Well recently I was down in Costa Rica for an amazing kitesurfing vacation. Every single day there was wind! It was insane. I was there for 13 days and kited every single one of them. So whats the problem? Now I am going home back to New York City and I am tired, sore and feel like I have beat up. Yes, its a great feeling. But I need to be ready for work. I have never tried yoga, but I have my first class tomorrow. I was also told I should try acupuncture. Have any of you successfully used acupuncture to treat sore muscles? A friend of mine does acupuncture regularly and suggested I try NYC Acupuncture. I am going to make a reservation ASAP, but wanted to know if any of you had any comments?
Learn To Kitesurf In Costa Rica
I recently went around the world on an adventure vacation. And one of the things I did was learn to kitesurf. I did this in Costa Rica with CostaRicaKite.com. And after I learned to kitesurf, I rented kites in other countries and kitesurfed. I had a great time.
But why am I telling you this? Because in all the kitesurfing schools I saw, CostaRicaKite.com was the best school I encountered to learn to kitesurf. Nicola Bertoldi and his crew are simply professional and enthusiastic about kitesurfing. The kitesurfing industry is not know for the most business minded people because its a lifestyle around the beach. But Nicola is a world class business man. He ensures that you are having a great vacation and your lessons to learn to kitesurf are top-notch. His school always uses the most modern equipment and has top level IKO instructors.
Did I mention the wind? In all the places I have kitesurfed, Bahia Salinas had more wind (BY FAR) then every else I went. Not one day while I was there for four weeks was there not wind. I went to many other schools around the world that only had wind on 50% of the days. Not here in Bahia Salinas, Costa Rica.
The other nice thing about Bahia Salinas is that it is not touristy and crowded like other parts of Costa Rica. This is an extremely scenic place with much unspoiled natural beauty. In the mornings, there are parrots flying by your window and there are monkeys near by too. Its just spectacular.
Happy kiting!
Ruben Lenten S-loop going off again!
Ruben Lenten and his amazing mega-loops. In what I believe to be the first ever S-Loop kiteloop...at least caught on film. Ruben has had some kiteboarding injuries over the years, but he appears to be back in full form. And I am sure he had some kitesurfing injuries trying to learn this kiteloop. Hopefully he is down in Cape Town kitesurfing this season and those of you on your kitesurfing holiday will be able to see this amazing kitesurfer in Cape Town.
The next kitesurfing revolution revealed....seriously!
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=157628520945743
F-One has done it again! It simply opens up a whole new aspect to the sport. I cant say enough about how genious I think this is.
F-One has done it again! It simply opens up a whole new aspect to the sport. I cant say enough about how genious I think this is.
Interesting interview (from TheKiteboarder) on Litewave Dave
I see his products in quite a few places I go around the world. Thus I found it interesting how humble he appears.
Industry Profile: Litewave Dave Turner
Years in Industry: 13
Words of Wisdom: Maintain humility and a good attitude towards your fellow humans.
Years Kiteboarding: 13
Kite: GK Trix
Board: Litewave Spirit, Wing, or Quad-Surf depending on the conditions
How would you describe your job at Litewave Designs?
I’m the Designer, Manufacturing Supervisor, Chief Sales Rep, and Collections Manager.
What did you do before working in the kite industry?
I was a Unix Systems Administrator for the telephone company. I got my degree in computer science and worked in telephony for ten years.
How did you end up working in the kiteboarding industry?
I was a windsurfer building my own boards and I went to Maui so I could learn to build better windsurfers. Jimmy Lewis and some other guys were showing me boards when I saw Manu Bertin kiteboarding. This was in 1998 and I started kiting shortly after. I just wanted to try something new. I was into whitewater kayaking in 1970, so I’ve always been at the forefront of sports. I adopted kiting and never looked back.
It seems that you are on a never ending Litewave demo tour of the U.S. Are there any local U.S. spots that you haven’t been to yet?
It’s not only the U.S., it’s worldwide. I find that it’s the best way to find out what people want and put the gear in their hands. The two spots I haven’t been yet are Lake McConaughy, Nebraska, and the Chicago area. I’m usually on the road for a week and then spend two weeks at home.
What is your typical day at the office like? Is there such a thing as a normal day?
When I’m not touring, I’m back in the office taking care of everything else. I wake up at midnight to talk to China and Mauritius. After a few hours of sleep I get up in the morning and start answering emails, packing orders, and dealing with any special problems that might arise. I’m on the phone a lot of the day, and then at 4:30 I’m loading up the truck and heading for FedEx. At about 6:00 it’s happy hour.
Is working in the kiteboarding industry all it’s cracked up to be?
When I’m on tour hitting the bars, dancing at the clubs, and kiting during the day, that’s the glamorous part, and that’s maybe 20% of the job, so you do have some fun. But, you have to deal with the public, which can be really fun, but you also have to deal with problems.
