We had the chance to talk to one of Germany's best riders, Sebastian Bubmann. Sebastian won the German Kitesurfing Championships in 2006. He was born in Flensburg / Northern Germany but has recently started his university studies in Munich. He rides Flysurfer Kites and Flyboards. You can read his biography as well as his results, videos and current events in his life on his blog at www.sebastianbubmann.com.
Hey Sebastian, I heard that you moved to the south of Germany. Are you glad that you don't have to jump in the freezing waters of the Baltic Sea, but instead can go Snowkiting in the Alps during the winter?
Absolutely!! During the wintertime this part of Germany is the better choice for sure. But in the summertime it's another story...
You are Snowkiting on skis and also won several titles there, including the German Championships 2007. Is it possible to transfer the tricks from Kitesurfing with a board to Snowkiting on skis and the opposite way?
No, it's not really too many things that you can take over from the water with a board to the snow with skies. There're several tricks like flat - spins for example that work similar from the body movement but the take off and the landings are totally different since your feet are close together and your body position is turned for 90° compared to standing on a board.
You travelled a lot last year, you have been to Brazil, North America and New Zealand. Do you have any plans to travel during the winter and escape the freezing cold?
We'll see ... I started studying in Munich this fall and the exams will be DURING the vacations in January and February. Sucks ... but there'll be 4 free weeks left after we're done with the exams. I was thinking about going to South Africa then, because it's windy all the time, there's good party and no brain Rick Jensen will be down there too so we could go train together.
In August we saw you during the PKRA World Cup in St. Peter-Ording. There you only competed in course racing due to a ripped ear drum but gained 4th place there in your first course racing tournament! What is your impression of the course racing scene, did you enjoy racing? Do you plan to do more racing in the next season?
Yeah, that was kind of funny. I thought before I would end up sitting on the beach all the time I could compete in this course-racing thing. As a kid I was sailing quite a few boat races but stopped it because it simply turned out to be boring compared to windsurfing and kiting! A big aspect was also the protests and all that hating and shouting on the water. Well ... it turned out that no matter what you're racing on this is still part of "the game".
Boards couldn't be lent out to "possible opponents", there were heaps of protests etc. but whatever ... It was really good fun too and next season I'll compete again, that's for sure!
How do you think kiting will develop in the next season?
That's always a good question! I could grab a beer now and start to philosophise ...
I think that on the PKRA - tour the tricks will focus a lot more on the style and the way you perform your trick: How fast do you spin, how smooth do you land, are there some grabs in your tricks and how nice can you combine tricks. I really hope that there'll be a good overall style of riding in the competitions too ... I've seen a few french guys over the last years who could always do nice boardoffs, transitions sliding on the top of their board etc. AND really powered wakestyle stuff. If you ask me, it's stupid to say wakestyle is the one and only thing!
Wakestyle is a great and in comps the most influential part of the sport. I've busted my knees too and it was a great time, coming in fast with dead flat water and going for a fully powered trick with the kite low, nailing it and hearing the board slamming on the water just to ride away smoothly. To me this is what I love most about the sport. Being out on a great spot with flat water, some sliders and battle with a few friends!!
What are your plans and goals for the next season?
First I want to do a lot more on the snow this winter! The Alps just around the corner and there'll be several competitions in Austria, France and Switzerland. Then I'll compete in the Kitesurf-Trophy and the PKRA in St. Peter-Ording. Some more fotoshoots and travel reports would be nice too. I have some ideas I'll discuss with my sponsors and see what projects we can realize.
You are a teamrider from Flysurfer kites, a foil type kite, since several years. Describe the influence of these kites on your riding style?
The foilkites are really good for wakestyle - tricks: They give you a massive pop, after "loading" the lines with tension by edging hard. This has always been a good thing since it gives me more time up in the air to do my tricks. They do also help me for the landings since the weight is balanced over the whole kite and not focussed on the front. This helps if you ride downwind really fast e.g. after a fast landing or riding a wave and keeps the kite flying well even with a minimum of tension on the lines. In the earlier times they were turning slow compared to the inflatable kites. But this has changed ... the PSYCHO3 was already a really fast kite but the PSYCHO4 turns as good as an inflatable Kite does (not to forget that you always can take a size smaller kite).
