WSJ on Kiting ... This is us?

[ricki]

CATCHING THE WAVE: Sir Richard Branson kiteboarding in March off Necker Island, British Virgin Islands.


"The Sky's the Limit!

For moneyed entrepreneurs and 'adventure capitalists,' kiteboarding is the extracurricular of choice. No wonder: It's dangerous, costly, adrenaline-fueled fun

On the occasion of Sir Richard Branson's 60th birthday this past summer, the billionaire entrepreneur could have thrown the party of a lifetime, sailed the seas in his yacht Necker Belle or even toasted some Billecart-Salmon Champagne aboard the new VSS Enterprise reusable spaceship built by his company Virgin Galactic.

Instead, Mr. Branson chose to try to break a speed record by "kiteboarding" across the frigid waters of the English Channel with his kids. The relatively new sport involves fastening your feet to a wake or surfboard, harnessing your body to a giant kite, and letting the wind slingshot you like a skipping stone across the sea at speeds—for those skilled enough—upwards of 40 miles per hour with jumps that can reach 50 feet skyward.

To its enthusiasts, it beats waiting for the stock market to soar. And there's a more predictable payoff.

"We were screaming along, having a great time," said Mr. Branson, "when we encountered force-four gales. The 'kiters' could manage fine, but the boats that were keeping an eye on everybody had to turn around. We decided to go back in." He paused. "We'll finish that off later in the year.

The pioneering Englishman began kiteboarding eight years ago, and he's not alone in his passion for "kiting"—the new extreme sport du jour for entrepreneurs and the all-around super-wealthy (not to mention the upcoming aspirants). Among its devotees are Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, Second Life founder Philip Rosedale and an A-list of Silicon Valley players and industrial Manhattan think-tankers.

"From the first day I saw someone doing it, to me it was the coolest thing I'd ever seen," said Ari Horowitz, chief executive of the Access Network Co., a New York–based online publishing venture. Mother Nature notwithstanding, he said, "You're harnessing an extraordinary amount of power, and you're in total control."

Extreme kiteboarder Alexander von Furstenberg, son of the fashion icon Diane von Furstenberg and chief investment officer of a private investment firm, said, "When you're in 25 knots of wind and in 15-foot waves, nothing can compare. It's like car racing. Only there's no fumes, no noise. You're one with nature, and pushing yourself to the max."

While daredevils and fools alike have experimented with boat-less, wind-powered sport for centuries, this new incarnation originated out of Hawaii and France in the mid-1990s.

The idea: By inflating a large kite, which is attached by high-test lines to a control bar, and attaching oneself to it with a harness, a rider can power himself at speed across water, over waves, up into the air, even off of snowy mountains on skis, using the kite itself as a steering mechanism and throttle.

"The kite harnesses the wind to create a gigantic amplification of any bodily movement," said Bill Tai, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist who has become an international spokesman for kiteboarding. "A flick of the wrist can change the ride from a 20-mph streak across water to a 20-foot jump through the air.""

Continued at:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...leTabs=article

[ricki]

What do you think about:

"Why does kiteboarding lure the rich and powerful? It's almost too obvious to ask. For starters, it provides a taste of risk, high stakes and flux. (It's familiar turf.) And few can afford it. Startup equipment will run about $2,500, and then there are lessons, more equipment….suddenly kiting-hobbyists are up to far larger figures."

I wouldn't say few can afford it particularly given the insane used market and the kiter statistics quoted in the same article. Artistic license?