What is the best part of your job? The worst?
The best is getting out there and meeting people. Going to La Ventana or to expos and hearing about how people like my boards, or that they learned to ride on one is really satisfying. The worst part is collections. When shops go belly up and owe you money, that’s the hardest part. It’s no fun, but when it’s your own money on the line, you’re motivated.
What do you see as the biggest challenge to the kiteboarding industry as a whole?
There’s like 60 companies now making gear. It’s really changed. I was the fourth kiteboarding company. Now everybody is undercutting each other, and that’s what happened in windsurfing. I see it as being very hard on the retailer in the future. It seems to be going more factory direct to the customer, which is not very healthy. I wish people would hold their lines, but there is always someone new coming in that has to get their foot in the door.
What advice do you have for someone that wants to work in the kite industry?
Well, you’re not going to get rich. They say the best way to make a small fortune in the kite industry is to start with a large one. It’s a fun job. You’ve got to be very good with people. I don’t have any room in my organization for a snob.
Check out www.CostaRicaKite.com for more information.
If you only watch 1 kite video today...
Make this kiteboarding video shot in the Caribbean by Andre Phillips the one you watch today...
We Did Nothing from Kite Scoop on Vimeo.
Kiteboarding / Kitesurfing Right of Way Rules & Suggestions
Kiteboarding / Kitesurfing Right of Way Rules & SuggestionsThe rules for kitesurfing are mainly based on sailing and windsurfing. Coming from windsurfing, the term "starboard tack" is quite known around the world. This is the same as "right hand in front". It means, if you are riding and someone rides towards you, with the exact upwind course as yours, someone has to give the right of way. In this case, the starboard or right hand in front rule gets used by the majority of the kitesurfers worldwide.
If you are riding towards someone, and you have your right hand in front on your bar, you have the right of way. The rider coming towards you, then has his right hand at the back part of his bar, and his left hand in front. The rider with the left hand in front, should give the right of way to the rider with the right hand in front. Practically, the rider with the right hand in front, should fly his kite further up and stay on his course. The rider with the left hand in front, should ride downwind and fly his kite low, so both kites and riders can pass without any problems.
Now if a rider is more upwind of you, and even if you have the right hand in front, you should lower your kite, and let the other rider keep riding on his course, since you will not make as much upwind to be facing him, and you shouldn't even try. Meanwhile the other rider should fly his kite further up, to avoid any collisions.
Use your common sense to judge the situation correctly. Don't insist on your right, even if you know the other rider is more upwind than you. Understand, that beginners have no ideas of the rules, so once you ride towards someone, analyze their skills quickly and judge accordingly. You can also give signals, that you will insist on your right of way. Sometimes the other rider cannot change course due to other riders or hazards, this you should anticipate and then act accordingly.
To avoid collisions, anticipate, and do a turn before problems may arise or just stop in the water with your kite high up and wait, until a dangerous situation gets solved.
Never do a sudden change of course directly before the other, this can lead to very bad accidents.
The above rules may be different if you ride On the Wave.
PASSING OTHERS RIDERS
Inexperienced riders are stressed by passing other riders, or getting passed by experienced riders who fly their kite very close to your own. That is normally no problem, if you act accordingly and don't do anything no one would anticipate. This is key when passing some and their kites.
Never steer your kite quickly in a way, no one anticipates it. This can lead to very dangerous situations.
MOVING RIDERS
Make sure to know the rules of Right of Way when you go riding. This already explains how you should behave if a rider comes towards you on the same upwind course.
Two riders can pass each other without any problems. Both just need to know what exactly to do.
The normal rules are:
- the kiter further upwind flies his kite high and stays on his course
- the kiter further downwind flies the kite low and corrects his course a bit downwind if needed to avoid any collision
- It is important, that once you fly your kite high or low, you try to keep that kite position, so both kites can pass. If you suddenly move your kite, you can cause many problems.
- If you see, that the kites are coming close, you can slowly steer it away from the other kite, but make sure to keep riding and not steer it to another direction.
STANDING RIDERS
It happens quiet often, that kiters are standing still with their kite high up in the sky.
These are:
- beginners who are learning
- someone with a gear failure
- someone recovering from a crash
- someone relaxing
The standing rider should keep his kite on one position, or slowly fly the kite to one side, so the moving rider can easily pass without getting into danger. Make sure that you pass no beginners downwind, since it can happen easily, that they crash their kite on you. Before passing a beginner downwind, you should either wait until he is up and riding again, but the best is to do a turn and go to the other direction and try to go further upwind to pass the beginner with more distance, upwind of him.
