What the heck, there is nothing on TV, I've brushed my hair, done my nails and picked my nose so this is the obvious next thing.
I first kitesurfed at Sawtell Headland in late 97 or 98 with Bob Dawson (when I lived at Mooloolaba and owned the shop there at the Wharf called Kite Legends) We also flew the very first Wipika Classic 5M at Mooloolaba with Matt Colefax in 1997, and had heaps of sessions in Sydney when I moved there in 99, but there was already a guy doing it, his name is Paul Crawford, he was the best and could really do it and made it look easy. Paul rode a surfboard and did these long downwinders from Brighton to Dolls where he lived at the time. Darren Marshall started around this time too, but Paul was the real pioneer.
Alex sanz came onto the scene in 2001'ish, not before and its easy to prove. Incidentally Kitepower started in 1993 and the Sydney shop at Coogee was the 3rd, of 5 we have owned/operated/established. Sans Souci store opened in 2002/03, the boss will know but she's gone to bed now.
Duncan Place and Grant Dwyer were both taught to fly kites by me in 2000/2001 but they didn't listen to much of what I had to say LOL's.
I taught JB, Chris and a few others to fly the very first Naish kites that landed in Oz, in a park at Collaroy, they had tried to kill themselves with them once or twice and agreed to let me show them the better way to try not to die with the early 2 line death kites from Naish hahaha!
AKSA was founded in approx 2001/2002 with my money, and a bank account I opened with Terron Titus, Darren Marshall and Ian Young were also instrumental in founding AKSA with me.
Rich Stenning, Jeremy Hurwitz, Ian Rumbell, Paul Hall, Leon Clemones, John Messenger, Adam Quinn, Chris ??, Marty, Stretch, Sean Wilkens, Sean (Predator straps), Gomez, Richard, etc, etc, etc so many names I can't remember them all now and sorry that I forgot you whoever you are LOL's ( I know I have). Many of the early pioneers of the sport in Sydney have left the sport the attrition rate back then was high, the kite were not very forgiving and many people, me included had serious kitemares. Paul Crawford no longer kitesurfs and currently lives in Brisbane.
you know, the leash
