Tom Hebert is with no doubt one of the most “stylish” kite riders and a great source for inspiration. There are three previous episodes of Tom’s Kitchen and they are all great and fun to watch! Episode 2 is probably my own favourite, but number 4 is also excellent! A video that deinitely deserves to be posted here on Kite 2012!
How do to jump transitions
On January - 13 - 2015
Dimitri Maramenides from Epic Kites teach you how to do a jump transition in his funny way. This is a cool video to watch even for those that already know how to do a jump transition. Humour, style and knowledge packed together in this video, enjoy!
How to TRANSITION JUMP from EPIC KITES on Vimeo.
Te Tainui Kitesurfing Video by F-One
On November - 19 - 2014
When we hear ‘Tahiti’, it’s like our mind automatically relaxes and we envision paradise. And that’s actually not far from the truth because of it’s spectacular view, it truly is a magical place. Tahiti is the largest island in the windward group of French Polynesia. The island is located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the central Southern Pacific Ocean, and is divided into two parts: The bigger, northwestern part Tahiti Nui and the smaller, southeastern part Tahiti Iti. It is composed of 118 islands with rugged mountain peaks, coral reefs, blue lagoons, white sand beaches and luxurious resorts, there’s definitely something for everyone.
The most popular place for kitesurfing is Motu Martin (a good spot for beginners) which is not far from Papenoo wherein you can find waves for all levels. Taapuna is also a good place to visit since it’s a large lagoon with great free ride conditions. If you’re looking for a challenge then head over to Sapinus and Maraa, both of which are for more experienced kiters. Teahupoo, despite its beauty, is known for being one of the most notorious spots world wide. Baie Phaeton and Vairao are two of the more beautiful places you can kite, the former offers easy-going conditions in a shallow lagoon and the latter is ideal for wave riders.
We stumbled upon a video made by F-ONE KITES and I have to say that they captured the essence of Tahiti on video, of course there’s no substitute for the real thing but this one comes in a close second. In the beginning of the video it was peaceful and as it went on they showed how the kiters lose themselves completely in the sport, how they become one with everything. The second part of which shows the friendships and the bond that’s formed when you’re with people who have the same passion. Even if you’re not a rider, you’d definitely appreciate all the work they put into it and their love for the sport shines through.
Watch the video and see for yourself!
“Once again the F-ONE team went off to discover new landscapes and live an extraordinary adventure.
Raphaël SALLES put on his captain’s hat for the time of a far-off journey to meet his Tahitian team and experience the magic surrounding their idyllic islands. Accompanied by his faithful sidekicks as well as newcomers, they went on to board two catamarans for 25 days of pure happiness in another world.
Tahiti is well and truly as you can imagine: wild, powerful, with the force of the ocean being ever-present and where sharing and wisdom are common values within a whole people.Riders : Mitu MONTEIRO, Poenaiki RAIOHA, Robinson HILARIO, Micka FERNANDEZ, Marie SWITALA, Aude LIONET CHANFOUR, Alexandre CAIZERGUES, Filippe FERREIRA, Manutea MONNIER, Rémi QUIQUE, Patrice CHANZY, Raphaël SALLES.”
Red Bull King of the Air 2015 – Rule the Sky
On November - 17 - 2014
“Once word went out and the sport started to blow, that’s when Red Bull approached us with doing an event and that’s when we came up with the name ‘King of the Air’ and it stuck because at that time it was all about getting big air and the wow factor” -Joe Keuhi
The first Red Bull King of the Air competition was held at Ho’okipa in Maui around year 2000 and at that time there were only a number of kiters who joined. It was still part of kite surfing’s experimental stage where in everything was so new, unexplored and yet to be tested. As the years progressed so did the equipment and the number of followers. Now kite surfing is considered the fastest growing water sport with 1.5million surfers and counting.
2015 can’t come any faster -at least that’s what kiters all over the world are thinking. Red Bull’s King of the Air competition is coming up and we’re all excited! It’s South Africa’s biggest kite competition where 24 kiters (top 12 from the previous year and the other 12 from video submissions -8 of which will be picked according to online rankings and 4 from coming from the event committee) compete for the title. It will be held at Cape Town, Big Bay, Blouberg on Jan. 31 to Feb. 15, 2015 and all you need to do is upload a minute long video of you doing some sick air moves. Fill out the application form and you’re done! view the full mechanics here.