RELAUNCHING OR UPWIND BODY DRAGGING
Riders with a dropped kite want their kite up as fast as possible. Never get close to a kite, that is about to relaunch, nor fly your kite close to the dropped kite. You should pass a dropped kite and the rider only upwind, or with good distance you can do it also downwind. But keep an eye on the kite, so you can act, if something goes wrong. Pass upwind with a kite that flies pretty high, and don't ride too close to the rider. Good riders should always keep an eye on the relaunch situation of the rider's kite, and if it looks like trouble to relaunch, ask the rider if he needs any help, then try to flip his kite or untangle bridles etc.
Body dragging
Since no one should use a board leash, people need to bodydrag back to their board.
Normally anyone who bodydrags flies their kite on the same position and slowly turns it if they want to go to the other direction. Always give a bodydragging rider the right of way, so they can quickly recover their board. Many times it is good, when you see someone bodydragging for their board, and the distance is big, to just bring the rider the board, so they can get on it faster and be out of the way. The rider bodydragging should always move their kite out of the way of moving riders, and the best is to keep it low over the water level, to block as little room as possible. Be aware, that once a bodydragging rider reached his board, or shortly before, steers his kite into the zenith.
ON THE BEACH..
The beach is alway a place with many dangers.
- kites launching
- kites landing
- people rigging their gear
- people walking by
- other water sports users
- beach goers
- obstacles
- gusty winds
- little space
The rules is to use a little space as possible, specially if you are having a break, roll up your lines and move your kite out of the way. You should always launch with a launch helper, if one is around. It is no problem to ask someone to give a quick assistance. Make sure to give the same assistance back if you get asked.
Hooked F16 with an Nose Grab - Kitesurfing Trick Technique
Hooked F16 with an Nose Grab - Kitesurfing Trick Technique
Advanced Kiteboard Tips & Tricks #3: The art of wave riding with a kite
Advanced Kiteboarding Tips & Tricks #3: The art of wave riding with a kite
Getting out past the waves for the first time
So you are ready to take your kitesurfing to the next level with a surfboard? Good choice. When getting off the beach, make sure you are in at least knee deep water so that you don't rip your fins out when you get up on the board. First, head slightly downwind initially to generate speed. Keep up a moderate amount of speed but control it so you don't get launched when you hit the first wave or whitewater. Second, to get over the wave or whitewater bend your knees and suck up the wave and let your board ride up over the foam.
Kite position is really important. Keep your kite at 45 degrees or better yet have your kite pulling down as you hit the foam. This will pull you down and help you stick to your board. A combination of these 2 skills will ensure you stay on the surf board with or without straps. While you do need speed to get over the wave, be careful to not generate too much speed. This is where some knee injuries can occur. If the wind is light you will need to move your kite more to generate enough speed to penetrate the waves.
Hot tip - When out past the waves and riding upwind, take your back foot out of the strap and place it in between the two foot straps. This will greatly increase the angle in which you can ride upwind.
Now that you are out, how do you catch the wave?
There are several methods to catch the wave. The first method is to catch the wave on the “outside”. This technique is used when there is a decent swell. While you are out beyond the waves, turn in front of a swell and get enough speed to stay on the moving swell. Eventually, the wave will steepen and you will feel the power of the wave replacing the power of the kite. Turn your kite down low in front of the wave as you begin to take the drop. Keep the kite low and make small adjustments as you ride along the face. Initially start out on the shoulder of the wave but as your confidence increases you will be able to take off closer to the pocket of the wave. Continue riding the wave, with the goal of keeping tension in the kite lines to keep the kite responsive.
The second method is to catch the wave from the “inside”. This is great fun and basically involves doing a turn on the face of the wave to catch it. First, as you are riding out towards a wave face, you want to turn slightly downwind and away from the wave to get more speed. Second, initiate the kite turn as the wave passes under the kite and spot your turn on the face of the wave. Then, turn on the face of the wave maintaining speed and ensure your kite finishes low and in the direction that you are heading. If you would like to try to unhook, this is best done just after the turn when you start kitesurfing the wave.
Hot tip - If the wind is light, unhook before the turn to generate more power and speed to catch the wave.
Performing smooth bottom turns
Once you gain experience and confidence in the waves, you should start to think about doing a series of bottom turns and top turns to get the maximum ride on the wave. Head down the wave with your feet in the sweet spot of your board. As you spot the point where you want to turn, keep your weight down over your heels and push hard on your back foot. The correct body position is like sitting back on a chair. Begin to look over your leading shoulder which will create a nice smooth arcing turn. As you come out of the turn get your weight forward to carry on the forward speed and look at the spot where you want to go next to do your top turn. At this point, if you don’t have enough speed, you will stall the board and be overtaken by the wave.
Hot tip - the amount of back foot pressure is directly related to how tight the turn is. A good bottom turn sets you up for the whole wave.
Nailing those beautiful top turns
Spot the place on the face of the wave you to do your top turn. Once you are on the face of the wave, plant your back foot and get your weight over your toes and initiate the turn. Initiate the kite turn as the wave passes under the kite. Looking back down the wave will help you complete the turn. Keep your weight forward to maintain speed, you can use your back hand for balance and support if you have to let go of the bar. As you head back down the wave flatten out the board to get ready for the next bottom turn.
