Kite 2012

That kitesurfing is addicting is no surprise! These kiteaddicts made this video to show their view on kitesurfing and how addiciting it is… enjoy :)

Navis Boards is a small company in Sweden that has challenged the big dragons on the kiteboard market. The boards from Navis Boards stand out from the crowd in two ways that are obvious at the first glance. The boards alone are handmade and made purely from environmentally friendly materials which give them their nice woodish look. So what about the performance then? I have already been riding the board named “Bolt” for some time. An allround medium sized board that is suitable for the beginner as well as the intermediate rider, a compromise between a lightwind board and a freestyle board. “Foucan” on the other hand is a board aimed for the more advanced rider that prefer a smaller and stiffer board that allows him to perform tricks with ease. You might have you heard the name Foucan from the somewhat odd sport named Le-Parkour. In this field Foucan is the name of a guy that is known for his outstanding skills in Le-Parkour, hence “Foucan” is a board designed with this guy in mind, a board for the one that likes to have fun on the water while jumping around and performing tricks. Anyway, let´s take a closer look on the characteristics and performances of the “Foucan”!

Flexibility

The Foucan is a stiff board. Not super stiff, but stiff enough to make it easy to achieve good pop, great for unhooked tricks and all kind of tricks, such as the backroll, where you need to set yourself in a rotation. Foucan is designed with Navis Boards new unique “spring technology” which further improves the pop force. This technology can be seen as the black arcs on the board. These arcs are working both as reinforcement for the board while providing the board with extra spring effect.

Upwind abilities

The size of the Foucan is 132×41 (136×42 is also available). Shorter boards are not known to make it easier to go upwind, but the width of the board weigh up its shorter length and it can be compared to a 135×40 board if you just look at the area of the board. In other words, the upwind abilities are actually pretty good, especially in strong wind where you really can carve the board deep in the water and achieve a good amount of resistance.

Chop/Waves

The Foucan is designed to be used in flat and choppy water. The rocker of the board is slightly curved which comes handy once you hit choppy water. The Foucan also performs well in waves with fine comfort compared to some other boards. Ride in high speed and the board tends to spray some water in small waves. This is however not a major problem, just approach the waves in a sharper angle with more pressure on the back foot and you’ll more or less solve this little issue.

Jumping

To jump with the Foucan is a pleasure. The light weight (2.55kg for the 132×41 board) and short length of the board makes it easy to stay balanced in the air, so you can say goodbye to unwanted rotations in the air. The stiffness of the board also helps you to explode up from the water during the takeoff.

Stability & Grip

The width of the board improve the stability when you´re landing a trick or when you´re going downwind. The tips of the board are thinner than the center of the board which also makes them a bit more flexible which is nice when you land tricks and jumps since the tips act as shock absorbers. The “liquid super strong rails” are a bit rounded (this can be customized upon request), but sharp enough to deliver good grip during turns. The new dual concave rocker further increase the stability and board control.

Conclusion

“Foucan” is a board designed primarily for the intermediate to advanced freestyle rider. At the same time, the board characteristics such as the light weight, the small size and the flex make it an excellent board for old school tricks.  Ride the “Foucan” in medium to strong wind and flat water to fully take advantageous of its high performance characteristics. The price for the board with fins, pads and board handle included is €505.00. This equals approximately $630, about the same price level as the cheapest factory made boards on the market. Considering that “Foucan” is handmade with excellent board properties with a really nice finish make this board very affordable!

Click on this link for another small review about Navis Boards.

