My Kitesurfing World :)

BKSA Wavemasters 2010 - Brandon Bay, Ireland

2010-09-29T13:06:00.000+01:00

New Kite and New Trip

2010-02-19T16:51:00.003Z

Going to South Africa to kite my socks off and learn as many new tricks as possible from a super star pro kiter Jo Wilson. Can't wait to meet her and hit the water to train hard with new kite friends! :-) Check out her coaching dates and holidays at http://www.jowilsoncoaching.com/!

Just yesterday got myself a new kite - magic 12m North Evo 2010.
Looking forward to test it in SA and fingers crossed I will love it as much as I love my Rebels!

Only one more sleep! Yay!!!

Happy New Year!!!

2010-01-02T17:18:00.000Z

And the 2009 is over!
Hope 2010 will be only better!
Windier, sunnier, funnier, richer, sexier :-)
Full of travels and kite adventures.

Have a great year!!!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T13:41:00.005Z

Have a very jolly Christmas!!!

I'm spending this special time with my family in Krakow.

There is no snow, so no snowboarding trip this year :-(

Christmas Market in Kraków Old Town - Main Square:

My lovely nieces Natalia and Hania:

Busy Bee

2009-12-15T10:18:00.006Z

Last session in Belmullet on icy cold lake, 15th November 09

So not much kiting time since we came back from Brazil...
Busy in work, windless weekends, freezing cold - time to plan another kite holiday!

Yay for First Raileys!!!

2009-10-14T11:53:00.002+01:00

Finally!!!

I know it's not perfect but after 4 months of non kiteing and minding my poor ankle I'm delighted to go that far! ;-)

Yay for raileys! Yay for my new kites and super bars! Yay for Brazil baby! ;-)

Session in Sutton on Sunday 11th Oct 09

2009-10-12T10:20:00.002+01:00

IMG_7830, originally uploaded by FiacreG.

IMG_7831 copy

2009-10-12T10:19:00.003+01:00

IMG_7831 copy, originally uploaded by FiacreG.

IMG_7812

2009-10-12T10:19:00.001+01:00

IMG_7812, originally uploaded by FiacreG.

Romantic Kite Trip - Brazil 2009

2009-10-10T12:13:00.007+01:00

Photos from Guajiru

It was great to be back in sunny and windy Brazil.

Specially after 4 months of not being able to kitesurf and only watching and photographing everyone else having fun!

Ankle is still sore and swollen but I'm hoping it will improve over next few months and I won't need any operation.

We started in Guajiru, where choppy waters brought tears to my eyes and big lagoon was closed due to filming of some show... We really enjoyed our luxury stay in Rede Beach Spa Resort! Then moved to pretty Lagoinha, that proved to be a quite tricky kite spot. Next longer stay was in Paracuru, back to the Kite Village :-) Another disappointment - Taiba lagoon was gone... Final destination was Cumbuco and we were really happy there! Brazil is amazing and we are only hoping to be back next year!

Lagoinha

2009-10-10T12:00:00.005+01:00

Paracuru

2009-10-10T11:45:00.005+01:00

Cumbuco

2009-10-10T11:30:00.004+01:00

2010 Rebels are Mine!

2009-09-16T14:54:00.003+01:00

Just got a brand new 6m North Rebel 2010!!!
The kite arrived this morning to put a big smile on my face :-)
And my new 9m has been with me for about 2 weeks now...
We are off to Brazil this Friday and can't wait to finally use my new kites!!!
So excited!

Ankle is still one big trouble, but the surgeon and physio done as much as they could to get me in the best possible form - I'm allowed to kitesurf but have to take it easy and monitor pain level and any changes in my poor ankle.

To be honest I'm hoping for the best, waving away any negative thoughts and just looking forward to finally get on the water after 3 and half months!

Graham in E&D Marine you are a super STAR making sure I have all needed kites for my holiday. Thank you so much!

North Rebel 2010

2009-08-18T09:58:00.010+01:00

New North Rebels 2010 are already in!!!
I have heard great things about 2010 model and orders are already flying in.

To get your hands on these new babies leave your order with

Graham @ E&D Marine - 0868188908

- The best North dealer in Ireland!!!

More info: http://www.northkites.com/public/content/e135/e150/e6489/informationen/index_ger.html

Specialist Consultation

2009-08-10T16:47:00.002+01:00

Sports Surgery Clinic is a very impressive but unfortunately private hospital.
Got my appointment and surprisingly the consulting surgeon was a really nice guy talking me through all my ankle trouble. I haven't got good news, but it could be worse... I was able to do an MRI same day and next morning got a phone call from the doctor explaining results of the scan...
..."It's a MASSIVE impact injury"... "HUGE bone bruising"... "VERY LARGE amount of fluid"... "JOINT injections"... "DAMAGED ligaments and tendons"... "6 MOTHS recovery process at best"... "NO IMPACT activities"...

So as you see it's all good. Yeah...
Well he promised he will do everything possible so I can somehow kite at least a little in Brazil, even if constructing a special supporting braces ;-)

This Thursday I'm off to the hospital for the little medical procedure - joint injections... one inside my ankle, one on the tendon... So far I know only that the injections are done under some scan so everything could be seen and that it could be rather painful and I can't drive afterwards...
I'm hoping for some Valium and local anaesthetic!
I suppose I will get more post care information after the treatment. There better not be too much resting!...

Interesting Cute Things

2009-07-20T11:31:00.001+01:00

Baby wetsuit, originally uploaded by Kasia Kite Babe.

Still off the water ;-(
Lots of time for shopping then :-)
Well.... it's mainly window shopping, as the injury turned out to be a rather expensive one.
Just check out this tiny wetsuit!!!
Yep, it's for real!

Absolutely Nothing

2009-07-07T16:52:00.002+01:00

Still off the water, sore and swollen... so nothing interesting to blog about ;-(

Well, not entirely true... there is some exciting news - booked flights to Brazil!

Hope to be back in action in about 3 weeks and in my top form for kitesurfing holidays! :-)
Keeping fit at the moment - gym and swimming almost every day, working hard to get my ankle as strong as possible.

Freaky Accident

2009-06-07T14:32:00.004+01:00

Unfortunately I'm a victim of yet another kitesurfing injury... I hardly can't believe I managed to bust my ankle so badly!