Hot tip - Keep your kite down low and forward to help so that you don't ride underneath it which would result in it falling out of the sky.
Once you start getting comfortable with riding your surfboard, you are defintely ready to take one of our African Kite Safaris 2.0. Check out our site: www.TheKiteLife.com
Get the full 'Advanced Tips & Tricks' on our Facebook Fan Page:
www.facebook.com/TheKiteLife
Please subscribe and share your comments below now:
Getting out past the waves for the first time
So you are ready to take your kitesurfing to the next level with a surfboard? Good choice. When getting off the beach, make sure you are in at least knee deep water so that you don't rip your fins out when you get up on the board. First, head slightly downwind initially to generate speed. Keep up a moderate amount of speed but control it so you don't get launched when you hit the first wave or whitewater. Second, to get over the wave or whitewater bend your knees and suck up the wave and let your board ride up over the foam.
Kite position is really important. Keep your kite at 45 degrees or better yet have your kite pulling down as you hit the foam. This will pull you down and help you stick to your board. A combination of these 2 skills will ensure you stay on the surf board with or without straps. While you do need speed to get over the wave, be careful to not generate too much speed. This is where some knee injuries can occur. If the wind is light you will need to move your kite more to generate enough speed to penetrate the waves.
Hot tip - When out past the waves and riding upwind, take your back foot out of the strap and place it in between the two foot straps. This will greatly increase the angle in which you can ride upwind.
Now that you are out, how do you catch the wave?
There are several methods to catch the wave. The first method is to catch the wave on the “outside”. This technique is used when there is a decent swell. While you are out beyond the waves, turn in front of a swell and get enough speed to stay on the moving swell. Eventually, the wave will steepen and you will feel the power of the wave replacing the power of the kite. Turn your kite down low in front of the wave as you begin to take the drop. Keep the kite low and make small adjustments as you ride along the face. Initially start out on the shoulder of the wave but as your confidence increases you will be able to take off closer to the pocket of the wave. Continue riding the wave, with the goal of keeping tension in the kite lines to keep the kite responsive.
The second method is to catch the wave from the “inside”. This is great fun and basically involves doing a turn on the face of the wave to catch it. First, as you are riding out towards a wave face, you want to turn slightly downwind and away from the wave to get more speed. Second, initiate the kite turn as the wave passes under the kite and spot your turn on the face of the wave. Then, turn on the face of the wave maintaining speed and ensure your kite finishes low and in the direction that you are heading. If you would like to try to unhook, this is best done just after the turn when you start kitesurfing the wave.
Hot tip - If the wind is light, unhook before the turn to generate more power and speed to catch the wave.
Performing smooth bottom turns
Once you gain experience and confidence in the waves, you should start to think about doing a series of bottom turns and top turns to get the maximum ride on the wave. Head down the wave with your feet in the sweet spot of your board. As you spot the point where you want to turn, keep your weight down over your heels and push hard on your back foot. The correct body position is like sitting back on a chair. Begin to look over your leading shoulder which will create a nice smooth arcing turn. As you come out of the turn get your weight forward to carry on the forward speed and look at the spot where you want to go next to do your top turn. At this point, if you don’t have enough speed, you will stall the board and be overtaken by the wave.
Hot tip - the amount of back foot pressure is directly related to how tight the turn is. A good bottom turn sets you up for the whole wave.
Nailing those beautiful top turns
Spot the place on the face of the wave you to do your top turn. Once you are on the face of the wave, plant your back foot and get your weight over your toes and initiate the turn. Initiate the kite turn as the wave passes under the kite. Looking back down the wave will help you complete the turn. Keep your weight forward to maintain speed, you can use your back hand for balance and support if you have to let go of the bar. As you head back down the wave flatten out the board to get ready for the next bottom turn.
Hot tip - Keep your kite down low and forward to help so that you don't ride underneath it which would result in it falling out of the sky.
Once you start getting comfortable with riding your surfboard, you are defintely ready to take one of our African Kite Safaris 2.0. Check out our site: www.TheKiteLife.com
Get the full 'Advanced Tips & Tricks' on our Facebook Fan Page:
www.facebook.com/TheKiteLife
Please subscribe and share your comments below now:
Aaron Hadlow blasting the waves of Cape Town in 2010
Aaron Hadlow is always amazing to watch. Even when his unique Hadlow Pro kite is in the waves. I have heard pretty good things about the kites too. What are your opinions of the Hadlow Pro's?
Please leave your comments below...have you checked out my YouTube channel with all my adventures??
Please leave your comments below...have you checked out my YouTube channel with all my adventures??
Serious Cape Town kiteloops on the Hadlow Pro
What are you opinions and comments? Please share them below...
Question #3
We have reached the last question that fellow kiters have asked about The Kite Life and our safaris.
