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We caught up with Cabrinha’s Brandon Bowe fresh off a trip to Morocco to fill us in on the logistics of organizing, riding and filming a trip in the Western Sahara.

1. Tell us about the process of getting to Morocco? You did a Kickstarter right?
The Kickstarter was done through Darkhorsepros.com which was forwarded through a mutual friend. It was a way to put myself out there, mostly through my local area and hopefully shine some more light on kiteboarding in our community. I put a story in a local mag, sold a hand painted surfboard and even made a new sponsor, SPI, in the process.

2. What was the organization of the trip like?
Super stressful… I was finishing up the season down here in Grand Cayman, planning my epic journey and essentially not working for two months straight while still paying rent. I had to figure out who was going to rent my room for those two months and everything that goes along with leaving, including the small things you might not think of like where my motorbike and clothes would go, choosing and coordinating dates because Ryan, the photographer, wasn’t set on dates of departure, finding a new video guy because my original videographer had to cancel 3 weeks before the trip, link up with Dakhla Attitude for Moroccan guidance, organize flights in our price range so we would all arrive and depart at the same time to maximize our week there, rent and ship a lens to Ryan the day before we left, oh and actually finalize financing because the Kickstarter didn’t reach its goal until  a week or two before the trip. It was really all down to the last minute.

3. How many people went on the trip?
There were four of us. Myself as rider and eventually editor, Ryan Taylor was the photographer, Evan Taylor was the videographer and Lindsay Taylor (Ryan’s wife) joined as support crew.

4. Biggest culture shock in Morocco?
I think not being 100% comfortable with cameras there. I guess locals don’t really want to be put in any sort of light like that and apparently, someone had recently flown a drone over a palace or possibly a military base and we were told if we brought a drone we would be kicked out of the country before we even stepped foot in.

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5. How were you received by the locals?
Oh so awesome! Usually speaking, we found that the local Arabic were extremely welcoming. Everyone was super cool and the staff at Dakhla Attitude were out of this world friendly and super genuine. 

6. How long did you spend there and what were the conditions like?
We had exactly six days to shoot. It was freaking windy. I was totally jacked on my 9 most days.

7. Favorite Moroccan food?
Couscous!

8. Favorite part of the trip?
I think all the inside jokes we made throughout the trip. I was essentially with the Taylor family so everyone was comfortable and a few of us are super goofy so it was one big laugh the whole time.

9. Favorite spot you rode at?
Speed spot no doubt! If I could get time to dial in the surf spot, it’s got huge potential!

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10. Accommodation in Morocco; Living it up or down and dirty?
Dakhla Attitude hooked us up. Their set-up is really awesome. They’ve got power to charge the gear, hot showers and a touch of wi-fi in the common area. But I’m sure you can easily find some down and dirtiness there, I mean it’s all desert… it’s dirt.

11. What was the editing process like?
This is something I wanted to take my time on. I’ve had certain sections done for months but was waiting on shots to start as well as inspiration on how to tie everything together. The beginning isn’t what I originally had it in mind but I’m still pretty stoked on the result. I’m not sure how many hours I’ve spent but by all said and done, probably between 250-500 hours of tweaking!

12. What are your suggestions for other people visiting Morocco?
Plan for longer then a week and try to travel more. There are so many parts of Morocco to visit and explore. I think if I spoke French or Arabic I would like to take the trains through the country. Also bring your small kites! It’s windy!

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See how Brandon’s footage stacked up here.