Went to Streedagh on Saturday afternoon and arrived just in time for a late session on the lagoon.

Almost 2 hours of fun later the water started getting too shallow - the tide was on the way out... After having a great session and busting myself trying all sorts of tricks I decided to take it easy and with 2-3 more tacks just ride upwind to get back to the shore.

I wish I could say I went for some mad megaloop trick but it was just a small jump transition I was going to do... well it didn't work that way ;-( My micro loop got unintentionally hooked in and with already lots of power on my 9m I got super powered up and lifted quite high. I wasn't floating, I was being pulled by a truck with no breaks and no steering... At some stage I remember being higher than my kite and knowing this is going to end badly -fortunately I managed to kick off my board but landed very hard on my right foot and immediately felt unreal pain. I have no idea how it didn't get broken!!!

Thanks to all friends and kind strangers I was quickly rescued.

Amanda was first running through the water in her dry clothes, somebody else went after my kite and board, then guys run with a surfboard and got me to the shore. There was hot tea, lots of blankets, hugs and compassion. Nailer called an ambulance and within 40 min paramedics were on the beach looking after my ankle and making me all better with the laughing gas. Suddenly the pain was bearable and world was full of love and I was even able to giggle (!) a bit - great stuff!!!

I'm off to physio soon and hoping the recovery will be speedy even if painful.

New Board

2009-05-25T11:41:00.009+01:00

I just got myself a new board!!!

She is a lovely addition my my kitesurfing family, just look at this beautiful top performer:

She also came with new pro foot pads and they are super comfy! Pro pads are standard fitting in all new NHP boards (666)

I already had 2 sessions on my new board and I think it's the best board ever! Really loving it!

Get yours from Graham in E&D Marine (0868188908)

Girls Weekend in Banna 22-24 May

2009-05-24T23:26:00.000+01:00

We were blessed with the weather - sunny, warm and windy enough to get wet three day in the row! Great session on Friday and amazing conditions on Sunday, very light on Saturday.
Mel went out with me to try unhooked kiteloops... wow!!! It was fun in 10 knots on Sat - should had tried with the board on! ;-) More scary on 9m on today... couldn't reach back to grab the bar with the front hand...
Will definitely give it another go on 12m in very light winds...

Rush

2009-05-18T10:08:00.003+01:00

Saturday was a family day, but Sunday was our play day! ;-)
Since the wind was forecasted to drop right off around 1pm I dragged Gavin out of the bed early-ish and hit the road to Rush to meet up with Aoife. It was lashing rain all the way in but the moment we drove onto the beach the sun came out and decided to shine for us for good few hours. What a surprise! Wind was steady and strong - super powered up on my 9m but loving it!
Unfortunately by the time Amanda and Derek arrived around 4pm the wind was almost gone and rain was once again in heavy action... The second session was painful!
Went out to see Sinead and Sean and their beautiful house and met there Mairead with Vinnie and their cutest baby girl Ava! It was great to end the weekend going out for a bite to eat with friends!
Roll on next weekend - girls going wet and wild in Kerry!

Windy afternoons on Dolly

2009-05-14T09:42:00.002+01:00

3 evening sessions on Dolly 3 days in the row!!! ;-)
Mon and Tue was 6m weather and very punchy, busy beach with lots of kitesurfers enjoying sunshine and high winds. Not the weather to try anything again...
Yesterday I ventured on my own and met up with Amanda and Derek on the beach.
It was foggy and rainy but really steady and lighter wind - perfect weather for my powerful 9m!
Only 6 kites on the water!!!
Spend few minutes having fun and then an hour an half killing myself trying to do a raley.
Out of over 30 landed 3 and I'm not sure if they looked anything like a raley at all...
Definitely no problems with unhooking, holding edge and power and hooking back in, but there must be something terribly wrong with my pop! Every time I crash is because I can't get high enough to be able to land and I'm ending up flat on my face/belly... It's either a kite a little bit too low or a bad pop!
Need to figure it out!

Achill - IKSA gathering...

2009-04-29T09:33:00.003+01:00

... didn't really happen.

First it supposed to be a comp, then due to some insurance trouble it was turned into gathering and all together nobody really bothered to do anything.

Derek, Gavin and I plus Scrappy hit the road on Fri evening, it was long 4 hours on pretty bad roads but we made it on time for a quick drink in a local pub, followed by many more in the camper. Julie and Nailer joined us after 1 am! ;-)
On Sat morning wind was blowing like mad and from North so we drove to Doogart. Very pretty beach! 32 knots plus isn't my favourite weather but I pumped my 6m Rebel and went out for a blast, wind suddenly started to drop off and there was no more worries of being overpowered.
By the evening wind was gone all together to completely change direction and come back very strong on Sunday morning. This time we went on the lake and I'm kind of proud I survived ;-)
Started almost crashing into the camper - launching on the wet grass can be tricky!!!
I would say guys had a good laugh watching me struggling to hang on to my kite for 2 hours... When I got too tired and too cold, thy decided to got out and the wind dropped right off - big kites weather! I got to admit I was a bit jealous watching them going on the slider...

It was fun weekend but rather cold and now I'm paying the price for freezing on the beach doing Gavin's line and kite - chest infection and dose of antibiotics! ;-(

No Booties No More!!! :-)

2009-04-20T07:44:00.001+01:00

Flying High 4, originally uploaded by Sin Light.

The weather last weekend was gorgeous - warm and sunny, of course the most important element was missing - wind!
But we got very lucky yesterday afternoon, a sea breeze (?) kicked in around 3pm. It was all very light winds but I had a blast on my lovely 12m North Rebel for 4 hours!
I'm wrecked and sun burnt today!

Thanks for the photos "Sin Light"!

Easter on Dolly - Photos from Slawek

2009-04-14T09:49:00.000+01:00

Above toeside to my right, below toeside my my left - finally riding toeside both directions! ;-) Why I never tried before? No idea!!!

Kiteloops....

2009-04-12T23:08:00.000+01:00

What a great day! Again wind and sunshine on Dolly! Perfect 9m weather ;-)
As expected raleys didn't came to me as a natural progression from unhooking.... hmmmm.... there was a lot of crashing and loosing the board and probably freaking out everyone else around.

After a while I just settled for a nice session doing the stuff I know I can do and just enjoying it.

