iStockphoto / Jens Breuer
‘Shooting the pier’ has been around in surfing since the early 1960s. It is when a surfer riding a wave goes under a fishing pier and manages to not crash into the pier itself. Flying OVER the pier is obviously not possible on a surfboard but in Kite Surfing it’s feasible under the right conditions.
Kite surfer Nick Baines has wanted to fly over the Avon Fishing Pier in North Carolina for years. It has been a mission of his. And this week the powerful winds from Hurricane Nicole allowed him jump over the pier on his kiteboard while people filmed from the beach.
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The sport of kite surfing has produced some outrageous clips over the years but this is an immediate Kite Surfing Hall of Fame video:
And here is kite surfer Nick Baines flying over the Avon Fishing Pier from another angle:
One follower commented “Awesome, looks like you had tons of room to spare.” And that’s a valid point. This kite surfer has wanted to jump over that pier for years but needed the right conditions. Under those conditions he could’ve easily jumped over a MUCH larger pier.
Another person joked “no surfing within 200 feet of the pier!!!” which is, of course, the law. But they were getting pounded by the remants of Hurricane Nicole and nobody seemed to care since nobody was out there fishing anyway.
Nick wrote in the comments that the winds were ‘only blowing 30’ MPH when he pulled this jump off. It really is incredible how quickly he takes off right next to the pier.
Kite surfer Nick Baines goes by @nicobaines on Instagram. He has some incredible videos so go check out his feed for more clips!