Kite Racing World Championships - China (The Movie)
It’s not every day you get to watch a blow by blow of a sailing sport. With the exception of the Americas Cup event in San Francisco earlier this year, sailing is just one of those things that isn’t very interesting to watch for the average punter. But when you put 30 kites, 30 knots of board-speed and three 30cm fins of fury together in China, it makes for some amazing footage.
While China is usually the land of light winds and flat water, this event last month was more a case of hold on tight and keep the board on the water! The first half of the competition was sailed (or kited) in winds around 18 knots, well over the average for the little island of Hainan Island, China. Later in the week winds dropped back to the normal strength of 5-10 knots however, all the while there was a fierce battle between Florian Gruber and Johnny Heineken for the mens championship.
Also big news for the event, was the film crew getting a multi-rotor to acquire aerial footage with. The slightly shakey and ever present (even below eye level) aerial footage take a little getting used to, but when it works, it really works! There’s one shot of the entire bay, littered with kites screaming along, a marker buoy clear in the distance and endless white lines of wake scattered between the start line and the leaders. That’s what kite racing is all about, and for the first time it’s shared with you at home!
Check out the footage below, and before you think ‘it’ll never happen to me’, try a raceboard for yourself! 12 months ago the guys from Australia who were racing still couldn’t get around a course without falling off. Now, they’re trekking all over the world at the front of the pack!
Byron Bay, NSW
