The Big Winds Weblog

Some goings on and special deals at Big Winds.

Rider: Dane
Gender: Male
Height: 5′5″
Weight: 135 lbs
Skill Level: Advanced kiteboarder
Board Tested: 2008 North Pacific Round Squash Wave 5′3″
Kite Used: 2008 Cabrinha Switchblade 3 8m
Date: June 4, 2008
Location: White Salmon Bridge, Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: 18-28 mph, huge glassy swell
North Pacific is a local Hood River surfboard company run by Art Colyer, who has been hand-shaping custom polyester [...]

Kiteboards Compared: 2008 Naish Sol 128, 2007 North Jaime Pro 128
Kites Used: 2008 Cabrinha Switchblade 3 6m, 8m and 10m, 2007 Cabrinha Omega 7m and 9m
Dates: Spring 2008, Summer 2007
Location: Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: Everything from flatwater to swell-riding, underpowered to insanely overpowered
Rider: Dane
Gender: Male
Height: 5′5″
Weight: 135 lbs
Skill Level: Advanced Kiteboarder
Howdy! My name is Dane, [...]

Kiteboard Tested: 2008 Naish Sol 128
Kites Used: 2008 Switchblade 3 6m, 8m and 10m
Dates: Spring 2008
Location: Columbia River Gorge
Conditions: Mellow 10-18 mph, moderate 16-24 mph, and intense 22-34 mph
Rider: Dane
Gender: Male
Height: 5′5″
Weight: 135 lbs
Skill Level: Advanced Kiteboarder
Even though it’s still quite cold out there, I’ve already been riding the 2008 Naish Sol 128 kiteboard quite [...]

We just finished putting together a photo gallery of 2008 Naish Sol, so if you’re at all curious about the state of this fine kiteboard, here’s your chance! The Sol is the go anywhere, do anything, all-terrain model from Naish’s 2008 lineup. The aggressively rounded nose and tail are a result of what [...]

Thanksgiving may be more than a month away for most of us, but fortunately Canadian Thanksgiving happened just yesterday! In celebrating with our kind neighbors to the north, we’d like to share some of our holiday revelries with all of you. We just couldn’t wait!
Right now, our entire selection of 2007 windsurf boards, [...]

Over here at Big Winds, we talk to a lot of people who are just starting to get into kiteboarding, and who are completely baffled by the huge selection of kites and kiteboards available these days. Sifting through the near-limitless array of gear can be a daunting task, so we took the [...]

Big Winds is running a bunch of different promotions right now, and sometimes it’s difficult to keep them all straight! As of today, this eighth of May in the year two thousand and seven, these are the deals we are currently offering:
Free shipping on all 2007 windsurf sails
Free shipping on all 2007 kiteboards
Free shipping [...]

Hey, this is kinda neat. We now carry custom directional kiteboards from North Pacific, a custom surfboard shop located right here in Hood River.
Our current stock includes a couple of Tuna Fish 5′3″ boards, the Squash Tail 5′8″, and the Round Squash 5′6″. Check ‘em out, these boards are gorgeous!
Tuna Fish 5′3″
Squash Tail [...]

Good news! We just received a shipment of new boards from Jimmy Lewis, and they’re now available on our website. First up are his Kite/Surf directional boards, which we now have in stock for the 5′2″ and 5′8″ sizes.

The second board we now have is the Jimmy Lewis Flight Deck, which is a [...]