November/December 2005 $5.95
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NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2005 $5.95 USA 014LAUNCH Joe Turkiewicz looks to the future of high wind kiting. 018411 ASNEWS.NET begins podcast broadcast weekly. 024SHOPTALK Kiteboarding Hatteras keeps up with Carolina kiters. 040GREECE A Greek Tale of a truly Massive Rail. 028GIRL POWER Searching out new talent in an ever-growing sport is half the fun here at The Kiteboarder. Young Slingshot girls’ kite clinic draws crowd standout Clinton Bolton earned our cover slot after a late afternoon meeting with Senior Staff in Hood River. photographer Jim Semlor. “Clinton is pretty amazing,” said Semlor. “When I checked my cards at home, nearly every sequence was different. He killed it with style points.” 048GREENLAND CROSSING Snowkite family sets Greenland Ice Cap crossing record. 064THE BILLIONAIRE BOARDER Rebel Billionaire Sir Richard Branson sponsors girls’ X-treme team. 070SICK SEQUENCES If you can do these sequences, you’re ready to turn pro. 074ANALYZE THIS Top 10 focus on new gear for the 2005-06 snowkite season. 080ACADEMY The secret to becoming a kiteboarder. 9 I‘ m not so bad ass Photo by Victoria Tap I‘m a KOOK!! If you are like me, then you are sensitive, opinionated and you probably get grumpy if you don’t get your much needed water time. What most people forget is that we are all human and prone to doing stupid things that we seem to repeat over and again. A lot of times we don’t even realize we are even doing anything stupid, or we wouldn’t do it in the first place. I would say, in a nutshell, this sums up me and most of my friends. Usually when problems occur it is due to one person’s stupidity crashing into someone else’s world and wreaking havoc. One simple conversation can make all this go away. So how does this long drawn out analogy equate to kiteboarding? Take a sensitive, opinionated kiteboarder who doesn’t get enough water time, and put him on the beach with a bunch of kiters who get their fix everyday. There is bound to be a problem. You know that random kiteboarder I am describing. Everyone is always quick to spew about the stupid things they do and say, but no one will take the extra ten minutes to say, “Hello.” I have been that idiot kiteboarder who has shown up at a random beach and dropped my kite right where I shouldn’t. Luckily people knew me and were cool about it. However, I see people not being cool to people all the time in similar situations. As a matter of fact, I am going to get on my soap box right now and tell people to start being nicer to each other on our beaches. We are ALL kiteboarders in this sport together. I don’t care if you are a kook or a pro. You need to get over yourself and your chromed-out new kite gear and give the guy or girl next to you respect. You can’t expect anyone to respond very well to being treated like snittzle. I am sick of the all the whining, politics and propaganda on the beach. This is frigging kiteboarding. I am going to go out on a limb here and publicly declare what a kook I am. I can’t do a handlepass. I can’t do a three off a kicker. I do stupid stuff all the time. I don’t mean to, and I am certainly glad no one pins me to a cross for every mistake I make. More importantly, I am glad I haven’t ended up dead from some of my poor judgment. I don’t want to be that old grumpy kiteboarder or windsurfer who doesn’t have anything nice to say about anyone or anything, nor do I want to have to listen to that person’s negativity. So, how do you deal with it? It’s very simple. Be friendly at the beach. If someone is being a jerk to you, do something nice for them. I am not asking you to wash their car or buy them dinner. Offer to launch or land their kite when they least expect it. Sometimes a simple hello is all it takes. In the end, we are all human and a simple conversation and positive attitude can make your beach a nicer place. Ryan Riccitelli, editor EDITOR RYAN RICCITELLI [email protected] ART DIRECTOR JIM SEMLO R SNOW/CREATIVE EDITOR JAMES BRO W N SAFETY EDITOR RIC K IOSSI TOWSURF EDITOR C H U CK PATTERSON ILLUSTRATOR C AR “LOS” PRESTO N EDITORS AT LARGE ALEX RO VIR A, P A UL L A N G EDITORIAL INTERN DEVIN CARROLL, C O RY McFARLA N D SENIOR WRITERS Marina Chang, James Brown, Emi Marino, Buc ky Ashcr of t, Gar y Mar tin, Rick Iossi, Sierra Lake, Oliver Gover