Archive for the ‘kiteboarding-kitesurfing’ Category

Snow Kiting in Switzerland 2009

Monday, August 4th, 2008

Snowkting 2009 courses

Fancy hiting the slopes this winter but with a different aspect on having fun in the snow – check this!!

January 09 Were going SNOWKITING

Snow kiting is one of the fastest growing wintersports around. Using kites to harness the power of the wind you can ski/snowboard across flat ground, uphill and once mastered even soar through the air. No need for lift passes or queues, the possibilities are endless.
Gower kite riders has teamed up with Big Blue Kitesurfing & The Swiss Snowkiting School to offer courses and trips for the complete kite novice or for kiters looking to crossover on to the snow.

The Swiss Snow Kiting School is based on the Simplon Pass which is an ideal learning location for beginners but also offers some challenging slopes for the more advanced. 2.5 hours from Geneva International Airport and 1 hour from Chamonix the school is well connected for short breaks and within easy reach of downhill resorts if the wind doesn’t blow!
snowkiting- simplon pass
The courses are approved by the IKO and are run in accordance with the international snow kiting standards. Courses at all the camps will follow the IKO snow kiter card scheme.

SNOW KITING HOLIDAYS Snow starter courses, IKO Level 1-2 (6-8 hours), all equipment included. (£160)

For those with limited or no kiting skills we can cater a intro lesson – (it really is easy)
Those who can cruise around on the snow with either snowboard or ski to competent blue run level. The Snow Starter course will take you from: How to set-up and fly your power kite, through to all handling skills, equipment choice, location safety, weather, wind and kiting conditions, starting to ride, riding cross and upwind, how to stop and the all important emergency safety procedures.

THOSE WHO KITE


Run over 2 days of 3 hour teaching sessions.
Crossover courses – IKO levels 1-3 (6-8 hours), all equipment included. (£160)

For traction kiters from other fields of the sport, like kite landboarding or kitesurfing. Okay you still need board or ski skills to but you will not need to start from scratch.

All key skills will be covered for you, set-up and pack down in the snow, moving off on your ski’s or board, all the safety knowledge for snow, ice and mountain conditions, plus of course the all important jumping on snow techniques.

Run over 2 days of 3 hour teaching sessions.
Progression sessions – IKO level 3 and beyond. (length dependant on requirement). (Price variable)

These sessions are designed for those of you who have already gained some snow kiting skill. You may be riding, but not turning well or going upwind. You might be ready to start jumping or indeed want to push your jumps on to the next level.

With the progression coaching our instructor will work on the snow kite skills you already have and progress you towards the next level from what ever point you are currently at.
Snowkiting courses
Other variable costs:

Kite Equipment hire £50 per day necessary if you want to do more than 2 days kiting.
Ski and boot hire £69, Snowboard and boot hire £81 for 6 days.
Pick-ups and transfers to downhill skiing. £20 for 5 days.
Ski Pass £30 per day
Accomodation – we are hiring a 10-12 person chalet – cost will be £100 a week Self catering so bring the cooking skills and we’ll have a cook off !
If you are interested please contact: matt@gowerkiteriders.com

QUOTE GKR SKITE

North EVO 2008

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

North EVO 2008
North 2008 EVO, Never before has performance been so easy! Impressive light wind abilities, an enormous range, forgiving flying characteristics and easy bar feeling are just some of the unique features of the new North Evo.
The Evo’s precise steering response always delivers predictable and controlled jumps even if your take-off is not perfect. The innovative Bridge Profile geometry optimizes airflow and gets you up and planing in extremely light air even when the Evo is fully over-sheeted. This profile balances the load distribution around the leading edge which prevents the Evo from ever back-stalling and is the key to it’s acceleration in light wind. With its simple bridle configuration the Evo can be used with a four-line bar or with the 5th Element. In 4 Line mode the Evo is ideal for everyone who favors easy water relaunch and simple handling, while the 5th Element mode additionally stabilizes the kite for optimized performance, direct handling and the best safety. With it’s solid Dacron trailing edge and kevlar reinforcement, the Evo is rigidly constructed for maximum durability even in extreme conditions.
The kites most oftenly used by our instructors are the 9m/10m/12m North EVO . The 9m which has an awesome range and has a really nice turning speed is great for a first time buyer.
The 10 and 12m are slightly more grunty and consistent in their power development the 12 feels more like a 14m ‘C’ kite and is great in light winds.
The size range for the North EVO is 5,7,9,10,12,15 they can be used on a 4 line EVO bar or better still on a 5th Element bar for added safety and performance.
North evo 2008

Gowerkiteriders EVO PKGs
Board choice DRAGON 136 or 145, 5th element bar, Pump, harness and wind meter ALL FOR :
9m kite PKG-£999
10m kite PKG-£1049
12M kite PKG-£1099

North kiteboarding ‘REBEL 2009′ Kite

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

The 2009 Rebel is bashing down the barriers of free-riding and surfing!

