Capetonian kitesurfer Brett Mason has successfully completed an unsupported kite crossing of False Bay to Cape Point, rounding Cape Point and finishing at Witsands beach, Scarborough.
Covering a distance of 70 km, Mason accomplished this feat in a time of three hours on Thursday 17 February.
“I am so happy with the trip, what an experience. False Bay was incredible – it was the most nerve-wracking portion of the trip, being in the deep ocean, but the wind was fantastic.”
He shares the swell got big at three metres.
“But I kept my eye on Cape Point and rounded the point fairly easily. The wind was really terrible after that and I thought I may need to stop, but it picked up again around Olifantsbos. After three hours in the water I was a bit fatigued, but so glad it’s done.”
For the past 13 years, Mason has dedicated himself to multiple kite disciplines (freestyle, wave riding and big air). As a big air rider, he has achieved a ranking on the “Woo World Leader Board” of no 38 in the world, with a 29,3 m recorded height (out of 37 000 recorded riders). He has also surfed and kited some of the biggest waves on the South African coastline.
Mason, who resides in Noordhoek, says he remembers thinking about doing this crossing in the early days of his kitesurfing.
“I clearly remember starting at Glencairn Beach one day when the north westerly was blowing, and thinking to myself, ‘I could just pump my kite and go directly across the bay’.”
It has been a long time coming, and on Tuesday morning he checked the wind report, saw that the wind was going to be perfect for the crossing, and spontaneously decided that Thursday would be the day.
As far as he knows, this crossing has never been attempted without support. The journey started in the Betty’s Bay area and went directly from Hangklip across to Cape Point, round the point and down toward Scarborough, ending at Witsands.
