The Duotone episode from St Brandon only shows a tiny amount of what went down in the two weeks we were there. It’s an island none of us knew and a lot of people will never know. Going there with the crew, crossing the huge, rolling ocean in the rain, getting further away from civilisation was mega. But arriving in paradise made it all worthwhile.
There was a lot of action, wind and moments that were quite scary, like the sharks. It made you realise that you are in the hands of Mother Nature. If anything happened to you, the nearest hospital was a day away. It was humbling and an incredible experience that I won’t ever forget.
These kind of trips take you to places that you only ever dream about. The fact that we get to do these things, really shows how driven and cool Duotone is as a brand. It’s fearless and gives us riders opportunities of a lifetime.
If you go to places like this, just make sure you go with a good crew, other than that everything was perfect in terms of the setup. What I did really miss was speaking with my family. With no cell service, it made me realise how important they all are. I’m not talking about connecting with the world via social media, more, my father in Cabo Verde and my girlfriend, just to know that they are fine and safe, as well as sharing this unique experience with them.
I had the best kite gear, energy around me, good waves, wind and such a good vibe within the team.
Having ridden the gear in light, stronger, flat water and waves on the trip, Duotone have really nailed the designs and performance of their products for our customers. There’s nothing like the Click Bar. You can trim your kite without looking, go with the flow and really get in touch with everything that’s going on. The Dice is so good! There was one day when I was kiting on a light wind day, barely making it upwind, pumping the board, the kite, down-looping, everything possible to get out to the wave. But, once I got on the wave, I was getting barrelled, speed, turns, such good rides and the Dice just even drifted perfectly with me.
The Duotone range is such top quality and has epic performance. In my opinion it can’t get any better. That said, each year we manage to improve the designs to go harder, higher, hit the lip more aggressively, have more control, so I’m super stoked on that. I can travel the world with everything I need, chase the conditions and travel to places like St. Brandon. Duotone really has it all covered, from those first steps to Pro level, light winds, strong winds, waves, flat waters, lakes, open oceans, the Duotone range is inspiring.