QUESTION: How do you know this isn’t an elaborate scam and we are not going to steal your deposit?
ANSWER: In this day of age, we understand there are all sorts of scams online and in person. To remove any such fears of fraud, there are 2 very safe and simple methods to reserve your safari spot.
The first safe and simple method is through a 10% deposit paid through the safety of our verified PayPal account. You will see the PayPal button located directly on our booking page.
The second safe and simple method, is that you can email us a copy of your confirmed and paid flight reservation to Cape Town.
The remainder of the balance using either method is only due 36 hours after the start of the safari. This is so you can personally meet us and verify that we are a legitimate operation. As you can see, we are making it very safe and simple for you to reserve a spot and remove any fears you have about fraud.
As a reminder, the special launch price of €999 is only until October 15, 20:00 GMT, after the price increases to €1249. There are only 30 spots available for these African kite safaris.
This email wraps up the three main questions and concerns that fellow kiters have asked us. Of course, if you have any other questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to send an email directly to me at Gabe@TheKiteLife.com.
PS: I'd love to hear your comments...
QUESTION: How do you know this isn’t an elaborate scam and we are not going to steal your deposit?
ANSWER: In this day of age, we understand there are all sorts of scams online and in person. To remove any such fears of fraud, there are 2 very safe and simple methods to reserve your safari spot.
The first safe and simple method is through a 10% deposit paid through the safety of our verified PayPal account. You will see the PayPal button located directly on our booking page.
The second safe and simple method, is that you can email us a copy of your confirmed and paid flight reservation to Cape Town.
The remainder of the balance using either method is only due 36 hours after the start of the safari. This is so you can personally meet us and verify that we are a legitimate operation. As you can see, we are making it very safe and simple for you to reserve a spot and remove any fears you have about fraud.
As a reminder, the special launch price of €999 is only until October 15, 20:00 GMT, after the price increases to €1249. There are only 30 spots available for these African kite safaris.
This email wraps up the three main questions and concerns that fellow kiters have asked us. Of course, if you have any other questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to send an email directly to me at Gabe@TheKiteLife.com.
PS: I'd love to hear your comments...
Concern #2
Continuing with the three questions from our readers about the African Kitesurfing Safaris 2.0, this update will address concern #2...
QUESTION: Is Cape Town a safe city?
BACKGROUND: The rate of crime in South Africa is indeed a major source of concern for anyone visiting this beautiful country. However, upon further research, one comes to realize that the staggering statistics mentioned in the media, become greatly reduced when a few simple precautions are taken.
First, according to official reports, the crimes are taking place in very specific regions and often between people who know each other. These are areas based around lower income regions. The kitesurfing safaris are based in the kitesurfing section of Cape Town, called Table View. Table View is a relatively affluent area, thus a very safe area. When the safaris are exploring the Western Cape, we are in small beach towns, again places of relative affluence. In these nicer areas, there is naturally more of a police and security guard presence, thus reducing crime.
Secondly, the other large source of concern are carjackings. The issue of carjackings is more of an issue that plagues Johannesburg, than Cape Town. Due to the Cape Town as a whole being relatively remote, cars cannot easily be stolen and transported to another city or country. Within Cape Town, the chances of a carjacking go down significantly when using common sense and again avoiding certain areas. And in these kitesurfing safaris, we are not exactly driving around in new Mercedes or BMW’s...sorry folks :)
Therefore, the risk of crime goes way down when a visitor uses some basic common sense to avoid being a victim of crime. From my personal experiences in Cape Town, one thing that differentiates it from many other cities is that you do not accidentally stumble into a township. From past historical events, townships are often set apart from the rest of the city. Therefore, there is not a chance of walking around downtown Cape Town or Table View and turning the corner into a township. The city is just not built like that.
Relating my personal experience again, for those of you that have traveled in South America, the Caribbean or Thailand and Vietnam, I have always felt MUCH safer in Cape Town then in any city in those countries. And I am not just saying a little safer, but ALOT safer.
Of course there is always a risk something could happen as you are walking around downtown Cape Town or Table View or any other area; but using the same precautions you would use visiting any other city in the world and this risk goes way down. Don’t walk with a large SLR camera around your neck, don’t flash your wallet everywhere, don’t walk the streets at 3 am stumbling drunk or things like that. Would you do this at home?
With all this talk of crime, let me point out something that you might not know. Mercer released their 2010 quality of living report, and listed Cape Town the 86th best place to live in the world. According to the experts, being in the top 100 is considered a very good thing.
PS: I'd love to hear your comments...
QUESTION: Is Cape Town a safe city?
BACKGROUND: The rate of crime in South Africa is indeed a major source of concern for anyone visiting this beautiful country. However, upon further research, one comes to realize that the staggering statistics mentioned in the media, become greatly reduced when a few simple precautions are taken.