Last year’s jump records were:
1. Tom Hebert – 25.04m
2. Andris Fourie – 23.33m
3. Kevin Langeree – 21.55m
4. Jerrie Van De Kop – 21.41m
5. Billy Parker – 20.22m
6. Reno Romeo – 18.89m
7. Luke McGillewie – 18.51m
8. Jesse Richman – 17.83m
9. Gianni Aragno – 17.58m
10. Graham Howes – 17.30m
Final Result:
1. Kevin Langeree (NED)
2. Ruben Lenten (NED)
3. Steven Akkersdijk (NED)
4. Andries Fourie (RSA)
5. Aaron Hadlow (GBR)
5. Jesse Richman (USA)
7. Tom Herbert (FRA)
7. Billy Parker (USA)
Although not everything is fun and games. Extreme sports have their risks and with the added pressure of competing against other kiters. There have been some incidents and one of the more popular one is when Tom Herbert came down too hard from a big jump (at least 25meters in the air) and crashed. In an interview with North Kiteboarding he said “I arrived late to the kicker which put me off balance straight away. At 25 meters high and mid rotation I saw that my kite was pointing down towards the water. I lost all orientation and had very little control. I tried to correct it and get it right but it was too late.”. According to African Extreme there were other two rumoured injuries, one by Jessie Richman (King of the Air 2013) who was said to have had anything from a torn ACL to a bad fracture, the other one would be Oswald Smith, and this would be more of a rumour than anything, was said to have had difficulties moving his head to either side. Accidents and injuries are a part of it all, especially when you want to achieve something great.
Check out some of this year’s wild card:
Visit the Red Bull site for more!
Kitesurfing – the rise of a new sport
On July - 16 - 2014
Ever stop and ask yourself where it all began? Well, I’m here to tell you a quick story about a sport which we now call kite surfing…
Kite Surfing dates back to as early as the 1800’s wherein George Pocock used large kites to propel carts on land and ships on water which they used as an alternative to horsepower and mainly because they wanted to avoid horse tax. And from then on it was mainly used to move items from one place to another with improvements here and there. Gijsbertus Adrianus Panhuise from Netherlands was the first one to receive the first kite surfing patent in Oct. 1977 which covers a water sport using a floating board of a surf board type where a pilot standing up on it is pulled by a wind catching device of a parachute type tied to his harness on a trapeze type belt. Even though it did not result in any commercial interest, he could be considered as the founding father of kitesurfing. After that, there were occasionally successful attempts to basically combine kites with other sports. Bruno and Dominique Legaignoux came up with an inflatable kite design in the late 1970’s and the early 1980’s. In the USA, Bill Roeseler and his son Cory Roeseler patented the “KiteSki” system which consists of water skis powered by a two line delta style kite controlled via a bar mounted combined winch/brake. The Roeseler’s design was commercially available in 1994. And in the late 1990’s, Cory’s design evolved into a single board similar to a skate board.
“We knew it was gonna be something amazing but we didn’t know when or how” -Flash Austin
Kite Surfing has definitely come a long way and it’s all because of the people who have contributed their time, effort and passion to the sport. When you think about it, back then they didn’t have any material to teach them how to do it, they didn’t have videos that they could watch so that they could try to do it, kite school’s didn’t exist back then and the only way they were able to learn was thru the old fashion way -trial and error. Lou Wainman was said to have invented a lot of the tricks that are the standards now.
“To me Lou (Wainman) is like one of the early most progressive pioneers of this sport and he actually did start the whole wake boarding craze” -Mike Waltze
The first kite competition in which they dubbed the ‘Kite Surfing World Championship’ as a joke because the year before that there were only about 6 people who were in it. But now there are hundreds if not thousands of competitors who join each year and the market is now worth over $250 million dollars.
“Once word went out and the sport started to blow, that’s when Red Bull approached us with doing an event, that’s where we came up with the name ‘King of the Air’ and it stuck because at that time it was all about getting big air and the wow factor” -Joe Keuhi
Because of its exponential growth, kids as young as 13yrs old are now competing in championships, something they have envisioned and wanted to happen in the beginning. It’s not all about competition though, when you meet people who have the same passion as you, it’s when you make a connection and you build friendships, and it won’t even matter if you’re continents apart. And mainly that’s what they’re trying to build and want to achieve -and they have, but it isn’t over yet! The fun’s just getting started.
It’s always good to take a step back and remember where it all began or take a minute to learn how your new favourite sport came to be just to get in it deeper and also find a community where you can share your passion for kite surfing.
Watch the video and get a chance to know who we consider the forefathers or kiting, see amazing tricks on water and know how it all started: the trials they faced, how the sport developed, find out what their kitemares are and see awesomeness in action!
