The Whiteleys

My whole life gravitates around this incredible sport that we share. Dad was the first guy in the northwest of England to start kiting in 1998. He was out windsurfing in Rhosneigr, North Wales when he saw the first kitesurfing demo in the UK. He tried his best not to look at the demo because he knew he would instantly want to buy a kite. As soon as he came in from his windsurf session he bought a kite anyway! He started teaching himself to kitesurf with a 5m Wipika although he never really had enough wind for it. He then bought a 22m kite and was constantly overpowered with it! It was the beginning of the sport, you had to figure it out on your own, trial and error. Next he bought a 9m and that’s when everything started to click.

Dad taught me to kitesurf when I was 10 years old. It did not instantly become a passion for me – I found it frustrating in the beginning and after three bad accidents I decided I did not want to learn to kite anymore. Five years later, on a beautiful hot sunny day in the usually chilly northwest of England, I gave kiting another go and realized there is something special about this sport. It quickly became my biggest passion. I recently had a conversation with a good friend about passion. We are always told we need to do something we are passionate about… from my experience passion is not something that comes instantly, it’s something that grows when you persevere and put effort in.

In 2007 Dad and I started to compete in the British Kitesurfing Championships in freestyle. Competitions certainly bring a huge amount of motivation to your riding. It’s great to have goals and push yourself in your sessions, and we always had a fun energy on the water together. Our fourth event, which took place in Aberdeen, Scotland, was really special – we both won our categories for the first time at the same event. Sharing this joy and excitement on a win with Dad was something very special. This magic only continued as we both went on to win the remaining British events that year. Dad became British Senior Champion in 2007 and I was crowned British Amateur Ladies Champion. We competed in the British comps for five years together. Dad was crowned 5x British Champion. I moved into the Pro Ladies category and became 3x British Champion. There was no doubt about it, Dad was my favorite person to kitesurf with and my biggest motivator.

About six years ago Dad got into kite foiling and his foil board soon replaced his twintip. I am forever in amazement at how natural Dad was at sport. He was doing all his freestyle tricks on the foil and loved wave riding on his foil too. His endless enthusiasm to maximize every chance of wind and constantly push himself on the water to progress is something I’ve always aspired to. He gave enthusiasm and positivity to everyone around him. The beach was always such a brighter place with him there.

In March this year I received the most difficult news of my life. It came as a huge shock when Dad passed away. Tears pour down my face as I currently write this. Dad was my kite buddy, my mentor and my best friend and the reason why my whole life gravitates around kitesurfing. I found I couldn’t kite – the emotions were so raw, it reminded me of Dad so much. For the first time in my life I felt like time stood still and it makes you realize that, in the end, so few things actually matter. I feel incredibly thankful for the time we did get to share together. I feel incredibly grateful to have such a strong mother, Jill, two fantastic brothers, Joseph and Max, and a wonderful sister, Polly. Life will never be the same for any of us but by taking one step at a time and supporting each other we will all heal a little each day. Death is the only thing that is promised to us when we enroll in life. Yet we live with a sense of invincibility like somehow it will never happen to us. None of us know how long we have and it will always be the worst pain to lose a loved one. I try to focus on what I do have and not what I don’t. There is always a reason to be grateful, sometimes you just have to look a little harder in challenging times. Life is far from easy but it truly is a gift.

After some time, I was drawn to the beach to kitesurf again. Dad never missed a session and I knew he would be telling me to get back on the water. It was incredibly emotional but I felt more connected to Dad at the beach. I talk to him when I’m out kitesurfing. I choose to believe our loved ones never really leave, they are here just in another form. I feel his energy the most in nature.

I recently booked a one week trip to Mykonos, Greece. I went to create content and train. Little did I know I would spend a month there. I fell in love with the kite spot, the kite community and the Greek vibes. Mykonos is more expensive than other Greek islands and mainland Greece, but at this point in my life I could not put a price on my headspace. For the first time in a long time I felt more like myself again. I cried almost every day in Mykonos but I felt happy. Surrounded by so much love with the local kite community and wind almost every day, I was healing. I pushed myself on the water every session to progress. I felt like I had somehow gone back to how it started – no expectations and finding a huge passion for kitesurfing all over again. Kiting for hours and hours each day, I couldn’t get enough of it. The sea really does hold such powerful healing abilities. I truly believe it’s the best medicine for grief…