Innehållsförteckning för #48 från TheKiteMag

If you make it as far as the Profile slot in this issue (you can do it, it’s only 20 pages or so on from here…) then you’ll read about my recent sojourn to Fuwairit beach in Qatar for the signing ceremony with the GKA and Qatar Airlines… It was a crazy 48 hours which took in a lot over a short period of time… Life-endangering 4x4 sand dune driving, assisting Nick Jacobsen in getting towed up to extreme heights with the Qatari skyline as a backdrop, sampling an incredible kite spot, and – of course – hanging out with camels. As a media magnate I rarely get to leave my desk these days (although I do spend some time ‘testing’ gear) so this was pretty heady stuff for me.…

The Bahamas consist of three huge geological banks just beneath the water. In the Atlantic Ocean, these banks create a shallow paradise with the most emerald colored water you could ever imagine. The banks have clustered tops that just stick out of the water, creating livable land for us humans, some of them large enough to be called islands. While the majority of tourists to the northern Bahamas seem to look for casinos, waterparks or all-in resorts, the daring and bold kiter will be truly happy if they seek out untouched spots with no one around, in an environment where you can sense a kiting Jack Sparrow. This old safe haven for pirates provides the most beautiful scenery and the best climate ever – that plus a post-kite cocktail and…

THE PREAMBLE I have been kitesurfing for 22 years. I remember as if it was yesterday taking a stroll along Brighton seafront in the spring of 2001 to reduce the tedium of recovering from shoulder surgery (and to celebrate being signed off work for two months!), and seeing these magical shapes in the sky and three guys getting smashed in the shore break, and then hauled around in an undeniably out-of-control fashion once they were clear of the shingle… I was immediately transfixed and I knew – 100% – that this was my future. Flash forward a few years and I was nailing backrolls, and the nascent sport did – of course – need to validate itself through the creation of national and international competitive circuits. To be totally honest,…

Pushing wind speeds over 50 knots, Lords of Tram 2022 was really one for the books! With it being early spring, the wind and water was icy, necessitating gloves and boots for many of the riders – a first for most of the fleet. One might expect the riding level to drop in such conditions, but quite the contrary! We saw not one, not two, but a few first-evers in competition landed here. Tristan Hattu (the event’s creator) masterfully directed his team to bring us the event, this time at Parc des Dosses, Barcares, France. The media team was ready for such an event, giving us worldwide coverage on both days of the competition. The event was livestreamed through YouTube and got more than 30,000 views across both days of…

CAMILLE I feel honored to be a team rider for North Kite-boarding and Mystic, and happy that our values and lifestyle aspirations are aligned. I think it’s fair to say that my lifestyle doesn’t fit the average preconception of what a ‘normal’ life is. The first few years of my life were relatively ordinary – we lived in Annecy, France and I was into skiing and took part in ski competitions. My parents were into wind-surfing and we went on holiday to Jericoacoara, Brazil where I started kiting. My parents liked it there so much we ended up going back four years in a row. When I was 12 they decided to think outside the box and move out there for part of the year, to nearby Prea, and we…

I had been stuck in South Africa for over two years because of the Covid pandemic, and I finally had a chance to head to Europe for the summer and escape the cold winter of Cape Town. Arriving in Rome and being collected by my team manager, Jacopo, we headed up to the RRD headquarters in Grossetto. On the way up we stopped at this beautiful little town called Porto Santo Stefano for my first (of many) Italian espressos… It was good to be back! The first few days we had light winds, giving perfect foiling conditions in the town of Castiglione Della Pescia, where our kite designer Werther Castelletti is based with our development center. So much goes work into the development of our products, and it all starts…

Like last year the Full Power Tarifa 2022 event took place at the iconic Balneario Beach, right at the southernmost tip of mainland Europe. Spectators are able to get upclose- and-personal with the action from the rocky wall and sandy beach that surround the spot. The set-up for spectators is exceptional, and standing in the midst of the magic you really feel like you’re in the colosseum, watching gladiators go into battle! A huge thanks to Wladi Rodriguez and his team for bringing us another edition of this spectacular event. Another huge thanks to the partners, namely CORE Kiteboarding, Wayuu Watersports, Onix Enterprises and Kitemana for making this event possible.…

Madagascar is definitely not one of the easiest places to travel to; you will need at least a day or two of travel time. But once you get to your location you can take in the beauty and appreciate that it is well worth the time to get to the spots. Sacha and I flew from Mauritius to Madagascar, landing in Antananarivo, then took another flight to Diego where our search began for that special location needed for the Brunotti photoshoot. We took a short drive to Sakalava Bay and spent a few nights in the small fishing village of Ramena, at La Cas Wen Falafy, an incredible lodge with the most welcoming staff ready to serve delicious food throughout the day, hosted by Lala. There are a few restaurants…

