Who the heck am I kidding, there is still winter everywhere, and you’ll freeze your ass of if you go near water. That is why we need to check the best kitemovie from Finland this year, and that is of course “KTE” from the bastards up in the northern parts of our country:

The Snowkite video

It is a 15 minute snowkite video, filmed in Pallas, Oulu and Pori, in Finland. The guys seems to have a lot of fun, and by this time they have probably already forgot all the frozen cheeks, freezing cold snow in their pants and blue fingers caused by the camera, and are enjoying some freshly grilled reindeer and karjalanpiirakka while waiting for the last chunks of Ice to leave the Baltic sea.

Riders:

• Sami Heikkilä
• Juho Kauppila
• Sauli Pisilä
• Jaakko Saarenpää
• Harri Rautava
• Tommi Kallela
• Tero Tikkanen
• Pelkkä Enska
• Acke Salo
• Olli Korvala
• Kasper Hahtonen
• Ilari Maarala

Big up to you guys! And to other kiters in Finland, no pressure, but this is the level for kitemovies from now on. Bring some more!

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Lina kitesurfing in Thailand and Boracay 2013 from Lina Björkskog on Vimeo

Spots in the kitesurfing video

Lina is kitesurfing at three different spots in the video:

• Bulabog Beach Boracay, Philippines - Nice steady winds, allways windy. Also, allways crowdy and a little choppy.
• Seco Island, Philippines - Lonely island in the middle of nowhere. Yo did not see land. There were nothing except wind, sun and water. 3 hour boat ride from the mainland.
• Pak Nam Pran beach, Pran Buri, Thailand.  One of the best kitespots in Thailand. Flat water, but not as windy as we would have liked to.

Girls are getting into kitesurfing now!

In this video, Lina is kitesurfing. Tricks performed are raleys, raley to blind, frontrolls and backrolls, F16, kiteloops, S-bends and Back to toe. There are also some attemtps for back to blind and s-bend to blind. These tricks were the ones that girls usually did in the freestyle competitions in KTA this year, and there have been a lot of improvements in female kitesurfing in the last couple of years now. Girls are starting to ride for real! Check it!

If you feel Swedish today, you could also check out Linas blog about Kitesurfing [Swedish].

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Youri Zoon disqualified at first stop (Dakhla) on PKRA 2013

The world champion Youri Zoon gets disqualified after crashing into another competitor. Himself, he did not agree with the judges desicion, here is what he said:

SO here is the DSQ from my side!

The heat went really well, till the DSQ highest scooring heat of the day i have been told. 
Anyway in the last 30 sec pretty much i saw louis hutter going in and going for a trick, he crashed the trick and i took of just a little down wind of him, at that time the kite was still at 12o clock on his leash.

I was trowing a 317 and landed it clean at that moment louis his kite was at the water and right in front of me no change of avoiding the kite.

In this case was the down wind rider and during the trick i could have no way avoid the kite.

The verdict well rules are rules!

In my opninion , people that make those rules are a bunch idiots that don,t have the experience on the water!! 

Do we wanna live by written rules ? im sorry but i dont!

Well lets look it from the bright side now!
Had a really good heat landing a BJ 5 and 317 , conditions where perfect for 11m GP.

And the fact i was going for the highest score of the day does good to me! 

Cheers and have a good one. It,s time to go big in the doubles!

Im ready! 

- Youri Zoon on Facebook.

More action at the Dakhla stop of PKRA 2013

Yep, it does not stop there. In the semifinals, Alex Pastor broke his leash when landing a trick, and the kite flew away. He then started to swim against land, and when he get there, his biggest rival in the PKRA tour 2013, Youri Zoon gave him a new kite. Alex then took off with the new kite, did four tricks without a leash, landed them all, and won the heat. Amazing riding from Alex Pastor, and great sportsmanship from disqualified Youri Zoon!

Let’s stay tuned for a video from the wave-riding! The results are already clear, Kevin Langaree won the mens division, and his sister Jalou Langaree won the womens division. I heard that their cousin is Ruben Lenten as well. What is upp with that dutch family?

