Lindsay McClure ” Select”- Where The Wind Blows
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Hood River native and no stranger to wind, Lindsay McClure is making strides in influencing the lives of young kiteboarders. This awesome short takes a peek into her life as a teacher, coach and mentor to students in her traveling high school. Not to forget a stunning display of the skills she’s developed this past year on the road. Below Lindsay shares a bit more about the project.
Reflecting on this project is somewhat remarkable. How often do ladies come together to release an action sports video series that’s over a year in the making?
Scarecrow off the mini kicker.
Producer Jen Jones is the main reason everything fell into place. Jen has big ideas and the tenacity to make things happen. For example, the challenge of aligning the schedules of each member of our team was a feat in and of itself. However, if it weren’t for these special days when everyone was on the water at the same time, the chemistry wouldn’t have had time to percolate.
Admittedly, most days we planned to film, we would get our kites in the air and cameras staged only for the ornery Hood River wind to either ramp up or fizzle completely. Even so, having each of the riders and production team members together was important. These ladies and gentlemen have unique, creative minds and are highly driven. They fearlessly charge after their dreams. I left each of our filming sessions inspired to reach for the stars, both within and outside the sport of kiting.
Oregon sunsets.
Also, a special nod to camera master Wiley Watson, who would be at the launch in Hood River nearly every afternoon, amped to do work for Where the Wind Blows. By the end of summer, we had to nudge him away from his camera gear so he could spend more time blasting in the park. In the end, a little serendipity helped pull everything together.
In my select, Moxy begins to explore my involvement in World Class Kiteboard Academy, an accredited college-preparatory high school for competitive young kiteboarders. When people first hear about the school, their reaction is always the same, “I wish that school was around when I was in high school!” Or, the 40-something-year-old intermediate level kiter that says, “Can I enroll?”
Yes, on the surface, a kiteboarding high school seems too good to be true for both the students and for myself as a teacher and coach. However, it isn’t easy keeping up with our daily grind of morning workouts, academics, travel, meal preparation, and as much kiteboarding as our arms can handle. But hard work and busy days are the essence of life.
At WCKA we talk about how each week goes by without a second to rest or reflect: time flies. But looking back at the end of each week, it’s amazing to see how much we accomplish during each stripe on the calendar.
Nothing beats summer in Hood River!
Our students this year love kiteboarding. I don’t know if there’s another group on the planet that is able to talk about the intricacies of freestyle kiteboarding with so much enthusiasm. If you don’t know the difference between a front blind mobe and a KGB, then listening to conversations around the WCKA dinner table would be like listening to foreigners speaking Russian.
For the 2015-16 school year, we started in Hood River, OR with 9 students and 4 staff members. We then traveled to Maui, and now we’re in Brazil- kiteboarding heaven. There is no doubt that the future of this program is looking good. So watch out for World Class Kiteboard Academy, coming to a beach near you.
