Davey Blair got a little crispy during the Triple-S. We want to help him find a good sunscreen, so we asked kitesurfing’s top pros and kite shop owners: what’s your favorite sunscreen for kiting?
“My new favorite sunscreen, that I actually got turned onto just a few days before the 2017 Wind Voyager Triple-S Invitational, used all that week, and have continued to use in the harsh sun of both Mauritius and Australia every day for the past three weeks is Raw Elements Eco Formula. It’s a non-GMO, non-nano, reef-safe, natural sunscreen that rubs in clear and works amazingly well. If only Davey would have remembered to apply it during the 2017 Triple-S excitement, maybe he wouldn’t have been such a crispy critter.” —Jason Slezak, Liquid Force
“My favorite is Badger Sunscreen; it’s organic and uses only zinc oxide as the active ingredients which is actually good for your skin. It also doesn’t contain any of the chemicals in a lot of other sunscreens that harm coral reefs. Oh, and it also prevents sunburn too.” —Sky Solbach, North R&D shaper
“For years I’ve been using Watermans FaceStick 50+. I mostly only use it on my face. It stays on for hours and won’t burn your eyes when it’s hot and sweaty in the water. It can get expensive, but completely worth it; in ten years I will probably look younger than all my friends of the same age.” —Julien Fillion, Liquid Force designer
“Don’t think you can get the stuff in the US but feel free to try to search for it in case you can. The stuff I use is called Ella Bache Zinc from Australia. Myself, a lot of the surfers here at Noosa and a few of my friends now in Hawaii use it too. It’s expensive but it’s the only thing that stays on my lips and actually spreads really far as long as someone doesn’t get too greedy when they borrow it. It is actually considered sun guard foundation though, just so you know you’re basically wearing makeup, but it really is the best stuff I’ve used.”—Keahi de Aboitiz, Cabrinha
“Raw Elements Stick, can’t be putting sunscreen on with my fingers; slippery bars are the worst!”—Craig Cunningham, North
“Bagger and All Good are the sunscreen brands I use; they are organic, coral reef safe, smell good and keep my skin young!”—Jesse Richman, Naish
“Raw Elements. One helpful tip with any sunscreen is to wash your hands with sand after you’re done applying; this will keep the sunscreen off your control bar.”—Trip Forman, Real Watersports, North Carolina
“Raw Elements sunscreen!” —Sam Medysky, Dakine
“It’s all about Elemental Herbs’ All Good. They make some insane sunscreen. Really stoked on it.”—Ian Alldredge, BWS, TDZ
“There is no question, hands down the 50 SPF with Zinc from Sun Bum is the best! Or only ride at night.” —Damien Leroy, Cabrinha
“My favorite is Swox sunscreen, it stays on for hours when I’m kiting.” —Bruna Kajiya, Airush, Redbull
“For the face I use, Sun Bum Signature Facestick, Clear, Broad Spectrum SPF 30. For the body I use Sun Bum Continuous Spray Sunscreen SPF 30, water resistant (80 minutes ) with hydrating vitamin E.” —Vince Allen, North Shore Ski & Board, Vancouver, Canada
