The 2012 season finished with an amazing title run for the men and the women. First it was Karolina Winkowska, who upset the two world champions Bruna Kajiya and Gisela Pulido, by claiming her first world title in New Caledonia and then the incredible battle between Youri Zoon and Alex Pastor coming down to the last heat of the season to determine who will be champion. With all these riders returning in 2013 to battle for the world title and many challengers like Mark Jacobs, Alberto Rondina and up and comers like Liam Whaley, Patrick Blanc and Paul Serin, the quest for the 2013 PKRA world freestyle title is bound to be exciting.
The 2013 season will be marked by the new discipline of slalom and the return of wave events to the PKRA. The Morocco wave event will be open to all riders, giving the waves riders from all over the world a chance to show off their skills with the kiting world watching. The PKRA will also be holding many slalom events in 2013, this new high-speed slalom format will be very exciting to follow. All the action will be close to the beach, the riders will be close together and the action will be nonstop. The great thing about slalom is that it does not require the strict gear format of the racing and will be much more accessible to everyone.
The 2013 season will start off in Morocco, the lagoon and waves of Dakhla will be the perfect location for riders to gauge their progress in the off-season and surf a perfect point break. This event will show the world who the best freestylers and waves riders are at the beginning of 2013. The second stop of the season will be in windy Leucate for the Mondial du Vent. The strong winds of the Tramontane always provide a challenge for the riders and being in the south of France the competition always attracts all the top European riders. The third event will be the new Slalom Mini Kiteboard World Cup in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico; this event will be a great format to draw all the North American and South American talent of the racing world. The Fourth stop will be in Turkey for the Burn kite surfing World Cup, the focus of the event will be on the slalom discipline with a freestyle exhibition. The fifth destination will be the new destination of Sicily; the town of Marsala will host an event for the first time since the 2007 World Cup. The strong thermals, flat water and local scene will make this event one of the highlights of the year. Since the PKRA came 6 years ago, the lagoons of Marsala have become a top Italian destination, and will soon be as world famous as the Marsala wine.
The summer months will bring back our two staple events; the first one being the Beetles World Cup in Germany and the second the Fuerteventura Grand Slam. The PKRA Germany always has the biggest rider turnout with over a 100 riders registered at the spectacular 9 day event and village on the beach that brings thousands of spectators. Fuerteventura’s strong wind at the midpoint of the season is a good testing ground for the riders. By the end of July we know which riders are contenders for the PKRA world title. The last events of the summer will be in Essaouira, Morocco with its strong side shore wind and waves and historical town and the new event in Egypt on the Red Sea. The Clearwater and perfect wind will make this event a perfect wrap up the summer before moving to the Asian and South Pacific events.
The final events of the season have not been confirmed yet but will be set up in the coming months. We are looking at the return of the Chinese event on the on the island of Hainai on the South China Sea , the perfect conditions of New Caledonia and new events in Australia and South Africa.
We are just two months away from our first event; all the riders are still training and getting ready for the new season. The new and old locations will once again provide the best terrain to crown a freestyle world champion, and show off some amazing wave riding and great slalom racing. Please visit www.prokitetour.com and our Facebook page for the latest updates, news, photos, videos, articles and interviews.