There are many places in the world to learn and practice kiteboarding but none quite like Brazil. Over the years I have heard many stories of people planning their epic kiteboarding holiday only to sit on the beach waiting for the wind. Well, there is one place you will not have to worry about this situation. The Ceará province on the northeastern coast of Brazil offers some of the best kiteboarding conditions in the world with wind guaranteed from September to November. Check this out https://www.windguru.cz/int/index.php?sc=209220 Professional kiteboarders come from around the world to train in these awesome conditions. And if you want to advance nothing helps better than nature. With the right conditions you will progress daily and leave Brazil a much more skilled kiteboarder. The scenery is unbeatable with kilometers of open dune beaches. The winds get progressively stronger as you work your way downwind, over 300 km, to Jericoacoara. As you cruise downwind you will be stoked on the sweet waves and the flat water lagoons. A real kiterboarder’s paradise with a view of the pristine coastline. The lagoons are famous as professional training grounds. Strong wind and flat water are a dream combo for perfecting your tricks and it doesn’t hurt to have the best in the world to watch.
Cumbuco is well known for it Cauipe lagoon with an easy 15 minute downwinder from the town…and plenty of dune buggies to bring you back to your oceanfront penthouse. You might find yourself making the trip daily. There you can ride to your heart’s desire and chill with a cold coco watching the action and there is plenty of action. Epic tricks being thrown down left and right…not a dull moment on the lagoon.
The town Cumbuco is quickly becoming the kiteboarders mecca with delicious restaurants and a lively night life! New clubs open on the beach every year with fantastic dance parties until the wee hours of the night. The wind is on your side if you want to enjoy the parties. It usually doesn’t pick up until 11 am just enough time for you to recover for your next session. With some acai, amazonion berry, and granola you’ll be as good as new.
This is the place so don’t waste any time and book your trip now. We offer personalized training services and have fantastic beachfront accommodations. Join us!
Extreme Control : www.extremecontrol.net
Email: info@extremecontrol.net
Skype: marcocristofanelli

Brazil Kitesurfing Holiday

Constantly Kiting Cape Town Langebaan South Africa

Constantly Kiting is one of South Africa’s oldest Kitesurfing School. We have always be dedicated to the teaching of our new student AND will continue to do so over years to come. We are based in Langebaan and have been for the last 7 years, This year 2012 we will open in Cape town and look forward to all the new students we will teach on Blouberg beach.

Constantly Kiting Langebaan Location is the ideal spot have your Kitesurfing Holiday.

Kitesurfing Lessons Langebaan

Our Training Ground – The famous Sharkbay in Langebaan is only one the out Training grounds.

We offer a few teaching locations in Langebaan and Cape Town, Sharkbay is just one of the few places that we are able to teach. It’s a crystal clear arena for the learning to kitesurf and we can find ourselves teaching quite often.Click here for more details… More….

The beach of the BloubergStrand in playacar Cape Town is home to hundreds of international and Local  Kiteboarders – We do many of our Entry levels land based course’s here as well as more Advanced waveriding and confidence courses. Click here for more details… More….

Sharkbay-Langebaan Constantly Kiting

CONSTANTLY KITING – KITEBOARDING SCHOOL, An Authorized kiteboarding School of Langebaan, South Africa which offers IKO beginner courses with International certifications, Equipment rental and supervision, Equipment Sales and Demos.

We are based in Langebaan but have just opened in Cape Town as well. Langebaan is really simple to get to and is easy to get to with a hour and 15 mins drive from Cape Town you’ll be here in no time and enjoying the open spaces of Kiting in Langebaan.  Directions

Directions to Langebaan

The Wind season is from October till the end of May. You should be able to ride 3/5 days a week during this period.

Windguru forecast: https://www.windguru.cz/int/index.php?sc=21691

Wind is usually from 13 to 35 Knots on the Westcoast of the Western Cape and works with NW, SE and S.
NE wind very rare but great to kite in non the less

ACCOMODATION IN Langebaan, South Africa FOR KITEBOARDERS

• If you are coming to learn and take your IKO certification course, you can stay with us here at the Constantly Kiting Center where we offer you a room for the night included in one of our packages prices. See here. This price is for our dorm room only, However you can upgrade to one of our seefacing apartments on request which have double beds and are self catering.

Simply contact us by followinf the link and send us a quick email about how we can get you booked in and staying with us. Get in touch CONTACT US.

KITEBOARDING SCHOOL Langebaan and Cape Town & South Africa

Constantly Kiting , www.constantlykiting.com – www.constantlykiting.co.za

Constantly Kiting Langebaan

Constantly Kiting , www.constantlykiting.com – www.constantlykiting.co.za 

Kitesurfing in the sea a sunny day is great feeling, something you can do over and over for years without getting bored! To use sunscreen is obvious to most of us, forget it one day and you will be reminded to use  it during your next session when you watch your red face in the mirror the day after. Though what many surfers tend to forget is to protect their eyes…  More and more people are reporting that they are getting issues with their eyes after years of kitesurfing. Cataract, black spots and lines and blurry areas that appear in the eye’s field of view are some of the first symptoms which are caused from the suns UV-rays.