Towards the end when only Oscar and I were left on the water I decided to go for it and try my very first kiteloop....
Now I know these things:
- It hurts like hell when you chicken out half way trough
- the impact vest is a must have
- adrenaline rush is enormous

Well, I just say first time I tried I was well above my kite and got so scared I stop pulling, kite hit the water and I dropped like a stone hitting very hard... Would never do it again!
I made only 3 attempts and I didn't land any, but it was fun trying.

Unhooked

2009-04-11T22:48:00.001+01:00

Finally sorted out that unhooking business!
Now it's time to start popping the raleys...
Why do I feel it won't be as easy as it sounds and definitely very entertaining to any bystanders ;-)

Dolly was great this evening - tide out, 12m weather, sunny and only 5 people out on the water!!! UNREAL
Got a heel to toeside downloop transition very first time I tried, made me smile for the rest of the day.

Hope we will get some wind tomorrow and on Monday.

Going to bed now, so tired!

Pop!

2009-04-06T11:38:00.003+01:00

Great conditions on Dollymount yesterday - tide out, shallow water, big flat sections, kickers in the back and steady 20 knots - perfect 9m weather!
Dedicated my session to POP, I'm so bad at it I decided to get it sorted before attempting a raley... I think I got better! ;-) Felt like flying hooked in raleys and landing almost every time.
Unfortunately my board decided not to cooperate and I lost my right toeside fin resulting in a spectacular faceplant during downloop toeside turn....
I love my board but I think this fin is becoming permanent and impossible to solve problem... :-(((
Got a loan on Nika's Fone Trax - Dziekuje Ci Dominika!!!!
It's a very nice board, light, fast and easy to ride but I still prefer my Nobile 666. Nobile rocks!

Winter Sessions

2009-03-30T13:03:00.004+01:00

After long time of no kiting at all I finally got out and what more I had kite sessions 3 weekends in a row!

Conditions were pretty good in Sligo at IKSA AGM during Paddy's weekend, so we decided to come back weekend after. Gavin drove us to Enniscrone on Friday night, unfortunately due to lack of wind we didn't kitesurf in that lovely and new to us spot and left for Rosses Point on Saturday afternoon... Sunday was much better day and we both got out.

Last weekend we stayed around Dublin and enjoyed seeing our friends. It was very cold but with strong North winds on Saturday so with little hangovers after Marty's party we headed for Sutton... Back to small kites - 6m session.
I did well staying out for almost 2 hours until I completely lost feeling in my hands and they looked luminous red... It was FREEZING! No idea how Aleks survived without booties and anything on her head... pure hard core crazy!!!

It's good to be back on the water, but I'm horribly rusty and unfit. It's almost back to basics... ;-)

Fiacre took great shots from the day, I'm not in, but Dominka Kupciw aka Nika is making us kite girls looking good
http://www.flickr.com/photos/xude/sets/72157615948829191/

KITES FOR SALE

2009-03-23T16:07:00.003Z

Have some very good kites for sale, so if you are looking for a cheap gear get in touch.
All kites are complete - each kite comes with it's own bar and lines plus an original kitebag.

2005 Rhino 9m kite and 05 bar in a very good condition, no repairs - €150.

2008 Vegas 12m kite and 08 bar, used only few times - €745.

2008 Vegas 14m kite and 08 bar, hardly ever used, like new - €799.

Prices can be negotiated, specially if you are buying more than one kite!

New Zealand

2009-02-14T02:12:00.000Z

In NZ at the moment and loving it! Haven't kitesurfed yet and still managed to have amazing time!!! This place is just sweet as!!! Kia Ora.

SNOWING

2009-02-03T10:20:00.002Z

It's snowing. For real!!!
Was really tempted to get the car and a piece of rope and take our kiteboards out for a spin on the white powder last night ;-)
But everything is so clean and neatly packed away... Also couldn't imagine Gardai being too impressed with the idea... ;-)
So spend the night beside the fire watching Charlie sniffing, licking and then rolling like a mad thing in the snow instead. Great laugh!

Girls at Pure Magic Christmas Party 2008

2008-12-17T14:29:00.002Z

Parti 038, originally uploaded by neratns_berns.

From left: Jenny, Alexa, Lena, Aoileann, Aleks, Mel, Cathy, Kasia

Aleks' photos from Sunday 14th Dec.
4 Dame Lane.

Girls and Colly at Pure magic Christmas Party 2008

2008-12-17T14:28:00.002Z

Parti 043, originally uploaded by neratns_berns.

Aleks' photos from Sunday 14th Dec.
4 Dame Lane.

Pure Magic Christmas Party 2008

2008-12-17T14:27:00.004Z

Parti 086, originally uploaded by neratns_berns.

Aleks' photos from Sunday 14th Dec.
4 Dame Lane.

November - Non Kitesuring Month!

2008-11-30T20:40:00.002Z

It's official, not even one kitesurfing session in November!
The month passed by without any water time - freezing cold, rainy and no wind or 60 knots +
Arghhh....

BRAZIL

2008-10-14T10:22:00.004+01:00

Finally the time has come!!!
Amanda, Derek, Gavin and I are off to hot, sunny and windy Brazil :)
Meeting up with Julie, Nailer, Dave and James in Paracuru.
After few days we all are moving further North to Ilha do Guajiru and meeting up with another two - Caroline and Ben.
Then off to our final spot - Jeri/Prea.
That's the plan.
Yeeeehaaaaa

And I'm not getting back on the plane until I can unhook! :)

No Luck

2008-10-09T11:15:00.001+01:00

Leaving on Wednesday super early morning.
Should have everything ready, but no... no luck for Kasia!
New footstraps ordered weeks ago still haven't arrived which leaves me with my board as good as no board for our kite holiday in Brazil.
Now I need to spend Tyrella weekend trying to fix something so I can smile again and stop myself from getting a heart attack from all that last minute panic!
As always Catherine from Pure Magic (http://www.puremagic.ie/) is more than helpfull so we should be able to either find just straps that will fit right with pads I already have or find the whole new set fitting my board.
By no way I will be able to make to Tyrella on time for heats on Saturday morning... And there is no way I'm leaving this not sorted and in hope somebody will bring up something that will suit!
I just wish my car wasn't broken so I could go around and do everything I need to do, but my old red granny got very tired 2 months ago and is retired since... And to top everything up Gavin is suffering from an ear infection and is on antibiotics, nasty thing to get just before a long flight and kitesurfing holiday...

