have made the trip quite a few times over the last few years.

The plan for my trip earlier this year was to spend time filming Liam Whaley for one of his upcoming vlogs. It was the off-season so was cheap and spots were empty, and from most beaches you could still see a dusting of snow on the mountains in the distance.

It was Liam’s first time traveling after his knee injury in Brazil last year, and you could tell he had something to prove to himself and wanted to show the world that he hasn't lost a beat. After just a few sessions getting back in his groove, he was landing all his big moves and adding some variations to his smaller ones. Spending time with him is always good fun; he’s a super talented rider and you know when you film him you're going to get some great clips.

It's inspiring to see someone who has been riding at the highest level since his teenage years still pushing to be the best in the world, whether it's freestyle or Big Air. When the trip came to an end it was back to Cyprus for a few weeks of down time, to recharge my (and my camera’s) batteries.

TOP

BOTTOM MIDDLE

Natalie Lambrecht scores the last session of the day at this awesome flat water estuary.

Liam cranks out a big Blind Judge 7 at Drepano.

BOTTOM LEFT

Louka Pitot’s front Blind Mobe is a thing of beauty.

BOTTOM RIGHT

Liam puts on a show for the locals at Surf Camp Raches.

HAPPY SNAPPER

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THE MISSION

But before I knew it I was back on the plane in July. This time round I met up with riders from the previous year like Val, Pippa and Louka, who was visiting with Nathalie Lambrecht, as well as a group of young Dutch rippers, a fun bunch to hang out with in their massive campervan. Another group of freestyle riders from Poland were quick to follow to the windy Greek shores, and soon the spot was full of top notch riders like Christophe Tack, Helena Brochocka, Youri Zoon, Alex Pastor and some up-andcomers like Kimo Verkerk, Stijn Mul, Tom Seager and Luca Seer. The caliber of riders is testament to the fact that Greece is quickly becoming one of the premiere training grounds for riders between competitions.

Also part of the crew were Clio and Loucas, owners and designers of We Ride Local, a proudly Greek-owned lifestyle brand. They asked if I could film some of their team riders who were at the spot, Stino (Stijn Mul), Kimo, Nathalie, Luca, Mati Wlodarczyk from Poland and part-time Greek resident Franco Tremsal.

Stino and Kimo are both machines – they would kite foil in the mornings, and when it was prime freestyle wind they were back in the water in the afternoon, landing massive moves one after the other. If the wind got too strong they would switch to big loops, dangle-passes or massive floaty old school moves. Luca, Mati and Franco are more freestyle purists; when the wind was good, they too would be pushing themselves to level up. Luca goes massive and has improved so quickly compared to when I first met him last year. Mati, while equally talented, has a different, very technical style, and is able to throw multiple grabs into seemingly every move he tries. Franco, who is the veteran of the crew, still keeps progressing every time on the water, landing and perfecting his chosen tricks. Finally, Nathalie, she is extremely gifted at kiting and is able to combine her amazingly graceful style with a lot of power. She is definitely a rider to keep an eye on in the world of freestyle in the years to come, as she will only get better and better.

Now I would count myself lucky to be shooting just these riders, but over this last summer I had the chance to film four former world champions as well. This was quite humbling for me – Liam is still competing in the world tour and at the top of his game, but to see the other three riders who have retired from the tour (or only compete in a few stops) still riding at such an elite level is inspiring. Youri rides with a level of power and consistency that is not often seen. Christophe is an innovationist doing crazy grabs with so much style, uniqueness and creativity. Alex’s riding is simply clean, polished and often looks effortless. I'm yet to even mention Val and Louka, who on any given day could be the most impressive rider at the spots, both throwing down bangers everywhere, giving everyone on the beach an amazing show. Not to mention the girls – Helena has such a deep bag of tricks and all done with a low kite, impeccable style and possibly the smoothest back moves I've ever seen! When it comes to Pippa, she just goes really big, whether she is unhooking for a massive KGB or doing a kite loop with a late backroll, she is always seemingly a few meters above the rest.

When it came to documenting what was happening at the beach, I was often torn between whether to film videos from the shore or jump in the water with my housing and take some snaps. Greece was in the middle of a massive heat wave, the days were long and hot, climbing over 40 degrees Celsius, so jumping in the water was my preferred option. But with the projects I had to do I did spend a lot of time on the beach with the tripod and long lens, but I can't complain. After the daily sessions, spending time with all the riders, I found everyone to be humble, friendly and an outgoing group of people. Even though there were some generation gaps between some of the riders there, it was a detail that went unnoticed; everyone was enjoying the destination that kiting had brought them to.

Greece really is a special country in the world of kiting. There are the picturesque islands as well where on most summer days the wind is cranking above 30 knots, but if you want to ride freestyle spots, the mainland is the way to go, and I believe that's why it's a go-to location for all those I’ve met these past two years. I will be back in 2022, and I know there will be the sight of familiar faces that I've come to know setting up for a reunion spent on the flat water. ■

FA R L E F T TO P

Five-times Polish champion, Marek Rowinski, reaches into his bag of tricks for this Back Mobe 5 at Drepano.

FA R L E F T B OT TO M

Imagine watching Val Garat rip up this spot from your living room - a reality for one lucky home owner...

TOP LEFT

Mati Wlodarczyk is one of the most technical riders Chris has seen but he’s not afraid to go huge as seen here with this Slim 5.

TOP RIGHT

Marek is one of the best riders you might not have not heard of.

BOTTOM LEFT

Val utilizes his crazy pop on this Slim 7 at the flatlands.

BOTTOM RIGHT

Kimo Verkerk is part of the youth movement of talented kiters coming out of Holland and one to follow for sure.

HAPPY SNAPPER

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THE NEST

Enticed by the tropical beauty and varied kiting conditions of Zanzibar, Flysurfer ambassador Elena Dimitrova moved there earlier this year to build a hotel with her boyfriend and embrace a more peaceful lifestyle…

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THE MISSION

I can remember first seeing kitesurfing – I thought it looked so much fun and really beautiful. I am Bulgarian and the town I’m from is on the seaside, so access to the water was very easy for me. I have always loved the sea and it didn’t take me long to find a way to get on a kite. Before I’d even had a go I’d already bought a wetsuit, kite, harness and board. Like a lot of women, I was incredibly scared, but maybe that made me more determined to test my limits, overcome my fears and prove to myself that I could do it. The conditions in my town are unique – there is a long sandbank running for 10 kilometers, with sea on one side and a completely flat lake on the other. Of course I chose the lake, despite the smell it gave my wetsuit after each session! And so, back in 2015, I was soon taking my first steps in kitesurfing. Ever since then, I have had a strong feeling that it would change my life…

I ended up starting a kite school in Turkey, then organizing kitesurfing trips. My first kite trip abroad was to Zanzibar in 2015 and I knew straightaway it was somewhere I would return to. In February this year it was one of the few destinations open for travel, and as I hadn’t traveled in a long time and was thirsty for a kite adventure, I headed there with a group of other kiters. We had a great time, and by the time the vacation was over and we were on our return flight, I was already looking at tickets for another trip. Only four days later I was back in Zanzibar again, this time with all my luggage and kites! The timelessness, the feeling of normal life, the beauty of the place and the wind were the main reasons for me to return.

And so, fast forward a few months, and I am living here and running a hotel. Well, let me tell you, building dreams (and a hotel) is a total adventure – especially in Zanzibar – and I have certainly learned a lot. I had no

THE NEST

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experience in the hotel business before and it was quite a process finding builders, gardeners and staff, having an idea in your head and watching it grow every day in front of your eyes. The construction and the whole process, if I have to be honest, were not easy. We had no experience with materials and were looking to bring a touch of Europe, but many things here just don’t work, so we learned to stick entirely to local materials that give the hotel a natural look, while doing something different that would bring Mexican, Balinese and Maldivian energy to Africa. The restaurant is entirely vegetarian – the only one in Paje. It was challenging to find chefs that were up to the task, but we ended up being very lucky with our staff.

The name of the hotel is The Nest – it is our home, our nest, which we are very proud of and is more than just a hotel. It is our work of art in the center of one of the best places for kitesurfing!

People had repeatedly told me that the wind here is weak, the conditions are more suitable for beginners, that it is dangerous and that you need vaccines. Well, after six months here, I have to say that the conditions allow you to improve your skills in many disciplines from freestyle to freeride, waveriding to foiling. In front of the hotel the conditions vary as the tide changes – a shallow, crystal clear and smooth lagoon at low tide changes in just hours to deep water in which you can ride a hydrofoil or wing without worrying about the coral. I recently started organizing a downwinder which gives you a choice of riding inside the lagoon or riding the waves on the reef, and you can waveride downwind for two hours!

Good kiting conditions aside, Zanzibar has a very pleasant energy that you can already feel when you land at the airport. Somehow the place has its own shell, separated from news, problems and diseases. It is a magical island where time has stopped and people just live in peace. As the locals say: Hakuna Matata Zanzibar… ■

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THE MISSION

HAKUNA M ATATA ZANZIBAR…

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With the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics still fresh in our minds, we thought we’d catch up with Markus Schwendtner from the International Kiteboarding Association, as we eagerly anticipate kiting’s debut appearance at the next Olympics in France. We also spoke to some of the hopeful competitors, Ellie Aldridge, Jemima Crathorne, Katie Dabson, Lily Young and Maddy Anderson of the British Women’s Kitefoiling Team.

P H O T O S : A L E X S C H WA R Z / I K A M E D I A

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Profile

Olympic Dreams

Did you enjoy the Tokyo Olympics Markus? Which sports were you most impressed by?

15 knot seabreeze, to 40-50 knots offshore mistral which is brutal…

This year’s Olympics were very different. Because it was not possible to leave your hotel or venue, exposure to other sports did not happen. I think the new additions of skateboarding and surfing were quite successful.

Can you talk us through what the event in the Olympics will look like?

Do you think kiting will generate as much of a buzz as them?!

It will be different as kiting is not coming in as a new sport, but rather as a new discipline in an existing sport – sailing.

Having said that, and knowing that the French are crazy about foiling (and kiting in general), and the stadium atmosphere that will be created in Marseille with grandstands right at the racing area, I am sure we will impress very much. Especially as we can sail in all conditions Marseille might throw at us, as proven in the 2019 Sailing World Cup Final when we were the only ones out there for one and a half days in 40+ knots.

Nice! So, what do you anticipate the conditions will be like in Marseille at that time of year?

The course for kites will be right in front of the beach. Conditions can be anything from super light, to a standard 12-

Originally, kiting was given one medal – mixed team relay – as there was no room to add two medals. When the International Olympic Committee rejected the World Sailing’s proposal for an offshore sailing event in Marseille, the easiest and least disruptive solution was to split the mixed team relay into individual medals for men and women. So basically it is racing on a windward-leeward course, men and women separately for one medal each. What is new is the final day format (the medal series), which will be semifinals and finals. The top two from the opening series, which is planned to be 12 races, go straight to the final, places three to 14 go through two semifinal groups, and only the winner advances to the final.

The final will then be with four riders racing on a super short course close to shore until one has three wins. We’ve tested that a couple of times now and it is super exciting. At the European Championships in September we did a live stream (which was a bit rushed as we were running out of time!) but everyone was on the edge of their seats.

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How does the decision to have separate men and women’s medals affect your plans for the next couple of years?

This year we ended up with a bit of a mess! We had originally planned to have separate mixed relay and individual events, plus the World Series, and thanks to Covid postponing all events to the autumn, we ended up with basically 12 weeks of events back-to-back. Now we’ve dropped the mixed relay events for this year, but the calendar is still full, and after returning from Tokyo, all teams woke up and got up to speed. For the next few years we plan to run mixed relay, at least at the Worlds and Europeans, as a ‘side event’ for those countries that have competitors of both genders there. Sooner or later we might have to go back to a relay format, as there are simply not enough medals to showcase the whole bandwidth of sailing.

How were the equipment specifications for the Olympics decided?

The equipment specs have always been “registered series production equipment”. That keeps the whole industry involved and enables sponsorship for the riders. Obviously we have to prevent an arms race – the registration cycle for new equipment is now four years (in line with the Olympic cycle) to give teams and competitors planning safety.

Thanks Markus! Now let’s find out what’s happening with the British Womens Kitefoiling Team. Ladies, tell us how you got into kiting and racing.

Ellie: I’ve been racing in sailing since I was a kid in all sorts of classes and eventually got a spot on the British sailing team in the 49erFX Olympic class in 2016 (double handed female skiff boat). A friend taught me to kite back in 2016 too so I used to mess around for fun when I wasn’t sailing. Then in 2018 I got into kite racing through the Kite4Gold program and love it – it’s the best of what I love: kiting and racing!

Katie: I have been racing in dinghies since I was about eight, so the progression to Olympic racing was quite a natural one and I went full time once I’d graduated uni. My move into kiting was in 2018 after my campaign in a Nacra17 came to an end. The Kite4Gold program started in the same year and I had nothing to lose so thought I’d give it a go. Having no background in kiting I didn’t know what I was signing up to but I haven’t looked back since!

Jemima: I started kiting when I was eight, taught by my dad and older sisters. I used to compete in freestyle and we’d go on all sorts of crazy kiting adventures as a family. It was my dream ever since I started kiting to go to the Olympics, hoping that one day the sport would make it into the Games. So it was pretty awesome when the Kite4Gold program came along and that was suddenly some kind of possibility. The whole racing and sailing side of it was very new to me; I’m sure the girls will remember fondly the days when I barely knew what port and starboard meant…!

Maddy: I’ve been competitively sailing a really long time, but stopped international racing once I got to university, with half an idea that I’d get back to it once I’d finished. I had a really good summer of racing in the UK after I finished my degree and decided I wanted to try and compete full time doing an Olympic campaign, but I was persuaded to sign up for the Kite4Gold program… so then it was a toss-up between sailing and kiting, and here I am!

Lily: I originally was windsurfing in the RS:X Class. I had been racing all through youth and just started senior, when I signed up for Kite4Gold and switched sports. I couldn’t kite when I started – it was a crazy learning curve.

What motivates you to push a relatively new sport, that hasn’t been in the Olympics before? Where do you take inspiration from?

Maddy: Our team motivates me for sure! We all push each other super hard, and we know we can get far if we work together, which is incred86

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It’s pretty hectic on the start line...

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You need to know where this RIB is...

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Jemima has a lot on her shoulders.

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Ellie leading the charge.

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Combined speed about 2000kph

ibly motivating, and a lot of fun. Seeing the level of the boys’ fleet as well is a massive driver, as it shows what this sport is capable of.

Jemima: It’s awesome to be at the forefront of something relatively new.

As the first female kite squad on the British Sailing Team, it’s cool to pioneer and shape what that looks like for future kitefoilers on the team.

We’re working it out as we go along and it’s pretty epic to go through it all together! The level is always going up with every event and there’s still so much yet to learn and discover. Equipment is a huge one, kites and foils are getting quicker and quicker. And the technicalities behind the fine-tuning of the gear is endless.

Lily: Yes, it’s super cool to be in a new Olympic sport that’s fresh and exciting; it fits well with what the Olympics is trying to achieve alongside skateboarding and surfing. It’s good that the Olympics is evolving the sports to engage with the younger generation and to have more of a variety of sports. Kitefoiling is a fast new sport that’s exciting to watch with a new, more intense format and hopefully will be super popular for viewing.

Tell us about your training schedule. Are you up at the crack of dawn every day?!

Jemima: Our weekly training schedule is always quite flexible as it revolves around the weather forecast and the wind! Essentially, if there’s wind we’ll grab it – even if it means getting straight out of bed into our wetsuits and hitting the water for an icy dawn raid.

