Shallow water, no problem... Just don't slow down...

Take a look into the future of kite racing with Johnny Heineken, who's got his hands on one serious bit of kite related kit... 

Foilboarding, hydrofoils, high tech bits of carbonny goodness that are becoming mainstream in the world of sailing since the advent of the hydrofoiling Moths almost 10 years ago now. What's funny is that they're not even new ideas for kiteboarding, in fact the old Carafino boards and air-chair style foils have been used behind kites for over a decade now. 

What has changed however, is the speed range and ease of use of modern foils. The latest foils are incredibly stable, will work at any speed up to the mid 30 knot range and stay foiling as low as around 8 knots (that's 15kmph). This is where the skill comes in, and Johnny Heineken has got that side of things well and truly covered. 

Check this video out, complete tacks, full speed, on the foil. This type of riding has never been seen before with a kite and it's truly a glimpse into the future of kite racing, if the rest of the sailing world is anything to go by. Some have joked that Johnny's been watching too much of the Americas cup racing, in which 72 foot catamarans are sailing around San Francisco harbour several feet out of the water on foils costing in the multi million dollar range. 

This board Johnny's riding is probably somewhere in the $3000-$4000 range, well within the budget of an avid kite racer. Give it a year or so for the build techniques get more developed, and the airfoils to get even more refined, and we'll see plenty of manufacturers pop up with a foil board in their range. It might just be the future of kiteboard racing...