Red Bull Kitepunks, kickers and sliders and dutch folk, oh my.
Out with the old, in with the new.
De Bilt, July 27 2006 – Following the credo “We’ve seen enough Hawaiian floral patterns in kiteboarding” Ruben Lenten, winner of the 2005 King of the Air, and Red Bull are throwing a unique kiteboard competition. From August 7th till 11th the eastern part of the IJsselmeer lake in the Netherlands will be host to Red Bull Kite Punks.
Ruben Lenten is among the youngest competitors on the PKRA World Cup circuit. This doesn’t stop him from winning several World Cups a year or cleaning up the field at the 2005 Red Bull King of the Air. Notorious for his super-charged style on and of his board, Ruben ran into kiteboarding-specific obstacles at a World Cup event in Venezuela. These obstacles are placed in the water and are ridden by kiteboarders much in the way skateboarders or snowboarders ride the obstacles that are placed in skate and snowboard parks.
With only two rideable obstacles in Venezuela, Ruben hooked up with his sponsor Red Bull to see if this could be taken to a higher level. Ruben started sketching and designing some ideas for obstacles and in co-operation with a specialized builder of skate parks they developed a series of floating obstacles that, once put together look like someone has flooded a super-sized skate park.
There is no better way to see if your new idea is a good one than to test it on some eager crash test dummies, all under the guise of a little competition. Red Bull Kite Punks was born. Ruben has rounded up an impressive shortlist of some of the biggest names in new-school kiteboarding for a big session! Or, as Ruben put it: “Bring a helmet, ‘cause if anyone is going home without a black eye or some bruised ribs, they haven’t been charging hard enough.” Confirmed riders include Aaron Hadlow (UK), Leeshai Miller (ISR), Janek Korycki (POL), Rui Meira (ESP), Nick Jacobsen (DEN), Troels Engholm (DEN), Youri Zoon (NED), Greg Thijsse (RSA), Neal Hiler (UK), Petr Thyuskivich (RUS) and Ruben himself of course.
The wind window for Red Bull Kite Punks is from August 7th till 11th on one of five spots (Minster Klif, Stavoren, Hindeloopen, Workum, Cornwederzand) on the Eastern shore of the IJsselmeer lake in the Netherlands. The final location will be chosen based on wind direction and wind force and disclosed on the day of the competition.
Labels: board, Competition, Kites, Red Bull, Ruben Lenten
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