In the UK we have a small and dedicated team who know the product inside out and ride the kites on a daily basis. Globetrotters, instructors, surfers, competition winners, board shapers and kiteloop specialists.
17 year old wonder girl Hannah Whiteley has been worrying the BKSA establishment for the last couple of years. She took the Pro ladies freestyle title in 2009 as well as placing 2nd in 2008 in her first season as a pro. She is also a member of the infamous 'Whiteley Clan' who won Kitebeasts 2008. She was in Langebaan, South Africa this winter training. Hannah is also sponsored by Crazyfly and Pro Limit. Internationally she achieved a 3rd place womens freestyle in her first international competition at the KPWT in Sylt, Germany. She is currently out in South Africa training for the 2010 season.
See: http://www.thewhiteleyclan.co.uk/ for more info on Hannah
Pete Whiteley
A man who needs no introduction. The legendary Pete Whiteley, former british windsurf champion, unicycle hockey player, rock climber, wake boarder and most importantly morris dancer. He wins everything he enters and his competition results read like a copy of War and Peace.
Highlights include:
2007, 2008, 2009 BKSA Senior Champion British Kitesurfing Freestyle
2008 BKSA Senior Champion British Kitesurfing Course Racing
2008 Kite Beasts winner Hunstanton UK
Pete is banging out some technical wake style, as well as keeping it real with some dangly old school action. He has also mentored Hannah to sucess both internationally and in the UK, and has a lot to be pleased about.
See: http://www.thewhiteleyclan.co.uk/ for more info on Pete
Sarah is the most graceful rider you will ever see. She turns kitesurfing into ballet. She has done two seaons in Brazil, one in Cape Verde, South Africa, and Australia has been lucky enough to visit a lot of the world's best kite spots including El Yaque and Boracay. She's a seasoned traveller and great with languages, which is very useful. She has been instructing and travelling for three years now. She is also secretly an extremely talented snowboarder, and her carving style transfers into her kitesurfing. Sarah got a second overall in the BKSA course racing in 2008 and placed 5th overall in the BKSA Pro womens fleet in 2009. She is planning an assault on the wave comps in 2010.
After learning to kitesurf in Kent whilst he was at uni, Rich worked for one of the UK's larger distributors and then decided to qualify as an instructor. After that he's been globetrotting and instructing. He's done seasons instructing in Kenya, Cape Verde, Brazil, South Africa and Australia as well as the UK and also has some snowkite experience in Norway. The plan is to avoid real work as long as possible. Rich is primarily a wave head these days, but still rides a twin tip. He is heavily involved in R&D and protoyping for JN and is developing a wealth of knowledge on kite and board design.
Tricky is our team rider in the north east of england. When he's not rogering the cabin boy whilst 'drilling for oil' in the north sea, he is usually travelling the world to some of the finest kite spots and pulling some dangerous looking kiteloops or riding sliders. He often rides bindings and very much enjoys the style of wake. We don't understand 100% of what he says all of the time due to his thick Scottish accent. Tricky is also a budding photographer, getting shots published in some of the mags. He judges the BKSA landboarding and is proficient in that art as well. Finally, you can't mention Tricky without also mentioning his long suffering fiance, the mysterious Sonia 'hot legs' Farting.
Also known as the Reverend JT, or simply Beast, James originally hails from Birmingham, which is an extremely long way from the sea. James is a big man, and a powerful rider, and is notorious for his huge kiteloops and subsequently damaged knees. His robotic knee is now famous in the UK kitesurfing scene. Fluent in Spanish, he can order a pizza and beer in Tarifa faster than you can say Que. His favourite moves include the 'angry dragon', the 'blind pirate' and of course the 'dutch blindfold'. James has kitesurfed and instructed for a long time, and is notorious all over the globe for his crazy antics, both on and off the water. Jimmy managed to blag a second in the amateurs at the BKSA in Bridlington in 2009. He also judges on the BKSA tour.
Toby Raw
Toby is the latest member of the JN UK team. He is an out and out freestyle warrior with more handlepass moves than we can really understand. He comes from Littlehampton and when not kitesurfing he is found either in his van, listening to dubstep and playing guitar hero, or working in a popular international fast food restaurant where he has 4 stars and a golden name badge. He places well in the BKSA tour and somehow managed a 1st at Swansea in 2009. He also claims to have won employee of the month at least four times, and having the best van sound system on the whole BKSA tour.
Jon is a local at the epic wave and flatwater spot at Bantham in Devon. He's notorious for big air, kiteloops and technical tricks as well as worrying his father. When he's not at home in Devon, he is spending his student loan on new kites to rip around the beaches near Cardiff. Jon got a well deserved 3rd in the SKA event in 2008. He instructed out in Greece over summer 2008 after becoming qualified. He has also now done a gap year and taught in Egypt as well as South Africa.
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