The history of Airush & the longest running kiteboard ever..
The Switch - longest running board in the game.
Rewind 10 years and Airush were known for bringing some of the most innovative kiteboarding products to the market. Now, in 2014 they're still doing the same thing, but they haven't forgotten where they came from. Supporting some of the biggest names in the sport, and producing some of the worlds most recognisable kites and boards, Airush have a great story to tell about how the brand was built up from a couple of guys selling windsurfing booms.
They sold Wipika kites, until Wipika took the distribution rights off them, forcing the guys to make their own kites. "We made a few prototype kites and sent them over to Starboard (the windsurfing company), whether they helped or not I’m not sure, but we realized it was time for us to get out. Starboard really stepped up to the plate as far as taking over the R&D of all the kites".
And that was it, Airush was born and the original two went back to windsurfing. But you can read the full story for yourselves on the Airush website if you're interested in the back story.
More interestingly, is the section they have about the longest running board model in Kiteboarding history. The Airush Switch. Starting in 2001 was the Switch Classic, a weird looking twintip with an asymmetrical rockerline and footstraps that could be set up like a directional. It went through a few years like this, then swapped to a symmetrical rockerline and more like the classic freeride outline we know today. In 2014, the Switch has been continued into one of the most user friendly freeride boards you can buy. It's pretty amazing to think that one company has continued the same line of boards for so long, kind of like the Slingshot Fuel which has been going for the same amount of time.
If you're interested in the Switch, Airush's history and all their other lines, there's a huge story full of every detail imaginable on the Airush website. Check it out here.
Sunshine Coast, QLD