Katie: Our training is constantly evolving as we get better and learn more about the sport, which is really exciting. At the moment we split our time training between on the water and in the gym, with most of our time spent down in Weymouth, UK, when we are not abroad. On the water we do a mixture of technique sessions and racing sessions and are constantly pushing our limits. I’d say we are now the world leaders in tangle avoidance (definitely a result of constantly tangling each other).

There’s never a dull moment!

Ellie: It also depends what we want to focus on and what season it is! In OLYMPIC DREAMS

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the winter and spring we try and get out of the UK as much as we can and get lots of training in as a British squad or with foreign training groups. Summer and autumn is mostly event hopping, with blocks of training fitted in around.

And how do you foresee it going for the next couple of years?

Lily: The standard of the fleet is always increasing and the goal is always to keep up and get ahead of the game, finding small gains on other nations, and trying new things.

Jemima: A good balance of training and events will be crucial, so we don’t burn out. Year by year, our calendar can look pretty similar, kicking things off in Mexico for winter training followed by our first events of the season in March. We usually plan training blocks home and away around certain key events.

Ellie: Yeah, now that we are able to travel around easier there will be more events and more racing. The sport is growing so much, so yes the racing will get much tighter and more intense (than it already is!).

Will you all try to attend all the events over the next couple of years? How difficult is it to balance that with your normal life?

Ellie: This kind of is my life haha! Pretty much everything I do revolves around training and events, so for now I hope to do as much as I can!

Maddy: I’ll try and compete as much as possible for sure. I learn so much when I’m racing, and I also feel most at ease with my lifestyle when I’m competing. I get pretty antsy when I haven’t competed for a while, as competing is essentially what my lifestyle is entirely based around, so it all makes much more sense when I’m racing!

Katie: I think we will try to attend more events over the next couple of years as we missed quite a lot due to Covid. It is also good to have check-ins with foreign riders to assess if your training is going in the right direction.

Jemima: The training and competition lifestyle is an amazing one, but can be quite tiring sometimes. We all love being outdoors and doing adventures in our spare time too, so finding ‘chill’ time is rare

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but important all the same.

And how crucial is training off the water?

Katie: Training off the water is really important, and only getting more important as time goes on. A lot of speed in kiting comes from how much you can ‘load’ the foil, so leg strength makes a big difference. Bike sessions and heavier weights sessions are a big focus to improve this.

Jemima: We mainly do a mix of strength work in the gym and cardio on our road bikes. We’re pretty lucky to have some epic riding on our back doorstep. The Dorset countryside provides a perfect array of hills for us to send it up and down!

How will the selection process for the Olympics work?

Maddy: The selection process will come down to a number of competitions, and essentially whoever is consistently on top will be selected.

It’s a bit more complicated than that but that’s the gist of it.

Lily: We have to qualify for the country at the World Championships in 2022/23 then usually a handful of secondary and primary events are picked the next year to see which individual will represent Great Britain in France.

How do you feel about the format changing from mixed relay to separate men and women events?

Ellie: I think individual medals is really good for the sport. Hopefully it will encourage lots of new people and countries to take part, as you don’t need both male and female to make up a team. But maybe in the future the relay format would be good as I think it’s better for spectators and easier to understand for people who don’t get the tedious complexities of normal fleet racing.

Katie: I’m really happy about the change to individual medals. The relay was a really fun format but a completely different style of racing which brought a lot of different problems and pressures.

Lily: I think it’s a good decision. It increases the funding, coach hours and available team spots for our female squad. It also means we don’t have to rely on having a partner and hopefully means the female fleet gets more coverage.

Jemima: I agree, I think it’s a really good change. It means a lot more countries can get involved, and the bigger fleets and bigger courses of the individual racing is just so epic!

You’re obviously all good friends. How competitive do you get between each other?

Maddy: We are all good friends, which is awesome really; there are plenty of teams in sailing and some kiting teams from other countries who can’t work together, so we’re super lucky in that regard. I think it helped that we all went through the steep learning curve of learning to foil together; we’ve seen each other crash literally hundreds of times, we’ve rescued each other, and pushed each other a lot too. It does get competitive, but mostly, as long as I’ve not completely messed up my own racing, I’m always completely happy when the team smashes it.

Katie: I’d say we have a healthy level of competition between us!

Obviously due to the sport being an individual one we are constantly racing against each other, so that can be tricky when some of us have a bad day and others a good one at an event, but we don’t let it affect our relationships off the water. We seem to have found a great balance between being competitive and pushing each other, and I know when I get back to the beach at the end of a day that we will all be there to support each other which is a great feeling!

Jemima: Yeah, literally hit the jackpot with this lot! We go through a lot together 24/7, and I’m pretty sure we’ve all rescued each other’s lives at various points! I think we’re so lucky that we get on and love hanging out even when we’re not on the water. Honestly, when I see these guys doing well round a course, I get pretty stoked!

Ellie: We all push each other in training and racing, which is really motivating and probably one of the reasons why we are a very successful team! But at the end of the day we are all really good friends and enjoy hanging out outside training and racing, so it’s really fun.

Which competitors from other countries do you need to watch out for?!

Maddy: There are so many to watch out for! It was an all-French podium for both the men and women for the European title that took place in September, then there is also the indomitable Daniela Moroz from the States generally at the top still… there’s so much talent, and because the sport is developing so quickly, the level is essentially going up exponentially.

Ellie: Yeah Daniela has been dominating the top of the female podium since forever! We’re reining her in slowly… The French girls are pretty on it, so definitely some of our biggest competitors.

Does mental preparation play a role in your competition?

If so, what are some practices you use?

Lily: Visualization of the maneuvers and course is key; if you can’t see or imagine yourself racing round clean it’s probably not going to happen. You need to focus on the task ahead and make sure the mind is clear to be able to make good, fast decisions under pressure while the body is under physical strain.

Maddy: Mental preparation is massive, for me especially; it makes a huge difference when I’ve found a way of staying relaxed and focused going into competition. It can be super hard to reset after a bad race or a bad day, so learning to put it behind you and move on is a really useful skill. Personally I try and make sure I’ve fully reviewed my racing, the good and the bad, so that I have taken all the learning points forward, and then I try and just think forward instead of ruminating on what’s happened. It works most of the time!

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Daniela Moroz from the US leading the podium.

Lily rounds the buoy.

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Training at home in Weymouth, UK.

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With coach Jonnie Hutchcroft.

Ellie: When you spend all year leading up to one big event, there’s definitely a lot of pressure with it, so mental preparation is important – knowing you’ve done everything you wanted to do and going into it the best you can be… then trying not to overthink it too much. At the end of the day, we are just kiting around in circles!

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Katie: I think the girls would agree that I am great at stressing! I like to go into an event feeling relaxed and chilled out, so a day off sunbathing or shopping is the perfect relaxer for me a couple of days before racing starts!

Is your safety in the water a concern? We’ve seen some pretty gnarly crashes on the start line... how do you avoid this?

Jemima: Haha, yep – start lines can be some of the most hectic places on the planet sometimes! Experience is key, so the more situations you’ve been in, the better you get at avoiding them in future. But even then, sometimes it’s just inescapable! We wear lots of protective gear – helmet and impact vests – but if it’s all going wrong and you’ve got a foil flying towards you, just sheet in and get the kite to send you up and away!

Ellie: For sure you have to be aware of all the dangers of being on the water – going fast and very close to other people going really fast. You need to get out of dangerous situations, or even avoid them before they’ve happened, switch your mind into a racing headspace, and not worry too much about the dangers if you want to be in with a chance of doing well…

Maddy: Safety is definitely a concern, but if you can race with no fear, then there is absolutely no doubt that you’ll go faster, so trying to not overthink it is pretty key! And to avoid tangles, we train those situations so that our kite skills are good enough to avoid anything too gnarly – sometimes though, you’re simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, which sucks! ■ 90

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Gizzeria, Italy provided a stunning background at the KiteFoil World Series in July.

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Ellie and Jemima show us how it’s done

Rider: Arthur Guillebert Picture: Patrick Schneider

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Pedro Matos’s understandable reaction after beating the legendary Airton Cozzolino in the semi-finals! Pedro’s coach, Leo Chines, has been supporting and coaching Pedro throughout the year and was stoked to see him go through to the final. We hope to see more impressive shows from the young Brazilian in the upcoming events.

PE DRO MATOS

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Cozzolino Airlines was going sky high in the losers’ final, where he took third place against Reece Myerscough.

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~ Gallery ~

GK A K IT E-S U R F WO RL D CUP WORDS : H OL LY KE E NAN AND RASA I S E L I ONY T E P H OTOS : LU KAS ST I L L E R / GKA KI T E WORL D TOU R

The first stop of the GKA Kite-Surf World Cup took place on the stormy island of Sylt off the northern coast of Germany. The riders were thrilled to be back in action and battling it out on the water after nearly a year and a half of not competing.

After a long time away from competition, the women were thrilled to be battling it out on the water once again and sharing the stoke for this spectacular sport.

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SH ARING THE STOKE

Sylt offered the ideal location to hold the event. The island is renowned for its northwesterly winds and solid surf all along the coast. The forecast was good for the start of the waiting period, and the judges took full advantage of the strong winds and managed to finish the competition in two days.

The riders put on a great performance, showcasing what they have been working on over the last few months and pulling a few never-been-done moves out of the bag.

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The Canadian shredder Reece Myerscough did exceedingly well in the competition in Sylt, making it to the semi-finals.

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At only sixteen years old, Keanu Merten put on a brilliant performance, making it all the way through to round five. Keanu showed us he is one to keep our eye on for future events.

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Airton Cozzolino was going for an insane Flat 7 attempt during the best trick competition. If he stays persistent, we might see him landing this trick soon…

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Powerhouse James Carew was reaching new heights and absolutely dominated the men’s competition. He really meant business and didn’t score below thirty points in any of his heats. It was no surprise when Carew took the win over the Brazilian Pedro Matos, as he was unstoppable from the beginning of the event.

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JOH ANNA- CATH AR I NA E D I N 08 08 09

CHARLOT T E CARPENT I ER

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Tour veteran Johanna-Catharina Edin was not holding back at this event and pulled off some beautifully executed airs.

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French water woman, Charlotte Carpentier took third position in Sylt.

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The currently number one ranked rider, Peri Roberts, was on fire!

Peri made the most out of the mushy waves and stormy conditions, throwing down some brilliant airs and buckets on her rides. There is no doubt in our minds that Peri will be shaping up a tough fight for her competitors as this rider has her eyes set on becoming the 2021 GKA Kite-Surf World Tour Champion.

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CAP UCI NE D E LANNOY 12 12

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CAPUCI NE AND JAM ES

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Capucine Delannoy was undoubtedly the star of the show on the women’s side. Delannoy was in a league of her own, landing countless double frontrolls and smashing out some impressive top and bottom turns.

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CAM I LLE D ELANNOY

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Matchu Lopes was throwing buckets on every wave he hit during the competition.

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Unforgettable performances from both our Sylt Champions – Capucine Delannoy and James Carew.

French rider Camille Delannoy showing us where Capucine learned her strapless wizardry as he performs a clean triple frontroll during the best trick competition.

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GKA W I NNE R S 16 16 16

Congratulations to our winners from the GKA Kite-Surf World Cup in Sylt: MEN’S DIVISION: James Carew (AUS) Pedro Matos (BRA) Airton Cozzolino (ITA) WOMEN’S DIVISION: Capucine Delannoy (FRA) Peri Roberts (AUS) Charlotte Carpentier (FRA)

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kept busy with all the no-wind activities that Hvide Sande has to offer and they also participated in a local beach clean-up.

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The next stop of the World Cup was meant to take place in Denmark only a few weeks later. Unfortunately the wind gods didn’t play ball and the competition could not take place. But the GKA riders were

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I N TH E B AG 19 19 19 19 19

In Denmark riders also took part in recording the tech-talk series “In The Bag”, where they revealed their favorite competition set-ups. GKA photographer, Lukas Stiller, got some creative angles of their gear.

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THE ELEMENTS KITEBOARDING COLLECTION 2022

Don’t forget that all the Elements must be connected by the mythical, Fifth Element.

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1 // CORE XLITE 2 CORE have hit the ‘foil’ button big time with a foil, foilboard, foil-specific bar, and now the XLITE 2 to create their ultimate foiling combo. The one-strut XLITE 2 answers the call for a dedicated, high-performance foil kite. It drifts in virtually no wind thanks to the stiffness of the ExoTex Light frame, and the new CoreTex 2.0 canopy material means more muscle and durability. Plus it also now comes in 2 and 3m sizes so you can foil on days you’d usually head out for a Big Air session…

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9 // Cabrinha H-Series The H-Series high-aspect foil range is the latest offering from Cabrinha’s foil program in collaboration with Keahi de Aboitiz. The H-Series wings are all about hydrodynamic efficiency and performance, while seamlessly integrating into the Cab Fusion Foil system. The high-aspect shape allows for effortless pumping and insane glide, while retaining an ‘easy-to-steer’ feeling. Rise to the occasion and get ready for the endless ride…

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By kiteschool owners. For kiteschool owners. www.vikingbookings.com

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10 // North Twintips North present their Big Air and freeride twintips: Atmos Carbon, Atmos Hybrid and Astra, plus the lightwind Trace, which will get you upwind with more control and have you tricking like a pro, even in the lightest of winds. The Atmos boards are North’s high-performance freeride twintips for explosive boosting, looping, and controlled landings. Choose the Atmos Carbon if you want a full carbon laminate layup, or if you’re a lighter weight rider, the playful Astra, which delivers more control, greater comfort and softer landings, without sacrificing performance.

Dynamite comes in small packages!

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11 // Duotone Juice D/Lab Duotone’s new Juice D/Lab has sparked a lot of interest, and our test team has very much enjoyed riding it recently. It’s their first kite to use the ultra-strong Aluula Gold for the inflated part of the kite.

Tear and stretch resistant, and far lighter than standard Dacron, it makes the new Juice one of the lightest lightwind kites on the market, with an insane step-up in handling and performance.

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12 // B runotti Hawk & Blackhawk The Hawk is a high-performance, woodcore freeride twintip, a lively board with a rewarding amount of pop that breaks cleanly off the water – perfect for progression. The Blackhawk goes a step further with its carbon compression core making it lighter, stiffer and more responsive, so you can ride harder and faster. The quality of the finish and durability of both mean you’ll be taking on a board for life. Or for a few seasons at least…

13 // CrazyFly Sculp and Hyper CrazyFly‘s 2022 Sculp and Hyper kites use brand-new TerTex material on all struts and wingtip canopy panels – twice as strong as their Triplex triple ripstop and 40% lighter than the Dacron they use, plus with better UV resistance, equals kites with a lower weight that still maintain a rigid, durable frame. Lighter kites have better low end, move faster through the air, are easier to relaunch and turn quicker, all equating to better performance for you…

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FOIL - TWINTIP - SNOW

www.airwave.aero

sales@airwave.aero

No Danish Pastry Big Air is not a sport for the faint-hearted – alone in the sky in massive conditions, you’re relying on just your skills and your kite. North team rider Nick Jacobsen is well known for his ‘daredevil’ antics and as a successful extreme athlete, has developed a healthy methodology for managing and overcoming fear. As he celebrates his third Big Air season launch with North, the Danish pro-kiter spoke to Victoria Stuart at North HQ about how he tackles fear and what it takes to stay at the top of your game for more than six years.

PHOTOS: CRAIG KOLESKY

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“When you make something really, really good, there’s no point in changing much!” grins Nick, still fizzing on his new season Orbit.

It’s the kind of kite you want when you’re jumping off, or over cruise ships, islands, forts, and the world’s tallest building. While his R&D contribution to the new kites has been limited during Covid, Nick gave the design team feedback throughout the year with small details like the bridles and the arc. “The 2022 Orbit is slightly lighter, and I feel like it boosts a little higher. We’ve eliminated those rear pulls you get in gusty winds, and we’ve focused on finding a balance so you don’t overloop the kite and it doesn’t back stall. I think we hit the spot perfectly.”

