The Interview - Mitu Monteiro
Issue 85 / Thu 4th Feb, 2021
Mitu. Need we say more?! Leading the way in wave riding and strapless freestyle, Mitu has become an absolute legend in the kite industry. Find out what's been happening in the life of Mitu and the Montiero's in The Interview!
Mitu, thank you for joining us! You have been a fixture in the kiteboarding community since before many of our readers even knew kiting existed! What was the kiteboarding world like when you first started the sport in 1999?
When I started kiting, most people really didn't know that it was a sport! The first time I saw a kite here in Sal, I wondered to myself: Will it be fun? A friend of mine had a book of theory and a kite. Of course, I refused to read the book, so he read it, and I was flying instead! It was fun. At that time, safety systems were far from what we have nowadays. I learned with a two-line kite with no depower and a directional board with three straps. When the four-line kites arrived, there were no YouTube tutorials to explain how to relaunch from the water. I swam for miles and miles before learning how to do it properly. That was just how it was. No videos, no manuals... Just you, your kite, and your imagination.
Where were you, and what were you doing before you were introduced to kiting?
My relationship with the sea started in early childhood. I escaped home every day while my mother was at work to go to the beach. There, I used to build sailing boats with trash, wood, or whatever I found lying around. I had always been enchanted by the boats sailing in the sea. I wondered how they could turn, cut up into the wind, and carry weight. That was the beginning of my story with the ocean. From the boat models I built as a child, I continued by creating my own equipment to learn how to bodyboard, then surf, and finally to windsurf.
I started windsurfing when I was only 12, but it became my profession when I was 16. I would practise using old gear that the windsurf clubs were throwing out. One day, the owner of a school that was always watching me decided to support me by making me a sail. At that time, I was too skinny to be able to use a normal sail. This man taught me how to windsurf properly, and I will always be grateful to him for the chance he gave me. (RIP Jorge Foya)
Did you know immediately that kitesurfing would be a major part of your life, or did it take some time to see the potential in the sport?
Actually, no. I learned to kitesurf just because I was curious. I wanted to know everything that had anything to do with the sea. In the beginning, I found kitesurfing way too easy. I went back to windsurfing because it was more challenging to me and was my way of earning money. After a few years, I was tired of spending all the money I had earned to buy windsurfing gear, only to break it in the waves. That is the main thing that led me back to kitesurfing.
You have been a leader and innovator in the wave and strapless freestyle community, basically since you started riding! What motivated you to push your progression and experiment with what was possible on a strapless kiteboard?
I don't know if I was the inventor of strapless freestyle, but I know the first person I'd seen doing something similar was Mark Shinn with a skimboard. At that time, I was already using my surfboard to kite as I had no other boards. Being a surfer, I loved being able to get to the waves faster.
For me, discovering strapless freestyle was an accident. I was riding a spot here called Ponta Sino. Going out, I took a small wave and did some kind of jump. I liked how it felt, so I did another jump to understand how it worked. I studied the way I had to put the board into the wind, and how it would stick to my feet. It was interesting, and a new challenge, let's say. I was always searching for new feelings and testing limits in the sport so I was never bored.
What have been the highlights of your kitesurfing career so far?
The most relevant one is my Wave Master title in 2008. It was the first time I had participated in an entire world tour, and it was the first world title for my country. It is a big joy that I have shared with all of my people. Here, we don't have many things to do. Many of the boys end up on the wrong paths of alcohol and drugs. I can remember kids like Matchu Lopes saying, "One day, I wanna be a world champion like Mitu." It was an immense joy for me to hear that, to give them a dream, and an objective to work towards.
What else stands out in my career... I must say that riding Teahupoo was a dream come true for me. I remember the night before my first session there, I couldn't sleep at all dreaming about how it would be. I could hear the sounds of the wave hitting the reef and my heart was racing.
