We thought it was about time to write a liitle about North kiteboarding’s new ‘GONZALES’ BOARD
The North Gonzales is a true all-terrain machine. Medium width and soft forgiving flex the North Gonzales is a great free-ride board with plenty of comfort for cruising and jumping.
It is a cruisey twin-tip at heart, great for every-day riding and comes in 3 sizes 135, 143, 151.
The Unique design features such as rounded rails, soft flex and special carving fins makes the North Gonzales a great board for getting up and riding as soon as possible, the 151cm is a great light wind board but can also handle the heat – as personally tested in 30knots!
The control is further enhanced by a wood sandwich construction and soft flex characteristics which seem to let the board handle the conditions if the wind picks up and also take soft landings on big jumps.
Small swept fins give you endless grip and very little drag to rip high speed carves in flat water and waves and the new footpads are very comfortable and also easily adjustable.
The North Gonzales is a great freeriding board, even in the toughest conditions, the North Gonzales makes riding easier and lets you focus on just getting out and riding!
We were all really shocked when we tried the board for the first time – The Gonzales is a really good board ! and at a fantastic price we were wondering if North made a mistake, They haven’t! they’ve got it all right this year the North Gonzales is a great board for all riders.
Buy your North Gonzales here GKR SHOP
Temperatures got as low as -7 in parts of Swansea and the Gower over the last week or two.That didnt stop us from getting out and enjoying some great flat water Stand up paddleboarding on the River Tawe up to the new Copper quarter ipad developments
You wouldnt want to fall in as the river Tawe temp was a chilly 4 degrees colder than the Sea, still with ION WETSUIT Accessories on hand to make the possible slip into the icy depths alot more bearable it was great !.
Men’s Health Canal Challenge 2008
On the 16th December 2008 ‘Canal Walk’ nestled beneath the world famous Table Mountain came alive for Stand UP paddleboard racing at it’s best as 45 of South Africa’s Top Male, Female and junior paddlers battled it out to win this prestigious event.
With a price worth R10 000 from Men’s Health and sponsorship put on from COREBAN the racing was Red Hot..!
SUP gower/GKR rider ‘Jason bighair bergin’ away on his winter kite pilgrimage was there to take part and finished a very respectful 4th overall in both the sprints and distance paddling.
The great thing about the day is that all proceeds were donated towards Ikahya Le Themba a non profit organization supporting Aids orphans. A race with a cause!
The day was perfect in all aspects. Summer sun with a light breeze to keep everybody cool. The racing was red hot with the Ladies 1.5km endurance race up first followed by the Juniors. The Men battled it out with a 2km endurance race followed by man on man heats to determine the ultimate winner of the Men’s Health Canal Challenge.
This is what Jason had to say ” the day was a great experience ! We are hoping to bring the Mens Health SUP challenge to the U.K in locations such as Bath NE somerset (avon) and Swansea south wales (Tawe)” Well done jas, a happy new year to you !!
Progression Kite Landboarding Beginner is primarily aimed at people with some existing kite flying experience, whether that’s as a kitesurfer, power kiter or existing novice kite landboarder. We aim to give you all the background on the sport, safety, locations and conditions before getting up and riding on the board and slowing down and stopping. Then we’ll refine your stance, building your confidence so you can stay upwind consistently. Then its on to sliding, riding toeside and your first turns, before working on carving turns. Finally we take you through every aspect of jumping – from the absolute basics, small jumps, improved technique for those hugh boasting jumps, then a few grabs and finally aerial transitions.
Progression is all about helping you learn safer and quicker but with a deeper understanding of the core techniques, so you can continue to improve and have fun. A Progression DVD is not something to watch from start to finish, but a tool to dip in and out of as you improve, ready to give you the confidence to tackle the next step with ease. For Power Kiting enthusiasts, Kite Landboarding is the obvious next step, taking your existing kites and skill, adding a board and giving you the opportunity for speed, distance and jumps. Progression Kite Landboarding Beginner will help you understand how to adapt your kite skills to those required to power a landboard and all the technique so you handle the wheels under your feet.
With lots of large open beaches on the Gower peninsula ideal for kite landboarding and kiteboarding why not introduce yourself to the world of kitesports. Gower Kite landboarders have courses from an hour to 3 hours to get you comfortable with a powerkite and ready to move onto the kite mountainboard.The Progression Fatsand DVD’s is an excellent tool to watch alongside your kite land boarding progression. see our courses and equipment sale here
For Mountain Boarders here’s your chance to boost massive airs and you won’t need a hill or any ramps! Just get yourself a kite, learn the basic kite skills and Prog KLB Beginner will get you up and riding, helping you change your stance and board technique to adapt to the needs of kite landboarding
We’ll be testing our new waterproof Olympus 1030 SW on and off the water so keep checking back for photos and movies of Paddlesurfing around the Gower.