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Videos from Kitesurfing Tour Asia Pranburi

KTA Thailand day 1

KTA Thailand day 2

KTA Thailand day 3

KTA Thailand day 4

KTA Thailand day 5

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Kitesurfing video by Matchu on Cape Verde

Matchu is getting some training for the KSP 2013 season. I think he is one to watch 2013!

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Keep an eye on these things in PKRA 2013

• Wave-riding is in PKRA now. And wave-riders can win 10,000 $ price money. I think we’ll see some amazing wave -action this year!
• Up and coming riders to watch: Christophe Tack, Eudazio Da Silva, Stefan Spiessberger
• New tricks never seen before will most likely be presented
• PKRA events are livestreamed
• Freestyle, Racing and wave-riding are the styles riders compete in.

Stops on the PKRA tour 2013

1. Morocco – Dakhla
2. France
3. Italy
4. Germany
5. Spain – Fuerteventura
6. Morocco – Essaouira
7. Egypt
8. China
9. New Caledonia
10. Australia
11. South Africa

The PKRA press release:

PKRA 2013 starts in a few days in Dakhla

The final event of the 2012 season was one of the most exciting the history of the PKRA. Youri Zoon and Alex Pastor were battling for the world title until the last heat and Karolina Winkowska upset Gisela Pulido and Bruna Kajiya to claim her first world title. It will be interesting to see how the winter training has paid off for everyone and who will claim this first competition. We also saw some innovating moves from Alberto Rondina last year with some technical toe side handle passes, will we see other riders choose to explore these maneuvers or have new moves been perfected? Up and coming riders like Christophe Tack, Eudazio Da Silva, Stefan Spiessberger could also start making waves in the rankings. This is the event where we see who the top guys and girls are and who are the new contenders for a world title. The 2012 season was marked by all the riders really pushing power kiting with excellent execution for both men and women. The PKRA format rewards riders for innovation in riding and we are looking forward to seeing some new tricks or variation of tricks in 2013. The first event is where we will see the latest tricks in kitesurfing and the PKRA will bring them to you Live, in videos and photos every day. 2013 will bring back wave riding on the PKRA and the chance for the riders to claim 10,000$ in prize money and the Dakhla trophy. The wave is a perfect right hand point break with the wind in a side, side-off direction, making it perfect to execute the latest moves in wave kitesurfing and powered turns. The new freestyle judging format with more families will give the riders more opportunities to score points with their favorite tricks and keep pushing the level of kitesurfing on the PKRA. The new software will allow everyone to follow the scores live on the internet and give riders valuable feedback on their performance. Dakhla is one of the top kitesurfing destinations in the world; with a combination of wind, flat water, waves, amazing desert scenery and a very hospitable culture. Everyone is looking forward to the couscous and tagines at Dakhla Attitude and great atmosphere. Go to www.prokitetour.com to see latest news, photos and videos, 2013 is going to be sick!!!

Great action upcoming. Be sure to follow!

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First some spoiling of your Bali-dream:

Oh Bali Bali, the awesome surf- and get-yourself-together-and-find-inner-piece-location of the world. Is all bullshit. Bali is crowded, filled with tourists, mushrooms, prostitution and drugs. The water at the most visited places around Kuta is full of plastic bags, waste and you can’t really see the bottom because of the polluted gray water. That’s part 1, spoiling your vision of the Bali you have seen in movies, check.

This is the famous Kuta Beach on Bali. Dirty as shit. Your Bali-dream crushed. Sorry.

Then, kitesurfing in Bali

We visited Bali for two weeks in February 2013, and I would say that half of the time it was enough wind for kitesurfing with my 9m2. And the wind always picked up in the afternoon. There were also some kites seen almost every day. We kitesurfed only 3 days though, because we wanted to focus on the regular surfing in waves during our short visit. And when kitesurfing, focus on kitesurfing in waves, do not bother using your twintip. I used my 6’3 surfboard.

