We finally had some wind on race day and a great turnout for the first event of the Cabrinha Race Series. The wind was light and everyone had their big kites and big boards out. The course consisted of a start line to an upwind leg of about 100 yards then 200 yards downwind and another 100 yards upwind to the finish / start line. I think the races took about 10-20 minutes depending on your finishing position. 
We completed 4 races and the wind actually built slightly throughout the series. The races were surprisingly intense and competitive for the first event. I personally haven't raced kites before and its been 7 years since I've raced windsurfers. It seemed like everyone was having a great time, myself included. It was great to see young Protege Sean (13years) and Rookair Liam(10years) out there on the start line along with Rookair Josh and Johnathan, Captain T-Todd and several other riders from the bay area. Many thanks to Nils Stolzlechner and Ryan Riccitelli (the race committee) for organzing the event. For the first event, it was a big success and waaaaay more fun than we all expected.
We are hoping to organize some reeeaaaally laid back racing at Wildcat so that everyone can practice and learn how to course race for future events. We have some really experienced racers in the WKC who can give you some major tips that will make a big difference in you skills and finishing position. ACE's Howizard, Danish, & Delegarza all have extensive racing experience in windsports along with myself. Rookair Duffy is perhaps our greatest resource for racing since she is a high level coach as well an experienced racer. I'll let you know when the first fun racing "clinic" will be held at Wildcat. Basically the only thing holding us back right now is wind and some marks / bouys. If you have any leads on bouys, let me know. Pump it and chunk it.
Please welcome Mike Danish and his much better half, Duffy Danish to the WKC. Mike is a vetran kiteboarder sponsored by North with competition experience in previous years. He is know as one of the best riders in the CC bay area and is also an Engineer/Officer/Pilot for the US Coast guard - hence he is a great guy to have on speed dial when you are 5 miles off shore out with Delegarza on his catamaran when the mast snaps off. (Luckily we had cell service). If my memory serves me correctly, Danish won the Red Bull King of the Air Qualifier in 2004 and took 3rd in the Velocity Games Boarder Cross in 2005. He also somehow convinced Duffy Markham to marry him in the past year or so which might be his greatest accomplishment.
Duffy is well know in the sailing and kiteboarding community and is the Sailing Director at the Corpus Christi Yacht club where she was awarded Developmental Coach of the Year in 2006 and I quote... " Duffy Markham created a flourishing Texas A&M Corpus Christi sailing team, an active youth and adult Learn to Sail program and expanded a current Sea Scout program. At the same time, she continued coaching and developing a race team of Lasers, 420s, Green fleet and top-ranked Optimist racers. As the head coach of the Junior Race Team, four of her team of six Optimist sailors qualified for and competed in the United States Optimist Dinghy Association (USODA) Team Trials. Duffy also coaches an Optimist sailor on the Optimist US National Team and two sailors on the US National Development Team. In addition, Duffy continually works to promote her fledgling Laser and 420 teams, encouraging sailors to switch boats to keep racing, while recruiting new sailors to crew for the more experienced sailors. She also collaborates with national coaches to promote opportunities for her sailors outside the local program." As far as I know, she is also the best female kiteboarder in town.
Danish and Duffy will make great additions to the WKC and with their combined skills, present and future WKC kids and riders will greatly benefit from tips and pointers from this duo. Welcome to the Crew guys. 
WKC Creedo
- Ride – get out of bed and shred.
- Respect – fellow riders, the public, and the beaches.
- Represent - the WKC & ride hard wherever you are.
WKC Mission
It is the mission of the WKC to bring together veteran and aspiring riders from all around the Corpus Christi Bay area in order to build camaraderie, provide equipment and accelerate the learning of sick, professional level kiteboarding skills in an exciting, hilarious and rewarding environment.
The WKC - What's in it for you?
Welcome new Seekers. If you have been given WKC Hardware and a WKC Rank then congratulations, you are a cool person and we like you. We also hope you enjoy being part of the WKC and the associated benefits. The benefits of being a WKC include:
Camaraderie: Always having someone to go ride with, both at Wildcat and other spots like group downwinders at the beach or a night session at Rockport. This camaraderie goes beyond kiteboarding as well. If we are doing something else fun we will likely call you to join in, or if need help with something else in life, ask us, we are a very dynamic bunch with a lot of connections, knowledge, experience, and access to material things. We have gear connections, travel connections, real estate connections, job connections etc. We also have access to boats, motorcycles, trucks, heavy equipment and even a plane! As a WKC member all you need to do is ask.
More Access to Gear: We encourage sharing within the WKC so if you are new to the sport and you are short on gear, or you want to try someone's board/kite or test something new that is out, we can usually provide. Trying different gear will make you a better rider and you will also figure out quickly what works best for you.
