Kite Bytes

KiteSim is an 3D interactive simulation of a LEI traction kite, the type of kite most often used for kite surfing.You can use this program to learn how to fly a kite, practice making loops, or try out different water launching techniques without worrying about untangling your strings later. The kite is controlled by the mouse, which moves the on-screen control bar and chicken loop. Other features include kite force, wind speed and kite speed indicators and wind speed and line length controls.

We’re back from Brazil with lots of stories and pictures. I’m waiting for Sunita’s pictures to be downloaded as she took many more than I did but you can view the first batch here: http://www.kitebytes.com/brazil/

We got wind on our last day but didn’t spend much time in the water as the wind was directly onshore and there were obstacles beyond the short beach. It was also wavey and, bottom line, the conditions were beyond our ability. Rasa Beach is a great kiting spot if the wind and tide is right and you are an intermediate plus kiteboarder. I’ll provide a bigger and better update soon but at least you can see a few of our Brazil kiteboarding pictures.

We are having a blast here in Buzios but we have been skunked and have had no wind! We have brought our kites to a number of beaches, including Brava and Rasa, and have met other kiters, but have not had more than 10 knots of wind. We have found more wind at one beach and there was a Brazilian kiter riping it, (I can not spell the name of the beach but it started with an M) but the wind was directly onshore and not safe with lots of people and sharp houses. We are hoping to get wind tomorrow but hear that it might be Saturday before we get anything. We have to leave for Rio on Monday.

Other than the skunkage, we have been meeting many cool people and have been going to lots of cool beaches, bars and restaurants. It is very hot every day (32-36 degrees) and we all have tans or sunburns - some in places where we didnt know we had places

Tonight we are going to Fishbone Buzios which is a cool bar on a killer surf beach with DJs playing on the beach with a sand dance floor. They are having a pig roast tonight and all of the beautiful Brazilians seem to hang out there. John and I even ran into one of our clients there from Vancouver yesterday… bizarre. We also ran into some other Canadians we know last night at the Anexo Bar. Tomorrow night we have reservations at Privilege as it was closed on my birthday.

It has been an adventure as most people do not speak English but everybody is friendly and tries to communicate. We have been stranded at a kitesurf school where we could not get a taxi and have had 2 cars break down (one was a dune buggy with a broken gas gauge, the other a piece of shit Fiat that I think we blew the engine in).

We have lots of pictures and video which will get uploaded when we get back and hopefully we get some wind so we can kiteboard but the partying has been very good and we may just go surfing if we get skunked in Buzios again.

We arrived in Buzios last night and this place is amazing! Its super hot and sunny (around 33-35 degrees) and beautiful. The city is safe, friendly and has brick streets, amazing shopping, crazy beautiful beaches, hot women, wicked bars and nightlife and music… Who would have thought that we actually came here to kiteboard? We are trying to get in touch with Eduardo the kiteboarding instructor but it was windy today and he must still be working. Hopefully we are going tomorrow at noon, but today is my 30th birthday and we might be massively hungover tomorrow due to the partying tonight. We are going to a bar called Priviledge tonight which looked crazy when we walked by last night. I know that Sheralyn, Johnny, and Sunita have something up their sleeves and I am a little scared. I would love to post pictures but this Internet cafe doesnt have a USB so I will try again soon. Ciao!

We’re going on our Brazil kiteboarding trip tomorrow which has been updated since my last post on the subect (http://www.kitebytes.com/2005/09/brazil-kiteboarding-trip.html)

Originally we were going to Ibiraquera Point in Garopaba, Brazil but we have changed our trip to go to Buzios Brazil from January 21st to January 31st.

We’re staying at a sweet hotel: http://www.nikkibeach.com/photogallerythum.asp?catID=131

We’re taking some lessons, hopefully, from Eduardo Graf with the Buzios Kitesurf School: http://www.kitenews.com.br/buzios/kite_in_buzios.htm

More info on kiteboarding in Buzios: http://www.buziosonline.com.br/home/english/elazer-kitesurf.cfm

Our visas came back from the Brazilian Conulate today in the nick of time as we’re leaving tomorrow. Hopefully I can update lots soon!

