TRAVEL JOURNAL: HITTING THE WATER IN NEW ZEALAND
Join Fabian Muhmenthaler, North Ambassador, athlete and pro-foiler, on his latest adventure.
Aotearoa. The Land of the Long White Cloud. Along with some of the world's most inspiring, jaw-dropping scenery, New Zealand is also home to some of the best spots on the planet to get out on the water.
After his trip through Patagonia, Fabian headed across the Pacific to hit New Zealand. We catch up with him to find out what he’s been up to.
North: New Zealand is known for its incredible scenery and landscapes. What have been your favorite spots so far?
Fabian: There are so many sick places that I couldn't pick one. But I will definitely have Raglan and Whananaki in my heart forever. Such epic locations with perfect conditions. Very impressive landscapes and beautiful beaches. I got to have a couple proning sessions with North board shaper Jaimie Scott at some secret spots up in Whananaki and they were truly unreal. Imagine flying over the surface with your surf foil while seeing the stingrays swimming underneath.
And Kiwis are known for their amazing hospitality, too. What have been the highlights?
Yeah, Kiwis are truly nice and polite people. Everyone at the spots is super friendly and you easily get to chat to the people and share thoughts about the sessions, so it makes it quite cool. Also, everyone at the office has been very nice with me and even got to do some plans with some of the colleagues like winging, surfing, climbing or rowing in the traditional Māori canoes known as Waka-Ama.
After work there’s plenty of time for play, whether it’s finding the best spots for foiling, proning or surfing, or just enjoying New Zealand’s beaches.
You’ve been working with North in the product development team. What have you been up to?
As I have finished my university degree in Engineering in Industrial Design and Product Development, being here in New Zealand for two months at the North office has been very positive and fulfilling. Great experience where I got to have a taste of the real world of product development, and what better than being able to do it with my North family.
After all that work, how have you been spending your down time?
I always tried to sneak in a session, wingfoiling, surfing or proning. I have had some great winging sessions at Lake Pupuke, which is the main in-town spot. But I also got some epic ones at places like Muriwai and Te Arai. Of course the weekends meant some exploring missions and I got the chance to surf some of the best waves in my life, in places like Raglan and Ahipara.
How has it been training in New Zealand ? What makes it different?
The training here has been really nice—we didn’t have such a windy summer so it’s mostly been lighter winds, but that has helped me step up my light-wind riding, which was the thing I was struggling the most, so for sure some positive outcome coming from that. On the surf... it just has been awesome, perfect waves for both surfing and proning.
“Imagine flying over the surface with your surf foil, seeing the stingrays swimming underneath.”
Is there any new kit or gear that really stands out for you?
Well, the all new NOVA PRO with its ShiftLock modular handle system is the absolutely hot thing lately. I'm honestly frothing on this product and it is truly helping me raise my riding level and step it up.
Fabian finds an alternative use for the North Mode wing, switching high-speed performance for taking things a little slower.
You’ve shared your adventures in Patagonia and now New Zealand. Where’s next on your horizon?
Well, I really don't stop traveling and it is always very cool to get to know so many different places. Next it's going to be home for me for at least a couple months. But then I’m probably going to head down to the Canary Islands for a few weeks during June or July.
