Ryan P. Evans

Hood What!!!

// September 23rd, 2010 // No Comments » // Kiteboarding, Kitesurfing

So, I just got back from Hood River, Oregon. I was there for a week doing a photo shoot for BEST Kiteboarding and then hung out for the 2010 AWSI Kiteboarding Expo. It was my first time in the Hood and that spot completely lived up to the hype. Amazing scenery, awesome people, great vibe!

I was lucky enough to shoot with one of the best photographers in the industry, Gavin Butler. Here’s fellow team rider Joe Ruscito, Gavin, Jake and I discussing the plan for the day… GET SHOTS!

Joe, Gavin, Jake and I discussing shots

After a late night airport pickup to grab fellow REAL Team Rider, Jason Slezak, and a night on the town in Portland with the Liquid Force  crew, we woke up early to find the river glass’d off!! After a couple cups of coffee we managed to get the crew together and put the boat in the water for an amazing wake session. It was my first time behind a “legit” wake boat and after a couple warm up runs I felt pretty good and was able to land a few solid rotations and invert tricks.

Liquid Force 2010 Supra

On a light wind day, Joe, Gavin, Kristin and I headed out to do some lifestyle shots on the cliffs over the Gorge.

Colombia River

It wouldn’t have been an industry Expo without a few solid parties! Here’s the BEST crew at the Liquid Force/Monster Energy birthday bash for SBC Magazines 10th Anniversary.

BEST Crew at SBC Anniversary Party

Ahhh, the real girls of BEST! I had a great time riding, shooting and hanging out with 9-time World Champion Kristin Boese. I learned a ton from her during the week and was stoked to get to work with a legend!

Laurel, Kris, Me and Kristin

How to prevent a kitemare

// January 16th, 2010 // No Comments » // Kiteboarding, Kitesurfing

As with all action sports their is an inherit risk of danger. This danger is greatly reduced as skill levels increase and awareness of the potential hazards become more apparent. Every rider learns these skills through time on the water and occasionally through reading a good article. I wrote this article for Kiteboarding Magazine in the hope that I could make the sport of kiteboarding just that much safer and spread the knowledge I’ve been lucky enough to learn from some of the best in the industry. Here it is, check it out:

Kiteboarding Magazine - January 2010

Side-off bombs!

// October 23rd, 2009 // No Comments » // Kitesurfing

This past Monday I had the day off from work. My roommates and I had planned on a chill day of kiting in the sound with some strong Northwest wind. Upon arriving at REAL I talked with Jason Slezak and he made me aware of the massive waves going off towards the south-side of the island. In my years of living on Hatteras Island I’ve learned a few life lessons… one of which is: “If Jason Slezak is excited about riding somewhere, you sure as hell better be with him!”. We loaded up REAL’s new “helicopter” van and caravanned to just south of Avon with Sam Bell, Brandon Scheid and Bryan Elkus in tow.

Upon arriving at the spot we realized we weren’t the only ones who knew about the waves. There was a crowd of about 15-20 other kiters congregating on the beach… a clue to how big the waves were, only one other rider was actually putting up a kite! Hatteras’ own Jay Crawford was pumping up his kite to join in on the mayhem!

Before Brandon and I could even fully comprehend how much water was moving, due to waves that were well over head-high and massive current, Sleezy was already done pumping up his new 2010 Havoc and ready to ride. Fifteen minutes later Sammy, Jason, Brandon and I were all jumping on our surfboards and hitting the water. The amount of time it took on our first marathon tack out allowed you to gauge the magnitude of the waves. As I rode out over the 13ft walls of water breaking on the outer sandbars I knew this was going to be an Epic session.

Delivering the Goods

// July 26th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Kiteboarding, Kitesurfing, Surfing, Wakestyle

Cape Hatteras is known by surfers, kiteboarders and nature lovers worldwide for the amazing conditions this island can produce. Amazing thunderstorms, pumping surf and cranking wind are just a few of the attributes that bring people here. This week Hatteras delivered yet again… and in one lump sum!

The surf started pumping last Thursday. I got off of work and went straight to the beach. As I walked over the dune I saw a head high barrel firing down the line, it was the beginning of an epic session. I ducked under three amazing waves and once I got outside the breakers I turned to my friend Brandon Scheid and exclaimed “Its firing like P-pass out here!! Wait a second… Its firing like Hatteras is going off!”. Hatteras can deliver world class waves like anywhere else! We surfed until well past dark, taking a few closeout barrels on the head in exchange for a few perfect rides.

The swell continued into the next morning when Charlie, myself and REAL Co-Founder Trip Foreman caught a dawn surf in the glassiest water I’ve seen in the ocean!

Each evening the wind has been cranking, causing the REAL crew to session their brains out! Team photographer Bryan Elkus has been hard at work, taking shots of the Team every evening and documenting them on his website. Here are a few shots from Saturday’s session…

Lastly, today delivered cranking wind in the low 30′s… Megaloop session! Brandon Scheid, (lit on a 9m LF High-Fi), Ryan Waltz (on a 7m Hadlow Pro) and myself (on an 8m BEST Nemesis HP) pushed eachother to throw bigger and bigger kiteloops while tossing in new grabs and trying new rotations while 30ft in the air! Needless to say, we we’re all pretty exhausted after the session.

On my ride home from riding I stopped by a photo shoot where LF Pro rider and REAL Team manager Jason Slezak, along with Cabrinha Pro rider Andre Phillip, were sessioning a 25ft section of corrugated tubing. Here’s a quick clip of the action: