Photos

... aka Kite Surfing BVI...

While vacationing in the BVI I noticed that some folks prefer to sail without a boat... Kite sailing or kite surfing is a sport that is less than a decade old:


"" The development of modern day kitesurfing by the Roeselers in the USA and the Legagnoixs in France carried on in parallel to buggying. Bill Roeseler, a Boeing aerodynamicist, and his son Corey Roeseler patented the "KiteSki" system which consisted of water skis powered by a two line delta style kite controlled via a bar mounted combined winch/brake. The KiteSki was commercially available in 1994. The kite had a rudimentary water launch capability and could go upwind. In 1995, Corey Roeseler visited Peter Lynn at New Zealand's Lake Clearwater in the Ashburton Alpine Lakes area, demonstrating speed, balance and upwind angle on his 'ski'. In the late 1990s, Corey's ski evolved to a single board similar to a surfboard.[1]

In 1996 Laird Hamilton and Manu Bertin were instrumental in demonstrating and popularising kitesurfing off the Hawaiian coast of Maui.

In 1997 the Legaignoux brothers developed and sold the breakthrough "Wipika" kite design which had a structure of preformed inflatable tubes and a simple bridle system to the wingtips, both of which greatly assisted water re-launch. Bruno Legagnoix has continued to improve kite designs, including developing the bow kite design, which has been licensed to many kite manufacturers.

In 1997, specialist kiteboards were developed by Raphaël Salles and Laurent Ness. By 1998 kitesurfing had become a mainstream sport, and several schools were teaching kitesurfing. The first competition was held on Maui in September 1998 and won by Flash Austin.[1]

By 1999 single direction boards derived from windsurfing and surfing designs became the dominant form of kiteboard. From 2001 onwards, wakeboard style bi-directional boards became more popular.

The current speed record over a 500 meter (1,640 ft) course, held by Olaf Marting, is 77.4 kilometers per hour (41.79 knots). Sjoukje Bredenkamp from South Africa holds the female record at 37.26 knots.[2] ""

[1]^ Peter Lynn A brief history of kitesurfing,

Aquilandia.com, 2006
[2]^ World Sailing Speed Record Council

Source: WIKI