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Kiteboarding is blowing into the once sleepy fishing town of Phan Thiet, Vietnam LIEUTENANT COLONEL BILL KILGORE, Robert Duvall’s surf-obsessed character in Apocalypse Now, came to Phan Thiet, Vietnam, too soon. Between the end of the war and the late nineties, this quiet town 100 miles east of Ho Chi Minh City was known as little more than the country’s fish-sauce capital. But these days this supremely windy perch on the South China Sea is drawing an increasing number of in-the-know kiteboarders. During the high and dry season (November to April), dozens of kites soar above Phan Thiet’s waves daily. “We have guests who come every year for a month of kiteboarding,” says Pascal Lefebvre, who opened Jibe’s Beach Club in 2001. “They get great wind and warm water.” Pay a few extra dong for a bungalow at the newly refurbished Blue Ocean Resort. After a dip in a private plunge pool and a nap in an ocean-view chaise longue, refuel on fresh sea bass grilled in banana leaves at the hotel’s ultra-mod, open-air beachfront restaurant, and get back out there. From $150; life-resorts.com 
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Whether you’re looking for big air, big waves, or your first flight, this is the rig. With kiteboarding’s latest bow-kite design, the Crossbow 3 can kill the power on demand, relaunch off the water with ease, and send you as high as you dare. $1,569, complete with kite, bar, and lines; cabrinhakites.com 2 SURFTECH STRETCH 6'0" TUFLITE QUAD-FIN KITEBOARD Why pack two boards when you can surf and kiteboard on one? Paddle into the morning’s peeling waves on the kinetic Tuflite core, then slip into kiting footstraps when the wind picks up for your afternoon set. $850, complete with board, straps, and pads; surftech.com 3 COSTA DEL MAR GEORGE SUNGLASSES Lightweight does not mean fragile. You’ll hardly notice the 23-gram frames when you’re in the waves, but the scratch-resistant lenses are tough enough for a game of beach football. And they’re polarized to take the afternoon glare off that shimmering sea. $199; costadelmar.com 4 TOMMY BAHAMA PALERMO SANDALS These sandals offer a custom fit with contoured, treated-leather footbeds that conform to your feet, and a foot-securing X-band strap. They’re perfect for that après-surf trek to the tiki bar or an evening stroll along the beach. $145; tommybahama.com 5 H2O AUDIO IV6 WATERPROOF CASE AND H3 WATERPROOF HEADPHONES Load your iPod into H2O Audio’s waterproof housing—with a full-view screen and click-wheel control—then select Surf’s Up for a surround-sound wave session. The H3 headphones offer crisp acoustics above and below the water (to ten feet). $149; h2oaudio.com 6 MONTECRISTI TEARDROP PANAMA HAT On the shore, keep your head high and dry with this classic handwoven Panama shaped by Milton Johnson at his legendary Santa Fe, New Mexico, sombrero shop, in operation since 1978. Made from paja toquilla, the indigenous Ecuadorean palm leaf, it’s a hat you’ll want to hold on to. $1,275; montecristihats.com Comments (0)
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