First, according to official reports, the crimes are taking place in very specific regions and often between people who know each other. These are areas based around lower income regions. The kitesurfing safaris are based in the kitesurfing section of Cape Town, called Table View. Table View is a relatively affluent area, thus a very safe area. When the safaris are exploring the Western Cape, we are in small beach towns, again places of relative affluence. In these nicer areas, there is naturally more of a police and security guard presence, thus reducing crime.
Secondly, the other large source of concern are carjackings. The issue of carjackings is more of an issue that plagues Johannesburg, than Cape Town. Due to the Cape Town as a whole being relatively remote, cars cannot easily be stolen and transported to another city or country. Within Cape Town, the chances of a carjacking go down significantly when using common sense and again avoiding certain areas. And in these kitesurfing safaris, we are not exactly driving around in new Mercedes or BMW’s...sorry folks :)
Therefore, the risk of crime goes way down when a visitor uses some basic common sense to avoid being a victim of crime. From my personal experiences in Cape Town, one thing that differentiates it from many other cities is that you do not accidentally stumble into a township. From past historical events, townships are often set apart from the rest of the city. Therefore, there is not a chance of walking around downtown Cape Town or Table View and turning the corner into a township. The city is just not built like that.
Relating my personal experience again, for those of you that have traveled in South America, the Caribbean or Thailand and Vietnam, I have always felt MUCH safer in Cape Town then in any city in those countries. And I am not just saying a little safer, but ALOT safer.
Of course there is always a risk something could happen as you are walking around downtown Cape Town or Table View or any other area; but using the same precautions you would use visiting any other city in the world and this risk goes way down. Don’t walk with a large SLR camera around your neck, don’t flash your wallet everywhere, don’t walk the streets at 3 am stumbling drunk or things like that. Would you do this at home?
With all this talk of crime, let me point out something that you might not know. Mercer released their 2010 quality of living report, and listed Cape Town the 86th best place to live in the world. According to the experts, being in the top 100 is considered a very good thing.
PS: I'd love to hear your comments...
Question #1
We have heard three major questions from our readers about the African Kitesurfing Safaris 2.0. This update will address the #1 question...
QUESTION: You are not a highly advanced kitesurfer, so you are wondering if the African Kitesurfing Safaris 2.0 are appropriate for you?
BACKGROUND: The reason why Cape Town is such a good destination for kiteboarders, is because many of the kite beaches on the Western Cape surrounding Cape Town allow for a wide variety of kitesurfing levels to ride in a safe and enjoyable environment. Mix this in with the constant supervision of an IKO instructor, and well, thats why the safaris are perfect for slightly intermediate kiters to highly advanced kiters. Throughout the safaris, intermediate kiters can receive coaching on their upwind technique and hopefully landing their first jumps or backrolls. And the more advanced kitesurfers can receive coaching to learn kiteloops, landing blind and most other tricks.
The first few days of the African Kitesurfing Safaris will start in Langebaan. Langebaan is the perfect place to ease into the kite lifestyle, being a large lagoon with clear, flat and relatively warm water. There is the main beach where most people kite, but there are also some surrounding beaches in which we will have the spot all to ourselves.
From there the African Kitesurfing Safaris head into the mountains for a day to kite in some fresh water lakes. Obviously, this is another relatively controlled environment, in which all levels of kiters can progress under the watchful eye of an IKO instructor. And of course, enjoy the stunning beauty of the surrounding vineyards and fruit orchards.
Continuing on, the African Kitesurfing Safaris venture up the east coast to some slightly more challenging spots. The safari is in this region for 4 days due to its awesome kiteboarding. Here we will kite in some flat water rivers, some fresh water lakes and a few spots in which some of the more advanced riders can try their skills in the waves. The beaches in this area are long and wide open, thus a good chance for the less confident to push themselves a little and try riding in the waves. But there will be no pressure, everyone is just here
to enjoy themselves.
After this we casually head back to Cape Town to ride with the pro’s in Big Bay and do some world famous downwinders from Sunset Beach to Doodles Bar. These downwinders pass through sections with perfect waves to kitesurf and sections to practice your freestyle tricks. Again, perfect for everyone to have a great time and continuing to progress as a kiteboarder.
All in all, almost every spot we venture to during the African Kitesurfing Safaris allows for all level of riders to advance their skills and just have an epic day with new kiteboarding friends. This is the reason an African Kitesurfing Safari is perfect for all levels of kiteboarders.
PS: I'd love to hear your comments...
QUESTION: You are not a highly advanced kitesurfer, so you are wondering if the African Kitesurfing Safaris 2.0 are appropriate for you?