Video from kitesurfung in Bali:

This is how it looks over there. The video is not mine, cause we did not film any. But it quite clearly shows the waves and wind you can find there.

Spots in Bali suitable for kitesurfing

We stayed in Seminyak, and there it was possible to kite in cross-shore winds. We also visited a few more spots.

• Seminyak: Side- to onshore winds in “our” winter (about Dec-Apr). Quite small and broken waves during hard wind. Quite good for beginners that wants to test kitesurfing in waves. In “our” summer, the winds are offshore, if there are any. Located on the southwest of Bali.
• Canggu. Same wind direction as Seminyak. Bigger and cleaner waves. Fun. In our summer side-off winds, and a lot cleaner waves. Really fun in February when we were there. Located on the southwest of Bali.
• Sanur: Located on the other side, eastern side. That means offshore winds in February when we were there. And flat water near shor, with beautiful green waves further out. Really amazing place to ride waves in offshore winds. A shipwreck on the reef is also included in this business.

I do not feel that any of the well-known surfspots Uluwatu, Padang-Padang, Dreamland or Bingin would have suited for kitesurfing because of their small beaches. And the more professional “real” surfers can have them. I do not think they would have liked kites in their line-up anyway. At the other places described though, there were no problems at all with the local surfers. Many of them seemed interested in kitesurfing as well. And it seems like kitesurfing is becoming more and more common on Bali.

Pictures from kitesurfing at Bali

As I said, we did not shoot any video there. But we snapped a couple of pictures, and here is a few of them:

Would I recommend going to Bali for kitesurfing?

Not really. There are nicer places, with more steady winds. But if you are going to Bali for surfing waves or some “finding-yourself-crap-you-have-seen-in-movies“, bring a kite or two in your checked luggage. You will not need clothes anyway. Thanks for finding time to read my post about kitesurfing in Bali. Now comment!

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Some examples of kitesurfing terminology:

• How big kites are people riding today?
• This is the best kite on the market
• My kite pulls really hard (My kite pulls like a truck)
• Can you give me a launch
• It is picking up isn’t it?
• Where is the wind?
• What size is that?
• I think the wind is enough for me (even if no one else can ride)
• What size kite are you on?
• Can I borrow a pump? I need a pump?
• The lines are tangled.
• Hold my kite.
• Even the worst day at surfing is better than the best day at the office
• Walk of shame (walking back upwind after not being able to ride back)

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Seco Island kitesurfing trip

This is how we did the kitesurfing trip to Seco Island: We started by getting up early in the morning at Boracay, 05:00 to be exact. We headed down to the kitecenter and got our gear. We had booked our kitesurfing trip to Seco some days before in a kitecentre, they have a trip every week if you just check some different centers. We took tricycles to the harbour, and took a boat over to Caticlan. From Caticlan we took jeepneys down to Culasi, a trip that took a little over an hour. In Culasi we took a boat, our sweet Orange Wave.

Nice Philippinian boat that took us to Seco

If it is windy when you go (ie always), you should be prepared of getting wet. The boats are stable, but the waves are really big out there, and a lot of water splashes over the boat. On the way out to the island you drive with the waves, so the splashing is not so hard. On the way back on the other hand, the boat meets every wave with a big splash.

When we had been sitting on the roof of the boat for 2,5 hours, and did not see the land behind us any more, we finally saw a couple of palms sticking up from the water. Seco Island was right ahed.

Seco Island seen from the boat

We unpacked our kites and kiteboards very fast and pumped our kites. The small ones. The wind was 25-30 knots, and I’ve understood that that is the usual situation. There is a reef around the whole island, that makes the water quite flat. And downwind from the island, the water is like a floor. It is really flat and perfect for freestyle tricks. Too bad the wind was a little too strong for that kind of riding, but we managed to boost some big airs anyway.

