So the wife and I are off back to the UK for summer – kiting in thick wetsuits – ugh!! At least the wind should be good. Armed with a brand new 7m and 9m prime i aim to get some pics of me jumping piers too!! (or maybe not…)

See you again in November!!

The end is nigh!!
Usually the end of may is the end of our season, so good wind is just a blessing. Fortunately we were blessed quite a lot! At least half the month was kiteable, with quite a few 18-20kt days.
It was eerily quiet in pranburi, not many tourists chose to come to thailand this month. We did our best to remain a place of calm, acceptance and friendliness. After all a kite is a good thing whatever colour it is…

Click to see the May 2010 pictures on picasa>>

Our best month yet! The wind was awsome, the beach big, the water warm and the school busy busy busy!
With a full stock of brand new Blade Kites, we had many testing days and it was great to get everyone’s opinion.
They are by the far the easiest kites I have used to teach with – so many success stories this month I can’t even name them all!! All I will say is – everyone who came here a beginner left knowing how to jump… It’s a really really easy spot to learn new tricks!

Click to see the album on picasa>>

A strange month compared to last year – we had some good strong North Easterlies at the end of December but then for some crazy reason we got 10 days of South Easterly over christmas and new year. Weird! Then back to the normal N.Easterly for a bit, then straight into S.Easterly by the end of Jan.
Difficult to plan the lessons, but we got had some excellent students and all coped very well.
The Christmas and New year’s parties were great – fire out the back of the shop, guitars, good food. just what we like!

A good question! The world is your oyster these days – there are kite schools everywhere. But like any watersport, it’s nicer to learn in warm water with less people around. The ideal spot would have small or no waves and shallow rock free water, would be near your accommodation and would have good winds. To help you choose, here are some facts about learning to Kiteboard in Thailand:

1. The wind is great in Thailand – but not everywhere all the time!
   You have to choose where to go depending on which month we’re in. And if you want to kite in sunshine and clear water, don’t come here in rainy season – mid-June until mid-October.
2. The sea temperature is 20-30 in winter and 25-30 in summer. It’s pretty warm all year round!
3. Winter gets clouds and strong winds, summer clear skies and hot sunshine
   In November the North Easterlies switch on and run steady until mid January. Regular 15kts and often 20+ but all in the morning. February to June the South Westerly thermal winds create an almost perfect spot – 15-20kts, sunshine, wind in the afternoon so you can get up late!
4. It’s cheap to learn here, and cheap to buy equipment.
   But don’t choose your instructor based on price – talk to him/her first! A bad instructor will take twice as long to get you riding so ends up being twice the price. And cheap equipment will not be as good – so it will take you longer to learn and when you sell it you won’t get as much back for it. If you’re scared you might not like kitesurfing – don’t worry!
5. Thai food – mmmmmmm!!!!
6. Accommodation is cheap in Thailand.
   As everywhere, rooms overlooking the beach are expensive, those set back a bit are cheaper. Thailand has a massive tourist industry – there’s always plenty of choice!
7. You can be up and riding comfortably in a week.
   The Full Beginner’s course takes 3 days, and if you keep practising the rest of the week you’ll have it cracked.
8. Thailand is a hub for world flights – it’s easy to get here.
   Pranburi is 3hours from the airport – you could be on the water in 3hrs20mins!
9. There are plenty of no wind activities:
   Kayaks, Jetskis, Banana boat, ATV Tours, Mountain Biking, Sightseeing Tours, Shopping in Hua Hin. Or just relaxing on the beach!
10. Thailand is very much discovered – but Kiteboarding is not – yet!
    So instead of 300 kitesurfers crowding onto a beach we have 30. Perfect…

www.airstylerskiteschool.com

ok ok the website is not quite done yet – i’m making a ‘super duper hero’ of a website. Well trying to…
But we have wind, and sun, and clear water, and still nobody on the beach!

So I got to play a little yesterday…

this week has seen plenty of anger on land, so i’ve decided to set up my own kite school. it’s for the best really – i can teach the way i want to teach – the best way. the quickest way. the best value way for my students. that’s got to be for the best!

stay tuned to this space – i’ll let you know when we’re up and running!!

that’s the title and here it is again. beautiful days with light winds for practicing on the big kite late morning, a break for lunch, then on to the smaller kite (9/10m for me) early afternoon.
is it usually like this?
YES!!
every day…

sorry i didn’t tell anyone – was having a bit too much fun!
it’s the start of the thermal season – but as it’s just starting the wind only comes in about 4pm. it’s fine for teaching at 3, and then riding is good at 4, and then if you stay out until 6 you get some great cold gusts coming at you! it’s quite eerie kiting with the sun behind the mountains – the water goes all grey and you get half the light of daytime. i like it!!