Kite surfing legend Mike Oakley is keepin’ it cool

He is the coolest grandpa in town, sliding over the sea and giving the youngsters a lesson in how it is done.

Umdloti’s Mike Oakley (67) is a legend in the kite surfing community.

He has longboarded since he was 16, followed by wind surfing, but he found his real passion when he saw kite surfing for the first time in 2002.

“After about 20 years of windsurfing, I got quite over it. I was looking for something new and bought a yacht with the dream of going to these exotic islands, but my wife got chronically sea sick and sailing was too slow for me.

“Kiting really grabbed my attention because it looked so exciting,” said the active Oakley, who has completed many marathons and triathlons.

He sold the yacht, bought a kite surfing kit and was hooked from the get go.

“Kiting is action the whole time. You are not fighting for a wave or sitting at back line talking rubbish.You cannot get bored with kite surfing because there are so many things to try,” said the remarkable semi-retiree who teaches kiting at the La Mercy lagoon.

“Anyone at any age or weight can do kite surfing. The only thing that will stop you is your head. You set your own boundaries whether it is just going for a chilled ride or doing tricks and aerials. It is a steep learning curve and it is instantly fun.”

This does not mean that you will be up and cruising through the water in your first lesson though.

“My first and most important lesson is always about safety and understanding how to body drag so that you can get back to the beach. You need to know where to rig up on the beach and how to ride away from people to prevent the chance of the kites getting tangled.

“Do not believe that the other person will give you right of way and, most importantly, let go of the bar if you are in trouble and remember you have a knife in case you have to cut yourself loose.”

The Slingshot dealer and kite repairer suggested starting with a good second-hand kit.

“Look for about two kites that are suited to your weight, a twin-tip board and a bar which will cost roughly R10 000.”

The only downer with kiting is that it requires windy conditions – or at least it used to.

“Kite foiling is my favourite because you only need about eight knots to go out there. The technology is improving rapidly with the foils getting lighter, better and bigger which allows you to go in really small waves.”

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