Sebastian, thank you for your time and good luck for your studies! We hope that you have enough time and good wind to rip during the winter!
Hey Sebastian, I heard that you moved to the south of Germany. Are you glad that you don't have to jump in the freezing waters of the Baltic Sea, but instead can go Snowkiting in the Alps during the winter?Absolutely!! During the wintertime this part of Germany is the better choice for sure. But in the summertime it's another story...
You are Snowkiting on skis and also won several titles there, including the German Championships 2007. Is it possible to transfer the tricks from Kitesurfing with a board to Snowkiting on skis and the opposite way?
No, it's not really too many things that you can take over from the water with a board to the snow with skies. There're several tricks like flat - spins for example that work similar from the body movement but the take off and the landings are totally different since your feet are close together and your body position is turned for 90° compared to standing on a board.
You travelled a lot last year, you have been to Brazil, North America and New Zealand. Do you have any plans to travel during the winter and escape the freezing cold?
We'll see ... I started studying in Munich this fall and the exams will be DURING the vacations in January and February. Sucks ... but there'll be 4 free weeks left after we're done with the exams. I was thinking about going to South Africa then, because it's windy all the time, there's good party and no brain Rick Jensen will be down there too so we could go train together.
In August we saw you during the PKRA World Cup in St. Peter-Ording. There you only competed in course racing due to a ripped ear drum but gained 4th place there in your first course racing tournament! What is your impression of the course racing scene, did you enjoy racing? Do you plan to do more racing in the next season?
Yeah, that was kind of funny. I thought before I would end up sitting on the beach all the time I could compete in this course-racing thing. As a kid I was sailing quite a few boat races but stopped it because it simply turned out to be boring compared to windsurfing and kiting! A big aspect was also the protests and all that hating and shouting on the water. Well ... it turned out that no matter what you're racing on this is still part of "the game".
Boards couldn't be lent out to "possible opponents", there were heaps of protests etc. but whatever ... It was really good fun too and next season I'll compete again, that's for sure!
How do you think kiting will develop in the next season?
That's always a good question! I could grab a beer now and start to philosophise ...
I think that on the PKRA - tour the tricks will focus a lot more on the style and the way you perform your trick: How fast do you spin, how smooth do you land, are there some grabs in your tricks and how nice can you combine tricks. I really hope that there'll be a good overall style of riding in the competitions too ... I've seen a few french guys over the last years who could always do nice boardoffs, transitions sliding on the top of their board etc. AND really powered wakestyle stuff. If you ask me, it's stupid to say wakestyle is the one and only thing!
Wakestyle is a great and in comps the most influential part of the sport. I've busted my knees too and it was a great time, coming in fast with dead flat water and going for a fully powered trick with the kite low, nailing it and hearing the board slamming on the water just to ride away smoothly. To me this is what I love most about the sport. Being out on a great spot with flat water, some sliders and battle with a few friends!!
What are your plans and goals for the next season?
First I want to do a lot more on the snow this winter! The Alps just around the corner and there'll be several competitions in Austria, France and Switzerland. Then I'll compete in the Kitesurf-Trophy and the PKRA in St. Peter-Ording. Some more fotoshoots and travel reports would be nice too. I have some ideas I'll discuss with my sponsors and see what projects we can realize.
You are a teamrider from Flysurfer kites, a foil type kite, since several years. Describe the influence of these kites on your riding style?
The foilkites are really good for wakestyle - tricks: They give you a massive pop, after "loading" the lines with tension by edging hard. This has always been a good thing since it gives me more time up in the air to do my tricks. They do also help me for the landings since the weight is balanced over the whole kite and not focussed on the front. This helps if you ride downwind really fast e.g. after a fast landing or riding a wave and keeps the kite flying well even with a minimum of tension on the lines. In the earlier times they were turning slow compared to the inflatable kites. But this has changed ... the PSYCHO3 was already a really fast kite but the PSYCHO4 turns as good as an inflatable Kite does (not to forget that you always can take a size smaller kite).
Sebastian, thank you for your time and good luck for your studies! We hope that you have enough time and good wind to rip during the winter!
