The Kiteboarder Magazine

For 2013, Slingshot further streamlined its product line up. Slingshot’s kite surfboard line will see the biggest changes with the introduction of EPX construction and Fluid X technology.

After growing up in the UK, Mark Shinn moved to the Canary Islands to pursue a windsurfing career. He discovered kiteboarding in 1999 and quickly rose to the top, competing on the circuit until 2005 when he refocused his efforts to start his own board company.

For 2013 RRD is offering a number of refinements on it's extensive kiteboarding product line. In a unique move, RRD is offering two versions of the popular Vision kite.

Based in the Gorge for 28 years, ProMotion Wetsuits was founded by waterman Dana Love. A surfer at heart, Dana got into windsports to extend his time on the water.

The Prolimit lineup of harnesses, wetsuits, and travel bags has been freshly updated for 2013. New for this year is the C4, a kiteboarding-specific wetsuit.

The second day of the 2012 ISAF Annual Conference in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland, was marked by a compromise on the vexed issue of Kiteboarding versus Windsurfing for the 2016 Olympics.

For 2013, Ozone’s Catalyst and Zephyr kites have been completely redesigned while the rest of the line received smaller modifications.

NP is a brand new line of technical softgood products from Neil Pryde. Besides a stand-out line of wetsuits, harnesses, and SUP paddles, NP has also release the S1 spreader bar, the first aluminum spreader bar designed for kiteboarding.

The biggest changes to North’s lineup for 2013 relate to their control bar, Vegas kite, and Jamie Pro board. New products include the Pro Series, a surfboard shape with the most rocker and outline of all directional boards in North’s lineup, and the Spike Textreme, a new carbon light wind board.

Most of the changes to Nobile’s 2013 line represent refinements that improve upon construction and performance. Additionally, Nobile switched kite production to Sri Lanka, which they say has afforded them higher levels of quality control.

The popular line of Mystic harnesses has received a complete update for 2013 with the introduction of new models and a line of crossover harnesses that can be used for both kiteboarding and windsurfing.

A surfer since the age of 4, California native Gabe Loyd caught the kitesurfing bug in 2004 and never looked back. Learning early on that surfboards work but often don’t stand up to the rigors of kitesurfing, he started shaping his own kite-specific boards.

As one of kiteboarding’s first board companies, Litewave Designs has been passionate about the sport since 1998. Owner and designer Dave Turner is excited to introduce three entirely new board shapes to his 2013 line up.

For 2013 Liquid Force is offering refined versions of the popular Envy and the NRG and is also bringing back the HIFI in the form of the HIFI X. The twin tip line has also been refreshed and all of the boards are lighter for 2013.

JN Kites was founded by Bernhard Jochum and Michael Nester. Both had industry experience at Cabrinha and North before breaking off to start their own company in 2003. Based out of Merano, Spain, JN kites are now available in North America.