New kite video from Best!
On August - 15 - 2012
Best keep spoiling us with awesome kitesurfing videos! The new Best video features some of the best BEST riders :) Paul porter, Sean Buell, Chris Bobryk and Jacob Buzianis kitesurfing in a gorge somewhere.
A Kitesurf Movie
On July - 23 - 2012
Here is a nice movie about a girl who wants to escape the hustle and bustle in the city. The video has some cool scenes with for instance Hannah Whitley and Toby Brauer
Kai Lenny Episode 7
On June - 28 - 2012
Here is a nice video with Kai Lenny and his fellow Naish riders Sam Light, Rick Jensen, and Jesse Richman. These guys pull of crazy tricks totally effortless, while another friend of Kai Lenny, Kainoa McGee, is struggling to get up on the board for the first time in his life, a situation we´ve all been in once in our life =)
Snowkiting in Austria
On June - 12 - 2012
Year 2012 offered a great snowkiting winter for the people in Austria! This video is shot from some spots in Styria, Corithia and Salzburg. I bet the Austrians are crying now when the snow is melting…
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Kiteboarding somewhere…
On June - 12 - 2012
I have no idea where this video is shot, but it´s a pretty good one! Not just the usual stuff we see, but some nice scenery, under water shoots etc… watch it!
Nicky Rudd – a pro kitesurfing chick
On June - 8 - 2012
Nicky Rudd is a name that may not sound as familiar as Susa Mai or Hannah Whitley. However after watching this video, I´m pretty sure that Nicky Rudd is a name that most likely will be heard more often onwards. Here is the video with Nicky, filmed at Coche in Venezuela.
So, who is this girl?
Well, Nicky Rudd is a 27 year old girl from Exmouth, Devon in the UK. She started kiteboarding in 2007. Prior to that she did a lot off off shore sailing which, as Nicky states it, was pretty hardcore and she was apperantly a keen windsurfer back in the days. During the less windy days she could watch kiters jumping over her head and she simply thought that “I need to do that!” Nicky took a kiteboarding lesson and has never looked back since.
As Nicky says – kitesurfing is a sport that has so much to offer; there is a great deal of freedom involved, physically and mentally. Kitesurfing allows you to explore beautiful places and share great experiences.
Nicky Rudd’s home spot is located in Exmouth, Devon. A pretty unique spot in that you can kite both in the river or on the seafront; making it kite-able in almost any wind direction. It´s such a beautiful location where the kiters are spoiled with butter flat water at low tide and waves over the sand bar when there is swell. There is also a great local kiting community which has been built around Edge Watersports.
Besides travelling around the world kitesurfing and competing, Nicky is also working as a kitesurfer instructor for Bracklesham Board Riders on the south coast in West Sussex.
At the local beaches where Nicky lives there are a group of girls that pull the more technical tricks and Nicky loves the look on the ‘guys’ faces when she lands trick that they can’t do. Some will often start riding more aggressively, trying to do even bigger airs, something that always put a smile on Nicky’s face. Nicky says that there is something really satisfying about being better at a sport than most of the guys!
Conclusion; think twice before you pack your kite to visit Nicky’s local home spot. Trying to impress on this hot chick might end up with that you make yourself a laughing stock :)
For more photos, videos, info etc. check out Nicky’s website www.nickyrudd.com
Kiteboarding in Hatteras
On June - 8 - 2012
It´s been a while since someone uploaded a decent video on vimeo. So I´m happy that some Victoria kiters made this nice video from their trip to Cape Hatteras in North Carolina. Nice shooting in a great scenery along with some cool tricks, that’s all that is needed to make a quality video to share with kiters all around the globe :)
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Best Snowkiting Video 2012!
On May - 11 - 2012
This is by far the best snowkiting video that has been released in 2012!
This is a great production made by Créateurs de films featuring many riders such as Laurent Sublet, Remi Meum, Alex Bryand, Bjorn Kaupang, Guillaume Voegli, Goody Gaudard, Alex Robin, Romain Barachko, Laurent Guyot and Paul Turberg to name a few of them…
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One of the best kite videos in a long time
On March - 16 - 2012
Rui Silva has just taken home made edited kitesurfing videos to a whole new level. Fine Cut and other video editors are simply not enough to make a master video like this one! This video with Rui Silva in Vietnam has a perfect mix of action, humor, mystery, music and art. I´m not saying that it´s impossible to make a better video, but not easy =)