I really need a break, I so deserved it!!!

Competition Time!

2008-10-06T14:58:00.003+01:00

Competition in Tyrella this weekend!

I haven't improved or learned anything since the last comp in Achill, buy hey I have to take easy to make sure I'm in one piece and able to go to Brazil!!!

End of Summer...

2008-09-29T11:37:00.003+01:00

I'm so glad we went to Belmullet!

Friday night was lots of fun meeting "Galway Kite Gang" at a bonfire.

Got up before 7am on Saturday morning and enjoyed really good wind until just after 1pm!

Great session! As any normal person would expect it didn't cure my cold at all and I was "dying" at the evening, but hey it was worth it! ;)

Unfortunately I didn't even try to unhook. Wind was directly onshore and I just didn't fancy idea of ending up in electricity lines if anything went wrong...

There is always next time! :)

At the moment I still have lots to learn with hooked in tricks! :) List goes on and on forever but really would like to do one footers, dead-man and frontloop downloop transitions but need to start with a simple backloop transition! ;)

I'm so far behind all the girlies...

THANKS AILISH FOR THE PHOTOS!

Going to Belmullet

2008-09-26T17:08:00.002+01:00

Yeeehaaa. Not much wind forecasted, but thanks to Fionn we are going to Belmullet to catch the last of summer (what summer?).
If I manage to get up at 6.30 on Saturday I may get few good hours on the water :)
Suddenly I feel much better and my nasty cold is not as annoying as it was only few hours ago...
Roll on the weekend!

Kasia by Mike

2008-09-22T11:10:00.001+01:00

MKR_5889_2, originally uploaded by MKR Photo.

IKSA Comp in Achill - 13.09.2008

Achill Competition

2008-09-17T21:43:00.004+01:00

It was a great weekend. Really! Despite horrible weather, no wind forecast and long drive on bad roads I found myself smiling in Achill :)

On Saturday morning the wind was blowing strong enough for 9m kites! Keel lake was very inviting - butter smooth water and constant off-shore wind with no gust at all!

Due to some organization problems the comp didn't kick off until 2pm and by that time wind dropped to hardly anything. 12m had to come out of the bag :)

5 girls registered and we were divided into 2 heats - I got in the first one with Cat and Aleks, Nika and Jenny were in the second heat.

I really kited my socks off and done the best I could but had no chances to go through with Aleks doing unhooked tricks. Just before the end of our heat I decided to go for double backloop and crashed it badly with my kite just falling from the sky... There was no wind at all on the surface and re-lauch was just impossible, the biggest trick of the day was not to drop your kite! ;)

Found myself doing an emergency packdown and swimming back... it took me ages and I was close to tears at some point. Gavin came over on the kayak to check if I was ok, helped a bit and then had to paddle back for his heat...

I just made to the shore on time to sort my lines and pump the kite for the next heat (thanks Fionn for your help - you are a superstar!) The fight between Cat, Jenny and I for the last place in the final. The wind was really non-existed and I had to ride Gavin's old big board, still not able to stay upwind... I really gave all I got and was constantly throwing my little tricks and I got my place in the final, but we haven't got a chance tu run that very last heat!

Jenny got unlucky again, dropped the kite at early stage of the heat - I think I'm feeding my victories on her bad luck...need to start riding better not to feel guilty! Once again I ended up all the way downwind, this time on the other side of the lake and had no choice but walk back... The wind was gone all together. At the bridge a new friend from Achill picked me up and gave me a lift back to the zone - thanks Diarmuid!!!

I missed the heat between Nika and Jenny and still hear everyone raging about Nika's amazing raileys to toeside! Girls have improved so much over past few months, it's just amazing!!! Every time I make a little progress, the others are way ahead of me :) Nika, Aleks and Jenny are all doing unhooked tricks so it's really time to unhook!

I'm on the mission now...

THANKS AILISH FOR THE PHOTOS!

Banna, Co. Kerry - Annual Irish Holiday ;)

2008-09-11T21:53:00.008+01:00

All good things must end and we are back from lovely Banna...

As always we had a great holiday, enjoyed beautiful Banna beach and had a chance to spend some quality time with Graham and Vicky! We even got quite lucky with wind...

Vicky & Graham

Arrived late in night on Friday, parked the bus and straight to bed, next morning we woke up to a windy and sunny day! Couldn't wait to get wet and was on the water before 10am! :) Pumped my 9m and didn't have to change the kite for the whole day. It was quite windy and choppy and I have to say I was riding really bad :( The more I tried the worse it was getting - couldn't land my backloops and frontloops, for some strange reason couldn't properly jump and even managed to loose my balance and faceplant few times on the choppy waves! At some stage got brave enough to try higher jump downloop transitions and I just got dragged by the kite and smashed into the water... had to check if all limbs were still attached to my body! Spend all long super sunny and windy Saturday on the water with no progress at all. Unhooking looks more and more distant...

On Sunday there was not a puff of wind and... Thanks God for that!!! I just couldn't move, I was in so much pain after kitesurfing for the 6h day before I could cry. Vicky was in high spirits and keen to show us some hidden local gems - the little climb to the blow-hole in flip-flops was definitely the highlight of the day!!!

On Monday we were on a wind chasing mission :) Off shore and too light in Banna, not a breath in Trench and Inch, but finally got a session on big kites in Ventry. 12m is getting good use :)Managed to hook up with Sibeal in Dingle and had a best seafood dinner ever! Vicky and GK welcomed us back with the bowls of ice cream before saying good night...

On Tuesday wind arrived in the afternoon and I just had the best session of my life. Will never forget it! We were on the water until we hardly could see anything. The waves were perfect, big-ish with massive flat sections, sun was setting into the ocean behind our backs and moon was shining in front of us. I really had to force myself to get off the water... Was bit underpowered on 6m but really liked the kite. The new bars made quite big difference!

