From desert adventures, to deserted South African coasts, to serious, next-gen chargers who will be the names you'll soon know well… The KiteMag #26 is back with the good stuff.
Here's a taste:
THE END OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
“It turned out that what had looked pretty perfect in our heads happened to be the dodgiest spot… It was way down south so was super sharky, the wind was strong onshore, and there was a train track and some live power lines on the beach… But we were there and – with that much going on visually – the photos would be sick.”
Dirty Habits' own Graham Howes gets the hell outta Dodge (Cape Town) and heads south on a week-long strike mission with Nick Jacobsen in the passenger seat…
BAPTISM OF FIRE
“There were some giant sets and Olivia was fearless. When the biggest set of the day rolled through I jokingly yelled for her to go on the biggest one. To my surprise she didn’t hesitate. She spun around and put her head down. I saw her kick out in the channel and I could tell she was addicted. Later on that day she fell on a big wave, ditched her kite and had to swim a mile to the beach.”
With the help and guidance of Patri McLaughlin, Olivia Jenkins joins the select pantheon of kiteboarding's true big wave chargers..
MY BEACH: SAM LIGHT
“Hayling has made me the person I am, from sailing, to skateboarding, to golf. It’s all right there on my doorstep. I travel all over the world to the best kitesurfing places and still on its day you can’t beat Hayling, it ticks all the boxes!”
In a new slot for TheKiteMag, we hear about the spots where todays pro kiteboarders first honed their craft… Sam Light kicks it off by singing the praises of Hayling Island.
IN THE PIPELINE: OCEAN RODEO
Ocean Rodeo aren't ones to release a kite lightly… it's a long and extremely thorough process with that crew. So when they drop a whole new-generation range, everyone should sit up and take notice. We've got all the news…
TANGLED LINES: JERRIE VAN DE KOP
“I think being tall and strong is actually an advantage in strong wind. Also, Dutch kiteboarders are used to difficult and unpredictable conditions. Here in Holland we have all types of conditions and spots to go to. Most of them are choppy and gusty. Then as soon as we head to a spot with easy or close to perfect conditions, it is easier for us to perform…”
RRD rider and Big Air authority, Jerrie van de Kop nails down the reason why the Dutch seem to dominate when it comes to going huge…
KINGS OF THE DESERT
“When we got there we could already see waves peeling from the outside, wind was blowing in a side off direction. A little scream of excitement escaped from our mouths. We rigged up as fast as possible and we enjoyed the 500m long wave over and over again for more then two and a half hours.”
Clearly, Jalou Langeree and Roderick Pijls filled their time prior to the GKA event in Dakhla wisely…
UNLEASHED FROM THE LENS: JASON WOLCOTT
“Since he admitted to being a pro sponger, I held that against him and wouldn’t let him near the water with a kite until he was staying upwind on my kite buggy and two line foils. He gave me payback by power sliding through the dead seals that were rotting on the beach. I had to keep the buggy in the van I was living in which wasn’t a very pleasant experience.”
Wes Matweyew, long-time compadré of maestro photographer and all-round waterman Jason Wolcott fills us in on what makes the guy tick, and then puts some Qs to the lensman himself…
PROFILE: ANGELY BOUILLOT
“At first I think I’m a little nervous, then little by little the pleasure takes over and as soon as I start jumping, it’s gone, nothing stops me and the confidence increases… It’s just a matter of getting started without thinking about what will follow! So only the jump followed by the ecstasy of freefall counts…”
Look out KOTA 2019: A new Big Air charger is fine-tuning her game.
We find out what gets Angely Bouillot so damn high…
TECHNIQUE
Both Jesse Richman and Linus Erdmann (seen here) offload some of their learned wisdom in the water, with respective lessons on how to sneak a barrel and pull a Railey Tailgrab Backside 180…
HARNESS BUYER'S GUIDE 2018
Wondering what the best harness is to lash yourself to your kite with? Wonder no more, with our selection of the very best…
NEW SUBSCRIBER DEAL
Subscribe now for SIX issues of TheKiteMag, a free TKM tee, AND a Manera ‘Stay Salty' cap at a bargain price. And all of this delivered directly to your door…
And why not practice your kiteloops on www.kitesurfholidays.com…