We live longer today than we did in the past, which of course might be a result to the high number of people that develop cataracts at a higher age. Diseases such as diabetes and genetic factors are also causes that can lead to cataract. But we also know that a long-term exposure to UV-rays promote the formation of cataract in the human eye.

It is easy to be wise after the event. Wearing sunglasses with straps while you’re kitesurfing may not make you look like the coolest guy in the water, especially if you use those sunglasses that actually are made to be used for watersports, you know those that will make you look like a german freak. So it´s understandable that you don’t bring the sunglasses out in the water. You may think that red and sore eyes after a long day in the water is not a big deal, a good sleep and the eyes are back to normal the day after, but it´s not so cool to develop cataracts, macular degeneration, pingueculae, pterygia and photokeratitis in an early age or even get blind if things turn out really bad. So it can be a smart thing to wear sunglasses even if you´ll look like a bit retarded.

Protect your eyes!

The message should hopefully already be clear to you by now. The cumulative effects of spending long hours in the sun without adequate eye protection can increase the likelihood of developing eye disorders. Unlike our skin types which are more or less sensitive to sun it doesn’t matter to which ethnic group you belong to when it comes to eye damages caused by UV-rays.

In fact you should wear sunglasses every day, even on cludy days. Snow, water, sand and pavement reflect UV rays, increasing the amount reaching your eyes and skin.

When it comes to choice of sunglasses it doens’t really matter which brand or style you choose as long as they block both UV-A and UV-B radiation. But for obvious reasons it is not appropriate to wear your $200 Ray Ban sunglasses while you´re kitesurfing.

The absolutely best choice is to use googles that have a huge lens to optimize the field of view while they also block UV-rays from all incoming angles. This is maybe a bit overkill, but can be a good choice if you already have developed some kind of eye disorder.

Seaspecs is another expensive option. They are made for watersports and provide a good protection against UV-rays. They all look the same, quite ugly in my opinion, but they come at least in a wide range of different colors so you can pick black pair so you don’t look to goofy. Seaspecs redesigned their old model, which is a pity, I really liked those!

DirtyDog is another company that make sunglasses for all kind of sport activities. They have a collection of sunglasses made especially for water sports which actually don’t look to bad and you can buy them for a decent price! Dirty Dogs so called wet glasses models comes with polarized lenses that are treated for water runoff.

The one on a low budget can always buy a pair super cheap sunglasses made in polycarbonate with full UV protection. Simply make a hole in each of the arms and attach on a piece of elastic chord. You can these for $5.

UV contact lenses is a great innovation for all of us that uses contact lenses. The problem is just that they don’t cover the whole eye, hence parts of your eyes will still be exposed for the harmful UV-rays. However, use them in combination with sunglasses and you have a really good protection!

Conclusion

Exposure to UV radiation has cumulative effects on the eyes. Damage today leads to eye problems tomorrow. So be smart, use protection and enjoy kitesurfing until you get old!

The Lake Garda by Beekite

The lake of Garda is famous all over the world for it´s great variety, breathtaking nature, huge choice of  sports to practice, amazing villages in the tipical tuscan style as well as fot the multitude of gastronomic varieties.
There are many types of water sports you can practice on the Garda Lake. Thanks to it´s wind certainty the lake is a popular destination for Windsurfers and in the meantime also for Kitesurfers.

The Spot by Beekite

Our Kiteschool “BeeKite” is located in Castelletto di Brenzone directly on the sea. The kite gets started directly by the boat in the middle of the lake. That´s why there is no risk to hurt anyhow on the beach. We drive you then to where there are the best wind conditions and where you have enough space. Our training area is 15 km long and 4 km large.

The Wind by Beekite

There are two main winds on the Garda Lake. The “Peler” and the “Ora”. The “Peler” comes from the north and begins already soon in the morning by 6 am o´clock. It can be gusty and and achieve up to 30 knots. Around 11 am the “Peler” eases off  and the “Ora” comes up. So the best time to be on the water is from 2 pm to 6 pm. The “Ora” offers perfect conditions for beginners as it´s a quite stabil wind and achieves around 16 knots.