We kitesurfed until the sunset, and after that there was time for an amazing barbeque with tuna, pork meat, chicken and vegetables that the boat crew grilled. Then we all sat around the campfire enjoying beverages. Since almost everyone on the trip was Scandinaves, the guide had brought extra much alcohol (San Miguel beers and Tanduay rum, who could have guessed that). I wonder where she got those thoughts from? Anyway, when the boat crew had got some amount of Tanduay and Cola, they started entertaining. There were some dancing, captain forward, captain back… You need to go check it yourselves.

Kitesurfing until sunset at Seco Island

There were some windshields to sleep under, but we just slept under kites and watched the stars.

The next morning we got up early and had some breakfast as long as waiting for the tide to get so high that we could ride again. About 9 in the morning we could ride again. Then we kitesurfed until half past twelve, had some lunch, and was about to leave with the boat again. Though there were some delay when the boat had to leave for rescuing another boat that had engine problems and was drifting in the big waves some miles away, on its way back from the luxury islands of Cujo. No problem for us, more time on the island. The boat pulled them back Seco Island, and we could head back home.

On the way back the waves were enormous, and everyone on the boat was soaking wet when arriving to land three hours later. But happy, and very tired. Some of us were also kitesurfing back, but since the wind was blowing against us, they could not make it back to Culasi, and had to head for the shore a little more south, and take tricycles back. They saw a dolphin as well when kitesurfing on the open sea. We did not see any, but a lot of flyfish instead.

Quick facts about Seco Island and kitesurfing there

• Seco Island is located 45 kilometers west from the big Panay island.
• With boat it takes about 2-4 hours, depending on the wind.
• There is no toilet, no shower, no electricity, no buildings, no phone coverage, there is litterally nothing else than sand, sun and wind on Seco.
• If you want to sleep more comfortable, you can also hire a big catamaran and sail all the way from Boracay. That would have made living a lot more comfortable, and you can probably stay a lot longer. But it is also a lot more expensive.
• The price for a kitesurfing trip to Seco island was 7500 php for one night, and 8500 for two or three nights. A little pricy I think, but still totally worth it.
• You will also see some fisherman on Seco, where they go for eating and drying their fish.

Seco islands on Google maps:

As you see, it is not even visible. That means it is really small.

Comfortable living at Seco Island?

As said, there are nothing that is even close to comfortable living (toilets and shit) on Seco Island, but there were some russians that had found out how to do for being able to spend some more time on Seco Island, the answer was hiring a luxury Catamaran and sail all the way from Boracay, and stay in the floating apartment when not kitesurfing. I think that was kind of awesome. A catamaran kitesurfing trip cannot be bad. Though, I heard that the catamaran might cost 150$ per day per person to rent. Though, I am not sure, and the russians seemed to enjoy it a lot.

If you want to live comfortable when kitesurfing at Seco, rent a catamaran

Pictures from the Seco kitesurfing trip

Below you find some of the thousand images we took at Seco.

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Facts about the kite-eating-killer-ants

• They are invisible. At least I have not seen any.
• They are fast. Hundreds of holes in a night.
• They likes the leading edge most, because that is the most expensive one.
• They like new kites the most. Old kites tastes like shit, apparently. And are cheaper.
• They mostly eat on one or two places of the bladder. That is good, and makes it easier to fix.

This is what the leading edge bladder looked like after the ant attack. Or the part of the leading edge bladder that the kite docktor had to remove. When putting water in the bladder, you see a lot of damage…

How to save your kite from the kite-eating-killer-ants

• Do not store your kite near garbage or food.
• Do not store your kite on the floor, hang it high!
• Spray insectkilling toxic everywhere on and around the kite.
• Or the most efficient way, do only snowkiting. In minus Celcius degrees.

Picture of the kite eating ants

I have no idea how they look, but I can imagine that they look somewhat like this:

Kite-eating-ant

Anyway, the amazing kitedoctor here at Boracay fixed the kite by removing a part of the bladder, and welding on a new one, and repaired 17 more holes on other parts of the bladder. He has been busy with repairing three of our bars also.

Your kites might not be the most solid ones, but at least they are delicious. -The ant.

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