s, Jim Semlor EDITORIAL CONSULTANTS Neil Hutchinson, Damien Wright, Joe Bida wid, Lou Wainman, Matt N uzzo, T rip Foreman, Paul Menta, Kevin “Top Hat” Senn, Gregg Gnecco, Jay Crawfor d, Henr y Dupont IV, Sean Driscol, Bill Lee, Jef f Skoll, P aul Lang, Jef f Ho w ard, Cliff Stone, S tefan Ruet her, Jeff Burton, Corky Cullen, John R omais, Br ad Lange, Eric Akisk alian, Ben Wilson CONTRIBUTORS Gregg Gnecco, Gary Martin, Carl Preston, Joe Bida wid, Matt N uzzo, F elix Piv ec, Alexis R o vira, Sierra Lak e, John R omais, Greg N orman Jr., Aar on Sales, Jenn y Dodge, Kyle Touhey, Jon Modica, Da vey Blair , Moe Goold, Bri Chmel, T rip Foreman, Jason Slezak, P aul Lang, Eric Mar c har d, Sar a h M c N air -Landr y, Buster Tronolone, N ate Farran, Emanuela ‘Emi’ Marino SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHERS Jim Semlor, Kim K ern, Sierra Lak e, Matt Cott on, P aul Ja vier , Mic helle Zunig a, Gus Schmiege, Gregg “Tekk o” Gnecco, James Brown, Mor ton Sk oll, Charles Or e ve, Stefan Ruet her, Josh Marinos, Matt Mink, BOK PHOTOGRAPHY John Bilderbac k, Stephen Whitesell, Tracy Kr aft, Jeff Pfeffer, Bill Mielc ke, Charles Or e ve, Clark Mer ritt, Alexis Rovira, Lance Koudele, Dave Tur ner , Bri Chmel, Jimm y Le wis, Gar y Mar tin, Buster Tronolone, Chris T ronolone, Buc ky Ashcr of t, Hugo Ljunber g, Ke n n y Bain, Les Bor e, John Chow , Dic k Gus tafson, Dan Gavere, Kyle Touhey, Buster Tronolone, Matt Cohen, Clark Merritt, Lobo, Chris Tronolone, BOK, Shanna DeVries- Merrill, Matt Cott on, Alexis R o vir a, Boulg ak o w , Kegan Conway, Victoria Tap, Mic helle Zunig a, Graf, Scott Semon, Pier ce Louis, Br endan Richards, ‘Big’ To m Thanks to all editorial and photography contributors for supporting this magazine! SUBSCRIPTIONS [email protected] Get an annual subscription (6 issues) and two 2006 PUBLISHER ADVERTISING SALES MARINA CHANG Kiteboarder Calendars for you and a friend for just $34.99! Marina Chang (805) 459-2373 (National/International) [email protected] Our calendar features 13-months of full color, high quality [email protected] ADMINISTRATIVE/ADVERTISING OFFICE images from around the world. Take advantage of this Kyle Touhey 1356 16th Street Los Osos CA 93402 limited time offer and get The Kiteboarder delivered hot [email protected] CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS off the press with two 2006 Kiteboarder Calendars to help 300 Carlsbad Village Drive Jenny Dodge Suite 108A #238 Carlsbad, CA 92008 [email protected] ring in the new year. Save 57% off regular price. Quantities limited. HOOD RIVER OFFICE 1210 Quinton Street The Dalles Oregon 97058 MOUNTAIN STATES OFFICE 1360 S Ivy Way Denver CO 80224 INTERNET Just 34.99$ for a year’s subscription! www.kbmag.com Published by The Ring Media Inc., dba The Kiteboarder Magazine 12 L DEPARTMENT /$81&+ TURKIEWICZ . The Final Frontier . High Wind Kiting . My van was getting blown side-to-side kiteboarders run back to their pole- consistent setup day-to-day. I quickly Finding room to carve in the swell - all strapless - is what draws as I headed east down to the Gorge. The boarding roots, Turkiewicz is checking the learned I could take that thing into pretty Joe to high wind kiting. Location: Gorge Lens: Jim Semlor Columbia River was frothing, with 30 mph river to see if that new 4 meter kite is going high winds and loved the way it flew, so I west winds ripping down the corridor and to get its first test run in nuclear conditions. filled out the quiver with the 6.3 and 4.9 white caps turning to dust as the wind Its unnerving to think that in two years, and am currently riding the smallest kite continued to build with the dry eastern Turkiewicz has graduated from his first 12 from two summers ago. Oregon heat. Shock waves of 40-45 mph meter kite and directional board to a high - gusts were cruising through, making it wind, strapless style that attracts attention Mad Scientist scary to stand on shore. from the moment you look out on the river. There were so many different boards on I had never seen Joe Turkiewicz kite, but He still rides an ancient Wipika, but the the beach and in the shops; I liked the I had heard the stories and was intrigued to style is all new school. High wind kiting as shape of one board or the rail on another, see him and his passion for high wind he puts it, may be the last frontier to be but I saw a lot of breakage going on too.