GKA Cabarete Kite Festival July 2019
The Global Kitesports Association (GKA) had such a blast in Cabarete last summer that they will be back again in July 2019 for the 7-day Kite Festival. Though the date is not yet confirmed, it is likely to be 22-28th July 2019. The Cabarete Kite Festival celebrates the ocean and everything it gives us, including our favourite watersports! As well as awesome kite tricks, the Festival promotes awareness of how we can protect the life and health of the ocean. There are plenty of activities to choose from: kiting clinics run by pros, health and wellness seminars, epic downwinders, surf sessions, networking events and, of course, the nightly after-parties. Out on Kite Beach, you can expect to see some crazy ‘big air’ displays from local pros and athletes from around the world. Last year’s event was the Air Games, part of the GKA World Tour. It was a tense battle, with the closely-matched finalists fighting it out for first place. In the end, the young talented Brazilian Mikaili Sol was crowned the winner of the women’s competition. The 13-year-old sensation is four-time Junior Freestyle World Champion, and is now storming the world of pro kiting. Hannah Whiteley from the UK placed second, and put her usual solid performance. Highlights include Hannah’s super-clean blind judge and Mika’s stomped slim chance. In the men’s division, two-time Freestyle World Champion Carlos Mario, another Brazilian, came out on top. Jesse Richman came in second. Richman wowed the crowd with some huge board-off rotations and a mean half cab. But Mario stole the show with a faultless double heart attack and kiteloop which scored him two tens from the judges. He upped the drama by landing a massive triple front roll board-off in the last minute of the final. Keep an eye out for more details of the Festival on their website, and make sure you don’t miss the registration date for this awesome event. Not on the water? Head down to Kite Beach for a chance to see the pros go at it in the much-anticipated Cabarete Kite Festival. Mojitos on the beach and a steady stream of empanadas will make your day that much more perfect. Check out our kiting lingo post, so you can mingle with the pro kiters like a pro. The themed after-parties will no doubt be lively, as rum and dancing light up Cabarete nights!
Cabarete Spotlight: Kiters 4 Communities
Kiters 4 Communities is a local social business in Cabarete that upcycles unusable kites into cute beach bags. The profits from the bag sales fund projects in the local community to improve prospects for Haitian immigrants. Many Haitians come to seek a better life in the Dominican Republic. Communities on the westerly side of the island struggled to recover after the 2010 earthquake, and Haiti lacks the infrastructure that can be found in the DR. The Haitian immigrants, however, often find it very difficult to find employment when they get here, as they lack the training and schooling. Here’s Maxom preparing the kite material for the tailor. Local initiatives like K4C take the extra time and effort to equip their team with the education they need to thrive in their position. A little basic training transforms the prospects of individuals, and gives them confidence in their abilities. Team members collect discarded and donated kites, inspect the material and prepare it for the tailor. They are in charge of the day-to-day running of the business, and liaising with retailers who want to buy the bags to sell. Kiters 4 Communities: The Beginning Pioneer kiter Laurel Eastman came up with the idea for K4C in 2004. At that time, kiteboarding was really taking off as a sport, but the kiter community was leaving a lot of waste in Cabarete. Laurel started repurposing out-of-use or broken kites into bags, and K4C was born. Laurel was one of the first professional female kiters around. She has poured her energies into the sport and into improving the lives of others through humanitarian projects in the DR. Laurel teamed up with Pete Richardson and Soniel, K4C’s genius Haitian tailor, to take her idea to the next level. K4C Impact K4C currently supports two schools for Haitian children and a program for providing balanced meals. In the past, they have funded all sorts of projects to invest in the local community. These include providing free English lessons for local women and building a whole new building as a multi-use community space with the Haitian immigrants. Their business model really is a win-win-win. The profits improve the prospects of Haitian immigrants. K4C employs and trains locals to run the business, putting money in the local economy and empowering their team. Sturdy kite materials are kept out of landfill and repurposed. And you get a gorgeous and durable beach bag. Add another win to the list! Get involved You can buy their bags in stores around town, including in the LEK kite school. Alternatively, you can donate through their website and support the amazing work K4C do here in Cabarete and the surrounding area. The owners take care of all the costs of running the business, so you know every cent you give will go directly to the local communities in need. Join us next time as we spotlight another organisation that is brightening Cabarete’s future!
