Susi: My parents moved to the Dominican Republic in 1990 for windsurfing. They had always been seekers of the sun and when I was born they were running a windsurfing school in southern Italy where we spent half of each year. When I was 5 they decided to leave Europe behind completely and bought a place in Cabarete, which in those days was nothing more than a little fishing village with a couple of crazy gringos sailing around on windsurfers in the bay. I did elementary and high school there but went back frequently to visit my family in Germany. They made sure I wasn't loosing all the German in me, hehe! If anything, at least I'm punctual and know about Mozart and stuff.

 

I first started to kite when a friend of mine, Gael, opened a school on Kitebeach and gave me some lessons. I remember I took one lesson back then and hated it. One year after that I got motivated again and decided I should give it another try. That was in spring 2002, but since I was still in high school I didn't get to go more than once or twice a week. I wasn't really into it back then, but when the PKRA [Kitesurf tour] event came to town in June I saw what it was really all about and suddenly I was hooked. It was also the first time I had seen girls riding and competing, and that was when I decided I really wanted to learn to kite. Of course back then I didn't think about competition or anything like that, I just wanted to be able to fly through the air and have fun.

 

Oliver: 10 years ago did you ever imagine or dream that you would be living a life as you do now? Were you lucky? Or do you think it's all about determination, commitment and passion?

 

Susi: I would have never ever guessed that I would be a pro kiteboarder. I was just a random teenager with no clue of what I wanted to do with my life, set in my way of going to university somewhere in the United States and taking random courses until I found out what I liked.

I think it was a combination of a lot of things together but I'm not gonna deny that luck played a big part in my becoming what I am today. I stumbled into a few things and it took me a while to realize what this lifestyle and this "job" was actually all about. The sport was so new back then that almost nobody really knew what he or she were doing. It didn't come with a handbook; there was nobody to look up to, no real guide. Of course there were other water sports to compare us to but kiteboarding was so different from everything else it was hard to figure out which way to go.

 

Oliver: From watching the PKRA videos I know that you speak at least German (not too difficult for a native speaker), English, Spanish, French and Portuguese? Are are you such an eager learner or did you pick up these languages by traveling and meeting people?

Susi: I don't think I ever consciously tried to learn a language, it always seemed to just happen. I knew German, Spanish, English and French before I was 10 years old...

German is my first language, Spanish is the native language in Dominican Republic so I picked that one up pretty quickly. The school I was in was American so I learnt it in school and French came with my best friend. She is more like my sister really, we grew up together and her mom only spoke to us in French. The only thing that came later was Portuguese, and the only reason I know that one is because it's so similar to French and Spanish and Brazil has such awesome kiting!

 

Oliver: Would you consider yourself a multicultural person? What do you like about the Dom. Rep. compared to let's say Germany?

Susi: I definitely consider myself multicultural. I really believe in taking the best thing each place has to offer and making it part of life. My favorite thing about DR is the freedom and how easy going every one is, nobody stresses out over delayed traffic or anything like that.

Germany on the other hand has some good things to take like culture and has a very organized and efficient mentality. I think if you find the right balance, all these things can make you a pretty well rounded citizen of the world.

 

Oliver: Do you think it's difficult to become and be a female pro kiteboarder in a sport that is dominated by men? What do you recommend to young girls to get into the sport and start a kiteboarding career?

Susi: I think that its definitely harder than for guys since we seem to struggle a lot harder to get by in the sport but in my head, female kiteboarding hasn't reached its full potential yet. It's going to be like when blue crush came out for surfing, suddenly kiteboarding will have new appeal for chicks, all we need to do is stop trying to be guys and do our own thing.

 

Oliver: What is more important too you? The sport itself or everything that comes with it like the traveling, meeting people, getting to know different cultures.

Susi: Both are equally exciting to me.

 

Oliver: Are you a competitive person? Do you want to win badly or are you more of a soul kiteboarder?

Susi: Definitely more of a soul kiteboarder. I enjoy good sessions with friends way more than winning a heat at a competition.

 

Oliver: Do you ever kitesurf in Germany (expect for the PKRA tourstops) or is it too cold for you?

Susi: Not too much, I'm traveling most of the year and I don't have a base in Germany near the water, my family lives in Munich.

 

Oliver: What are your plans for 2009? Who will win the PKRA kite world tour this year?

Susi: My plans for the year aren't very clear at the moment, I am doing a bit of TV work outside of kiteboarding but its all confidential still ;-) I have also done 3 editorial travel stories this year already. Other than that I will be doing more promo events, more things with Cabrinha in Europe and  focus on my own things rather than trying to follow the confusing tour-scene! Oh yeah and most important, I will finish my skydive license!