49.84

American kite- and windsurfer Rob Douglas (from Boston, I believe?) just broke A2's outright record. 49.84 knots over 500 meters in a shallow bay in Namibia. Check out the video - that's pretty damn fast. 50 knots is awfully close. Remember Albeaus's run, at 49.09, and how even the tiny chop on the canal caused so much chatter on the board, and you can see why the kiters might have an advantage here, now that their kites have come such a long way in efficiency. The upward force from the kite allows them to use tiny boards (whereas windsurfers need them to be at least big enough to where they can waterstart). Perhaps if we can figure out a way to jettison part of the board, or get some sort of running start off a boat or something...

Congratulations to Rob (and his coach Mike Gebhardt). Alway cool to see someone push the limits like this!