Interview mit Ben Wilson

Posted: Februar 20th, 2010 | Author: Boost News | Filed under: Boost-News, Interviews, Kiteboarding | No Comments »

Der gebürtige Australier Ben Wilson hat sein Leben den Wellen gewidmet. Er ist auf der ewigen Suche nach perfekten Wellen. Er baut sich sein eigenes Imperium auf und produziert atemberaubende DVDs über das Kiten in der Welle. Das ist mehr als Grund genug für uns ihn über dieses spektakuläre Leben und den neuen Slingshot Octane zu interviewen:

Hey Ben, how are you? For how many years have you been kiteboarding for, and what was the reason to get into kiting?

I have been kiting for 10 years now & i got into it by chance when I was living & working in Fiji, the original guys who first started kiteboarding – Brett Lickle, Mike Waltze, Dave Kalama, Rush Randle all used to come to Namotu Island where I was working every year to train for tow surfing & this one year they brought kites and Brett taught me & ever since then I have never looked back.

You live on Australias beautiful, sunny Goldcoast.How is the wind and the ride there ?

I actually live in the Sunshine coast, 2 hrs north of the Goldcoast. Generally speaking it is pretty average surfing & kiting, but it’s warm year round and I can surf & kite year round, so it keeps me happy. It’s a great place to travel from too.

You are one of the best Wavekiters in the world. What’s the main difference between Waveriding with a kite and surfing?

Obviously the main difference is the added dynamic of the kite, essentially I want to ride the waves somewhat the same as I do surfing & I use the same boards, but with the added power of the kite it really opens it up to push my surfing even further, I’m excited what the future holds, because who knows what we will be able to do on a surfing level with the added edition of the kite.

Riding in the waves is an amazing experience. The power of the ocean, the adrenaline… And of course, it can be dangerous, too. What you do is really amazing and has a lot of adrenaline, what are you doing if you crash and the kite drags you under the water? Do you have any tips how to react when getting washend by big waves?

Damn, this happens to me a lot and it’s scary when it’s big, my best advice would be not to wear a leash when it’s huge as things can go bad really quickly, but if you do choose to wear a leash make sure you have a good & easy safety release.

How big was the biggest wave you´ve ever ridden in your life?

Hmmmm, there are a couple sessions that stand out both tow surfing and kiting in sheer size, but I would have to say the biggest & scariest waves I have ever ridden are more shallow slabby waves with around 15-20 feet faces. I’m more into trying to find a crazy slab wave that a deep water big wave.

How long have you been riding for Slingshot Kites?

8 years now, they have been one of my best supporters.

From your perspective, what sets Sligshot apart from other Kiteboarding brands?

Product for sure, they are all about making quality product in it’s simplest form and I like that.

Slingshot kites are known for their build quality and stability. Is this especially important for waveriding, and whats your input on product development?

It is very important to have a strong product in the waves, no kite can ever with stand a certain wave destroying it, but Slingshots product gives you the best possible chance. I have a lot product input with them & it’s one of my favourite parts of being a pro.

Can you tell us more about the new developments in the 2010 Slingshot kites and boards?

I can’t give any secrets away at this stage, but we have some cool stuff in the pipeline.

Which kites do you prefer for waveriding and flat water? We are especially interested in the new Octane. How does it compare to the RPM and Fuel?

The octane is what I ride, it is versatile in every condition and such an easy kite to ride in the waves, the RPM & Fuel both work well in the waves too, but have limitations in certain conditions, for example in more offshore conditions they work as well as the octane, but when the wind is more onshore they are both incredible.

When are you hitting europe next? We’d love to see you at our homespot, St. Peter Ording!

I’m heading to Spain for a wave camp in April & was then thinking of spending a couple weeks filming in Europe, so hopefully then!!!

Thanks for the interview !

Thank you & thanks for the support.

Das folgende Video ist von Ben Wilson in Indonesien. Dort fährt er auch den neuen Octane in der Welle.

Informationen zum 2010er Slingshot Octane:

Der 2010er Octane von Slingshot bietet mit einer großen Drehfreude viel Spaß in Wellen oder auf dem Flachwasser. Er ist ein perfekter Allround-Kite.

Der Octane wurde auf dem Erfolgsrezept des 2009er Rev aufgebaut. Daraus geworden ist ein sehr fortschrittlicher Kite in der Linie der Hybrid-C-Kites.

Eine große Windrange, leichte Barkräfte, schnelles Drehverhalten, eine kompakte Bridle und solide Surf-Eigenschaften zeichnen den Octane 2010 aus.