Forecast for Wednsday, our last day was rather strong, solid 25 knots, but...there was almost no wind at all in Banna... Went to Tralee see GK and do more shopping in E&D Marine and went back... Wind finally arrived and we hanged around for a while watching the progress - it seemed to be pretty stable and decided to pump 9m kites just in the case it would pick up. I was really underpowered and almost went back to set up 12m...As well I was just too lazy - the wind came out of nowhere just in seconds and hit us with 40 knots!!! I was really scared, couldn't even touch the bar as was getting lofted, had no way to edge, digging hand in the water wasn't enough and most of the times wasn't even an option, lost the board and couldn't bodydrag to it as instead of being in the water I was in the air... Oh, I never want to repeat this experience... Thanks God Gavin managed to get me the board and then after the fastest and most out of control ride to the beach I was able to test my quick release and then land his kite. Gavin is very lucky to be all right - he had a nasty accident on the beach, and almost lost the finger and the kite...I recon wind must hit 50 knots - no matter how well we sanded our kites they were lifting to the air...

GK arrived after work and hoped on his 6m - it was a day for "big boys with small toys" :)

GK flying high on his 6m Rebel 09

So I left Banna bit disappointed as I arrived with mission to unhook and try new tricks - not enough I hadn't achieved my goals I feel I took few steps back. Only few days left to competition in Achill and I don't know if I will be able to do and land anything... :(

BIG THANK YOU to Vicky and Graham for your hospitality and making our holiday super special!!!

***********

2008-09-02T10:28:00.003+01:00

It was another lazy weekend, as Gavin was stuck in work on Saturday and my car is gone to cars' heaven and all my super stretched maths still show I can't afford to buy a new one :( With all talk about recession it's not a good time to be thinking of any loans... Ah, well back to being "dependent woman"!

Finally exchanged our almost a year old voucher for some goodies in Pure Magic new shop and I even managed to squeeze a short session on my new 12m on Saturday evening. It's a really nice kite in light wind, much faster than older big Rebels and super easy to re-launch. It will definitely travel with me to NZ next year!

Got vaccinated for Brazil this morning, after all e-mails from dr Julie decided to be better safe than sorry ;) Won't be coming back home with yellow fever! Only 6 weeks left, can't wait!!!

But now is time to think about our annual Irish holiday :) Taking 3 days off and having super long weekend starting this Friday evening!!! So far wind doesn't look promising - fingers crossed for a good change in the forecast.

Competitions...

2008-08-27T16:58:00.006+01:00

So Kite Race in Banna, Co. Kerry that supposed to take place next weekend has been cancelled :(
But the competition in Achill has been announced: 11 & 12 September!
Time to stop crashing and start landing! ;)

New babies got some water and sand on!

2008-08-25T15:21:00.004+01:00

Finally got to test my new North Rebel 2009 kites, on the west coast of course! ;)

Went to Lisadell on Saturday afternoon and arrived on time for a late session.
It felt very windy so I pumped a brand new lovely 6m! To be honest I should had pumped 9m, but my heart was set on trying all kites and we knew the wind was to drop off on Sunday.

Out of their bags they look really sweet. One pump system!!! I know why they call it a lazy pump - it took me longer to put my wetsuit on than to pump 12m!
And there is no middle strut! The colours are LOVELY, kites look so pretty !!!
I was laughing at myself as I kept flying my kite very low so I could look at it! :)

Once again they are quite grunty kites.
12m felt very powerful and I will be taking it out in those very light wind days only. I think I could have great sessions in just 12 knots on it. It was too windy to really try it out so I had only few runs. As for the colours it's red and black and everyone (specially boys) just loved the look of it! I think I could see pure desire in their eyes ;)

9m got to be my absolutely favourite kite yet!!! The way it looks just makes me instantly smile - gorgeous connection of mellow grey and intense pink! It felt fantastic on the water, heaps of depower and so stable in the air!!! You can just park it, take your hands of the bar, lean back and enjoy hands free ride :) I'm in love with it, hubby will be jealous! ;)

6m (white and lime) is super fast, I was kind of all over the place with it at the beginning, noticeable change from 7m Rebel 08.

All 3 kites handled gust very well. The jumps felt bit more floaty :)
But I have to say I had trouble landing anything. :( It probably takes me another session or two to get used to new toys and I'm really looking forward to getting 09 bars, may make a little difference.

DA DIRTYSTOPOUT FASHION LAUNCH

2008-08-21T00:30:00.001+01:00

So this evening was the day of the days for Lena! She has worked for it so hard!
Herself and Darcys's were celebrating the launch of their new label DSO Fashion @ the South William Urban Lounge.
I got her invitation and just couldn't miss it! :)

"10 DJ's will delivery the finest tunes from mellowbeats to hot rhythms.Our Graffiti artist gonna bring you closer to the world of stencil art. And the basement gets transformed to our own 'New York styled boutique'where when your are fast enough have the chance to grab some free samples from our freshly printed DSO collection."

My New Babies are Here!!!

2008-08-20T14:26:00.005+01:00

I just got my new Rebels!!!
- 6m - pretty white & lime
- 9m - very fashionable pink & gray
- 12m - solid red/black

09 brand new babies in my hands!!!
I'm so excited -already love them :)))
THANKS GRAHAM!!!
You can order yours in E&D Marine 0868188908

Now I need to pray for some wind! Would love to try them out tonight but won't be able to make to the beach... Fingers crossed for tomorrow and for the weekend!!! YaaaaHaaaa

Party Weekend

2008-08-18T10:31:00.001+01:00

With Pure Magic new shop opening it was a party weekend :)
None kitesurfing done at all....

Wet Bum Checked Landings...

2008-08-11T10:10:00.006+01:00

So we got wind and loads of it in Mayo, same with rain unfortunately :(

For some reason I didn't manage to get a good session on the lake. So ok it was gusty, but it's nothing new to me... just couldn't land anything, every single jump, backloop, frontloop finished with crashing my bum into water! In gusts I was just over rotating , going for triple loops at times and just totally loosing my balance and orientation. 2 full days of it!!! Oh, how embarrassing...:(

Got a good session in the waves on Saturday evening, bit underpowered on my 7m but smiling - it was just beautiful, love kitesurfing and looking at the sunset :)

Played a little with my new toy - camcorder, got some footage from the weekend and now will probably spend many evenings trying to edit and put some half-decent "movie" together. Never done anything like that before so should be fun.... yeah ;)

Belmullet

2008-08-05T12:18:00.007+01:00

hmmm.... it wasn't as good as I remember it from last year. Not sure if I will be so keen to come back soon.