Ultimate Cabarete Beach Guide
Cabarete is a world-famous watersports hub, so it’s no surprise it has some pretty amazing beaches. If you’re an active person looking to get the most adventure out of your vacation, this might just be the place for you. Cabarete is a small town with a big personality. It’s located on the North coast of the Dominican Republic, near Puerto Plata. Here’s a run-through of the best spots to kite, surf, windsurf, SUP, and swim! We’ll start at Cabarete Beach, the longest beach by the center of town, and work our way downwind. Cabarete Beach This is the most bustling beach in Cabarete, sporting many restaurants and shops, as well as the best wind on the island. In Cabarete, we are blessed with side-onshore wind, so it’s safer to be out on the water and ideal for beginners. You’ll find plenty of kite schools here, with instructors eager to show you the ropes and get you feeling confident. Windsurfers tend to hang out upwind on Cab Beach, because of a wind pocket. Kiters ride along the middle of beach, but be aware as it does get choppier as you move away from the point (near Janet’s supermarket). Crack out your SUP before the wind picks up, which is usually shortly after 11am. If you’re not into watersports, there’s lots of space to relax on Cabarete Beach. You can top up your enviable Caribbean tan, dive into a book, or strike up a conversation with a fellow sun-worshipper. And, of course, be sure to spend at least an afternoon sipping coconut water and mojitos until sunset. Bozo Beach Bozo is so named because it’s where you end up if you’re a beginner (or bozo) kiting on Cabarete Beach. That said, it’s a great place to be out on the water. So good, in fact, that this is where the pro kiters gather to show off their best tricks at competitions. There’s plenty of ocean space when you get out, though you sometimes find a bit of shore break and some chop. Bozo’s nearby reef is popular with kiters on directional boards. On a low-wind day, you’ll see confident bodyboarders and bodysurfers having fun at Bozo. Punta Goleta Punta Goleta is a calm place to soak up the sunshine away from the crowds. It’s a popular place for skimboarders to play around, and you can enjoy their antics from the beach. Kiters tend to steer clear of this area because of choppy waters and proximity to Kite Beach point. You can easily get yourself into a bad situation here, if you’re struggling to relaunch your kite, and drift toward the rocks near the point or the shallow reef. Not for beginners. Kite Beach Right on our doorstep, mere footsteps from La Mesa Taina restaurant in eXtreme, is the world-class Kite Beach. As the name suggests, this beach is a kiters dream. Perfect wind conditions on over 300 days a year, gorgeous sand, warm bright-blue water – if you’re lucky, you might even see turtles swimming around you when you’re out on the water! eXtreme guests enjoy prime access to Kite Beach, so you can be the first on the water when the wind picks up! We also have a grassy area where you can hose down and pack up your kit, away from the sand. You can store your kit just a few steps off the beach, and head straight to our farm-to-table restaurant to refuel. It doesn’t get more convenient than that. There are a good few kite schools around on Kite Beach, with skilled, experienced instructors to help you on your way. Safety tip: If you’re going around the point, be sure to give it a wide berth, since there are a good number of rocks. You’ll find the flattest water just downwind of the point. It’s common to see locals spear-fishing at the point, too. Kite Beach in the early morning is a magical place to be. Take a dip or have a paddle out on the glassy water. Experienced paddlers can find some paddle surf waves out on the reef. At eXtreme, The Yoga Loft is a serene space that looks out over the water. Join us there for morning practice to ground yourself before an active day. Mats and blocks are provided, so don’t worry about bringing your own equipment! Playa Encuentro Encuentro is THE place to rise and surf in Cabarete. Just a 5-minute moto ride from eXtreme, it’s a must-see if you’re a looking to catch some waves in the area. The variety of breaks makes it an ideal spot for surfers of all ability levels. First-timers can keep their cool in the Beginners’ Area (between Pauhana and Bobo’s), where mellow waves and helping hands abound. Seasoned experts can test their skills in the Destroyers or Coco Pipe breaks. You can rent boards there or bring your own. The guys from Pauhana Surf School are your best choice, excellent equipment and great teachers! Get down there early for a sunrise surf, before the wind and crowds start to build at around 9am. Big waves mean SUPs are not allowed here, and swimming is not advisable. Stick to the board. With 350 surfable days a year, Encuentro is a safe bet for your surfing holiday. Come and join the party! The beach in Cabarete is a year-round outdoor playground for adventure-seekers and ocean lovers, zen beach babes and party animals. As they say, the sun always shines in the Caribbean. Whether you’ve been on the water a day or a decade, you’ll soon feel at home on Cabarete’s friendly beaches.