Accelerated Learning: You will learn faster as a WKC member, about both gear and riding. This is part of the reason why we have a ranking system and corresponding awards (dog tags hardware) for achieving different levels of skill. It is an incentive/reward system that is fun and helps prevent you from stagnating at a certain skill level. Feel free to ask for tips on gear and riding from other WKC riders, especially the Consulate (T-Todd, Howizard, Greg'eh, Patrick, Rocky). We will give you pointers that will make you better, faster and we can also make sure you are on the right gear at the right price.
A Unified Voice: As a WKC member you will be respected by the community as an ambassador of the sport, parks and community. As our numbers grow, we will have more and more of a voice with The City of Portland, The City of Rockport, The City of Corpus Christi and the kiteboarding community as a whole. This will help ensure that we will always have great spots to ride at and community support when we need it for WKC events. We already have a great relationship with the City of Portland and it should only get better as we become more involved in the community. There is strength in numbers.
As new Seekers of the WKC certain things are expected of you (things you are probably already doing otherwise you wouldn't be a WKC Seeker). Basically it comes down to The WKC Creedo of: Ride, Respect & Represent.
The WKC Creedo means:
1) Ride - Get out of bed and shred - when we call you to go ride, or do anything for that matter, do your best to show up or help out - its not just about kiteboarding, its about being a good friend.
2) Respect - Respect other riders, the beaches and the public. Be respectful to other riders on an off the water, pick up trash even if it’s not yours, ride safely when non kiters and kids are around.
3) Represent the WKC - be a cool person, help others out, thank those that help you and give back to the WKC. As a new member it is expected that some day you may become a member of the Consulate as a Master, Captain, or ACE. This means that as a WKC Seeker that you are being "observed" to see if you truly want to be a part of the WKC and believe in its Mission and Creedo. The easiest way to show that do want to be a part of the WKC is to simply observe the Creedo, so commit it to memory or tattoo it somewhere! Examples of showing your commitment are: Showing up for WKC events, coming up with new ideas/events/pranks for the WKC, wearing your WKC gear, helping out other WKC riders, giving when not asked to give (snacks, drinks etc), offering to pay for your WKC gear, sharing your knowledge and connections and most importantly being about fun. Basically you are role models for future Seekers, so be a good example and when you are a WKC veteran, new Seekers will look up to you for advice and help, and thank you in return. Pump it and chunk it. - The Consulate
Current WKC Seekers and Rank
- Jonathan Beaty - "Protege", Local - Rockport, May 2nd, 2008
- Sean McGinnis - "Protege", Local - Rockport, June 30th, 2007 ("Rookair" May 5th, 2007)
- Stefanie Douglass - "Rookair", Local - Corpus Christi, Sept, 2007 ("Tenderfoot" July 17th, 2007)
- Jeremy Hintz - "Rookair", Local - Portland
- Josh McClain - "Rookair", Local - Corpus Christi, July 9th, 2007
- John James (J.J) - "Rookair", Ghostrider - Houston
- Keith Despins - "Rookair", Ghostrider - Canada
- Liam McGinnis - "Rookair", Local - Rockport, Aug 20th, 2007 ("Rookie" July 17th 2007, "Tenderfoot" May 5th, 2007, )
- Brent Reagan - "Rookie", Local - Portland, July 17th, 2007 ("Tenderfoot" June 24th, 2007)
- Mark McGinnis - "Rookie", Local - Rockport Aug 21, 2007 ("Tenderfoot" June 30th, 2007)
- Chantal Archambault - "Rookie", Ghostrider - Montreal, Canada . June 8th, 2008
We finally had some wind on race day and a great turnout for the first event of the Cabrinha Race Series. The wind was light and everyone had their big kites and big boards out. The course consisted of a start line to an upwind leg of about 100 yards then 200 yards downwind and another 100 yards upwind to the finish / start line. I think the races took about 10-20 minutes depending on your finishing position. 
We completed 4 races and the wind actually built slightly throughout the series. The races were surprisingly intense and competitive for the first event. I personally haven't raced kites before and its been 7 years since I've raced windsurfers. It seemed like everyone was having a great time, myself included. It was great to see young Protege Sean (13years) and Rookair Liam(10years) out there on the start line along with Rookair Josh and Johnathan, Captain T-Todd and several other riders from the bay area. Many thanks to Nils Stolzlechner and Ryan Riccitelli (the race committee) for organzing the event. For the first event, it was a big success and waaaaay more fun than we all expected.
We are hoping to organize some reeeaaaally laid back racing at Wildcat so that everyone can practice and learn how to course race for future events. We have some really experienced racers in the WKC who can give you some major tips that will make a big difference in you skills and finishing position. ACE's Howizard, Danish, & Delegarza all have extensive racing experience in windsports along with myself. Rookair Duffy is perhaps our greatest resource for racing since she is a high level coach as well an experienced racer. I'll let you know when the first fun racing "clinic" will be held at Wildcat. Basically the only thing holding us back right now is wind and some marks / bouys. If you have any leads on bouys, let me know. 
