Kite 2012

It’s not just fun and games. Kiteboarding, as extreme as it is can definitely burn some serious calories. Swimming is the best cardio work out there is, combine with it the hardcore tricks and you got yourself a really good work out. But exactly how many calories do you burn on, let’s say, an hour’s worth of kiteboarding? Well, it’s hard to tell but we’ve combined a number of studies to give you a good estimate on how much. Of course, there are a lot of factors to consider like what kind of wind, the level of kiteboarding (intensity), your weight, height, gender and age, the tricks your perform and probably a few more external factors.

One way to measure it is by finding out how much oxygen you take up at rest and how much you consume while doing the activity. Metabolic Equivalents can be a good indicator on how much calories you burn by measuring how much oxygen to take in. One MET is approximately or assumed to be 3.5ml of oxygen per kg of body weight per minute. Extreme activities like Kiteboarding are estimated to be 10-11 METs. Which would mean that you took up 10 (or 11) times the amount of oxygen that you normally would when you are at rest.

The computation would be: average METs x 3.5 x (body weight in kg / 200) OR 10METs x 3.5ml of oxygen x (80.6kg / 200)

For example, the average weight of guys in Sweden is 80.6kg

10 x 3.5 = 35 (80.6/200 = 0.403)

35 x 0.403 = 14.105 calories burned per minute

On a good two hour run, you wouldn’t be consistently doing extreme kiteboarding (or would you?), so you can adjust that number accordingly.

Another factor that you’d have to consider would be the climate and how cold / warm the water is. Aside from the many health benefits you’ll get from swimming in cold water like it boosts the immune system, it invigorates and energizes, it also helps burn calories.

“A study performed at the University of Florida showed slightly more calories are burned in cold water exercise than in warm. In the study, men who exercised for 45 minutes in 68 degree water burned an average of 517 calories. The men who exercised in 91.4 degree water burned 505 calories, on average.” -from an article in LiveStrong  (November 13, 2013 by Susan Presley)

There are lots of things to consider when you want a good estimate on how much you burn on each ride but don’t miss out on all the fun. Kiteboarding is one awesome way to help you achieve and maintain that awesome body!

Salinas Bay is located in the far northwest corner of Guanacaste Province in Costa Rica. It is a remote location that’s often windy with gorgeous untouched beaches not to mention the beautiful scenery. It’s a great place to go to experience the island life, it’s a place where you can be at peace or be the adrenaline junkie that you are. Salinas bay is the go-to place for wind surfers and kiters alike.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re a beginner or if you can own the air in your sleep, there’s a place for you to surf in Salinas Bay. It also doesn’t hurt if you know a great kite school that’ll cater to your needs and has programs for your specific skill set. Costa Kite has created programs for every level of kiters, they are committed to help you get the most out of your kiting vacation. All their instructors are IKO (International Kiteboarding Organization) certified and their gears are always up to date. They’ll make sure all your lessons are fun and safe. It’s always good to try something new when you’re on vacation but at all times, you should put safety as your number one priority; Making sure you have all the right gear and using the proper techniques will do just that.

Salinas Bay has constant winds from November to March, this makes it a great place to visit specially for kite boarders and wind surfers. The things you can do while you’re there is not limited to just that though, you can also go hiking, biking, kayaking, fishing, go on boat tours and a lot more. There’s always a lot of things to do when you go on a trip so it’s a good idea if you plan ahead to maximize your time. OR you can just lay on the beach, relax and enjoy the beauty of Costa Rica.

**If you want to inquire, book, or know more about kiting in Salinas Bay, click here.

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.

You wake up in a 5 star Luxury Safari tent. You have your breakfast on the padio. You have a view to the beach.
Crystal clear waters, endless sandy beach. Windy, uncrowded. Super safe bay with a stunning flat section, and a mini-wave section.
It sounds like the trip of a life time, on some remote island in Fiji. Too far away, too expensive.

Guess twice.
Welcome to Keros beach, on Limnos Island, Greece.
Keros, a vast, sandy beach, with turquoise shallow waters, blessed with Meltemi wind. A magic flat section on the North side of the beach, a bump and jump section in the middle, and small but nice waves on the South end. And the spot is empty.
Even in high season, there are maximum 50 riders on the beach, and the beach is 3 km wide, so it can handle many more with absolutely no stress.

Conditions
Limnos is an average wind spot, with the Meltemi normaly blowing force 4-6. Some days can be flat, but some days can also be super strong, like most of the Greek islands. You should expect to use kites between 8m-11m, but often, smaller. The best part is the beach morphology, offering complete flat sections and a mini-wave spot at the same beach.
For those big wave fans, the island features one of the best wave spots in Greece, Gomati, but it is mostly a winter spot, so chances are better if you visit early or late in the season.

About the island.
Far away from mass tourism, Limnos resides at the North-Eastern part of the Aegean Sea, still offering deserted beaches (more than 100), idyllic small villages, archeological sites, and natural reserves. Located where the Meltemi wind starts it’s journey over the Greek island, Limnos in ancient times was also known as ‘Anemoessa’, which means ‘windy island’.

What makes the island so attractive is the unspoiled terrain and the natives. On Limnos you can see Greece as it was 30 or 50 years ago. The local wine, the local cusine, the unspoiled landscapes and the idyllic beaches, will want you to stay forever.

Landscapes
Keros bay is within an environmental protected area. The scenery is unique: sand dunes, salt lakes with flamingos, isolated beaches full of small shells, make you feel that you are not in Europe or Greece, but in a completely different continent.

The beach
The beach is sandy, the waters are turquoise and crystal clear, and the wide bay makes it super safe. On the beach you will find Surf Club Keros, which is an International Kiteboarding Organisation Affiliated center. All instructors are experienced, but super friendly. As they say, Surf Club Keros is a kite school from kiters for kiters, so the vibes are mellow and the smiles are wide!
Equipment-wise, you can try out brand new equipment from Cabrinha!

Accommodation
Being within an environmentaly protected area means that there are no big buildings around Keros, hence no hotels or studios by the beach. But you can go ‘Glamping’. You can stay at Surf Camp Keros which is located on the hill besides the bay, in one of their Luxury Safari tents, combining the feeling of camping with the luxury of a hotel room. The tents are very spacious (25sqm for the double and 35sqm for the jumbo tents) and feature wood decking, high quality furnishing, a bathroom and shower, plasma tv, but the best part of living there is the view you get every morning when you wake up-or while you are having breakfast in bed! Highly recommended!
Otherwise you can stay in your own tent at our Camping place close to the beach!

Getting to Limnos
Flights: You can fly to Athens (ATH) or Thessaloniki (SKG) and pick a domestic flight to Limnos (LXS).
From the beginning of May till the end of October, there is a Thomas Cook direct flight from London.
Ferries: There is a daily ferry from Kavala to Limnos, and 1-2 Ferries per week from Thessaloniki to Limnos.
Visit the Surf Club Keros website for more info and directions

Contact:
Surf Club Keros
www.surfclubkeros.gr
info@surfclubkeros.gr

Surf Camp Keros
www.surfcampkeros.gr
info@surfcampkeros.gr

Are you planning to take a kite course next season? Perhaps are you going to kitesurf in Sweden? There are some really nice spots in the southern part of Sweden, such as Habo Ljung, Falsterbo, Varberg, Höllviken, just to mention a few.

Perhaps are you a total beginner who is looking for a course or maybe would you like your girlfriend to start kitesurf as well?

If so, I would like to recommend Gusty, a kiteschool that is run by a nice guy called Gustav. I took my course through him this season and I’m very happy with his way to teach and a big plus is the delicious lunch that was included in the course.