What began as a local competition to help out the local schools in the small Baja community of La Ventana and El Sargento has grown into one of the largest kiteboarding events attracting kiteboarders from all over North America and beyond.
Located in the middle of the most popular section of beach in La Ventana, Baja Joe’s resort has become an iconic place in the world of windsurfers and kiteboarders, but it was once just a piece of land covered with shrubs and cacti in an unknown Mexican village.
After an injury took me out of the ski industry, I moved to Florida with my now wife to finish her schooling. There I began my involvement in kite-powered sports. At that point there were no stores specializing in kiteboarding.
Your first impression of Julien Fillion might be that he’s a quiet guy. He always has a thoughtful look on his face, like he’s trying to work out some problem in his head. Get him talking about kiteboarding gear and you’ll quickly realize that not only is Julien not a quiet guy, but his head is so full of ideas that sometimes he has a hard time getting them all out.
Brian Smith grew up in Arlington, VA, and used to work at a marina on the Potomac River where he would spend his summers working, sailing, kayaking, and wakeboarding. After learning to kiteboard on a family vacation to Cabarete, he was hooked.
At just 17 years old, Maika Buckley has decided to finish her senior year of high school online so she can move to Cabarete to train. Maika said, “I love Cabarete. All of my friends do not understand how I could leave high school my senior year and go live in a third world country. I think how could I not?”
Sporting dreadlocks and a goatee, Amery Bernard blends in with the typical kiteboarders on the beach, but when he looks at a kite, he sees all the details the rest of us miss. Amery’s path to becoming Slingshot’s Kite Designer was not a typical one – if there even is such a thing in this industry.
Kiteboarding Designer and Musician Julien Fillion talks with The Kiteboarder Magazine over Skype about how he started kiteboarding, his history as a designer, and his band’s upcoming album. Julien is the current Liquid Force Kiteboarding kite designer.
As Matt Sexton’s roommate at Eckerd College, Oli Berlac helped found the Collegiate Kiteboarding Association (CKA) after first trying to learn with a 12m kite and no harness. After finishing school, Oli moved to Brazil for a few years and is now the resident coach living onboard Meercat, the Zenith Ocean Voyages catamaran.
When she was just 13 she tried kiteboarding for the first time with her dad, who attached her to a rope so she wouldn’t fly away. Now Karolina is 20 and travels the globe on the PKRA circuit, finishing the 2010 season in second place in freestyle.
At the beginning of the sport I became completely absorbed in kiteboarding. I had the opportunity to be a team rider for Flexifoil and to work closely with the international team and designers. Everything just sort of evolved from there.
With support from Red Bull, One the Loose is now shown on the air in certain parts of Europe and is bringing not just kiteboarding action, but the kiteboarding lifestyle to millions of homes.
Amery Bernard, Slingshot Kiteboarding’s Kite designer, sits down with The Kiteboarder Magazine during the 2011 La Ventana Classic and KiteXpo.
We normally focus on North American riders for our profiles, but I met Jannicke at a recent KB4Girls clinic hosted by Kiteopia at Sherman Island in Northern California. At just 29 years old, this native Norweigan’s vibrant spirit and passion for kiteboarding so inspired me that I felt compelled to share her story with others in hopes of motivating you to pursue your own dreams, share the stoke of kiteboarding, and explore the world.
Growing up with windsports-addicted parents, free (and sometimes mandatory) rides to the beach whenever it was windy didn’t give Sean much of a choice. It was either learn to kite or be bored to tears.
I met my good buddy and business partner Nico at a local kite spot and we found out through Arnaud of Kitemasters that F-One was looking for a new distributor for the US market.
If you’ve been following kiteboarding for a number of years then you have probably heard of Adam Koch.
I was a windsurfer building my own boards and I went to Maui so I could learn to build better windsurfers.
Adriana began kiteboarding just two years ago, and she has spent that time on kiting in powerful waves both strapless and strapped.
There is a good chance that you have no idea who Franz Olry is.
Eat a lot, sleep a lot, brush ‘em like crazy, and never try to argue with someone on a public internet forum.
In the U.S., the CKA is the only kiteboarding tour in the country and is responsible for getting hundreds of college-aged people started in kiteboarding.
Led by Chris Tronolone, the kiteboarding movies made by Tronolone Productions have been instrumental in inspiring people to learn to kiteboard and in exposing kiteboarding to a much wider audience than would otherwise know about the sport
Mention Naish Kiteboarding and most people immediately think of Robby Naish, the man who basically put windsurfing on the map and has been killing it as a kiteboarder since the beginning of the sport. Most have never heard of Andy Church, the brawn on the business side of the company, who has been working behind the scenes at Naish for years.
Slingshot was one of the first companies who was strictly a kiteboarding company in an emerging market of manufacturers who produced both windsurfing and kiteboarding gear. Their cool graphics and unique approach turned heads quickly.
Best Kiteboarding is one of the most controversial brands in the history of our sport. In their first year of business, they were blackballed from certain magazines, banned from a demo testing event and often criticized for their aggressive marketing strategies. Under mountains of opposition, Best has matured into a major player in our sport.
If you kitesurf at any beach near Santa Cruz, California, there is something that will jump out at you immediately. An overwhelming number of people ride gear from one company: Caution Kites.
Like many kiteboarders out there, Bill Tai is passionate about the sport. He is just like the rest of us addicts, every possible opportunity and talking the sport enough that some know him the “Kite Guy” in Silicon Valley, but what seperates Bill from most of the rest of us kite bums is what he does for a living.
“Energetic, powerful, and solid.” That’s how Ruben Lenten describes his riding style in his own words, and I don’t think anyone could come up with a better description.
Red Bull Len10 Megaloop Challenge Wrap Up Video
Catch all the action from the LEN10 Megaloop Challenge which saw 24 international riders compete for the title in this new freestyle kiteboarding event. In the end it was Lewis Crathern who looped his way to victory.
VIDEO: Ruben Len10′s Megaloop Challenge Crash
Watch Ruben Lenten literally go head over heels in South Africa.
North Kiteboarding Announces the 2012 Dyno Light Wind Kite
Today North Kiteboarding announces the 2012 version of the Dyno, their light wind-specific kite.
The Kids Are Alright: The Kiteboarding Youth of Brazil
When your plane drops in for landing at the Fortaleza International airport, you will quickly realize just how beautiful the northeastern state of Ceara, Brazil, really is. Its endless white sand beaches bordered by beautiful blue water and the sprawling untouched sand dunes make it a kiter’s paradise.
TKB Review: Underwave Imperial Harness
Underwave is a company new to the US and Bay Area Kitesurf, the North American distributors, sent us the Underwave Imperial to try out.
