Can you tell us a bit more about what this partnership is? What does it mean for you and for them?
They saw my big step, going my own way with Reedin, and I think I inspire some people there, so they were like, “Maybe we should do something together.” Both for O’Neill and me, this is a really cool step. For O’Neill to get more into the kite market because they see the kite industry is really, really taking off, and more people are getting involved. So they’re like, “Okay, we have Kevin on the team, and it’s the perfect match. So let’s start talking!” Then we started talking about what the possibilities are, and we thought the best way to do it is a collaboration, so we started brainstorming.
It happened pretty quickly, and before we knew it, we had made limited edition Reedin Kites and wings. We’re working on wetsuits together too. With O’Neill, I don’t think you have to develop a brand new wetsuit because they are already so good. But we did make a couple of adjustments. They’ve built a 3/4 over-the-knee wetsuit that has a couple of features that are really awesome for kiting. With over-the-knee, the water doesn’t shoot up your legs. The fit and the flexibility is great. I feel like in O’Neill wetsuits, it feels like you’re walking around naked, and that’s exactly what you want. It’s very, very comfortable. It’s easy to get in and out of, and it still protects your knees if you get dragged on the beach or something like that. Again, it’s not a huge feature, but for kiting, it’s my go-to wetsuit. I was wearing it in South Africa pretty much every session, three or four sessions a day. It’s a 4/3 and still super comfortable. So, yeah, that’s what we did on the wetsuit side, and we’re still working on a couple different features that will be launching very soon.
Lees het hele interview met Kevin op: https://www.iksurfmag.com/features/catching-up-with-kevin-langeree-an-interview/
Reedin-O'Neill collectie: https://eu.oneill.com/pages/reedinxoneill