North Rebel 2009 kite

The clean, simple 5 line design delivers smooth, reactive steering, extreme resistance to back-stalling when over-sheeted and the most direct bar feedback yet. North’s unique quad strut configuration produces a light weight kite with quick turning and a snappy feel which makes the bigger sizes feel more crispy and lively than ever! The quad strut also helps create a very clean center profile that delivers constant, predictable power for free-ride comfort.The Rebel 09 in my opinion is a kite aimed at People who want a kite that has lots of performance but is easy to fly – Using a small de-power throw will open its potential to Female riders looking for a kite with direct steering but not heavy bar pressure.Although not to my taste is very user friendly in that most people who want a kite to perform well and be used in a big range of conditions will not be dissapointed.
Those with a liking of more freestyle orientatated Kiting- ie: Kite looping, un hooking and Medium bar pressure would suit the New EVO 09 which is an amazing kite bridging the gap between the Vegas and the Rebel.

The Rebel is heavily reinforced with Dacron to take some severe thrashings in the surf and come out in one piece. The combination of decreased weight and a rounder arch helps prevent the Rebel from falling quickly when the lines go slack while surfing making it easier to recover from steering errors.
One pump inflation for added simplicity.
 

north Rebel 09

PRE ORDER YOURS NOW !!!!

kiteboarding Brazil

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

Brazil- land of a kiters true dream, Nuking wind, great food , great nightlife, great girls, great beaches, great surf, great down winders the list goes on.

The lowdown.

Fly into Fortaleza either from Lisbon or Amsterdam – TAP will allow more baggage allowance for all your new kiting toys – you’ll wish you’d brought them all !

Taxi to Cumbuco approx 30 mins cost £15

Plenty of places to stay – try Hotel ‘Santa Fe’ out of town a little but right over the road from the beach.
By all means stay in Cumbuco town itself but the kiting is busy and the nights long- I suppose it depends what your there for.
kiting brazil
From Cumbuco you can decide to chill and kite right out front or explore the coastline down to Caipe lagoon around 2.5 miles downwind of Cumbuco – where you can usually pick up a beach buggy ride back up the beach to Cumbuco.
Brazilian kite coast
If there is a swell running there are usually some fun conditions on the way down and then nail that freestyle trick in butter slick but brown water of Caipe.

If your a real wave addict then a further 2-3 miles down the coast is Pacem Harbour
Good wave riding conditions with flat water sections in between.
From here its Town after sleepy town with some awesome spots for wave junkies and freestyle monsters and all downwind.
The riding potential is un-real and the wind weather is perfect

The Ultimate kite downwinder – Cumbuco to Prea
Kiting prea
As you travel down the coast main ports of call should be :

Caipe lagoon
Taiba lagoon
Paracuru
Lagoinha
Mundau
Baleia
Prea
Jericoacoara
Jericoacoara
However in between these spots there are some awesome spots which I will leave un- named for you to discover yourself.

If you love your kiting- You have got to go to BRAZIL !

Kiteboarding lessons

Tuesday, July 29th, 2008

Kiteboarding has never been so popular with schools all across the U.K offering taster lessons all the way up to zero to hero courses to get you boosting across the water on a kiteboard.
Kiteboarding/ kitesurfing lessons here are unique in that the Gower peninsula is surrounded by beaches so the riding potential is amazing and near enough any wind direction is covered.
Wave riding conditions, flat water lagoons and inlets make it a perfect place to learn or progress in this exciting sport.
During our kite surfing lessons at Gower kite Riders we choose to use North kiteboarding equipment.
The new North evo kites are proving great at getting people hooked into the sport and helping them progress confidently and safely.

North 2008 Evo

Heated wetsuits

Thursday, November 29th, 2007

Ripcurl H bomb wetsuit
Rip Curl’s H-Bomb is the world’s first power heated wetsuit. It’s a wetsuit designed to keep you super-warm by positioning a source of heat on your upper back. This heats your core and allows your body to experience warm blood to your extremities.

The heat is generated by two coated fibre elements positioned on your upper back. The elements conduct electricity that generate the heat which warms the blood. Simple.

The elements are made of fibre – there’s no metal here – so there’s no electromagnetic field generated by any metal component and there’s no metal to corrode when it’s in salt water and you’re in the barrel.

