KITEBOARDING - Teen cuts short trip to fulfil his dream

WHEN he isn't pulling a blind judge, mashing a swell, rolling a wrap or throwing it up, Marc Jacobs is dreaming about it.
The 18-year-old kiteboarding junkie from Auckland has good reason too though, because yesterday all his daydreams paid off: He became the New Zealand champion of one of the trendiest sports on the beach scene these days - kiteboarding.
Jacobs won the open men's division with a breathtaking display of aerial daring, surfing know-how and sailing skill in a hotly contested four-way final of the national finals staged at Ruakaka yesterday.
It was handsome payback for a decision to cut short an overseas jaunt he had only just launched into to try to fire up a fledgling professional kiteboarding career.
Jacobs had only just finished competing in his first professional event in Mexico when he heard the New Zealand Kiteboarding nationals were to be staged on the popular Northland beach over Easter Weekend. But as soon as he discovered the news, he was straight back on a plane to Aotearoa.
"I was like 'yeah, I'm there' when I heard the nationals were on. I finished second last year and was pretty keen to try to nail down that win this time. It has been pretty good, the boys have all been firing out the tricks hard out," Jacobs said.
With a national title to his name, Jacobs hopes his ambition to become a fulltime kiteboarding professional is a step closer. It was his experience in top level competition that saw him stand out in the final yesterday.
Jacobs landed several "massive" moves in fresh conditions, impressing the judges enough to get a break on his two main rivals in the final, brothers Torrin and Kelby Bright from Mount Maunganui.
Jacobs was a clear winner in the open men's, but the judges struggled to decide between the Bright brothers and James Barrow to determine the minor placings. Gavin Broadbent (Mount Maunganui) won the legends (veterans) division, Brock Cleary (Auckland) the junior title and Rachel Cann (Tauranga) the women's.