16 hours until we leave for our Brazil kiteboarding trip. We picked up our NSI “Pro Golf” kite bags yesterday from Air Time. Have you seen these bags? They are uber cool. Basically, they look like golf club bags and have the words NSI Pro Golf down the side. We are supposed to pay $85 USD each way from Sao Paulo to Rio and back because we are transporting extra luggage. However, golf clubs are free (kites and boards are not) so we are pretending that our kites and boards are golf clubs.

I have been kiteboarding for less than a year but I’m hooked and going to Buzios, Brazil in 3 weeks for a kiteboarding trip. I am still very much a beginner or “kook.”

When the temperature improves, you can kiteboard at Spanish Banks/Jericho Beach but only until the May long weekend because the lifeguards are out and there are too many people on the beach to do it safely. In the summer you can go or to Boundary Bay, near the ferry terminal, but the best somewhat local place is Nitinat on Vancouver Island but it takes 5 hours to get there. Victoria and Squamish appear to be very good too but are more advanced and I haven’t tried either location yet. This spring I plan to check out the Gorge in Oregon and I want to try snowkiting in Washington State too but who know if I can find the time.

If you are serious about trying it out the best thing to do is to go to Spanish Banks with a trainer kite which is basically a small practice kite that you can fly to get a feeling for the sport. I have one you can borrow as I don’t use it much plus it has been repaired to do a mishap with a tree last year.

I would also recommend picking up an instructional DVD like the Complete Kiteboarding Guide and a couple of kiteboarding magazines. If you are still hooked then the next step would be to take a few lessons which will set you back a couple of hundred bucks. Lessons are important so that you can learn about safety and some beginner details that perhaps a buddy might forget to teach you.

At some point, you will have to invest in equipment so start saving or fill out that Visa card application. A used kite and board will cost you approximately $1000 but I think that with the changing technology I would recommend buying a new kite and a used board which would cost more like $1800. Airtime Board Sports has consignment kites and boards and Coastal BC has good online ads.You also need a wetsuit, harness, and helmet and booties too which will run you another $600. The good news is that once you have all of the equipment, the sport is inexpensive to maintain except for travel costs. That being said, you should have more than one kite in your quiver for variable wind conditions and then you might want a kite and board bag for travel etc. I’m only a year in, but I keep buying stuff.

As you can probably tell, I’m fired up about the sport and encourage anybody who’s interested to try it. It can be hard to take the plunge and get started, but if you want to kiteboard this year you probably want to start preparing soon.

50-mile Race from Florida to Bimini, Bahamas
by Marina Chang
December 1st, 2005

Ft Lauderdale, FL, November 27, 2005 – Team Turbo, the only all women’s team of over 100 international kiteboarding athletes and their support crews, has converged on Fort Lauderdale, Florida this week in preparation for the 2005 Bahamas Kite Race Crossing. Conditions look favorable for the race to start Friday December 2, 2005, however, organizers and participants have given themselves a window through December 11, 2005 for optimal weather. The race is a first and will cross the Gulf Stream from the East Coast of Florida to Bimini, passing through the Bermuda Triangle.

Team Turbo is comprised of 39-year-old Teri Flicek and 41-year old Julie Kuckuk, both experienced kiters with ‘normal day jobs” who from the moment they heard about the race, had no doubts that they would be participants. Kuckuk said, “No one knows what it will be like or how it will go. That is the challenge and it is my privilege to be a part of this. I dare to live my life boldly and I am happy to dream the unimaginable!” She added, “I want more females to become involved in kiting because they can. Hopefully our participation in this event will give women of all ages inspiration to try kiteboarding. It’s not about strength, but finesse and good judgement.”