Kiteboarding Lingo for Beginners
If you’re in Cabarete, a world-famous kiteboarding capital, you should probably get up to speed with some kiting lingo. Whether you’re out on the water or staying dry on the beach. How else will you be able to understand what all the kiters are talking about? New to kiteboarding? Let me help you out with some kiting keywords to try out on the beach. That way you won’t be body-dragging socially, as well. Kiteboarding is a relatively new sport, with the first competitive kiting event held in 1998 in Maui, Hawaii. But in the space of two decades, the sport has spawned a lot of lingo. Let’s launch right into it. Kiteboarding Basics Air time, hang time: the amount of time spent in the air during a jump body-dragging: being pulled along in the water without your board. You learn to body-drag before kiteboarding to practise flying the kite, and you’ll need this skill to recover a lost board in the water boost: send the kite up through the power zone to lift the rider into the air de-power: adjusting the angle of the kite to reduce its power and make it easier to handle a downwinder: a planned long journey downwind, without attempting to drive upwind. A little forethought is required if you need to transport yourself and your kit back to where you started edge: tilting the board’s edge into the water to steer or control power in the kite heel side: the side of the kiteboard where your heels are. ‘Riding heelside’, with heels down, is the standard kiteboarding position launch: the process of getting your kite up in the air, typically with the help of another person guinea pig, wind dummy: the kiter who goes out first to test the conditions relaunch: getting the kite back in the air after it has crashed down onto the water or land send the kite: move the kite up through the power zone overpowered: having too much power from the kite, making it unmanageable. You may need to switch to a smaller kite or wait until the wind is less strong. toe side: the side of the kiteboard where your toes are, opposite to heel side underpowered: not having enough power for your kite, you may need to switch to a larger kite unhooked: riding when the chicken loop is not attached to the harness The Wind upwind: the direction where the wind is blowing from; into the wind downwind: the direction the wind is blowing to. Facing downwind, the wind is at your back side shore: wind blowing parallel to the shore side onshore: wind blowing between side shore and 45 degrees towards the shore side offshore: wind blowing between side shore and 45 degrees away from the shore power zone: part of the wind window that will give you the biggest pull, an arc between 0 and 60 degress from the centre of the downwind direction wind window: the 120-180 degree arc of the sky downwind of a rider where the kite can be flown. Outside of the wind window, kites will stall and fall out of the sky. zenith: part of the wind window directly above a rider’s head. Riders position the kite here to stop moving or before a movement, as it is a neutral spot nuking: extreme wind conditions of around 30-40 knots Kiteboarding Gear control bar: the bar you hold to fly the kite chicken loop: hard rubber loop that attaches the control bar to the harness, so you can use your body weight to fly the kite and not just your arms chicken bone, chicken finger: hard rubber tongue, attached to the chicken loop, that is fed through the spreader bar hook. Allows you to ride ‘hooked’ rather than ‘unhooked’ directional: surfboard-style kiteboard with one tip that you can only ride in one direction, great for surfing waves while kiting spreader bar: stainless steel bar that attaches to the harness and holds the chicken loop twin tip: bi-directional kiteboard with two straps or boots for your feet. You can ride right foot or left foot forward, as the board is symmetrical Freestyle Kiteboarding Tricks backroll: a backward 360 rotation in the air big air: a very high jump front roll: a forward 360 rotation in the air handlepass: passing the control bar around behind your back while in the air and unhooked kiteloop: making the kite do a loop while you are at the apex of your jump. This is advanced stuff and very highly powered mobe: a backroll with a 360 frontside handlepass. More generally, any trick involving an invert and 360 spin raley: unhooked jump where legs fly up behind you Superman-style. One of the first unhooked moves riders learn stomp: to successfully perform a trick When it all goes wrong Hindenburg: when a kite stalls and falls out of the sky, a reference to the Hindenburg airship disaster of 1937. kitemare: a kiting accident or mishap kook: an overconfident, erratic rider who lacks control and may put others in danger lofted: being lifted vertically in the air by a strong gust of wind. Can be very dangerous if kiting near the shore or rocks luff: when the air flow stalls around the kite. A luffing kite will ripple, flap and maybe fall out of the sky mowing the lawn: uninspiring kiting style, tacking back and forth repeatedly without variation schlogging: riding severely underpowered, usually bouncing and dragging in the water tea-bagging: being lifted and dunked into the water, perhaps due to gusts of wind or twisted lines walk of shame: the walk along the beach upwind to where you launched your kite, due to an inability to drive upwind yard sale: a spectacular fail at a trick that sends your gear flying around you like items at a yard sale Now, off to Kite Beach You’re ready with all the lingo you’ll need to chat to kiters on Kite Beach. Cabarete is a haven for watersports lovers from all over the world. With consistently perfect wind conditions on 300+ days
Kiteboarding Lessons: Do I need them?
