Lead Rescue for Mavericks Runs Kitesurf School

Jeff Kafka, 38, local owner of the kitesurfing school Wind Over Water has had quite the year.

Back in March, he was hired to help anchor a stolen Sausalito yacht off the beach in Pacifica, by attaching his jet skis to the vessel's barbs.

“Sometimes they’re the best craft for maneuvering through the winds and saving lives,” said Kafka who's lived in Pacifica his whole life.

Kafka's also a big wave surfer and the guy you see on the jet ski as the lead rescue for the Mavericks event and the Big Wave world tour. He's also a professional kiteboarder known for pioneering the jet ski assisted kite lesson in the state of California and has taught most of the instructors in the Northern California area how to teach off of a personal water craft (PWC).

He says watermen Dave Kalama, Brett Lickle and Jeff Clark, all big wave/tow-in surfers, taught him what he knows.

"He is one of the best lifeguards in the world on a jet ski," said Jeff Clark.

He is also the first kite surfer to ride Mavericks and was part of the team to kite from the Farallon Islands to the Golden Gate Bridge and later circumnavigate the legendary Islands. He was a top contender while competing in the race circuit taking first in the Ronstan Bridge to Bridge (2006); second at the U.S. National Kite Championships (2007); and first at the Cabrinha Race Series (2007) and the La Ventana Classic (2008).

Before his time helping tow an 80-foot sailboat and running tows in Mavericks, he opened the school in 2004 to teach kiteboarding lessons in the San Fransico Bay and to help promote and improve lesson quality for the sports of kiteboarding and kite surfing. In 2007, Wind Over Water Kiteboarding partnered with Nor Cal Surf Shop to start the Nor Cal Surf Shop in Burlingame.

He first got into kite boarding in 1999; at the time he was working in telecommunications. 

“Kite boarding was getting popular, but there were not really any lesson centers,” he said. “I started teaching friends, like tech people from Silicon Valley. Now they’re heavy involved [in the business].”

Kafka adds that if you don’t take lessons it can be dangerous.

“It’s about learning what not to do,” he said. “I relate kiteboarding to scuba diving: go with buddy because it’s like driving a car. If jump in a car and drive it could be dangerous.” 

“We have a good business here because we focus on one thing and have reputation worldwide as having the best instructors in the world,” he added.

Kafka just started level programs for the summer last week, with classes six days a week. They are also doing Meetup group at their 1101 Douglas Avenue shop in Burlingame, with a free introduction to learn about the sport before paying for lessons.

“It allows us to meet who we’re teaching and get better understanding of their background,” he said. “Students also get an understanding of learning process.” 

Find them at Third Avenue Beach teaching lessons from noon to 6 p.m. daily.

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• Mavericks Invitational 2013 Revisited
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