OWC

After a long day of traveling, I finally arrived in Orlando, FL.  I met up with Flexifoil rider Billy Parker and we went and hit up OWC.

This is only my second time riding cable and the first was a year and a half ago.  So the break in time was a little longer than I hoped for.  I got some great slider hits, they had a new feature with a transfer in it that was really awesome.  I was really focused on getting some corner tricks dialed.  The cable runs switch so it was a bit of a challenge, I still managed to stomp some sick s-bends and some indy vulcans. I completely forgot how sick cable is, but my body is feeling the burn.

Today we are off to Mc Cormicks cable for another day of destruction, this cable runs regular so I'm hoping for some bangers.  Check back in for some sick cable content.

BVI Photos Part 2

Heres some more of the goods.  There will be a full write up to come when I actually have some down time.  Surfed Cane Garden today solid 6ft+, most amazing waves....check the pics and keep checking back for more

Bombs Away

Full Sale in effect

Norman Island

LF kites overrun the BVI

The Buneaventura...a.k.a home

Tons more to come so keep checking back in.

Real BVI 2010

As I sit on the Moorings dock 10 days after I left, I can say one thing for sure, it was a trip I won't ever forget.  Sailing around the Caribbean is amazing, pull up anchor and off to the next location, the next session.  We scored lots of great days kiting and surfing.  From Norman Island, to Anegada, to Virgin Gorda, to the Baths.  Where didn't we go.  I could not have asked for a more perfect vacation.  Below is the start of the mass posting of photos that will be cranking out of my little computer station.  Hope you enjoy.

Virgin Gorda Day Trip

Sunset of a lifetime

The Baths

As always check out Bryan Elkus' site for the pro grade shit.  Keep checking in here for tons more from Real's BVI 2010.

Anegada

So we've been anchored in Anegada for 2 days now.  The surf at the west end has been going off, tons of great rides, everyone had smiles from ear to ear.  The kiting was great the first day, it was a little light the second day.  Still enough to catch plenty of kiting.  The third day we had no wind so surf in the am, and a bike ride around Anegada to the Cow Bar.  Some nice snorkeling and a great day on the beach.  No photos this time but they will be coming soon. 

Stay tuned in for more BVI shredding!!!!

Real's Team Gettin' some Love

The new issue of Kiteboarding Magazine just dropped and photog extraordinaire Bryan Elkus did it once again. He killed it this month with 6 pages of content.  There's some insane shots of Jason Slezak getting super shacked in Hatteras, Sammy Bell ripping down the line in Peru, Ryan Evans with a great instructional and a killer shot of me that we got at Real this summer. Not to mention all the other ads.  Its been a killer month for all of us at Real.  Check out all the action at www.Bryanelkus.com.

BVI Day 1

Not a bad site to wake up to, the Moorings port on day one.  The port is all hustle and bustle, ships coming in and out.  I cant believe some of the boats in the port, some of them seem larger than life.  I've been assured that these ships arn't anything in comparison to the so called "big" ships, so we will see.  The day started off pretty mellow, we went to a local bakery for some breakfast then the unpacking began.  We unloaded 27 boxes of gear for the trip, the stack of gear was huge.  It took us around 3 hours to get it all unloaded, which earned us a nice long afternoon surf.  We left Road Town headed for The Bomba Shack, a local bar with a great a-frame break right in front.

It felt great to surf in board shorts, the swell was chest to head high, with the occasional overhead set coming through.  The waves were beautiful, mellow and turquoise blue, I've never surfed in such a tropical location....what a great way to start the trip.

After about three hours of surfing, my arms gave in and I paddled in to the bar.  I met up with Stan and the drinking commenced.  The Bomba punch is quite strong and it was a nice way to wrap up the day.  I ended up having one to many, which made for an interesting night and a new nickname "a-wall".  All in all it was a great day, and we haven't even left port yet.

Stay tuned for more to come!!!!

Arrival in the BVI

After a long day of travel, I arrived at the Moorings in Tortola.  The place is insane, super nice setup and amazing sailboats in every direction.  Going to meet up with half of the Real contingent tonight, with the others to follow tomorrow.  Looks like its going to be mellow tonight, tomorrow on the other hand, involves lots of prep for the trip.  It definitely feels nice to have the warm Caribbean winds blowing on my face.  This is going to be one insane trip.

Real Watersports BVI Trip

With the visit to Michigan coming to the end I'm looking forward to the next leg of my travels.  I depart Tuesday morning for Real's 5th annual BVI Trip.  I leave Grand Rapids at 6 am and I arrive in Tortola later that evening.  We will be joined by The whole Real crew: Jason Slezak, Captain Sammy Bell, Matt, Trip, photog extraodinaire Bryan Elkus,  and Stan & Amy.  I'm really looking forward to using all the new 2010 LF Kite gear it looks really good once again.   With all the recent weather all over the U.S. it's going to be a nice break from the cold.

 Check back here or at http://twitter.com/REALWatersports for the most current updates.

Playing With The Kids

Scored a great snowkite session today down at a park near my house.  I've never kited this wind direction at this particular spot and it made for some interesting lines through the various features in the park.  The snow was fresh and about a foot deep, man it was nice to get into powder again.  Not only that it was my first snowkite of the winter season, but my first time back on a kite since my Texas trip.  I was riding my 2010 Liquid Force Hi-Fi 13m and it was working extremely well in the gusty conditions.

I managed to find a hill that made for an impromptu kicker, managed to land a few wake tricks and some very large boosts.  I ran downwind and chased the kids on the sledding hill downwind, they seemed baffled but really excited.  Farther upwind I found another mound of snow that turned out to be a large hip.  Scored some really floaty indy grabs and managed to throw some toeside roll to reverts...felt amazing.

I finished my session with my quads burning, thats what some freshy-fresh will do to you.  Pretty great to be able to have my parents actually see what kiting is all about.  Thanks to Moms for the photos.

Snow Shred Pt. 2

Props to JC for the shots!!

Grand Rapids Snow Shred

After my Nor Cal extravaganza, it was time to return home, Grand Rapids, MI.  It's always nice to see family and friends, but that dosen't mean theres not a session to be had.  Me and my friend Jason hit the streets of G.R. and found a couple of really fun spots.  The first spot was the Wyoming skate park, it's a quarter pipe drop in to a small flat to down rail.  Unfortunately I couldn't get enough speed, so I'm not claimin anything.  The next spot was Hoop City in the ghet, they had a nice two drop line definitely busted my ass quite a few times.  Last but not least was the infamous Fish Ladder rail from our youthful skating days.  Fortunately someone had already built some takeoffs.  The session was on and we got some interesting shots.  Please enjoy.

NorCal and a Visit with the Giants

Bam, the plane touched down in Oakland Bitches! Shuffle of the aluminum tube. bags check, car found, and off we go into the night. After a long mysterious ride, which included a 30 min trek on a windy dirt road, we arrived...in the middle of nowhere. The days spent there consisted of organic food consumption, creek hiking, and drive through trees. The scenery is amazing, misty mountains and spongey moss to pad every step. I even managed to go see the Redwoods in Richardson's Grove, check that one off the life list. Getting some much needed down time was great. No phones, no TV, no distractions. I spent most of the time just realaxing and enjoying the company. After a great time spent in the woods, we departed through San Fransisco via the Golden Gate Bridge....check that one I guess too.