BACKGROUND: The reason why Cape Town is such a good destination for kiteboarders, is because many of the kite beaches on the Western Cape surrounding Cape Town allow for a wide variety of kitesurfing levels to ride in a safe and enjoyable environment. Mix this in with the constant supervision of an IKO instructor, and well, thats why the safaris are perfect for slightly intermediate kiters to highly advanced kiters. Throughout the safaris, intermediate kiters can receive coaching on their upwind technique and hopefully landing their first jumps or backrolls. And the more advanced kitesurfers can receive coaching to learn kiteloops, landing blind and most other tricks.
The first few days of the African Kitesurfing Safaris will start in Langebaan. Langebaan is the perfect place to ease into the kite lifestyle, being a large lagoon with clear, flat and relatively warm water. There is the main beach where most people kite, but there are also some surrounding beaches in which we will have the spot all to ourselves.
From there the African Kitesurfing Safaris head into the mountains for a day to kite in some fresh water lakes. Obviously, this is another relatively controlled environment, in which all levels of kiters can progress under the watchful eye of an IKO instructor. And of course, enjoy the stunning beauty of the surrounding vineyards and fruit orchards.
Continuing on, the African Kitesurfing Safaris venture up the east coast to some slightly more challenging spots. The safari is in this region for 4 days due to its awesome kiteboarding. Here we will kite in some flat water rivers, some fresh water lakes and a few spots in which some of the more advanced riders can try their skills in the waves. The beaches in this area are long and wide open, thus a good chance for the less confident to push themselves a little and try riding in the waves. But there will be no pressure, everyone is just hereto enjoy themselves.
All in all, almost every spot we venture to during the African Kitesurfing Safaris allows for all level of riders to advance their skills and just have an epic day with new kiteboarding friends. This is the reason an African Kitesurfing Safari is perfect for all levels of kiteboarders.
PS: I'd love to hear your comments...
The epic times of kitesurfing exploration...
It's February now, and Amit and I just got back from exploring kitesurf spots on the Western Cape around Cape Town. Some of the spots we ventured to will be added to the itinerary of the 2010/2011 African Kite Safaris 2.0. The direction we headed was up towards the famous flat water of Witsands. The kitesurfing spot in Witsands is flat water because of sand dunes at a river mouth. The wind blows from the ocean up the river mouth and these dunes create a little embankment, thus the butter flat water. The area is known, but being about 4 hours away from Cape Town, does not get crowded most times.
Amit and I arrived at low tide, which is perfect and had a great freestyle kitesurf session. I was excited for this flat water because lately I have only been in waves and have not had the chance to test my Blade Prime in strictly freestyle riding. It took me a few minutes to get the timing down, but as the day went on, my confidence grew and grew. By the end, Amit and I were alone on the water with the sun setting and a steady 20 knot wind, nailing boosted kiteloops. We were high on life. With the sun setting, we packed up our gear and headed up to set up our tent with the fabulous view.
We woke up the next morning to a calm, clear day...though the view was priceless, there was no wind. No worries, we were on a mission to find wind somewhere. Thats the great thing about South Africa, if there is no wind somewhere, just drive somewhere else. We headed south to Cape Agulhas to visit the southern most point of Africa. Interesting, but a cool feeling to be all the way on the bottom of Africa. But while in the area, we did stumble upon the worst thing any kitesurfer wants to hear. At the local kite spot, there was a shark catching competition going on. Yes! A shark catching competition. We went to check it out to see what exactly it was. Fortunately they were mainly catching sand sharks...so in the end it didn't really freak us out too much.
We ventured on as we had heard of lakes somewhere in the area. So we stopped by the local hostel/kite school to get some info. They were sort of intentionally vague it seemed on things, but finally we talked to some one who gave us some info. We were told there are two lakes, but depending on wind direction, one is good and the other is bad. So with a few maps on our laps and a very broad idea of where to go, we set off for the open African plains. After driving down dirt roads and only seeing about one or two cars in over an hour, we spotted the target. We opened a few cow gates and hit upon a big lake in the middle of nowhere with a solid 15-20 knots of wind and no one for miles around. We excitedly pumped up our kites and hit the water. We kited for about three hours until the sun went down. We figured it was time to get off the water because we still had to drive to a town and find a place to sleep. Driving down red African dirt roads with the sun setting, we forgot about everything in life and enjoyed the moment....
The next day we went back to Cape Agulhas and got quite nice wind for the 2-3 meter waves which were rolling in. Excitingly, we unpacked out kitesurf surboards and hit the waves. There were a few other kiters around, but the long wide open beaches allowed everyone to have plenty of space to work on their top turns or getting sick down the line rides. Amit and I kited for 5 hours! Countless waves later and with the sun setting again, we stumbled up to the car completely exhausted. Of course, over a post kitesurf session with a beer in hand, we had massive smiles on our face as we shared stories of day.
Unforutntely we both had some work to get back to in Cape Town, so the next morning we casually drove back to Cape Town. We both had an awesome time and found some new spots which are going to make the 2010/2011 African Kitesurf Safaris awesome and one-of-a-kind.