Description of the classes by Beekite

Every participant gets teached individually and in order to his level. The classes adhere to the guidelines of the VDWS and IKO. After long year experience we use the different teaching-systems well directed. As there is no “standing area” it is much easier for beginners who want to learn this type of sport. You can see that already at the first flying exercises. Faults like tighten the “Bar” and flying the power-area are not a problem thanks to the deep water and the huge space we have available. Due to that we can save up until 3 hours of time,  besides there is no running back in case of loss of height until 15 km because we drive you back by boat.

Davi is only 3 years old and already a kitesurfer! Davi is able to kitesurf equipped with a small trainer kite and a surf board which is pretty amazing! Normally kiteschools don’t teach students younger than 12 years old according to the IKO standards. Teaching kids in this age can be a nightmare, not only since they are unmature, but also without fully developed body feeling and mind and lack of respect for the kite and safety. However, some kids develop skills in an early age which is a big advantage since it’s much easier to learn advanced tricks in a young age while your body still is strong and healthy. Just remember when you were young and climbed in trees like a monkey, jumped from roofs and dived from cliff at 10 meter high without fear for braking your legs and back. Then when you reach 30+ jumping from a chair to the floor is simply not something you do without taking a potential risk of fucking up your knees or even break something.

So imagine if this young talent Davi gets the possibility to continue kitesurf and develop his skills… I think this kid might become a new champ when he reach an older age!
A problem though is that Davi comes from a poor family and for his father to afford a real kite equipment is simply not possible… But there is a fund to which you can make a small donation:
https://www.vakinha.com.br/VaquinhaP.aspx?e=161509
So let’s raise some money so we can enjoy this young talents struggle to becoming a new world kitesurfing champ!

High Flyers Tarifa offer complete kitesurfing holidays for all levels, especially for kites who are looking to up their game. Based in Tarifa, Europe’s kitesurfing Mecca!

Our standard week-long holidays include the following:
+ 6 days kitesurfing (up to 6 hours per day, wind-dependent)
+ Coaching to help you nail new moves
+ All equipment (or bring your own and pay a reduced rate)
+ Accommodation in our modern, central, 4 bed kiters’ apartment
+ Breakfast
+ Transport to local beaches

We can also do airport transfers from Gibraltar, Malaga or Jerez

Here is a short video featuring High Flyers Tarifa

Check us out at https://www.highflyerstarifa.com
Or email Kevin & Lisa at: highflyerstarifa@gmail.com

1 week O´NEILL kitesurfing camp in Tarifa with Tarifa Max kitesurfing, from the 10th to the 30th of september.  Level beginner/intermediate or advance clinic with NAISH pro riders SAM LIGHT and JALOU LANGEREE, from 399 euros with 6 nights accomodation included.

More info: info@tarifamax.net or call 0034 696558227

RRD Obsession 2012 is a 4-line high performance freestyle kite with 5 struts. The Obsession has a strong durable construction with full dacron wingtips and reinforcements at the exposed parts such as the strut ends as well as the cross stitched Leading Edge. The kite has a great stability and a fast turning speed. In fact the shape of the kite has been reamped in order to improve the turning speed for the bigger sizes and a bit slowed down for the smaller sizes. The bar pressure is light, so you can ride all day long with out fucking up your elbows or getting pain in your underarms. The Obsession is an exceptional kite for unhooked tricks and it is perfectly trimmed even when fully powered. It flies with lots of forward speed and massive pops. The construction also allow the rider to jump high and enjoy a great hang time. Water relaunch is easy and the safety system works flawlessly. Nuff said, watch the movie and see the Obsession in action!

Are you currently staying at Fuerteventura or planning to go there soon? Either way, being able to check the current wind conditions is always nice! Check out Redsharks new live webcam, right on one of the best spots of Fuerteventura!!!

https://www.spotfav.com/spot/corralejo/cam

Looking for a great Kiteboarding holidays? Amazing Scuba diving for no wind days? Crazy night life or relaxing family Resorts?
Welcome to the unmatchable Carribean destination: Playa del Carmen.

Playa Del Carmen is right in the middle of The Riviera Maya, also known as the Mayan Riviera,  a tourism district following the coastal Highway 307 which parallels the Caribbean coastline of the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, located on the eastern portion of the Yucatan peninsula.

