Kitesurfing with an above-knee prosthesis at the Mentelity Summer Games

It's all about Mentelity

Not my slogan. But definitely that of the Bibian Mentel Foundation. And boy, do they live up to it, this small group of people, supported by amazing volunteers.

Last March, not only did I stand on a snowboard for the first time in my life, on a mountain in Switzerland within a year of my above-knee amputation, but I also experienced an amazing week there together with Margot: the Winter Games. One of the most special weeks of my life.

Last month, I also participated in the Foundation’s Summer Games. I wasn’t familiar with those yet. Naturally, I had my doubts, but after talking with Jacqueline from the Bibian Mentel Foundation, I was quickly won over, of course.

The question was really: which water sport would I be doing? Surfing, windsurfing, other variations? I consulted with Jacqueline again and she was very firm: kitesurfing!

So, I went kitesurfing.

No idea what it was…

The weekend beforehand, I decided to look up some videos of kitesurfing at the Brouwersdam, where we would be kitesurfing too, and it freaked me out ;-)

I saw people standing on the water on a tiny surfboard, holding onto a huge kite high above them. And the good ones, I assume, were launching meters into the air!

Just like with snowboarding, I had never done any water sports. My only experience of winter sports had been ice skating on frozen ditches. So once again, I had said yes to something…

Luckily, I know by now that it was bound to be a fantastic few days with Jacqueline, Charlotte, Merijn and the volunteers. So I headed there in good spirits.

And? Well, I’ve gained a new hobby, of course.

Not one that’s very easy to pick up, because you need quite a bit of gear: wetsuits, kites, boards, etc. But also wind. And good wind.

I found that out right away on the first morning. I got up early because we were supposed to gather on the beach early. But a message came through: not enough wind.

So, a few hours of waiting.

I quickly noticed that everyone was walking around with special wind apps on their phones to check the wind direction and strength anytime, anywhere. So that was the first thing I learned, before I even set foot on the beach.

In the end, I had four fantastic days with the other participants and volunteers.

They built things up really well for us, starting with theory about the wind and the kites. On the first day, we only practiced with the kite on the beach. We didn’t even go into the sea yet, except for swimming, of course.

But that’s how you learn to get the kite under control and figure out how to steer it, so that you don’t lean on it but let it drag you forward.

Even on the beach, you feel those forces. That was really cool. I got dragged forward for meters a few times.

On day two, we went into the water, but without a board. First, we just had to learn to control the kite while lying in the water.

And once that started working a little bit: body dragging! Really awesome, letting yourself be dragged through the water on your belly by that kite.

Over the last two days, I did try standing on a board. And steering the kite. Don’t lean on it, just steer!

But my balance isn’t always great anyway, let alone on a board, let alone while trying to steer a kite :-) So I mostly ended up doing a lot of belly flops.

Getting my feet into the board’s straps was also quite tricky with my prosthetic foot, naturally.

At first, I used duct tape to lock my knee at an angle so it couldn’t buckle. The downside was that my foot was still at the wrong angle, and I couldn’t easily adjust it.

And it’s very difficult to lie on your back in the water with a stiff leg, trying to strap an uncooperative foot that you can’t control, at the wrong angle, onto a board.

So that took a lot of time, every single time. Just for a few seconds on the board.

On the last day, I tried it with my knee free to bend again. Because of that, I was able to get my foot into the strap much more easily, with the help of the instructor and volunteers, of course.

Except, once I was actually standing on the board and tried to steer the kite, my knee would buckle and I’d do another belly flop :-)

All in all, incredibly difficult. But really awesome if you can pull it off.

And even with an above-knee prosthesis, you can get pretty far, I’ve realized. Hopefully, when I get to test an electronic knee soon that can also be used in the sea, it will become a bit easier again.

But besides that, I’ve had another wonderful few days with people who refuse to let anything hold them back.

Met great people. Had beautiful conversations. Came away one amazing experience richer.

The instructor from the local surf school, Kamal, said a few words to us at the end:

“You guys humble me.”

To which Jacqueline replied:

“Why? It’s all about Mentelity.”