What does the rest of 2007 hold in store?

I am running some kitesurfing and yoga clinics with Animal, in October, in Tarifa (Canary Islands). I’m going on trips for photoshoots, maybe to Indonesia, or Hawaii.
I have four or five Wavemasters, the first is in Morocco. I enjoy the wave more than freestyle competitions as it feels more natural, coming with a surfing background.

How did you get into kitesurfing?

Growing up in Pembrokeshire, I started sailing at around three, and then aged 16, I started windsurfing and fell in love with it. I was in Hawaii in 2001, training to compete in the Windsurfing Nationals, when I discovered kitesurfing, still in the early years of the sport. I realised it was a combination of all of my favourite watersports: the kit was lighter than for windsurfing, but I could ride waves, do tricks and it was graceful, like surfing. The same year I entered and came first in the Kitesurfing British Championships, aged 22.

What about surfing?

Surfing is one of my biggest passions. I was 18 when I started and I competed with the Welsh surf team in the Europeans.

You won the Red Bull Master of the Ocean in 2005. How did this feel?

I was shocked, I didn’t expect it. The outcome works on a combination of points for the three disciplines: surfing, windsurfing and kitesurfing. As there were only two other women in the women’s comp, who were out of the contest early on, I joined the men’s heats so I would have someone to compete against. I think I won because a lot of the guys do the best tricks but crash them, whereas I put things I knew together, and landed them.  

What’s the greatest challenge you’ve ever faced through your sport?

Competitions have been mentally hard – testing my nerves. But I have also completed two long-distance crossings and these were more physically demanding. I was the first person to kitesurf across the Irish Sea from Ireland to Wales, it took me four and a half hours. From Lanzorote to Morocco, in 2006, took me nine hours for a 225km crossing.

What was your motivation behind these long distance challenges?

I wanted to do something solo and challenge mayself. I raised money for the Ty Hafan Children’s Hospice in Cardiff with the Irish crossing and for L-AIAPH, for disabled people in the Sahara, with the Lanzorote to Morocco crossing.

How do you keep yourself in peak condition for competitions?

If there’s no wind for a kitesurfing session I run for an hour a day across hilly terrain. I do yoga every day, which helps me prevent injury, stay calm and listen to my body and mind. I’ve been doing yoga for three years and I just completed teacher training in Mexico.

Where are you favourite places to kitesurf?

I like remote, undiscovered places. In Africa: South Africa, Morocco, Senegal, Kenya. Also. one of my favourite places is Ireland. I love the epic wind and waves, wildlife and dramatic scenery, the dolphins and seals in the water with you, and the culture and people. I like the west coast, Brandon Bay in County Kerry, and around Dublin.

What’s the best way to get started at kitesurfing?

A two-day lesson. There are so many kitesurfing schools now. Anyone can find somewhere they want to go or close to them. Lessons will teach you safety and technique. Equipment is now so high-tech and safe, as long as you know what you’re doing and take out a kite suitable for your level of skill and wind strength, you’ll be ok. Then just stick at it – it can be frustrating, at times. Kitesurfing is all about technique, not strength.