PKRA TOUR STOP#1: VENEZUELA: The start of the 2007 PKRA World Tour

By Stacey Fonas

Posted Monday April 16th 2007

Monday 16 April

With the 2007 PKRA season ready to kick off in Venezuela (Coche and El Yaque), the riders started gathering at the beginning of April to get used to the conditions, and to mentally and physically prepare themselves for the first tour stop of the year. Because the first stop sets the tone for the season … as well as the standard of riding … it is one of the most important and critical stops in the tour.

Bas Koole, 20, from the Netherlands and new to the International lineup this year, reports:

Sent: 04 April 2007 00:34, Subject: Update ... Isla Coche, Venezuela

After a flight of 9 and a half hours I arrived together with Randy Hereman on Isla Margerita. We had a delay of 4 hours in Amsterdam, Netherlands, so we are too late for the last boat to Isla Coche. We stay the first night in El Yaque and take the next morning the first boot to Isla Coche.

I'm staying for 2 months here on Isla Coche. It is a really good spot for training. The wind is offshore and that makes the water super flat. I'm staying in the Cabañas together with the Polish Best rider Ola Tomkowicz. The cabañas are perfect, you can cook by yourself so everything is low-budget.

Bruna arrived here also and she is ripping on the water together with here Brazilian friends. It is getting more and more crowded on the water with PKRA- riders. Now Randy Hereman, Reno Romeu, Bruna, Karolina … and me are on the water training for the PKRA. It is good to be here and start a new season on a spot like this. The first competition is always important to be there, here you can see what all the other riders learned this winter. So you can prepare yourself for the whole season.

That was it for now!!! - Adios, Bas Koole

Best Representation on the 2007 PKRA tour

In addition to Bas Koole on the men's front this year, Alvaro Onieva (Spain) will be representing Best for the third year in a row. A PKRA veteran at the age of 19, 2007 will be his fifth year competing on the tour. He first began competing in 2003, at the age of 15, finishing 16th overall, and each consecutive year, he has slowly been working his way up the ladder. In 2004, he finished 7th; in 2005, 6th; and in 2006, he finished 4th overall, with a personal highlight of the season occurring at the final stop in Brazil, when he edged out Aaron Hadlow, in what he describes as the best heat of his life. Finishing 6th in Brazil (to Hadlow's 7th), it was enough to land him 4th overall, and this year he has his sights set on number one. Alvaro combines technical precision and style with the ability to perform consistently and well under all sorts of conditions and pressures, and we are looking forward to seeing what he has in store for us this year.

Alvaro Onieva, ranked 4th Overall in the 2006 PKRA World Tour

Christian Holley, who will be representing Best (along with Clinton Bolton and Kristin Boese) on the KPWT this year, is also down in Venezuela at the moment training for the upcoming season, and will also be competing in the first PKRA stop Venezuela.

Christian Holley

Representing Best for the women this year will be Bruna Kajiya (Brazil), ranked 2nd Overall in the 2006 World Tour, who recently won the South American Championship in Chile in February. Local Polish team rider Ola Tomkowicz will also be representing Best in Venezuela.

Bruna Kajiya

Tuesday April 17th is the official start of the 2007 PKRA World Tour. Due to the number of riders registered for the event, there is no need for a Qualifying Round, so if there is wind, they will move directly into the main Freestyle Event. Tuesday and Wednesday will be held on Coche, and afterwards, the competition will move to El Yaque, where the conditions are a bit more challenging for the riders.

We wish all of our riders good luck!

2007 PKRA Tour Schedule:

The Professional Kiter Rider's Association … by the riders and for the riders. Not sure which riders exactly would have scheduled themselves a grueling 11 competitions in 5 months, with only a mere couple of days in between some of the stops, but who are we to judge :) We're just glad it's not us! Get lots of sleep, everyone, and eat your vegetables!

1) Venezuela April 17th-21st

2) Austria April 30 – May 6th

3) Italy May 29th-June 3rd

4) Cabarete June 26-July 1

5) Tarifa July 3th – July 9th

6) Portugal July 23 – 28th

7) Fuerteventura July 30 – Aug 4

8) Germany Aug 18th- 25th

9) Canada Aug 31- Sept 6

10) Brazil Sept 11th

11) Chile Sept 25th – 30th