Roadtrip to Sherman Island

Roadtrip time!

Got the bags packed with a full quiver of Airush Varials 6/9/12m. It's time to head to Sherman Island and meet up with the Airush kiteboarding west coast demo tour. Looking forward to travelling south and get some of super smooth wind. And don't forget 90 deg. air temp & sunshine.

 

 

 

 As we pull up I can already see kites in the air and my adrenaline is making it very hard to sit still in the car. We show up and exchanged high fives with the Airush crew. I think my impatience to ride was not hard to miss and I pumped up the 9m and headed out!











Out on the water is so surreal. I love the way everything quiets down with only the sound of the wake as the board cruises so effortlessly across the water. This evening was something special and the lighting of the setting sun reflected perfectly off the spray making every drop visible. Everyone had smiling faces and the energy was high.

Kyle Flower throwing down a huge strapless air with a grab! "Hey Kyle! Loop dat kite!"

 

I've kited a lot with Cameron Rodgers and watched her progress over the years from a total gaper to a bad ass who can ride HUGE Hawaiian waves and loves to jump over guys who think there hot shit.

 

 

Saturday started off super mellow and the wind was just a faint breeze till about 3pm. With the low tidewater we came out and combed the beach for treasure! I found some good pirates booty in the form of broken glass on the beach we launch and land on. Good karma and pleasing the wind gods!

 

The evening was awesome with a great BBQ courtesy of Maui Mike. It's great to see such an amazing crew of people get together and be able to relax, share stories and just be able to put everything aside but the moment.

Big Thanks to Nate Volk for taking these amazing photo's! He was out wading in bass infested waters and managed not to get bit! Check out more of Nate's photo's

www.natevolk.com

 

 

 

 

 

On the way home we checked the forecast and southern Oregon had some good frontal winds as a pressure system came in from the coast! We stopped by Emigrant lake in Ashland and had a great session for about 2-3 hours. I love kiting where I grew up. Back to Hood River now, time to get ready for instructing and shredding!

Fun April Sesh in Hood River

It's a beautiful spring day here in Hood River and the winds have been kickin! Good friends Blaine Baker and Lindsay Mclure and I had the event site all to ourselves and we able to get into the butter smooth cove that is usually crowded with windsurfers.

 

 

 

 

 

With water temps in the low 50's

 it was difficult to throw tricks anywhere away from shore. But we still made the most of it and Lindsay was able to capture the moment with style and ease.

 

Next week I'm heading to Sherman Island with the Airush crew and I'm super excited to get back down there and ride.

Pismo Beach kite Expo

Just got back from a road trip to Pismo beach for the Kite Expo event. Had an amazing cruise down the California coastline and got to session a new spot with friends Luke & Jacqui Bishop. The Big Lagoon in Humboldt county! Perfect session with my Airush 9M Varial and butter smooth winds with absolutely no crowds. After that I headed down to meet my good friend "Swav" and drove thru out the night to Pismo Beach.

      Saturday was a great day on the beach but lacked the much needed wind as typical for any kite event. The Afternoon was blessed with the gift of Maui Mike's BBQ! Truly an amazing feast and no one took for granted the hard work and time put in preparing so much wonderful food.

      

 As Sunday proceeded to look like much of the same, a very light sea breeze began to pick up as a pressure front off the coast started to move inland. Without delay many of us pumped up and launched for an amazing late afternoon ride with small waves and plenty of open space.

 

 





        I began the long journey home but not before stopping at Sherman Island for a long overdue experience in one the worlds best kiting destinations. With only me and Swav on the water we had the entire place to ourselves for giant boost thru the reed islands and super flat shallows in between. I departed with the most amazing sunset to guide me back home to Oregon.
 
 

         The next day I knew the forecast was promising for the Oregon coast and there is only one place that is always windy, Pistol River. And there was no shortage as I pumped up my 9M Airush Varial and started doubting weather I should go solo in the ocean in the one of the most shark infested spots in Oregon. But the wind beckons and fear turned into pure bliss as I slashed wave after wave with perfect down the line riding and some of the biggest jumps I've had in a long, long time.

         After a long trip I'm back in Hood River now, Exhausted and hanging up the gear to dry. Looking forward to the forecast for tmrw, west winds @ 25-30. Life is good in the hood!

New beginnings

Hey Friends & Fam,
Big News, I just got signed on to Airush Kiteboarding and am looking forward to some big changes in the future. Huge Thanks to everyone who has supported me thru out the years, I love you all!

Maui Breeze

Whaddup Kats & Kitty's
Been awhile since my last post, Took a much needed siesta to ground myself. Had an amazing time out in Maui with friends. Lots of amazing surf days and great winds. Spent lots of time in the jungles and swimming in exotic waterfalls. The classic stuff Hawai'i is known for.

 



Deciembre El Norte's

The North winds have picked up during the last couple days. We've had nice overhead waves coming in and I'm starting to get a lot more comfortable surfing. I've been teaching lessons everyday and doing lots of physical training to keep up on my strength. Taylor and I built a "Ninja-gym" and started the official Los barriles Bolympic marathon.

 

Light winds & Fiesta

It's been light winds for the past couple days and was nice to take a break and start building up "Club Shed". We took a trip south of Los Barriles, down to El Rincon and found perfect south winds in the mid 20's and amazing blue water.

             Spent some time during the light wind days to build up mi Casa. I originally used
all bamboo for framing and as soon as we layed the palm fronds over the roof the rain clouds
came in and it rained all night! The next morning I come to find the roof had collapsed and
it was back to square one. Needless to say the bamboo was not strong enough for framework so
I found a few steel re-bar pieces and it worked much better. So now the Casa is near its final
stage of completion.

 

        Went spear fishing for my first time and I can't belive how many tropical fish there are!, The sea of cortez is bustling full of life. I've never experienced swimming with tens of thousands of fish all around me. I swam next to a sea turtle and even swam over the top of a full size morey eel that looked like a pissed off pitbull. I didnt get to see any sharks but there are plenty of small reef sharks around.

Over the last weekend was Independence day in mexico.In Los Barriless they closed down part of the main street and had all sorts of street vendors from Mariachi bands, Food and Bars, Gambling and Games and a few "knick Knack" toy booths. Last thing we did was go to see the cock fights and I gotta say I have mixed feeling about watching animals fight to the death for gambling purposes. It will probably be the first and last time I watch cock fighting.
 

Next week the forecast looks solid so it's back to kiteboarding every day!

Ciao,
Matty