Another success I will remember as a highlight for my career as a kitesurfer is the Red Bull Cape Verde crossing. One year of preparation followed by one month of riding solo among the islands of Cape Verde in difficult conditions. It was something I had dreamed of achieving, but I would never repeat it! It was amazing and exhausting at the same time. It was emotionally and physically the greatest test of my life. The first leg of the journey was about 240km kiting non-stop, never changing feet on my board. I got to Santo Antao where nobody had seen a kite on the beach before. People could not believe I had arrived by kite. They were looking at me like I was crazy! I cried seeing people waiting for me for hours in Boavista. I struggled to get to the shore once the wind dropped completely near Maio. I felt isolated and alone out in the middle of the sea. I was dreaming of home on the last stretch. But I did it, and it is one of my best accomplishments ever.
You stepped back from the competition scene in recent years but recently returned. What happened?
Well, the real reason I stopped for a couple of years was a lack of motivation. After the death of the KSP, a proper wave tour in which I had put so much effort, we ended up with no world tour, or just one or two events to crown a world champion. Most of the time, those events were run in a freestyle spot or in poor conditions that just weren't worth it.
I already had a family, we were buying a home, and there were a lot of responsibilities and costs that competing in the tour could not pay for. So for a few years, I decided to leave the scene. The GKA has been the main reason I decided to return. When I saw that it was a proper tour and well organised, giving wave and strapless freestyle the right importance, I went back to training. It took me a whole year of physical preparation. At 34, your body is not the same as when you are 18!
Do you have any advice for kiters that are working on their wave progression? How do they get past the fear of taking a fall in bigger waves?
As I tell all of my clients and students: Step by step. We can't go from the flat water straight to One Eye or Ponta Preta. We have to pass through small and medium-sized waves first. There, we have the chance to learn timing and gain confidence with our gear, which are fundamentals.
Another crucial point is to know your limit and never panic. Many people let themselves be influenced by friends to go out in spots that are out of their reach, have a bad experience, and leave thinking it's not for them. If you don't skip steps, you can do anything.
Before entering a new spot, it is a good habit to talk to local riders, ask them about the conditions, seabed, weather, etc. Then, once in, never take the first wave of a set. Take your time to get to know the spot properly. Once you start having fun, remember: If you fall down, always keep your kite in the air! It is your lifeline!
Family has become a central point in your life over the past 10 years since meeting your wonderful wife, Nicole. Congratulations on the birth of your 3rd son! With Michael, Matthew, and the latest arrival Malakai, how has your kitesurfing life changed?
Thank you! I won't deny that sometimes it is quite hard to combine fatherhood with competitions, trips, camps, training, and hobbies. The latter is the main reason for arguments with my wife! I love spearfishing and my aquariums, but for her, we have already many things to take care of!
By the way, I consider myself a lucky man. I have the chance to share all my passions with my family. Nicole is kiting every moment she can and Michael is going with me wherever I go. That allows me to spend time with him even when I'm working. Matthew is now 3 and already on the right path. He is asking me to go surfing and kiting all the time! Let's see now with Malakai... What will he like???
How does it feel to see Michael, who is only 9, sharing the water with you and already learning jumps and tricks? Is this your greatest success in kiteboarding?
It is incredible how he is learning to kitesurf so quickly and easily. I taught him when he was just 2, at the beach with a tiny kite. He liked it because it was like a game. But as soon as it came to the theory, he started to hate kiting! I had to change techniques and put him on a surfboard during a trip to Brasil. In the lagoon, I could launch his kite from one side and my wife would be waiting for him on the other side. That was fun, and he loved it!
Now, I don't even have to train him much, just a few quick words. He watches me or other riders on the water, and then he goes and lands the trick! Nicole and I always say that Michael is born to be a waterman, there's no doubt. But what he likes most is surfing. He rode his first wave when he was only 2, and since then there has barely been a day where he hasn't caught at least one wave. Before school, after school, during the lunch break, he is taking advantage of every single moment to surf, no matter how big the waves. Last December, he had his first surfing achievement and the first step of his career, I hope! He entered the Italian Surfing Nationals as the youngest kid ever. I'm so grateful and proud of him.
While Sal, Cape Verde is your home and the location of your shop and kite centre, where are you spending the rest of your time and why?
