Tofino Kiteboarding

A wicked coastal squall hurls French kiteboarding champion Vincent Joly down through the shore break of Cox Bay, straight toward the rugged headland at the south end of the beach. Attached by a hundred feet of cable to the straining, billowing kite that whips around above him, Joly suddenly disappears into the foaming surf, his blonde dreadlocks vanishing beneath the waves. Just when you think he's lost control and faces a grisly death as he's carried onto the rocks of Cox Point, Joly springs from the breakers like he'd been shot out of a cannon. In defiance of gravity, he deftly rides his high performance kite up into the overcast. When he's a good 20 feet above the roiling breakers, Joly cranks a couple of backflips, and when he hits the water again he's already coming back the other way. Lost control? Dashed on the rocks? Not likely.

Read more Tofino Kiteboarding