Half a dozen Western Bay sportsmen could be on the brink of introducing the newest sport sensation, down at the water near Ferguson Park.

I've often said, 'Before we go forward we need to look backwards”. Just as the country has radically changed in the last 50 years, so too have the sports we play.
Five decades ago rugby completely dominated the winter sporting codes, with cricket in the summer.
The Sporting Records of New Zealand, published in 1976, lists a number of sports of which little, if any, mention is heard today. Billiards, ballooning, draughts, ploughing with pigeon and whippet racing are just some sports that have vanished off the radar of modern sport.
Today's replacements are mostly made for television such as the X Games, triathlons and Twenty 20 cricket.
As life evolves so does sport. Amongst the new age sports is kite surfing, introduced to the Western Bay of Plenty less than a decade ago by four local guys. These wind surfing addicts were searching for further excitement and came across kite surfing. Royce Whitaker, Mark Arundel, Dave Stewart and Ian Williams learnt the ropes of this new sport together and jointly owned their first kite, from which they made their own kite board.
Kite surfing kicked off with freestyle, which is essentially jumping and aerial acrobatics. The natural competitive spirit of the kite surfers led to the introduction of the national championships a few years ago, where tricks in the air were scored and the best riders rewarded with national titles. The chase for further thrills led to wave riding in the ocean, with the first nationals held in Taranaki last year.
A small local group, including pioneers Royce and Mark along with locals Tony Whakaneke, Dave Edwards and Rob Port again went searching for a definitive way to further test their ability and skills against each other, which led to the latest version of kite surfing – course racing. Modelled along the lines of board and traditional sailing, the participants race around a set course.
Water speeds can average over 30kph, with international board riders recently topping 100kph, making them the fastest wind powered watercraft. The speed across wind, along with the ability to go upwind better than most yachts and windsurfers in powered up conditions (20-50kph winds), allows them to cover large distances on the water.
These guys are not alone in their search for speed and air thrills. Today hundreds of kite surfers catch waves at Tay Street or skim across the flat water at Fergusson Park or on the estuary at Maketu.
Only time will tell if the newest version of the sport becomes an overnight sensation, or sinks without a trace. Whatever happens to kite surfing course racing in the future, a few Western Bay locals will again push their boundaries in pursuit of the thrill of the race.