I have travelled a lot for my job. Many trips, many different places, but always and only for work. Let me tell you something: I've never been on holiday in all my life. Every time I travel with my family, it is always connected to a camp or an F-ONE trip or a downwinder that I have to do.
During the winter season, from December to April, I usually stay home and do private coaching and wave camps. From May to November, I'm mostly out of the country for F-ONE trips and photoshoots, competitions, brand meetings, downwinders in Brasil, coachings, etc. It is hard when I have to go alone and sometimes stay one month without seeing my family, but most of the time we manage to all travel together. The more I travel, the more I feel grateful to be born in a paradise such as Sal.
When Michael was only 3, we did a 600km downwinder with him holding onto my legs! It was amazing for him and one of my most treasured memories. We try to share our experiences with other couples that have kids and are afraid to keep going on adventures. Maybe there are some limits, but you can still do everything! We always say: As long as we have love, wind, and waves, we have everything!
A wave that many of us have heard about but never surfed is your home spot, Ponta Preta. What does this place mean to you? What was it like returning to this spot again with your - now larger - family after a long time away?
I'm answering you right after a 5-hour session at Ponta Preta! I was kiting and then Michael arrived after school and we had a sunset surf sunset together. What a day! Ponta Preta has something special. I guess that it is something related to the energy there. Every single session in Ponta Preta is memorable. For me, on top of being my home spot, it is without a doubt the best spot I have ever ridden. The perfection of its waves, the beauty of the surroundings, the colour of the water, it all contributes to the magic. I'm so in love with this place that Nicole and I chose it as the place for our wedding.
You've been with F-ONE for.. how many years?! 10, 15, 20? How do the F-ONE brand values align with your own?
F-ONE for me is synonymous with family. It is hard to think about F-ONE as a boss or just a sponsor. Imagine that Michael is calling F-ONE founder Raphael Salles, Uncle Raph! That gives you an idea of how close our families are. We share the same passion and the same values. We have been working to reach the same goals since 2006. This has led us to the relationship we have now.
As a longstanding and trusted member of the F-ONE team, I can only imagine how your role has increased over the years. What do your roles and responsibilities at F-ONE look like today?
When I started at F-ONE, I was just a rider. At that time, my only responsibility was to get results in competitions to show my new sponsor that I was worth it. Then, the responsibility grew to also be a good ambassador for the brand. The next step was when they asked my opinion on gear and we began to do research and development together. Now I'm a rider, ambassador, and a distributor.
You have a pro model board that's a favourite amongst the F-ONE lineup. When was the first Mitu Pro introduced, and how has the board changed over the years?
The first Mitu Pro model was introduced in 2013 after years of research and development. The aim was to create a board that could be good for both wave riding and strapless freestyle, and a board that suits all people, not just the pros. The Mitu Pro is a board that beginners love for its stability and comfort. That is why it has been such a success.
I was working with the team on the development, but I never considered having my name on the board. I remember when Raphael gave me the news. I was so excited and honoured! Ever since, we are still working on creating the best boards for strapless freestyle and wave riding. During the last year, strapless freestyle has had such an incredible progression that we had to make a board just for it. The Magnet is the latest creation, and comes after years of research into making the lightest board ever!
I'm so proud to be part of a team of professionals that can give life to things that I'm only able to dream of, and attempt to explain. Believe me, it can be frustrating trying to put into words something you have experienced on the water. Somehow, we manage to understand each other!
Do you have any exciting projects or plans in the works for 2021? What's next for the Monteiro family?
Nicole always has a plan for what's next! She loves to travel and starts planning a new trip as soon as we get home from the last! With this Covid situation, it has been quite hard to plan ahead. I guess we will have to wait until April to see how things evolve. One of our plans is to bring Michael to all the events in the Italian Championship. In between, we were thinking of a tour of the best waves in Europe. Of course, we can't miss our annual family trip and downwinder in Brasil!! To sum it up, let's say: stay tuned!
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By Crystal Veness
Editor at IKSURFMAG, Crystal Veness hails from Canada but is based in South Africa. When she isn't busy kitesurfing or reporting on the latest industry news for the mag, she is kicking back somewhere at a windy kite beach or working on creative media projects.