Originally a small fishing town, Playa del Carmen, or just “Playa” as called by the Locals, became a world famous Scuba Diving destination right on top of the second longest barrier reef system in the world and  rapidly  developped over the past few  years with many new luxury residential condominium buildings, restaurants, boutiques and entertainment venues.

This is the place for sailing, Jet skiing, snorkeling,scuba diving , swimming in cenotes, swimming with dolphins, zip lining, horse riding, guided jungle tours and recently KITEBOARDING.

KITESURFING SPOTS in Playa del Carmen area:

SANDOS PLAYACAR RESORT/PDC KITEBOARDING SCHOOL:

The beach of the Sandos Playacar Resort in playacar Hotel Zone is the main Kiteboarding Spot in the Area and also the only Authorized Kite beach and School of Playa del Carmen.
Starting from the Sandos Playacar Resort toward south, you will find a designated  mile long white sandy Kiteboarding  beach with no rocks, no obstacles and a lot of space to rig and launch/Land your Kites.

Right on spot is PDC KITEBOARDING SCHOOL, the only Authorized kiteboarding School of Playa del Carmen, which offers IKO beginner courses with International certifications, Equipment rental and supervision, Equipment sale and Demos.

The staff is very friendly and speaks up to 6 different languages.

On site you will find toilets, Shower and fresh water tank to rinse your gear off.
The Resort offers 12% discount on your online Resort booking if you come for Kiteboarding. Ask PDC Kiteboarding to get the “Promotional Code”.
WHEN TO COME:

The Wind season is from October till the end of May ( Sometime mid June). You should be able to ride 4/5 days a week during this period.

Windguru forecast: https://www.windguru.cz/es/index.php?sc=133819

Wind is usually from 13 to 22 Knots on the Caribbean coast and works with NE, E, SE and S.
NE wind is usually the best as it is a bit colder, denser and pulls much more.
When the wind turns North (Called here “El Norte”), it blows from 25 to 35+ knots, and then you need to go to Isla Blanca Lagoon north of Cancun(ask PDC Kiteboarding about Lagoon excursion).

ACCOMODATION IN Playa Del Carmen FOR KITEBOARDERS:

• If you are coming to learn and take your IKO certification course, if you like All inclusive Resorts, if you to have your family doing their own activities few feet away from the Kite area or if you just want to be as closed as possible from the Kiteboarding School and spot, the best option for you is to stay at the Sandos Playacar Resort which is right next to the spot.

Also, as a Kiteboarder, you can get 12 % of your All Inclusive Resort booking with the special promotional code. Get in touch with pdckiteboarding@gmail.com to get the code.

• If you prefer small hotels downtown (only 7min by taxi to get to the Kite school/spot), there are hundreds of them right in the center of PDC.

Have a look at “La rana Cansada”, https://www.ranacansada.com/.

KITEBOARDING SCHOOL IN PLAYA DEL CARMEN:

PDC KITEBOARDING, www.pdckiteboarding.com.

Info at pdckiteboarding@gmail.com.

FLIGHT INFORMATION:

From Europe the cheapest is to fly from Brussels Airport, Belgium with www.jetairfly.com , straight to Cancun.
Plenty of flights from USA and CANADA.

Every Olympics has some new sports. Windsurfing has been banned from
the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and replaced by Kiteboarding, the
International Sailing Federation(ISAF) has announced at its mid-year
meeting in Stresa, Italy. It has been accepted by the ISAF after a 19/17
vote and it has been made for both men and women.

The decision today will change the lives of thousands of Kiteboarders that now can live their Olympics dream.The National Sailing Associations will now include Kiteboarding into their programs and coach and support the riders to
go to the Olympics qualification events. We never thought we would get
this far insuch a short time

, said Markus Schwendtner, IKA Executive Secretary.
Germany’s Kristin Boese, a nine-time world kiteboarding champion, led the
celebrations. She wrote on her Facebook page:

KITEBOARDING IS FREAKING IN!!!! RIO OLYMPICS 2016 HERE WE COME!!!! Oh my gosh… we can not believe it yet… so much amazing work the IKA has done over the past 2.5 years… thanks so much for everyone that has supported us along the way!!!

So hope see you as a Kitesurfer in 2016 Olympics!

Another nice video from BEST filmed in Portugal. The whole BEST team gathered to fine tune the final parts for the 2013 collection of kites and boards.