What makes Nick want to perform such stunts with the Orbit? Curiosity, he thinks, combined with a feeling of achievement. But he would never do something that didn’t feel right. “I know it can seem crazy when you list what I’ve jumped with a kite, but I take great honor in being in control and assessing the origin of the occasional fear, so when I do it, it never feels crazy. I’ve gotten a bunch of email and Instagram messages from parents who say, ‘you shouldn’t do this, it’s crazy, and you’re not even wearing a helmet! My son looks up to you, and now he wants to jump off things...’. I try to put myself in their shoes, but it’s difficult for me. When I look at Travis Pastrana, I’m like, HOLY BANANAS! I will never try and do something like that in my whole life because I know my limits. I can’t even do a wheelie on a dirt bike, so why the hell would I try to do a double backflip? If you don’t know your limits, that’s when it goes wrong.”

I know it can seem crazy when you list what I've jumped with a kite.

In 19 years of kiting, Nick has only broken an ankle and a finger. “I don’t know if I’ve been lucky, but if anything happens to me during those ‘crazy’ acts, then it would be pretty fatal; you wouldn’t just break an ankle. But I do the risk assessments and calculate everything well.”

Nick believes that his own mental fortitude is a combination of several factors: his genetic make-up, how his parents raised him, the level of support he’s had, his surroundings and his friends as he’s gotten older.

“My mom has always been there for me, especially in the way that she has trusted me 100 percent to do the best that I could, and to do my homework before jumping anywhere.”

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Red Bull performance coach Gary Grinham says, “Fear causes a negative mindset. It instils in you elements of doubt, reluctance and lack of trust”. Nick comes into the game well prepared to eliminate that mindset. Visualization is important. “If I don’t see it happening, then it’s not going to happen. I trust my equipment 100 percent. There are so many factors that could go wrong, but being with a brand like North eliminates that thought. If I know I’ve done my homework, then it’s down to trusting my own skillset, trying to visualize what I have to do.

I wouldn’t go somewhere in the world and say, ‘that’s a cool building.

Let me take the lift up with my gear and jump off it.’ I would never do that. I’d take the lift without my gear, but with my notebook. I’d try and calculate as much as possible, then team up with my friend who is good at analyzing wind conditions. That’s the process I usually go through. I’m incredibly nerdy with the stuff that I do, and I know the risks.

“But I think the fear that comes from your surroundings is different to the fear that comes from within. I had to study this quite a bit to understand how my brain worked, and my conclusion was that every time there is fear, you should listen to it. And you can either make it shut up, or you can challenge it in a way that feels right. I always get frightened when I’m standing on top of a building, so I’ll take it in for about a minute, sit with it, then review it. Ask what it is, where it comes from, if it’s a type of fear I’ve had before, or a new type of fear? If it’s a new type of fear, I won’t jump. I’d need to examine it and figure out what and where this fear actually comes from. I’ve only met with fear like this a few times. Then I’ve put my kite down, looked at it multiple times, teamed up with people in that field who know how to analyze wind near buildings, near trees, you know, updrafts or whatever might be. Once I have the knowledge, I’ll go back to it.”

This kind of rationalization, defined by Dr Pippa Grange in her book Fear Less as: “using logic and statistics to take yourself out of your fear”, is a common technique used by Nick and other kiters to overcome fear. “Everything is very planned, even though it doesn’t look like it. I like putting stuff online that provokes and makes people think that I’m crazy. I don’t know why, because I think I’m the opposite of crazy.

But that’s the brand side of being Nick Jacobsen. When I get home and cook dinner for my girls – my girlfriend Marie and her eight-year-old daughter, I’m so different to that maniac flying around on a kiteboard.

If you can’t compartmentalize those different aspects in your life, then it becomes a maze where you don’t know what’s up, what’s down. Without structure in my life on a day-to-day basis, I sort of lose myself.

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Fear causes a negative mindset Before I met Marie, I was just this single professional kiter flying around. I didn’t have any responsibilities other than being sponsored by people and having deadlines to meet.

But now, this is actually a job; it’s not only passion. It’s what puts food on the table and fills my car up with gas. Taking all these things slightly more seriously really helped me a lot.”

Nick lives on the beach, in a small village just north of Copenhagen, close to his mama’s house. He and Marie are expecting a baby boy in December. “I think it’s going to change a lot of things – hopefully not all the good things.

Already my relationship with Marie’s daughter has changed me – but only in a better way. I talk to Jesse a lot about it, and I can’t wait. I think it’s going to be such a positive anchor in my life. But I think I will ask myself twice, no, ten times before I actually do stuff!” What scares Nick most?

Losing control of something he thought he had control of.

“When I’m taken by surprise, like ‘holy sh*t, I didn’t think about this’, that really scares me, because the consequences, the things that could go wrong, are things I haven’t thought about. Underneath that is the idea of other people looking at me and telling me, ‘I told you so; you shouldn’t have done this.’ Usually, I don’t care what people think of me, but if something goes wrong, then how do I justify my next big stunt? I would lose respect from people I work with, friends who trusted me and my ability to do what I do.”

Nick’s words describe some universally human fears. If you peel the layers back, three big ones come to mind – the fear of not being loved, failure, and not being ‘enough’. Nick’s ability to overcome these fears as an athlete has helped him prepare for other challenges in life. “I think being able to lean against something you’re good at can really help you, but only for a short time. In the summertime, when we’re

out kiting every day, you feel 100 percent. But when you’re at home the whole winter like, during Covid, you don’t get to travel. It’s cold, raining, you don’t get to kite and get filled up with adrenalin. As extreme athletes, we need that in our lives. During Covid, my girlfriend told me, ‘Man, I don’t know what you’ve turned into, but please do something.’ So I started working out. Not like pushing iron, but I started indoor rowing. It’s really boring, but it gives me what I need. My alarm goes off every morning at 5.21am, and I sit up in bed (not that I want to). Then I put on my training shirt, shorts, and shoes, grab my yoga mat and go.

If I don’t do that every morning, I can really feel the difference in my day. I row every morning before breakfast.

I experimented with not doing it for a month, just to see if it was this or a third party that was putting me in such a good headspace. But it was exercise, and it was me getting out there and pushing myself cardio-wise. There were stages when I’d think, ‘I can’t go any further because that’s not what my body wants’, but I’d row another two kilometers to see what happened. I would want to scream – it was so far out that I would rather die than have the feeling I was having at that moment. But a minute later, when you regain control of your breathing and your muscle tension, you’re taken to a different place. For me personally, it really helps to just go there… Move my body… Do something…

“Every Thursday, there’s no rowing class, but I wake up at the same time, go for a run, go for a swim, or Marie and I will go for a walk in the forest or something. It feels good.

I went to a party until 4am a few weeks ago and felt terrible for four days after… It was such a shock to my body. It was crazy fun,” Nick admits, “but you know, I’m ok with not doing that again.” ■ NO DANISH PASTRY

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Waters

When Alby Rondina moved to Sicily to embrace a change of lifestyle and set up a kite school, he fell in love with the place. He waxes lyrical about the virtues of the island, which is technically Italian, but culturally unique as well as being globally recognized as a true culinary nirvana. After digesting this little feature, we’re pretty sure it will be high on your list of places to visit.

P HOTOS LAC I KOBULSKY AND PROKI TE ALBY RONDI NA

icily is officially part of Italy, but I barely consider it so. The weather, the places, the people… everything is different and unique down here. It’s my sixth year now being based pretty much permanently down here in Sicily and I couldn’t be happier to have made this move. The chance to kite and surf all year round, as many can only dream about, is something pretty special. All around Italy, and indeed most of Europe, you can get in the water in winter, but there is a big difference when you can do that without boots, gloves or freezing your nose! Temperatures very rarely drop below 15 degrees Celsius in winter, and on a nice Scirocco day (south east wind) in December you can easily get up to 25 degrees and enjoy a sunny day on the water. The closest point of Africa is only 250 kilometers away and we can totally see that on a strong south wind day when the sand from the desert is flying all around here! You can definitely see some African influence over here too, for example one of the typical foods of the area is cous cous, and Mazara del Vallo, a close town to Marsala where I live, has a proper African suburb.

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When you fly in and look through your plane window you can get a good taste of what Sicily has to offer: mountains, volcano, lakes, wineries, beautiful beaches, small islands and clear blue water surrounding this little heaven. Out of all that is on offer here, I chose to be on the northwest corner, the most exposed to wind and waves you can be.

It is here that the Romans decided to have a base because of the beauty and richness of the place. On top of that they were able to park their boats and rest in a big and safe lagoon. That’s exactly where we are, Lo Stagnone. It’s such a unique place from so many points of view. It has plenty of history with Roman, Greek and Etruschi ruins all over the place – there are museums and temples to visit that you won’t find anywhere else in the world. It is one of the biggest natural reserves in Italy, with more than four thousand hectares of unpolluted and pristine water, and flamingos and unique bird species enjoy the life down here as much as we do. The lagoon is a perfect place for extracting salt out of the seawater, something that local people have been doing for decades. The salt lakes give an extra taste of exotic to the place, adding a bright pink to the crazy amount of colors already going on.

Lo Stagnone is one of the biggest natural reserves in Italy SMOOTH WATERS

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The richness of the air with salt, spices and a nice daily breeze is the perfect mix to create and taste some of the best wines and liquors in Italy. The Grillo white wine, the Nero D’avola red and the famous Marsala are just some of the many wine grapes you see right next to the water of Lo Stagnone lagoon.

ner, so you can commit 100 percent to learning or improving tricks, knowing that if things go wrong, you’ll never have to swim or be rescued. I personally think it’s one of the best and easiest places to learn how to kite, and this is part of the reason I moved to Sicily to set up a kite school.

On top of all this, we are out there enjoying the consistent and steady summer thermal wind that arrives like clockwork at lunchtime, and the strong Big Air days in spring and autumn. Not many places have such a continuous and long windy season and I’m stoked to be in one of them! Conditions for kiting are pretty unique too – just imagine the biggest lagoon ever in Brazil surrounded by all that Italy can offer.

The wind comes mostly from the north, but the beauty of the spot is that every wind direction works. The south wind days provide the best conditions for Big Air as the Scirocco wind is very lifty and normally comes in strong, often over 35 knots in spring and autumn. The water stays flat no matter the wind; whether it’s 15 knots or 35, it’s always the same and that’s the beauty of it. The depth doesn’t get deeper than chest high in our part of the lagoon, and the seaweed helps in keeping the water nice and flat even on the strong wind days. The ability to always walk back is a massive security point in the mind of any begin-

Being in a natural reserve and in Sicily is not an easy mix to develop your business, but we focus every year on improving our services.

We are proud of our beach set up – it’s hard work maintaining it, but having more than 10 thousand square meters of grass is the dream scenario to pump your kite and chill on the beach! The Pe’ahi shacks are right there too, so you can enjoy a glass of wine or some local food in between sessions without deflating your kite while keeping a close eye on the conditions.

Autumn is on its way here, and the swells keep coming in every week.

I feel like I need to take a look outside the lagoon and go and foil, wing, surf or kite in the waves. The possibilities here are endless, and the number of kite and surf spots around Lo Stagnone is pretty unbelievable. After six years I’m just getting to know some of them and the search keeps going…. ■ SMOOTH WATERS

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Flying Dutchman Up-and-coming Big Air enthusiast Giel Vlugt talks us through the recent Big Air Kite League’s TatajubaFest event, where he scored an impressive podium place. Having also placed second at their Full Power Tarifa event earlier this year, he’s definitely on the ascent (yes… I know…), and it’s surely an exciting time as eyes begin to turn to the KOTA 2022…

P H O T O S : M I C H A Ł J A G N I ĄT KO W S K I , U N L E S S S TAT E D

I

was introduced to kiting when I was 18 years old. The school I was attending, called ROC Tilburg, had a course in which you learn how to kite, windsurf, ski and even snowboard, with the aim of ultimately becoming an instructor. After qualifying and then teaching in Tarifa for six years, I decided to spend more time focusing on my own kiting. Only a couple of months later I secured my first sponsorship and after one year of training I was selected for the Red Bull King of the Air. Unfortunately KOTA was postponed until November this year, but that did mean I gained some experience in other competitions like Full Power Tarifa, one of the stops on the Big Air Kite League (BAKL) World Tour. That event was a crazy one! It was right in my backyard as I practice there every single day and I sleep there in my van.

After that event I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to compete at the next stop of the BAKL, in Tatajuba, Brazil in September.

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Brazil is known for its warm, constant wind and endless lagoons. Sounds like a dream right? Well it is, but just not for my riding style and body type if I want to do well in a competition. Last year I traveled to Brazil and stayed at 35Knots in Macapá, further west from Tatajuba, and absolutely loved it there. It offers great conditions to progress quickly, as it is windy every day and the climate is awesome, so you get to spend hours on the water. But when you’re 87 kilograms it is not the best for going massive and that is obviously what you want in a Big Air competition. I wanted to do a good job at the event and put pressure on Janek Grzegorzewski for the BAKL world ranking, but nobody was expecting me to even make the podium!

I arrived in Tatajuba three weeks before the competition started so I could train in the local conditions. Unfortunately I was riding in very choppy water every session and we didn’t have the

Photo: Thiago Dos Santos Martins

I sEcured my first sponsorship and aftEr one year of training I was sElEcted for the Red Bull King of the Air.

Photo: Thiago Dos Santos Martins

flat-water conditions everyone was hoping for, but it was still an awesome event. In round four I faced Xavier Kain and Jan Zoon, both of whom I know very well and know that they can go massive when the wind is nuking. Fortunately for me we had about 22 knots and my 9m A-Series ALUULA kite is fast enough to loop and catch without a problem in these conditions. After my win in round four I faced young talents Andrea Principi and Cohan van Dijk in the semi-finals who had both progressed immensely over the previous two weeks.

The wind had picked up to 25-30 knots but the chop had increased a lot. I rode probably the best heat in my life, landing all six attempts including my best tricks. After winning the semi-finals I was feeling very confident to show what I am capable of in the finals.

I could tell Janek was firing on all cylinders in his semi-finals, and I’ve been riding with him so often already that I knew I was going to have to land all my most difficult tricks. In order to give myself the best chance I changed up my previous game plan and went for the hardest tricks straight away. Colombian Beto Gomez, who was also in the finals, rode his heart out and gave it absolutely everything, landing the majority of his tricks. Janek was landing almost everything too. Unfortunately I didn’t land my tricks the way I wanted to but I believe that is the risk you take when you go for all or nothing.

Huge congratulations to Janek for scoring close to the perfect heat score and by doing so taking first place, and Beto for taking second place and giving the crowd an incredible show.

I will learn from this experience and prepare myself for the next one!

I’ll be heading to Cape Town to prepare for the Red Bull King of the Air sometime in November and then we have the last stop of the BAKL in Cape Town in December. So loads of competitions to come and I can’t wait to get back into the mix… ■

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El

Bandido When it’s the 15th anniversary of one of the longest-running and best-selling kites of all time, where do you head for the photoshoot? Well you splash out on Mexico of course, the land of Los Bandidos.

Team rider Paul Serin gave us the lowdown on the trip. It wasn’t pistols at dawn, but there was an unfortunate stabbing…

PHOTOS MATT G E O R G E S

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One thing we’ve learned from 2020 is that people are adaptable.

