I live in Vancouver, BC part-time and in a suit-case part-time. I like waves!
Biases: I am the Naish Kiteboarding, Windsurfing and Surfing sales rep. and team manager for Canada. I am personally and proudly sponsored by Naish and O'neill.
I post on this forum as "Kyle". My dog posts on this forum as "Reef"... but he's a dog, so whatever. I post on kiteforum.com as "Naish Canada" I post on skypilot as "Naish Canada" and/or "Great White" I post on nwkite.com (gorge) as "kyle"
I live in Vancouver near Spanish Banks. I have been kiteboarding 8 years now and I seem to get over 100 days a year on the water. (I should be better than I am).
Biases I am a Naish local team rider (I can buy my Naish gear at a discount). I am a director of the Squamish Windsports Society which is a non profit organization. I like beer and will help anyone with a kite problem for a cold one. (Larger problems may take a six pack)
I post on all forums as cglazier and often sign CG or my full name. I am the administrator (kite4649) and one of the moderators of this forum.
I run some other non-profit websites including the Jericho live webcam (http://www.jericho.ca/webcam/webcam.html), the Vancouver Squash League website, and the original local kite forum (kitesurfbc on yahoo groups ..yup, it still exists).
I'm Colin Ernst Post as Colinkiteboarding I've been Kiting for like 3 years, I rode 176 days last season. My modo "Ride hard until something breaks" This time it was my leg. "Look for article coming later"
Biases I'm a Naish and Oneil rider (Don't tell them but I would use their gear anyway) I'm a Local instructor and have a Kite school called Colinkiteboarding.com
I'm also a moderator on this Forum so watch your tone. "kidding" Craigslist is for advertising, Forum's are for talking about kiting, sesh's, gear.etc..
Besides my Lovely girlfriend Melanie Kiting has become my life.
I started sailing a Sabot when I was four. Later I raced in District 6 Laser class (OR, WA and BC) and other local and national dinghy and keelboat classes. I spent summers teaching sailing and navigation, race coaching, certifying instructors, skippering yacht charters, and windsurfing. Fergus taught me the basics of kiteboarding at BB in 2002, but I didn't fully commit myself until one day in late 2004 when I found great conditions at SPI, Texas. Now I'm completely addicted. Last year I kiteboarded about 90 days, and sailed my Nacra Inter 20 catamaran just a few times. I've kiteboarded at Wasaga Beach (Ont), Cabarete, Belize, Bonaire, Maui and Oahu. I seldom board an airplane without my gear, just in case.
I have no kiteboarding industry affiliations whatsoever. I am impressed by the friendly local kiteboarding culture, but I think the forums would be more personable if more members used their real names. Some local kiteboarders that I have found to be extraordinarily helpful and generous of their time include CG, Philippe, Alex N-S and Kyle, but there are others too. Thanks for the great example.
I design and build comdominiums for a living, and I'm also into snowboarding, squash, cycling, rollerblading, flying, Nazanin, and my three dogs. If Chutney, Hershey and Paprika start posting, you'll know who they are.
Richard Ewing (betcha though my username was E-Wing, nope, more like a winged sheep... ewe-ing... or perhaps you wing da wrong numba.)
i've been kiting on & off for a few years now, and am finally getting into the water. i've had some amazing sessions on snow (snowkite rodeo at georgetown lake in montana) & have kiteboarded mostly on land at garry point park in steveston. i wish boundary bay got more consistent wind so i could head out there, as i live only ~35mins drive away from there vs the hour and 15 to squish. (which is worth it.)
i'd have been kiting more on than off if it weren't for external life factors & financial constraints keeping me out of the wind too often... but this season i decided to say fuck that, i'm not waiting any longer - i'm taking a lesson on the water to transfer land riding to the wetness & heading out every decent weekend i can! and so i did & am doing just that.
i'm not expert, not by a longshot, and am only now learning to kite up wind on the water. i'm cool with that though, 'cause i'm still stoked as all hell to get out there & kite - and that's the feeling it's about!
i like to promote kiteboarding as much as anyone else in the scene here & am glad to see it grow in popularity. i've helped create a few new kiters, some that've FAR surpassed me in terms of skill (paul) by putting the time in, and most recently i've got my best friend addicted to it. took a few years, but imo it's going to be soooo friggin' cool to be able to kite beaches locally & elsewhere with the best friend i've ever had. (queue the lame music... haha) just something about great people & the best damned sport on the planet coming together that's just inexplicably awesome.
hard to miss me on the beach, as i wear a chrome snowboard helmet. (sorry in advance for the glare i'm sure it throws!! ) also, some of you may assume i can't hear shit... not because i'll ignore people, but because sometimes i will be signing/"lip synching" & it's not me that's deaf, but rather, mark or ami or gary or or... etc.
other stuff:
24. born in vancouver, live in north delta. work alllll over the lower mainland selling security systems & video surveillance cameras/systems etc for alpha security, casi installations, voxcom & home depot home security.
oh, and if there's a non rainy weekend at the spit & i'm camping on the side of the gravel road - my little orange tent may look like a dog house, but please, please, don't let your doggies whiz on it...
biases:
i'm pro kiteboarding, skypilot, safety, and having fun while being respectful of all kiters/others on the beach regardless of their shop/brand/team affiliations. i'm also pro keeping stuff clean, too. no problem with food/bevvies at the beach - just clean up and take out what you bring in with you! as many of you know, i'm very opinionated online & am quite loud about it when it comes to my windustry/commerce beliefs. BUT, i'm not "anti" anyone or their shops or brands either. i'm especially not anti-any-kiter on the beach. i'll gladly launch/land anyone's rig or swim after their board, untangle lines etc. just because i'm pro skypilot commerce & post about it on skypilot doesn't make me an asshole. (in my opinion, anyways. your mileage may very.)
as for brands etc, i've had 9 kites (land & water) from 7 different brands, so i don't really have a loyalty to a certain kite brand. boards? i've had 7 from 7 different brands for various uses, currently my kiteboard is one made of birch plywood by a skimboard shop in florida - so you can see i don't really care what it is, especially since my skill level isn't up there high enough to benefit from super-spec stuff. but, i will admit 110%, what skypilot retails will likely influence what i fly/ride in the future.
oh, and i'd like to thank my "sponsor," mastercard, for making my kiteboarding possible!
see you ladies & gents at the spit and on the beaches!