Kitepix Magazine No.6 April - June 2015 | Page 144
wasn’t a choice, you couldn’t visit shops, look
online, ask others about what equipment was
good to get you started, because there was
very little knowledge or choice of equipment.
There was no de-power, you went out and
used your body weight (or lack of for me at the
time) to harness the power of a kite, strap a
board to your feet with the main goal to come
back alive - a smile on your face and wanting
more.
So having all of these experiences, I find
myself feeling lucky that I had escaped serious
injury for so long, but boy did it all come at
once!
I had been in Australia for less than 24
hours, before my freak accident happened.
I’d had a nice 12m session at around
midday, and had already fallen in love with
the conditions at Safety Bay. I’d seen so
many videos and photos of the top riders
in our sport riding there, and I still couldn’t
quite believe that I was here experiencing
it for myself.
I had managed to drag myself off the water
and go home for some lunch, planning to
head back out in the afternoon for a late
afternoon session when all my friends had
finished teaching. The wind had increased,
so I decided to take my 9m, but the weather
was less than normal. The wind dropped
completely as we walked over to the lagoon.
The locals were all a bit confused as the sun
was still shining strong and it was unusual
that the wind would drop like this. I’m used to
UK conditions, so the wind not really knowing
what it’s doing is the norm. But the wind did
come back, strong!
Looking back this would have been the point
that I would have changed, like I’m sure a lot
of people would; but it is all well and good in
saying that now! However, it has taught me
a very valuable lesson. Assessing the wind
conditions, weather patterns and surroundings
“
Looking back this would have been
the point that I would have changed, like I’m
sure a lot of people would; but it is all well
and good in saying that now! However, it has
taught me a very valuable lesson. Assessing
the wind conditions, weather patterns and
surroundings is one of the most important
things in our sport, this applies especially in
places that you have never ridden and that will
offer different weather patterns to what you
are used to.