Last year’s photoshoot in Corsica was, in the end, incredible despite all the twists and turns of the pandemic. Heading to Mexico for this year’s shoot, while some countries still have their borders closed, and with no guarantee of what the pandemic will bring next, was once again a challenge for the whole team, but a challenge we were all ready to take on. Our lives as riders had changed so much – we were used to chasing the wind and waves, and in the blink of an eye everything had stopped. So when F-ONE came up with the idea of going back to the origins of the Bandit for its 15th version, I once again felt the excitement of trips past. Seeing the faces of the team at Madrid airport, everyone had a sparkle in their eye, like we were back in our old lives.

Mexico is a country I’d never been to but of which I’d heard so many good things. I was expecting a typical landscape as seen all my childhood in cartoons; I was not expecting such contrasts of scenery. The first few days we stayed near La Paz – cacti as far as the eye could see, sandy roads and a temperature on the limit of being bearable – yes we were definitely in Baja. These few days of rest did us all good before attacking the 12-hour journey north to Punta de Abreojos on the west coast. Seven of us piled into the SUV, and five into the van packed full of equipment. Once on the road the thermometer hit 49 degrees. We put the AC on full blast and devoured the asphalt at full speed. We broke up the journey at a roadside hotel, where I had difficulty imagining that tomorrow we would finally have an epic session...

Showtime The landscapes on the drive were incredible, but the tiredness of the journey and the lack of perspective made me doubt we would ever arrive at the coast. The next day, there were still six hours to go. I couldn’t wait to get there and dozed off so the time would pass more quickly. A last left turn and we were on a dirt road, finally getting 134

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Everyone had a sparkle in their eye, like we were back in our old lives.

close to the small village of La Bocana and our house, which was located up a hill with a stunning view of the ocean.

The spots around the headland there are varied and you can find all types of waves. On our first recce of the area we met some Americans who are regular visitors to Baja so could explain all the spots to us and said, “Can’t get any better than this right”. Well, the waves were tiny, with a light onshore wind, and I couldn’t help being skeptical of their advice even though they visit Baja two months of every year. We decided to surf while waiting for the wind to pick up. The color of the water was super green and the presence of stingrays made it feel a bit ominous. We caught a few waves, then the wind slowly picked up.

Mitu and Hendrick kicked into action. Even if only the wave riders were going to enjoy the session, it made me hopeful again that conditions here would work and that we would score.

The next day we swapped to twintips and the Bandit. We found a well-oriented lagoon but sadly found ourselves on big kites barely able to jump. At least it was ideal for taking a group photo of the new Bandit. Meanwhile, Mitu and Hendrick had gone off on a mission and came back all excited that they’d found a barreling wave at Punta de Abreojos. We packed our gear as quickly as possible and headed to the spot, because the sun was already low in the sky. That’s photoshoots for you – you have to be ready to exploit every opportunity. The wave was close to the town, a barreling right-hander that breaks on a very visible slab. Not very motivating for me who likes less risky conditions, but Mitu and Hendrick were already suited up, ready to hit the water. One day, two sessions, the trip had well and truly begun. That evening everyone was exhausted, conversation was limited, and the meal prepared by our two cooks certainly went down well!

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I felt a stab under my foot and a sharp pain.

Airtime The next day we decided to focus on Big Air and freestyle on the twintips, and found a fishermen’s estuary that seemed ideal with the wind direction. I went first to test the conditions. The wind was irregular and meant I landed a bit heavily at times, but I scored some good tricks, while in the back of my mind I was aware of the possibility of stingrays. I missed a board-off, and just as I started a body drag to recover my board, I felt a stab under my foot and a sharp pain – the feared stingray had got me... I returned to shore as best I could and quickly landed my kite. There wasn’t too much blood, but the pain was really getting intense. Alex, our guide, went off to ask the fishermen for advice, and they confirmed the strong presence of stingray in the area. There is only one thing to do, and that is to put your foot in water as hot as you can stand it. Fortunately the spot was not far from the house, so I was able to get my foot in a basin of hot water and wait for the pain to pass. During this time Maxime and Liam took advantage of the strong wind to send some kiteloops and big jumps. I was disappointed to miss the only day of strong wind, but the state of my foot meant it was impossible to put it in a footstrap…

The atmosphere in the house and between all of us was great. We all got on well, and with almost non-existent Wi-Fi our evenings consisted of wild UNO games! A few more sessions in the waves and in the lagoon, and it was soon time to leave La Bocana and continue the road trip. The van now looked like a giant mess of equipment. If we needed to get a kite from the bottom of the pile, we would have to empty the whole van. Next stop was Bahia Asunción, further north. I rested my head on the window and contemplated the landscape, again a contrast. There were

no more cacti, just desert and small bushes. On our arrival we were welcomed like kings. With Covid meaning there were very few tourists, the arrival of a large group brought smiles to the hotel owners.

The atmosphere here was different; we still had a view of the ocean but from a cliff, and below was an island full of sea lions that we could hear barking at all hours of the day.

We were told about a spot down the bay with waves and side-shore wind. We immediately set off to check it out. We discovered an untouched spot just below a sand dune, suitable for both freestyle and wave riding – the dream! I inflated the 14m Bandit and ran down the dune to the water. The wind was different to the other spots, with more power behind it, easier for boards-off and rotations. We would spend two days at this spot before returning to La Paz. A contented tiredness started to be seen on the faces of the team. Even though the mornings were quite calm, we were shooting until sunset every day. We knew the journey back to La Paz would be long, but there was nothing better than to tackle it with the feeling of having accomplished the job.

Hometime Baja California is a treasure, full of contrasts and breathtaking landscapes. The locals welcomed us with open arms, and even if though the road was tiring, the moments spent on the water were magical. On the day of our departure, the government decided to close the beaches… timing and luck were the two essential ingredients for a successful trip in the era of Covid. Hasta luego Baja, gracias por todos! ■

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What do you do when Covid restrictions mean you can’t fly directly into the United States from Europe? Fly via somewhere hot and windy and park up for two weeks of course. That’s what Naish riders Katie Potter and Ewan Jaspan did – they hit up Turks and Caicos and made the most of conditions there. Playing the game...

WORDS KATI E POTTER PH OTOS NOÈ FONT

LEFT & RIGHT

Pottering about on boats.

B E LOW

Katie styling it out.

his year I have spent most of the time traveling with the same small crew, which has been really nice. Ewan Jaspan, Ramiro Gallart and I have spent almost every day together for the last four months. Since leaving Australia back in March, we’ve constantly been moving: photoshoot in Maui, riding the kite park at REAL in Hatteras, then a quick stop off in Europe for freestyle riding, surfing, and competing throughout Portugal, Greece, and Spain. With Covid making it much harder to travel, we then had to spend two weeks outside Europe before being able to get back into the US. After changing our minds multiple times a day on potential locations to visit, we finally decided on the tropical Caribbean paradise of Turks and Caicos to visit our friend Kit Griffiths. This time Noè Font and Oswald Smith also joined Ewan, Rami and myself on the mission.

Getting to Turks wasn’t easy and involved three full days of travel with overnight stops through Brussels and the Dominican Republic. We had to fill out four travel locator forms each for all the layovers we had, plus book additional overnight accommodation and transport to and from the airport. The hardest part was checking in and unloading all of our bags at each airport. We almost missed our flight in Belgium because all the taxis refused to take our gear. With no bags in sight 30 minutes before our flight was scheduled to take off, we realized we were probably back to square one with planning where to go. Luckily the airline kept the check-in desks open 40 minutes later than usual just to get us on board, and we ran full speed through the terminal dragging two sets of board bags each behind us. It was quite a sight!

And of course, in the end, the final destination was well worth all the effort to get there. My first time in the Caribbean didn’t disappoint.

We could ride every day, and most sessions comprised that light, consistent, and super warm, forgiving wind that makes you want to try new tricks. It was easy to get swept up in the luxury lifestyle the island had to offer. At H2O Lifestyle Resort, we would wake up at 7:30am, look out the bedroom window and see the most avid kiters already out there riding. Long Bay is Providenciales’s most popular kite spot and is literally right on the resort’s doorstep. It has crystal clear water, perfect for foiling and hooked-in tricks. Once we finished our session, we could continue to watch all the action from the beachside bar, pool, or hot tub. They also had catamaran sailboats and SUPs available for all guests to use, so the water sports action never stopped.

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Kit, from Kite Safari Turks and Caicos, also spoiled us by taking us out every day on the charter boat to find the best flatwater locations for freestyle. We would change spots for each session depending on the wind direction and tides exposing sandbars and butter flat water.

We met the local wildlife on our downwinders through the mangroves, running into a turtle and small nurse shark and seeing the iguanas that reside on Little Water Cay, another iconic kite spot. Towards the end of the trip, we were also lucky enough to meet Dreamer, a young playful dolphin that has grown up playing with Kit over the last three years. Kit could spot her and her mum cruising around from a mile away, so we got the snorkel gear ready and jumped in as soon as we were close by. She’s not shy and loved to interact with all of us even though we’d just met. You swim close to her, and she’ll mimic your movements and bump gently into you. We only explored a small slice of the islands nearby, but if you want to go on more extended day missions or camp out for a few days, there are even more spots and nature to explore.

LEFT & ABOVE

Ewan throwing down

It was a trip with many incredible memories – endless banter, insane style, and everyone throwing down and trying new tricks every session.

Most sessions were followed with a rum and coke, poolside parties, and barbecue or slow-cooked pork to recover and recharge for the next day. It was fantastic to be surrounded by great friends and great riders, bringing good vibes, high levels of stoke, and progression. It was nice to unlock and add more style and technical grabs into my harder freestyle tricks. I already knew all of these grabs hooked in with foot straps, but to add the grabs to unhooked tricks with boots is a whole different challenge. To land these grabs properly, I really focused on keeping the kite pulling down towards the water before lifting my hand off the bar to grab the board. Luckily, I could ride a larger size kite in the lighter wind, which was easier to control while also focusing on getting my body and hand into the correct position.

Riding that hard and pushing your limits every day was tiring, so I was glad to have a few days of rest to recover in the H2O resort. Some of the boys managed to ride every single day – I’m still not sure how they managed to push it so hard non-stop for two weeks straight! All in all Turks and Caicos was one of those adventures I’ll remember for the rest of my life, and I’m so glad we had the opportunity to stop off there before finally making it back to the US mainland and Hood River, Oregon. ■ THE LAYOVER

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BIG PICTURE

Airush Kiteboarding have just released their 21-22 range, with brand-new bars, and updated freestyle, freeride, lightwind and foiling gear. We got the lowdown from Brand Director Clinton Filen.

P H OTO S M AT H I E U M A U R O A N D TO BY B R O M W I C H

L E T ’ S S TA R T W I T H Y O U R F R E E R I D E R A N G E . H O W H AV E T H E L I T H I U M A N D O N E K I T E S B E E N U P D AT E D ?

The Lithium is a massive focus for us, and this year we redesigned it from the ground up as the ultimate all-around freeride performance kite. For years this product has defined the freeride space in many of our key markets. This rider group is constantly evolving, as they look for more versatility, better jumping, better high end, but still want the same absolute ease of use. Besides a new planform and shaping from designer Mark Pattison, our design engineer Dave Kay assisted by developing a new bridle program that enables us to adjust and tune the loading through the bridles, and really fine-tune the performance.

The result is absolute refinement in a kite that blends ease of use and high performance perfectly.

For the One, we worked from our proven single-strut formula, and did an extensive amount of work on the bridles, with a reduced number of pulleys and a shorter bridle, creating increased simplicity and responsiveness. The One offers a unique combination of light weight, stability and all-around versatility, which surprises all levels of freeride, specifically in gustier or lighter wind conditions.

Y O U R L I G H T W I N D U LT R A K I T E I S A L S O A M O N O - S T R U T. W H AT D I F F E R E N T I AT E S T H E M ?

The One features a longer chord and larger leading edge – this creates more parked power, makes it easy to keep in the power zone, and gives more sweep to assist in relaunch. The Ultra is higher aspect with a finer foil, allowing it to fly further forward in the window.

YO U R F R E E R I D E SW I TC H B OA R D I S T H E LO N G E ST- R U N N I N G B O A R D M O D E L I N K I T E H I S T O R Y… H O W H AV E Y O U R E F R E S H E D I T, A N D T H E S W I T C H T E A M B O A R D , F O R T H I S S E A S O N ?

The Switch has a 20-year history going right back to the earliest days of kiting. Legendary designers like Jimmy Lewis and Colin McCulloch have in the past worked on this model. It is our key freeride model and for some Airush customers it may be their first board. To this end the Switch needs to be easy: easy to ride, easy to control and easy to get upwind on. It also cannot be a board that you outgrow in a short space of time, as we have many customers coming back for the Switch year after year. The key design points that lead to this ‘easy rider’ style are its progressive single concave bottom shape that is deeper in the middle for lift and upwind ability and flat in the tip to keep this area flexible, thin step-down rails for clean water release and low drag, low rocker for fast planing and easy upwind ability, and a ‘mid square’ outline for tracking and stability. We also focused significantly on the graphic for this version with the exposed wood and color-coded accessories creating an amazing package.

The Switch Team takes the same fundamentals into an extremely responsive performance freeride board that excels when loading, popping, landing and cruising. Even in the choppiest conditions this board is really fun and easy to set on rail. The Switch Team is ideal for carving, benefiting from just the right amount of grip with the thinner rails, tuned flex, and outline. Transitioning through carves along the board’s rails is predictable and intuitive, while the uni-directional basalt I-beam structure offers improved stiffness between the feet and faster reflex for advanced boosting performance.

T H E B R A N D - N E W R I D E A N D U N I T B A R S L O O K C O M P A R AT I V E LY C L E A N A N D M I N I M A L C O M P A R E D T O Y O U R O T H E R B A R S .

W H AT A R E Y O U P R O U D O F H E R E ?

Both of these bars started from a complete re-look at every item that goes into our control systems. We looked at every component from a function point of view and asked is there a better way to do this? The outcome has resulted in these two new bars, which are quite different to what we have done in the past.

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THE BIG PICTURE

The Ride bar is simple, reliable, and as easy to service as possible. With two sizes and adjustable depower throw, it works for a huge range of riders. This easy-to-use, reliable, Aero cleat depower system with a tool-less position adjustment, allows for the bar to be quickly and simply set up for riders with shorter reach. The durable EVA-injected bar ends are flexible for an overall better kite response and bar float.

The Unit bar has a multi-bore PU tube, containing both the power and landing lines, giving a very clean and compact system, which also features the Modus style length adjustment. In surf or Big Air, the embossed and sanded-finish grip offers you the ultimate comfort, while a PU-covered depower line gives you uncluttered confidence. In hand, you can feel the reduced diameter tubing makes sheeting-out reliable and effortless while remaining neat, compact, and durable.

L IT H IU M

ONE

U LT RA

RIDE CONT ROL B A R

W H O W I L L WA N T T O R I D E T H E N E W S L AY E R ? H O W D I F F I C U LT I S I T T O D E S I G N A B O A R D T H AT C R O S S E S D I S C I P L I N E S S O S U C C E S S F U L LY ?

Designer Dave Kay has been building and riding boards like the Slayer for himself for maybe 15 years.

It broadly fits the description of a ‘skimboard with fins’ or ‘directional twintip’. The Slayer adds to this concept with the addition of raised grip rails running tip to tail, high density PVC foam with basalt fiber lamination for low weight and high strength, and complete EVA deck coverage. Being built in a twintip-style side wall construction, the Slayer is very robust compared to an EPS/wrapped rail surfboard; it is also thinner, placing the rider closer and more connected to the water. Riders coming from only twintip riding often find themselves more at home on the Slayer than a high-volume surfboard. As for riding styles, it crosses over so many. Ridden strapless with fins in onshore waves, it turns average conditions into a water skate park, while the grip rails and full EVA make it super easy and fun for strapless freestyle.

