The last four days in EL Yaque were not under a good star. Not for anyone. I’ve never seen so many kite killers in such a short space of time. Take this: Four days of constant chop, day and night. The absolute minimum was 10 knots, mid 25s, peaks of up to 38 knots. Measured on the beach.
The day before yesterday I went out in the mid-30 knots with the 10-liner. After 500 metres my 5-liner collapses (ask me how that works…), pops up again and pulls me first through the air and then under water. By the time I’m back on top, it has already hit the water. I only realise that a connecting seam from the strut to the front tube has burst a day later when I try to mend a tube.
It looks inoperable. I shouldn’t have gone out. Sorry Jörg, you’ll get a new Blade Vertigo by Friday at the latest. Nevertheless, I was still lucky. Self-rescue worked, albeit very strenuous and with a long swim in the storm. An Australian rescued my board. Others were less lucky. Martin had all the lines of his flysurfer cut by a gust. Also a total loss.
At Kitebeach, kites were hitting the water every minute. Two dozen kite bodies in one day. The sailmaker drowns at work. A pirate searching for his stolen yacht could only save himself by separating from his kite. Many kiters were torn far out, there were nasty collisions with other kiters, surfers and numerous swimmers.
The sea is boiling, the sun is blazing. Venezuelan hordes invade El Yaque. The nights are short and the days ashore are dull. All I have left is a patched up 12, 15 knots too much wind and three days of residual frustration.
Frank Woelky, born in 1973. Kitesurfer since 1998. Since 2006, I have been combining kitesurfing and web design on trips lasting several months off the beaten track.