Kite surfing
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Kite surfing
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What is Kite surfing
The History of Kite surfingHistory of Kite SurfingAlthough the sport of KiteSurfing is new, it is not a one man invention and people have been playing with the concept for a long time. In fact, in China and Polynesia, kitesailing was a form of transportation in the Pacific Rim beginning in the 13th and 14th century! Indonesian and Polynesian kite fishermen dragged their canoes with kites, as early as the 12th century. In the early 1800's, British inventor George Pocock enlarged common kites and flew them in groups to pull carts on land and boats on the water. His efforts resulted in what were, at the time, the fastest speeds on land and water. Pocock's kites were fully controllable, using 4 lines, just as we use today. His boats and carts could sail upwind, his boats could beat other boats he raced against. His original patent number was GB5420, dated 1826. In Nov 1903, American inventor Samuel Cody kitesailed across the English Channel.In the late 50's, individuals used the concept of being trailed by a parachute/wings above and on water. In the mid 1970's, Englishman Peter Powell developed the dual line control and built a 2-line delta kite with which he sailed small dinghies. These were the first commercially successful 2-line deltas, based on Francis Rogollo's patents of the early 1940's. They were marketed for use with boats and buggies, and in fact, a stack of 6 Powell deltas was used by Englishman Keith Stewart with a nine foot catamaran to cross the English Channel, purposely duplicating the Samuel Cody's 1903 crossing. In October 1977 Gijsbertus Adrianus Panhuise (Netherlands) gets the first patent NL07603691 for our sport. The patent cover specifically a water sport using a floating board of a surf board type where a pilot standing up on it is pulled by a wind catching device of a parachute type tied to his harness on a trapeze type belt. Although this patent did not result in any commercial interest, Gijsbertus Adrianus Panhuise could be considered as the originator of KiteSurfing. In 1978 Dave Culp (USA) designed his first kiteboat with the first documented inflated leading edge kite which powered it. In the early 80's, Arnaud de Rosnay (France) during one of his channel crossings, used a windsurfing board and kite instead of a sail and Andreas Kuhn (Switzerland) rode, using a ski hybrid (close to a wakeboard) and a parapente. He pushed Gijsbertus Adrianus Panhuise concept further by documenting it on TV - riding and jumping. In November 1987 (filed in August 1986) Dominique and Bruno Legaignoux (France), get the Patent US4708078 for the first self-relaunching marine wing. In the same period, Cory Roeseler (USA) prepared the Kiteski. He was the first one kite sailing upwind. In November 1994 (filed in November 1993) Cory Roeseller (USA) is granted a Patent on KiteSkiing Patent US5366182. Cory Roeseler held the first Kitesurfing World Cup in 1991 (?) in San Francisco. There were 7 entries, including one from Hawaii. It was televised and shown extensively on Discovery and ESPN. Cory also entered the Weymouth Speed Trials in 1988 and won fastest boat at the event, for a kite-powered waterski. In 1996 kitesurfing its first worldwide media exposure as a sport thanks to the windsurfers Laird Hamilton and Manu Bertin. In 1997 F-One enters the market. In 1999 Naish enters the market with a progressive line of kites that have higher aspect and four lines, after some early work with licensed 2-line Kites from Bruno Legaignoux. Since then the sport has been growing at a brisk pace with many new kite manufacturers. Most kites now use a similar design with inflatable bladders and struts which assist greatly in re-launching from water. In 2004 Best Kiteboarding introducedtheir line of kites meant to beof similar quality but at almost half the price due to direct sales over the internet. To be continued...( we hope). Original article from Kite Surf Origins (AquaGlider) with comments from George our librarian from Kite Flix and Dave Culp of Kiteship
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Kite Surfing or Kite Boarding or FlySurf, is a fast growing new sport which is gaining lots of publicity - because it is so extreme. It is not wind surfing. It is not kite flying. It is the fusion of these two disciplines with other influences to create the wildest new water sport for year.
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