With fins and straps on it can attack bigger waves and stronger wind, or ridden finless in shallow water it becomes a skimboard/wakeskate. Add an AK Trek or Tracer foil and it’s a killer lightwind solution. It even crosses over perfectly to wakesurfing/skurfing and wakefoiling. It is often the first board DK packs, as it covers so many different possible conditions; as he says, “it is hard to put into a box”.

SWITC H T E AM

SWITC H

M OV I N G O N TO YO U R F R E E ST Y L E RA N G E , H OW H AV E Y O U A U G M E N T E D T H E D E S I G N O F T H E R A Z O R T O M A K E I T M O R E S U I TA B L E F O R B I G AIR IN THE SMALLER SIZES?

Essentially the larger sizes have less sweep to focus on more ‘pop and slack’ during lighter wind freestyle moves. In smaller sizes, the increased sweep helps the Razor loop more effectively as the riders typically move towards bigger air tricks. The smaller sizes have improved responsiveness and control.

S L AY E R

RAZOR

AIRUSH

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H O W H A S T H E L AY U P O F T H E L I V E W I R E A N D LIVEWIRE TEAM BOARDS CHANGED, AND HOW HAS THIS CHANGED PERFORMANCE?

The Livewire and Livewire Team are a completely new 3D shape for this season – a design Alex Pastor, Oswald Smith, Jack Rieder and Juan Rodriguez have been helping with for over two years. The Livewire retains the proven Triax Glass lamination and HD Grindrite sintered base for strength, reflex and durability.

The Livewire Team has an all-new lamination based on Triax and wide-tow biaxial carbon. This is by far the most advanced lamination we have spec’d into a production board, and the Livewire Team performance reflects this.

LIV EWI RE TEAM

L IV E WIRE

L E T ’ S L O O K AT Y O U R F O I L B O A R D R A N G E . W H O I S T H E F O I L S K AT E A I M E D AT ?

The Foil Skate has two targets. Firstly the 145 is aimed squarely at new kite foilers, especially those who have only ridden twintips. To this end it has options for adding fins to ‘train’ starting and gybing before adding a foil. Once the foil is added, the low volume of the Foil Skate leads to a familiar starting position for a twintip rider, with the foil downwind and rail of the board deep in the water. The 124 Foil Skate is aimed at experienced foilers looking for a simple, robust and easy-to-transport foil board that’s also great value.

THE TEAM FOIL BOARD USES SOME EXOTIC MATERIALS… HOW DOES THIS ENHANCE THE USER E X P E R I E N C E F O R A D VA N C E D R I D E R S ?

FOI L SKATE

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THE BIG PICTURE

T E AM F OIL

We focused on keeping the Team Foil board as lightweight as possible, but durable enough to still appeal to the riders doing air tricks and pushing their foiling to the limit. The technology also allows us to build the ultimate performance kite foil board. The refined bottom shape features beveled rails in the tail with a release edge merging to the convex nose.

The bottom is shaped for soft touchdowns at any angle. The concave deck features beveled rails and a convex nose.

W H AT F O I L S I N Y O U R R A N G E C O M P L E M E N T T H E T E A M F O I L A N D F O I L S K AT E ? D O T H E S E C R O S S O V E R I N T O O T H E R FOILING SPORTS?

Our boards are compatible with most foils on the market, although we recommend pairing the Airush boards with the AK Durable Supply Co. modular foil program as our development partners. The AK range consists of three styles of foil: the low-aspect, easy-to-use Trek, the mid-aspect, all-round Tracer, and the high-aspect Plasma for speed and glide.

All three wing styles are available in a wide range of sizes, along with interchangeable fuselage, rear wings and masts. The system can be tailored to each foil sport and rider weight. The AK foils cross over for kite, wake, surf, SUP and wing, making them ideal for the person who does more than one sport, without compromising on the purist’s performance focus.

the freestyle team. Dave Kay did a huge amount of work on the bridles for the One; although he is normally focused on the twintip and bar space, he has a huge amount of experience in kite development. Essentially, we will have a key tester and sometimes two, for each product. Each ‘product owner’ really focuses on supporting the product designer in testing each product in a variety of conditions and getting as much input as possible.

We want to ensure well-rounded performance by the time the product gets to the customer; it’s also a lot of fun!

TA L K T O U S A B O U T Y O U R P R O D U C T YO U DON’T FEEL IT’S N EC E S S A RY P R O D U C T S A N N U A L LY.

C YC L E S A N D W H Y TO RELEASE ALL

Our pursuit of real innovation is not an easy dream to chase. It takes constant dedication and hours of designing, building, testing and then doing it all over again. It’s generally not about a quick or simple solution, but more about a big idea that could take years to perfect. Trying to fit all of this into a single year with all products is simply not realistic and we want to be honest with our customers. We also want to make products that last as long as possible without sacrificing performance. We celebrate the idea of buying something that you really want, knowing it works exceptionally well, and being able to use it for a long time. This aligns with our relentless pursuit of more sustainable materials and processes. ■

W H O H A S B E E N I N V O LV E D I N T H E L AT E S T P R O D U C T U P D AT E S ?

Absolutely everyone! We have a broad team of athletes, testers, designers and staff who we involve at every level of the product. This is normally based on riders who are passionate about each key category. It may sometimes seem like strange pairings, for example, Victor Hays is the key product developer on the new Lithium but is also extremely passionate about freestyle and tested the new Livewire extensively, with the rest of

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Slim 7 RIDER ERICK ANDERSON P H O T O S V E T L A N A R O M A N T S O VA

This was taken during the GKA Freestyle competition in Ilha do Guajiru, Brazil. The conditions were perfect with a calm sea and good wind for my CORE 13m. I felt confident in my performance and the Slim 7 felt incredible to do with such a nice backdrop.

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STEP 1

Load up with lots of speed and edge upwind as much as possible. Speed is crucial – the more speed you have, the better pop you can get. This creates the slack in the lines you need to complete the full rotation.

STEP 2

Pop hard after you edge upwind. When you have initiated your takeoff, you have to engage into the frontroll rotation.

Turn your head into your front shoulder to initiate an inverted frontroll.

STEP 3

Once you are halfway into the fully inverted frontroll, you have to bring the bar to your back hip, as you start releasing your hand from the bar.

STEP 4

Your body then has to counter-rotate into a frontside rotation – grab the bar at your lower back and pass it to perform the first handlepass.

STEP 5

As soon as you release your back hand, your board moves down and you initiate the second handlepass, taking advantage of the speed from the previous pass, and throwing your back hip forward into another frontside 360.

STEP 6

Once you’ve passed the second rotation, spot the landing and brace for the impact!

SLIM 7

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THE GREEN ROOM

The green room

PROLIMIT P F-1 N AT U R E P R E N E WETSUIT Reducing the carbon footprint of products is becoming a focal point of product across the board, so we thought we’d dig a bit deeper with this new slot to find out exactly what brands are up to… First up we asked Prolimit about their PF-1 Nature Prene wetsuit, perhaps the most sustainable in the industry…

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THE GREEN ROOM

P R O L I M I T ’ S M A N T R A I S “ S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y O V E R P R I C E ” . W H AT A R E Y O U A I M I N G T O A C H I E V E B Y C R E AT I N G M O R E E C O - F R I E N D LY P R O D U C T S A N D W H AT D I F F E R E N T I AT E S Y O U I N Y O U R S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y O U T LO O K?

Prolimit is driven by a desire to create and build innovative water sports products. We use our knowledge of technology to push a future in line with nature. Because of all our knowledge we were able to create the most sustainable wetsuit on the market today. All our customers use the elements of nature when they are doing their sports. That’s why we think it’s important to be as eco-friendly as possible. Our aim is to make high-performance products with respect for our planet. We ensure that our products are the best possible; that’s why the durability of our products is longer. Besides that, we did research into what we could improve at every step of our manufacturing process. With the outcome of this research, we found new sustainable solutions for our process and we made some massive changes in our production process. The advantages of the new production process are in line with our goal to produce products with respect for our planet.

SO MAKING WETSUITS WITH IMP ROV E D LO N G E V I T Y I N T H E I R W E A R C H A R A C T E R I S T I C S I S I M P O R TA N T TO YO U ?

We think we make the most sustainable wetsuit on the market today. So, we do all we can to promote more sustainable options for the customer. The PF-1 (Prolimit Future series) shows how far or extreme you can make a wetsuit sustainable and durable.

All our wetsuits, besides PF-1, are made using limestone neoprene, dope-dyed yarns, recycled polyester, and water-based glues.

Because of the good quality of our wetsuits, they will last longer. That’s indirectly also a more sustainable choice then a lower quality wetsuit.

C A N YO U E X P L A I N T H E P RO C E S S U S E D T O D E V E L O P T H E P F - 1 N AT U R E PRENE WETSUIT?

The whole eco-friendly process is very hard to explain briefly! But, in short, first of all we use recycled carbon black – carbon black is a key ingredient to produce neoprene, and our eco carbon black is retrieved from recycled tires. After the process of carbon black,

the substance will be added to neoprene chips – ours are made from limestone. This earth-mined limestone replaces the petrochemicals in neoprene. Under high temperature and pressure, the raw sheets become foamed rubber ‘buns’. The trimmed edges and redundant neoprene will be recycled and reused in the mixing process to produce more neoprene sheets. After that, we color the lining – Prolimit uses the dope dye process for this. Then for the lamination of the sheets to become a wetsuit we used water-based glue, which is solvent and chemical free. Our wetsuits are PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon) free and 100 percent Reach compliant. This means we have eliminated the use of extender oils in our neoprene sheets for a better environment. To make the circle fully sustainable our wetsuits will be packed into a sustainable bag which is compostable.

TELL US MORE ABOUT THE DOPE DY E P RO C E S S.

We use dope-dyed yarns because the traditional way of coloring has a high water consumption, using a lot of energy and produc-

ing a large amount of industrial waste water and toxic chemicals. Dope dying is an energy saving and more environmental-friendly method. Dope-dyed yarns are made by adding colorant to the polymer melt in spinning.

In short, we add color before spinning. With this procedure we save 104 liters of water per kilogram of fabric.

W E H E A R R U M O R S T H AT Y O U A R E A L S O W O R K I N G T O WA R D S R E C Y C L I N G O L D W E T S U I T S. H OW C LO S E A R E YO U TO ACHIEVING THIS?

We strive to optimize the whole production process as much as possible and technology permits. Unfortunately, it is yet not possible to fully recycle old wetsuits and re-use for wetsuits again. We do use the redundant neoprene of the sliced sheets to make other products out of it, and recycle nylons, polyesters and webbing. We hope we can fully recycle old wetsuits and other neoprene products in the near future. At Prolimit we are always challenging ourselves to create new, innovative and more sustainable techniques. ■

PROLIMIT PF-1 NATURE PRENE WETSUIT

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CARVED IMPERATOR 7

The CARVED Imperator has always been a stealthy looking, carbon-clad object to behold. We quizzed them on what new tech and materials mean for the latest version of the board, the Imperator 7.

H O W H AV E Y O U C H A N G E D T H E T E C H A N D M AT E R I A L S O F T H I S V E R S I O N ?

R&D team to our new exclusive carbon Cartan 2 which is at the heart of the Imperator 7.

According to our customers and online reviews, the Imperator 6 is at the very top end of what you would expect from a first-class twintip. But over time you discover things that can be improved, especially when you have no fixed product cycle. Over the past few years we found that the high-speed control had room for improvement. So we started looking for new materials and production processes that led the

H OW D O E S T H E N E W C A R B O N I M PAC T ON THE DESIGN OF THE REST OF THE BOARD?

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TECH AND MATERIALS

As soon as you start to change build materials the whole board needs to be updated, as every material behaves differently and has a big impact on everything else. Slight adjustments are made to the outline to compensate for the

more rigid Cartan 2 carbon, and rocker is increased by 5mm to leverage the revolutionary REVO rocker adjuster which is integrated into the grab handle. A quick turn increases or decreases the board rocker by 15mm. Another significant change is that the hand-finished rails now feature a slightly sharper, drag-reducing, tucked-under rail profile.

HOW DOES THE ADDITION OF THE CARTA N 2 S P I C E U P P E R F O R M A N C E ?

Cartan 2 combines untwisted, unidirection-

CORE

CORE

CORE

CORE

CORE

CORE al carbon fiber strands with minimal epoxy binders into a thin, flat, 30° scrim matching the exact board size. The evenly distributed, very straight fibers result in a composite laminate with a lighter, more uniform microstructure than those produced using conventional woven-fabric pre-pregs. Improved filament-to-filament load transfer results in an incredibly energetic Imperator 7 that’s lighter than the previous generation. Expect the smoothest carves, the highest torsional stability, and incredible reflexivity even in massive chop. With the Imperator 7, you’ll ride in extreme comfort in all conditions.

YO U M E N T I O N E D U S I N G A M I N I M A L A M O U N T O F R E S I N I N T H E L AY U P . W H AT DOES THIS ACHIEVE?

The formula of our magic weapon Cartan 2 equates to better performance with less material. The laminated deck absorbs significantly less resin and winds up with a reduction in weight of 100 grams per square meter but is stiffer than the previous iteration. In the long testing and prototyping process, we adjusted our wood core and flex patterns to the feel of the Imperator 6 with significant improvements to the riding for example at high speed.

YO U A LS O M E N T I O N E D H A N D - F I N I S H E D RAILS. TELL US MORE.

By adjusting the shape of the tucked rail and working in a harder edge, we could encourage water release that tempers the drag that is created by the suction. The result was a board that still feels incredibly fast and agile, but when you push the new Imperator 7 into the high-end speed range, it has more control than before and inspires greater confidence

CORE

CORE

CORE

CORE

CORE

CORE

COR

through the hardest charging carves, and Big Air sends.

YO U ’ V E N OW M OV E D YO U R P RO D U CTION SITE TO THE WELL-KNOWN SKI M A N U FACT U R E R E L A N I N S LOV E N I A .

W H AT H A S T H I S M E A N T F O R T H E M A N U FACT U R I N G T EC H N I Q U E S FO R T H E I M P E R AT O R ?

Starting in 2001 with a few boards per week, we’ve been handcrafting our masterpieces in the same small production site on Fehmarn.

Even with the highest effort, we couldn’t keep up with the demand anymore because of its limited capacities. Furthermore, we wanted to introduce new technology to the Imperator that we found at our sister company Elan.

There we have for example the machines to digitally print the graphics below the glass so that Imperator riders will see a reduction in drag and more durable graphics. With new methods for pre-bending the wood cores, our production manager Marc can ensure that the rocker in each board comes off the line with exact precision. With sophisticated heat controls in the industrial ovens and larger resin batches, the Imperator will get incremental improvements in quality control.

the process, which is better for the customer, landfill, and the climate. All this very helpful technology we continue to combine with our tradesmen building know-how and precision to ensure the Imperator’s legendary quality.

W H AT D O Y O U R T E A M R I D E R S H AV E T O S AY A B O U T T H E T E C H N I C A L C H A N G E S ?

As with most of our products we invited our team riders at a very early stage to accompany the development process of the Imperator 7, alongside riders of mixed ability. Many of the team riders have been riding the Imperator for two or even three generations already and know exactly which changes mean improvement and which don’t. Steven, Josh, and Janek gave us super helpful feedback on the Imperator’s newly gained qualities at high speed, its stiffness and pop for example. They love what our developers achieved! ■

IT ALL SOUNDS PRETTY HIGH TECH!

Yes, the factory even uses a robot to precisely lay down each sheet of carbon fiber, perfectly trimmed to match the board’s template. This method cuts 80 percent of the waste out of CARVED IMPERATOR 7

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TE LL

ME

A B O UT

IT

SLINGSHOT SST The Slingshot SST has always been a wave kite with some character. We spoke to Brand Manager Alex Fox to find out how it’s changed now that Ben Wilson is in the Slingshot fold and has had some design input.