Flicek shares her teammate’s enthusiasm for the challenge and added “We want to show the public that kiteboarding is a sport for all ages and levels of athleticism. The 2005 Bahamas Kite Race is definitely a once in a lifetime, tell your grandkids about it event.”

Kiteboarding has been around for about six years and is now just beginning to hit mainstream. It is a water sport which consists of specially designed power kites which propels enthusiasts across the water at speeds of 40 mph or more, and allows for huge aerial tricks and awe inspiring jumps of over 30 feet. Bahamas Kite Race Teams consist of two kiteboarders, a boat and captain. The team’s support vessel controls navigational devices and serves as the ultimate safety and support system for the riders. Boats may supply their riders with spare kites, kiteboards, food and water, but may not provide transportation or rest stops without disqualification.

Flicek feels the biggest challenge of the race will be rigging the right gear. Team Turbo’s sponsor is Turbolauncher, a tool which helps kiters keep their kite lines tangle free and allows riders to launch from boats or small launch areas. She said “The Turbolauncher will allow us to change kites if need be, and also “stay in the game” if we break a line or lose a kite. With the expected conditions, rigging and launching in the traditional way will be extremely challenging, if not impossible. It seems the Turbolauncher was made for exactly this challenge and these conditions.” Kuckuk humorously added that her major concern was big fish, because they could be hungry! Seriously, she said, “I think the major challenges for all riders will be endurance, keeping focused and reading the winds and current to keep on course.”

The wind direction could cause ocean swells to reach upwards of 14 feet and allow for a very challenging, unpredictable race. The race is estimated to take approximately four to six hours. Organizer Neil Hutchinson, 35, who earned the record for the longest distance traveled on a kiteboard, crossing 97 miles from Key West to Varadero, Cuba calls the race “The Cannonball Run for kiteboarders.” For more information about the race or Team Turbo, check out www.bahamacrossing.com or contact Neil Hutchinson at 954-647-7228.

Spanish Banks Winter Session Photos

I woke up this morning and had a MSN messenger message from John in Florida saying “Wake up, it’s blowing at Jericho!” Around 9:30 I rolled out of bed, read his message, and checked the wind and the Jericho Beach webcam. Sure enough, it was blowing more than 20 knots. I then checked the temperature and tide information and while the tide was ok, the temperature was 6 degrees Celsius (42 degrees Fahrenheit). I decided that I was going to go to the beach to tune my new kite but there was no way in hell I was getting into the water when it was that cold and blowing hard. 3 days ago I was kiting in Florida and it was 23 celsius (73 degrees Fahrenheit). I jumped on my beach cruiser bicycle and headed down to Spanish Banks where I immediately saw lots of kites and bundled up onlookers.

John was planning do visit Fort Desoto, Florida today but the transmission went in his car. He’s choked but at least he’s not going to get too much better than me until he can get that tranny fixed

Our other buddy Ron (from previous posts) is in the Dominican Republic at a wedding and is trying to find a way to escape for a few days and get to Cabarete. God speed Ronny!

There were approximately 12 kites out at Spanish Banks today and Mark Leng and Sandro Di Segni did a down winder with Mark going to Kits beach and Sandro to English Bay in downtown Vancouver (above picture taken near the Burrard Street Bridge).

Spanish Banks Winter Session Photos

We took our Florida kiteboarding lessons at the Kitehouse in Key West which is a school owned and operated by Paul Menta. Paul is the founder of Kite Surf the Earth which evolved into the Kitehouse, is a championship-level wake boarder and competitive kitesurfer. He once kited from Key West to Cuba and has been bitten by a shark, twice. He also repaired our boat when it broke down in the middle of the flats

Our instructors were Nick and Michael Minichiello, with Nick taking the lead. Mike and his wife, Clarissa Hempel, took some great photos which I will post as soon as US Air finds and returns my luggage. Luckily I brought my new Cabrinha Crossbow as a carry-on on my flight home. You should check out Mike and Clarissa’s Web site too at YouWereThere.com.

Key West Florida Kiteboarding Pictures