This trip had been on my agenda for over three months, was postponed twice and its location changed four times! Our first choice of destination was Hawaii, then we thought we’d head to Martinique, that changed to Mauritius and Madagascar… but, eventually, that all vanished away and we booked our flights to the UK, Cornwall to be precise… not exactly the warm tropical location we’d originally planned. Together with a strong and cozy group of riders, media and FLYSURFER crew we arrived at London airport, stuffed our cars with the latest gear and started the mission to hunt some swell. After a five-hour drive we arrived at our first base in Gwithian, Cornwall, where we stayed in a beautiful luxury beach house, ‘Three Mile Beach’. We rushed to the beach…

SO, FILL US IN ON THIS EXCITING NEW ADDITION TO YOUR RANGE! Designed for top Big Air performances, the TRIGGER is the ultimate Big Air weapon to throw huge airs as well as being a freeride machine. This high-aspect, five-strut kite can handle tons of power while still offering precise handling, allowing you to boost higher than before, experience pure hangtime, send big loops and enjoy super smooth landings. Its awesome freeride abilities will also send you back upwind effortlessly and will inspire confidence throughout your session. It is incredibly precise and reactive and will perform in both the high and low end. As we developed this kite, we sought to capitalize on our extensive expertise to design the finest Big Air kite while staying true to ourselves. We aimed…

When I bought my first kite in 2003 for £200, I remember imagining where it might take me… hopefully far out to sea like the kiters I saw at my local kite spot, Lancing, UK. I especially longed to be the one furthest out the back – that was what I was going to do when I could afford the board. After two months of body dragging and kite flying I officially owned a complete set up. I now had the tools and the curiosity needed to start a proper kitesurfing journey. I was 17 when I started. As a teenager my main worries were wondering when it would be windy next, and how I could avoid going into full time work in order to kite as often as possible.…

CHARLOTTE CARPENTIER You rock in all disciplines! Which one are you spending most time on right now? And which is the most challenging for you to push your limits right now? I enjoy riding all disciplines and different kinds of boards; I go through phases where I get energized to try new tricks on different boards. Currently I spend most of my time on strapless surfboards – I just love the versatility and the ever-changing playgrounds I’m riding in. The most challenging one is probably Big Air. I’ve been so focused in the past on twintip riding that this gave me a really high level. Now that I’m spending less time on the twintip I notice that my precise body and kite corrections get lost, especially in nuking Big Air…

The 2022 Big Air Tour kicked off with spectacular conditions at two of Europe’s most iconic Big Air spots. Lords of Tram in France was the first stop of the year and the Big Air Kite League athletes flocked to the event from all over the world to be a part of the action. Full Power Tarifa followed immediately afterwards, with riders taking a quick trip down the coast to the next stop. With a love and passion for this sport being at the heart of these organizations, they settle for nothing less than epic conditions for the riders to perform in. In order to get these conditions they have one-month-long window periods and choose the very best day in the forecasts.…

Three years after establishing “Naish Team Europe” the riders have grown, not only in riding skills but also as athletes. Stig Hoefnagel, Cohan van Dijk and Tom Seager have progressed to the Naish International team, and with their advancement, new talent has been added to Team Europe. Covid meant they had mainly seen each other via video calls only, with a few meeting at competitions. Now that travel restrictions have eased, it was time for the first trip for the new team members. Adriano, Arne, Nathan, Jinne, Teun and Timo were ready for an adventure. The team went to Leucate accompanied by Naish International riders Stig Hoefnagel and Louka Pitot. As a local guy, Louka could tell the guys all the ins and outs of the spots around Leucate, and…

This sequence was taken at last year’s GKA Freestyle World Cup in Cumbuco. It is one of my favorite tricks that I like to do quite often. It is a good point scorer in the competitions and helped me win that event. It is basically a railey with two and a half frontside rotations, passing the bar twice while in the air. STEP 1 Go into the trick with a good amount of speed, keeping the kite low. Unhook quickly and pop hard into a railey. Shiftying the board will help the rotation. STEP 2 Look over your front shoulder really assertively to initiate the rotation. STEP 3 Once you’ve started rotating, pull the bar into your rear hip. Take your front hand off the bar, and pass it behind…

HOW DO THE ALPHA AND VAPOR FIT WITH THE REST OF THE PROLIMIT HARNESS RANGE? We now have three different constructions in our range: the hardshell carbon composite construction, the hardshell pure construction and the softshell construction. The hardshell constructions are new in our range. The Alpha is our premium product with a selection of top end materials. The Vapor is right next to it and gives the rider confidence to push themselves to the max. Both are in a similar bracket of exterior shells, Alpha being the hardshell carbon composite construction and the Vapor that we call the hardshell pure construction with a bit more elasticity. We then have more of the traditional style softshell harnesses. Our range is one of the biggest out there and there is a…