Arrived around 6pm on Sat, just in time for high tide and full lagoon, but the wind was dying off :( Got out on Gavin's 12m Vegas 08 and had it fully powered up to keep going. Even though it was light I really enjoyed that evening session. Busted few nice high jumps, frontrolls, downturn transitions and struggled with backloops on the flat water - just my typical stuff.

Got few tips from Eamon for a Sunday session but wind was too gusty and unpredictable to try looping the kite. Everyone was on 7m and sometimes it was a struggle to hold on to it, few minutes later there was nothing. Tried one footers, almost got one but the majority was wet bum checked with one foot still off the broad :) It's not as easy as it looks.

Riding in the flat water was nice, but the sea side session on Sunday was one of the worst this summer.

Monday turned out to be our relaxing day, no wind but lovely sunshine - went to explore other spots pass Belmullet town and enjoyed surfing/swimming and bbq on Tiraun beach.

Another 2 sessions in the shorty! :)

Dee, thank you for your lovely photos!

Amazing Dolly :) ;)

2008-07-31T11:15:00.005+01:00

So I took afternoon off yesterday. I was singing to myself all in smiles driving on M50 watching trees and any other light objects moving :) Then I got a phone call from Gav...
- Are you on your way?
- yahhh, on M50
- oh... well, I suppose you may as well keep on going then
- what's wrong?
- no wind, just completely died off!

Oh, no!!! Arrived to the empty beach, no single kite in the air, not a breath of wind. Colly was optimistic - "It will pick up!". And it did!!! Within half an hour it was blowing, I was so powered up on 9m I couldn't quite believe it. It didn't feel strong as it was warm and constant, nice SSE wind.
Another absolutely amazing session on Dolly! Started on Gavin's 9m Rebel, then switched to my 7m Rebel.
Finally getting all my frontloops, but not all landings are good - sometimes the mix of popping hard and swinging the kite too aggressively give me almost a heart attack. It's a great buzz but also bit scary to rotate so high up, I don't think I can jump as high as I do when rolling to the front ;) Next time need to work on lighter version, slow my rotation and try to grab the board:)
Got few nice jumps with grabs and was practising my newly learnt downloop transitions and waterstarts . First time tried jump backloops, quite different feeling to just launching off the wave, they are definitely higher and slower. Also very happy to finally attempt jumping to my bad side - first few were awful but then it got bit better, well at least I'm trying...
Still can't get jump transitions and pop transitions, sometimes it works most often it doesn't - popping problems, need to work on it next time!
Was off the water at 7pm, just on time as somebody pull the plug off and wind completely died off for good. So it was a good day and I got lots of it. Moving forward :)

2009 North Rebels

2008-07-25T12:56:00.005+01:00

I'm waiting for 2009 North gear to arrive to Graham in E&D Marine, Tralee.
Had already some sneaky preview - online only.... :) ;)
It looks like there has been huge improvement in the quality and durability of new kites.
Colour scheme and graphics are wicked!
Thank you Graham for putting me on the top of that waiting list! :)
Can't wait to get my hands on new rebels :)

First Downloops

2008-07-21T10:10:00.005+01:00

It was great weekend on the west coast in Co. Mayo! Another 2 days in my short wetsuit, 5 sessions all together this year :)
The wind wasn't at it's strongest - enough to try few frontrolls on Saturday, but hardly enough to do a jump on Sunday...
Since my 12m Vegas 07 is gone I had to be super nice to Gavin to be able to use his 08 gear... landed with his 12 Vegas, while he was on 14m.
Light conditions gave me a chance to try my first loops on Sunday! I "nailed" downloop waterstarts and then downloop slide turns and downloop turns from the toeside. Had lots of fun and couldn't stop smiling! It's good to try new stuff in light winds, now I know how it feels like to fishpole the bar and how the kites goes around, I just couldn't imagine it before! it should be easier to go out and try in real winds :)
The superstar of the weekend was Dee, she did absolutely amazing - from wobbly waterstarts to confidently riding both sides, starting going upwind and trying first turns! She got over the fear of a big kite and was able to relaunch each time. Big snaps for Dee!!!
Amanda was getting her first toeside rides and Caroline was doing heelside to toeside turns!
Girls rulez!!! :)

First Frontloop

2008-07-14T11:35:00.002+01:00

Finally started rolling to the front :)
Got out in Dolly in a lovely sea breeze yesterday afternoon. Nicely powered up on my 12m for over 2 hours! My third session this year in a short wetsuit :)
After a while builded up the courage to try to do a frontroll... Chickened out half way through my few first attempts, but then rolled all the way and landed! With all excitement lost my balance and did a faceplant!!! hahahaha...
Couldn't stop smiling! Unfortunately wind died off and couldn't try anymore. Next time!

Camping in Murvagh, kitesurfing in Mullaghmore

2008-07-07T14:47:00.003+01:00

Another great weekend! The weatherman got it wrong once again :))) Weekend before last, we drove on Sunday to Rossnowlagh and had a wicked session on small kites. Sun was shining and wind blowing constantly high through the whole day, big swell so sweet waves with large flat sections in the front. And the forecast was for lashing rain and no wind, except for 2h of max 15 knots! 3 of us (Nailer, Gavin and I) couldn't fly anything bigger than 7m kites and we stayed on the water till 6pm...
Forecast for last weekend was rain, rain and more rain...and no wind! We went camping with friends for Derek's bday weekend. Enjoyed campfires on both nights - no rain! Went out for the whole day on Saturday in Mullaghmore - great wind and lots of it at the beginning so was able to play with my 7m. Later Gavin let me have his 9m - got few nice jump transitions and backrolls of the waves in both ways :) Sunday wasn't as good, but as we all had a very lazy morning - stayed in bed till 12 and then went shopping we missed most of wind, still got out for a while on 12m...Star of the weekend was Dee - she got great runs and on Sunday she went almost the whole length of the beach!!! Girls rock!

Weekly evening sessions

2008-07-02T10:46:00.002+01:00

TG for Dolly!!!
I had best session ever on that beach last evening, still can't stop smiling. As always I was one of the last off the water - it's so hard to stop when you know it's the last windy evening in the week.
It was truly beautiful to kitesurf looking straight at the sun set... Finally landing most of my backloops and my jumps are getting bigger with smooth landings. Tried to do "big air" transitions -not very succesfull, even thou I send my kite in a new direction and try to land with board downwind I'm loosing all the speed and simply sinking... I know I must be doing something wrong - have to figure it out! Next time need to try frontloops... :)))
I think everyone had great session last night - Dee was practising on her own and getting few runs, Amanda was a total upwind machine - on her own far out in the sea leaning back in her new waist harness and Aleks... she was unhooking and was doing sweet raileys!!! Girls are improving BIG TIME!

