Observation 6

This past Saturday, I went to Ft. Lauderdale beach at 10 AM to observe kite surfers. It was a beautiful day at 80 degrees without a cloud in the sky. When I arrived at the beach surprisingly it wasn’t filled with “spring breakers” as I had anticipated, but I figured the beach would be getting more crowded as it got later in the day. I walked South down to the less developed area where the kite surfers usually go in the water, because they have room to set up their gear and more importantly they do not have to worry about hitting anyone while in the water. There were only about five to ten people kite surfing in the water because the wind wasn’t particularly strong, and it looked as if most of them had larger kites at around 12 meters. I proceeded to sit on my towel and watch these kite surfers for 30 minutes as they continually ran back and forth along the beach. One kite surfer who seemed to be peculiarly good got up 15 feet in the air on a gust of wind while doing what looked to be a grab. I spent a few minutes continuously watching him, focusing on the techniques he used when he made his turns, and how he controlled his kite. Kite surfing still looks much easier from the shore then it actually is, as I have found out on multiple occasions. When I walked back up to the developed part of Ft. Lauderdale beach it was getting more crowded as I had predicted. From my observations that day, I noticed that when jumping it is important to make sure you aren’t close to the beach or anyone else, because while in the air you can travel a significant distance.

This past Thursday, I talked to Jody Stowe a Miami local that kite boards recreationally. We met through her daughter Patsy Stowe, who also is a student at Nova Southeastern University, after I told Patsy that I was taking kite surfing lessons. Patsy explained how her mom has been kite surfing for the past few years, so I asked to set up a meeting to talk with Jody about her experiences kite surfing. Jody is a very unique kite surfer because she is not only over 40 years of age, but she is also female in a predominately male sport. Jody has been kite boarding for the past five years, but she only goes out every other month or so. Jody knows she may not be as skilled as other riders that spend more time on the water, but she still enjoys going kite surfing occasionally. Jody said that one of her main problems while kite surfing is tracking her board down after she falls. This problem is because the Jimmy Lewis board that she uses has a sandal harness instead of a boot, meaning that your feet aren’t strapped into the board. Jody explained how she has lost her board on two different occasions and had it returned to her by fellow kite surfers. Jody was very light hearted in the interview making jokes and telling me other stories about her kite surfing adventures. I got to see all the equipment that Jody uses including her 8m Cabrina kite and harness. Talking to Jody proved to be very useful because it diversified my view of kite surfing, giving me the view of a more recreational kite surfer, in contrast to all the “diehard” kite surfers I had interviewed previously.