Branson is at it again, Mr Virgin kites the English Channel
Branson looks pretty happy with his accomplishment!
Well, old(er) than the last guy to kite surf across the English Channel anyway. The 61 year old made it on his second attempt at the crossing, having to abandon his previous attempt the day before because he rigged too small a kite.
His son Sam broke the record for the fastest crossing on the same day Branson had a small kite, a feat that couldn't be bettered by Branson on his second attempt, leaving him with the title of the oldest man to kite surf the channel, not the fastest. It just goes to show that even one of the richest dudes in the world can't have everything!
Unlike his old man, Sam doesn't really make the headlines that often, but the kid obviously has skills. He finished the crossing in a time of 2 hours and 18 minutes, 12 minutes faster than the previous record set in 1999. He also beat the group of kite surfers that he made the journey with, and smashed his dads time of 3 hours 45 minutes by well over an hour.
So what were the speed demons using to get there? Well Branson seems to have made the switch to Flexifoil kites. He's been spotted in the past on Liquid Force and Cabrinha gear too, but for this trip the model of choice was an Ion in disguise. The Virgin Active branding was splashed all over the kite, but when the man takes his holidays in space, a little branding on his kitesurfing equipment probably isn't going to break the budget.
Congratulations to Sam Branson and his old man for making the crossing, as well as the rest of the kiteboarders who also made the trip on day one.