Poor Kite Girl her Kite is Sick!

2008-06-30T15:06:00.000+01:00

My favourite kite 7m Rebel is sick... I can't believe this is happening again! It's not dead so I still can fly it but not a happy bunny at all.

Loving Seabreezes

2008-06-16T10:06:00.002+01:00

It was a truly great weekend! Well, maybe not the beginning of it, when Gavin got our wonderly wagoon stuck in the lagoon with the tide coming it... oh, it's forgotten now! :)
Big campfires, yummy food on bbq, lots of friends, warm and sunny weather and... windy! :) Seebreeze arrived on Saturday around 5pm and lasted for 2h! Had a blast on Gavin's 14m and got few jump transitions and bakrolls landed. On Sunday stared blowing around 3pm but very light, went out on my 12m and Oscar's Nobile skimboard - lots of fun, specially in the little waves, but how do you tack on this thing?!?!? :) Wind picked up around 5pm and I was nicely powered up on my 12m and normal board but unfortunately it was directly onshore and with the tide fully in there wasn't enough beach to try anything. Have to leave frontrols for next weekend...

Another windless weekend?

2008-06-13T12:48:00.001+01:00

Forecast doesn't look good... again... what's new? :)
I really miss wind. Would give up sunshine and few degrees for a good session!
Maybe we get lucky in our most windy spot - Belmullet.

More photos from Dee!

2008-06-11T12:47:00.004+01:00

Waiting for wind...

2008-06-10T12:29:00.000+01:00

Another one from Dee! Nika, Kasia, Aleks, Lena

It was great laugh!

2008-06-09T12:07:00.002+01:00

It was the best organised kitesurfing event in Ireland ever!!! :) Pity wind didn't come to play and freestyle heats had to be cancelled. Sea breeze kicked in late on Saturday and it was great to take part in my first kite race - I have to say I had no idea where was the finish line!!! :) Gavin came third - well done babes! Pure Magic never gives up and we had more land based comps on Sunday, like kite pumping...:) Prizes for freestyle were raffled and I got lucky winning 2nd for the Ladies! Jenny has become queen of the bay.
Dee (Deirdre Swan) took some amazing photos, all above are hers!

Typical...

2008-06-06T16:30:00.001+01:00

Big comp tomorrow and absolutely no wind forecasted! :(

Surfing in Kerry

2008-06-04T14:52:00.002+01:00

June Bank Holiday was almost great... sunny, hot, away in beautiful Kerry but...no wind! :(
Were camping in Dumps for 4 days and really enjoyed bbq-s and campfires at the evening. Girls went mad on mojitos!!! I'm the biggest fan :)
Tried to surf... very difficult and awfully hard work, my arms are still sore. Managed to stand up once or twice and wobble for a tiny bit but that's all. Waves on Sunday got big enough - I felt like I was in the washing machine with the highest spin on! :) No doubt - kitesurfing is so much easier!
Surprisingly got a session on Monday! No wind forecasted, boys went to Tralee, Amanda, Scrappy and I chilling out and out of nowhere it started blowing 16knots... Pumped my 12m Vegas and went for a lonely ride. Wind picked up big time and after half an hour i was flying with the depower strap fully pulled in and still overpowered. Would be great for my 7m! But wind lasted only about 2h and by the time boys arrived and Gavin got ready to go out there was not much left for the birthday boy :( It was my very first session in shorty in Ireland!
Oh, by the way Amanda is a total KITE ADDICT now too!!! :)

Dublin Competition!

2008-05-28T15:38:00.002+01:00

Should be great fun! Fingers crossed we will get enough wind this year. See you next weekend on Dolly :)

Did It Anyway!!!

2008-05-26T19:13:00.001+01:00

So I wasn't allowed to go out last weekend...
On Friday afternoon got a phone call from Derek - "it's honking on Dolly!!!" and there was no wind forecasted at all. Packed the camera and Mr. Charls and went along with Gavin to take few photos and walk the dog :) It was really strong. Amanda on 6m! Gavin and Derek on 9m, all small kites around and due to bad forecast not too many people around. It was killing me to watch them having fun! :)

Saturday stayed in bed and took it easy, showed our faces in Skerries around 3pm, but the tide was all way in and wind didn't feel strong enough. Girly chitty-chat on the beach, while men were making a "serious" decision where to move next... Went to Bettystown. Pleasant surprise! Wind was really good there - clean and strong, tide all the way in, so big chop and deep water. I just couldn't resist, I think I would be cranky as a hell if I didn't go out!!! Had absolutely great session! I think regardless of conditions, first session after any break / time of the water is the best thing ever! I really enjoyed it and just couldn't stop... Got home for 10pm :)

Trees were moving all the way to Dublin on Sunday - good sign! Arrived to Sutton around 12.30 and met only Nika and Eamon on the beach. It was blowing really hard, high twenties with gust over 30 knots. It was great to see smiling Nika with her powerful 6m checking out the conditions. If she can go, so can I - no arguing Gavin please! And that comment about close-by hospitals wasn't uplifting either :))) Had to take it easy as ankle was a little sore after the day before and my body pretty tired from the long session. Was jumping high-ish but almost always with crash landings :( At this stage I have MASTERED bodydragging to my board, getting it back on 1 tack :) As day progressed and wind slightly dropped off there was more kiters and friends arriving.

All together had a truly great weekend - it's great to be back on the water! Totally loving my 7m Rebel 08!!!

Went to physiotherapist today and he wasn't surprised at all to hear I went out kitesurfing :) Ankle is good now, still have to do my exercises and take care of it but back to normal! yeeepeee

Injured :(

2008-05-20T10:28:00.003+01:00

Spend last weekend around Dublin, session on Dolly and a great bbq party in Dee & Marty's...
Brilliant weather last Saturday - sunny, warm and... windy! Got to play with my 07 Vegas 12m for over 4 hours :) Tried backrolls to my bad side and got about half of them landed but only because I was getting a nice lift from bigger waves (ferries coming in!) Still can't pop - not at all :((( And too afraid to work the kite - don't want to be kitelooping ....hahahaha
All was good but injured my ankle :( I look like a small elephant now...
Thanks to Cathy for recommending Gerry in the Sports Injuries Clinic in Dunshaughlin. If I'm very lucky I may be back on the water this weekend, will know more after tomorrow's visit!