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TELL ME ABOUT IT

T H E S S T H A S B E E N A M A I N S TAY O F T H E L I N E U P F O R A N U M B E R O F Y E A R S N O W. W H AT C H A R A C T E R I S T I C S D I D Y O U F E E L I T WA S I M P O R TA N T T O R E TA I N I N T H E N E W V E R S I O N , A N D H O W H A S I T E V O LV E D S I N C E T H E F I R S T M O D E L ?

The SST has always been known for its speed, its response, and its drift.

These are the kite’s defining performance attributes and we really wanted to push those even further. Early on in the development process we brought waveriding pioneer, Ben Wilson, back onto our team. We used his expertise and over two decades of experience to help verify our design direction. Ben is incredibly critical and knowledgeable about what works and what doesn’t. Once he rode the initial prototypes it was evident that we had something really special.

The V6 represents the largest evolution of the model since it was released. This new version adopts the same canopy shaping and profile, with a completely redesigned wingtip, all-new micro-struts, and a lighter and more streamlined bridle system. We really wanted to keep the overall aspect ratio and canopy profile of the original SST. There is quite a bit of magic in that original design, and the design team wanted to retain that as we moved forward with the V6.

G I V E U S M O R E D E TA I L O N T H E D E S I G N C H A N G E S Y O U ’ V E IMPLEMENTED IN THIS NEW MODEL.

The new wingtips have delivered a bit more drive and speed through the turns. They have also given the kite better upwind ability and water relaunch. To further progress the kite’s speed and drift we implemented the smallest and thinnest struts we have ever released, aptly dubbed ‘micro-struts’. These struts reduce the overall weight of the kite while still maintaining the kite’s overall structural integrity. It has the feel and drift of a one-strut kite with the stability of a three-strut model. Then the all-new streamlined bridle line we implemented is 25% thinner than the previous line we have used. This reduces drag through the air and helps with the kite’s overall speed and drift. The culmination of these new features with the rock solid SST V5 foundation has created one of our best kites ever.

W H Y WA S I T I M P O R TA N T F O R Y O U T O R E D U C E T H E W E I G H T OF THE SST?

Ben was really passionate about improving the kite’s drift. Drift, after all, is arguably the most important aspect of a wave kite. There are a few design attributes that contribute to drift but the kite’s weight is critical.

We reduced canopy paneling from 138 individual panels to 20. This reduction decreases the kite’s overall weight while also providing a more aerodynamic canopy profile. This new clean canopy combined with the micro-struts helped us shave almost 15 percent off the overall weight from V5 to V6. That metric is easily felt when you fly the kite.

TELL US MORE FINAL PRODUCT?

ABOUT

BEN’S

CONTRIBUTION

TO

THE

Ben’s expertise was absolutely invaluable. His design direction helped provide us with an incredible objective. He was resolute in wanting the utmost in drift performance. We implemented some crazy features on the V6 and really departed quite a bit from the V5 which was one of our most popular models. Having Ben’s confirmation that we were achieving something great eased our nerves and allowed us to go 110 percent into the V6.

W H AT C A N W E E X P E C T N E X T F R O M B E N I N T E R M S O F T H E B OA R D S YO U ’ R E WO R K I N G O N ?

Ben is completely overhauling our entire board range. He brought on his own talented shaper, Al Emery, to rework the line. We are stoked and proud to have given Ben the option to work with his own shaper to help us bring current and performance-driven shapes to the market. We are extremely pleased with all of the insight they have given us already and we want to get this product to market as soon as possible, as we are certain kitesurfers everywhere will want to get their hands on this collection! ■

SLINGSHOT SST

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NOBILE 2022 RANGE Nobile are certainly one to watch, having won our coveted ‘Curveball’ award in our Ultimate Test earlier this year with The One kite. Time to find out more about their new range of kites and boards…

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L E T ’ S S TA R T W I T H T H E K I T E S . W H AT C A N Y O U T E L L U S A B O U T T H E M A N D YO U R CO N T RO L B A R?

We just introduced a new kite line, consisting of two models – a lightwind/foil one-strut kite called The One, and a freeride machine called V-Ride that is an evolved shape of our previous T5 model. The new kites have been getting really good feedback worldwide. The One has perfectly matched the recent demand for lightwind and foil related equipment, and the V-Ride is an all-round freeride machine that suits most riding levels and styles, as well as kite schools. Bar-wise, we introduced a new bar last year, the Control Stick, which has been getting great feedback, and we’re working on small improvements as we speak to deliver even more failure-free accessories.

T H E B O A R D S H AV E C O M P L E T E LY N E W G R A P H I C S F O R T H I S Y E A R. C A N YO U T E L L U S A B O U T T H E T H E M E O F T H E M ?

A N D W H AT ’ S C H A N G E D U N D E R T H E S U R F A C E W I T H THE TWINTIPS?

The 2022 theme for our collection is called the Four Elements: Air, Water, Fire and Earth. We were inspired by those and placed the different products into those categories. We’re constantly working on new materials, new PU side material, and even stronger side walls, especially important in the Gamechanger, our wakestyle board that is made to ride hard including on obstacles. New carbon materials have been introduced in the NHP carbon boards, which means the boards are lighter, stronger and more responsive.

A N D W H AT C A N Y O U T E L L U S A B O U T T H E F O I L B O A R D S A N D FOIL WINGS? WE HEARD RUMOR S OF SOME EXCITING NEWS…

Yes, we are proud to release our new NHP Split Foil, the first split board on the market that serves as a freeride twintip and foil board. Foldable for easy transport and to avoid paying for excess baggage, you can use it as a twintip in stronger winds, or once the wind drops you simply connect a foil mast underneath and keep on riding in the lighter wind. We also have our Fish Skim Foil, which can be used for both waveriding and foiling. The latest foil wings are the Carbon Surf and Carbon Freeride models. These two cover most conditions and rider expectations. The Surf 1300cm wing is a great low-wind wing, while the freeride 800cm wing is a bit quicker and more maneuverable.

Y O U H AV E A N I M P R E S S I V E E U - B A S E D P R O D U C T I O N F A C I L I T Y. W H AT C A N Y O U T E L L U S A B O U T T H I S ?

Our factory in Biesko Biala is a key to the success of our company. Producing boards there for 15 years now gives us an incredible amount of experience, and making snowboards, skis and wakeboards as well makes us an ultimate board producer. We are constantly developing new technologies and testing new materials, which is crucial to succeeding in this business. Board production is what we are made for.

H O W WA S Y O U R R E C E N T P H O T O S H O O T I N S A R D I N I A ? T H E R I D E R S L O O K S U P E R TA L E N T E D !

We love that spot! There is actually a Polish kite base there and this was one reason we picked this location. The diversity of kite spots in Sardinia is insane. We scored good waves, lots of foiling, and sick freestyle with flat water and offshore conditions – all you need to deliver various shots and footage to proudly represent the 2022 collection. ■

NHP SPLIT FOIL

NHP CARBON SPLIT

NHP SPLIT FOIL

NHP SPLIT

GAMECHANGER

FISH SKIM FOIL

NOBILE 22 RANGE

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North Navigator & Flex Bindings North recently released their latest Big Air range, including the Navigator control bar and Flex bindings. We spoke to Hugh Pinfold, Director of Design and Engineering about them.

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W H AT W E R E Y O U P R O U D O F W I T H T H E B I G A I R L A U N C H ?

The entire package of Orbit kite, Navigator control bar, Atmos boards and Flex bindings are just looking so polished now. I’m stoked that we’ve been able to stick to our core design beliefs of offering clean, intuitive high-end performance designs made from the very best materials we can source.

S O H O W H AV E Y O U I M P R O V E D A N D U P D AT E D T H E N AV I G A T O R , S O T H AT I T WA S A B L E T O G A I N I S O C E R T I F I C AT I O N ?

The 2022 Navigator has been incrementally updated to be both stronger and safer to use in all conditions. We spent thousands of hours making slight modifications to internal components, and then testing at low loads, maximum rider weights and double maximum rider loads (240kg) in all different conditions, including dry sand, wet sand, and freezing temperatures. Most modifications are hidden under the quick release (QR) handle, but the most noticeable difference is the main 316 stainless steel shaft, which is now circular and exposed. This part is CNC-machined for a precise, more accurate finish each time. Previously the shaft had more complicated geometry, which required sand casting then hand polishing to finish. The new circular shape allows the spinning handle to rotate freely, and you’ll notice a new rubber seal in the top of the QR handle, which reduces the amount of sand that can get inside the internal mechanism. The new shaft has also allowed us to increase the spinning handle wall thickness, leading to 25% higher tensile strength. Under the QR handle, we added a pulley system opposite the loading of the release pin for the QR handle to run against. The pulley system further reduces surface friction and enhances the safety of the release, especially in sandy conditions.

T E L L U S A B O U T T H E TO O L L E S S I N T E R LO O P SYST E M , A N D T H E N E W C H I C K E N LO O P O P T I O N S O N O F F E R.

Our Toolless Interloop system means you only need the one bar for everything, and makes changing disciplines simple in a matter of seconds – all you do is swap out the loop. For 2022 we’ve reduced the length of the Titanium PVD-coated 316 stainless steel hoop on the end of the Standard Freeride harness loop, Short Freeride Loop and the Slide Surf Loop. The hoop is the part that engages into the release mechanism – now less sand can get inside. The Titanium coating is also much harder than 316 stainless steel on its own, so it leads to less surface scratching of critical components, which are all under high loads during release. Our Standard Freestyle and Long Freestyle Loops have

slightly longer hoops to enable the Freestyle Leash ring to fit snugly between the loop and the QR Body. We’ve designed these Freestyle loops for riders that want to unhook and hook back in easily.

A R E T H E R E A N Y O T H E R K E Y F E AT U R E S O F T H E B A R W E SHOULD KNOW ABOUT?

We’ve added a new texture and naval-inspired color referencing to our 2022 bar ends, with red for port on the left and North green for starboard in your right hand. The tactile grip is super intuitive, with an offset finger bar ergonomically positioned on the top rear of the bar.

All bars have quick and easy toolless width adjustment depending on your kite size and chosen kiting discipline on the day. Line retainers that retract back inside the bar offer a simple, uncluttered control system. And our over-molded, soft but robust and lightweight trim handle offers proven simple but effective above-the-bar trimming.

W H AT C A N Y O U T E L L U S A B O U T T H E N E W F L E X B I N D I N G S ?

For 2022 the Flex footpads have a finer forward sloping grip pattern, two extra angled inserts on either side of the heel, and a steeper ramped toe bar to latch onto and keep you in that sweet spot. Our footpads are uniquely dual-molded from different densities of rubberized EVA, giving you soft comfort, support and ultimate impact absorption under your heel for hard landings. We’ve further refined the strap with a modified outline and a more flexible lightweight top flap to give you a tighter, more comfortable fit. Optimized injection-Velcro strap tabs prevent water lift. The Flex offers ultimate comfort on the inside against your foot by using a soft knit flex material that won’t bunch, as we pre-stretch and laminate it to the inner dual-density foam inside the strap. You’ll also notice we went to great lengths to ensure no stitching on the inside rubs against your foot whilst riding. Our new-look strap styling is achieved using multiple layers of textures from our PU leather base material, with plastic heat welding, 3D printed logos and a flexible 3D TPU badge on top. All this is combined with a fresh new colorway that perfectly matches our 2022 twintip board range graphics, to keep you looking sharp on and off the water.

YO U ’ R E A B O U T TO R E L E A S E YO U R S U R F RA N G E , W H I C H W E ’ D LOV E TO H E A R M O R E A B O U T N E X T T I M E . C A N YO U GIVE US A QUICK TEASER?

Keep an eye out for our cool new surfboard construction technique, which delivers twice the performance – with half the volume… ■

NORTH NAVIGATOR & FLEX BINDINGS

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CORE Section 4 CORE’s wave focused Section 3 was a test team favorite here at TheKiteMag. We find out how CORE have improved on the silky smooth and fuss-free flying characteristics in the Section 4.

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I T LO O K S L I K E T H E K I T E H A S H A D Q U I T E A N OV E R H AU L .

W H AT ’ S B E E N T W E A K E D A N D H O W D O E S I T C H A N G E T H E PERFORMANCE?

Yes, the Section 4 has changed quite a bit. New material options led to some design changes to achieve the highest performance and improve the flight characteristics that make the Section one of the most progressive wave kites. We did a lot of testing and prototyping to deal with the Section’s new materials. The goal was to make the Section lighter yet gain control at the high-end without sacrificing its super playful character. The Future-C design received refinements to improve flight efficiency and reduce flutter. The tip geometry was updated and the struts received changes in design and material to further improve stability and lose weight.

G I V E U S T H E L O W D O W N O N T H E M AT E R I A L U P G R A D E .

The new Section debuts CORE’s new canopy cloth: CoreTex 2.0. The slightly lighter canopy fabric features massively improved tear resistance, stiffness, and durability. CoreTex 2.0’s new coating enhances flight stability in higher winds – a big plus for a three-strut wave kite.

It generates more power and upwind performance because it has less stretch and makes the kite feel more crisp. Furthermore, we replaced its ExoTex strut material with ExoTex Light, a super tough yet lighter version of our industry-leading airframe material. Overall we have a significant weight reduction on the Section 4.

TELL US MORE ABOUT THE REDESIGN OF THE WINGTIPS.

The tip geometry between the bridle point and steering line was refined to improve kite feedback, steering input, and aerodynamics. The improved Future-C shape, streamlined tips, and CoreTex 2.0 canopy further improve flight efficiency, handling, and power.

I T L O O K S L I K E T H E R E ’ S VA R I O U S T R I M O P T I O N S A N D N E W BACK LINE CONNECTIONS. TELL US WHEN AND WHERE TO U T I L I Z E T H E VA R I O U S T U N I N G P O I N T S .

With our CIT Modes you can set up the Section for different conditions. Three anti-snag bridle attachment points make kite adjustments for onshore wind, all-round conditions, and offshore wind possible.

The onshore setting sets the kite deeper in the wind window, giving it more grunt and drift. The offshore setting sets the kite more forward in the wind window, giving it higher depower and faster forward speed. Turning speed and steering feel is also a matter of personal preference. With three adjustable back line connection points, our quick adjusting trim system gives you the freedom to further customize your bar feel and turning speed to suit your style.

W H AT B A R F R O M T H E C O R E R A N G E B E S T M AT C H E S T H E S E C TION 4?

The Section 4 is optimized for all of CORE’s ultralight Sensor bar systems including our latest Sensor 3. They feature precise kite control and uncluttered simplicity. Add a rope slider and try different lines lengths to find your sweet spot. ■ CORE SECTION 4

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I N A S S O C I AT I O N W I T H

A PODCAST FOR KITESURFERS

THE BEST RIDERS

THE LATEST NEWS THE INSIDE LINE...