Reports from us are “Its great’ it does the lot in one kite, fanatastic in waves on a 4 line evo bar, ultra stable and safe on a 5 line bar, sits stable in the w.window with a predictable pull and smooth power delivery, great for freestyle and un hooking with ease- with no back stalling! Be sure to test a Evo 09 as you new years resolution!
Evo 08 vs Evo 09
A slighty more refined version than the 08 Evo with better high end wind range, faster turning and less bar pressure in the larger sizes
North say :
Good Light Wind Performance
- C-Oriented Feeling
- Super Stable in The Air
- Auto Relaunch
- 4- or 5-Line Compatible
- Sizes: 6 / 7 / 9 / 10 / 12 / 14
Looking for the perfect gift for your sweetie, brother, sister mum or dad.
Gower kiteriders is here ready to help you make this christmas a great one even if your wallet has shrunk a little
We have ‘gift vouchers’ offering all our courses and various gifts for the ideal kitesurfing gifts.
Why not purchase a Powerkite alongside a 1 day kitesurfing introduction course to help build kite skills before course commencement !
Powerkites are the perfect christmas gift for the extreme adrenaline driven individual. There are various sizes and models to choose from. A 2 metre kite will be fun in a moderate wind, A 3 metre kite will get the whole family warmed up and eager for more kiting experience.
Why not consider one of our Kite landboarding packages ideal for those who have flown a powerkite before or want to try something extreme and relatively easy to master. Click here for more details
Luxury kite surfing accomodation ? what does that mean
Well, next year Gower kiteriders will be offering weekend breaks including kite surfing lessons and Accomodation in a luxury cottage with a Hot tub, real fire, Fresh towels and all the mod cons.
What better way to reflect on your adrenaline packed day than a soak in the cottages Japanese/ tropical Hot tub styled garden.Then cooking some tasty food in the cool kitchen or eating out in one of Mumbles fine restaurants is next on the agenda.
Wake up to the sounds of sea gulls and your own sea view, there is even a large deck for washing your equipment.
Stay tuned in for more details, pictures and package prices coming in 2009
For 2009 we have completely re-worked the Vegas to cover a wider range of conditions and riding styles than ever before! A slightly lower aspect ratio and wider wing tips means very constant pull, extremely tight kite loops and improved low end grunt to please the C-kite lover in you. The 09 Vegas features our new 3 in one concept: Three different settings that allow you to choose your desired feel for free-ride and new-school at it‘s highest possible performance level. With a quick switch of the line connection point, the 09 Vegas offers the following three setups:
- 5th line Freestyle High Depower setting: Plenty of de-power and the classic Vegas feel you‘ve come to expect! This setting offers the most versatility and is ideal for free/wave riding, jumping and un-hooking.
- 5th line Freestyle / Newschool: Dedicated new-school feel, little to no de-power, extremely steady when unhooked and less sensitive to bar input for loaded power moves. All the safety and relaunch benefits of the 5th Element.
- 4 line Freestyle / Newschool. Dedicated new-school/competition setting. Little to no de-power and less sensitive to steering for powered tricks. Four line conversion kit available.
The Kiteboard Pro World Tour KPWT 2008 has come to an end yesterday on the beautiful beach of Essaouira. After a year travelling around the world, 7 events, 5 disciplines, more than 100 riders taking part of the Tour and 190000€ prize money in total , the whole caravan of the Tour deserves some time off before next year.
For his 10 year Anniversary, the KPWT had a great season with the arrival of new kiteboarding stars. Congratulations to our 2008 KPWT Overall World Champions Jesse RICHMAN from Hawaii and Ania GRZELINSKA from Poland. They are new comers on the Tour and they really made the sport improve a lot in terms of style and performance.
Many thanks to our sponsors, our local organizers and all the riders who follow the Kiteboard Pro World Tour.
Some surprises and new venues are planned for the future. So get connected and follow the news of the Kiteboard Pro World Tour!
WAVE MASTERS
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MEN
1 Mitu MONTEIRO (CV) – F-One
2 Abel LAGO (SPA) – RRD
3 Jan Marcos RIVERAS (RD) – Starkites
4 Jesse RICHMAN (US) – Cabrinha
WOMEN
Congratulations to Wales’ own Kirsty Jones who won the Womens overall Wave masters championship- Well done Kirsty!
1 Kirsty JONES (UK) – Flexifoil
2 Ania GRZELINSKA (POL) – North Kiteboarding
3 Kari SCHIBEVAAG (NOR) – Ozone
4 Ainhoa GARCIA (SPA) – Airush