Kiteboarding lessons, do I need them? Short answer: yes. Kiteboarding when you don’t know what you’re doing is pretty dangerous. Reckless kiting can put yourself, other kiters out on the water, and passers by on the beach in danger. Just as you wouldn’t drive down a highway without taking driving lessons, you need to be taught how to fly a kite from someone who really knows their stuff. Preferably someone qualified and certified by the IKA, with a clean record. In Cabarete, you’ll find plenty of kiteboarding schools with skilled, friendly instructors to help you take your first tentative steps into this exciting sport. Taking lessons will equip you with essential know-how. There’s a lot to stay on top of in this sport. It’s called an extreme sport for a reason. What will I learn in Kiteboarding lessons? Learning how to fly the kite and move it with control through different positions in the wind window is essential. Kite control is a key factor deciding how you fare out in the water. You’ll be taught on the beach first, likely with a smaller training kite. These depower very easily so are forgiving when you make mistakes. Learners need to get to grips with the science of the sport, and how the direction of the wind works to power your kite. The horizontal plane is discussed in terms of numbers on a clock, where 12 o’clock is straight ahead of you and 3 o’clock is 90 degrees to your right. The vertical plane is discussed in degrees. For instance, the most powered up point in the wind window is at 12 o’clock at 45 degrees. Once you’ve mastered the training kite, you’ll move onto sand skiing and body dragging through the water. After you’ve shown you can skilfully control the kite, you can start learning to board. Safety first As I mentioned earlier, safety is highly important in kiteboarding. Beginners have a lot of kiting safe practice to learn: how to assess wind and water conditions, how to rig your kit, how to avoid collisions with other kiters. You’ll be drilled in dealing with emergencies and learn how to rescue yourself if something goes wrong. You need to know the beach and its hazards well: is there a reef? which direction do the currents flow? are there any major obstacles? hidden rocks? beach umbrellas? where is the safest spot to land and launch? The main danger in kiteboarding is people who don’t know what they’re doing. That’s the primary cause of accidents and trouble on the water. Kiteboarding lessons are a must to get you feeling confident and in control on the water. Instructors know how to get you up on your board and tacking along in as little time as possible. Trust them, it’s their job. Hold my mojito… Cabarete is the perfect place to learn how to kiteboard. We have reliable wind for around 300 days a year, though high kiting season goes from June to August. The warm water, beautiful sunny weather and safe onshore wind make it a dream location to begin your kiting journey. Check out our Kiteboarding lingo for beginners article to learn the basics of kiting gear, tricks and slang. If you’re looking for a challenge on your active vacation, try taking a few kiteboarding lessons. You know, just to dip your toes in the water. Who knows, you might get hooked.
What is Kite Foiling?
Kite foiling, also known as foilboarding, hydrofoil kiteboarding, foil kitesurfing, is not as complicated as it sounds. It’s simply kiteboarding with the addition of a hydrofoil under the board. The foil allows you to kite along above the surface of the water. Kite foiling is speedier, as the foil cuts through the water with minimal drag. Foil fans love the quiet experience of riding along elevated above the surface of the water. You can have a smooth ride, even when it’s choppy out. The hydrofoil itself is not a new invention.The technology has been around lifting boats since the early 1900s. Kite foiling has been around since the beginning of kitesurfing’s short history, but has been receiving more attention lately because of its use by pro kiters. I have to admit, it does look cool. How does a hydrofoil work? Without getting too deep into the physics of it, a hydrofoil is shaped in such a way that water rushing through it gives it upward lift. While this looks crazy and futuristic, it’s the same technology that gives aeroplanes lift. A plane’s wings are curved and tilted so that air passes over it faster than under it. This causes a decrease in pressure of the air above the wing, and, as a result of the pressure difference, upward lift is generated. The plane can take off or move higher in the air. This relies on Bernoulli’s principle in fluid dynamics, which states this counterintuitive pressure/speed relationship. In a hydrofoil, the same thing is happening, only in water. The hydrofoil cuts the water and forces water to flow faster over the foil than under it, causing the pressure change that gives your boat or board lift out of the water. The faster you go, the more lift the foil generates. For foil kiters, this translates to a water start where you begin to levitate as you gain speed and the foil works its lift magic. It’s a pretty crazy sensation. Some even say it feels like flying. Kite foiling takes a bit of learning, even if you’re a good kiter. Be patient and commit to learning it as you would any other new thing. Expect to look like a beginner again and have some wipeouts. While you can ride a foil with straps, many recommend going strapless to avoid injuring yourself if the foil is diving down or behaving unpredictably. Beforehand, you might practice on a foil-less board strapless to gain confidence. You’ll need to put more weight in your front foot than you’re used to. As well as pushing with it, you need to lean your weight forward. It’s far better to nose-dive with a foil than have it jump up behind you. You also need to put pressure on your toes to keep the board flat. Try not to edge with your heels too much. A great thing about foiling is that you can ride in light wind conditions. When you’re learning, though, it’s best to start with plenty of wind to keep your kite stable in the air, but don’t overpower yourself. Maybe take a kite size down from what you would normally take in that wind. Most of all, have fun and enjoy the crazy flying sensation that kite foiling offers!