Jesse Richman Stig Hoefnagal Nick Jacobsen Sensi Graves Sam Light Jason Van Der Spuy

Antonin Rangin

Peri Roberts Oswald Smith

Alexander Lewis-Hughes

Simon Bruhn

Tom Bridge

Willow-River Tonkin Pete Cabrinha

COLIN Tom Seager Martin Vari Carl Ferreira Max tullettTom Hartmann Alex Vliege

Graham Howes Christophe Tack

Maarten Haeger

Mostafa Abbas Robby James

Gijs Wassenaar

Marc Jacobs Laci Kobulsky Damien Leroy Toby Braeuer

Rob Claisse

Ruben Lenten Annabel Van Westerop Aaron Hadlow Jake Kelsick Joshua Emanuel

Youri Zoon

Daniela Moroz

Alex Maes

Francesca Bagnoli

Mitu Andre Penna

Luke McGillewie

Lou Wainman

Julien Leleu

Jack RiederClement Hout

Steven Akkersdijk

Ryan Levinson Willem Hooft

Kevin Langeree Shaun Bennett Jo Ciastula

Camille Delannoy Alex Maes Kiko Roig Torres

Liam Whaley

Tom Court Bruna KajiyaMegan Grant Maxime Chabloz Angely Bouillot

Janek Grzegorzewski

Paula Novotna

Michael Mac Donald

Annelous Lammerts

Noè Font Ross Dillon Player Girardin Lasse Walker Damien Carla Herrera Oria

Aaron Hadlow Sam Medysky

Hannah Whiteley Craig Cunningham

Ben Wilson

Noè Font Michael Mac Donald kitesurf365.com

T E S T E D

Airush Ultra v4 S I N G L E STR UT K ITE

FOILING

FREERIDE

LOW END

TOP END

TURNING SPEED

RELAUNCH

The shape of the Ultra remains fairly unique in the mono-strut realm, with a very complete arc to the leading edge and long, extended, almost pointy wingtips making it stand out against a generally flatter and highly bridle-supported crowd. It’s been a very well received lightweight kite with a cult following amongst freeride foil aficionados, and will simultaneously hold its own with a wave board.

Out of the bag, it’s a light kite, which packs down exceptionally small for a 9m. The long-established Airush load frame technology carries across from the rest of the range, and provides extra strength and structure to the Technoforce D2 canopy. This means that it won’t stretch so much over time, increasing the kite’s lifespan, and also helping control the canopy in the top end of its wind range. It also means Airush don’t have to utilize so much Dacron in the high load areas as it’s distributed across the frame, which reduces the overall weight.

The Ultra almost offers the flexibility and drift of a strutless kite, but with that added modicum of safety and reassuring relaunch ability that comes with a single-strut. Reverse launching underpowered is a cinch, which is important for a kite that is almost definitely going to be utilized with a hydrofoil. Those long tips also mean the fore and aft balance is well calibrated and within the threshold of sensible physics; there’s little chance of the kite tipping out on you or back-stalling. The drift and catch of the Ultra is predictable, with enough bar feedback to let you know how far to push its limits.

The massive tips and long bar throw (we tested the Cleat bar) mean the ability to switch off, and indeed turn up power through the bar stroke is very impressive. It can go from pulling like a little truck, to completely passive flying with no rear line tension, with very little effort or

supervision required. The top end remains very composed although aggressive turning will result in a little vibration, but this is contained to the kite and doesn’t feed back to the bar noticeably. There’s a specific Ultra bar available from Airush, which is a no-cleat, minimal affair with pre-set trim for the ultimate in simplicity.

There’s an inherent ease of use built into the Ultra, and particularly with a hydrofoil it feels familiar and predictable, but at no point slow in its handling and power delivery characteristic. The juice is there instantly when you require it, to power out of a tack for instance, and disappears just as quickly. Particularly when depowered, it’s a kite with a passive nature, which allows you to concentrate on the foil and body position and doesn’t pull you out of that all-important alignment.

What’s not to be underestimated with the Ultra is the application it’s got outside the realms of hydrofoil use. It holds its own as a wave kite particularly in an underpowered situation where you can utilize that extra drift – there are some big advantages over a three-strut and, overall, it feels tighter and more responsive than its predecessor.

Slingshot SST V6 WAV E K ITE

DEPOWER

LOW END

DRIFT

TURNING SPEED

ACCESSIBILITY

It’s no secret that kite wave pioneer Ben Wilson has re-joined the Slingshot team after developing his own brand, and brings a fresh and experienced set of eyes to the Slingshot R&D department. The SST has had five iterations, all of which build on the same solid and well-received platform. The new V6 heralds the most significant redesign in the product line’s legacy, and it’s clear that Ben has been able to breathe some of that self-earned product development knowledge into the new model.

Visually it’s a very different beast in the sky and there’s some stand-out new features for anyone familiar with the previous kite. Slingshot have implemented some ultra-skinny struts which reduce drag and weight, and efficiently push profile back into the canopy quite a way into the tip. What Slingshot have retained is the overall arc shape and drawnback leading edge from the legacy model, but with a significant redesign in the wingtips, which are thinner and more extended, enabling a 168

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more crisp turning response, and better nose-to-tail balance, increasing stability when the lines are slack.

The Slingshot UFO has been quite a benchmark in drift for a mass-market strutless model, so it was inevitable Slingshot would employ some of the lessons learned there. The highly simplified panel layout and significant weight reduction is a strong example of this, along with a thinner IRS bridle, for further drag reduction.

In the sky, the aggregate weight loss in the kite definitely translates into a wider wind range, and more perky, but not too pivoty turning characteristic. It definitely delivers a pleasant pulse of power on turning, and lets you drive around a bottom turn with decent speed. The increase in overall efficiency in the new SST means exceptionally easy upwind capability and a more linear power on sheet, power delivery.

T E S T E D

Cabrinha Drifter WAV E K ITE

DEPOWER

DRIFT

LOW END

ACCESSIBILITY

TURNING SPEED

RELAUNCH

It’s hard not to notice the Drifter with the idyllic scenes pushed at us through social media of Moona Whyte and Keahi de Aboitiz running around perfectly groomed Hawaiian right-handers. Cabrinha’s surf-focused design is a long proven platform, and has consistently lived up to its namesake.

We’re presented with a shape that’s unarguably a quintessential modern wave kite. Relatively open canopy presents a lot of useful surface area to the wind, and the wide and squared off tips remain engaged and provide excellent leverage for a responsive turn, even when on very slack lines.

downwind pull.

The leading edge diameter is on the more narrow and efficient side.

All the usual Cabrinha trappings are there with their specially coated Nano ripstop, more than adequate scuff protection, and sensibly placed darting in the trailing edge, meaning there’s zero flutter. That creamy Cabrinha trademark bar feeling, which is on the lighter side in the case of the Drifter, proliferates.

In the air the kite has a gentle set of characteristics, and in both flying modes feels very gentle around the corners with a soft, progressive power surge that is easy to feather with minimal bar inputs. There’s enough feedback there to fly the kite without having to watch it, but there’s zero fatigue generated through the bar system. The power delivery is so smooth it almost puts you into a trance.

This year sees some adjustment available on the leading edge hang points to enable the Drifter to be switched between onshore and offshore modes. This is a simple process of moving a few knots, but having had a good play with this feature, it makes a significant difference to the handling characteristics. Onshore mode makes the kite more dynamic and pivotal in the turns and luff downwind in a trustworthy fashion. Offshore mode makes the kite fly a little further forward, and clamber upwind more efficiently, which is ideal for the typically more inconsistent wind conditions often associated with offshore riding. The forward flying also means there’s a little more power dump available allowing you to edge nicely into the pocket without too much

It truly is Drifter by name, drifty by nature. There are few wave kites on the market with the ability to run towards whilst flying stationary and remain so well behaved, particularly if you park it in the top corner of the wind window. If you do push it beyond the realms of physics, it has a reassuring background pull and gives you a decent warning before becoming unstable, letting you rectify the situation before it becomes anything close to an issue.

The Drifter is a trustworthy partner that thrives in decent set piece wave conditions, and the flexibility offered by its front tuning points now extend its range of use further into the onshore conditions many of us deal with regularly, making it quite the Swiss army knife.

From an intended usage perspective, the biggest change in performance is without a doubt in straight down-the-line drift. If you’re the sort of rider who has the luxury of riding sideshore conditions regularly, and don’t want to worry about constantly trimming the kite to keep it flying, then the new SST is going to be an asset. All those design tweaks towards efficiency and weight loss aggregate into quite a change. Overpowered, the amount of lift and power dump available translates to a great platform for strapless freestyle.

We were also surprised how wide the range of the SST V6 branches into the freeride sector, if you weren’t aware it was designed as such a wave-specific machine; it performs admirably as a daily driver. The bulk of those wave-specific attributes – drift, playful handling and inherent stability – translate very successfully into a fun kite to blast around on with a twintip and of course have a strong hydrofoil application.

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J OI N NOW

Photo: Lewis Crathern Kitesurfer

T E S T E D

Manera Meteor Magma 5/4/3 First things first: wetsuits have not, until recently, been the nicest things for our planet. And I have kept dozens not knowing how best to recycle them – a solution will come along one day I keep telling myself. So when this arrived in a cardboard box with a biodegradable bag, it had already scored well. The use of Aqua-based glue (rather than solvent) is another tick in the green box. However, it’s the quality construction and potential durability that make this particular suit a worth while investment.

is UV and tear resistant so should prove durable, and has excellent thermal properties.

Manera is a family firm that designs its suits in France and builds this range in Cambodia. They have made a stylish suit that will cross watersports disciplines well for users looking to extend their time in the water in the cold months. The Magma looks and feels quality and built to last, which should appeal to all who, like me, increasingly shun disposable items.

The Magma is Manera’s premium range, and it certainly looks and feels that way. It’s designed in 3D, which results in a suit shaped specifically to fit a kiting position. Just looking at it makes you puff out your chest and channel your inner Marvel superhero. The biggest pro I found was the comfort of the Magma – this is the easiest wetsuit I have tried to date, both to put on and to remove once wet. The fleece finish feels addictively toasty and extends from the chest and back panels right down to the knees to keep all your vitals warm, while the arms and calves are smooth on the inside which help the glide on and off.

There’s also good elasticity on ankles and wrists where needed for ease of donning, while rubber seals then keep them tight and, crucially, water out. The ankles are also flared for drainage and optional ankle straps are included (although don’t forget to remove them when you take off the suit).

In practice, the triple-glued and blind-stitched build means you don’t feel a drop coming through when entering the water. I was also very impressed with how flexible it is for a thick steamer, the Airfoam neoprene and Re-flex skin combining really well. Not only does the fleece help the flex and comfort but it ensures this suit dries quickly too – an important feature in the short daylight hours of winter. I am 5ft 10in and the Magma medium fitted me very well overall, with good leg and sleeve lengths in particular. The back of the knees is embossed/channeled to help them flex more. Another nod towards longevity in the suit is that the seams are taped on the inside, and the blind stitch is exposed on the exterior, avoiding the use of liquid seams which can sometimes crack and deteriorate quickly. The super smooth neoprene

Reedin Supermodel V2 A L L- R OUN DE R TE ST

BOOSTING

RANGE

FREESTYLE

ACCESSIBILITY

TURNING SPEED

Damien Girardin’s legacy of kite development spans back to the formative teenage years of kiting, and the Reedin brand he co-runs with Kevin Langeree has quickly established itself amongst the big players in the industry and is now an instantly recognizable product line.

WAVE

Like most kite designers over the last 18 months, Damien has had plenty of time on his hands to do some product development and has fine-tuned the Supermodel V2. The key technical updates are in the airframe structure. The leading edge seam placement has been revised, and more internal reinforcement has been added between the segments. Both of these enhance stiffness, allowing the diameter to be lowered. The struts have also been on a diet to gently increase the amount of twist and improve turning response.

ficient kite. One of the original Supermodel’s prime attributes was its playful, light handling and this has been retained and improved upon in the V2. It comes out of a turn with a predictable climb and pulse of power, and always seems eager to initiate a turn, even when you’re running downwind with slack lines. This is particularly noticeable in a wave scenario where the kite gains a decent upgrade in its dynamic turning and efficiency. You’ll also notice it creeps upwind more effortlessly, and the bridling has been tweaked for a more uniform feeling throughout the sizes in your quiver. On a slightly tedious, but practical level, for those hanging out on kite staining and sometimes muddy European beaches, there’s now a new colorway in grey which minimizes the amount of white canopy.

These relatively subtle changes aggregate into a dramatic effect to the kite’s performance and make for an instantly more responsive and ef-

It’s an exceptionally balanced, forgiving and performant kite, and is amongst the front-runners industry-wide as a multi-disciplinar-

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Duotone Juice D/Lab 13m B I G K ITE TE ST

BOOSTING

LOW END

HIGH END

ACCESSIBILITY

TURNING SPEED

BAR PRESSURE

It’s no secret that the futuristic, laminated Dacron equivalent, Aluula, has been licensed to various kite brands internationally, and this is the first kite outside the Ocean Rodeo stable we’ve had into test. Duotone haven’t stood idle through the pandemic, and designer Ralf Grösel has been diligently prototyping and testing with this new cloth, and adapting the manufacturing techniques to suit.

The Juice is Duotone’s lightwind all-rounder, and has always been a benchmark industry-wide as a multipurpose, early-flying, lightwind-specific three-strut kite, and in a way the Juice concept provides the perfect test bed for Aluula as it’s at the fringes of the wind range where its implementation will perhaps show the most benefits.

From a build perspective, there are many factors pointing towards efficiency and weight saving, aside from the obvious application of the new golden cloth on the inflatable sections. The leading edge is low-diameter for a kite with this much canopy and is beautifully sculpted with almost no harsh joins between each section. There’s also the usual scuff protection present between each segment and over the important parts of the wingtip. The bridle is similarly low-diameter, drag-free and does not utilize pulleys. There’s minimal but wellplaced intermediate cloth reinforcement around the strut junction with the canopy and trailing edge. On paper, the weight saving comes in at around 30% below a standard model in equivalent size, which on a kite this size has a dramatic effect on performance. It’s a kilo less than its Dacron framed counterparts.

In the air, it’s a clean and open canopy, and what you immediately notice is a massive extension in usable wind range at both ends of the spectrum. Early flying is equivalent to, if not extended beyond a mono-strut of equivalent size, and when a kite would normally start to contort under heavy load at the top of its wind range, it simply holds firm and flies forward. What’s most striking is how agile the D/Lab is for a kite with so much canopy – the stiffness in the airframe results

in genuinely perky turning for a 13m, and the weight loss combined with the well-balanced steering makes for an inherently stable kite, even in the lower echelons of its wind range. The steering characteristics enable a large kite to feel active and useful, and the kite develops power smoothly on the upstroke; where equivalent LEIs will have to drag themselves back up the wind window, the Juice behaves like a far smaller kite and gives you that pulse of power when you need it to drive upwind, which is super noticeable in its low end. This translates into a great performer for hydrofoil use, with that responsiveness sometimes lacking in a larger kite to whip you out of your transitions.

In the top end the Juice maintains its shape impressively and turns into a very lofty hooked-in performer with a twintip, holding you in the air for an amusing amount of time and not initiating much downwind travel. Duotone set the recommended threshold between choosing the 13m and 15m sizes at 85kg for mixed discipline use. It would definitely work well as a luxury quiver topper and extend your lightwind riding further than you’d anticipate with standard materials, being a session saver of the highest order.

The Juice D/Lab is a far cry from the old kite built with new material; it’s a completely different and highly efficient beast and is a formidable and entertaining light wind LEI. Duotone have pulled off a pioneering lightwind masterpiece and display a commanding use of the Aluula material.

ian. It seems to thrive in gusty conditions where some kites can feel more sensitive, and if you’re an ambitious rider it’s going to allow you to flourish in realistic conditions. In the top end, for straight up boosting, there’s an enormous amount of height and control available, providing you with plenty of confidence for more technical Big Air maneuvers. This is where that excellent handling becomes all the more important; at the apex of the jump you never feel disoriented.

With a hydrofoil in the low end, the agility and power delivery shines again, the eagerness to climb and progressive whip out of the turns making it entertaining and playful, and the level of precision available feathering power on the bar makes it a superb kite to progress with.

