On a wing and the wind in
Thailand By Karla Cripps
HUA HIN,
Thailand - Popular as a weekend getaway, this seaside
resort town 230 kilometers south of Bangkok certainly
isn't renowned for its hardcore extreme sports, unless
one considers golf an adrenaline-fed activity. But after
wading through the throngs of sun-worshipping tourists
who frequent Hua Hin's beaches and
guzzle their Singha beers, I managed to find
something new and little heard of: kitesurfing.
Almost like learning to speak a new language,
mastering kitesurfing (also referred to as kiteboarding)
is a gradual process, one that requires patience and
perseverance - both characteristics I admittedly lack.
But, after a few cuts and bruises and a lot of water up
my nose, I managed to press on and have now become an
addicted follower of the sport after a few lessons. Why?
Because nothing is more exhilarating than gliding across
an open stretch of clear blue water next to a
palm-tree-lined beach in the warm Thai sun.
First it
should be noted that kitesurfing is another one of those
annoying things in life that end up being more difficult
than they originally appeared. I had mistakenly
estimated I would be sailing through the Gulf of
Thailand, smiling and laughing with glee, in just a few
hours. But what I didn't take into consideration was the
giant kite pulling my arms out of their sockets,
dragging me across the
beach like a
five-year-old child trying to walk a full-grown St
Bernard that just spotted a wee kitty in its path.
For definitive purposes, kiteboarding is when a
large powerful kite (which looks more like a parachute)
is attached to a person wearing a harness, standing on a
board, which is pulled through the water. One of the
most amazing aspects of kitesurfing is the jumping. When
you are riding, you can use your kite to hoist you out
of the water. These jumps can be just a foot or two off
the water, or as high as 40-50 feet (12-15 meters). I,
unfortunately, have not reached this ever-so-exciting
phase.
You may have seen kitesurfers
before - the sport is quickly gaining
popularity worldwide - and
thought to yourself: "What kind of nut would attach
herself to a parachute and head out into the sea with a
board strapped to her feet?" A fair question. But, in
reality, the sport is not as dangerous as it looks, if
you receive proper instruction first.
Here in
Hua Hin, there is one large kitesurfing school. However,
the growing popularity of the sport has led others
slowly to materialize in the area.
Through word
of mouth, my roommate and I decided to give one of the
smaller schools a try: Hua Hin Kitesurfing Co, run by
Canadian Matt MacLeod. He assured us that we were the
first females he had ever taught, dubbing us
"kitesurfing goddesses". Were we flattered? Yes, of
course; however, I do suspect his kind words had more to
do with the 8,300 baht (US$210) we shelled out for a
10-hour learning package than our pioneering ways. To be
honest, though, the price is very good, comparatively.
MacLeod's specialty is building
boards out of unique materials such as coconut shells
and bamboo, which he then ships around the world for use
on both snow and water. The teaching is more of a
side venture,
he says. What drew him to the sport is simple: "I saw
some guy doing it on the beach, I thought, 'That looks
like a gas,' and asked him how to get started."
The largest school in Hua Hin is Kite Boarding
Asia (KBA) , which operates two officially recognized
International Kiteboarding Organization centers, both of
which offer beginner, intermediate and expert lessons,
as well as rentals. Their second center is on the Thai
island of Koh Samui. On entering their Hua Hin shop, one
realizes right away these guys mean business. In the
corner, a TV plays kitesurfing videos depicting muscley
young men flying through the air. A long row of colorful
boards is stacked for sale along the wall among other
kitesurfing equipment, and one of the owners, Raam
Schnitman, can be heard trying to convince the father of
a 15-year-old boy signing up for lessons that nobody is
too old to learn - in fact, he has even taught a
70-year-old man how to kitesurf.
But it is not
as simple as just hopping on a board and letting the
wind do the work. The lessons involve sessions with a
smaller training kite and the body dragging through the
water before you graduate to the large kite where you're
attached to the harness. Eventually, you're allowed on
to the board as it takes a while to get used to
controlling the kite in the wind - which generates an
amazing amount of power - especially to keep it from
crashing into the water. Should the kite go down while
you're riding, it is nearly impossible to relaunch it
without heading back on to shore. Schnitman says some
people are able to pick up the sport in a few days,
while others can take as long as three weeks.
For a three-day beginner course with KBA, the
price is 11,000 baht ($275). One day involves a lesson
of roughly four hours, and the class has a maximum of
four students per instructor. The price includes
water-scooter support, a quad motorbike to transfer
students up the beach after a downwind run on the kite,
helmet-mounted radios for board riding, and all
equipment, including helmet and buoyancy and impact
vest.
Schnitman says Hua Hin has become a
popular destination for kitesurfers because of its
world-class conditions. There are consistent breezes,
plenty of beach space (the main beach is five kilometers
long) and the tide goes way out, leaving ample room to
maneuver away from the sunbathers. The best season runs
from December to the end of May, when the rainy season
kicks off. He says there are very few barriers
preventing someone from learning, with the exception of
weight, and he recommends the sport to anyone in need of
some stress-free relaxation: "You go into the water for
two hours, and your brain just switches off ... that's
what I like."
After my lessons are over, if I
decide to buy my own equipment, this is where my bank
account will really take a beating. For a full set of
equipment - which includes kite, boards and harness - it
will set me back between 50,000 and 60,000 baht. But you
aren't limited to the ocean. Unlike regular surfing,
kitesurfing can be done on any body of water, provided
there is sufficient wind. It can even be taken on to the
snow - albeit not a very high selling point here in
Thailand.
Aside from the water constantly
lingering in my nasal cavities, this is one sport that I
plan to keep up with for as long as I can. Eventually, I
hope to bring it back to Canada, where I'll shock and
awe my fellow Canucks when I head out on to the frozen
snow-covered lake and go whizzing past their snowmobiles
in the minus-40-degree breeze. All that will be missing
are the scantily clad tourists and the Thai Singha beer.
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guzzle their Singha beers, I managed to find
something new and little heard of: kitesurfing.
beach like a
five-year-old child trying to walk a full-grown St
Bernard that just spotted a wee kitty in its path.
popularity worldwide - and
thought to yourself: "What kind of nut would attach
herself to a parachute and head out into the sea with a
board strapped to her feet?" A fair question. But, in
reality, the sport is not as dangerous as it looks, if
you receive proper instruction first. 
side venture,
he says. What drew him to the sport is simple: "I saw
some guy doing it on the beach, I thought, 'That looks
like a gas,' and asked him how to get started."
