Slingshot Sports Kiteboarding, Wakeboarding, and Stand Up Paddle

Snowkiting in Utah was amazing. This year I stayed for a month instead of the week I usually get. It started with 12 hours in transit from Panama to California where I met up with James Ropner and Chuck Humbleton and began the 12 hour drive.  As we passed through Elko at 5 am there must have been a car crash every 2 miles.  Way too much time traveling but it was worth it.  As soon as we arrived in Salt Lake City we headed straight to the convention center to help out one of my buddies with setting up his booth for the Outdoor Retailer Expo.  It felt like I was in a city inside a building. We spent the next few days partying in Salt Lake and cruising at the Expo.

After the expo was done we headed over the hill to Park City. We rented a sweet cabin at the base of Canyons Resort and spent the next week raging in Park City and riding at the resort. The Sundance Film Festival was in town and my home girl Gretta Kruesi got us in to all the sickest parties. A friend of James’ also let us use his snowmobiles so we went off in search of some new places to kite. But there was no wind that day so we just hit up some tree runs.

Next up was the 2012 Mai Tai Snow Camp. This is the event I usually come out to help with. Bill Tai brings out Jeff Kafka and all the guys from WOW kite school in San Francisco to help out with instruction and guidance. This year was the best yet, despite having to move the event to Skyline because Strawberry Reservoir didn’t have enough snow. Brave Dave, the west coast Slingshot Rep was on site letting everyone try all the new 2012 Slingshot kites and Art Gimbel and Jamy Donaldson were rockin it behind the lens. My hommie Jesse Richman also braved the cold to join us from Maui. Beers were crackin, sandwiches were getting sandwiched and the riding was on. We had an amazing time and I met a bunch of new hommies that love to shred including someone I have always looked up to in the sport of snowkiting, Remi Meum. Later we raged at the 30 bed mansion Bill Tai rented for us until the property manager freaked out because of the noise, so we stormed Main Street in Park City until the bars closed. Actually, we stormed Main Street until the bars closed almost every night so nothing special there.

The last weekend of my trip we hit up the Best Superfly Open, part of the North American Snowkite Tour. It was supposed to be at Strawberry but there still was no snow so it too was moved to Skyline. It was a great event but I was disappointed when I found out that the rail jam had been canceled. But I was able to get in some sick glides off the top of the mountain, shit is so crazy check it out on video:

Huge Road Gap Glide

Snowy Plover Edit

2012 Maitai 

Now I’m off to Panama to get my tan back.  Check back here or ericrienstra.com for all the latest action.  Later.

-E