What’s also quite obvious due to the enormous logo on the kite is that Reedin are now working in conjunction with surf brand O’Neill, with the kite being available through their distribution channels alongside their normal soft goods. This is also good for convincing your fellow riders you’ve now got a wetsuit sponsor…

As the Reedin brand matures into its second generation of kite, the Supermodel has gained some sensible tweaks to make it even more universal, user-friendly and dynamic. The V2 is far more than a graphical makeover and sits as a perfect kite to span disciplines, exceling in most. It has a balanced, engaging and playful nature, which will suit a broad spectrum of riders. The V2 crisps everything up and turns it into a precision multi-tool.

TESTED

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T E S T E D

Airwave Koala 5M B I G KI T E TE ST

BOOSTING

LOW END

SPEED

FREERIDE

TURNING SPEED

STABILITY

Airwave are so stoked with their Koala that they were keen for us to test a range of sizes. Last issue we had the 10m on test, for this issue we’ve cut things down by 50% and taken the 5m out for a spin. To bring you back up to speed the Koala is not a kite for racing, and it’s not a kite specifically designed for lofty boosting (although it does this); the philosophy is very much that the kite can replace your LEI kites and offer comparable performance to what you get for them, and more…

The simulation software on which the Koala is built is called ALULA (no, not that one!) and is the brainchild of Tom Lolies. It formed the basis of his PhD project so it’s safe to say that he knows his stuff.

The rest of the crew at Airwave have been designing paragliders for over 30 years so they know their way around these multi-bridled machines. Last issue we didn’t get into the bar, but this is well constructed and brings together all of the most recent innovations that you expect on a modern bar; depower is using a clam cleat and essentially, if you’re new to the foil kite game, it’s going to feel like a completely familiar cockpit.

As we discussed in our review of the 10m Koala, the build quality is exceptional and – for anyone coming to the Koala having not flown a foil kite previously – this really is a super easy kite to get your head around and to unpack, launch and land. On marginal days the 10m really gave us confidence to head out, the stability was insane, and even in the sub-8 knot range it was rock solid in the air when you would have been running in circles on the beach keeping your regular kite in the air. This is also true for the 5m although of course the wind range is higher. We tested the 5m in dead offshore wind with some pretty sketchy under-cliff launches and once it was up the kite is so stable, and the closed-cell construction keeps it in the air even when it feels like the wind has dropped right off.

Airwave reckon the 5m Koala is similar to a 7m LEI kite but with more usable power at the bottom end, and with more comfortable flying at the top end. We rode the 5m in a range of conditions from 15 knots through to around 30 and can testify that this is the case. At the lower end the big plus of the 5m is that you can really throw it around and generate power. The 10m definitely turned like a 12m LEI kite but we would say that the 5m does turn more like a 5 or 6m

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TESTED

kite. It also spins nicely on the spot when required – it takes a little getting used to but you learn to fine tune the radius of your turns to get the required amount of grunt from it. Sheet out a little and move it in a wider arc and you can get up and going on the 5m on a twintip in around 17 knots – which is impressive… For foiling the 5m Koala is a lightwind machine and can easily get you going in 10 knots and – if the wind is patchy – gives you the confidence to take a small kite knowing that if you hit a hole it’s going to stay in the air.

You can also really whip it around for quick transitions and, if you are following it downwind or picking up rolling swell offshore, it’s a spinning machine.

For general riding on a twintip or surfboard, the 5m has a different feel to your LEI kite but we found that after a couple of sessions you tuned into the subtle differences and performance was very similar, with smooth power delivery, good upwind performance and excellent lift. In the waves, the ability to really spin the Koala and to have the confidence to head towards it make it a decent option here and we wouldn’t be surprised to see some more serious exploration here by top riders…

Airwave are out to convince us that you can replace your quiver with a couple of Koalas and enjoy wider wind range, smaller pack size, no pump and equitable performance to an LEI kite and – on this evidence – we think they might be on to something.

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the committed Hungary isn’t necessarily somewhere that immediately springs to mind when you think of kite destinations. But sometimes challenging conditions bring together the strongest kite community.

We spoke to one of their most committed members, Tomi Deák.

176

S O , K I T I N G I N H U N G A R Y… T E L L U S M O R E ! D O Y O U G E T E N O U G H T I M E O N T H E WAT E R O R D O Y O U E N D U P T R AV E LING FOR WIND?

Firstly I would say that Hungary is not a number one kitesurf destination. If an advanced foiler comes to Hungary then I promise that they will have a couple of memorable sessions. But Hungarian weather conditions mean that on average I have about 40 days a year on a twintip, usually with the best sessions being April to May and September to October, with the odd session in freezing winter temperatures. But over the last year I started foiling so the number of sessions went up to a 100. Usually if the wind is good enough I can stay on the water for five to six hours covering 100 kilometers on a foil. To gain more time on the water I usually go abroad for about 30 days. When I travel I usually seek out strong wind because we don’t tend to get it in Hungary. So my favorite spot abroad is Platboom Beach, South Africa. I also like Lefkada because the wind is always reliable there and the prices are pretty friendly! In Hungary I would say the best spot is Fonyód, Lake Balaton with a view of the Badacsony mountain. We built a nice little spot here and we call it AEndorphin Beach. This was the place I first went on holiday as a kid, I first tried kiting here, and I’ve had the best kite rides here. It is a shame that no one was kiting here when I was a kid as I am pretty sure I would have tried it earlier.

H O W D I D Y O U G E T S TA R T E D T H E N ?

My old swim coach used to organize kite trips for Hungarians. He would disappear for weeks, come back tanned in the middle of winter, and regale us with stories of the trip. But I didn’t really pay attention because having seen kite equipment I assumed it was impossible to travel on a plane. Later in 2012 I fell in love with snowboarding and then searched for summer sports that are similar. Originally I thought wakeboarding was going to be the one, but then I chose kiting assuming it would be cheaper as I’d need only one kite and I wouldn’t have to fork out for a wakeboard pass as the wind is free… Turned out I was wrong! I joined my old coach’s summer camp at Lake Balaton, quickly picked up the sport and really enjoyed it. In 2013 I bought my first kite and board but 2015 was the year that I got to ride regularly; it was also the year I first went abroad just for kiting. After this trip I ultimately loved this sport better than snowboarding.

W E L L I G U E S S T H E J U M P S A R E H I G H E R . . . WA S J U M P I N G A B I G D R AW F O R Y O U T O K I T E S U R F I N G ?

Yes, for me kiting will always be about high jumps. That gives me the most adrenalin and I can always see ways to improve. My biggest WOO jump measured 20.6m although in the last few years I didn’t really care about measuring my jumps and I am pretty sure I had a way higher jump in South Africa! As time has gone by I’ve focused on incorporating other tricks into my jumps, for example board-offs so it’s not just about gaining maximum height. I love with kiting that there is always a new challenge or a new trick to learn. I love how it completely focuses my brain. In other sports like biking my mind is always wandering and I start thinking about things I need to do. But with kiting the time passes so quickly and I realize I haven’t thought about my daily tasks.

I also love being close to nature, not to mention that I’ve met new people who ultimately became my friends. Before kiting I swam and played baseball. I took baseball seriously but since it isn’t a traditional Hungarian sport the level isn’t that good and my teammates didn’t take it seriously enough so my development in it quickly plateaued. If I do something I love to give it 100 percent and kiting is a sport where everything depends on me.

I T S O U N D S L I K E Y O U H AV E T H E Q U A L I T I E S O F A N O LY M P I C AT H L E T E ! I S T H E 2 0 2 4 O LY M P I C S S O M E T H I N G Y O U A S P I R E T O WA R D S N O W T H AT Y O U ’ V E G O T I N T O F O I L I N G ?

If there is going to be a Hungarian racer at the Olympics I hope it will be me! Joking aside, a year ago I did start thinking that Hungary should be represented in the kiting event. I found a female partner,

Virág, willing to prepare with me for the mixed relays, but then they recently altered the format so there will be individual races instead of mixed relays. If Virág keeps up the good work she can easily qualify.

In the men’s group it will be harder to succeed because there are more male competitors, most from countries with a huge race foil culture, and there are only 20 spots. So the only thing I can do is to keep up the hard work and hope that my talent and diligence will be enough to make it to the Olympics.

W H AT E Q U I P M E N T A R E Y O U U S I N G T O H E L P G E T Y O U T H E R E ? !

I used the RRD Obsession for five years, for Big Air, airstyle and wakestyle. Now, since I am doing foil races I use the Duotone Dice which is good for many styles and has great hangtime so has helped me learn many tricks. I have not decided yet which soft kite I prefer but I am lucky because there are a couple of Hungarian distributors who let me test different soft kites; so far the Flysurfer VMG is the winner.

Board-wise I am currently using a Levitaz R5 + Levitaz Raze board which for long distances is a great choice. With the bigger wings I can perform sitting jibes but I haven’t yet tried foil freestyle. My favorite tricks in freestyle are the megaloop combinations; I can do the boogie loop nicely and beside this the hardest trick that I know is the dangle pass. This trick gives me goose bumps and a huge adrenalin rush! Unfortunately because of the gusty wind conditions in Hungary it puts a lot of pressure on my shoulders.

G O O D T H I N G Y O U ’ R E N O T K I T I N G E V E R Y D AY T H E N ! W H AT D O YO U D O W H E N T H E R E I S N O W I N D ?

I spend most of my time with my wife and young son. We try to do some sports together to prepare ourselves for the windy days.

And of course I have a normal job as well. Computer Science gives me the opportunity to provide for my family and to buy the newest kite equipment! ■ TOMI DEÁK

177

Into the Unknown P H OTO S F R A N K I E B E E S A N D J E N N I C A LOW E L L

Currently ranked number one on the GKA Kite-Surf tour, Peri Roberts left her home country of Australia in March. When she closed the doors to her little beachfront shack she cried… Partly because she was leaving her plant babies to her slightly untrustworthy roommate, partly because she was going to miss her best friend’s badass chocolate chip cookies, but mainly because she was about to get on a flight and had absolutely no idea what would come next…

178

REFLECTIONS

I had this notion that if I jumped on a plane, I could make things work for me this year. After 12 months of not knowing where I stood with my kitesurfing career, sitting and waiting for something to come up, I had a ‘to hell with it’ moment and booked a one-way ticket to Maui.

After a year of so much uncertainty, I thought, “What’s another year of exactly the same?” When I was tossing up whether to leave home, knowing I might not see my family or best friend or plant babies any time soon, I started asking people what they thought I should do. As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I already knew the answer – follow that gut feeling and get the hell to Maui to keep the dream alive. The best part about my job is that I have an excuse to travel, and I count my blessings every day that this is my life. While goodbyes are always hard, this one hurt the most so far. I don’t think it was because I knew missing my simple familiarities was going to suck during this weird time in the world, but because I was saying hello to something I had no idea about. That’s the thing about the unknown – it lures you in and creeps up on your imagination. It keeps you up at night thinking ‘what if’, plaguing the way you see the status quo. The unknown is scary, but not knowing is the adventure. With the unconditional love and support of my family, friends and sponsors at home, I blew my kisses and jumped on a plane. One empty bank account, one suitcase full of bikinis, and one girl filled with excitement – the journey began to the island full of opportunity, wind and waves. Bon voyage, flight AA72 into the unknown.

Maui, Hawaii is a special place for many reasons. My mum and dad got engaged at Ho’okipa. Many legends have made their careers there – the likes of Kai Lenny, fellow Aussie Jason Polakow and Robby Naish, who is one of the reasons I came to Maui. There’s a certain magic you feel there. The whole world recognizes Hawaii as the land of rainbows, but it’s not until you step foot onto Maui soil that you truly feel like you’re living in the pot of gold at the end, and I felt right at home flying in over the islands. I’ve been lucky enough to travel to a lot of amazing places in the world, have seen different cultures and eaten many different cuisines, but I’ve always told myself Australia was home. Maui has been the first place I’ve felt like I could set down roots… and I guess I have. With the uncertainty of getting back on Australian turf, INTO THE UNKNOWN

179

180

REFLECTIONS

I’ve been forced to set myself up in Maui for the unforeseeable future.

Let me tell you, that isn’t easy as a foreigner. For a while there, I was debating whether things would even work out. Note to self, and to everyone else – you cannot survive in Maui without a car, and don’t trick yourself into thinking you can make it work, because you cannot.

Also, groceries are really expensive and no Peri, cinnamon rolls are not on the ‘athlete diet’ list. All jokes aside, I struggled for a good six weeks in Maui – trying to make ends meet, missing my family, battling to figure out who I was this year and what I was going to make of myself. If the pandemic has taught me anything, it’s that you have to constantly reinvent yourself. I guess when I jumped on that plane I was searching for purpose. Maui helped bring that to fruition. How? By doing what I loved: kitesurfing.

Ah Ho’okipa, one of the birthplaces of surf-style kiting. I let out a little squeal the first time I tacked out into the lineup with its perfect rights off one of the most famous peaks in the world. No amount of windsurfers or lethal dragging on Lanes reef (my ego hurt more than anything) could rain on my parade. My jaw hurt from smiling so much. I am extremely persistent, and unless you know me personally, you wouldn’t know that I don’t really stop until things work out in my favor. Some might call it determination; others might call it annoying.

When the opportunity came up to head to Maui, it proved itself to be a difficult task. Flights out of Australia were extremely expensive, I got rejected on my exemption request to leave the country twice, and I almost missed my flight because I didn’t have the right Covid test requirements. Needless to say, when firing waves, crazy-good wind and tropical weather presents itself to you, you get on the go-go-go train and don’t question or second guess it! That magic I mentioned?

You find it at a solo sunset session at Ho’okipa with one of your good teammates. It swims with you in the crystal clear pools, submerged by streaming waterfalls. It’s sitting in the lineup with at least five hugely famous professional surfers you’ve looked up to your whole life. Magic lies in every breath of sweet Maui air, and most days I pinch myself that it’s real life.

“Ah Ho’okipa, one of the birthplaces of surf-style kiting.

I let out a little squeal the first time I tacked out into the lineup with its perfect rights off one of the most famous peaks in the world” INTO THE UNKNOWN

181

Being on a constant shuffle, you must redefine your circle of friends each time you need to hit ‘next’ on the location status. As the people that surround you change, you change too. If you want to be impacted in the best way possible, find the good ones and stick to them like glue.

Making friends around the world is probably one of the most exciting parts about traveling, and it wouldn’t surprise me if I had one on almost every continent now (sorry Antarctica). I’ve made some good ones in Maui, and having good friends that want to sesh with you every day makes you firstly a better kiter, secondly completely exhausted, and thirdly realize you have a bad case of FOMO when you can’t make it.

Even on the mediocre days fun was begging to be had. I picked up two winging queens, Mona and Rio, and taught them to kite. In return, they tried to teach me to wing. We towed on the foils and towed on the wave storms too. On days with no wind, we would hike or jump rocks or surf, and on the days with too much, we just tried to hang on for the ride.

“If you want something you must truly believe it, see yourself there, and act on it.”

REFLECTIONS

Every time I storm into the Naish office, high on kite-stoke with ideas on tap, or when the freak-out fumes start fogging my view, Naish brand manager Scott Trudon puts on his best Aussie accent and says, “See it, believe it, do it sister” and everything falls back into perspective. If you want something you must truly believe it, see yourself there, and act on it. That impulse decision to leave Australia and move to Maui was one of the best things I could have done this year. Yeah, jumping into the unknown was scary, just as leaving my family was. But it has led me to some amazing moments. Amongst the endless waterfalls, world-class waves and non-stop wind, I’ve made lifelong friends and fallen into some amazing opportunities. I’ve kited with Robby freakin’ Naish! It hasn’t been easy; grinding to get where you want to be is tough, but it should be. I’m not sure if this was a vacation guide, a life recount or a bit of both, but I feel like I need to insert some kind of wisdom before you turn the final page. So here’s my advice: always trust your gut, even if you have no idea what the hell it’s telling you, because the unknown is the adventure, and that adventure might just lead you to a pot of gold under some rainbow… ■

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