They call it the honey hole.
During the Squamish Spit Season Sendoff Big Air Throw Down on Pepahím̓ island on Saturday, there was a six-metre (20-foot) tree in the event zone that was just begging to be jumped over—so that’s exactly what winner Loren Parfitt did while performing his tricks.
“Kiteboarding is pretty cool because you fly in the air up to 10-12 metres high, and you’re in the air between five to eight seconds. One of the things I did was jump over the tree in the event zone. I like to strike a pose and get everyone stoked,” said Parfitt, a Squamish local.
“Overall, it was a fantastic event.”
The amateur Squamish Windsports Society event was organized by local kiteboarder Sam Medysky, a multiple-time Canadian freestyle champion.
Judging duties were handled by fellow champion Jack Rieder, former society president Geoffrey Waterson, and David Drinkwater.
When all was said and done, Parfitt took home first place in the men’s division, and Yulin Wang, of Langley, won the women’s. There were 20 male competitors and six females, with plenty of spectators gathered on the beach to take in the big day.
The events were judged 50% on height, 25% on technicality and 25% on style. Parfitt’s winning tricks included a “board off,” in which the feet are removed from the board in midair, a “front roll board off,” which includes a flip, and a “kiteloop,” which involves the kite making a full rotation.
Wang, meanwhile, completed a “kiteloop late back roll,” a “boogie loop” and a “kite loop board off.”
“I was very happy. The conditions were a bit up and down, but otherwise I think I did okay,” said Wang.
“It was so great they pulled it off with the hard access, it was super impressive that it went so smoothly.”
The men’s podium included Philipp Schlonger, of Seattle, in second place and Jan Zgiet, of Langley, in third. In the women’s division, Jackie Crowe came second, and third was Kirsty Lowe.
The youngest rider of the day was Drew Palmer from Vancouver.
