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PKRA St. Peter Ording, Germany, Day 7: Wind, Sun, and a Storm

St. Peter Ording saw a massive crowd gather to enjoy the best freestyle kiteboarding action today with epic conditions: wind, flat water, and sunshine. After finishing the few heats that were left of the trials, the PKRA organized the Junior championships and moved on to the Freestyle single elimination.... Read More...

INTERVIEW: Design by Julien Fillion

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.... Read More...

PKRA St. Peter Ording, Germany, Day 6: One Race and More Meetings

For the sixth day of action here in St Peter Ording, Germany, the conditions didn’t look promising. Instead of taking to the water, the kiteboarders of the PKRA decided to hold meetings about the judging system in the Freestyle discipline and the rules applying to Course Racing. By the middle of the afternoon the wind picked up to around 8 knots, which was enough to start the only race of the day, Race 11.... Read More...

PROFILED: Brian Smith AKA BCS

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. ... Read More...

PKRA St. Peter Ording, Germany, Day 5: Racing in the Fog

Foggy weather welcomed the racers to this fifth day in St Peter Ording. Rolf Van Der Vlugt (NED, Airush) commented that he could barely see the buoys on the water while racing, “I had to really focus in order to maintain balance on my board instead of looking for the buoys!”... Read More...

PKRA St. Peter Ording, Germany, Day 4: Trials and More Racing

The fourth day in St Peter Ording began with clouds and rain resulting in an action-free morning for the PKRA. Towards midday the clouds began to clear and the wind picked up leaving us with a beautiful sunny beach to begin the first race of the day (Race 7). As the spot was perfectly flat a three buoy course was set with a starting line far out to sea.... Read More...
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Cynthia ‘Cynbad’ Brown Joins FireWire

Cynthia 'Cynbad' Brown, a longtime kiteboarder and strapless rider has joined Firewire. She has been kitboarding since when kites had two lines, no chicken loops, no safety release, and it truly was an extreme sport. She is passionate about all aspects of kiting, whether it be freestyle, big air, racing, or surfing. ... Read More...

June 2011

*SPECIAL: 2011 TKB Instructional Guide *INTERVIEW: Liquid Force Designer Julien Fillion *Launch: Help the Coast Guard Help Kiters ... Read More...

PROFILED: Maika Monroe Buckley

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?”... Read More...
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PKRA St. Peter Ording, Germany, Day 1: Freestyle Trials

The PKRA riders where very impressed by the conditions in St Peter Ording, Germany today. They hope that it will stay this way the entire week as we enjoyed perfect sunshine and strong winds, with conditions starting from 9-12 knots this morning and improving to 16-18 knots toward the middle of the trials.... Read More...

Skunked but Stoked in the Land of Left Point Breaks

I chose Peru for this holiday in October as my partner on the trip, Holt Alden, an aspiring kiter, was a surfer who is as stoked getting tubed now as he was 30 years ago as a teenager. I am goofy foot so the thought of experiencing the endless left point breaks that I have heard so much about had me excited to try out my recently conquered strapless board riding skills.... Read More...
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VIDEO: 2012 Best GP C-Kite: Back to the Future

The GP C-kite from Best will take you back to the future, back to when all that mattered was raw performance and nailing every new trick you tried. The GP is team rider designed, tuned, and tested and delivers an unbeatable combination of pop, responsive steering, and amazing unhooked feel.... Read More...

TKB Review: Spex Amphibian Eyeware

My first impression after opening the box was that they looked kind of goofy as they look like a combination of sunglasses and goggles. Once I adjusted the headband to fit my extra large head I was blown away with the colors of the water. The Spex I tested came with polarized gray (smoke) lenses. The frame fit my face nicely and was very comfortable, but they might be too big for smaller faces and children.... Read More...
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Erin Swain: Kite Point Perfection

I dove the kite and was instantly lit. I raced across the water out into the sound trying my best to keep my form, but I don’t think I had ever been this powered up. It was scary and fun at the same time. I had some tacks upwind, but since I was traveling so fast, when I sat down to turn I would instantly lose ground (note to self: Must work on transition turns as soon as I can stay upwind). ... Read More...

Conquer Your Fears and Do Something Awesome

Oftentimes when I ride with Danny, he yells to me out on the water, “DO SOMETHING AWESOME!” and he’ll trail me until I show him something. It pushes me. It’s fun. And, it always results in me having a better session in the end.... Read More...

Distinct Motion featuring Adam Super

Adam Super has been kiteboarding since April, 2009. He is originally from Pittsburgh, PA and now resides in the Outerbanks of North Carolina. Adam is the Eastern Technical Representitive for Roberto Ricci Designs (RRD) and Mystic Kiteboarding. ... Read More...

PKRA Tenerife Kite Masters Results

This was a beautiful week of wind and sunshine in El Medano, Tenerife. We’ve had five days of action in which to pick the best four male and best two female riders who got into the finals today. The competition started with 25 knots side shore winds and nice waves rolling into the bay.... Read More...

PKRA Tenerife Kite Masters Day 4 Update

It has been a long day of action here in Tenerife, with the wind quickly picking up to 25-30 knots for the fourth day of Kite Master’s action. Head Judge Sami Gali was impressed by the amount of high jumps, which resulted from the conditions, “Height and power are the most important factors in this competition and we saw some great displays of both today.”... Read More...
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PKRA Tenerife Kite Masters Update: Youri Zoon Lands 900

Today another 16 heats of the Tenerife Kite Masters 2011 were disputed here in El Medano. According to Race Director Olaf Van Tol the riders are now getting used to the conditions, “This afternoon we began to see some higher board offs as the riders used the nice kickers which line the spot.” ... Read More...

TKRA Tenerife Kite Masters: Update after 22 Heats

The stronger the wind got, the higher the kitesurfers jumped. The high jumps allowed the riders to perform great boards off. They also executed handle passes which are considered as the most technical tricks, and are also referred to as wakeboard tricks.... Read More...

PKRA Fuerteventura 2011 Final Results

The last day of competition welcomed the competitors with the most extreme conditions a kiteboarder can expect in Fuerteventura: 35 to 45 knots in the ongoing gusts and choppy waters. As usual on the PKRA we were again surprised by the level the riders can reach in these conditions.... Read More...
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Erin Swain: Girl Power

It was like a switch flipped when she arrived. The wind picked up A LOT. Tami brought her 9, and I ran back to get my 7 from my car. I was still a little nervous to launch so close to land, so Tami said she didn’t mind walking out a little ways. There were a lot of people at Jockey's Ridge that day, so we were the only ones kiting.... Read More...
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PKRA Fuerteventura Day 3: Zoon and Pulido Win Single Eliminations

After two days of competition here in Fuerteventura for the PKRA Kiteboarding World Tour, we entered the second part of the single eliminations. This was going to be the most exciting day with only the very best riders left to compete in the strong winds of Sotavento. The men’s division started with the quarter finals in 30 knots conditions which according to Brazilian rider Reno Romeu (BRA, North) made the spot a little choppy with a kicker on the inside.... Read More...