Amit and I arrived at low tide, which is perfect and had a great freestyle kitesurf session. I was excited for this flat water because lately I have only been in waves and have not had the chance to test my Blade Prime in strictly freestyle riding. It took me a few minutes to get the timing down, but as the day went on, my confidence grew and grew. By the end, Amit and I were alone on the water with the sun setting and a steady 20 knot wind, nailing boosted kiteloops. We were high on life. With the sun setting, we packed up our gear and headed up to set up our tent with the fabulous view.
We woke up the next morning to a calm, clear day...though the view was priceless, there was no wind. No worries, we were on a mission to find wind somewhere. Thats the great thing about South Africa, if there is no wind somewhere, just drive somewhere else. We headed south to Cape Agulhas to visit the southern most point of Africa. Interesting, but a cool feeling to be all the way on the bottom of Africa. But while in the area, we did stumble upon the worst thing any kitesurfer wants to hear. At the local kite spot, there was a shark catching competition going on. Yes! A shark catching competition. We went to check it out to see what exactly it was. Fortunately they were mainly catching sand sharks...so in the end it didn't really freak us out too much.
We ventured on as we had heard of lakes somewhere in the area. So we stopped by the local hostel/kite school to get some info. They were sort of intentionally vague it seemed on things, but finally we talked to some one who gave us some info. We were told there are two lakes, but depending on wind direction, one is good and the other is bad. So with a few maps on our laps and a very broad idea of where to go, we set off for the open African plains. After driving down dirt roads and only seeing about one or two cars in over an hour, we spotted the target. We opened a few cow gates and hit upon a big lake in the middle of nowhere with a solid 15-20 knots of wind and no one for miles around. We excitedly pumped up our kites and hit the water. We kited for about three hours until the sun went down. We figured it was time to get off the water because we still had to drive to a town and find a place to sleep. Driving down red African dirt roads with the sun setting, we forgot about everything in life and enjoyed the moment....
The next day we went back to Cape Agulhas and got quite nice wind for the 2-3 meter waves which were rolling in. Excitingly, we unpacked out kitesurf surboards and hit the waves. There were a few other kiters around, but the long wide open beaches allowed everyone to have plenty of space to work on their top turns or getting sick down the line rides. Amit and I kited for 5 hours! Countless waves later and with the sun setting again, we stumbled up to the car completely exhausted. Of course, over a post kitesurf session with a beer in hand, we had massive smiles on our face as we shared stories of day.
Unforutntely we both had some work to get back to in Cape Town, so the next morning we casually drove back to Cape Town. We both had an awesome time and found some new spots which are going to make the 2010/2011 African Kitesurf Safaris awesome and one-of-a-kind.
Kiting is bad for your health...
Ok not really. I have been VERY fortunate in the last two years of travel to basically have no serious injury. Not that I had one on Feb 22, but I did get my first stitches in LIFE and they came from kitesurfing. The wind was a little on the strong side, but perfect for my Blade Prime 7m and surfboard. I was doing a downwinder with my friend Bronya from a spot outside Table View called Big Bay to a town called Melkbos. In that section, the waves are larger than in the rest of the Table View bay they jack up quite nice. Lending itself for some sweet little barrels. I lined up for a wave, got in its path to get barreled...then oh flip, i lost my edge and rolled over the board. Some part of the board hit me in the head. I had had some close calls before, but never actually been hit hard.
Fortunately it was not bleeding bad, but unfortunately we were only half way thru the downwinder...and you know there are sharks somewhere around here. Took it easy though and finished the downwinder. I really didnt want to get stitches to save some money, but it was definitely a gash and probably would not have stopped bleeding for a while. So 4 measly stitches later, I am all sewn up. But now I feel like I have a tight spot on my head, seriously. The next two days has light wind which seems to be the norm around here these days, thus the wound should have time to heal up before heading back out to have fun.
What did I learn from this? The next time I am in big waves, I will wear a helmet. Seriously. It could have been way worse...
Fortunately it was not bleeding bad, but unfortunately we were only half way thru the downwinder...and you know there are sharks somewhere around here. Took it easy though and finished the downwinder. I really didnt want to get stitches to save some money, but it was definitely a gash and probably would not have stopped bleeding for a while. So 4 measly stitches later, I am all sewn up. But now I feel like I have a tight spot on my head, seriously. The next two days has light wind which seems to be the norm around here these days, thus the wound should have time to heal up before heading back out to have fun.
What did I learn from this? The next time I am in big waves, I will wear a helmet. Seriously. It could have been way worse...
Weddings & sightseeing...
Got invited to a wedding about 1 hour away from Cape Town with my friend Margot. Good times. Then on the way home took the super long way and got to see the surrounding mountain ranges. Very pretty with all the wine farms. I knew Cape Town made some wine, but hot damn I had no idea of large the industry is here. All you wine lovers out there need to come tour around down here sometime.
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