The beach was packed. Everyone peered out over the froth as the waves continually rolled onto the smooth, sandy shore. Robben Island sat as a thin haze on the horizon.
But nobody here was admiring Cape Town’s beautiful scenery. All eyes were on the sky.
“I was impressed,” Thor Kaze says. “I was really, really blown away.”
While on vacation in South Africa, the Vancouver resident had stumbled across the annual Red Bull King of the Air kiteboarding competition. Some of the world’s greatest freestyle kiteboarders seemed to defy gravity as they popped more than 80 feet into the air. There, high in the sky, they seemed to hang, pulling off a variety of spins and tricks before finally reconnecting with the water.
“I didn’t know anything like that was possible for a person to do,” Kaze says.
Kaze has a background in motorcycling. For years, he did stunt riding and started announcing at motorcycle stunt shows. That ended after a serious motorcycle accident left Kaze facing a string of surgery appointments. But that’s when Kaze found kiting.
“Kiteboarding is just as exciting to do and it hurts a little less when you crash,” he says with a laugh.
A sports MC for 14 years, the Squamish regular organizes some of Canada’s largest kiteboarding events, including the West Coast Open and Canadian National Championship race and Kite Clash, the Canadian Freestyle Championships, on Aug. 1 to 3. He recently added his name to the Squamish Wind Festival.
On Sunday, July 27, Kaze is hosting a “Big Air” competition from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Squamish Spit. The spit is amazing for spectators, with riders jumping right beside the dike — so close one can almost touch them, Kaze jokes.
“It is absolutely the best venue around,” he says. “Normally you are watching from the beach, but this is truly thrilling.”
Canada’s reigning freestyle champion Sam Medysky plans to be at the event. Most of Canada’s best riders train or live in Squamish, making it a hot spot from which to catch the action. With a DJ, announcing and fierce competition on the water, the free, family-friendly air competition at Squamish Wind Festival won’t be an exception, he said.
“We put on an awesome show,” Kaze says. “It’s going to be the place to be.”