Rossnowlagh Competition Postponed!

2008-05-14T10:52:00.003+01:00

Due to unfavourable weather forecast the second leg of IKSA Competition in Rossnowlagh has been postponed.

Most "normal" people enjoy sunshine and relatively high temperatures, as the summer weather has recently settled in Ireland. We have rather sad faces, what's good about these lovely sunny days if there is absolutely no wind?!?!?

Arrrggghhh...

Another Windless Girls Kite Weekend

2008-05-13T14:58:00.003+01:00

Wind had disappointed nearly 20 ladies that travelled to Rosses Point in Sligo for Girls Kite Weekend.

Our very intense kitesurfing training plan turned into...

* sleeping

* bitching about lack of wind, our men and other men pulling tricks way too close to us!

* visiting swimming pool, jacuzzi, sauna and steam room (without worrying we are missing a windy day)

* chatting about kitesurfing and sharing our horror stories...

* admiring each other equipment...

* eating, drinking and drinking more :)

* shopping spree in newest surf shop in Bundoran.

* fashion show organised by Lena with a special guest Jennifer :)

* checking out local spots

* boat trip

* hike on Sligo's Mount Everest ;-)

Thanks to Peter from http://www.lsdkiteboarding.com/ for help in organising the event!

Girls Kite Weekend

2008-04-23T13:01:00.002+01:00

Kasia by TonyH

2008-04-23T11:19:00.000+01:00

IMG_8374, originally uploaded by happy kitesurfer.

Mullaghmore - Sunday after comp, April 2008

Kasia by Warren

2008-04-23T11:14:00.001+01:00

IMG_1131_edited-1, originally uploaded by Warren..

Prize giving - IKSA Comp in Mullaghmore - April 2008

With IKSA President - Eddie

Mullaghmore Photos

2008-04-22T12:44:00.010+01:00

After competition was finished and when everyone had gone in search of warm food and drink, Gavin & I enjoyed evening session in Mullaghmore...

Thanks to TonyH for great photos.

*****

Kiedy wszyscy zmykneli z plazy udalismy sie na wieczorna sesje - jedyna dwa kajty na wodzie :)

Mullaghmore Competition

2008-04-22T11:51:00.020+01:00

************
Ladies:
************
1. Dominika Kupciw
2. Aleks Bondareva
3. Kasia Yeates

Men’s Novices:
************
1. Gavin Yeates
2. Stefan Vance
3. Oscar Laguna

Men’s Amateurs:
***************
1. Neil O’Connor
2. Mike Eller
3. Ciaran Dennehy

Men’s Pros:
**********
1. Eamon Armstrong
2. Olivier Coubrun
3. Eddie Hawkins

Thanks to all great photographers that came to Mullaghmore to capture our moments of glory! It was a great start of 2008 Tour.

Many thanks to all involved in organization of Sligo Competition - LSD Kiteboarding, IKSA and volunteers helping on the day.

Another big thanks to our sponsors - great prizes! All girls had big smiles on their faces on Saturday night :) Thanks Jenny for sponsoring Ladies!!!

And finally thanks to all riders that registered and entered the first comp and all spectators and friends.

See you at the next one!

Sponsor of Ladies' prizes:
http://www.jenniferkinnear.com/

First Leg of IKSA Tour 2008 - Competition in Sligo

2008-04-21T10:49:00.001+01:00

IKSA Ladies Representative

2008-04-18T17:13:00.003+01:00

Hi Girls!

I'm your contact in Irish Kite Surfing Association for 2008.
Any ideas, questions or problems let me know!

If you aren't a member yet, please join IKSA at http://www.kitesurf.ie/

Thanks

IMPORTANT UPDATE!!!

I have resigned from the position of IKSA Ladies Representative on 23rd April 2008.
Ashamed I lasted only few months but I found myself in situation that I either had to resign or start loosing friends... All together to face the truth I was never the best candidate for the post! Still very un-experienced in the sport, with no passion for promoting and no interest in getting every possible girl involved in kitesurfing. There are girls out there full of ideas and ready to run the show, I know they will do a truly great job! Good luck

Happy Camper

2008-03-22T11:24:00.000Z

IMG_4609, originally uploaded by Dun1.

Kite Girls & Champagne

2008-03-07T11:29:00.000Z

DSC_0081, originally uploaded by dee.swan.

Celebrating Amanda's Birthday!

Bday Party for Amanda!

2008-03-07T11:28:00.000Z

DSC_0057, originally uploaded by dee.swan.

Amsterdam

Girls! Girls! Girls!

2008-03-07T11:26:00.001Z

DSC_0050, originally uploaded by dee.swan.

Trip to Amsterdam for Amanda's Birthday

Susie, Amanda & Kasia

Xmas Party

2007-12-17T11:32:00.000Z

Xmas Party 034, originally uploaded by neratns_berns.

kitesurfing.ie & Pure Magic bash!

Kasia is 21! (again ;))

2007-11-03T23:40:00.001Z

Thank you Treasa for the photo!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/windsandbreezes/

Kasia by Aleks

2007-09-10T11:38:00.000+01:00

Kasia, originally uploaded by neratns_berns.

IKSA Competition in Rossnowlagh - September 2007

prizes were raffled!

2007-06-12T11:46:00.000+01:00

prizes, originally uploaded by sandysuncream.

Windless IKSA & Pure Magic comp in Dublin - June 2007.
Getting a voucher from Karl to Ozlo Hair Design!
http://www.ozlo.ie/

"It was fun.... now how do we get down???"

2007-06-12T11:43:00.000+01:00

"It was fun.... now how do we get down???", originally uploaded by neratns_berns.

Windless IKSA Comp in Dublin - June 2007

Kasia & Mel

"Look, babes, what I can do!"

2007-06-12T11:42:00.000+01:00

"Look, babes, what I can do!", originally uploaded by neratns_berns.

Windless IKSA Comp in Dublin. June 2007
by Aleks!