Have you ever seen injured or trapped wildlife while you’re out kiteboarding? Mitu Monteiro has; and completed his good deed for the day when he saved this stricken sea turtle with a surfboard and his kite.

Usually seen spinning around in the air with a surfboard on his feet, Mitu is one of F-One’s big name team riders. He’s known as strapless royalty, and along with his pal Airton Cozzolino (on the North team), perform some seriously incredible tricks without footstraps, like full on handlepass 360’s…

But back to the sea turtle, which was in a dire situation off Sal, a tiny island in the Pacific, to which Mitu calls home. To be exact, it was off Cape Verde, a spot known for it’s amazing waves and reliable wind; lucky for the turtle, because Mitu spotted it while kitesurfing. Entangled in marine debris, it was incapable of swimming or disentangling itself and in need of rescue.

So, what’s a professional kiter to do? He kited in, grabbed a larger surfboard from the beach, rode back out and put the turtle on it, then body dragged home. Keep in mind these sea turtles can weigh upwards of 50kgs! After being taken to the local animal carers at Cape Verde, it was later released in Murdeira Bay on the Western side of Sal.

A happy ending, for what was a very unhappy turtle, and a remarkable display of skill from F-One’s Mitu Monteiro.

Check out the pictures of how Mitu rescued the turtle here. 

 

#News #Kitesurfing #Kiteboarding #North