Imagine adding the warmth of the H-Bomb to your current suit type say, a 4/3mm or a 3/2mm to let you surf longer and get more waves, or bend your mind a little further and imagine dropping back to a 2mm E2 for more flexibility without sacrificing warmth.

How hot does it get?

The H-Bomb has two temperature settings…

Low: 50 – 55C (120 – 130F)

High: 60 – 65C (140 – 150F)

A thin layer of neoprene lies between the elements and your back to spread the heat evenly and protect your skin.
It’s an infra red heat with a therapeutic quality usually used to relieve muscle soreness and tension. The first test pilot was 2005 World Championship Tour number 7 Nathan Hedge, who commented “It’s one out of the box, it feels sooo good! You keep really warm, even on the low setting and it just keeps you feeling warm all over throughout. I didn’t want to give it back after the R&D session”.
This may sound like your ideal winter wetsuit but its gonna cost you £600 at least !!
To check out more from Ripcurl’s heated wetsuit go to ripcurl

A much cheaper option is brought to you by HOTSUITS A rechargable heated kidney belt to keep your core warm during Surf or Kitesurfing sessions read on-

Technology
A Hotsuits® Heated Kidney Belt utilises a non-toxic, food grade solution of super-cooled sodium acetate and water sealed inside an ergonomically shaped heat pack. The heat pack takes advantage of the fact that although sodium acetate ‘freezes’ at 54 degrees C, it is happy to remain in a liquid state at temperatures well below that. Pressing the activator button integrated into the pack triggers the process of crystallization, changing the solution from a liquid to a solid state and producing a constant heat which lasts until the solution has fully ‘frozen’ – this usually takes between 45 and 60 minutes.

Dimensions
The Hotsuits® Heated Kidney Belt consists of a high-quality one-size-fits-all soft neoprene waist belt which weighs in at a very lightweight 130g. The actual heat pack is a svelte 260g, 23cm x 13cm x 1.2cm ‘butterfly’ shape.

hotsuits heated kidney belt
Hotsuits Neoprene Belt
The Hotsuits® Heated Kidney Belt in Use

The heat pack is stored in liquid form in a pouch in the neoprene waist belt beneath a standard wetsuit where, due to its small form factor and low weight, it sits virtually unnoticed. When additional heat is required, the user simply pushes the easy-to-find activator through the material of their wetsuit. The process of crystallization begins immediately, which results in a pleasant warming sensation through the lower back and kidneys which gently intensifies over the first few minutes of activation. To maximize comfort and even distribution of the solution as it solidifies, it can be beneficial to massage the heat pack through the wetsuit during the first minute or so.
Recharging the Heat Pack
After use, the solid state sodium acetate in the heat pack can simply be returned to liquid form by placing the heat pack in the reactivation bag supplied, and immersing in a pan of boiling water for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the pan and allow the pack to cool before re-use.

Here @ Gower kite Riders we think this product rocks so stay tuned and let us know if your interested.

Newgale Downwinder 10/11th November

Friday, November 16th, 2007

BB kitesurfing & Gower Kite Riders Downwinder

The downwinder this last weekend was a great success !!

For those that are new to kitesurfing and Downwinders .A Downwinder is a run taken downwind from point A to B and in this case 5 miles in length

The event had been initially marked for 6/7 of October .. but we had to postpone because of a poor wind forecast.

However at 10am on saturday 10th Big blue kitesurfing and Gower Kite Riders briefed the 20 or more riders on the safety of the proposed 5 mile downwinder from Newgale beach to Broadhaven.

With a good wind of 17 knots NW the first 10 riders set off into the big blue supported by 2 Zapcats as safety boat cover.

A great first run with plenty of sunshine piercing through the clouds and supported by Richard and Alan who followed us on land down the coastal road as Taxis to take riders back to Newgale.

With all 10 riders safely on Broadhaven beach after an awesome run which took around an hour the zapcats sped off back up to Newgale beach to re – fuel for the next Run.

By the time the 2nd run started the wind had dropped to around 15knts but all 9 riders managed to successfully cruise downwind to Broadhaven with beaming smiles.

The weather was perfect and we could not have had better wind, Sunday saw the majority of riders who had stayed over enjoying a brief play in a good NW wind and small surf before the switch was thrown around 12 as the wind died.

A big thanks to all who attended and to the ‘South and west wales kitesurfing club’ who supported the event .

If you read this post and want to be included or involved for our next event join the SWWKSC online at (www.kitesurfing.org )

Thanks The Gower Kite Riders Team